Twitter Assignment #7

1. Which character are you following closest in Raisins in the Sun and why?
2. What writing skill do you most want to see us practice in class next month?

Reflection Note

Reflection on your writing process for essay assignment two. Answer the following questions in a brief letter to the professor. 1. Overall, are you confident that your essay meets the expectations of the assignment? Why or why not? 2. What is the most difficult part of the assignment for you? How are you overcoming it? 3. What is your strategy for doing excellent work for this assignment? 4.What were the two most valuable suggestions made about your paper in the peer review?

Peer Review: Essay Two

Peer Review Guidelines

1. Move into your PR groups.

2. Determine who will read in what order.

3. Budget 10-15 minutes per person and no more.

4. The reader reads their paper aloud.

5. Give written feedback that offers specific praise and criticism.

6. Put your name on this feedback and give it to the writer.

7. Keep your written feedback and staple it to your final draft.

Writing Feedback Directions (from the text Tutoring Writing)

1. Open with a general statement about the essay's relationship to the assignment. Be clear about which parts fulfill the assignment and which parts need improvement. When you make a specific, concrete suggestion for improvement, try couching it in a qualifier: "You might try..." or "Why don't you add..." or "Another way of writing the lead might be..."

2. Present comments so the writer knows which problems with text are most important and which are of lesser importance.

3. Use comments primarily to call attention to strengths and weaknesses in the piece, and be clear about the precise points where they occur.

4. Write comments that are text-specific, and uniquely aimed at the blog and the writer. Let the writer know what specific lines, ideas, and stylistic touches you find pleasing.

5. Pose at least two questions that ask for clarification or that seek other possible views or more information on the subject.

6. If you notice a pattern of errors (incorrect use of commas, etc) comment on it in a global way at the end of the piece.

Attach written suggestions from your peers to your final drafts for full peer review credit.

Class Agenda 4.27

1. Dramatic Terms. How do these terms work with the play so far?

2. Groups: 1) Consider a character, define the character; 2) pick a revealing scene about the character, explain the significance of the scene in terms of 'the play' as a 'form' and in terms of 'the content.'

3. In-class writing: using your strategy worksheet(s) from last week, put your discussion of the scene and character from the play into a paragraph that begins with a claim, is supported by a manageable quote, and demonstrates your 'critical thinking.'

Dramatic Terms

agon:

Literature. conflict, especially between the protagonist and the antagonist. 

 

ANAGNORISIS: (Greek for "recognition"): A term used by Aristotle in the Poetics to describe the moment of tragic recognition in which the protagonist realizes some important fact or insight, especially a truth about himself, human nature, or his situation. Aristotle argues that the ideal moment for anagnorisis in a tragedy is the moment of peripeteia, the reversal of fortune. Critics often claim that the moment of tragic recognition is found within a single line of text, in which the tragic hero admits to his lack of insight or asserts the new truth he recognizes. This passage is often called the "line of tragic recognition." See further discussion under tragedy.

 

CATHARSIS: An emotional discharge that brings about a moral or spiritual renewal or welcome relief from tension and anxiety. According to Aristotle, catharsis is the marking feature and ultimate end of any tragic artistic work. He writes in his Poetics (c. 350 BCE): "Tragedy is an imitation of an action that is serious, complete, and of a certain magnitude; . . . through pity [eleos] and fear [phobos] effecting the proper purgation [catharsis] of these emotions" (Book 6.2). (See tragedy.) Click here to download a pdf handout concerning this material.

 

PERIPETEIA (Also spelled peripetea, Greek for "sudden change"): The sudden reversal of fortune in a story, play, or any narrative in which there is an observable change in direction. In tragedy, this is often a change from stability and happiness toward the destruction or downfall of the protagonist.

