Fall 2003; TR 8:00-9:15

Main Hall 306
 

Instructors:Leslie Heaphy                   Robert Sturr

Office: 310D                                      Office:409

Hours:MW 9-10, W 1-2 and            Hours:MW 1-2, W 4-5,

Required Texts:

Jules Tygiel, Past Time:Baseball as History

Eric Rolfe Greenberg, The Celebrant

Bernard Malamud, The Natural

Mark Harris, Bang the Drum Slowly

Buck O’Neil, I Was Right on Time:My Journey from the Negro Leagues to the Majors

David Halberstam, October 1964

Robert Coover, The Universal Baseball Association, Inc., J. Henry Waugh, Prop.

Jim Bouton, Ball Four

Course Description:

This course will explore the history and cultural significance of baseball, primarily as it has developed in the United States, though not exclusively in the American context.The approach will be thematic as well as chronological, as we will examine both the game’s historical development and its portrayal in significant works of literature.This dual approach will help us to investigate and perhaps debate the larger meaning and value of baseball, particularly in its influence on national mythology and social identity.

§To improve reading and critical thinking skills through a careful consideration of both historical and literary texts;

§To improve writing skills through essay examinations and longer writing projects;

§To enhance oral communication skills through classroom discussion, and to foster respect for and appreciation of different perspectives;

§To promote an understanding and appreciation of historical changes and the impact such changes have upon humanity (the dynamism of cultural history)

§To improve knowledge of baseball’s history and cultural importance

§To encourage a better understanding of storytelling and the way that we construct narratives out of lived experience, whether it is baseball or some other activity (i.e., the material from which we create both history and literature)
 
 

Course Assignments:

Three take home exams255 points (85 points per exam)

Class Participation40 points

Bibliographic Essay85 points

Thematic Paper120 points

Proposal(5 points)

Revised Proposal(5 points)

Rough Draft(10 points)

Final Paper(100 points)

TOTAL500 points

The take-home exams will feature essay questions drawn from the assigned texts as well as Tygiel’s chapters.They will require interpretation and subjective discussion rather than the repetition of factual knowledge. on interpretation more than factual knowledge.Specific questions and further directions for each exam will be handed out one week before each one is due.No late exams will be accepted.The due dates are included on the schedule below.

Detailed directions for both the Bibliographic Essay and Thematic Paper are attached at the end of this syllabus.Students are encouraged to begin planning for each project early in the semester.We encourage you to consult with us during office hours in the selection and development of topics.
 

Grading:

A90%-100%(excellent)450-500

B80%-89%(above average)400-449

C70%-79%(average)350-399

D60%-69%(poor)300-349

FBelow 60%(failing)Below 300

Policies:

Attendance:Students are expected to attend class each week.Having more than three unexcused absences will result in a failing grade for this class.Students are responsible for the material covered on the days they are not there and for getting assignments turned in on time.

Students with Disabilities:In accordance with University policy, if you have a documented disability and require accommodations to obtain equal access in this course, please contact Kelly Kulick in Student Services (244-3287) to submit documentation.Then, you must contact both instructors so that they are aware of any required accommodations.

Academic Honesty:All work that students hand in is expected to be their own.Failure to do so is plagiarism and is considered to be a serious academic offense.Plagiarism includes submitting work as your own that has been copied from another source (published material, an Internet site, another student’s paper, etc.).It also involves the failure to properly cite quotations and paraphrased passages from outside sources when they are included in your own writing.Finally, plagiarism occurs when a writer receives too much help from others in the preparation, editing or proofreading of work to be submitted.If we determine that you have committed plagiarism on an essay exam or the two longer writing projects, you will receive a failing grade for that exam or project.Additional disciplinary action might be taken, as outlined in the "Cheating and Plagiarism" section of the University's Digest of Rules and Regulations.If you have any questions at all about what might constitute plagiarism (especially prior to the submission of an exam or essay), please don’t hesitate to ask us about it.

Grievance Procedure:The Stark Campus’ procedure for handling student grievances conforms to the “Student Academic Complaint Policy & Procedures” set down as University Policy 3342-4-16 in the University Policy Register.
 

