UPDATE: 27 APR 2015

Your final essays will due at 9:00am on the first day of finals week: Monday, 04 May. Since we will not be meeting in-person on that day, please send me a .doc or .docx file of your document attached to an email. I will not accept late assignments.

Essays should be 10-12 pages in length, double spaced, typed in 12-point Times New Roman font, and use one-inch margins. Deviations from this format will result in a lower grade.

Each essay should conclude with a complete works cited page, which does not count toward the 10-12 page length (meaning, you cannot write a 9 page essay plus a 1 page works cited).

The header of your essay should consist only of your name in the upper right-hand corner, followed by a space, and then a engaging titled that is centered (no underlining or bold-faced typed).

Also, please have page numbers centered in the bottom margin.

As far as the specifics of your essays are concerned, make sure that you:

• open with an introduction that properly contextualizes your primary text, which concludes in a thesis statement that follows the parameters we discussed/workshopped in class
• include a scholarly overview (i.e. researched, background information)
• critically analyze your primary text, supporting your analysis with secondary sources; your analysis should address the confluence of word and image or meta-pictures
• finally, end with a conclusion that answers the "so what" question (in other words, do not summarize or re-capitulate of your essay)

As mentioned in class, please be sure that you use language precisely and economically in order to create clear and understandable prose.

UPDATE: 03 APR 2014

As I mentioned in our class session this morning, next week will be a "research" week. To this end, we will not be meeting during our officially scheduled class time. If you have questions for me regarding your research project, please contact me via email. If we cannot address your issues electronically, we can schedule a one-on-one meeting to discuss your questions.

When we return to class on Monday, 13 April, you will need the following: a) a specific imagetext that you'll be analyzing, b) a tentative thesis statement that engages the research you've conduct, and c) a sizable portion of your Annotated Bibliography completed.

During the week of 13 April, we will workshop everyone's tentative thesis statements in class. On Friday, 17 April, your Annotated Bibliography is due.

UPDATE: 19 MAR 2014

On Monday, 30 March (i.e. the first day after Spring Break), your third response essay will be due. The guidelines for this essay are the same as the previous two response essays--the only difference being the chapters from which you will choose your quotation. I've provided the assignment guidelines below for your reference:

For this paper, you will select a single passage from chapters seven, eight, or nine that you found compelling.

Once you select a quote, you will need to a) explain in your own words what Mitchell means, b) articulate why you think it is interesting, c) address the implications and outcomes of this quote on text/image hybrids, and d) raise a series of critical questions that stem from the quotation and could be used to pursue a more expansive line of research.

You paper will be two full pages (not one and half, etc), using one-inch margins. Your font must be 12-point, double-spaced, Times New Roman. In the top, right-hand corner you will type your name (no other identify information is necessary). You will also need an illustrative/relevant title. The response should be free of grammatical and typographical errors.

I would also suggest that you take, at very at least, a cursory look at the guidelines for proper source integration at Purdue University's OWL site. Improper citation methods and formatting will result in a lower overall score on your response.

Additionally, I would also like to provide you with the Annotated Bibliography guidelines, which will be due in approximately one month.

ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY:

In order to compose your final research essay in an effective manner, you will need to conduct considerable, academic research (i.e. not using Google or Wikipedia, etc). To document this process, you’ll need to create an annotated bibliography.

An annotated bibliography consists of a list of MLA-style citations for books, articles, websites, etc. Each citation is followed by a paragraph-long description and evaluation of the source.

Before you begin writing your annotated bibliography, you will need to narrow down your research topic. A good annotated bibliography includes only those sources that directly relate to your narrowed, focused research question. To this extent, you want to ask yourself: What specific questions do I have about my topic that I would like to answer through research? Any one of those questions would likely be a suitable research topic.

Once you have decided on a focused research question, you may begin collecting sources for your annotated bibliography. The bibliography itself will consist of 8 secondary sources (this should not include Mitchell's Picture Theory), which are listed below by type (along with the rules to follow). I’ve listed acceptable sources below:

Books: this includes anthologies, but not books printed solely on the Internet (i.e. if the book is online, it must have appeared in print first).

