Most courses in the Summer and Fall Semesters will take place online. Resources are available on our Virtual Campus.
Access to the Dawson College building remains restricted. Visit our COVID-19 update page.
To pass any English 101 course at Dawson College, students must demonstrate the following abilities:
Reading
Recognizing major literary genres: poetry, drama, fiction and essay
Recognizing rudimentary elements of literature: character, setting, plot, tone and theme
Recognizing basic elements of literary language: connotation vs. denotation, figures of speech
Identifying the thesis of an expository text
Recognizing basic patterns of argument, development in an expository text
Writing
Using a dictionary to find definitions and correct spelling in the context of the preparation of assignments and essays
Using a handbook to clarify questions of grammar and mechanics
Writing sentences free of structural flaws
Constructing coherent paragraphs, using the form of topic sentence, body, transition
Constructing a thesis relevant to a primary literary text
Organizing logical support for a thesis, using outlining, clustering, brainstorming, etc.
Writing an essay that introduces and supports a thesis (i.e. is not just a summary), demonstrates logical development and a tone appropriate to argument and analysis at the college level, integrates quotations from a primary text, and follows MLA rules for format documentation.
Please note that not all the courses listed below are offered every term:
Course Number
Course Name
C - L - H
Hrs
603-101-MQ
Effective Reading and Writing
2 - 2 - 4
60
Description for Course:
This course is intended to provide an introduction to college-level literary studies. There will be special emphasis on basic textual interpretation and the construction of the literary essay through written and spoken critical responses to specific texts.
603-101-MQ
In Search of Secret Knowledge
2 - 2 - 4
60
Description for Course:
From the ancient Gnostic tradition that saw the spark of divinity within the grasp of humanity, to the transgressive border crossings of mad science, occultism, and beyond, this course explores the quest for secret knowledge in religion, philosophy, literature, and film. Arguably, the crucial drive that unites these traditions is the desire for a kind of immortality — to transcend the material limitations of the human body and mind, and the limits of time and space. In literature and the moving image, these concerns tend to manifest most profoundly in science fiction, dark fantasy, and the horror and Weird traditions, where seekers of strange, esoteric knowledge are marked — often severely — for their burning curiosity. Course readings within the above traditions may include Robert Louis Stevenson’s Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, H.P. Lovecraft’s At the Mountains of Madness, Stanislaw Lem’s Solaris, and Phillip K. Dick’s Valis.
603-101-MQ
Introduction to College English
2 - 2 - 4
60
Description for Course:
This course is intended to provide an introduction to college-level literary studies. There will be a strong emphasis on basic textual interpretation and the construction of the literary essay through written and spoken critical responses to specific texts.
603-101-MQ
Introduction to College English : Inside Out: Adventures in Autotheory
2 - 2 - 4
60
Description for Course:
The description for this course is not available at this time.
Please check with the Program Coordinator.
603-101-MQ
Introduction to College English with New School
2 - 2 - 4
60
Description for Course:
This course will introduce students to college-level literary studies. We will analyze works of fiction, drama and poetry from various places and periods. We will learn essay-writing, including editing and revision, and students will produce essays and paragraphs of literary analysis on a regular basis. New School’s approach to learning is based on the principles of Critical Pedagogy and Humanistic Education. Students are divided into smaller learning groups. These groups explore the same learning competencies as in the regular course, but our facilitators give students a greater role in shaping their courses and designing their assessments. Our aim is to relate our studies to our personal and social lives, and to link the personal to the political. Go to the New School website for more information about our approach.
603-101-MQ
Introduction to College English: Journeys
2 - 2 - 4
60
Description for Course:
The description for this course is not available at this time.
Please check with the Program Coordinator.
603-101-MQ
Introduction to College English: Journeys English
2 - 2 - 4
60
Description for Course:
This course will introduce students to college-level literary studies. We will analyze works of fiction, drama and poetry from various places and periods. We will discuss the essay writing process in detail, including strategies for editing and revision, and students will produce essays and paragraphs of literary analysis on a regular basis.
603-101-MQ
Writing English
2 - 2 - 4
60
Description for Course:
Designed for students whose first language is not English and who have been educated in English for less than five years, this course introduces students to the study of literature at the college-level, with special emphasis on vocabulary-building, correct sentence structure, grammar, idiom and critical thinking. Students will learn how read a variety of literary works and how to write short analytical essays about literature.
