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Wikipedia:Wiki Ed/Virginia Commonwealth University/Fiction into Film (Fall 2020)

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Course name
Fiction into Film
Institution
Virginia Commonwealth University
Instructor
Gardner Campbell
Wikipedia Expert
Ian (Wiki Ed)
Subject
Films
Course dates
2020-08-17 00:00:00 UTC – 2020-12-10 23:59:59 UTC
Approximate number of student editors
37


ENGL 385: Fiction into Film. "The Ongoing Legacy of 'Little Women'"

President Theodore Roosevelt said he “worshipped” "Little Women." Simone de Beauvoir reported she “identified … passionately with Jo” and “shared her horror of sewing and housekeeping and her love of books.” Cynthia Ozick said she read "Little Women" “ten thousand” times. Barbara Kingsolver insisted, simply, “I, personally, am Jo March, and if her author Louisa May Alcott had a whole new life to live for the sole pursuit of talking me out of it, she could not.” Camille Paglia, in a dissenting opinion, stated that “the whole thing is like a horror movie to me.” The curated fanfiction website “Archive of Our Own” contains 346 works in the "Little Women" series.

And the most important statistic for our purposes in this course of study: "Little Women" has been adapted for film or television over 20 times, from 1917 to 2019.

It’s hard to think of another American novel, or of any novel at all, that has such a long and influential legacy in film and popular culture. At one point its author, Louisa May Alcott, dismissively referred to "Little Women" and its sequels as “moral pap for the young.” Yet the book is still read, and movies are still made of it, and each new adaptation teaches us something not only about strategies of literary adaptation but also, and crucially, something about the role of women in the cultural context in which Alcott lived and in which each of the adaptations was undertaken.

Together we’ll read and analyze Alcott’s novel—as art, as biography, as fantasy, as feminism, as livelihood—as well as its many adaptations, with an emphasis on the 1933, 1949, 1994, and 2019 cinematic adaptations.

In addition to quizzes, tests, and short analytical essays, you will edit and improve a Wikipedia article related to Alcott herself, "Little Women," or any of the film, television, or musical adaptations of the novel.

Student Assigned Reviewing
ShortSightedMan Little Women (2019 film)
Shay Cawley
Acheampong2 Little Women, Little Women (1918 film)
BradyWoodall Little Women (1933 film)
SniderB Tales of Little Women
Chantaleb
A-chang21
Windsorrb John Matteson
Crowcoder49
Megans.ass Little Women (1970 TV series)
Hrmengl385 Little Women (1994 film)
Stridero Orchard House
Kennanmclaren John Matteson
Obidimmaui Little Women (2018 film)
Mrsredacted Little Women
ReedRickards
Mccrawme
Natbax74 Little Women (1994 film)
Emheer
Umananc
DWRIGHT1229 Little Women (2019 film)
IsabelLittle18 Little Women (2017 TV series)
Cherbez Little Women (2019 film)
AlexGenakos
Annamperez
Williamsam38 Little Women
KyleAMB
Bbshill22 Little Women (2019 film)
Strongdoc Little Women (opera)
Jennahasher Little Women (1950 TV series)
Silberhornmf Louisa May Alcott
Vanyabourj Little Women (1994 film)
SadSapphic Little Women (1978 miniseries)

Timeline

Week 7

Course meetings
Wednesday, 30 September 2020
In class - Introduction to the Wikipedia assignment

Welcome to your Wikipedia assignment's course timeline. This page guides you through the steps you'll need to complete for your Wikipedia assignment, with links to training modules and your classmates' work spaces.

Your course has been assigned a Wikipedia Expert. You can reach them through the Get Help button at the top of this page.

Resources:


Assignment - Get started on Wikipedia

Create an account and join this course page, using the enrollment link your instructor sent you. (Because of Wikipedia's technical restraints, you may receive a message that you cannot create an account. To resolve this, please try again off campus or the next day.)

Milestones

This week, everyone should have a Wikipedia account.

Week 8

Course meetings
Monday, 5 October 2020   |   Wednesday, 7 October 2020
Assignment - Evaluate Wikipedia
In class - Discussion

Week 9

Course meetings
Monday, 12 October 2020   |   Wednesday, 14 October 2020
Assignment - Review the rules for health topics
Assignment - Exercise
In class - Discussion
Guide(s) for writing articles in your topic area

Biographies

Books

Films

LGBT+ Studies

Psychology

Women's Studies

Week 10

Course meetings
Monday, 19 October 2020   |   Wednesday, 21 October 2020
Assignment - Add to an article
Assignment - Exercise

Week 11

Course meetings
Monday, 26 October 2020   |   Wednesday, 28 October 2020
Assignment - Start drafting your contributions

Reach out to your Wikipedia Expert if you have questions using the Get Help button at the top of this page.

Resource: Editing Wikipedia, pages 7–9

Milestones

Everyone has begun writing their article drafts.

Week 12

Course meetings
Monday, 2 November 2020   |   Wednesday, 4 November 2020
Assignment - Peer review two articles

Guiding framework

In class - Discussion
Milestones

Every student has finished reviewing their assigned articles, making sure that every article has been reviewed.

Week 13

Course meetings
Monday, 9 November 2020   |   Wednesday, 11 November 2020
Assignment - Respond to your peer review

You probably have some feedback from other students and possibly other Wikipedians. Consider their suggestions, decide whether it makes your work more accurate and complete, and edit your draft to make those changes.

Resources:

  • Editing Wikipedia, pages 12 and 14
  • Reach out to your Wikipedia Expert if you have any questions.

Week 14

Course meetings
Monday, 16 November 2020   |   Wednesday, 18 November 2020
Assignment - Begin moving your work to Wikipedia

Now that you've improved your draft based on others' feedback, it's time to move your work live - to the "mainspace."

Resource: Editing Wikipedia, page 13


Assignment - Exercise

Week 15

Course meetings
Monday, 23 November 2020
Assignment - Continue improving your article

Now's the time to revisit your text and refine your work. You may do more research and find missing information; rewrite the lead section to represent all major points; reorganize the text to communicate the information better; or add images and other media.


Assignment - Polish your work

Continue to expand and improve your work, and format your article to match Wikipedia's tone and standards. Remember to contact your Wikipedia Expert at any time if you need further help!

Week 16

Course meetings
Monday, 30 November 2020   |   Wednesday, 2 December 2020
Assignment - Final article

It's the final week to develop your article.

  • Read Editing Wikipedia page 15 to review a final check-list before completing your assignment.
  • Don't forget that you can ask for help from your Wikipedia Expert at any time!


Assignment - Reflective essay

Week 17

Course meetings
Monday, 7 December 2020   |   Wednesday, 9 December 2020
Milestones

Everyone should have finished all of the work they'll do on Wikipedia, and be ready for grading.