Syllabus
Download the syllabus here.
English 399.95 HC1 Zombies!
Spring 2015 F 9:10-11:40 Room 3N
Professor Sylvia Tomasch
Office hours: F 11:45-12:45 and by appointment
Email: stomasch@hunter.cuny.edu
Course Description
Why zombies? And why zombies now? Not only do audiences seem unable to resist the onslaught of the undead in fiction, film, television, video games, and graphic novels, etc., but the term has also spread, seemingly unstoppably, to other areas of modern life (e.g., zombie computers, zombie insects, zombie missiles). In fact, google “zombie” and you’ll get more 98 million hits. So why the current epidemic of zombies? To address this question, we’ll consider zombies historically (from before the term entered English in the late nineteenth century) and cross culturally (including African and Caribbean examples), and encounter modern instances from many different disciplines. Using elements of cultural, monster, and zombie theory, students will have opportunities to chew on the zombie-area they feel least resistible, most digestible.
Disclaimer: Though not the most explicit examples by far, the texts we’re going to read and see include a variety of profanity, gore, cannibalism, sexism, racism, nudity, sexual predation, a general insensitivity to other living things, etc. In other words, at times we will necessarily be considering topics that might be offensive to some. If you cannot read such texts or watch such films, then this may not be the course for you. On the other hand, those most offended may consider channeling your responses into a project that incorporates a critique of the use of any of the above features.
Course Objectives
Through a variety of genres, students will encounter the figure of the zombie in various guises with the aim of understanding its history, its role, and its importance, particularly (though not only) in recent American culture. Through a variety of assignments, students will also develop skills and become familiar with resources needed to succeed in undergraduate study.
Important Information
Plagiarism: CUNY regards acts of academic dishonesty (e.g., plagiarism, cheating on examinations, obtaining unfair advantage, and falsification of records and official documents) as serious offenses against the values of intellectual honesty. We are committed to enforcing the CUNY Policy on Academic Integrity and will pursue cases of academic dishonesty according to the Academic Integrity Procedures.
Academic Accommodation: In compliance with the American Disability Act of 1990 (ADA) and with Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, CUNY is committed to ensuring educational parity and accommodations for all students with documented disabilities and/or medical conditions. It is recommended that all students with documented disabilities (Emotional, Medical, Physical and/or Learning) consult the office of the Director of Student Affairs at their home campus for further information and assistance.
Required Texts
All major texts, cinematic and print, have been ordered at Shakespeare & Co. (Lexington/68-69). The films and novels are also available for rent or purchase on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and elsewhere. Note the recommended editions; if you choose to use an e-text or another version, it is your responsibility to be able to access to all elements of the texts quickly and easily in class. Links to the other readings/viewings are posted on the website. See schedule for specific dates and other information.
Novels
Richard Matheson, I am Legend (Tor Books, 1954)
Max Brooks, World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War (Three Rivers Press, 2006)
Colson Whitehead, Zone One (Random House, 2011)
Films/TV
Night of the Living Dead (dir. George A. Romero, 1968)
at least one film version of Matheson’s I Am Legend:
The Last Man on Earth (dir. S. Salkow, U. Ragona, 1964)
Omega Man (dir. Boris Sagal, 1971)
I Am Legend (dir. Francis Lawrence, 2007)
White Zombie (dir. Victor and Edward Halperin, 1932)
I Walked with a Zombie (dir. Jacques Tourneur, 1943)
28 Days Later (dir. Danny Boyle, 2002)
Shaun of the Dead (dir. Edgar Wright, 2004)
Fido (dir. Andrew Currie, 2006)
Warm Bodies (dir. Jonathan Levine, 2013)
episodes of The Walking Dead, Z Nation, and In the Flesh
Short stories, video clips, scholarly articles, and other sources (listed on syllabus with links on Blackboard)
Scholarly Resources
Databases for literary/cultural research: MLA Bibliography, JStor, Project Muse; Google Books
Popular Resources
Zombie Research Society: http://zombieresearchsociety.com/
Requirements
Participation (15% total)
- Everyone is expected to be an active contributor, in class and on the website. You’re expected to come on time, be prepared, with the text in hand (or having been viewed), ready to contribute to discussion in an informed and constructive fashion. You’re also expected to log in regularly to check for announcements, news, instructions, etc., as well as to post responses (see below).