Assistance:

WritingCenter:Located in Main Hall, Room 202, the WritingCenter offers students help and instruction on any writing assignments in their classes.Consultation on papers is available in the center and via e-mail:writing@stark.kent.edu.The Center also offers tutorials, handouts, brochures and other information on their website:www.stark.kent.edu/writing.No appointment is necessary and there is no cost to use this service.
 

Testing Center:TheTestingCenter is located in the lower level of the Stark Campus library.Call ext. 53332 for hours and other information.

Library Services:For help with research related questions students can call the library (ext. 53330) or email a reference librarian at refdesk@stark.kent.edu to set up an individualized instructional session with one of our four librarians.Students are not required to schedule an appointment; they can just come in at any time.However, with advance notice librarians can prepare for your visit and thus more efficiently address your needs.Finally, for students unable to come into the library, OhioLINK now offers online, real-time assistance in the form of a Chat Reference service.Students can connect with an OhioLINK librarian (not always a KSU librarian) from off-campus (http://chat.ohiolink.edu) and engage in a chat session to assist them with the use of the many online services available to them from home.

Campus Theme:This Year’s Campus Theme is Globalization.The purpose behind the campus theme is to help students see connections in their education from course to course as well as seeing how different disciplines can examine the same ideas.A common text called Globalization: A Very Short Introduction is available for those interested in reading more about this idea and what it means for our daily lives in the twenty-first century.

Course Outline:

This outline is tentative and subject to change as the semester develops but students will be kept updated on the reading schedule.For the sake of good discussion, all readings must be done prior to coming to the class by which they are listed below.Failure to do the readings regularly may result in pop quizzes and other assignments as the instructors see fit.

8/26—Course introduction and syllabus overview; baseball as the source of history & literature

First Inning:Origins of the Game (both real and imagined)

8/28—Tygiel, “The National Game” (3-14); 19^th century origins (early history, rhetoric and imagery)

9/2—Tygiel, “The Mortar of Which Baseball Is Held Together” (15-34) and “Incarnations of Success” (35-63); late 19^th and early 20^th century foundations; from amateurism to professionalism; league formation and conflict

Second Inning:Baseball and Identity (both personal and national)

9/4—Greenberg, The Celebrant; the World Series and baseball’s popularity in the 1910s

9/9—Greenberg, The Celebrant; where did ballplayers come from (baseball types)?

9/11—Greenberg, The Celebrant; where did fans come from (from regionalism to a national scope)?

Third Inning:Corruption and Scandal

9/16—Eight Men Out (film); gambling in baseball; Thematic Paper Proposal Due

9/18—Eight Men Out (film)

9/23—Eight Men Out (film); reactions to the Black Sox scandal

Fourth Inning: Baseball and the Heroic Personality

9/30—Malamud, The Natural; Malamud’s Greek and Medieval sources

10/2—Malamud, The Natural; novel v. film; 1^st Exam Due

Fifth Inning:The People’s Game (recognizing the unrecognized)

10/7—Tygiel, “Unreconciled Strivings” (116-143); O’Neill, I Was Right on Time

10/9—O’Neill, I Was Right on Time; the cultural significance of Jackie Robinson

10/14—Women’s professional baseball; Revised Thematic Paper Proposal Due

10/16—Baseball in the western U.S., Latin America, Japan; non-professional manifestations of the game (“people’s game”)

Sixth Inning:Glory Days?Baseball in the 1950s

10/21—Tygiel, “The Shot Heard ‘Round the World” (144-64); Harris, Bang the Drum Slowly

10/23—Harris, Bang the Drum Slowly; Bibliographic Essay due

10/28—Harris, Bang the Drum Slowly; baseball’s absurdist and fatalistic qualities

Seventh Inning:Integration, Television & Geography (the 1960s)

10/30—Halberstam, October 1964; Updike, “Hub Fans Bid Kid Adieu” (handout)

11/4—Halberstam, October 1964

11/6—Halberstam, October 1964; Tygiel, “The Homes of the Braves” (165-97); 2^nd Exam Due

11/11—NO CLASS (Veterans Day)

Eighth Inning: Obsession, Anxiety and Control

11/18—Coover,The Universal Baseball Association

Ninth Inning: Baseball Memories—The Insider’s Perspective and Fan Nostalgia

11/25—Bouton, Ball Four; non-conformity / drug-alcohol concerns of the 1970s-80s

11/27—NO CLASS (Thanksgiving)

12/2—Tygiel, “Populist Baseball” (198-222); financial crisis & baseball’s renaissance in the 1980s; the Pete Rose affair

12/4—Baseball’s nostalgia game—the films of the 1980s; Thematic Paper Due

12/9—3^rd Exam Due (Tues. Dec. 9^th at 8 a.m.)

