Providing a dynamic framework for the study of English and History, this course encourages exploration of key themes in world history, literature, politics, religion, art, and music. In particular, the course examines the changing nature of cultural values and the relationship between communities and the individual. As students explore how individuals have made moral, spiritual, and intellectual sense of their worlds, they hone skills as critical and creative readers, thinkers, and writers. With respect to the analytical essay, emphasis is placed on the creation of thesis statements and logically coherent paragraphs together with the discovery and integration of appropriate textual evidence. Students are taught techniques of annotating text, note taking, and means of accessing primary and secondary sources. Humanities English 9 is an Earned Honors course.

Providing a dynamic framework for the study of English and History, this course encourages exploration of key themes in world history, literature, politics, religion, art, and music. In particular, the course examines the changing nature of cultural values and the relationship between communities and the individual. As students explore how individuals have made moral, spiritual, and intellectual sense of their worlds, they hone skills as critical and creative readers, thinkers, and writers. Students continue to develop skills in writing analytical essays, and emphasis is placed on techniques of close reading that encourage the discovery and use of textual evidence capable of promoting arguments of increasing sophistication and insight. In the Grade 10 Capstone Project, students reflect on their evolution as writers over the course of the year, analyzing their opportunities and challenges as writers. Humanities English 10 is an Earned Honors course. Students must take Humanities English 10 on an Earned Honors basis to be eligible for advanced English classes in 11th grade.

Providing a dynamic framework for the study of American literature and history from the Colonial period to the present, this year-long course encourages exploration of key themes in American history, prose, poetry, drama, politics, religion, art, and music. In particular, the course examines the changing nature of American cultural values and the relationship between communities and the individual in the United States itself and the world at large. As students explore how Americans have made moral, spiritual, and intellectual sense of their experience, they hone skills as critical and creative readers, thinkers, and writers. As well as continuing to develop skills in writing analytical essays, students are expected to work independently as they originate, frame, and execute distinctive points of view. Through class discussions and writing assignments, students continue to develop their skills in formal and contextual analysis.

Providing a dynamic framework for the study of American literature and history from the Colonial period to the present, this year-long course encourages exploration of key themes in American history, prose, poetry, drama, politics, religion, art, and music. In particular, the course examines the changing nature of American cultural values and the relationship between communities and the individual in the United States itself and the world at large. As students explore how Americans have made moral, spiritual, and intellectual sense of their experience, they hone skills as critical and creative readers, thinkers, and writers. As well as continuing to develop skills in writing analytical essays, students are expected to work independently as they originate, frame, and execute distinctive points of view. Through class discussions and writing assignments, students continue to develop their skills in formal and contextual analysis.

What does it mean to be an American? What are our triumphs and struggles? How do our diverse American stories reflect our young and evolving nation? In AS: Literary Studies in American Voices, students will engage in daily investigation of great works of American literature from the 19th through the 21st centuries and consider what these stories inform us of our national culture and the shared human condition. Grounded in formal, language-based analysis, this course will also expose students to a range of other methodologies and will introduce students to the applications of literary criticism. Literary Studies in American Voices is appropriate for students who love to read and are ready for intensive, college-level study of fiction and its craft. Student-centered and inquiry-based discussion will be the foundation of the daily experience. A range of American poets will be considered along with prose and plays by authors such as: Albee, Baldwin, Cather, Diaz, Faulkner, Hawthorne, James, Jin, Kushner, Machado, Melville, Morrison, O’Connor, Roth, Saunders, Silko, Twain, Whitehead, Williams. Enrollment is by departmental recommendation.

AP English Literature and Composition is a rigorous introductory college-level course that asks students to read broadly—across time and place—and deeply, engaging in continual critical reflection and analysis. Over the course of the year, we will read novels, plays, and poetry from the 16th century to the present. Writing assignments will include expository, argumentative, and analytical essays, as well as informal responses and multimedia projects. The classroom environment will be student-centered, with inquiry and meaning-making as its focus. This is a course for students who love to read and discuss literature, and who want to ask big questions, even if those questions can’t always be answered. Authors considered may include Margaret Atwood, Charlotte Bronte, Ralph Ellison, Edith Wharton, Franz Kafka, Toni Morrison, Oscar Wilde, William Shakespeare, and Virginia Woolf.

In this class students craft both poetry and prose, working toward a final portfolio.In poetry, students discuss the rudiments of the line, imagery and the concept of movement. In fiction, students consider point of view, characters and plot. In non-fiction, students approach objectivity, subjectivity, and responsibility. All work occurs in a workshop environment, and students offer constructive critique for each other’s pieces. Inspired by mentor texts, students begin writing progressively more inward - we start with nature, then society, then kith and kin, then the self.