- Weekly informal responses. These are due on our Blackboard Discussion Forums page at least once each week in response to the texts and issues under discussion. Approximately half of your responses should be original threads; the other half should be responses to posts by your classmates. “Zombie sightings” are also always welcome. Note that responses are due as the term progresses (i.e., you may not post 14 at once at the end of the semester). 1-3 paragraphs
- Homework and quizzes (from time to time).
Presentations (20% total)
- Once during the semester, every student will make a brief presentation about an instance of “zombieism” not covered in class. Your chosen zombies may come from an academic discipline (e.g., philosophy, computer science, biology, economics, etc.) or from popular culture (e.g., graphic novels, video games, flash mobs, etc.) The possibilities are nearly as endless as zombies themselves, but be sure to keep this central question in mind: how does this instance connect to some of the issues we’ve been discussing? As always, presenting visual materials helps. 5 minutes for presentation plus 5 minutes for Q&A
- At the end of the semester, small groups of students (3-5) will make a short video of a “zombie situation” of your own devising. Be creative! In the Q&A that follows your video, be prepared to discuss how your project connects to some of the issues we’ve been exploring. You’ll need to begin this project well in advance of the due date, so your group should meet at least once before Spring Break. 5 minutes for video plus 5 minutes for discussion, including Q&A
N.B.: For all presentations, see “Fifteen Tips for Class Presentations” (posted) and “Presentation Feedback Sheet” (posted).
Writing assignments
N.B.: Wherever there are questions as “prompts,” you do not need to directly address every one. They are meant to help you get started in thinking about the topic or text.
- Cinematic close reading (20% total)
This assignment has three parts (due dates noted on the schedule):
- Gather background information on your chosen film. Use “How to Watch a Film” (posted). 1-2 pages (notes, not narrative)
- Zero in on one important scene (of your choosing). Use “How to analyze a scene in a film” (posted). 5 typed paragraphs, with film times noted throughout
- Write a short essay based on your analysis of the elements of a scene. The thesis of this essay is an argument, based on your analysis of the meaning of your chosen scene within the larger whole of the film. Refer to “Zombies! Issues Essay” (posted). Be sure to note film times throughout. No outside sources needed. MLA format (including citations and Works Cited page). 3-5 pp.
- Comparison and contrast. (20%)
Choose a character, image, event, situation, or idea important in two of the texts (only one may be a film). Note: a working thesis and rough outline will be due before the essay itself; see schedule for dates.
Some questions to get you started: Why is this element particularly important? How does it appear in both of the texts: the same, similarly, differently? What differences do those changes make? What zombie issues are particularly important? Does one text do a better job of presenting or suggesting these issues? In what ways? Are there symbols or images that stand out as particularly important? No outside sources are needed. MLA format (including citations and Works Cited page). 4-6 pp.
- Historical research. (25%)
Consider the historical context underlying one text (cinematic or print) in order to focus on an issue relating to zombies. To do this, you’ll need to find at least two or three scholarly sources (articles or book chapters) that can help you address this issue. Note: an annotated bibliography, a working thesis, and a rough outline will be due before the essay itself; see schedule for dates.
Some questions to get you started: Why is this historical topic important to understanding this text? In what specific ways does this topic show up in the text? How do this text’s zombies reflect the concerns of a specific time and place? How does this topic help you think about zombies in general? Note: an important element of this assignment is that you find and use secondary sources in addition to the ones on the syllabus. Outside sources required. MLA format (including citations and Works Cited page). 4-6 pp.
