Download Week 3

THR 375: WOMEN IN AMERICAN THEATRE
SPRING 2007
Dr. Karin Maresh
Class Meetings: TR, 2:30-4:00pm
Office: 004 Burnett
Burnett 003
Office Hours: 10:30am-12:00pm MF
1:00-2:30pm T (or by appointment
Phone: 724-503-1001, ext. 3342
Email: [email protected] (This is the best way to reach me outside of class.)
REQUIRED TEXTS:
Helen Krich Chinoy and Linda Walsh Jenkins, eds. Women in American Theatre. 3rd ed.
New York: Theatre Communications Group, 2006.
Judith E. Barlow, ed. Plays By American Women, 1900-1930. New York, NY: Applause,
1985.
Lillian Hellman, The Children’s Hour
Lorraine Hansberry, A Raisin in the Sun
Wendy Wasserstein, The Heidi Chronicles
COURSE DESCRIPTION: An examination of the history of and work by women
playwrights, directors, actors, and theatre managers in the United States from the late
eighteenth century to the present. In this course, students also study women's history in
the United States and feminist and gender theory as they influence and have been
influenced by American theatre.
STUDENT LEARNING OUTCOMES:
Throughout this semester students will:
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become familiar with the women who have been an instrumental part of American
theatre throughout the past two and a half centuries.
gain knowledge of the ways in which gender, class, race, economics, and politics
have influenced women’s access to the theatrical profession.
exercise their analytical skills by rigorously questioning how women in American
theatre have, through their plays and productions, challenged and accepted
conventional attitudes towards women.
further develop their reading, research, writing, communication, and critical
thinking skills through course assignments and class discussion.
CLASS POLICIES:
1. No make-up assignments, quizzes, or exams are allowed without documentation
of an illness or emergency.
2. Papers and assignments are to be turned into me at the beginning of class on the
scheduled due date. I will only accept hard copies (not via email). Late papers
will be penalized by one letter grade for each day after the deadline. Papers
which are five or more days late will be given an automatic zero.
3. If you have any condition, such as a physical or mental disability, that will make
it difficult for you to meet the requirements of the course, please notify me during
the first two weeks of class so we can make the appropriate accommodations.
ASSIGNMENTS:
1. Daily Assignments – Students will come to class each day with at least one
discussion question of their own creation for each of that day’s assigned readings.
On days when there are several readings due, I will divide the readings among the
students. Each student will then read and take notes on their assigned essay,
report on it to the rest of the class, and hand in a 1-2 page account of their
findings.
2. Report – Each student will prepare an oral report on a female playwright, director,
actor, designer, manager, producer, or women’s theatre company. A list of topics
is listed on the final page of this syllabus. These reports should be limited to 1015 minutes and must be accompanied by a 2-3 page paper that summarizes your
presentation and should also include a bibliography in MLA format with a
minimum of four sources (See me if you ever need help locating resources). This
paper is due on the day you present your report. Above all you should challenge
yourself to engage with your subject critically. Ask questions. For example, why
is this woman/company historically significant? What role do politics or social
issues play in this artist’s work? What can we learn about the art of theatre and
women’s history by studying this artist’s career? Students who choose a
playwright as their subject will read at least one of the author’s plays and include
discussion of it in their reports.
3. Research Paper – This 10-page paper may deal with any aspect of women in
American theatre whether we have directly discussed it in class or not. However,
you should avoid turning in a simple biographical account of an artist or
company. I expect this paper to have a clearly stated argument (thesis) and to be
a thoughtful, thorough analysis/critical investigation of your topic. The paper will
be completed in stages: a one-paragraph proposal (topic statement) is due on 15
Feb.; an introductory paragraph, outline, and bibliography is due on 1 Mar.; a
rough draft of your paper is due on 21 Mar.; and your final paper is due on 3
May. Your bibliography should include a minimum of 10 sources and follow
MLA format (See: http://www.dianahacker.com/resdoc/p04_c08_s2.html#1) . No
more than 4 of these sources may be internet sites. In other words, at least 6 of
your sources should be books or articles.
4. Production – You are also required to see the W&J production of Eve Ensler’s
The Vagina Monologues on 14 February in the Rossin Center ballroom. We will
discuss the show in class and questions about it will be posed to you on the
exams. The show is free for students.
All written assignments for this class MUST be typed, double-spaced, formatted in
Roman Numeral 12 pt. font, and PROOFREAD. I will take points off for sloppy
grammar.
**Grades for these assignments will be based primarily upon your level of work in four
main areas: research, organization, preparation, and creativity (independent thinking).
Work that meets the minimum requirements will earn a “C.” A “B” assignment will
show some depth of thought and good use of materials, while an “A” assignment will
show significant depth of thought and excellent use of materials.
