Fall 2021 Course Descriptions

Offers a two-semester approach to the First Writing Requirement. This sequence allows students to take more time, in smaller sections and with support from the Writing Center, practicing and reinforcing the activities that are central to the first-year writing course. Like ENWR 1510, ENWR 1505-06 approaches writing as a way of generating, representing, and reflecting on critical inquiry. Students contribute to an academic conversation about a specific subject of inquiry and learn to position their ideas and research in relation to the ideas and research of others.  Instructors place student writing at the center of course, encourage students to think on the page, and prepare them to reflect on contemporary forms of expression.  Students read and respond to each other’s writing in class regularly, and they engage in thoughtful reflection on their own rhetorical choices as well as those of peers and published writers.  Additionally, the course requires students to give an oral presentation on their research and to assemble a digital portfolio of their writing.

001 - Writing about Culture/Society - Risk & Responsibility
TR 1230-145 (New Cabell 042)
Claire Chantell

002 - Writing about Culture/Society - Risk & Responsibility
TR 200-315 (New Cabell 042)
Claire Chantell

003 - Writing about Culture/Society - Place, Identity, and Community
MWF 100-150 (Bryan 203)
Patricia Sullivan

004 - Writing about Culture/Society - Place, Identity, and Community
MWF 1200-1250 (Bryan 203)
Patricia Sullivan

005 - Writing about Identities - Literacy Narratives
TR 1100-1215 (New Cabell 042)
Kate Kostelnik

006 - Writing about Culture/Society - Contemporary Pop Culture
TR 1100-1215 (Bryan 332)
David Coyoca

007 - Writing about Identities - Literacy Narratives
TR 930-1045 (New Cabell 042)
Kate Kostelnik

008 - Writing about Culture/Society - The Art of Protest; how protest music, film & literature influence society
MWF 1000-1050 (Bryan 330)
Amber McBride

009 - Writing about Culture/Society - The Art of Protest; how protest music, film & literature influence society
MWF 1100-1150 (Shannon 108)
Amber McBride

Approaches writing as a way of generating, representing, and reflecting on critical inquiry. Students contribute to an academic conversation about a specific subject of inquiry and learn to position their ideas and research in relation to the ideas and research of others.  Instructors place student writing at the center of course, encourage students to think on the page, and prepare them to reflect on contemporary forms of expression.  Students read and respond to each other’s writing in class regularly, and they engage in thoughtful reflection on their own rhetorical choices as well as those of peers and published writers.  Additionally, the course requires students to give an oral presentation on their research and to assemble a digital portfolio of their writing.

Fall 2021 Sections:

001 - Writing about Culture/Society - Writing About Dreams
MWF 900-950 (Shannon 111)
Austin Benson

002 - Writing about Culture/Society - The Art of Protest; how protest music, film & literature influence society
MWF 100-150 (Bryan 332)
Amber McBride

003 - Multilingual Writers -
TR 1100-1215 (Bryan 310)
Derek Cavens

004 - Writing & Community Engagement - Writing Home
MWF 900-950 (Bryan 334)
Rachel Retica

005 - Writing about Culture/Society - Writing Through the Body: Somatic Awareness and Creativity
TR 500-615 (Bryan 332)
Raisa Tolchinsky

006 - Writing about Culture/Society- Women, Romance, & Writing
MWF 1100-1150 (Bryan 332)
Samantha Wallace

007 - Writing about Culture/Society - Trash Talk: Garbage and Guilty Pleasures
MWF 1100-1150 (Bryan 330)
Kyle Marbut

008 - Writing about the Arts - Points of View in Short Fiction
MWF 900-950 (Shannon 108)
Matt Davis

This course is intended to help you develop writing skills that will help you succeed while you are at UVA and also after you graduate. The theme for this section will be "points of view" in fiction. We will read and write about short stories, with a special focus on different ways of narrating a story. The fiction readings will be taken from a classic but rather unusual anthology, Points of View, in which the stories are classified according to the mode of narration used in the story. One section of the anthology contains "interior monologues," in which we seem to be inside the main character's head, hearing his or her thoughts in live time; another section contains "dramatic monologues,"in which we seem to overhear the narrator speaking aloud to another character; a third, letters written by the characters; a fourth, diary entries; and so on. We will look at eleven modes of narration and study two examples of most modes, reading about twenty stories in all.