Essays/Articles: from journals, magazines or newspapers: You should find these in databases, and if there is a link to full text, that’s okay. Otherwise, use Inter-Library Loan or get them out at our library.

As mentioned previously, each source in an annotated bibliography requires the following material:

First, describe or summarize the main points made in the book or article. You should discuss the central theme of the source, the thesis, major sub-points, and salient examples. To this end, I’d like to see you articulate the book or essay’s thesis, as well as outlining the source's main points. Please include relevant quotes when possible.

Second, you will need to evaluate the source. Your evaluation should include why the source and the author are credible, how the source is relevant to your narrowed research question, and how you evaluate the source. I’m looking for specific citations/ideas from your source and how those citation/ideas connect directly to your upcoming projects. Do not create vague or overly generalized relationships that do not demonstrate an understanding of the text and why you’ve chosen it.

This aspect of your assignment should be 7-9 pages in length, double-spaced and typed in 12-point, Times New Roman font.

Each of the sources must be formatted to MLA specifications.

For more information on, please consult OWL’s guidelines for the Annotated Bibliography.

Below I've include an annotation I wrote for Mitchell's Picture Theory several years ago. I don't expect your entries to be this long; I offer this sample simply as an example of the rigor with which I expect you to engage your sources:

Mitchell, W.J.T. Picture Theory. Chicago, IL: The University of Chicago Press, 1994.

In the introduction to Picture Theory, Mitchell states that his book “investigates the interactions of visual and verbal representation in a variety of media, principally literature and the visual arts”; but more than merely describing these “interactions,” the author wishes “to trace their linkages to issues of power, value, and human interest” (5). Of course, he immediately complicates this notion of a verbal-visual binary with the claim that “all media are mixed media, and all representations are heterogeneous; there are no 'purely' visual or verbal arts” (5). To a certain extent, this is both the rhetorical and formal structure of the book writ large: a continual series of dialectical negations, “not in the Hegelian sense of achieving a stable synthesis, but in...Adorno's sense of working through contradiction interminably” (418).

Mitchell divides Picture Theory into five sections, and he subdivides each section into chapters. Section I, titled “Picture Theory,” begins by laying out the historical and critical foundations of what the author calls the “Pictorial Turn.” This turn, like the linguistic and ethical turns preceding it, stems “from a point of peculiar friction and discomfort across a broad range of intellectual inquiry” (13); but far from replicating traditional lines of inquiry, such as mimetic and correspondence theory promoted within art history/theory, the pictorial turn is “a postlinguistic, postsemiotic rediscovery of the picture as a complex interplay between visuality, apparatus, institutions, discourse, bodies, and figurality” (16). Likewise, the problematics inherent to “spectatorship,” as well as the expansive historical and cultural networks enveloping a particular representation, must also be considered (16). Mitchell's next point of departure is metapictures and their ability to “provide their own metalanguage,” wherein these images “might be capable of reflection on themselves, capable of providing second-order discourse” (38). In the final subsection of “Picture Theory,” the author engages the term “imagetext” and discusses the “infinite” and “unstable dialectic that constantly shifts its location in representational practices” (83) when dealing with image and text composites. To wit, Mitchell presents readers with the theoretical underpinnings of his argument that are not predicated upon simple binaries, but upon a “whole ensemble of relations between media, [wherein] relations can be many other things besides similarity, resemblance, and analogy” (89). Furthermore, these “relations” are “open” so as to preserve the “radical incommensurability” (90) between “media” elements. While few firm conclusions are established, the author makes clear that he intends to “decenter...the purist's image of media” (97).

