ENG 3310 – SEC 001
FILM GENRES: ZOMBIES
SUMMER C 2020
T/R 9:30AM -12:40PM
Instructor: Robert Curran
Email: rrc18c@my.fsu.edu
Office: Zoom meeting
Office Hours: Tuesday: 12:40-1:40pm or by appointment
COURSE DESCRIPTION
This course is intended as an introduction to the zombie genre of films. Due to the coronavirus,
our class will not be meeting in person, instead we will meet through regular Zoom meetings to
be held during our scheduled class time, making this class synchronous.
We will explore why the zombie is relevant in today’s society and what we learn about ourselves
through the films. While there are earlier zombie films such as White Zombie (1932), we will
focus on films starting with director George A. Romero’s Night of the Living Dead (1968).
While zombies can be a bleak subject matter, four of the eight films we will watch are somewhat
comical in nature.
FILM LISTING
Night of the Living Dead (1968)
Dawn of the Dead (1978)
Dawn of the Dead (2004)
Zombieland (2009)
Shaun of the Dead (2004)
Warm Bodies (2013)
Day of the Dead (1985)
Return of the Living Dead (1985)
COURSE OBJECTIVES
By the end of the semester, students should be able to:
Understand and use filmic theories
Analyze and discuss artistic choices in film
Gain a wider understanding of film genres
Craft a critically engaging and rigorously researched academic essay
TEXTS AND MATERIALS
No assigned texts to purchase
Any required readings will be posted on Canvas as PDF files
Rental of some films online (via YouTube)
TRIGGER WARNING
This course features material that some students may find disturbing, including violence, strong
language, and sexual situations. Student discretion is advised. Moreover, material in this course
may treat subjects that some individuals may find disturbing or emotionally charged, such as
racism, violence, criminality, sexuality, immorality, etc. The subject matter of this course cannot
be seriously studied apart from confronting these difficult subjects. If you think that this subject
matter might be too offensive for you, I urge you to contact me at the beginning of the semester.
If necessary, I can direct you to other courses that may be less likely to prove upsetting.
LIBERAL STUDIES FOR THE 21ST CENTURY
The Liberal Studies for the 21st Century Program at Florida State University builds an
educational foundation that will enable FSU graduates to thrive both intellectually and materially
and to support themselves, their families, and their communities through a broad and critical
engagement with the world in which they live and work. Liberal Studies thus offers a
transformative experience. This course has been approved as meeting the Liberal Studies
requirements for English and thus is designed to help you become a clear, creative, and
convincing communicator, as well as a critical reader.
MENTAL HEALTH AT FSU
All of us are dealing with a great deal of stress due to the coronavirus. Florida State University’s
University Counseling Service is offering various services remotely. They host Zoom meetings
Monday through Friday, a 2:00 meeting focusing on depression and a 3:00 meeting focusing on
anxiety. https://counseling.fsu.edu/outreach-and-presentations/highlighted-trainings-and-events
The University Counseling Service also offers Telemental Health Services and Telephonic Crisis
Support to students at 850-644-TALK (8255).
https://counseling.fsu.edu/ is their website.
PROJECT DESCRIPTIONS
Zoom Meetings 25%
After Screening the film, the class will meet via Zoom to give students time to discuss things
about the film they found compelling.
Modern Relevance Paper 25%
Will write a paper focusing on how the zombie film matters in today’s world. You are free to
focus on one zombie film or consider how a number of zombie films treat an issue. For instance,
you might write a paper on how racism is depicted in Night of the Living Dead. We will discuss
various possible paper topics during our Zoom meeting. This paper will be at least three pages in
length, plus a works cited page. This is a deep dive into what exactly is relevant about the film
given today’s climate.
Message Board 20%
Each week you are required to write at least 200 to 250 words detailing your thoughts on one of
the films we screened that week. A strong post should be analytical in nature as summarizing a
film’s plot points is not sufficient. In addition, you should comment on another student’s post.
This response should be at least 150 words.
Final Essay (Film Analysis) 30%
Academic writing about film requires that you see beyond your enjoyment of the film experience
and consider the “invisible things,” such as camera angles, composition and editing, lighting,
sound, and mise-en-scene (sets, costumes, makeup). These are the “film elements” that are
distinctive to this art form. When we are caught up in the excitement or emotion of the film’s
story, we often become passive viewers, swept along in the entertainment. Of course, these
responses are important, but they are just a beginning point when it comes to writing
thoughtfully about film. Your final paper should include a minimum of two outside sources that
have reviewed your film. In this essay, you should suggest a MAJOR or MINOR theme in the
movie, supported by imagery, symbols, language, setting, plot, etc. Ultimately, your analysis
should answer these two questions: 1. What is the theme (or subtheme) / important "moral" of
this film? 2. How do specific elements in the text, such as imagery, setting, character, etc., help
to foster that theme in the movie? This essay should be at least five pages in length, plus a works
cited page.
COURSE POLICIES
Student Responsibility
Students are ultimately responsible for their success in this course. This means that responsible
students must:
Take the initiative to ask questions regarding assignments, due dates and classroom
expectations
Keep track of their absences and course due dates
Read over and become familiar with the information on the syllabus, Course Library on
Canvas and their notes of any verbal instructions mentioned during the class period
If students are still in need of clarification or further help, they are always welcome to email me
with any concerns or questions. Since this is an online course and we do not meet face to face,
please know I will due my best to respond to your emails in a timely manner.