From The Hunger Games to The Handmaid’s Tale, directors and authors have long explored imaginary worlds that, at first look, seem extreme and utterly impossible. However, students may soon start to realize that these worlds are not as implausible as they thought. Through close analysis of short fiction, a graphic novel, novel excerpts, and TV and film extracts, students will investigate several imaginary worlds of destruction. As we define dystopia and understand the stylistic features of the genre, students will grapple with questions about society’s potential future and about its present. What makes a perfect society? Are rules made to be followed or are they made to be broken? How do we define humanity? Can it be taken away? Can technology be dangerous? Throughout the course students will engage critically with these questions in both analytical and creative formats. Content may include work by: Ken Liu, Yann Martel, Octavia Butler, Margaret Atwood, Suzanne Collins, and Ernest Cline.

Students in this course analyze and evaluate a wide range of persuasive speeches made by leading figures in politics, literature, and other fields. By scrutinizing the rhetorical structures and devices in orations by William Faulkner, Sojourner Truth, Emmeline Pankhurst, Abraham Lincoln, FDR, JFK, and others, students consider how those authors used words effectively to persuade, inspire, influence, and effect change. In exploring the impact and consequences of those speeches, students also consider the role that rhetoric plays in effective leadership. Assessments of the course include frequent writing assignments, both analytical, and personal; the course culminates in a final project that requires students to compose and present a speech on a topic of their own choosing.

In this class, we will explore the meaning of monsters and madness. What do we mean when we call something or someone ‘monstrous,’ and what do specific monsters ‘mean’? What do fictional monsters tell us about the time in which they were created or feared? How do real life figures become ‘monstrous' in the public discourse? Similarly, what do we mean when we call someone ‘crazy’ or ‘mad,’ and what can fictional and historical ‘mad’ people tell us about the societies that challenged their sanity? To answer these questions, we’ll apply both taxonomy and literary analysis to a variety of texts. Potential texts include Ishiro Honda's Godzilla, Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, and short stories by Justin C. Key, as well as critical texts by Jeffrey Jerome Cohen, Sandra M. Gilbert, and Susan Gubar.

While pop culture often refers to figures from Irish culture, including leprechauns and banshees, Ireland has actually had a much larger impact on stories and literature worldwide than you might imagine. Despite being a small island, Ireland has produced more Nobel Prize winners in literature per capita than any other country in the world, while figures and phrases from Irish stories, legends, plays, and poetry have permeated throughout the English-speaking world. Even popular music has felt the Irish touch, with singers such as Hozier and Niall Horan hailing from the Emerald Isle. This course will offer an introduction to the literature of Ireland as well as the history those stories stem from, and while there might not be gold at the end of the semester, you just might find a story worth its weight in it instead.

Course Description: Step into the world of crime, mystery, and investigation in Who Dun It? The History of the Detective Novel. This semester-long journey will trace the evolution of the detective genre, from its origins in Edgar Allan Poe's iconic short stories to the brilliant mind of Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes. Students will explore modern reinterpretations of Holmes, looking at how new media and contemporary authors have reshaped the genre, before diving into Agatha Christie’s classic And Then There Were None.

As part of the course, students will create a movie pitch for their own modern-day reinterpretation of Christie’s iconic tale, blending classic themes with fresh, innovative twists. The course will also provide an introduction to real-life forensic techniques, police procedurals, and psychological profiling to better understand how detectives and criminals alike think and act.

Whether you’re an aspiring writer, a fan of detective fiction, or someone simply curious about the mind of a murderer, this class will ignite your curiosity about the “who” and the “how” behind every great crime story.

This course is an exploration of the art of the memoir and the personal essay. We will explore what personal creative nonfiction seeks to do, and in addition to analytical essays, students will write multiple creative nonfiction essays of their own. Students will read work by authors such as Mary Karr, Garnette Cagodan, Kiese Laymon, Shena McAuliffe, Briallen Hopper, and others. In examining all of these models, we will learn the elements of successful creative nonfiction, and frequent creative writing exercises will encourage students to refine their own work. A writing intensive course, students should expect to write frequently, through journaling, nightly writing assignments, and larger memoir pieces on experiences and places of meaning to them. Students may find that one or more of their essays will fit the common application personal essay.

Is the sitcom dead? Its demise has been predicted since the 1980s, but it perseveres, still ranking as one of our culture’s most revealing entertainment genres. Over the first half of this course, students explore and examine a range of American television sitcom episodes, one from each of the past six decades. In addition to analyzing characterization, plot, dialogue, theme, and directorial style, students will also consider what each episode suggests about the mores and concerns of the decade in which it aired. Over the second half of the course, students practice and hone their own skills at writing situational comedy. Working first individually and then in small groups, students will workshop, draft, edit short scenes. They will then pitch, develop, and write a 22-minute pilot sitcom episode, the opening five minutes of which they will film in the school’s CID Recording Studio. Assessments in this course include short and long analytical papers, a number of presentations, as well as multiple short--and one major-- screenwriting assignments.

