Travel Classics Syllabus

K20.1539
Spring 2011
Gallatin School, NYU

TR 11:00-12:15

2 credits

Steve Hutkins

REQUIRED TEXTS

1. Homer's Odyssey (selection available online)
2. Herodotus, An Account of Egypt (from The History) (Boomer Books)

3. Marco Polo, The Travels (Penguin)

4. Ibn Battutah: The Travels of Ibn Battutah (Picador)

5. Christopher Columbus, The Four Voyages (Penguin)

6. Cabeza de Vaca, The Narrative of Cabeza de Vaca, translated by Rolena Adorno and Patrick Charles Pautz (University of Nebraska)

7. Shakespeare, The Tempest (Signet Classics)

8. Montaigne's Of Cannibals (available online)

SCHEDULE OF READINGS

(See the Assignment page for details about the reading and writing assignments.)

REQUIREMENTS

1. Blog essays: 14 posts (70% final grade)

2. Blog comments: 14 comments on other people’s posts on other blogs (15%)

3. Participation, attendance, etc. (15%)

(No Incomplete grades.)

CONTACT:

Office: 715 Broadway, room 608; Phone: 998-7361; E-mail: ssh1@nyu.edu

Office hours: Tues.: 10 – 11, 3:30 – 5; Thurs.: 10 – 11, 12:30 – 2; 3:3 - 5

Course website: www.travel-studies.com

POLICIES

Deadlines: The first blog assignment of the week is due on Monday night so there's time to read them over before class on Tuesday; the second assignment of the week should be posted before class on Thursday. The comments on other people's posts should be done within a day or two of when the assignment is due.  (These are important deadlines, and the website makes it easy to track them.)

Plagiarism: In writing your posts, you are encouraged to copy and paste quotations from scholarly articles and other websites, but it is extremely important that you cite your source (author or title) and provide a link to it. The blog posts are a form of academic writing, and plagiarism is a serious violation of the rules of academic integrity.

Attendance: The class is a discussion seminar, so attendance is very important. One or two absences are fine, but more than that will affect the final grade (with the exception of illness). It is not necessary to notify the instructor about your absences, unless you are having issues.