You will complete six substantial written assignments -- three narratives and three argumentative essays. For the narratives, you will be asked to use one of the modes of narration we have studied to tell a story. The narratives should be appx. 3-6 pages in length. (Longer is not necessarily better.) Each narrative will be written once, without opportunity for revision. For the argumentative essays, you will be asked to write an essay with a thesis and supporting textual evidence. Each essay should be appx. 4-7 pages long, but quality of writing, thinking, and argumentation are more important than length. The argumentative essays will be drafted, workshopped, and revised. In addition, you will learn some principles of composition, complete some exercises related to writing, and complete a library assignment.

009 - Writing about Identities -
MW 330-445 (Bryan 310)
devin donovan

010 - Writing about Science & Tech - Citizen Science
TR 930-1045 (Bryan 312)
Cory Shaman

011 - Writing & Community Engagement - D.I.Y. Art, Writing, & Community
MWF 1100-1150 (Bryan 334)
Michelle Gottschlich

D.I.Y. (or “Do It Yourself”) as it's known today, has existed for nearly a century. Taking hold in the post-war American suburbs, it has shifted dramatically through time—entering the iconoclastic punk era, Etsy mood boards, Soundcloud rap, Tik Tok videos, and more. What do these materials, scenes, makers, and movements have in common? Rhetorically rich and culturally fraught, studying D.I.Y. will get us thinking about how identities & ideas are baked into the “language” of things. Through reading, writing, analysis, and discussion, we will carefully reverse-bake these out to see what we really make of them. We’ll also practice what we study as artists and writers, and chat with visiting artists and writers about their craft. But perhaps most importantly, we’ll learn from D.I.Y. communities how to build supportive, inclusive, and non-judgmental creative spaces in which we can share our work (and ourselves) with one another.

012 - Writing about Culture/Society - Assessing Risk, Reward, Performance
MWF 1000-1050 (Maury 104)
Jon D'Errico

014 - Writing about Culture/Society - Dropouts
MW 330-445 (Bryan 332)
Jordan Burke

015 - Writing about Culture/Society - Experimenting with the Essay
MWF 1200-1250 (Bryan 332)
Ian Jayne

016 - Multilingual Writers -
TR 930-1045 (Bryan 310)
Derek Cavens

017 - Writing about Identities -
MW 200-315 (Bryan 310)
devin donovan

018 - Writing about Culture/Society - Genealogies of Modernity: How the World Became Modern
MWF 900-950 (Bryan 330)
Daniel Zimmerman

019 - Writing & Community Engagement - Writing about Work
TR 500-615 (Bryan 330)
Piers Gelly

020 - Writing about Identities -
MWF 100-150 (Shannon 108)

Rebecca Thomas

022 - Writing about Identities - Writing about Horror through Identity & Social Justice
MWF 1200-1250 (Bryan 334)
Seanna Viechweg

023 - Writing about Culture/Society - Dropouts
MW 500-615 (Bryan 310)
Jordan Burke

024 - Writing about Culture/Society - Writing about Place
MWF 1200-1250 (Bryan 330)
Peyton Davis

What makes a place memorable? What meaning do we give to particular places? Whether they are familiar or foreign, places affect who and where we are. We share our location in messages and over social media with our family, friends, and the world to connect with others. We get homesick, missing people and even places; we get wanderlust and want to see the world beyond our little corner of home. In this writing course, we will explore the importance of the physical world around us: what makes a place important to us? How do we shape the environment and how does it shape us? How do places influence what we think about other people and ourselves? How does the language we use about a place affect our experiences of it? We will read, watch, and listen to how others describe places, we will discuss why those descriptions are important in each of those texts, and we will use those descriptions as models for our own writing. While the course materials will model effective communication, improving your writing will be our primary focus.

Over the course of the semester, we will look at representations of real and fictional places in text, in images, and on screen. We will explore how our cultures, identities, and technologies influence how we see the world and how the world affects us. Through writing about places, we will develop strategies for sharing our ideas in effective ways.

