The History of Our Tribe: Hominini

Where did we come from? What were our ancestors like? Why do we differ from other animals? How do scientists trace and construct our evolutionary history? The History of Our Tribe: Hominini provides answers to these questions and more. The book explores the field of paleoanthropology past and present. Beginning over 65 million years ago, Welker traces the evolution of our species, the environments and selective forces that shaped our ancestors, their physical and cultural adaptations, and the people and places involved with their discovery and study. It is designed as a textbook for a course on Human Evolution but can also serve as an introductory text for relevant sections of courses in Biological or General Anthropology or general interest. It is both a comprehensive technical reference for relevant terms, theories, methods, and species and an overview of the people, places, and discoveries that have imbued paleoanthropology with such fascination, romance, and mystery.

Material Type: Textbook

Author: Barbara Welker

Introduction to Sociology 2e, Deviance, Crime, and Social Control

Material Type: Unit of Study

Latin

This is an elementary Latin course accompanied with a detailed grammar based upon Kennedy's Public School Latin Grammar designed to introduce one to the world of classical languages. A basic understanding of grammatical terminology would be helpful; however, it is not required. Basic definitions of terms will be explained in Lessons 1 and 2, and later elaborated as needed.

Material Type: Textbook

Greek and Latin Roots: Part I – Latin

Greek and Latin Roots: Part I - Latin is part one of a two part series. This series examines the systematic principles by which a large portion of English vocabulary has evolved from Latin and (to a lesser degree) from Greek. This book focuses on Latin roots. A link to the second part focusing on the Greek roots can be found below. Part I will try to impart some skill in the recognition and proper use of words derived from Latin. There is a stress on principles: although students will be continually looking at interesting individual words, their constant aim will be to discover predictable general patterns of historical development, so that they may be able to cope with new and unfamiliar words of any type that they have studied. They will be shown how to approach the problem by a procedure known as “word analysis,” which is roughly comparable to the dissection of an interesting specimen in the biology laboratory. The text assumes no previous knowledge of Latin, and does not involve the grammatical study of this language—except for a few basic features of noun and verb formation that will help students to understand the Latin legacy in English. Although there will be some attention paid to the historical interaction of Latin with English, this text is definitely not a systematic history of the English language. It focuses on only those elements within English that have been directly or indirectly affected by this classical language. In order to provide the broadest possible service to students, the text emphasizes standard English vocabulary in current use. The more exotic technical vocabulary of science and medicine can be extremely interesting, but is explored in only summary fashion. Nevertheless, this text should be of considerable value, say, to a would-be botanist or medical doctor, if only by providing the foundation for further specialized enquiry.

Material Type: Textbook

Author: Peter Smith

Composition I Anthology

This Composition Reader is an edited, curated collection of OER material for you to use as you see fit in your course.  It consists of personal essays, literature, video and audio files, web writing, and long-form journalism.

Material Type: Full Course, Textbook

English Composition I

This course promotes clear and effective communication by sharpening critical thinking and writing skills. The first unit is designed to change the way in which students think about writing--as a conversation rather than a solitary act. The second unit focuses on academic writing and explores the PWR-Writing or Power-Writing Method (PWR Pre-Write, Write, Revise). The remaining units will focus on the minutiae of good writing practices, from style to citation methodology. Upon successful completion of this course, the student will be able to: Demonstrate mastery of principles of grammar, usage, mechanics, and sentence structure. Identify the thesis in another individual's essay. Develop a thesis statement, structure it in an introductory paragraph, and support it with the body of the essay. Organize ideas logically within an essay, deploying adequate transitional devices to ensure coherence, flow, and focus. Differentiate between rhetorical strategies and write with an awareness of rhetorical technique and audience. Differentiate between tones and write with an awareness of how tone affects the audience's experience. Demonstrate critical and analytical thinking for reading and writing purposes. Quote, paraphrase, and document the work of others. Write sentences that vary in length and structure. (English 001)

Material Type: Assessment, Full Course, Lecture, Reading, Syllabus

Writing Spaces: Readings on Writing Volume 2

Volumes in Writing Spaces: Readings on Writing offer multiple perspectives on a wide-range of topics about writing. In each chapter, authors present their unique views, insights, and strategies for writing by addressing the undergraduate reader directly. Drawing on their own experiences, these teachers-as-writers invite students to join in the larger conversation about the craft of writing. Consequently, each essay functions as a standalone text that can easily complement other selected readings in writing or writing-intensive courses across the disciplines at any level. Reviews available here: https://open.umn.edu/opentextbooks/textbooks/writing-spaces-readings-on-writing-vol-ii

Material Type: Textbook

Authors: Charles Lowe, Pavel Zemliansky

Argumentation and Communication, Fall 2006

A writing practicum associated with 11.200 and 11.205 that focuses on helping students present their ideas in cogent, persuasive arguments and other analytical frameworks. Reading and writing assignments and other exercises stress the connections between clear thinking, critical reading, and effective writing.

