Skip to main content
The following fields are required:
Error has occurred. Please reload this page and try the operation again.
  • Agents
  • Partners
  • Student Login
  • Instructor Login
UC Berkeley Extension Home Page
      • Areas of Study
        • Art and Design
        • Behavioral Health Sciences
        • Business
        • Construction and Sustainability
        • Education
        • Humanities and Languages
        • Sciences, Mathematics
          and Biotechnology
        • Technology and
          Information Management
        • Writing, Editing and
          Technical Communication
      • Online Learning
        • Online Courses and Certificates
      • Events
        • Information Sessions
        • Free and Low Cost Events
      • Academic Services
        • Enrollment
        • Transcripts
        • General Information
        • Community Guides
      • Course and Program Information
        • Latest COVID-19 Information
        • Online Course Policies
        • Certificates, Programs and CEUs
        • Concurrent Enrollment
        • Career Services
      • Student Aid
        • Disabled Students
        • Financial Assistance
        • Community Impact Scholarship
      • Voices
        • Voices Home
        • Educator Insights
        • Student Stories
        • Professional Pathways
        • Industry Trends
      • Events
        • Information Sessions
        • Free and Low Cost Events

  • Berkeley Global

The Craft of Reading

ENGLISH X429

41113
Delivery Options Online

To write well, you must read well. By learning to read with the eyes of a writer, you can develop an understanding of what makes great literature work. Class readings include novel excerpts, short stories and memoirs, from classics to contemporary treasures. Weekly writing assignments emphasize analytical responses to the works, while providing the chance to practice writing strategies revealed through close reading. Appropriate for all levels of writers, this course teaches you to read widely, respond deeply and turn any piece of writing into your own best teacher.

Course Outline

Expand or collapse section

Course Objectives

  • Gain the tools to read any text with an eye towards how it was constructed
  • Explore a variety of writing techniques
  • Acquire analytic skills to read and write with fuller comprehension
  • Be better prepared to carry on with your own creative projects

What You Learn

  • What it means to read as a writer
  • Voice, including the difference between voice and narration
  • How a narrator moves through time using language
  • Varieties of tension
  • Themes
  • The art of the memoir
  • The difference between a memoir and an autobiography
  • Audience’s effect on your writing
  • Choosing a point of view
  • Magical realism
  • The line between fiction and memoir
  • Components of style and structure
  • Finding the climax
  • Anchoring your story in a time and place
  • Writing with authority about the larger world
  • What is nonfiction
  • Setting as a character
  • Comedic writing: rhythm, juxtaposition, repetition and other elements
  • The difference between comedy and satire
  • Writer as a social critic
  • Special demands of creating unknown worlds

How You Learn

  • Lecture notes
  • Reading assignments
  • Writing assignments (including two short papers for online sections)
  • Discussion participation and assignments
  • Student feedback
  • Final paper
Loading...

Sections

Section 042

Apr 06, 2021 to Jun 29, 2021 Online

Course Fee(s)

Course Fee credit (2 units)

$675.00


Type Online, Fixed Date

Enroll in this course by its start date and complete it by its specified end date. There are no live sessions, but plenty of opportunities to collaborate with your classmates and instructor.

Dates

Apr 06, 2021 to Jun 29, 2021

Delivery Options

Online

Available for Credit

2 semester units

Instructors

  • JASON BADGLEY

Section Notes

TEXTBOOK NOTE:  Any complete edition may be used.

Section Materials

  • Textbook (Mandatory) The Lover by Marguerite Duras © 1998 Pantheon/Random House ISBN 0375700528 Textbook ISBN: 9780375700521
  • Textbook (Mandatory) Of Love and Other Demons by Gabriel García Márquez © 2008 Vintage/Random House ISBN 1400034922 Textbook ISBN: 9781400034925
  • Textbook (Mandatory) Notes of a Native Son by James Baldwin © 2012 Beacon Press ISBN 0807006238 Textbook ISBN: 9780807006238
  • Textbook (Mandatory) Dear Life by Alice Munro © 2013 Vintage/Random House ISBN 0307743721 Textbook ISBN: 9780307743725

Section 043

Jun 08, 2021 to Aug 31, 2021 Online

Course Fee(s)

Course Fee credit (2 units)

$675.00


Type Online, Fixed Date

Enroll in this course by its start date and complete it by its specified end date. There are no live sessions, but plenty of opportunities to collaborate with your classmates and instructor.