025 - Writing about Culture/Society - The Almighty Dollar: The Culture of Money, Mobility & the American Dream
TR 800-915 (Bryan 330)
Jessica Walker

026 - Writing about Digital Media -
MW 200-315 (New Cabell 315)
Samantha Stephens

027 - Writing about Culture/Society - History and the Self
MW 500-615 (Bryan 332)
Jeddie Sophronius

028 - Writing about Culture/Society - Women, Romance, & Writing
MWF 100-150 (Bryan 330)
Samantha Wallace

029 - Writing about the Arts -
MW 330-445 (Shannon 108)
Charity Fowler

030 - Writing about Culture/Society - Writing the Unlikeable Female Character
MW 500-615 (Bryan 330)
Pamer Smith

031 - Writing & Community Engagement - Writing as Storytelling
MWF 900-950 (Bryan 312)
Molly Kluever

032 - Writing about Culture/Society -
TR 930-1045 (Maury 104)
Lindgren Johnson

033 - Writing about Science & Tech -
TR 800-915 (Shannon 108)
Roberto Rodriguez

034 - Writing about the Arts - Writing about Film
MWF 100-150 (Bryan 334)
Marissa Kessenich

“Frankly, my dear, I don’t give a damn.”
“May the Force be with you.”
“Why so serious?”

Whether it’s a movie you came across on Netflix, an old favorite, or a new release at the theater, film is a source of entertainment, identity, and knowledge. The range of genres and tastes—from comedy or drama, body horror or psychological thrillers, science fiction or fantasy, live-action or animation—means there is something for everyone to enjoy. Film helps us mark time and provides a frame of reference for talking about culture in the 20th and 21st centuries.

In this course, we will be writing about film and its influence on our everyday lives. We will watch several movies and read articles that critique and analyze film using different approaches. You will be asked to respond to these readings as well as write papers that demonstrate your own film analyses. This class asks students to think critically about film, considering questions like: How do movies shape our lives and influence our perception of the world and our place in it? How do our own experiences and identities inform our taste? What makes “good” film, and who gets to say so? Why does the film industry continue to be so influential? This class does not require extensive movie knowledge.

035 - Writing about Culture/Society - Assessing Risk, Reward, Performance
MWF 1100-1150 (Maury 104)
Jon D'Errico

036 - Writing about the Arts - Writing about Food
TR 330-445 (Shannon House 108)
Casey Ireland

037 - Writing about Culture/Society - Women, Romance, & Writing
MWF 1000-1050 (Maury 115)
Samantha Wallace

038 - Writing about the Arts - Beauty and Thievery in the Modern Museum
TR 800-915 (Bryan 312)

Rachel Kravetz

 

039 - Writing about the Arts - Writing about Food
TR 500-615 (Shannon House 108)
Casey Ireland

040 - Writing about Science & Tech -
TR 1230-145 (Bryan 334)
Roberto Rodriguez

041 - Writing about Identities - Master Your Writing Process
MWF 100-150 (Bryan 312)
Janice Murray

042 - Writing about the Arts - Adaptation: From Short Story to Feature-Length Film
MWF 100-150 (Shannon 111)
Nathan Frank

This section of ENWR 1510 examines challenges faced by those who attempt to convert a written text into a film — or, what’s commonly called film adaptation. The written texts selected for this section of ENWR 1510 are (mostly) short fictional stories by modern and contemporary writers, and the films are (mostly) feature-length productions based on these stories (I put "mostly" in parentheses because we will complicate things in fun and experimental ways, too - meaning that we need to deviate occasionally from general trends). Using adaptation as a topic is a way for us to write about a form of rewriting (on the totally open-to-debate premise that adaptation is indeed a form of rewriting), and in turn, for us to think and write about what critical inquiry and rewriting have to do with each other.

043 - Writing about the Arts - Beauty and Thievery in the Modern Museum
TR 930-1045 (Bryan 330)

Rachel Kravetz

044 - Writing about Culture/Society - Rethinking Domesticity
MWF 100-150 (Shannon 109)
DeVan Ard

045 - Writing & Community Engagement - D.I.Y. Art, Writing, & Community
MWF 100-150 (Astronomy Building 265)
Michelle Gottschlich

D.I.Y. (or “Do It Yourself”) as it's known today, has existed for nearly a century. Taking hold in the post-war American suburbs, it has shifted dramatically through time—entering the iconoclastic punk era, Etsy mood boards, Soundcloud rap, Tik Tok videos, and more. What do these materials, scenes, makers, and movements have in common? Rhetorically rich and culturally fraught, studying D.I.Y. will get us thinking about how identities & ideas are baked into the “language” of things. Through reading, writing, analysis, and discussion, we will carefully reverse-bake these out to see what we really make of them. We’ll also practice what we study as artists and writers, and chat with visiting artists and writers about their craft. But perhaps most importantly, we’ll learn from D.I.Y. communities how to build supportive, inclusive, and non-judgmental creative spaces in which we can share our work (and ourselves) with one another.

