The mixed constructions exercise, due Tuesday.
Also, Reading Response 9 will be an out-of-class assignment due March 3rd. Reading Response 10 will be done in class on March 8th. This is a change from what it says on the syllabus.
And about that song that was on the Frankenstein DVD…
Thursday, February 24, 2011
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
EWRT1A-25: reading response 8
Reading Response 8
William Faulkner, “A Rose For Emily” (R 140-148)
Choose one. Please use specific evidence in your response.
• Analyze Emily Grierson’s character. Is she a criminal, a lunatic, or a heroine?
• What is the town’s attitude towards Emily Grierson? What is her attitude towards the townspeople? How do these two things contribute to the surprise ending?
• What obstacles stand in the way of Emily having her own voice? Despite these obstacles, how does she manage to assert herself?
• Emily Grierson is isolated from the town she lives in. Do you think her isolation is imposed upon her or self-created? Use specific evidence to respond.
William Faulkner, “A Rose For Emily” (R 140-148)
Choose one. Please use specific evidence in your response.
• Analyze Emily Grierson’s character. Is she a criminal, a lunatic, or a heroine?
• What is the town’s attitude towards Emily Grierson? What is her attitude towards the townspeople? How do these two things contribute to the surprise ending?
• What obstacles stand in the way of Emily having her own voice? Despite these obstacles, how does she manage to assert herself?
• Emily Grierson is isolated from the town she lives in. Do you think her isolation is imposed upon her or self-created? Use specific evidence to respond.
problem posing in math
A friend of mine posted this video on Facebook. It's of a math teacher discussing what he thinks are the negative effects of most math textbooks and what he feels the solutions are. Interestingly, his analysis falls right into Freire's theories. Also, a lot of you said that math had to be taught in a banking concept way. So here's an idea for how it could be taught in a problem posing way.
Friday, February 18, 2011
EWRT1A-25: essay 2 comments: requirements
Make sure you review the essay 2 prompts before you revise your essay. A few of you failed to meet the basic requirements of the assignment.
• Remember that each out-of-class essay is a response to the readings in each section. So essay 2 is supposed to be a response to the "Finding a Voice" essays. That section spans from Angelou through Tannen. You can use one of the "Education" essays, but the focus is supposed to be on the "Voice" essays. This requirement is stated at the top of the essay 2 handout.
• MLA citation is required. That means in-text citation and a works cited list. Most of you are fine, but a few of you neglected to have works cited lists in your first drafts and I want to make sure you remember to include them with your final drafts.
• Two complete drafts are required.
Failure to meet the requirements of the assignment will result in a failing grade. If you have any questions, please e-mail me.
• Remember that each out-of-class essay is a response to the readings in each section. So essay 2 is supposed to be a response to the "Finding a Voice" essays. That section spans from Angelou through Tannen. You can use one of the "Education" essays, but the focus is supposed to be on the "Voice" essays. This requirement is stated at the top of the essay 2 handout.
• MLA citation is required. That means in-text citation and a works cited list. Most of you are fine, but a few of you neglected to have works cited lists in your first drafts and I want to make sure you remember to include them with your final drafts.
• Two complete drafts are required.
Failure to meet the requirements of the assignment will result in a failing grade. If you have any questions, please e-mail me.
Thursday, February 17, 2011
EWRT1A-25: essay 2 comments: analysis versus summary
Obviously, you want to use the essays in our reader as evidence in your paper, but you need to watch out for simply summarizing the essays and not analyzing them. You know you're summarizing when you are simply retelling what another author has said and not adding anything to it. Remember, in college writing you must move beyond simple description and narration. You must have an argument. That means you need to interpret the evidence you are using, not merely say what someone else said.
Let me give you an example. Here is a thesis and two sample body paragraphs that attempt to prove the thesis.
Thesis: The language enforced by the dominant culture can be an obstacle to a person trying to find a unique voice.
Example A: In school, Anzaldúa faced punishment by English teachers when she spoke Spanish (83) and was criticized by Spanish purists (84). When she spoke English, she was told she spoke like a Mexican and at her school she was required to take two classes to get rid of her accent (83). She explained that she did not know her real identity existed until 1965 when she saw books published in her Chicano language (88).
Example B: Anzaldúa believed that in order to find her voice she had to oppose the rules placed on her by the dominant cultures of the U.S. and Mexico. "I will have my voice: Indian, Spanish, white. I will have my serpent's tongue–my woman's voice, my sexual voice, my poet's voice. I will overcome the tradition of silence" (88). This "tradition of silence" was imposed upon her. It was the barrier that she had to overcome to find her true, unique voice.
Example A is just a summary. It seems to be on thesis, but there is no analysis. It is simply a description of Anzaldúa's essay. There is no interpretation of the data, no explanation of what it means. No analysis. Example B, on the other hand, shows evidence of analysis. Here the writer attempts to explain what the quotation means, and links it back to the thesis.