The second major section of Picture Theory, “Texutal Pictures,” offers close readings of literary texts that incorporate, in one manner or another, images. The opening subsection explores Blake's illuminated texts, followed by an examination of ekphrastic poetry (which he further parses out into “indifference,” “hope,” and “fear”) (152-4), and, finally, the manner in which narratives (specifically slave narratives) are disrupted by moments of description (i.e. imagism). Section III, “Pictorial Texts,” intends to be the chiasmic reversal of the previous section, in that Mitchell presents three subsections that demonstrate how language enters the visual zone; to do so, he first analyzes abstract art and how its desire to extricate language (i.e. narrative) from works actually generated an extensive scaffolding of theoretical language to support it, then the minimalist-period of Robert Morris' career, and concludes with and extended look at the sub-genre of photographic essays that, more often than not, fosters “a resistance...in the text-photo relation” (287).

“Pictures and Power,” which is the title of Section IV, returns to a more theoretical plane, working through the dialectics of illusion(ism) and (ir)realism. To this extent, Mitchell expands the dialectical model of illusion-realism into (illusion-illusionism)-(realism-irrealism), and thus creates a multivalent approach that introduces an ever widening discourse fraught with complexities. Moreover, the author invokes Foucault's conception of power and the imagetext's complicity with those power relations (324). Picture Theory's final section, “Pictures and the Public Sphere,” further extends the notion of imagetexts and power, but contrasts Foucault's concept with that of Habermas' concept of the public sphere as an “ideological template” that promotes “uncoerced reason and free discussion” (363). While much of this section focuses on Spike Lee's Do the Right Thing and Oliver Stone's JFK, Mitchell provides a thorough and incisive study of “public art” and the manner in which it not only collapses “the distinction between symbolic and actual violence,” but necessarily induces violence (374-5). The book closes with a brief conclusion in which Mitchell glosses the questions: What lies outside of representation? Why are we so anxious with regard to representation? and What is our responsibility with/to/for representation?

UPDATE: 13 MAR 2014

For the week before Spring Break, please read chapter 9 in Mitchell's Picture Theory; it focuses on photographic essays.

At the beginning of the session, I will administer a quiz. Come prepared to speak about both what you found compelling and what you found confusing.

I will let you know over the course of the next couple days whether or not our response essay will be due next Friday, or the Monday when we return from break.

UPDATE: 06 MAR 2014

For our class session on Monday, 09 March, please read chapter 8 in Mitchell's Picture Theory. The material focuses on Robert Morris and Conceptual Art.

At the beginning of the session, I will administer a quiz. Come prepared to speak about both what you found compelling and what you found confusing.

UPDATE: 02 MAR 2014

For our class session on Wednesday, 04 March, please read chapter 7 in Mitchell's Picture Theory. The material addresses the relationship between Abstract Art and language.

At the beginning of the session, I will administer a quiz. Come prepared to speak about both what you found compelling and what you found confusing.

UPDATE: 27 FEB 2014

The guidelines for your second response paper will be the same as the guidelines for your first response paper. Be sure to follow the instructions, as I will grade more stringently this time around.

 For this paper, you will select a single passage from chapters four, five, or six that you found compelling.

Once you select a quote, you will need to a) explain in your own words what Mitchell means, b) articulate why you think it is interesting, c) address the implications and outcomes of this quote on text/image hybrids, and d) raise a series of critical questions that stem from the quotation and could be used to pursue a more expansive line of research.

You paper will be two full pages (not one and half, etc), using one-inch margins. Your font must be 12-point, double-spaced, Times New Roman. In the top, right-hand corner you will type your name (no other identify information is necessary). You will also need an illustrative/relevant title. The response should be free of grammatical and typographical errors.

I would also suggest that you take, at very at least, a cursory look at the guidelines for proper source integration at Purdue University's OWL site. Improper citation methods and formatting will result in a lower overall score on your response.

UPDATE: 20 FEB 2014

For Monday's class session, please read chapter 6 in Mitchell's Picture Theory, which addresses narrative, description, and slavery. We will have a quiz at the beginning of the session.

Also, I will revisit the tentative schedule in the syllabus and update it according to our current progress.

