| Course Title: Topics in Creative Writing: 'Writing Animal Tales' |
| Start Date: 01/28/2025 End Date: 05/13/2025 |
| Term: Spring Semester 2025 |
| Description: What do writings about animals reveal about their lives? How do human beings engage with mammals, fish, reptiles, and birds as food, competitors, and companions? We will explore these questions as we read works focusing on the real and imagined lives of animals from ancient fables through twenty-first-century novels, essays, and hybrid-genre works. Reading discussions will be followed by writing experiments designed to spark original thinking and develop facility with writing. You will gain insight into the fine and ferocious literature concerning the great and small beasts, writing creative and analytical pieces toward a final portfolio. Some classes will involve field trips to observe animals. |
| Distribution(s): I - Humanities , MP - Multicultural Perspectives , WI - Writing-Intensive , TP - Topics Course |
| Academic Level Of Course: Undergraduate | Credits:4.00 |
| Faculty | Phone | Email address |
| Anna Maria Hong | 413-538-2862 | ahong@mtholyoke.edu |
| Elizabeth Young | 413-538-2326 | eyoung@mtholyoke.edu |
| Iyko Day (email: iday@mtholyoke.edu, phone: 413-538-3222) may also be contacted for registration permissions and registration questions. |
| Mark Shea (email: markshea@mtholyoke.edu, phone: 413-538-3541) may also be contacted for registration permissions and registration questions. |
| Meeting Dates | Method | Meeting days | Meeting times | Building name | Room | Frequency |
| 01/28/2025 - 05/13/2025 | Seminar | Monday and Wednesday | 10:00AM - 11:15AM | ART - Art | 221 | Weekly |
| Requisite Courses | ||
| Prereq: ENGL-201. | Take previously | Required |
| Comments |
| Additional Comments |
| Course Tags |
| Cross-listed Sections |
| None |
| Course Availability | ||||
| Section status: Closed | Capacity: 16 | Enrollment: 16 | Available: 0 | Waitlist: 0 |
BOOK INFORMATION
| Book List | Required | Publisher Full Price |
| Title: Aesop: The Complete Fables Author: Temple, Olivia and Robert Copyright: 1998 Edition: Volume: ISBN: Publisher: Penguin |
Recommended | 14.00 |
| Title: The Illustrated Compendium of Amazing Animal Facts Author: Safstrom, Maja Copyright: 2016 Edition: Volume: ISBN: Publisher: Ten Speed Press |
Required | 14.99 |
| Title: Squirrel Seeks Chipmunk: A Modest Bestiary Author: Sedaris, David Copyright: 2011 Edition: Volume: ISBN: Publisher: Back Bay Books |
Optional | 14.00 |
| Title: Blow-Up and Other Stories Author: Cortazar, Julio Copyright: 1967 Edition: Volume: ISBN: Publisher: Pantheon |
Optional | 14.00 |
| Title: The Elephant Vanishes Author: Murakami, Haruki Copyright: 1993 Edition: Volume: ISBN: 0679750533 Publisher: Vintage |
Optional | 13.00 |
| Title: Fuzz: When Nature Breaks the Law Author: Roach, Mary Copyright: 2021 Edition: Volume: ISBN: 9781324036128 Publisher: Norton |
Optional | 16.95 |
| Title: Better Living Through Birding: Notes from a Black Man in the Natural World Author: Cooper, Christian Copyright: 2024 Edition: Volume: ISBN: 9780593242407 Publisher: Random House |
Optional | 18.00 |
| Additional Book Comments |
| This is the complete book list for this class. |
| Instructor's comments about the book list: Do purchase the one required book by Maja Safstrom, and I would recommend buying the collection of Aesop's Fables. The other books are purely optional and will be available on closed reserve at the library. |