Material Type: Full Course

Author: Abbanat, Cherie

Rhetorical Styles

In the Rhetorical Styles area of the Excelsior OWL, you’ll learn about different rhetorical styles or, essentially, different strategies for developing your essays and other writing assignments. These basic strategies are not all encompassing but will provide you with a foundation and a flexibility to help you as you engage in writing assignments in your introductory writing classes and beyond.

Material Type: Module

English Composition 2

Composition 2 is an expository writing course requiring more advanced writing skills than Composition 1, yet reviewing and incorporating some of the same skills. This course teaches research skills by emphasizing the development of advanced analytical/critical reading skills, proficiency in investigative research, and the writing of persuasive prose including documented and researched argumentative essays. A major component of this course will be an emphasis on the research process and information literacy.

Material Type: Full Course, Textbook

Argument & Critical Thinking

In this learning area, you will learn how to develop an argumentative essay and stronger critical thinking skills. This learning area will help you develop your arguments, understand your audience, evaluate source material, approach arguments rhetorically, and avoid logical fallacies. Here, you’ll also learn about evaluating other arguments and creating digital writing projects related to your argument.

Material Type: Module

Survey of English Literature I

Examines major British texts from the Anglo-Saxon period to the 18th century, emphasizing the ideas and characteristics of the British literary tradition. Involves critical reading and writing. ENG 243 has been designated as a “writing intensive” course according to standards developed by the English department. Prerequisite: ENG 112 or its equivalent. ENG 243 and ENG 244 may be taken out of order. Lecture 3 hours per week.

Material Type: Full Course, Textbook

British Literature II: Romantic Era to the Twentieth Century and Beyond

The University of North Georgia Press and Affordable Learning Georgia bring you British Literature II: Romantic Era to the Twentieth Century and Beyond. Featuring 37 authors and full texts of their works, the selections in this open anthology represent the literature developed within and developing through their respective eras. This completely-open anthology will connect students to the conversation of literature that has captivated readers in the past and still holds us now. Features: Contextualizing introductions to the Romantic era; the Victorian era; and the Twentieth Century and beyond. Over 90 historical images. In-depth biographies of each author. Instructional Design features, including Reading and Review Questions. This textbook is an Open Educational Resource. It can be reused, remixed, and reedited freely without seeking permission.

Material Type: Full Course

Author: Bonnie J Robinson

English Romantic Poetry

In this course, the student will examine the revolutionary energy, fascination with nature, desire to create art for the masses, and inward-facing focus of the Romantic period. First, the student will look at the broader socio-historical and literary context in which English Romantic poetry thrived, then examine the Romantic poet and the outer world, the Romantic poet and the inner world, and the poetry that bridges the gap between the two, attempting to understand what makes each poem 'Romantic.' Upon completion of this course, students will be able to: provide an account of Romanticism as both an historical period as well as a movement in art and literature; identify and explain Romanticism in terms of its relation to the French Revolution; describe the new views of society and social relations that arose during this era; explain the significance of industrialization, the rise of the working class, the expansion of British Empire, the heightening of British nationalism, and the rise of the press; explain Romanticism's relationship to Neo-Classicism; list and describe the major tenets of Romanticism, including the movement's interests in the natural world, supernaturalism, revolution, morality, ethics, exoticism, urbanization, mindscapes, moods, imagination, and interiority; provide an account of the nature and function of the Romantic craft of authorship. (English Literature 404)

Material Type: Assessment, Full Course, Lecture, Lecture Notes, Reading, Syllabus

English Literature: Victorians and Moderns

English Literature: Victorians and Moderns is an anthology with a difference. In addition to providing annotated teaching editions of many of the most frequently-taught classics of Victorian and Modern poetry, fiction and drama, it also provides a series of guided research casebooks which make available numerous published essays from open access books and journals, as well as several reprinted critical essays from established learned journals such as English Studies in Canada and the Aldous Huxley Annual with the permission of the authors and editors. Designed to supplement the annotated complete texts of three famous short novels: Henry James’s The Turn of the Screw, Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness, and Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World, each casebook offers cross-disciplinary guided research topics which will encourage majors in fields other than English to undertake topics in diverse areas, including History, Economics, Anthropology, Political Science, Biology, and Psychology. Selections have also been included to encourage topical, thematic, and generic cross-referencing. Students will also be exposed to a wide-range of approaches, including new-critical, psychoanalytic, historical, and feminist.

