LLT 180 Fall Semester 2020

LLT 180: The Heroic Quest - Katabatic Journeys	Instructor: Dr. Joseph Hughes
Fall Semester 2020	Office: 113 Siceluff Hall
All Sections	Phone: 836-6601 (messages 836-5122)
	E-mail: JosephHughes AT MissouriState.edu

Course Texts

Joseph Hughes, Ars Longa Vita Brevis (lecture available on YouTube)
The Gilgamesh Epic (available via class website)
Homer, Odyssey XI (available via class website)
Aristophanes, The Frogs (available via class website)
Apuleius, Cupid and Psyche (available via class website)
Sophocles, Antigone (available via class website)
Plato, The Myth of Er (available via class website)
Vergil, Aeneid VI (available via class website)
Dante Alighieri, Inferno (available via class website)
Nikolai Gogol, The Nose (available via class website)
Kurt Vonnegut, Breakfast of Champions

Course Description
The literary pattern of the “heroic quest,” in which a protagonist journeys to far-off lands in pursuit of an important goal, is literally the oldest story known to humankind, dating back to the Gilgamesh Epic of 2500 BCE. Beginning from a scarcely literate world with no mass media, stories about the “heroic quest” have instructed individuals and civilizations alike for millennia upon important topics such as cultural awareness, the boundaries of ethical conduct, and the necessity for leading a good life. Stories about the “heroic quest” continue to entertain and inform down to our own times. Through close study of the context and content of several such “heroic quest” stories, selected from a wide range of civilizations and time periods, students will develop an awareness of their own inherited identity of culture and language, and to address the challenge of leading an ethical and civically engaged life.

General Education Goals

As part of the Missouri State University General Education program, LLT 180: The Heroic Quest fulfills a Public Affairs requirement. As detailed below, the LLT 180 Course Objectives directly address the Specific Learning Outcomes (SLOs) for General Goal 13 (Cultural Competence) and General Goal 14 (Ethical Leadership).

General Goal 13 (Cultural Competence): Students will be able to recognize and consider multiple perspectives and cultures.

SLO 13.2: Understand, critically examine, and articulate key similarities and differences between their own cultural practices and perspectives and those of other cultures, past and present.
In LLT 180, students will learn to conceptualize the key similarities and differences between the student’s cultural perspectives and those of the diverse other cultures, past and present, addressed in the course readings.
SLO 13.4: Analyze the role that different languages, cultures, institutions and beliefs have in shaping individual and collective behavior.
In LLT 180, students will learn to analyze how diverse languages, cultures, institutions, and beliefs have shaped individual and collective behavior, as revealed through study of the literary pattern called “the heroic quest."

General Goal 14 (Ethical Leadership): Students will be able to articulate their value systems, understand the ethical implications of their actions based on these values, and develop skills consistent with having a positive impact on individuals, groups, or communities.

SLO 14.1: Engage in self-evaluation of their personal values and the degree to which their ethical values and the degree to which their ethical values and behaviors are congruent.
In LLT 180, students will learn to construe the student’s values and behaviors both in his or her own personal life and in the diverse society at large, as reflected in course readings.
SLO 14.3: Identify areas of difficulty in responding to situations demanding ethical inquiry.
In LLT 180, students will learn to appreciate through application of pertinent examples from texts studied in class the ethical dimensions of providing leadership in difficult situations.
SLO 14.5: Understand and evaluate the causes of societal problems and potential solutions.
In LLT 180, students will learn to discern via the literary pattern of the “heroic quest” the ways in which individuals from diverse societies, past and present, have evaluated and worked to solve important problems.

COVID-19 Policy:
Please review the official Missouri State University COVID-19 policy statements at https://www.missouristate.edu/Coronavirus/, which govern all aspects of this class. If for any reason you are unable to complete course work, you may (but are not required to) notify the instructor; you will be assigned a grade of Incomplete for the Fall 2020 Semester, with a calendar year to finish the remaining work.

Course Grading:
There will be four Exams, each worth 16 points, for a total of 64 points. There will be two Essays, each worth 18 points, for a total of 36 points. The total of possible points is 100, which corresponds with the percentage scores listed below. All work will be completed and/or submitted via the class Blackboard site. Letter grades will be assigned on the standard Missouri State University curve: 90-100%= A; 80-89%= B; 70-79%= C; 60-69%= D; 59%-below= F. The instructor reserves the right to assign plus or minus grades only when it is to the clear advantage of the student.

Proctoring Policy:
All proctoring has been waived for this semester. The student may take the exams on his or her honor, at a time and location of the student's choosing. The student will have 50 minutes to complete each of the four Exams, with no retakes allowed. If for any reason this may be problematic, the student should contact the instructor immediately. The student will be permitted one standard (8.5" x 11") sheet of paper which he or she may fill with hand-written notes. No other helps (including but not limited to texts and Powerpoints) are permitted.

Nondiscrimination Policy:
Missouri State University is an equal opportunity/affirmative action institution, and maintains a grievance procedure available to any person who believes he or she has been discriminated against. At all times, it is your right to address inquiries or concerns about possible discrimination to the Office for Equity and Diversity, Park Central Office Building, 117 Park Central Square, Suite 111, (417) 836-4252. Other types of concerns (i.e., concerns of an academic nature) should be discussed directly with your instructor and can also be brought to the attention of your instructor’s Department Head. Please visit the OED website at http://www.missouristate.edu/equity.

Disability Accommodation Policy:
To request academic accommodations for a disability, contact the Director of Disability Services, Plaster Student Union, Suite 405, (417) 836-4192 or (417) 836-6792 (TTY), http://www.missouristate.edu/disability. Students are required to provide documentation of disability to Disability Services prior to receiving accommodations. Disability Services refers some types of accommodation requests to the Learning Diagnostic Clinic, which also provides diagnostic testing for learning and psychological disabilities. For information about testing, contact the Director of the Learning Diagnostic Clinic at (417) 836-4787.

Academic Dishonesty Policy:
Missouri State University is a community of scholars committed to developing educated persons who accept the responsibility to practice personal and academic integrity. You are responsible for knowing and following the university’s student honor code, Student Academic Integrity Policies and Procedures, available at the University Academic Integrity website and also available at the Reserves Desk in Meyer Library. Any student participating in any form of academic dishonesty will be subject to sanctions as described in this policy

Suggested Schedule:
All work for the Fall Semester 2020 sections of LLT 180 "The Heroic Quest" must be completed and submitted via Blackboard by 12:00 pm (noon) on Thursday, December 10. If all course work is not completed by this time, the student will be assigned a grade of "Incomplete" with the work to be completed by the end of Fall Semester 2021.

Exam 01: Week of 07-11 September
Exam 02: Week of 05-09 October
Exam 03: Week of 09-13 November
Exam 04: Week of 07-10 December

Midterm Essay: Week of 05-09 October
Final Essay: Week of 07-10 December

Students are permitted to complete the class work on their own schedule, but are strongly urged to do so in a timely fashion. Letting all of the work pile up until the tail end of the semester is invariably a bad choice.