So as you're revising your drafts, try to limit summary and focus on analysis.
For more about this, here's a good page.
Let me give you an example. Here is a thesis and two sample body paragraphs that attempt to prove the thesis.
Thesis: The language enforced by the dominant culture can be an obstacle to a person trying to find a unique voice.
Example A: In school, Anzaldúa faced punishment by English teachers when she spoke Spanish (83) and was criticized by Spanish purists (84). When she spoke English, she was told she spoke like a Mexican and at her school she was required to take two classes to get rid of her accent (83). She explained that she did not know her real identity existed until 1965 when she saw books published in her Chicano language (88).
Example B: Anzaldúa believed that in order to find her voice she had to oppose the rules placed on her by the dominant cultures of the U.S. and Mexico. "I will have my voice: Indian, Spanish, white. I will have my serpent's tongue–my woman's voice, my sexual voice, my poet's voice. I will overcome the tradition of silence" (88). This "tradition of silence" was imposed upon her. It was the barrier that she had to overcome to find her true, unique voice.
Example A is just a summary. It seems to be on thesis, but there is no analysis. It is simply a description of Anzaldúa's essay. There is no interpretation of the data, no explanation of what it means. No analysis. Example B, on the other hand, shows evidence of analysis. Here the writer attempts to explain what the quotation means, and links it back to the thesis.
So as you're revising your drafts, try to limit summary and focus on analysis.
For more about this, here's a good page.
Wednesday, February 16, 2011
EWRT1A-25: essay 2 comments: synthesis
I wanted to post some initial comments I have about what I'm seeing in the essay 2 drafts. I want to post this now, because it may help you for the midterm.
Judging by the drafts, the biggest thing a lot of you have to work on is synthesis. The goal for essay 2 is to find specific connections between the readings you discuss. I want you to argue about specific points of comparison.
The first culprit in some of your essays is the thesis statement. "Everyone has a voice. People find voice in various ways." This is just too vague. What ways? Again, look at the essays you discuss. What way or ways of finding voice do all of them share.
The second problem has to do with the structure of the body paragraphs. A lot of students deal with each piece of evidence–each essay–in a typical five paragraph essay structure. This means that each essay is described (and sometimes merely summarized, not analyzed) in its own paragraph, each containing its own point. Again, this isn't synthesis. If you are making a different point about each essay then you are not showing what the essays say in common. Here the very structure of the essay keeps the readings from being brought together. Don't let your adherence to the five paragraph essay structure limit your own voice.
So look at what all your examples show. You may end up having only a one point thesis, but this is better than having a multiple point thesis that never shows any specific connections between the readings.
Comparison tends to be structured two ways: subject by subject and point by point. In a subject by subject structure, the writer deals with each subject separately. This is similar to what a lot of you are doing when you deal with each essay separately. The drawback here is that the connections between the subjects can get lost, which is the problem a lot of these drafts are having. But the subject by subject pattern is good if you are discussing only one point of comparison. In point by point, the writer organizes the essays around points of comparison and then offers the various subjects as examples. The benefit of doing this is that the points of connection are clear. The drawback to this approach is that if you have only one point of comparison, it makes for a three paragraph essay.
And to further explore rhetorical modes… in prompt 1 you need to find similarities in the process of how one finds a voice. In prompt 2, find similarities in the causes for why people can't find their voice. And in prompt 3, argue similarities about the effects of having a voice.
Judging by the drafts, the biggest thing a lot of you have to work on is synthesis. The goal for essay 2 is to find specific connections between the readings you discuss. I want you to argue about specific points of comparison.
The first culprit in some of your essays is the thesis statement. "Everyone has a voice. People find voice in various ways." This is just too vague. What ways? Again, look at the essays you discuss. What way or ways of finding voice do all of them share.
The second problem has to do with the structure of the body paragraphs. A lot of students deal with each piece of evidence–each essay–in a typical five paragraph essay structure. This means that each essay is described (and sometimes merely summarized, not analyzed) in its own paragraph, each containing its own point. Again, this isn't synthesis. If you are making a different point about each essay then you are not showing what the essays say in common. Here the very structure of the essay keeps the readings from being brought together. Don't let your adherence to the five paragraph essay structure limit your own voice.
So look at what all your examples show. You may end up having only a one point thesis, but this is better than having a multiple point thesis that never shows any specific connections between the readings.
Comparison tends to be structured two ways: subject by subject and point by point. In a subject by subject structure, the writer deals with each subject separately. This is similar to what a lot of you are doing when you deal with each essay separately. The drawback here is that the connections between the subjects can get lost, which is the problem a lot of these drafts are having. But the subject by subject pattern is good if you are discussing only one point of comparison. In point by point, the writer organizes the essays around points of comparison and then offers the various subjects as examples. The benefit of doing this is that the points of connection are clear. The drawback to this approach is that if you have only one point of comparison, it makes for a three paragraph essay.