Material Type: Reading, Textbook

Authors: Camosun College, Dr. James Sexton

Victorian Literature and Culture, Spring 2003

British literature and culture during Queen Victoria's long reign, 1837-1901. Authors studied may include Charles Dickens, the Brontes, Lewis Carroll, George Eliot, Robert Browning, Oscar Wilde, Arthur Conan Doyle, Rudyard Kipling, and Alfred Lord Tennyson. Discussion of many of the era's major developments such as urbanization, steam power, class conflict, Darwin, religious crisis, imperial expansion, information explosion, and bureaucratization. Fiction, nonfiction, and poetry; syllabi vary.

Material Type: Full Course

Author: Buzard, James

The Victorian Novel

In this course, the student will study the ways in which the Victorian novel represented social, political, scientific, philosophical, and cultural concerns. The course will analyze the context in which the Victorian novel flourished, followed by analyzing the forms, concerns, and impulses of a number of prominent Victorian novels, discussing what makes each novel ĺÎĺĺĺŤVictorian.Ą_ĺĺö Upon completion of this course, students will be able to: provide an introduction and overview to the Victorian era and the Victorian novel; explain and define 'Victorianism' as both a historical period and as a movement in art and literature; explain and describe the major concerns of the Victorian novel; identify the major forms of the Victorian novel; discuss the Victorian authorship and novelistic impulses of the most canonical Victorian authors including, for example, Charles Dickens, George Eliot, the BrontĄ_Ě_̨ Sisters, Joseph Conrad, Elizabeth Gaskell, Thomas Hardy, and Anthony Trollope. (English Literature 410)

Material Type: Full Course, Lecture, Reading, Syllabus

Studies in Poetry - British Poetry and the Sciences of the Mind, Fall 2004

Extensive reading of works by a few major poets. Emphasizes the evolution of each poet's work and the questions of poetic influence and literary tradition. Instruction and practice in oral and written communication. Topic for Fall: Does Poetry Matter? Topic for Spring: Gender and Lyric Poetry.

Material Type: Full Course

Author: Jackson, Noel

Cultural and Literary Expression in Modernity

This course seeks to develop a nuanced understanding of the scope of cultural and literary expression in the late 19th and the first half of the 20th centuries. It attends to broad socio-historical happenings, from the birth of modernism in the late 19th century to the post-modern moment. In addition to literary modernism, the course will also take a brief look at the cultural production of modernism in art, music, architecture, cinema, philosophy, and drama. Upon completion of this course, students will be able to: Define the terms modernism and modernity and explain the similarities and differences between these terms using specific works to illustrate comparison and contrast; List and explain the importance of a variety of social, cultural, and historical developments leading up to and occurring during the modern period; Cite and analyze the meaning of primary works of literature, poetry, art, music, architecture, cinema, philosophy and drama to illustrate the principle characteristics of modernism; Compare and contrast the literatures of both France and England from the start of the modern era (i.e., the turn of the twentieth century); Explain the impact of the Great War upon the development and expression of a variety of literary and artistic forms and especially on poetry in a number of genres; Describe the aftermath of World War I and its variety of effects upon literature and art and especially upon the poetry of T.S. Eliot and the novels of Virginia Woolf and Ernest Hemingway; Define High Modernism and give examples of the tenets, ideals, and even the contradictions and self-contradictions of this movement in history and literature (and especially in both its Irish and British contexts); Define the terms postmodernism and deconstruction as well as the phrase Magical Realism and identify the most important characteristics of the movements, fields, theories, and texts associated with these terms; Explain the premises of postcolonial literature and literary theory and identify, describe, compare, and contrast postcolonial texts from range of national origins. (English Literature 204)

Material Type: Assessment, Full Course, Lecture, Lecture Notes, Reading, Syllabus

Victorian Women Writers Project- Home

The Victorian Women Writers Project (VWWP) began in 1995 at Indiana University and is primarily concerned with the exposure of lesser-known British women writers of the 19th century. The collection represents an array of genres - poetry, novels, children's books, political pamphlets, religious tracts, histories, and more. VWWP contains scores of authors, both prolific and rare.

Material Type: Primary Source, Reading