UPDATE: 13 FEB 2014

For Monday's class session, please read chapter 5 in Mitchell's Picture Theory, which addresses ekphrasis. We will have a quiz at the beginning of the session.

UPDATE: 04 FEB 2014

Your first response paper will be due at the beginning of our class session on Monday, 09 February. For this paper, you will select a single passage from either chapter one, two, or three that you found compelling.

Once you select a quote, you will need to a) explain in your own words what Mitchell means, b) articulate why you think it is interesting, c) address the implications and outcomes of this quote on text/image hybrids, and d) raise a series of critical questions that stem from the quotation and could be used to pursue a more expansive line of research.

You paper will be two full pages (not one and half, etc), using one-inch margins. Your font must be 12-point, double-spaced, Times New Roman. In the top, right-hand corner you will type your name (no other identify information is necessary). You will also need an illustrative/relevant title. The response should be free of grammatical and typographical errors.

I would also suggest that you take, at very at least, a cursory look at the guidelines for proper source integration at Purdue University's OWL site. Improper citation methods and formatting will result in a lower overall score on your response.

UPDATE: 30 JAN 2014

For our next class session, you will need to read chapter three in Picture Theory. At the beginning of Monday's session, I will administer a quiz; to this end, please show up on time.

I would also suggest that, while reading chapter three, you think actively about subject matter for your first response paper, which will be due a week from Monday. I'll provide you with more information on the assignment soon, but know that you'll need to engage ideas or concepts we've covered in the first three chapters of Picture Theory.

UPDATE: 24 JAN 2014

I already mentioned this at the conclusion of Friday's class session, but, for this coming Monday's meeting, please read the second chapter of Picture Theory. I will administer a quiz at the beginning of our class session that will cover the basic ideas found in those pages.

As with the previous chapter, I request that you annotate your text, marking any passages that you find compelling; likewise, create a short list of questions that address passages or concepts that confuse you.

UPDATE: 17 JAN 2014

Please read the first chapter of Picture Theory. I will administer a quiz at the beginning of our class session that will cover the basic ideas found in those pages.

While reading, annotate your text, marking any passages that you find compelling; likewise, create a short list of questions that address passages or concepts that confuse you.

SYLLABUS

WRTG 3020: WORD & IMAGE

Section Number: 02, MWF: 9:00-9:50, Room: MUEN D144

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Instructor: Joshua Ware, Ph.D.
Email: joshua.ware@colorado.edu
Office: 1B30-B, Environmental Design Bldg
Office Hours: MW, 10:00am-11:45am

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COURSE DESCRIPTION

Many scholars and theorists have noted that we, as a society, have entered a “pictorial turn” in relation to how we engage and encounter the world. This so-called turn acknowledges the ascent of the image over the word, at least with regard to its rhetorical and ideological power.

More likely, though, this turn enables the word and the image to enter into a reciprocal relationship, wherein each element modifies one another (and their audiences) in complex and compelling ways.

The purpose of this course, then, will be to explore this intersection of text and image, noting how “textual pictures” and “pictorial texts” effect their audiences, as well as assessing their ideological and rhetorical outcomes.

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COURSE INFORMATION

Texts and Materials:

Although, periodically, I will provide you with a series of PDF files with additional reading and information, you will only have one major course text of this semester:

Mitchell, W.J.T. Picture Theory. Chicago, IL: The University of Chicago Press, 1994.

The book should be available at the university’s bookstore. You are more than welcome to find a less expensive copy online, but your copy “not arriving in the mail yet” will not be a valid excuse for not completing the first reading and writing assignments of the semester.

Otherwise, all your assignments, updates, and announcements for this course will be posted on the course blog, which can be found at http://wrtg3020ware.blogspot.com.

Assignments:

During the course of our semester, we will have several different assignments. Before each assignment, I will provide you with more specific guidelines to direct you and aid in your success in our class. I do not accept late or incomplete assignments—there will be no exceptions to this rule. Below you will find a brief description of each assignment, along with point totals and due dates.

