This class is for seniors writing extended manuscripts in a unified genre: fiction, nonfiction, poetry, drama, or a hybrid form that combines genres. We welcome entirely hybrid-form manuscripts, but mixed collections, i.e. some poems with some prose, are not acceptable in this class, for we privilege extended immersion in a single genre. Think of your work as having two, equally important parts: The steady development and drafting of your own project; and sustained engagement with the work of your peers. Our aim is to create a community that is at once rigorous and supportive. To that end, you’ll not only read each other’s drafts but also delve into some of the sources that have inspired, expand and complicate their project. You will also meet regularly with me. Students are expected to work seriously on their manuscripts over the summer and to begin the term with pages ready to be shared. Work begun in a previous course may be continued with the understanding that there will be significant expansion and revision.
End-of-term requirements: Full-length first drafts of 75 pages of fiction or creative nonfiction; 50 pages of literary criticism; 30 pages of poetry; translation project length determined with instructor.
Learning Outcomes:
Delivery Method: Hybrid in-person and remote, with faculty remote
Prerequisites:Prerequisites: Permission of the instructor. Email a 1-2 page proposal explaining your project or thesis, in addition to 5-7 pages in the genre you are planning to work, as a single document to mfeitlowitz@bennington.edu no later than May 26, 2020. Class list will be made available by May 28.
Corequisites: Corequisite: Students are required to be in attendance at all Literature evenings and Poetry at Bennington events (most Wednesday evenings at 7:00pm). Translators are required to attend Bennington Translates events, which are sometimes co-sponsored with Literature and Poetry at Bennington.
Course Level: 4000-level
Credits: 4
M/Th 10:20AM-12:10PM (Advanced/senior work)
Maximum Enrollment: 12
Course Frequency: Once a year
Categories: All courses , Literature , Updates
Tags: senior work , Thesis Projects , writing , literature