 

HUBRIS (sometimes spelled Hybris): The Greek term hubris is difficult to translate directly into English. It is a negative term implying both arrogant, excessive self-pride or self-confidence, and also a hamartia (see above), a lack of some important perception or insight due to pride in one's abilities. It is the opposite of the Greek term arête, which implies a humble and constant striving for perfection and self-improvement combined with a realistic awareness that such perfection cannot be reached. As long as an individual strives to do and be the best, that individual has arête. As soon as the individual believes he has actually achieved arête, however, he or she has lost that exalted state and fallen into hubris, unable to recognize personal limitations or the humble need to improve constantly. This leads to overwhelming pride, and this in turn leads to a downfall. 

 

MIMESIS: Mimesis is usually translated as "imitation" or "representation," though the concept is much more complex than that and doesn't translate easily into English. It is an imitation or representation of something else rather than an attempt to literally duplicate the original. For instance, Aristotle in The Poetics defined tragedy as "the imitation [mimesis] of an action." In his sense, both poetry and drama are attempts to take an instance of human action and represent or re-present its essence while translating it into a new "medium" of material. For example, a play about World War II is an attempt to take the essence of an actual, complex historical event involving millions of people and thousands of square miles over several years and recreate that event in a simplified representation involving a few dozen people in a few thousand square feet over a few hours. The play would be a mimesis of that historic event using stage props, lighting, and individual actors to convey the sense of what World War II was to the audience. In the same way, the process of mimesis might involve creating a film about World War II (translating the event into images projected onto a flat screen or monitor using chemical images on a strip of photosynthetic film), or writing a poem about World War II would constitute an attempt at distilling that meaning into syllables, stress, verse, and diction. Picasso might attempt to embody warfare as a montage of destruction--his painting Guernica is the result. The degree to which each form of art accurately embodies the essence of its subject determines (for many classical theorists of art) the degree of its success. 

 

PARADOX (also called oxymoron): Using contradiction in a manner that oddly makes sense on a deeper level. Common paradoxes seem to reveal a deeper truth through their contradictions, such as noting that "without laws, we can have no freedom." Shakespeare's Julius Caesar also makes use of a famous paradox: "Cowards die many times before their deaths" (2.2.32). Richard Rolle uses an almost continuous string of paradoxes in his Middle English work, "Love is Love That Lasts For Aye." Oscar Wilde's "Ballad of Reading Gaol" notes "And all men kill the thing they love." The taoist master Lao-Tzu makes extraordinary use of paradox in the Tao-te Ching in his discussion of "the Way." 

 

FLAT CHARACTER: Also called a static character, a flat character is a simplified character who does not change or alter his or her personality over the course of a narrative, or one without extensive personality and characterization. The term is used in contrast with a round character. See character, round character, and characterization.  

 

ROUND CHARACTER: A round character is depicted with such psychological depth and detail that he or she seems like a "real" person. The round character contrasts with the flat character, a character who serves a specific or minor literary function in a text, and who may be a stock character or simplified stereotype. If the round character changes or evolves over the course of a narrative or appears to have the capacity for such change, the character is also dynamic. Typically, a short story has one round character and several flat ones. However, in longer novels and plays, there may be many round characters. The terms flat and round were first coined by the novelist E. M. Forster in his study, Aspects of the Novel. See also dynamic character, flat character, character, characterization, and stock character. 

 

STOCK CHARACTER: A character type that appears repeatedly in a particular literary genre, one which has certain conventional attributes or attitudes. In the Old Comedy of Greek drama, common stock characters included the alazon (the imposter or self-deceiving braggart), the bomolochos (the buffoon); and the eiron, the self-derogatory and understating character. Stock characters in Elizabethan drama include the miles gloriosus (the braggart soldier), the melancholic man, the heroine disguised as a handsome young man, the gullible country bumpkin, and the machievelle as a villain. Stock characters in medieval romances include the damsel in distress, the contemptuous dwarf, the chivalrous, handsome young knight, the wild man of the woods, and the senex amans (the ugly old man married to a younger girl). In modern detective fiction, the prostitute-with-a-heart-of-gold, the hard-drinking P.I., and the corrupt police-officer are stereotypical stock characters. Stock characters in western films might include the noble sheriff, the whorehouse madam, the town drunkard, etc.  