Choose a major historical question raised by Tygiel and gather 5-7 sources (articles or book chapters) that might help us to better understand that particular aspect of baseball history.Write a bibliographic essay to present your findings.What is the consensus opinion, if one exists?What are the disagreements among historians, if they exist? And if there are disagreements why do they exist?

In order to develop this project, students will need to spend some time in the library going through books and reference sources available on our shelves.You should also look carefully through the notes in the Tygiel text and in the KentLink catalog so that you can order books well in advance of the due date for the essay.Finally, searching the databases available through OhioLink (e.g., Academic Search Premier, American History and Life, etc.) will be necessary so that you can gather articles on your subject.We can provide hints along the way, and Maureen Kilcullen, our reference librarian, is an excellent resource.

The bibliographic essay is due on October 23^rd.Late papers will lose three points for each day they are late.Be sure to properly cite all material using the Chicago Manual of Style.Papers should be 5-7 pages, typed and double-spaced.An example of a bibliographic essay will be handed out during the semester.

Students will be graded on the following:

• Development and clear expression of the historical question
• Thesis and conclusion
• Use of 5-7 sources
• Integration of the sources into the paper
• Identifying disagreements
• Explaining why such disagreements exist
• Proper citations—using Chicago Manual of Style
• Clear grammatical style

In a 10-12 page paper, define and discuss a major theme, character type, literary device or rhetorical style that runs through depictions of baseball in three different texts.At least two sources must be drawn from the assigned reading for this course (excluding Tygiel), but the third can be a novel, play, short story, poem, memoir or journalistic account of your choosing.You may not choose a book or article that is primarily historical; rather, you should focus on texts that narrate or dramatize the game.If you opt to include an outside text as the third source, it must be approved as part of the proposal process.Early in the semester we will review lists of potential topics and work together to make sure everyone has an early idea.

This paper should include analysis and commentary on the way that different writers (or filmmakers) have presented baseball.Avoid lengthy summary and make sure to choose a clear and specific topic (as a point of comparison).Listing many similarities or differences (without a strong sense of purpose) will not allow you to develop a strong argument.Also, please note that it is not necessary to discuss your three primary texts to the same degree.In fact, the best papers are likely to feature lengthier discussion of one text (or possibly two), with the others helping to introduce or frame your central questions and/or focus.Remember, your paper should make an argument (i.e., have a thesis) so that readers of the texts you discuss will better understand how those narratives fit within the larger literature of baseball.This does not mean that you have to make strong judgments about the quality of a book or film (as a reviewer or critic might); instead, you should aim to provide insight into what each text says or accomplishes, especially when seen in relation to one another.

The use of outside sources is not required, but it might be useful for you to examine reviews or critical essays on the texts that you have selected.Articles on certain texts (especially the writing of Malamud, Harris and Coover) can be found in essay collections in our library and the largerKent system.Also, critical essays and book/film reviews can be obtained through the OhioLink databases available on the library network (e.g., Academic Search Premier, MLA International Bibliography, Lexis/Nexis).

An initial proposal for the thematic paper is due on September 16^th.A revised proposal will be collected on October 14^th.Both of these will be worth 5 points.A rough draft of the paper is due on November 13^th, and it will be worth 10 points.The final draft is due on December 4^th and will be worth 100 points.

Because this paper comes mainly out of the discipline of English, you must conform to the MLA guidelines in format and the citation of sources.

Students will be graded on the following:

• Topic definition
• Thesis
• Use of three texts (with close reading of at least one)
• Integration of textual evidence
• Organization
• Paragraph development
• Style / Grammar
• Proper use of MLA format