Vampire: Blood and Empire (Slavic 0880) Spring 2002 (CRN 31300) Instructors: Helena Goscilo TH 2:30-3:45 Sara Schwartz CL-G24 Tel. 45908 (HG) 45715 (SS) Office hours: W 5-6; H 4-5 (HG) Office: CL 1417 T 12-1; W 12-1 (SS) Course Description: This course examines the phenomenon of vampirism in verbal and visual culture from different periods in various cultures (Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, Rumania, Russia, Serbia, France, England, America). Why do vampires capture the imagination especially of anglophone readers and viewers? What qualities does the vampire incarnate? Which historical events or customs have triggered particular enthusiasm for depicting the undead? How has the depiction of the vampire evolved over centuries? Our discussions will address these and related issues as we analyze stories, novels, films, legends, fairy tales, and historical studies, focusing on vampires from a variety of critical perspectives and contextualizing the works in the cultures that produced them. Course Requirements: The size of this class has doubled since the course description first saw print. Accordingly, the course requirements have undergone modification. Students are required (1) to complete the assignments scheduled for each class meeting (read a specified text or view a specified film) and be prepared to summarize and discuss them in class on the pertinent day; (2) to participate actively and intelligently, on a REGULAR basis, in class discussions; (3) to take the four scheduled exams, as well as the regular, unannounced quizzes administered throughout the semester; (4) on 11 April, to submit a one-page paper, written from the viewpoint of a vampire, on the benefits of being a vampire at either a nightclub or at the ship on Semester at Sea. This typed, double-spaced one-pager may be an essay, a story, a diary entry, a letter, or a confession. Although the paper taps into students’ creativity, it must observe the rules of correct English and standard paper format (consult the MLA Handbook if you are unfamiliar with those conventions). Credits and attendance: This course carries three credits and satisfies the CAS requirement in foreign culture. It meets twice a week throughout the semester and combines lecture and discussion format (class size makes it impossible to implement the original idea of individual student presentations). Since attendance is critical to course performance, more than three unexcused absences will result in a lower grade (each additional absence will reduce the grade by a notch: A to A-, C+ to C, etc.). Eight absencesautomatically translate into an F for the course. If serious illness prevents class attendance, documentation of that fact must be presented in the form of a doctor’s letter, stating that ON THE DAY AT THE TIME THE CLASS MEETS the student was too ill to attend. These letters must be submitted to the instructors ON THE DAY THE STUDENT RETURNS TO CLASS; otherwise they will not be accepted. All questions regarding attendance and record-keeping should be addressed to Sara Schwartz. Students are responsible for finding out FROM THEIR CLASSMATES whether important information or materials circulated during a session that they missed. Therefore students should exchange telephone numbers and E-mail addresses with their “class neighbors.” **Neighboring classmate’s tel. __________________ e-mail _____________________** We encourage students experiencing problems in the course to make an appointment with either of the two instructors during their office hours (see above). At the same time, we strongly discourage students from E-mailing instructors regarding issues addressed in this detailed syllabus; quite simply, their schedules do not permit electronic exchanges that a familiarity with this syllabus makes superfluous. Students with questions pertaining to the course should come to the instructors’ office hours, for office hours are scheduled precisely for that purpose. Website: This course has a website <http://www.pitt.edu/~slavic/course/vampires>, which contains the current syllabus, as well as sundry visuals and links to other vampire-relevant sites. We shall appreciate information from students regarding additional sites and visuals. Moreover, we encourage students to bring into class and share with the group any materials (music, visuals, etc.) connected with vampirism that may be of interest to the entire group. Grading: Grades will be based on the QUALITY of student performance in the following: (1) class discussions–25% ; (2) five unannounced quizzes–25%; (3) four exams–40%; (4) a one-page paper– 10%. NOTE: ***ANYONE INCAPABLE OF REGULAR ACTIVE PARTICIPATION IN CLASS DISCUSSIONS SHOULD NOT STAY ENROLLED IN THIS COURSE.*** **NO MAKE-UP EXAMS OR QUIZZES WILL BE ADMINISTERED. IF A STUDENT MISSES AN EXAM OR A QUIZ OWING TO ABSENCE, S/HE WILL RECEIVE AN ‘F’ FOR THAT EXAM OR QUIZ. NO EXCEPTIONS.** Academic Integrity: By remaining enrolled in the course, students not only agree to abide by the above stipulations, but also understand that the instructors will follow with utmost rigor the rules spelled out in the3Handbook on Integrity regarding cheating, plagiarism, etc. It is the students’ responsibility to familiarize themselves with these regulations and to observe them. Any infraction will be penalized according to these rules. PLEASE NOTE THAT SIGNING THE ATTENDANCE SHEET FOR A CLASSMATE IS EASY TO DETECT, CONSTITUTES VIOLATION OF ACADEMIC INTEGRITY, AND WILL BE PENALIZED ACCORDINGLY. Information about Reading and Viewing: * Indicates reading and viewing assignments, to be completed on the day indicated. Some videos of films will be viewed in class, others outside of class by the date specified in the syllabus: rent the video or watch it in Hillman Library, where the pertinent videos are on Reserve for the course. The designation (D) refers to the Norton Critical Edition of Dracula, which, apart from the text of Stoker’s novel, contains critical essays (#3 below). (AR) references the collection of stories edited by Alan Ryan (#2 below) The notation (xerox) refers to xeroxes either distributed in class or