 

METAPHOR: A comparison or analogy stated in such a way as to imply that one object is another one, figuratively speaking. When we speak of "the ladder of success," we imply that being successful is much like climbing a ladder to a higher and better position. Another example comes from an old television add from the 1980s urging teenagers not to try drugs. The camera would focus on a close-up of a pair of eggs and a voice would state "This is your brain." In the next sequence, the eggs would be cracked and thrown onto a hot skillet, where the eggs would bubble, burn, and seeth. The voice would state, "This is your brain on drugs." The point of the comparison is fairly clear. Another example is how Martin Luther wrote, "A mighty fortress is our God, / A bulwark never failing." (Mighty fortress and bulwark are the two metaphors for God in these lines.) 

A metaphor is an example of a rhetorical trope, and such metaphors have a long history of critical discussion. Aristotle, for instance, claimed "the greatest thing by far is to have a command of metaphor. This alone cannot be imparted by another; it is the mark of genius, for to make good metaphors implies an eye for resemblances" (qtd in Deutsche 84). Often, a metaphor suggests something symbolic in its imagery. For instance, Wordsworth uses a metaphor when he states of England, "she is a fen of stagnant waters," which implies something about the state of political affairs in England as well as the island's biomes. Sometimes, the metaphor can be emotionally powerful, such as John Donne's use of metaphor in "Twickenham Garden," where he writes, "And take my tears, which are love's wine" (line 20).

If we break down a metaphorical statement into its component parts, the real-world subject (first item) in a metaphoric statement is known as the tenor. The second item (often an imaginary one or at least not present in a literal sense) to which the tenor refers is called the vehicle. For example, consider the metaphorical statement, "Susan is a viper in her cruel treacheries." Here, Susan is the tenor in the metaphor, and viper is the vehicle in the same metaphor. The tenor, Susan, is literally present or literally exists. The vehicle, the hypothetical or imagined viper, is not necessarily physically present.

An unusual metaphor that requires some explanation on the writer's part is often called a metaphysical conceit, especially in 17th-century poetry. If the metaphorical connection is merely implied rather than directly stated, such as talking about "the ladder of success," the term is a "subdued metaphor." The combination of two different metaphors into a single, awkward image is called a "mixed metaphor" or abusio. See also tenor, vehicle, subdued metaphor, and telescoped metaphor. Contrast with simile.

 

Twitter Assignment #6

1. Return to your classmates' Tweets this past week. (Are you following everyone? Check my followers and see if you recognize names and faces from class.) Reply to at least two Tweets. If you see lines or poems you liked, say why. If you have questions for someone about why they selected a particular poem or line, ask it.

2. Favorite at least two Tweets of a classmate.

Updated and Revised Course Schedule

Changes have been made to the syllabus.

See changes below and at right.

Updated Course Schedule, ENG 102

Module Three: Drama: Lorraine Hansberry, A Raisin in the Sun; Research

M. 4.27: Reading: Hansberry: Introduction, 17-53

agon, anagnorisis, catharsis, dithyramb, hamartia, hubris, mimesis, parados,

peripeteia, unities, dramatic structure, flat character, fourth wall, metaphor, round character, stock character

W 4.29: Reading: Hansberry, 53-76

act, character, foreshadowing, plot (rising action, conflict, climax, falling action, dénouement, resolution), point of attack, scene, setting, tragedy

Essay Two Peer Review

All tweets are due Sunday by 12 pm.

M 5.4: Reading: Hansberry, 76-109

dialogue, diction, guerilla theater, mise-en-scène, scenery, stage directions, symbol, symbolism, verisimilitude, context, leitmotif, linear plot, mood, motif, motivation, spectacle, tableau

  

W 5.6   Reading, Hansberry, 109-151

allegory, aside, anti-hero, blackface, dramatic irony, hero/heroine, minstrelsy, soliloquy, tragic hero, deus ex machina, epilogue, exposition, foil, monologue, prologue, satire, subtext

All tweets are due Sunday by 12 pm.