Quizzes: 13 quizzes that corresponds to the 13 chapters in Picture Theory; each quiz is worth 2 points, which amounts to 26 total points. Weekly.

Response Papers: 5, two-page essays that correspond to the 5 sections in Picture Theory; each response paper is worth 5 points, which amounts to 25 total points. Due: 09 February, 25 February, 13 March, 01 April, and 08 April.

Annotated Bibliography: 24 points. Due 17 April.

Final Research Essay: the semester will conclude with a 10-12 page research essay that will focus on a particular aspects of our course. Due: 01 May.

Grading:

A = 100-94     A- = 93-90      B+ = 89-87      B = 86-84      B- = 83-80      C+ = 79-77
C = 76-74      C- = 73-70      D+ = 69-67      D = 66-64      D- = 63-60      F = 59-0

Attendance:

You can choose not to come to fiveclass sessions during the course of the semester with no affect to your grade. For each absence after your fifth, your final grade will be docked one letter grade. For example, if you miss four class sessions during the semester and your final grade is an A-, you will receive a B-. I understand that people get sick or have pressing needs that need to be attended to, so use your absences wisely. If you are absent and miss in-class work or fail to turn in an assignment, you will lose those points. Finally, it is your responsibility to find out what you missed from one of your peers (i.e. another student).

Late Assignments:

I do not accept late assignments. If, for some reason, a cataclysmic event occurs that does not enable you to turn in your assignment on time, you can ask for an extension. But the granting of an extension will only happen in extremely rare circumstances; likewise, the decision on whether or not I grant you an extension is dependent entirely upon my discretion and opinion. Such a decision is not up for debate or arbitration with a third-party. Basically, operate under the mindset that late assignments will not be accepted.

Writing Center:

If you want additional help with your writing, the Writing Center in Norlin Library is a great place to go to talk about ideas, improve your thesis or essay organization, or just generally work on your writing skills. Check the Writing Center website for more information about hours and services, or request an appointment online at:

http://www.colorado.edu/pwr/writingcenter.html

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UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO-BOULDER RECOMMENDED SYLLABUS STATEMENTS

Just as both the PWR and I have our own course policies, goals, and objectives, so too does the university. Below are several university statements and accompanying URLs that will direct you to additional information.

Disabilities:

If you qualify for accommodations because of a disability, please submit to me a letter from Disability Services in a timely manner so that your needs can be addressed. Disability Services determines accommodations based on documented disabilities. Contact: 303-492-8671, Center for Community N200, and http://www.colorado.edu/disabilityservices. If you have a temporary medical condition or injury, see the guidelines at http://www.colorado.edu/disabilityservices/go.cgi?select=temporary.html. Religious Observances* Campus policy regarding religious observances requires that faculty make every effort to deal reasonably and fairly with all students who, because of religious obligations, have conflicts with scheduled exams, assignments or required attendance. In this class, I ask that you contact me at least one week ahead of the date(s) that you will be absent so that we can discuss any assignments/class material that you will miss. See full details at:

http://www.colorado.edu/policies/fac_relig.html

Classroom Behavior:

Students and faculty each have responsibility for maintaining an appropriate learning environment. Those who fail to adhere to such behavioral standards may be subject to discipline. Professional courtesy and sensitivity are especially important with respect to individuals and topics dealing with differences of race, color, culture, religion, creed, politics, veteran's status, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity and gender expression, age, disability, and nationalities. Class rosters are provided to the instructor with the student's legal name. I will gladly honor your request to address you by an alternate name or gender pronoun. Please advise me of this preference early in the semester so that I may make appropriate changes to my records. See policies at:

http://www.colorado.edu/policies/classbehavior.html

http://www.colorado.edu/studentaffairs/judicialaffairs/code.html#student_code

Discrimination and Harassment:

The University of Colorado at Boulder Discrimination and Harassment Policy and Procedures, the University of Colorado Sexual Harassment Policy and Procedures, and the University of Colorado Conflict of Interest in Cases of Amorous Relationships policy apply to all students, staff, and faculty. Any student, staff, or faculty member who believes s/he has been the subject of sexual harassment or discrimination or harassment based upon race, color, national origin, sex, age, disability, creed, religion, sexual orientation, or veteran status should contact the Office of Discrimination and Harassment (ODH) at 303-492-2127 or the Office of Student Conduct (OSC) at 303-492-5550. Information about the ODH, the above referenced policies, and the campus resources available to assist individuals regarding discrimination or harassment can be obtained at:

http://www.colorado.edu/odh

Honor Code:

All students of the University of Colorado at Boulder are responsible for knowing and adhering to the academic integrity policy of this institution. Violations of this policy may include: cheating, plagiarism, aid of academic dishonesty, fabrication, lying, bribery, and threatening behavior. All incidents of academic misconduct shall be reported to the Honor Code Council (honor@colorado.edu; 303-735-2273). Students who are found to be in violation of the academic integrity policy will be subject to both academic sanctions from the faculty member and non-academic sanctions (including but not limited to university probation, suspension, or expulsion). Other information on the Honor Code can be found at:

http://www.colorado.edu/policies/honor.html

http://www.colorado.edu/academics/honorcode

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TENTATIVE COURSE SCHEDULE

What follows is a tentative schedule for our class sessions this semester. Please prepare accordingly, but be aware that details are subject to change based upon how the semester proceeds.

Monday: 12 Jan	syllabus and introductions
Wednesday: 14 Jan	introductions (continued) and discussion
Friday: 16 Jan	discuss Picture Theory Introduction
Monday: 19 Jan	OFF MLK
Wednesday: 21 Jan	quiz and discuss chapter 01
Friday: 23 Jan	discuss chapter 01
Monday: 26 Jan	quiz and discuss chapter 02
Wednesday: 28 Jan	discuss chapter 02
Friday: 31 Jan	discuss chapter 02
Monday: 02 Feb	quiz and discuss chapter 03
Wednesday: 04 Feb	discuss chapter 03
Friday: 06 Feb	discuss chapter 03
Monday: 09 Feb	Response Paper Due
Wednesday: 11 Feb	quiz and discuss chapter 04
Friday: 13 Feb	discuss chapter 04
Monday: 16 Feb	quiz and discuss chapter 05
Wednesday: 18 Feb	discuss chapter 05
Friday: 20 Feb	quiz and discuss chapter 06
Monday: 23 Feb	discuss chapter 06
Wednesday: 25 Feb	Response Paper Due
Friday: 27 Feb	quiz and discuss chapter 07
Monday: 02 Mar	discuss chapter 07
Wednesday: 04 Mar	quiz and discuss chapter 08
Friday: 06 Mar	discuss chapter 08
Monday: 09 Mar	quiz and discuss chapter 09
Wednesday: 11 Mar	discuss chapter 09
Friday: 13 Mar	Response Paper Due
Monday: 16 Mar	quiz and discuss chapter 10
Wednesday: 18 Mar	quiz and discuss chapter 11
Friday: 20 Mar	Annotated Bibliography Guidelines
Monday: 23 Mar	OFF Spring Break
Wednesday: 25 Mar	OFF Spring Break
Friday: 27 Mar	OFF Spring Break
Monday: 30 Mar	discuss chapters 10 and 11
Wednesday: 01 Apr	Response Paper Due
Friday: 03 Apr	quiz and discuss chapter 12
Monday: 06 Apr	quiz and discuss chapter 13
Wednesday: 08 Apr	Response Paper Due
Friday: 10 Apr	TBD
Monday: 13 Apr	TBD
Wednesday: 15 Apr	TBD
Friday: 17 Apr	Annotated Bibliography Due
Monday: 20 Apr	TBD
Wednesday: 22 Apr	TBD
Friday: 24 Apr	TBD
Monday: 27 Apr	TBD
Wednesday: 29 Apr	TBD
Friday: 01 May	Final Research Essay Due.