Dates

Jun 08, 2021 to Aug 31, 2021

Delivery Options

Online

Available for Credit

2 semester units

Instructors

  • Katie M. Flynn

Section Notes

TEXTBOOK NOTE:  Any complete edition may be used.

Section Materials

  • Textbook (Mandatory) The Lover by Marguerite Duras © 1998 Pantheon/Random House ISBN 0375700528 Textbook ISBN: 9780375700521
  • Textbook (Mandatory) Of Love and Other Demons by Gabriel García Márquez © 2008 Vintage/Random House ISBN 1400034922 Textbook ISBN: 9781400034925
  • Textbook (Mandatory) Notes of a Native Son by James Baldwin © 2012 Beacon Press ISBN 0807006238 Textbook ISBN: 9780807006238
  • Textbook (Mandatory) Dear Life by Alice Munro © 2013 Vintage/Random House ISBN 0307743721 Textbook ISBN: 9780307743725

This course applies to the following programs:

Interdisciplinary Writing Program

Expand or collapse section

Individualized Study Plan

  • Effective Writing in the Workplace
  • Writing for Social Media: Prose That Works for Web 2.0
  • Grammar, Mechanics and Usage for Editors
  • Journalism Workshop
  • Science Writing
  • Writing the Feature Story
  • Introduction to Public Relations Writing
  • Writing and Editing Internship Program
  • Editorial Workshop I: Introduction to Copyediting
  • Writing Skills Workshop
  • Writing Creative Nonfiction
  • Creative Nonfiction Workshop
  • Developing the Memoir
  • Developing the Memoir II
  • The Craft of Reading
  • The Craft of Writing
  • Exploring Creative Writing
  • Introduction to Writing Fiction
  • Intermediate Fiction Writing
  • Advanced Fiction Writing
  • Developing the Novel
  • Screenwriting: The Art of Visual Storytelling
  • Poetry Workshop
  • Poets Studied and in Conversation
  • American Fiction
  • The English Novel
  • Great Novels You Always Meant to Read
  • Mystery Fiction
  • Shakespeare

Learn More About this Program

Certificate Program in Writing

Expand or collapse section

Required Courses

  • The Craft of Reading
  • The Craft of Writing
  • Writing Skills Workshop

Electives (Literature)

  • American Fiction
  • Contemporary Voices: Speaking From the Margins
  • The English Novel
  • Fact or Fiction: Reading and Writing the Personal Essay
  • Great Novels You Always Meant to Read
  • Great Writers Steal: How the Work of Other Writers Can Inform and Inspire You
  • Mystery Fiction
  • Shakespeare
  • Short-Story Masterpieces
  • Meet the Writer: Guided Study and Discussion With Fiction Writers
  • Ursa Minor Production Class

Electives (Writing Workshop)

  • Exploring Creative Writing
  • Introduction to Writing Fiction
  • Intermediate Fiction Writing
  • Advanced Fiction Writing
  • Writing Genre Fiction: Science Fiction, Mystery, Romance and More
  • Mystery Writing
  • Developing the Novel
  • Screenwriting: The Art of Visual Storytelling
  • Screenwriting Workshop
  • How to Write a Story
  • Writing and Appreciating Poetry
  • Poetry Workshop
  • Poets Studied and in Conversation
  • Writing Creative Nonfiction
  • Creative Nonfiction Workshop
  • Developing the Memoir
  • Developing the Memoir II
  • Journalism Workshop
  • Science Writing
  • Writing the Feature Story
  • Writing and Editing Internship Program

Courses of Related Interest

  • Children's Picture Book Writing Workshop
  • Story Lab
  • Writing the First-Person Essay

Learn More About this Program

Notes

The course number has been changed. Previously, it was listed under ENGLISH X7.