Essay Two DUE

Essay Assignment Three

Module Three: Fiction: Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games; Combining Skills

M 5.11: Reading: Collins, 1-85

W 5.13: Reading: Collins, 86-130

M 5.18: Collins, 131-232

Peer Review Workshop Essay Three

W 5.20: Collins, 233-302

All tweets are due Sunday by 12 pm.

M 5.25: No Class

W 5.27: Collins, 303-374

All tweets are due Sunday by 12 pm.

M 6.1: Preparation for Final Exam

Essay Three DUE

W 6.3: Final Exam: The Hunger Games

No more Tweets.

Class Agenda 4.22

1. Tentative poems, theme, and thesis for Essay Assignment Two.

2. Poetic Terms

3. Student's choice: poems/Twitter.

4. Close-reading lesson.

Poetic Terms

Objective Correlative

Cadence

Pathetic Fallacy

metaphor

simile

figurative language

Extra Credit Event & Assignment

The following event is an extra credit event. If you attend the event and write up a connection between something you saw at the event and a theme from class discussion, you will receive extra credit. I'm looking for one page, double-spaced, well-organized response, with a 'thesis' in the first sentence and "evidence" coming in the form of content from the event itself and from a class discussion and/or text. If this is done, I will award two points to the final course grade. 
 
The Black Lives Matter Summit is fast approaching on May 8th.  The Committee has assembled an incredible group of speakers, panelists and presenters for this historic day!!

The Panels will include:
Black Minds Matter: Education
The 'Hood Matters: Police Brutality
Who I Am Matters: Race, Violence and Mass Incarceration
Health Matters: Health and Wellness

We would LOVE it if some Professors would bring their classes to the summit.  Please register via the Eventbrite link below and PLEASE HURRY - WE HAVE OVER 100 SLOTS FILLED ALREADY FROM PEOPLE ALL OVER THE CITY, and the remaining slots are filling up quickly!!

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/the-black-lives-matter-summit-tickets-16347163807

Once again, I thank all of you who have sent words of encouragement, registered early, and those who have been supportive of this incredible event

The Black Lives Matter Summit Committee:

Jeffrey "Kazembe" Batts
Padmini Biswas
Dr. Fay Maureen Butler
Darren Ferguson
Dr. Jason Hendrickson
Dr. Kevin Jordan
Dr. Allia Matta
Karen McKeon
Brian Miller
Deborah Nibot
Rosslyn Peiters
Shayla Pruitt
Dr. Joan Schwartz
Christendath Singh

Class Agenda: Close Reading Day

ENG 102 Close-Reading

Lesson Goal: The goal for today’s lesson is for you to practice successful direct quotations, quotation paraphrases, and quotation explications (close-reading), or what’s often called critical thinking.

Directions

1.      First, let’s go over the Claude McKay poem “If We Must Die” (it’s his most famous) as a class. We will write a class sentence that gives a basic claim about the poem so that we can move forward in our practice. Each group will use this claim to guide their work.

2.      Next, let’s remind our selves what we do with direct quotations in a paper.

3.      Now, let’s get into groups to practice writing the kinds of sentences we need to make in our ENG 102 essays. To do this, each group will do the following:

-          find a manageable quote you believe supports the poem’s overall meaning and brings out new meanings from the poem’s message (or makes a finer point about it)

-          successfully put this phrase into a direct quotation sentence

-          paraphrase the quote in a sentence (someone in the group should be the secretary at this point)

-          explain the significance of the poem in a sentence. To do this, choose one or different kinds of interpretive strategies:

o   say why the image, word choice, metaphor, or phrase is so significant to you;

o   connect the phrase to another phrase or line in the poem, and thereby how it creates a meaningful theme in the poem;

o   and/or expand on the quoted phrase by clarifying for the reader how the phrase connects to a larger theme within McKay’s work (thus far that we’ve read). 

4.      When you’re done, I’d like every group to read at least three sentences to the class: the direct quotation sentence, the paraphrase, and the ‘significance’ of the poem sentence(s).

Everyone in the group should take notes and write the sentences down so that they have models for themselves going forward. Indeed, I’ll ask each student to practice these skills on their own by the end of the class.