N.B.: All requirements must be completed in order to pass this course.
Schedule
F 1/30 Introductions
What is a zombie? What cultural work do zombies do?
Sprint zombie commercial – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h8tw94AKqOo
CDC Zombie Apocalypse Preparedness Guide – http://www.cdc.gov/phpr/zombies.htm
Michael Jackson, “Thriller” (available on YouTube) – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sOnqjkJTMaA)
Zombie Classics, Or Even Texts Walk Again
F 2/6 Night of the Living Dead – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jeFRPBW07SA
“How to Watch a Film” and “How to analyze a scene in a film” (posted)
Jeffrey Jerome Cohen, “Monster Culture: Seven Theses” (posted)
F 2/13 Matheson, I Am Legend
your choice: at least one of the three film versions (listed above)
Deborah Christie, “A Dead New World: Richard Matheson and the Modern Zombie” (posted)
DUE: hard copy: cinematic close reading (parts 1 and 2)
The Birth of the Undead
F 2/20 White Zombie (available on Internet Archive) – https://archive.org/details/VictorHalperinsWhiteZombie1932
W.B. Seabrook, “Dead Men Working in the Cane Fields” (posted)
- W. Hutter, “Salt Is Not for Slaves” (posted)
“Zombies! Issues Essay” (posted)
Chera Kee, “‘They are not men . . . they are dead bodies!’ From Cannibal to Zombie and Back Again” (posted)
F 2/27 I Walked with a Zombie
August Derleth and Mark Schorer, “The House in the Magnolias” (posted)
Manly Wade Wellman, “Song of the Slaves” (posted)
The Shadow, “The Isle of the Living Dead” (13 October 1940) — http://www.myoldradio.com/old-radio-episodes/the-shadow-isle-of-the-living-dead/11
Chris Vials, “The Origin of the Zombie in American Radio and Film: B-Horror, U.S. Empire, and the Politics of Disavowal” (posted)
DUE: hard copy: cinematic close reading (part 3: essay)
Pandemic, Apocalypse, and Post-
F 3/6 Brooks, World War Z
World War Z (2013) movie trailer – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HcwTxRuq-uk
Aalya Ahmad, “Grey Is the New Black: Race, Class, and Zombies” (posted)
F 3/13 28 Days Later
Stephanie Boluk and Wylie Lenz, “Infection, Media, and Capitalism: From Early Modern Plagues to Postmodern Zombies” (posted)
F 3/20 Whitehead, Zone One
Carl Swanson, “’The Only Metaphor Left’: Colson Whitehead’s Zone One and Zombie Narrative Form” (posted)
N.B.: First read “Suggestions for reading Zone One” (posted)
Laughing (at the) Dead
F 3/27 Shaun of the Dead
South Park, “Night of the Living Homeless” (Episode 160) – http://southpark-zone.blogspot.com/2008/01/south-park-season-11-night-of-living.html
Linda Badley, “Zombie Splatter Comedy from Dawn to Shawn: Cannibal Carnivalesque” (posted)
DUE: hard copy: tentative thesis and outline for comparison/contrast essay; bring texts to class
F 4/3 and 4/10 NO CLASS (Spring Break)
I, Zombie
F 4/17 Warm Bodies
Rest (dir. Cole Schrieber and David Parker, 2012) –http://nofilmschool.com/2012/03/rest-zombie-film
DUE: hard copy: comparison/contrast essay
F 4/24 The Walking Dead (1.1); Z Nation, (1.1); In the Flesh (1.1)
F 5/1 Workshop: historical essay
DUE: hard copy: tentative thesis and outline plus five annotated sources; bring texts to class
Zombies R Us
F 5/8 Group video presentations
Conclusions
F 5/15 NO CLASS [conference]
M 5/18 DUE: historical essay
5 pm; hard copy; Macaulay