046 - Writing & Community Engagement - D.I.Y. Art, Writing, & Community
MWF 1000-1050 (Bryan 312)
Michelle Gottschlich

D.I.Y. (or “Do It Yourself”) as it's known today, has existed for nearly a century. Taking hold in the post-war American suburbs, it has shifted dramatically through time—entering the iconoclastic punk era, Etsy mood boards, Soundcloud rap, Tik Tok videos, and more. What do these materials, scenes, makers, and movements have in common? Rhetorically rich and culturally fraught, studying D.I.Y. will get us thinking about how identities & ideas are baked into the “language” of things. Through reading, writing, analysis, and discussion, we will carefully reverse-bake these out to see what we really make of them. We’ll also practice what we study as artists and writers, and chat with visiting artists and writers about their craft. But perhaps most importantly, we’ll learn from D.I.Y. communities how to build supportive, inclusive, and non-judgmental creative spaces in which we can share our work (and ourselves) with one another.

047 - Writing about Culture/Society - Remediating Media
MW 200-315 (New Cabell 338)
Evan Cheney

048 - Writing about Culture/Society - Rethinking Domesticity
MWF 300-350 (Bryan 330)
DeVan Ard

049 - Writing about Identities - The Art of Journaling
TR 800-915 (Bryan 332)
Hodges Adams

050 - Writing about Culture/Society - The Grass Class
TR 800-915 (Shannon 109)
Hannah Grace Dierdorff

051 - Writing about Culture/Society - Writing about Food
TR 500-615 (Bryan 310)
Keith Driver

052 - Writing about Culture/Society - The Grass Class
TR 1230-145 (Bryan 330)
Hannah Dierdorff

053 - Writing about Culture/Society - Writing about Ethics
MWF 900-950 (Bryan 332)
Wyatt McNamara

054 - Writing about Culture/Society -
TR 1100-1215 (Maury 104)
Lindgren Johnson

056 - Writing about the Arts - Writing with Jane Austen
TR 800-915 (Bryan 310)
Michael VanHoose

057 - Writing about Culture/Society - The Almighty Dollar: The Culture of Money, Mobility & the American Dream
TR 930-1045 (Bryan 332)
Jessica Walker

058 - Writing about Culture/Society - Utopia
TR 930-1045 (Shannon 108)
Emelye Keyser

059 - Writing about Culture/Society - Rethinking Domesticity
MWF 1200-1250 (Shannon 109)
DeVan Ard

060 - Writing about Culture/Society -
MWF 300-350 (Bryan 312)
Ankita Chakrabarti

061 - Writing about Science & Tech - Citizen Science
TR 1230-145 (Bryan 310)
Cory Shaman

062 - Writing about Culture/Society - The Almighty Dollar: The Culture of Money, Mobility & the American Dream
TR 200-315 (Bryan 334)
Jessica Walker

063 - Writing and Community Engagement - Rewriting Race, Place, & History at UVA
TR 200-315 (Maury 104)
Anastatia Curley

064 - Writing about the Arts - Writing about Aesthetics
MW 500-615 (Bryan 312)
Kaelin Foody

066 - Writing about Culture/Society -
TR 330-445 (Bryan 310)
Raisa Tolchinsky

067 - Writing about Culture/Society - Beauty and Thievery in the Modern Museum
TR 200-315 (Bryan 332)

Rachel Kravetz

068 - Writing about Identities - Experiments in Learning
TR 1100-1215 (Bryan 312)
Steph Ceraso

How do humans learn? When and where does learning occur? Why are we better at learning some things than others? Is it possible to learn how to learn? What does it mean to really learn something? This seminar will serve as a collective inquiry into the experience of learning. We will be reading and writing about a range of topics related to learning, such as curiosity, motivation, failure, boredom, attention and distraction, uncertainty, and more. In addition, our own histories of and investments in learning will serve as key course texts. Rather than talking about learning in an abstract way, you will spend a lot of time examining your own formal and informal learning experiences. Play and experimentation are also core principles of this class. Alongside more traditional writing assignments, you will get to create a mini video documentary about learning something new and participate in various “learning experiments” throughout the semester.

