Look in the copy room of the English department (I sent you an email a few weeks ago with its location) for your readings for next week. They should be available by 5 PM on Friday, February 5.
As per your concerns, I've limited our readings to a few poems for each class. We may not make it through every poem, but be prepared to discuss them. If it helps you, go through the list of terms I indicated in my previous post and note examples.
Generate one thesis statement to bring to class on Tuesday on one of the poems assigned for that day. Consider this additional practice after our conversation today. Students who did not turn in thesis statements to me today should turn them in to me via email. In the future, all assignments - including impromptu exercises - should be typed and handed in. If you turned in thesis statements to me today, expect written feedback on Tuesday.
Impromptu exercises are done for your benefit. They will allow you to practice skills you will be graded on during formal writing assignments. Remember, they are assignments designed to help you and count as part of your participation grade.
If you have concerns about your first grade or would like to workshop your upcoming short paper, contact me at amy.hildreth@emory.edu and we can schedule a time. Please contact me as soon as possible, as I am not available on weekends.
Thursday, February 4, 2010
Short Paper #2
Due: Thursday, February 11
REQUIREMENTS
Each paper should be 3-4 pages long, double spaced in Times 12 point font with standard spacing and margins, and turned in on paper at the beginning of class on Thursday, January 28. Students should follow MLA guidelines on the formatting of their paper and in their citation methods. Papers will be evaluated according to the following criteria, although +/- grades may be present in order to indicate the relative strength of the work within these general categories.
A: This paper addresses the question in a manner that demonstrates a comprehension of the assignment as well as the social and political contexts discussed in class. The thesis is clear and concise, allowing the argument to develop in a structured manner. Additionally, the paper is original as it provides a unique perspective. All MLA guidelines are correct and there are minimal technical problems.
B: This paper completes the basic requirements of the assignment, follows MLA guidelines, and is generally clear and concise. It does, however, need to improve in one or a few of the following areas: organization, argument development, or mechanics.
C: This paper answers the question of the assignment, but lacks useful citation from the primary text and contains an underdeveloped thesis statement. MLA citations may be incorrect, and/or other technical problems may be present.
D: This paper does not complete the requirements of the assignment.
TOPIC CHOICES
1. Create an argument on why Gwendolyn Brooks used the rhyme scheme she did in "the mother" on page 4 of Selected Poems.
2. How does "The Last Quatrain of the Ballad of Emmett Till" revise your understanding of "A Bronzeville Mother Loiters in Mississippi. Meanwhile, a Mississippi Mother Burns Bacon?"
3. Compare or contrast the depiction of motherhood in Gwendolyn Brooks' "the mother" with Audre Lorde's "Now That I am Forever With Child" from your packet.
4. Why does the protagonist of "poem at thirty" by Sonia Sanchez write "I am not afraid of the night?"
5. How does Gwendolyn Brooks depict the husband in "A Bronzeville Mother Loiters in Mississippi. Meanwhile a Mississippi Mother Burns Bacon?" How does this depiction jar with the wife's desire to see him as a hero?
REQUIREMENTS
Each paper should be 3-4 pages long, double spaced in Times 12 point font with standard spacing and margins, and turned in on paper at the beginning of class on Thursday, January 28. Students should follow MLA guidelines on the formatting of their paper and in their citation methods. Papers will be evaluated according to the following criteria, although +/- grades may be present in order to indicate the relative strength of the work within these general categories.
A: This paper addresses the question in a manner that demonstrates a comprehension of the assignment as well as the social and political contexts discussed in class. The thesis is clear and concise, allowing the argument to develop in a structured manner. Additionally, the paper is original as it provides a unique perspective. All MLA guidelines are correct and there are minimal technical problems.
B: This paper completes the basic requirements of the assignment, follows MLA guidelines, and is generally clear and concise. It does, however, need to improve in one or a few of the following areas: organization, argument development, or mechanics.
C: This paper answers the question of the assignment, but lacks useful citation from the primary text and contains an underdeveloped thesis statement. MLA citations may be incorrect, and/or other technical problems may be present.
D: This paper does not complete the requirements of the assignment.
TOPIC CHOICES
1. Create an argument on why Gwendolyn Brooks used the rhyme scheme she did in "the mother" on page 4 of Selected Poems.
2. How does "The Last Quatrain of the Ballad of Emmett Till" revise your understanding of "A Bronzeville Mother Loiters in Mississippi. Meanwhile, a Mississippi Mother Burns Bacon?"
3. Compare or contrast the depiction of motherhood in Gwendolyn Brooks' "the mother" with Audre Lorde's "Now That I am Forever With Child" from your packet.
4. Why does the protagonist of "poem at thirty" by Sonia Sanchez write "I am not afraid of the night?"
5. How does Gwendolyn Brooks depict the husband in "A Bronzeville Mother Loiters in Mississippi. Meanwhile a Mississippi Mother Burns Bacon?" How does this depiction jar with the wife's desire to see him as a hero?
Terms for Poetry
McGraw Hill provides a useful list of poetic terms you could use for your papers or in class. I assume most of this is a review of what you covered in high school.