And to further explore rhetorical modes… in prompt 1 you need to find similarities in the process of how one finds a voice. In prompt 2, find similarities in the causes for why people can't find their voice. And in prompt 3, argue similarities about the effects of having a voice.
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
EWRT1A-25: midterm
As a reminder, the midterm is on Thursday. Please bring paper and pens. You can also bring your reader and a print dictionary, but you can't use any other book (such as the Longman) or notes.
Tuesday, February 8, 2011
EWRT1A-25: appeals and a survey
If you want another look at the appeals handout I was projecting on the overhead tonight, you can get it here. I also have a list of transitions to supplement the one in your book.
I also wanted to offer a little unofficial survey. Keep in mind that the following numbers are based on a quick browse of the papers and may not be entirely accurate. Of the students who offered a clear opinion in reading response 6, fourteen agree with Miller and Swift that the gender bias that they point out in English does negatively affect women; one student agrees with the basic premise but thinks Miller and Swift argue it poorly; nine students discuss the audience of the essay and so don't offer an opinion. Only four students were unconvinced by Miller and Swift's argument.
I have a few reasons I want to share this with you. One, we are discussing voice and I wanted to make everyone's voice heard on this matter. Two, judging by the class discussion one could easily assume that the entire class disagreed with the ideas argued the essay. I certainly assumed that. Apparently (assuming everyone was honest in the reading responses) that's not true.
This then brings up two other points. One is about education, classrooms in particular, and how voices can be silenced. Obviously the class discussion did not elicit everyone's voice and so certain voices went unheard. Perhaps that was because of the way the discussion was handled. Or maybe people just don't like to talk. Or maybe people weren't sure at first what they believed. Or perhaps they felt intimidated by the more vocal members of the class. I'm not sure which answer is correct and it probably varies from student to student anyway. What do you think?
But this brings me to my second point and that is that voice is not only expressed by speaking. Voice is also expressed by writing and that was what the reading response was for, to allow a space for every student, no matter how shy, to make his or her voice heard. And this is one of the purposes of writing: it is a way of having a voice. This obviously relates to the theme were are reading about, but it also relates to what the entire class is about. Learning to write better is not just about getting better grades; it is about developing another way to make your voice heard.
I also wanted to offer a little unofficial survey. Keep in mind that the following numbers are based on a quick browse of the papers and may not be entirely accurate. Of the students who offered a clear opinion in reading response 6, fourteen agree with Miller and Swift that the gender bias that they point out in English does negatively affect women; one student agrees with the basic premise but thinks Miller and Swift argue it poorly; nine students discuss the audience of the essay and so don't offer an opinion. Only four students were unconvinced by Miller and Swift's argument.
I have a few reasons I want to share this with you. One, we are discussing voice and I wanted to make everyone's voice heard on this matter. Two, judging by the class discussion one could easily assume that the entire class disagreed with the ideas argued the essay. I certainly assumed that. Apparently (assuming everyone was honest in the reading responses) that's not true.
This then brings up two other points. One is about education, classrooms in particular, and how voices can be silenced. Obviously the class discussion did not elicit everyone's voice and so certain voices went unheard. Perhaps that was because of the way the discussion was handled. Or maybe people just don't like to talk. Or maybe people weren't sure at first what they believed. Or perhaps they felt intimidated by the more vocal members of the class. I'm not sure which answer is correct and it probably varies from student to student anyway. What do you think?
But this brings me to my second point and that is that voice is not only expressed by speaking. Voice is also expressed by writing and that was what the reading response was for, to allow a space for every student, no matter how shy, to make his or her voice heard. And this is one of the purposes of writing: it is a way of having a voice. This obviously relates to the theme were are reading about, but it also relates to what the entire class is about. Learning to write better is not just about getting better grades; it is about developing another way to make your voice heard.
Thursday, February 3, 2011
EWRT1A-25: shifts exercise
Here is the shifts exercise. Remember to refer to the chapter in the Longman.
Tuesday, February 1, 2011
EWRT1A-25: reading response 5
Reading Response 5
Aaron Devor, “Becoming Members of Society…”
Choose one or come up with your own focus.
- Explain Devor’s distinction between “I” and “me” (paragraphs 7 and 8). How may this separation contribute to problems with finding one’s own voice? Use examples from the reading, other readings, or your own experience and observation.
- Do some of the aspects of the traditional gender roles described by Devor seem to be changing? If so, which ones, and how?
- Use Devor’s concept of the dominant gender schema to explain how voice is oppressed in either Walker’s or Anzaldúa’s essay.
Also, Devor has a keynote speech he gave once in 1996 and again 1998 up on his website at the University of Victoria. It's called "How Many Sexes? How Many Genders? When Two Are Not Enough" and it covers some of the same ideas as the essay in our reader, but in a different context and using more first-hand testimony. I actually think it's probably a more accessible reading than the one in our book.
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