Departmental contact: extension-letters@berkeley.edu | (510) 643-1110

Prerequisites

In order to succeed in this course, it is recommended that non-native English speakers have achieved a minimum TOEFL score of 90. All other non-native English learners should instead consider COLWRIT X400.1 Academic Writing for ESL or COLWRIT X411 Business English for ESL Students. Please contact the department if you require any additional information.

UC Berkeley Extension UC Berkeley Extension Footer Logo

1995 University Ave., Suite 200

Berkeley, CA 94704-7000

extension@berkeley.edu

  • About Us
  • Administration
  • Contact Us
  • Gifts
  • Jobs

Copyright © UC Regents

Powered by Destiny One
Facebook Facebook Icon Twitter Twitter Icon LinkedIn LinkedIn Icon YouTube YouTube Icon Instagram Instagram Icon

Join us on WeChat!

Image of UC Berkeley Extension's WeChat QR code

We use cookies to give you the best experience on our website. By clicking Accept, you consent to our cookie policy and privacy policy.

Session Time-Out

For security reasons and the protection of your personal information, your session will time out due to a period of inactivity in minute(s) and second(s). Click Extend My Session to continue. For security reasons and the protection of your personal information, your session timed out after a period of inactivity. You will be redirected to the home page.

Confirm

Alert

Course Fee

Online

JASON BADGLEY

Jason Badgley, M.A., has had his poetry appear in Gravel, Reed Magazine, Lily Literary Review, Calliope and YB Journal. He has taught English at San Jose State University and Foothill College. He co-translated and helped edit, Degrowth: A Vocabulary for a New Era (Routledge Publishing, 2014). He lives and was raised in Berkeley. Recently he has spent time living in Florence, Italy, and reading in the library at the American Academy in Rome.

Course Fee

Katie M. Flynn

Katie M. Flynn’s short fiction has appeared in the San Francisco Chronicle, Tin House, and many other publications. She has been awarded Colorado Review’s Nelligan Prize for Short Fiction and the Steinbeck Fellowship in Creative Writing. Her first novel, The Companions, came out March 2020, and her interlinked collection of short stories, Island Rule, is forthcoming from Scout Press/Gallery Books.
Processing...

Privacy Policy

Cookie Policy

This statement explains how we use cookies on our website. For information about what types of personal information will be gathered when you visit the website, and how this information will be used, please see our privacy policy.

How we use cookies

All of our web pages use "cookies". A cookie is a small file of letters and numbers that we place on your computer or mobile device if you agree. These cookies allow us to distinguish you from other users of our website, which helps us to provide you with a good experience when you browse our website and enables us to improve our website.

Types of cookies we use

We use the following types of cookies:

  • Strictly necessary cookies- these are essential in to enable you to move around the websites and use their features. Without these cookies the services you have asked for, such as signing in to your account, cannot be provided.
  • Performance cookies- these cookies collect information about how visitors use a website, for instance which pages visitors go to most often. We use this information to improve our websites and to aid us in investigating problems raised by visitors. These cookies do not collect information that identifies a visitor.
  • Functionality cookies- these cookies allow the website to remember choices you make and provide more personal features. For instance, a functional cookie can be used to remember the items that you have placed in your shopping cart. The information these cookies collect may be anonymized and they cannot track your browsing activity on other websites.

Most web browsers allow some control of most cookies through the browser settings. To find out more about cookies, including how to see what cookies have been set and how to manage and delete them please visit http://www.allaboutcookies.org/.

Specific cookies we use

The list below identify the cookies we use and explain the purposes for which they are used. We may update the information contained in this section from time to time.

  • JSESSIONID: This cookie is used by the application server to identify a unique user's session.
  • registrarToken: This cookie is used to remember items that you have added to your shopping cart
  • locale: This cookie is used to remember your locale and language settings.
  • cookieconsent_status: This cookie is used to remember if you've already dismissed the cookie consent notice.
  • _ga_UA-########: These cookies are used to collect information about how visitors use our site. We use the information to compile reports and to help us improve the website. The cookies collect information in an anonymous form, including the number of visitors to the website, where visitors have come to the site from and the pages they visited. This anonymized visitor and browsing information is stored in Google Analytics.

Changes to our Cookie Statement

Any changes we may make to our Cookie Policy in the future will be posted on this page.