Particular terms I am interested in:
- Alliteration
- Assonance
- Characterization
- Connotation
- Enjambment
- Epic
- Free Verse
- Image
- Metaphor
- Narrative Poem
- Protagonist
- Simile
- Stanza
- Symbol
Remember, I am more interested in your papers in reading how you would argue a specific point about the poem. Terminology helps, but this is not a class on how to apply terminology. The internet has a bunch of resources if you need help figuring out definitions of terms or searching for terms, so utilize your search skills.
Particular terms I am interested in:
- Alliteration
- Assonance
- Characterization
- Connotation
- Enjambment
- Epic
- Free Verse
- Image
- Metaphor
- Narrative Poem
- Protagonist
- Simile
- Stanza
- Symbol
Remember, I am more interested in your papers in reading how you would argue a specific point about the poem. Terminology helps, but this is not a class on how to apply terminology. The internet has a bunch of resources if you need help figuring out definitions of terms or searching for terms, so utilize your search skills.
Maps
Historic post-Civil War map of Confederacy states
Northern Ireland relative to the Republic of Ireland
Northern Ireland relative to the Republic of Ireland
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
Sonia Sanchez and Audre Lorde
Check out the Audre Lorde Project.
Watch Sonia Sanchez perform "Middle Passage," a poem not in our packet for Thursday.
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
Gold Star!
I forgot to ask you for the word I was looking for on Thursday. In case you were wondering if you got it right, it was gentrification.
An example of the word:
"Boston Road Blues" by David Henderson describes the process of gentrification when he illustrates the gradual improvement of the housing along Boston Road.
An example of the word:
"Boston Road Blues" by David Henderson describes the process of gentrification when he illustrates the gradual improvement of the housing along Boston Road.
Literary Terms
Here are the literary terms we have learned so far:
Bildungsroman
Definition: The genre of educational development, or the coming-of-age story of the protagonist.
Example: The film Malcolm X is a bildungsroman that follows Malcolm from his childhood to his death.
Enjambment
Definition: The breaking of a unit between lines.
Example: Gwendolyn Brooks is known for her famous poem "We Real Cool," which relies on enjambment to emphasize the importance of the collective.
Parataxis
Definition: Placing two units side by side to generate a juxtaposition.
Example: "A Bronzeville Mother Loiters in Mississippi" and "The Last Quatrain of the Ballad of Emmett Till" are placed in parataxis to highlight the contrasting mental states of the two mothers.
Here is a summery of the literary concepts we will develop as we move throughout the course:
The Gaze
Definition: A concept introduced by the French philosophers Michel Foucault and Jacques Lacan, the gaze was said to epitomize the idea of power relations. Later adapted by feminists and postcolonial critics, the idea of the gaze was a way to theorize how differences in power lead to perceptual biases.
Example: One example of the gaze in "A Bronzeville Mother Loiters in Mississippi" is the Mississippi mother's determination to see Emmett Till as a fairy tale villain rather than a young boy.
The Other
Definition: The Other is the opposite of the Same. In most cases, the Other is anyone other than yourself. To highlight the abstraction of the idea, the other is capitalized. Usually, this concept is used to describe the dehumanizing aspects of seeing people as units rather than individuals, characterized by their communal characteristics rather than their particular ones. French philosopher Emmanuel Levinas is a notable theorist on this topic.
Example: In "A Bronzeville Mother Loiters in Mississippi," Northern newspapers lament the Emmett Till murder by describing the perpetrators as "barbarians." Here, the Other is inverted. Instead of seeing African-Americans as Other, Southern whites are placed in the uncomfortable position of being judged by their Northern brethren.
Bildungsroman
Definition: The genre of educational development, or the coming-of-age story of the protagonist.
Example: The film Malcolm X is a bildungsroman that follows Malcolm from his childhood to his death.
Enjambment
Definition: The breaking of a unit between lines.
Example: Gwendolyn Brooks is known for her famous poem "We Real Cool," which relies on enjambment to emphasize the importance of the collective.
Parataxis
Definition: Placing two units side by side to generate a juxtaposition.
Example: "A Bronzeville Mother Loiters in Mississippi" and "The Last Quatrain of the Ballad of Emmett Till" are placed in parataxis to highlight the contrasting mental states of the two mothers.
Here is a summery of the literary concepts we will develop as we move throughout the course:
The Gaze
Definition: A concept introduced by the French philosophers Michel Foucault and Jacques Lacan, the gaze was said to epitomize the idea of power relations. Later adapted by feminists and postcolonial critics, the idea of the gaze was a way to theorize how differences in power lead to perceptual biases.
Example: One example of the gaze in "A Bronzeville Mother Loiters in Mississippi" is the Mississippi mother's determination to see Emmett Till as a fairy tale villain rather than a young boy.
The Other
Definition: The Other is the opposite of the Same. In most cases, the Other is anyone other than yourself. To highlight the abstraction of the idea, the other is capitalized. Usually, this concept is used to describe the dehumanizing aspects of seeing people as units rather than individuals, characterized by their communal characteristics rather than their particular ones. French philosopher Emmanuel Levinas is a notable theorist on this topic.
Example: In "A Bronzeville Mother Loiters in Mississippi," Northern newspapers lament the Emmett Till murder by describing the perpetrators as "barbarians." Here, the Other is inverted. Instead of seeing African-Americans as Other, Southern whites are placed in the uncomfortable position of being judged by their Northern brethren.
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