069 - Writing about Identities -
MWF 1200-1250 (Shannon 108)

Rebecca Thomas

070 - Writing about Culture/Society - Writing about Food
TR 630-745 (Bryan 310)
Keith Driver

071 - Writing & Community Engagement - Your Fave is Problematic: Pop Culture Criticism in the 21st Century
MW 630-745 (Bryan 310)
Vallaire Wallace

Whether we like it or not, popular culture dominates our lives. From Beyonce to The Office, no one can escape the powerful influence media has on our identities. This writing intensive seminar is focused on challenging everything that we as a society deem popular – the movies, TV shows, and books that have become a part of our everyday conversations. For though popular culture excites us enough to share and discuss with others, we cannot ignore the problematic parts of it. 

In this course, we will explore what makes certain media in our culture “popular,” as well as what “popularity” means in general. We’ll also challenge and ask difficult questions about the culture we love so much. We’ll write essays about the pop culture we encounter throughout the course, becoming ourselves better critics and more aware of the media we encounter going forward. In doing so, we will learn more about what it means to be critics in a world where pop culture follows us wherever we go.

072 - Writing about the Arts - STORY(RE)TELLING
TR 1230-145 (Bryan 312)
Gahl Pratt Pardes

073 - Writing about Culture/Society - Utopia 
TR 800-915 (Bryan 334)
Emelye Keyser

074 - Writing & Community Engagement - Writing about Work
MW 330-445 (Bryan 334)
Piers Gelly

075 - Writing about Identities - The Art of Journaling
TR 1230-145 (Shannon 108)
Hodges Adams

076 - Writing & Community Engagement - Writing Our Own Histories
TR 200-315 (Bryan 312)
Emelye Keyser

077 - Writing & Community Engagement - Writing about Work
TR 330-445 (Bryan 312)
Piers Gelly

078 - Writing about Culture/Society - Microcosms: Little Universes to Big Inquiries
TR 630-745 (Bryan 312)
Nehali Patel

001 - Writing about Housing Equity
TR 1230-145 (Shannon 109)
Kate Stephenson

Why do we live where we do? How does housing impact our access to education, food, medical care, and other resources? What can the local built environment tell us about access to housing? Why are some people homeless? What is affordable housing and why is there so little of it? By partnering with The Haven and using different types of writing, including journal entries, forum posts, peer reviews, and formal papers, we will explore topics like homelessness, affordable housing, privilege, food insecurity, the eviction crisis, systems of power, and community engagement.  We will also work with The Haven Writer's Circle to produce an online zine at the end of the semester.

002 - Writing about Food Justice
TR 930-1045 (Bryan 334)
Kate Stephenson

Why do we eat what we eat? Do poor people eat more fast food than wealthy people? Why do men like to eat steak more than women? Why are Cheetos cheaper than cherries? Do you have to be skinny to be hungry? By partnering with a local community garden and using different types of writing, including journal entries, forum posts, peer reviews, and formal papers, we will explore topics like hunger stereotypes, privilege, food insecurity, food production, and community engagement.  

001 - Writing about Identities - Ourselves & Others
TR 1230-145 (Bryan 332)
Jim Seitz

002 - Writing about Identities - Apology/Life Writing
TR 200-315 (Bryan 330)
Tamika Carey

003 - Writing about Identities -
MW 330-445 (Shannon 111)

004 - Writing & Community Engagement - Writing Charlottesville
TR 1100-1215 (New Cabell 209)
Kevin Smith

005 - Writing & Community Engagement - Writing Charlottesville 
TR 1230-145 (New Cabell 209)
Kevin Smith

006 - Writing & Community Engagement - Writing Human/Democratic Rights
M 600-830 (New Cabell 338)
Stephen Parks

001 - Rewriting Yourself: Literacy & the Brain
MWF 1100-1150 (Maury 115)
Heidi Nobles