BLACKBOARD: I will use Blackboard periodically this semester to post readings,
assignments, class discussion questions, and links to relevant and useful web sites. If you
happen to miss class, be sure to check the blackboard site in the event I issue an
assignment in your absence.
ATTENDANCE AND PARTICIPATION: You are expected to attend all classes. Each
class period is worth four points, two for attendance and two for participation. If you
miss a class you lose the points available for that day. Attendance is taken at the start of
class and tardiness will be noted and can affect your grade.
Participation in this class means active involvement in relevant class discussion and
group activities. The best piece of advice I can give you is this: In order to critically
engage with the material and your classmates, you should take notes, make observations
and ask questions of the course material. Write down all questions that are raised as you
read and bring those questions to class for discussion. This will make the class more
interesting for you, as well as for the class as a whole. These notes will also be
enormously helpful as you study for your midterm and final exams.
GRADING:
Midterm Exam
Final Exam
Final Research Paper
Rough Draft
Introduction/Bibliography
Topic Statement
Presentation of Paper
Report
Daily Assignments
Attendance/Participation
100 pts.
100 pts.
100 pts.
50 pts.
25 pts.
15 pts.
25 pts.
60 pts.
60 pts.
104 pts.
639 pts.*
*The total number of available points for the semester may change depending on the
amount of daily work that is assigned.
GRADING SCALE:
A= 93-100 (A), 90-92 (A-)
B= 88-89 (B+), 83-87 (B), 80-82 (B-)
C= 78-79 (C+), 73-77 (C), 70-72 (C-)
D= 68-69 (D+), 63-67 (D), 60-62 (D-)
F= 59 and below
ACADEMIC RESPONSIBILITY: Academic honesty and integrity is expected of all
students. I treat cheating of any sort, electronic or human, very seriously. The written
work you hand in or present in class must be your own, no mater how small the
assignment, and the sources informing both your ideas and prose should be properly
acknowledged. I will avail myself of W&J resources to detect digital plagiarism. If a
student is found guilty of plagiarism, he or she will receive a failing grade in the course.
If you are confused in any way about this, please see me. Information about W&J
regulations concerning plagiarism and academic misconduct can be found online on the
College website and in the College Catalog.
According to the College’s Academic Honesty Policy, “examples of academic
misconduct include, but are not limited to:
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Plagiarism, which is representing the fruits of another’s intellectual labor as one’s own,
whether this is done with the intention to deceive or is the result of incompetence.
Examples include using someone else’s ideas, research results, sentence structure, or
phrasing without properly crediting the author, thus leading the reader to assume that they
are the student’s own creation.
Fabricating material and representing it as genuine. This includes falsifying research
results for a laboratory report or falsifying information for a written essay.
Submitting papers or other academic work in two different classes or other academic
settings without full knowledge of the instructors involved and written permission from
both instructors. When an assignment asks for original work, the presumption is that the
work has not been submitted in a different class or another academic setting.
Knowingly giving or receiving unauthorized aid on a piece of academic work (including
tests, papers, research, artwork, etc.). For example, a person knowingly giving answers to
another person during a test is as guilty of academic misconduct as the person receiving
the answers.
Misconduct in a testing situation, including copying answers from another student’s test,
using electronic devices or other unauthorized sources of information during a test, or
illicitly collaborating on tests taken outside of the classroom” (Academic Status
Committee. “Academic Honesty Policy.” Spring 2005. 12 August 2005 <
http://www1.washjeff.edu/users/committees/coas/>.).
CALENDAR:
Week 1
R 1 Feb.
Week 2
T 6 Feb.
R 8 Feb.
Week 3
T 13 Feb.
R 15 Feb.
Week 4
T 20 Feb.
R 22 Feb.
Week 5
T 27 Feb.
Introduction to course
Overview of women’s history in the United States
Helen Krich Chinoy, “Interrogating the Past, or Women in Theatre – Then
and Now” and “Art Versus Business: The Role of Women in
American Theatre”(pp. xiii-xix; xxvii-xxxv)
Sue Ellen Case, “Semiotics and the Gaze: Toward a New Poetics”
(pp. 340-343)
Jill Dolan, “The Discourse of Feminisms: The Spectator and
Representation” (pp. 343-349)
Mercy Otis Warren, The Group*
Helen Krich Chinoy, “Here Are the Women Playwrights” (pp. 118-122)
Alice McDonnell Robinson, “Mercy Warren, Satirist of the Revolution”
(pp. 122-128)
Helen Krich Chinoy, “The Actress” (pp. 49-51)
Gresdna Doty, “Anne Brunton Merry: First Star” (pp. 52-57)
Claudia D. Johnson, “Enter the Harlot” (pp. 57-65)
Faye E. Dudden, “Acting Female” (pp. 115-117)
Yvonne Shafer, “Women in Male Roles: Charlotte Cushman and Others”
(pp. 65-72)
Lois Adler, “Adah Isaacs Menken in Mazeppa” (pp. 72-78)
Marlie Moses, “Lydia Thompson and the ‘British Blondes’” (pp. 78-80)
Robert C. Allen, “Horrible Prettiness: A Cultural Analysis of ‘British
Blondes’” (pp. 80-82)
DUE: Topic Statement for Research Paper
Writing a Research Paper
Discussion of W&J production of Ensler’s The Vagina Monologues
Anna Cora Mowatt’s Fashion*
Rosemarie K. Bank, “The Second Face of the Idol: Women in
Melodrama” (pp. 228-232)
Student Presentation: Laura Keene
Helen Krich Chinoy, “If Not an Actress, What . . .?” (pp. 179-183)
Mary Julia Curtis, “Women Open Augusta’s First Theatre” (pp. 183-187)
J. Dennis Rich, “Art Theatre in Hull-House” (pp. 187-192)
R 1 Mar.