Course Description: Delve into the power of perspective by reimagining well-known myths, fairy tales, novels, and films from the viewpoint of villains, marginalized figures, and misunderstood characters. Traditionally, these figures have been cast in secondary roles or labeled as antagonists, but by stepping into their shoes, we’ll uncover how their stories challenge our assumptions about good and evil, justice and revenge, and heroism and victimhood. Through close analysis of texts such as Circe by Madeline Miller, Wicked by Gregory Maguire, Bull by David Elliott, and The Mists of Avalon by Marion Zimmer Bradley, we will examine how these retellings reshape our understanding of classic narratives. By exploring these alternative perspectives, students will discuss trends in storytelling and reflect on how seeing the world through the eyes of the marginalized can change the very meaning of a story. In addition to engaging in critical readings and class discussions, students will have the opportunity to create their own reimagined versions of familiar tales, developing a deeper appreciation for how narrative voices shape the stories we tell.

This course introduces the novice or more experienced writer to the art of Journalism. Requirements include an inquiring mind, a willingness to take risks, and determination to write with eloquence and precision. Students examine works by prize-winning authors, as well as topical pieces in The New York Times. Students learn journalistic skills from the basic news story to features, opinion pieces, reviews, and sports coverage, as well as investigative and narrative pieces for the more ambitious. We look with a critical eye at the world of school, the world at large, and the current state of media. In addition to producing stories for the school newspaper, students study modes of rhetoric and produce analytical papers on non-fiction literature and ideas covered in the course.

We are what we eat, right? Food is intrinsically tied to who we are as individuals, as people, as a society, as a culture. In this course, we will examine the ways in which literature uses food to represent and understand the human experience. By examining a wide range of literature through the lens of food, our goal in this course is to understand how our identities, traditions, cultures, and history are shaped and molded by the foods we eat and the food others eat. We will consider food as a topic in literary works from different genres, periods, and cultures, as well as contemporary questions of food justice, health, and sustainability. Course materials will focus on diverse perspectives and include personal narratives, short stories, novel excerpts, young adult literature, and film excerpts.

From The Daily Show to South Park, satire dominates modern entertainment. But it has a long and rich history reaching back to the ancient Greeks. In this course, we explore a range of satires from antiquity to the present in order to better understand this powerful genre. As we investigate the relationship between satire and comedy, we consider how those in power have reacted when satirized, and we ask ourselves if satire can ever go too far. Students write analytically, but also creatively, trying their hand at satires of their own. Works studied may include those by Aristophanes, Juvenal, Swift, Voltaire, and Vonnegut, as well as film and television excerpts from SNL, The Daily Show, and Get Out.

Shocking, intense, inventive, surprising…the short story is all of these. Although roote in ancient narrative traditions such as the fable or the parable, the modern short story emerged in its current form in the 19th century and has evolved and changed ever since. Students will read a range of short fiction, registered shifts in style and approach through the year. Then, students will practice writing their own short stories, creating a portfolio that plays with character, genre, etc.

No, seriously, you are! You just might not know it…yet. Despite its reputation as a stuffy, old-fashioned artform, poetry is actually one of the most celebrated forms of literature today, with exciting new developments happening in the genre all the time, from blackout poems to spoken word performances. Even the music you listen to is part of these major changes, with some of today’s musicians such as Halsey and Kendrick Lamar also being popular, published poets. This course will invite students to explore these poetic revolutions and join - or even begin - some themselves. Students will read examples of poetry - some classic, mostly contemporary - to familiarize themselves with the artform and then use those examples to inspire their own writings in verse. Poetry often follows the patterns of everyday speech, so if you can talk, you can write poetry, and if you can write poetry, guess what? You’re a poet.

This honors course introduces students to writing center theory and practice. Students will discover that consulting in the Center for Academic Writing, or leading peer review in a class, involves much more than just "looking over" a paper. Writing center consulting has a rich theoretical base drawing on composition studies, education, and psychology. Tutors do not have to be experts, but they do need to understand the writing process as well as the dynamics of the tutoring relationship. The readings in this course cover writing center history, theory, and practice as well as composition theory and ideas about collaboration and the social nature of writing. The course is highly interactive, calling on students to help construct the direction of class discussions and activities. Because the course is about experience, fieldwork is required. Occasionally, class will be replaced by a practicum in the Center for Academic Writing. Upon successful completion of the course, students will be invited to apply to be peer tutors in the Center for Academic Writing. Please note that this course does not fulfill English core requirements.