What do we know and what are we still learning about writing and the human brain? Literacy has dramatically reshaped the human brain over millennia. Yet as literacy itself evolves, we still lack satisfactory data on how writing (and its counterpart, reading) affects our neurology and cognition--and therefore, how literacy affects who we are as humans. In this reading- and writing-intensive course, we will read a range of work on literacy and cognition, including technical and popular treatments of issues such as reading and neural development, brain function during writing tasks, brain activity connected to other creative tasks, and more. We’ll read work from creativity experts, neurologists and cognitive scientists, psychologists, mental health practitioners, computer scientists, and professional writers and editors, all in trying to understand the relationship between literacy and our minds. Reading assignments will include 1-4 extended “read-in” activities; writing assignments will include a combination of creative, reflective, and research-based projects. By the term’s end, you should have an enriched sense of yourself as a reader and writer, and how your literacy practices play into your larger identity.

Note: This class welcomes students with multiple interests and backgrounds for interdisciplinary discussions about how reading and writing affect us all. Students with prior experience in or specialized interest in the brain will be able to dive deeper; students who are more inclined toward the arts and humanities can also expect engaging readings and lively writing assignments.

003 - Vegan Writing
TR 200-315 (Astronomy Building 265)
Lindgren Johnson

004 - SCI & Medical Communications
MWF 100-150 (Bryan 310)
Kiera Allison

005 - History and Culture of Writing at UVA
MWF 1200-1250 (Maury 115)
Heidi Nobles

The University of Virginia, founded in 1819, began with a rich history of writing and writers; that tradition continues today. But with so many different writing activities taking place across Grounds and across time, we may not fully appreciate what all this culture means.

In this course, you will both research and contribute to the culture of writing at UVA. You’ll have a chance to read the (mostly unpublished) writing of past students and faculty, to see where we’ve come from.

You’ll investigate current writing activities across Grounds, helping put together a puzzle that reveals what and how we’re writing today. And finally, you’ll create your own original writing to add to our university archives, making your mark for future generations to read. Through this hands-on literary adventure, you will gain a holistic sense of UVA's rich writing culture and your place, as well.

006 - Audible Writing
MWF 100-150 (Bryan 328)
Jon D'Errico

001
TR 200-315 (Bryan 235)
Keith Driver

No fake news here, but rather progressive exercises in developing the news-writing style of writing from straight hard news to "soft" features. Satisfies Second Writing Requirement.

001
TR 930-1045 (Bryan 203)
Brian Kelly

002
TR 800-915 (Bryan 203)
Brian Kelly

001
MWF 1000-1050 (Bryan 310)
Kiera Allison

002
MWF 900-950 (Bryan 310)
Kiera Allison

TR 330-445 (Bryan 332)
Kate Kostelnik

In this course, we’ll look at a variety of texts from academic arguments, narratives, and pedagogies, to consider what it means to write, communicate, and learn across cultures. Topics will include contrastive rhetorics, world Englishes, rhetorical listening, and tutoring multilingual writers. A service-learning component will require students to virtually tutor students in sections of ENWR1506, my first-year writing courses. We will discuss pedagogies and practical, strengths-based strategies in working with multi-lingual learners on their writing; tutor first-years; and create writing projects that convey learning from these experiences. While the course will specifically prepare students to tutor multilingual writers, these skills are adaptable and applicable across disciplines and discourses. Our techniques and pedagogies will also be applicable to native-speakers. Basically, students will learn how to use dialogic engagement to support collaboration and conversation across cultures. Self-designed final writing projects will give students from various majors—education, public policy, commerce, social sciences, and STEM—the opportunity to combine their specific discourse knowledge with our course content. Additionally, students who successfully complete the course are invited to apply to work on the UVa writing center.  

TR 200-315 (Bryan 328)
Steph Ceraso

In this collaborative, project-based course, students will learn to script, design, edit, and produce an original podcast about UVA’s Memorial to Enslaved Laborers. In addition to reading about and practicing professional audio storytelling techniques (e.g. interviewing, writing for the ear, sound design), students will research and reflect upon the history of slavery at the University of Virginia—including its connections to present day racism and white supremacy in Charlottesville and beyond. No experience with digital audio editing is necessary. Beginners welcome!

TR 200-315 (Bryan 310)
Cory Shaman

TR 1100-1215 (Bryan 330)
Tamika Carey

MW 330-445 (Shannon 109)
John Thomas Casteen IV