Week 6
T 6 Mar.
R 8 Mar.
Week 7
T 13 Mar.
Rachel Crothers, A Man’s World (in Plays by American Women)
Lois Gottlieb, “Looking to Women: Rachel Crothers and the Feminist
Heroine” (pp. 128-135)
DUE: Introductory Paragraph and Bibliography
Student Presentation: Mae West
Robert A. Schanke, “Mary Shaw: A Fighting Champion” (pp. 88-96)
Errol Hill, “Henrietta Vinton Davis: Shakespearean Actress” (pp. 83-87)
Student Presentation: Minnie Maddern Fiske
Susan Glaspell, Trifles (in Plays by American Women)
Karen F. Stein, “The Women’s World of Glaspell’s Trifles” (pp. 240-243)
Student Presentation: Anita Bush and the Lafayette Players
R 15 Mar.
Susan Spector and Steven Urkowitz, “Uta Hagen and Eva Le Gallienne”
(pp. 109-112)
Muriel McKenna, “The Art of Ruth Draper” (pp. 103-108)
Student Presentation: Stella Adler
Midterm Exam
Week 8
T 20 Mar.
R 22 Mar.
NO CLASS – Spring Break
NO CLASS – Spring Break
Week 9
T 27 Mar.
R 29 Mar.
Week 10
T 3 Apr.
R 5 Apr.
Sophie Treadwell, Machinal (in Plays by American Women)
Louise Heck-Rabi, “Sophie Treadwell: Agent for Change” (pp. 147-152)
Shirlee Hennigan, “Women Directors – The Early Years” (pp. 192-194)
Pauline Hahn, “Hallie Flanagan: Practical Visionary” (pp. 194-199)
DUE: Rough Draft of Research Paper
Student Presentation: Margaret Webster
Lillian Hellman, The Children’s Hour
“Lillian Hellman Talks About Women” (pp. 162-168)
Student Presentation: Tallulah Bankhead
Peggy Clark Kelley, “Peggy Clark Kelley: Reminiscences of a
‘Designing’ Woman” (pp. 209-215)
Dorothy B. Magnus, “Matriarchs of the Regional Theatre” (pp. 203-209)
Student Presentation: Jean Rosenthal and Tharon Musser
Week 11
T 10 Apr.
R 12 Apr.
Week 12
T 17 Apr.
R 19 Apr.
Week 13
T 24 Apr.
R 26 Apr.
Week 14
T 1 May
R 3 May
Week 15
T 8 May
Lorraine Hansberry, A Raisin in the Sun
Margaret Wilkerson, “Lorraine Hansberry: Artist, Activist, Feminist”
(pp. 168-173)
Jeanne-Marie A. Miller, “Black Women in Plays by Black Playwrights”
(pp. 243-249)
Student Presentation: Anna Deveare Smith
Adrienne Kennedy, Funnyhouse of a Negro*
“‘Lesson I Bleed’: Adrienne Kennedy’s Blood Rites” (pp. 42-47)
Student Presentation: Anne Bogart
Linda Walsh Jenkins, “Feminist Theatre” (pp. 265-267)
Patti P. Gillespie, “Feminist Theatre: A Rhetorical Phenomenon”
(pp. 267-275)
Charlotte Canning, “Staging Women’s Experience: Feminist Theatres in
the USA” (pp. 322-325)
Linda Walsh Jenkins, “Changes and Legacies” (pp. 325-327)
Examination of Feminist Theatres in the United States
Student Presentation: The Women’s Project
Wendy Wasserstein, The Heidi Chronicles
Student Presentation: Julie Taymor
Cherríe Moraga, Shadow of a Man*
Student Presentation: Maria Irene Fornes
TBA
TBA
FINAL PAPERS DUE
TBA
Final Exam: Thursday, 10 May, 6:30-9:30pm