American Literature and Language

Study the literature of our forefathers and foremothers and the creative works of the great minds of our nation's past and present to increase your understanding of human nature. Learn to look below surface interpretations, develop critical thinking skills, become a better communicator and improve your own writing skills by examining the literary techniques used in various genres of American literature.

This High School Course is also offered as part of the General Online Diploma program.

Credits: 1 Unit

Course ID: ENG03

Course Area: English

Course Type: General

Study Method: Online

Course Outline:

Unit 1:

Lesson 1: Why literature matters

Lesson 2: Reading and writing about poetry

Lesson 3: Early American poets

Lesson 4: Edgar Allen Poe and the shaping of "American" literature

Lesson 5: The Civil War, Whitman and Dickinson

Lesson 6: Poetry of place: Robert Frost and Carl Sandburg

Lesson 7: Poetry of the harlem Renaissance

Lesson 8: Mid-20th century confessional poetry

Lesson 9: Diverse expressions

Lesson 10: American poetry today

Unit 2:

Lesson 11: Reading and writing about prose

Lesson 12: Declaring independence

Lesson 13: Early American fiction

Lesson 14: An American philosophy

Lesson 15: The literature of slavery

Lesson 16: Literature of the Civil War

Lesson 17: Mark Twain: America's great humorist

Lesson 18: The Native American writers

Lesson 19: Fighting words - literature and women's rights

Lesson 20: The immigrant experience in literature

Unit 3:

Lesson 21: Introduction to John Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men

Lesson 22: Reading Of Mice and Men, Chapter One

Lesson 23: Reading Of Mice and Men, Chapter Two

Lesson 24: Reading Of Mice and Men, Chapter Three

Lesson 25: Reading Of Mice and Men, Chapter Four

Lesson 26: Reading Of Mice and Men, Chapter Five

Lesson 27: Reading Of Mice and Men, Chapter Six

Lesson 28: Of Mice and Men, a review

Lesson 29: More on Steinbeck

Lesson 30: Other novelists you should know

Unit 4:

Lesson 31: The essay as literature

Lesson 32: The narrative essay

Lesson 33: Essays of the Harlem Renaissance

Lesson 34: Minority voices

Lesson 35: Satirical and humorous essays

Lesson 36: Nature and spirituality in American literature

Lesson 37: Writing essays about place

Lesson 38: Ernest Hemingway and minimalism

Lesson 39: The American short story

Lesson 40: A novel of the Jazz Age

Items Provided by Students:

Books

• 50 Essays : A Portable Anthology (Sam Cohen)
• Of Mice and Men (John Steinbeck)