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Spring 2008
English 491: Senior Thesis, 2 credit hours
 

Don W. King: http://www.montreat.edu/dking/ 
Office: McGowan Center 107
Office hrs.: MWF 8-9; 10-11 a.m.; Tuesday 9-12 a.m.
Phone 828-669-8012, ex. 3819
dking@montreat.edu

Table of Contents:

Course Description
Texts
Course Objectives
Goals
Library
Specific Requirements
Required Procedure
Final Remarks

COURSE DESCRIPTION: Students will develop an extensive presentation or paper, according to their English major concentration:  literature, [communications] or creative Writing.  A committee which consists of the course professor, the concentration main professor, and one member chosen by the student will specify the thesis parameters, approve the topic at the beginning of the semester, and grade the final paper.

TEXTS:

MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers. (7th or most recent ed.) Ed. Joseph Gibaldi.

See also MLA-Style Citations of Electronic Sources. 

COURSE OBJECTIVES: The central purposes of this course are 1) for you to research and 2) to write an extended literary analysis or to research for and to develop a creative project directly related to creative writing [or broadcasting, cinema, theater, or another approved visual communication medium] (Montreat College Educational Objectives IV: 1, 2, 3, 5, and 7).

GOALS:

  1. That your literary analysis or creative project combine careful, thoughtful and appropriate research with effective, detailed, sustained, and writing at the level of a college senior majoring in English (MCEO 2 and 3).
  2. That your literary analysis or creative project focus upon both the process you follow in doing research and the quality of the product itself (MCEO 2 and 3).
  3. That your literary analysis or creative project demonstrate your ability to gather information and synthesize effectively; your work should combine summary with analysis, application with theory, and research with synthesis (MCEO 2 and 3).
  4. That you utilize email to engage in class discussion, to communicate regularly with me, and to perform assigned research and writing tasks (MCEO 2, 3, and 4)..
  5. That you turn in all important written assignments electronically, including the paper or project (as appropriate) via email attachments or on diskettes (MCEO 2, 3, and 4)..

LIBRARY: All students are encouraged to take advantage of the services and resources available from the library.  You can search the online catalog and the library’s databases by going to http://www.montreat.edu/library/.  Select “Catalog” to search the online catalog or “Electronic Resources” to search the databases.  The catalog lists all of the books in the Montreat College library as well as the holdings of five other colleges.  You may check out books from all of these libraries.  In addition, you may request books or journal articles via interlibrary loan.  From the online catalog, you can also check on reserve materials by selecting “Reserve Desk” and searching by instructor name or course name.  

The list of databases at http://www.montreat.edu/library/completeelectronic.asp provides links to a variety of databases containing journal articles, online reference sources, and electronic books (ebooks).  These databases are accessible both on and off campus. You can search for journals at http://www.montreat.edu/library/electronic.asp.  Ask the library staff for a password for remote access if you live off campus.

SPECIFIC REQUIREMENTS:  After an initial series of group meetings at the beginning of the semester, students will meet individually with me at mutually convenient times.

For students in the Literature Concentration:

  1. You must write a formal research paper of between 6,250 and 8,750 words, including the formal scholarly apparatus of endnotes, bibliography, and appendices,  You must demonstrate thorough research and writing skills and abilities at the level of a senior majoring in English at Montreat College.
  2. Your paper or project must utilize at least fifteen critical sources and you must observe correct documentation procedures as described in MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers; at least three of these sources must be found via an Internet search. 
  3. You should have three conferences with the Library Director for guidance in selecting sources for your research; this requirement is waived for students who have successfully completed EN 490, Bibliography for Research.
  4. If appropriate, you should attempt to demonstrate how Christianity informs your topic.
  5. You must give an oral presentation of your paper during the last two weeks of the course to me and to the other two faculty members serving on your evaluation committee. No oral presentation may be made after reading day in any given semester.
  6. You must follow a set timeline to develop your paper.

For students in the Creative Writing Concentration:

  1. You must write an extended work of fiction (such as short fiction or a full-length drama) of at least 4,000 words or a collection of poetry of at least 2,000 words. 
  2. In addition, you must write a critical introduction of at least 2,500 words that includes scholarly research, utilizing at least seven critical sources. Your introduction should discuss your development as a creative writer, examine those authors who have influenced your work, and demonstrate those influences through references to your creative piece(s).
  3. You should have three conferences with the Library Director for guidance in selecting sources for your introduction; this requirement is waived for students who have successfully completed EN 490, Bibliography for Research.
  4. If appropriate, you should attempt to demonstrate how Christianity informs your creative writing.
  5. You must give an oral presentation of your critical introduction and creative writing during the last two weeks of the course to me and to the other two faculty members serving on your evaluation committee. No oral presentation may be made after reading day in any given semester.  In addition, you should give one public reading of excerpts of your creative writing during the semester, inviting members of your evaluation committee to attend.
  6. You must follow a set timeline to develop your paper.

For students in the Communication Concentration:

  1. The most successful Communication theses are not merely capstone-type summaries of collegiate thought, but are also crafted portfolio elements to impress potential employers.  Thus, literary analyses are generally less appropriate than projects that demonstrate applied ability in one or more of the related communication disciplines.
  2. Previous Communication track theses have included:

    a music video
    a documentary film
    a playscript
    an original radio drama
    a book of photojournalist essays
    a study of television advertising rates
    a public relations plan
    an organizational identity system
    brochure and poster design
    website design
    directing a play

  3. In addition to me and the major professor of the Communication concentration, the final person on the evaluation committee may be a member of the college faculty or staff, or a community member in a position to offer expert evaluation of the thesis.

  4. Given the many and varied forms of communication theses, your first task is to negotiate a detailed timetable of project deadlines.  It is imperative that timetables be crafted to include all evaluation committee members in the drafting process of your thesis, since it is often impossible to make last-minute changes to a project. 

  5. You must keep a journal throughout their thesis work as the basis for a 2,000 to 2,250 word reflective essay.  The essay should credit influences for the project as well as defend aesthetic, budgetary, theological, and other motivations for your creative choices.  The essay must be submitted no later than one week before the final presentation to the evaluation committee.

  6. If the thesis presentation is in a public venue (such as a play), you should schedule a separate meeting alone with members of the committee.  Any formal presentation to the committee should itself be conducted with consummate professionalism, since it will be considered a graded element of the overall thesis submission.  No formal presentations may be made after reading day in any given semester.

  7. You must follow a set timeline to develop your paper.

FINAL REMARKS

Copies of several theses written since 1988 are available in the Bell Library. Go to the front desk and ask to see them.

Thirty percent of your final grade will be based upon how well your follow the process of developing your thesis listed above.  Seventy percent of your final grade will be based upon the product, or the final draft of the thesis.  Cases of academic dishonesty, including but not limited to cheating and plagiarism, will result in either of failure of the assignment or of the course. For the college's policy on this issue, please click academic integrity. 

This is a senior-level, capstone course and thus should reflect your best effort, not some splash dash attempt to get by. Because the course is so significant, you will be evaluated carefully, with faculty readers looking to see that your effort and paper or project evidence appropriate skills and abilities for a senior majoring in English at Montreat College. Autobiographical, anecdotal, or other unpublished material should be used judiciously.

Please feel free to come by my office in McGowan 107, contact me at extension 3819, or email me at dking@montreat.edu if you need help with any aspect of the course. 

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Last update December 31, 2007

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