Possible Online Issues
Given that this is an online course, there is a fair chance that at some part during our class
meetings my Internet connection will go down. If this happens, please remain in our group for
five minutes before leaving. If I am not back in the group after five minutes, feel free to leave. I
know that you might also have connection issues, if you disconnect, please try to rejoin the
group. If you are unable to do so, email me that day mentioning you had technical difficulty.
Zoom Etiquette
During our Zoom meetings you are encouraged to use your webcams, but this is not required.
Civility
This class will tolerate neither disruptive language. Disruptive language includes, but is not
limited to, violent and/or belligerent and/or insulting remarks, including sexist, racist,
homophobic, or anti-ethnic slurs, bigotry, and disparaging commentary, either spoken or written.
While each of you have a right to your own opinions, inflammatory language founded in
ignorance or hate is unacceptable and will be dealt with immediately
Late Work Policy
All assignments will receive a half letter deduction per day they are late.
Moreover, computers will crash. It is the student’s responsibility to back up all work both locally
(a flash drive or external hard drive) and/or in the cloud (emailing it to yourself or via Dropbox).
This protects your work despite local disasters or computer crashes. Computer problems are
NOT a valid excuse for late or missing work because it is an entirely preventable issue by
backing up your documents. Back up your document every time you work on it and keep more
than one version backed up in more than one location.
Plagiarism
Plagiarism is grounds for suspension from the university as well as for failure in this course. It
will not be tolerated. Any instance of plagiarism must be reported to the Director of College
Composition and the Director of Undergraduate Studies. Plagiarism is a counterproductive,
nonwriting behavior that is unacceptable in a course intended to aid the growth of individual
writers. Plagiarism is included among the violations defined in the Academic Honor Code,
section b), paragraph 2, as follows: “Regarding academic assignments, violations of the
Academic Honor Code shall include representing another’s work or any part thereof, be it
published or unpublished, as one’s own.” If you have any questions regarding possible
plagiarism, please email me and I can advise you on proper citation.
UNIVERSITY POLICIES
University Attendance Policies
We will be screening films using together during class time using Netflix Party, a browser
attachment. You should make every effort to join our Netflix Party, as being there counts as
your attendance for this class.
Excused absences include documented illness, deaths in the family and other documented crises,
call to active military duty or jury duty, religious holy days, and official University activities.
These absences will be accommodated in a way that does not arbitrarily penalize students who
have a valid excuse. Consideration will also be given to students whose dependent children
experience serious illness.
University Academic Honor Policy
The Florida State University Academic Honor Policy outlines the University’s expectations for
the integrity of students’ academic work, the procedures for resolving alleged violations of those
expectations, and the rights and responsibilities of students and faculty members throughout the
process. Students are responsible for reading the Academic Honor Policy and for living up to
their pledge to “…be honest and truthful and…[to] strive for personal and institutional integrity
at Florida State University.” (Florida State University Academic Honor Policy, found at
http://fda.fsu.edu/Academics/Academic-Honor-Policy.)
Americans With Disabilities Act
Students with disabilities needing academic accommodation should: (1) register with and
provide documentation to the Student Disability Resource Center; and (2) bring a letter to the
instructor indicating the need for accommodation and what type. This should be done during the
first week of class. This syllabus and other class materials are available in alternative format
upon request. For more information about services available to FSU students with disabilities,
contact the: Student Disability Resource Center 874 Traditions Way 108 Student Services
Building Florida State University Tallahassee, FL 32306-4167 (850) 644-9566 (voice) (850)
644-8504 (TDD) sdrc@admin.fsu.edu
http://www.disabilitycenter.fsu.edu/
COLLEGE LEVEL WRITING REQUIREMENT
To demonstrate college-level writing competency as required by the State of Florida, the student
must earn a “C-” or higher in the course and earn at least a “C-” average on the required writing
assignments. If the student does not earn a “C-” average or better on the required writing
assignments, the student will not earn an overall grade of “C-” or better in the course, no matter
how well the student performs in the remaining portion of the course.
Grading Scale for Final Grades
A
93 – 100
A-
90 – 92
B+
87 – 89
B
83 – 86
B-
80 – 82
C+
77 – 79
C
73 – 76
C-
70 – 72
D+
67 – 69
D
63 – 66
D-
60 – 62
F
0 – 59
Syllabus Change Policy
Except for changes that substantially affect implementation of the evaluation (grading)
statement, this syllabus is a guide for the course and is subject to change with advance notice.
TENTATIVE COURSE SCHEDULE
Week One
Date Class Activity
Tuesday, June 23 Course Introduction
Thursday, June 25 Discussion:
Night of the Living Dead What is film genre, film
(1968) analysis and film writing?
Week Two
DATE Class Activity
Tuesday. June 30 Read
Dawn of the Dead (1978) -Schatz (film genre and the
genre film)
Thursday, July 2 DISCUSSION
Week Three
DATE Class Activity
Tuesday, July 7 Dawn of the Dead (2004) Read
-Corrigan (how to write about
film)
Thursday, July 9 Zombieland (2009)
Week Four
DATE Class Activity
Tuesday, July 14 Shaun of the Dead (2004) Scene Analysis Due Midnight
Thursday, July 16 Warm Bodies (2013)
Week Five
DATE Class Activity
Tuesday, July 21 Day of the Dead (1985)
Thursday, July 23 Overview of films thus far
Week Six
DATE Class Activity
Tuesday, July 28 Return of the Living Dead
(1985)
Thursday, July 30 Final Class Final Paper Due Midnight
