5 meetings per eight-day cycle/3 credits
Required for seniors
English 12 divides into two parts: a two-trimester literature course and a one-trimester exploration of good writing.
Trimesters One and Two
Choosing from American literature, British literature, the literature of Africa, India and the Caribbean in English, and World Literature in English and in translation, each of Hackley’s three twelfth grade literature courses comprises a two-trimester unit introducing students to collegiate-level work in exploring and writing about literature, culture and theory.
While each of the courses offers a unique selection of texts, themes and critical perspectives, all courses serve to develop students’ skills as readers of many types of texts, including literature, journalism, film, theater, advertisements and the visual arts. In addition, students develop their skills both as writers and thinkers through class presentations, group projects and writing tasks in a variety of genres.
Students come to appreciate that the Anglo-American literary tradition is not the only viable
tradition; that the Anglo-American tradition has complexities they have not yet encountered; that a historical approach must not look purely at the center of a literary domain but must also look at its borders on the margins of the text; that there are no “theory-free” readings of texts or cultures; that all language is political and that even the “plain style” has an agenda; that the politics of “othering” limits our perceptions; that we must step out of and look critically at the center of society; and that we have much to learn from the range of critical theories open to us, including but not limited to historicism, new criticism, feminism, Marxism, deconstruction, new historicism, cultural materialism, queer theory, post-colonial theory, social-spatial theory, etc.
Students pursue class presentations, group projects and writing tasks in a variety of genres, with a major written project (but no exam) due in the second trimester.
The Third-Trimester Exploration of Good Writing
The third trimester focuses on students’ writing a longer analytical essay on a topic of their own choosing—either a text or an event of cultural significance. For this essay, texts include novels, graphic novels, webtoons, plays, short stories, films, poems, TV shows, music albums, works of visual art and other works of fiction. An “event of cultural significance” is an occurrence or a set of closely related occurrences that, when analyzed, surface a new, nuanced understanding of the culture in which they occur. Topics may include events in the realms of politics, social justice, technology, environmentalism, sports, etc.
While the first two trimesters of this year rely on literary and cultural theory, students may choose whether or not to deploy theory in the writing of this essay. One goal of this assignment is for students to produce essays they can enjoy writing and of which they can be proud—essays drawing upon their own intellectual interests and their studies in other disciplines, such as history, science, art, economics, music, etc. Another goal is for students to refine their creative thinking and expression so that they can go forth as creative, intelligent thinkers with something significant to say to the world.
Students not only read and write, but they also explore models of effective writing, read and write about the writing of their peers, write metacognitively about their own writing and participate in writing workshops on selected pieces of student work.
English 12 Logistics
The English Department offers three course options to seniors: