grades have been submitted

I don't know when they will be viewable, but I have submitted the grades.

Have a good break and good luck on your educational journey.

Final Tuesday, December 9th

EWRT1A-37: 4-6 p.m.
EWRT1A-63: 6:15-8:15 p.m.

Bring:

• paper
• pens
• copy of Fun Home
• Reading Responses 7-10
• yourself

Did Alison Bechdel betray the memory of her father?

This question came up in section 37. As the quotation (from this article) below shows, Bechdel has been confronted with this.

When I interviewed Bechdel in 2012 for The Times of London, Bechdel told me that at one reading event for Fun Home, a man had stood up, a friend of her father’s, clearly upset, she thought, “because I had betrayed my father’s memory by writing about him.”
The gentleman had news to impart: The man and her father, who died aged 44, had a friend in common, the doctor on call when her father arrived at the hospital. “I learnt my father was alive when he got to the emergency room. I’d always thought he’d died instantly,” says Bechdel. “Over 20 years later I find this out on stage, in front of 200 people.”

And from another article, Bechdel herself says this:

She admits to vetting material according to her subjects’ sensitivities and also that her father was more playful than she drew him in Fun Home. “It feels kind of bad I didn’t provide a three-dimensional picture of him.”

And as I mentioned in class, one of her brothers was not happy with her portrayal of Bruce.

John feels that she has been too negative about her father, while Christian “is not completely functional in the world” and has obsessive compulsive disorder. Bechel and her mother both had the disorder as children. “I think we all have Asperger’s,” Bechdel says.

Just some food for thought.

EWRT1A Essay 3 due Thursday

Here are some thoughts on Essay 3 in light of the first drafts I have read.

• Have a specific thesis statement. Vague thesis statements are almost impossible to prove. This is especially a problem for people who chose prompt 1. "Words and pictures add depth to Fun Home" is not a very analytical thesis and would be hard to actually prove.
• You don't have to write a three point thesis statement. I know some of you are more comfortable with this, but given the page limit and the need for synthesis, having a three point thesis makes students rush through their examples. In other words, a three point thesis often makes for a weaker, less developed essay.
• Name the texts you are analyzing in your introduction. The focus of this essay is on Fun Home and at least one other text. So make that clear when you introduce your readers to your essay.
• Show and explain the points of comparison between the texts. Name what Fun Home and the other text have in common and explain that when you provide the examples.
• Obstacles and assets are effects. This is the same point I made about Essay 2. If something is an obstacle then it holds someone back. So in order to demonstrate it, you need to show that effect on the person. Just saying someone's mom was mean does not show the effect that had on the person.
• MLA citation is required. This means both in-text citation and a correct works cited list.
• Two drafts are required. Even if you didn't turn in a first draft, it is still required. And a draft is a real attempt at an essay. A paragraph is not an essay and so is not a draft. 

As always, if you have any questions ask me, either in person or via e-mail.

Fun Home process videos

Here are the videos I showed in class.

first draft of Essay 3 due Tuesday

As I said in class, I realize that we have not finished the book, but really rough first drafts are better than none at all. As always though, the more you have in your first draft, the more it will help you with your final draft. Here are some things to keep in mind:

• Read chapters 5 and 6 before you start your draft.
• Focus on analysis, not summary.
• Show your analysis. In other words, explain how you read the texts.
• Remember that the goal is synthesis. Show connections between Fun Home and another text form our class.
• In Fun Home, the images are as much evidence as the words.

If you have any questions, let me know.

Reading Response 9

Reading Response 9- after chapter 4 of Fun Home

Keeping in mind what you have read of Fun Home so far, respond to one of the prompts below. Please use specific evidence from the book to support your response.

1. Compare and contrast how Alison Bechdel’s father uses books in his life to how Bechdel as a young college student does. How do books relate to their identities? To their sexual identities?

2. What assets does Alison Bechdel have that help support her coming out as a lesbian? What are her obstacles?

3. On page 85, Bechdel claims that her father prefers “fiction to reality.” How does this relate to the fact that Bechdel uses so many other stories– Daedalus and Icarus, Camus, The Great Gatsby, etc.– to understand her father?

4. On page 104, Bechdel mentions the Stonewall Riots. Do some research about this. Why is it significant that Bechdel and her father are in New York just weeks after the Stonewall Riots?

5. Choose a scene from the book and compare the narration with the monstration. What relationship do these share? In other words, what do the images show in comparison to what the words explain and how do the two work together in the scene to create meaning? Consider using McCloud.

6. Choose your own focus for analysis

Due Thursday November 20th.

Reading Response 8

Reading Response 8

Alison Bechdel, Fun Home chapters 1-2

Choose one. Please use specific evidence in your response.

1. On page 15, Bechdel illustrates some of the ways she and her father are different. Despite the differences, how are she and her father similar? Consider characteristics of behavior and/or appearance.

2. What elements contribute to Bechdel believing that her father’s death was a suicide? Do you agree that these elements warrant her conclusion?

3. Choose a scene from the book and compare the narration with the monstration. What relationship do these share? In other words, what do the images show in comparison to what the words explain and how do the two work together in the scene to create meaning? Consider using McCloud.

4. Choose your own focus for analysis

Due Tuesday, November 18th.

EWRT1A sections 37 and 63 Essay 3

A pdf of this can be found on the class website through MyPortal.

Fall 2014 EWRT1A  Essay 3- Fun Home in comparison

For the last out-of-class essay, you will be writing about Fun Home and at least one other text. I am looking for an essay with a well-developed thesis statement that states a clear connection between the works you discuss. The thesis should be backed up by concrete details from both Fun Home and the other work(s). As with Essay 2, the focus here is on synthesis. So find points that the texts you discuss have in common.

1. Speaking of Fun Home, Alison Bechdel says that “the words don’t just illustrate the pictures, but… work on a completely separate track.“ I want you to try to explain what this might mean. Choose a specific scene (or perhaps related scenes) from Fun Home and explain how the narration and monstration work to create the meaning of the scene. What role does each play? Use Scott McCloud’s Understanding Comics to help explain your analysis. Use only the term or terms which help you explain your thesis.

2. Both Fun Home and “A Clack of Tiny Sparks” deal with the experiences of homosexuals in the United States. Bechdel’s father, Bruce, was born in 1936 (30), so was a teenager in the 1950s. Bernard Cooper was a teen in the 1960s. And Alison Bechdel was a teen in the 1970s. Putting these two texts together, what conclusions can you draw about how being a homosexual has or has not changed over the decades. Feel free to mention other characters in Fun Home.

3. In the course of Fun Home, Alison Bechdel’s family sometimes acts as an obstacle to her self discovery and sometimes acts as an asset. Explore one of these in your essay. How does family hinder a person’s identity? Or, how does family help one to discover one’s identity? As with the other prompts here, answer this by looking at both Fun Home and another text from our class. Some possible authors include: Mike Rose, Richard Rodriguez, Gloria Anzaldúa, and Bernard Cooper

4. Part of Alison Bechdel’s self discovery comes through reading books. Thinking of at least one other text in our class, how do books act as a means of self discovery? What do they offer? Answer this with examples from Fun Home and at least one other class text. Focus on finding similarities in the texts. Some possible authors to choose from: Malcolm X, Mike Rose, and Gloria Anzaldúa.

5. If you have another idea that you’d like to write about concerning how one of the previous texts in the class and Fun Home connect, then please talk with me about it.

Requirements

The essay needs to be in the MLA style. So make sure that you include page numbers when you quote or paraphrase specific scenes and provide a works cited list. I expect the paper to be about 4-6 pages in length, double-spaced, and in a font no bigger than twelve point Times New Roman. Two drafts are required.

First draft due November 25^th

Final draft due December 4^th

Fun Home reading questions

Fun Home – Reading Questions.

Use these questions to help focus your reading. These are not prompts; they are simply questions to help you get more out of Fun Home. A pdf of these questions can be found on the class website through MyPortal (for instructions see this earlier post).

1. In what ways are Bechdel and her father different? In what ways are they alike? 

2. Bechdel believes that her father committed suicide. Why? What does she think the motivation for him was? Why is this significant for her? 

3. What role do books play in Bechdel’s relationship with her father? What role do they play in her own self discovery? 

4. Can you find an image in the text that sums up Bechdel’s relationship with her father? Is its placement in the story significant? 

5. In what ways is Bechdel’s father able to support her? How does he do so? 

6. Why does Bechdel allude to so many literary texts? How do they relate to her parents? To herself? 

7. TV shows, magazines, newspapers– various images of media appear in the panels of Fun Home. How do these images of media relate to the characters in the book? 

8. What do you think the purpose of creating Fun Home was for Bechdel? What passages demonstrate this purpose? 

9. In what ways are the telling (the narration) different from what is in the showing (the monstration)? Think of McCloud’s categories. Also consider that the narration is an adult Bechdel looking back and the monstration is often a young Alison experiencing things for the first time. 

10. Is Alison Bechdel a reliable narrator? What does she believe that others in the book may not believe? When does she judge and when does she resist judging? What biases might she have?

EWRT1A essay 2 due

Remember you need:

• Synthesis of at least two of our texts
• MLA citation, including works cited
• 2 drafts (i.e. bring your first draft)

E-mail me with any questions.

There is class Tuesday

De Anza takes Monday, November 10th off for Veterans Day. Classes will be held Tuesday, November 11th.

EWRT1A section 63 Essay 2 general comments

These comments are for section 63.

Incomplete drafts
Many of the drafts this time around were not full drafts. So for a lot of you the only feedback I can give is keep working.

Lack of synthesis
Also, a large number of the drafts lacked synthesis, which is a big problem since synthesis is the whole goal of this assignment. So I will probably review this on Tuesday. Keep in mind that synthesis is taking two or more ideas and weaving them into a single argument. So for this paper that would be taking two or more texts and making them prove the same point. If you have a thesis about assets to education and you say that Malcolm X demonstrates the asset of self-motivation and Mike Rose demonstrates the asset of a role model, then you do not have synthesis because the texts are proving separate points. Yes, the texts both prove the same thesis, but they prove different points within that thesis. Instead, if you were trying to prove that having a role model is an asset, you could discuss Mike Rose and his relationship with Jack MacFarland and Malcolm X and his relationships with Elijah Muhammad and Bimbi. Here you would be using two texts to prove the same exact point.

Our Rules for Writers book has a short section on synthesis on pages 477-479. 

Assets and obstacles also create effects
If something is an obstacle then it holds someone back. That is an effect. So in order to prove that something is an obstacle you need to show the thing and also show how it holds someone back, show its negative effect. So if you're writing that language is an obstacle,  it's not enough to say "English was required at school." You also have to show that this requirement harmed the person in some way. The same goes for assets. Show how the asset is an asset; show its benefit for the person. So yes, Jack MacFarland is an asset for Mike Rose, but this is only clear if we see the positive influence MacFarland has on Rose.

EWRT1A section 37 Essay 2 general comments

These comments are for section 37.

Organization of synthesis essay

I pointed out a few classes ago that students tend to be more successful when they employ a point-by-point approach to their synthesis essays. Yet almost no-one chose this approach. Almost every essay was organized subject-by-subject. In some essays, this worked. Yet in many, it made for very long, very jumbled body paragraphs and made the connections between the various texts (subjects) a bit tenuous. And in some essays, it caused writers to fall into summarizing the texts instead of analyzing them. So again, I highly recommend using a point-by-point organization. It keeps the argument more focused.

Our Rules for Writers book has a short section on synthesis on pages 477-479. 

Assets and obstacles also create effects
If something is an obstacle then it holds someone back. That is an effect. So in order to prove that something is an obstacle you need to show the thing and also show how it holds someone back, show its negative effect. So if you're writing that language is an obstacle,  it's not enough to say "English was required at school." You also have to show that this requirement harmed the person in some way. The same goes for assets. Show how the asset is an asset; show its benefit for the person. So yes, Jack MacFarland is an asset for Mike Rose, but this is only clear if we see the positive influence MacFarland has on Rose.

summary versus analysis

Looking at your Reading Response 6 papers, I can see that some of you are losing sight of what we are doing in college writing. The goal is analysis, not summary. You are trying to show something about a text, how it works or how it means what it does, not simply state what it says. If you want a bit more ideas about the differences between summary and analysis, look at pages 77-79 of Rules for Writers.

EWRT1A section 63 master list

EWRT1A section 37 master list

appeals

If you would like more information about appeals, have a look at this page from the OWL at Purdue.

Reading Response 6

Reading Response 6

Richard Rodriguez, “Aria” (R 118)

Due Tuesday, October 28th

Choose one of the prompts below or come up with your own focus.

1. When Rodriguez first attends school, he is not a very successful student. What helps him to be more successful? Show this in the text and explain.

2. How did Rodriguez’s education affect his relationship with his family? Show the changes. Does he see this as necessary? Do you?

3. According to Rodriguez, what does having a public identity provide people? Show this in the text. Do you agree with Rodriguez about these benefits?

4. One of the possible purposes of education is to assimilate, to make students part of the dominant culture. What are the ways that Fan Shen, Gloria Anzaldúa, and Richard Rodriguez deal with this? Do you see one of these responses as being better than the others or are they all valid? Explain.

Reading Response 5 will be in class

Remember that Reading Response 5 will be done in class this Thursday. The prompts will be about Gloria Anzalúa's* "How to Tame a Wild Tongue." Keeping in mind what we are discussing in class and the prompts for the second essay, what do you think some of the reading response prompts will be?

This also means that Reading Response 6 will be for homework, due Tuesday October 28th. I'll post the prompts for it after Thursday's class.

* How do I type a "ú"? Hold down "option" + "e" and then hit "u".

EWRT1A sections 37 and 63: Essay 2 prompts

Fall 2014 EWRT1A Essay 2- Education Synthesis

Write an essay on one of the prompts below. The essay should be 3-4 pages, typed, double-spaced, and in accordance with the MLA guidelines (see Rules for Writers). The prompts require you to use at least two of the texts we’ve read/heard in the class and at least one must be from the “What Does Education Do?” section (Rose through Cooper). The goal here is to find connections, to discover similarities in two or more texts. Cite the essays you refer to and be sure to provide a works cited list.

1. Obstacles. Sometimes education is successful, but sometimes it isn’t. So when education doesn’t work, what gets in the way? What causes education to fail? You can focus on one cause or a few, but the the same cause must be reflected in more than one text. Find a pattern in our readings.

2. Assets. Looking at the essays we have read, what does it take for education to work properly? In other words, what are the causes of a successful education? Use at least two texts from the class to support your argument. You may focus on one cause or a few. However many you choose, the same cause must be reflected in more than one text. Find links between the texts in answering this prompt.

3. Effects. When education works well, what positive effect does it have? You can focus on just one effect or a few. In either case, use at least two texts from the class to support your argument. However many effects you choose, each effect should be shared by more than one reading you discuss. Find links between the texts in answering this prompt.

This essay is about synthesis. I am looking for a thesis statement that answers the prompt by showing a connection (or connections) between two or more texts from the class. Show a common thread (or threads) that weave through the texts. Your essay should make this thread (or threads) visible. Don’t simply describe what each author says, but instead explain how each author’s idea relates to another’s and to your thesis. When quoting, remember the quotation sandwich. 

Think about the prompts in terms of the rhetorical modes. The prompts above fall into the categories of cause and effect, or process analysis. Use this to help give you greater focus in your writing, especially your thesis statement and the points of your paragraphs.

Remember that a first draft and a final draft are required.

first draft due November 4

final draft due November 13

This American Life: American Limbo

This is the story of Sylvia Lemus's first year in college that we'll be listening to in class.

One last Malcolm X post…

Just because Malcolm X and hatred came up, as it inevitably does, I thought I'd post one last video in which he addresses this issue.

And just to get another perspective, here is a piece from an interview with the great American writer James Baldwin. Here he analyzes why Malcolm X has such an impact on young people. Baldwin once referred to Malcolm X as "the gentlest man" he ever met, but that doesn't mean that Baldwin agrees with Malcolm X's message, as you can see here. The interviewer is Kenneth Clark and the interview was done in 1963, during the height of the Civil Rights Movement.

Malcolm X videos

Just to provide some more context for Thursday's reading and in-class reading response, here are some videos of Malcolm X.

In the first one, Malcolm X articulates some of his early beliefs. The interviewer, Hurlbut (a really unfortunate name), constantly interrupts Malcolm X and gets things wrong, but Malcolm X takes it in stride and just tries to calmly explain what he means.

And this next one Malcolm X provides his reading of history and articulates his idea behind nationalism. You can also clearly see how different his approach was than the approach of Martin Luther King Jr.

There are many more videos of Malcolm X on Youtube. For instance, this one shows some of beliefs and goals toward the end of his life.

How to cite a pdf file

A pdf has set page numbers, so you should use those in your in-text citations. As for the works cited list, see entry 56 on page 514 of Rules For Writers or also scroll to the bottom of this Purdue OWL page.

EWRT1A sections 37 and 63: Reading Response 3

Reading Response 3

Mike Rose “I Just Wanna Be Average”

Choose one of the prompts below or come up with your own focus.

1. Mike Rose describes how the students in the vocational ed track shut down intellectually. Why does this happen? What gets in the way of them being able to receive an education? Don’t simply make a list; choose a focus and demonstrate it with examples from the text.

2. A large change occurs in Mike Rose’s educational life. He goes from being intellectually deadened to becoming intellectually alive. So what helps bring about this change in him? What lessons about education can you draw from this?

3. What effects did MacFarland’s teaching have on the young Mike Rose? Point to specific examples. What conclusions can you draw from this about the possibilities for education?

4. How is Rose’s essay an example of Freire’s theories? State a clear point (or points) of comparison and demonstrate it (them) with specific examples from both texts.

5. Compare Mike Rose’s personal essay with Jean Anyon’s primary research. What connections do you see? State a clear point (or points) of comparison and demonstrate it (them) with specific examples from both texts.

Jean Anyon, "Social Class and the Hidden Curriculum of Work"

You can read the essay for Tuesday here: http://cuip.uchicago.edu/~cac/nlu/fnd504/anyon.htm

Or instead, you can read a pdf scan of the original article on Jean Anyon's site (scroll down to "selected articles"): http://www.jeananyon.org

For Tuesday, either bring a print-out of the article or your notes on it so you will be prepared to discuss it in class. As you read it, compare how Language Arts is taught in the four different schools. How is the subject is taught? What are the students expected to create and know? How are the students treated? What are they being prepared for? We will be going over these questions in class.

Also, consider how the Anyon article relates to the Jacobs essay. What deeper significance does this comparison yield? If college is all about getting a degree in order to get a job as Jacobs argues, and if elementary schools have a hidden curriculum of work as Anyon argues, what does this say about the purpose of education in the United States? Then add Freire's critique. Where does that lead you?

Fall 2014 Office Hours

As it states on the syllabus, I will be holding office hours on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 2:45 to 3:45 in the Part-time Faculty Offices located in the old Baldwin Winery Building (right next to printing services). Enter through the door and head down the stairs. At the bottom you will come to a door with a keypad. I have been given desk 022, which means that you need to type in code 8285 to ring the phone on my desk so I can come and let you in. Come by if you have any questions or want to go over a piece of writing with me.

EWRT1A sections 37 and 63: Essay 1 prompts

Fall 2014 EWRT1A Essay 1- the Meaning of Education

Write an essay on one of the prompts below. The essay should be 3-4 pages, typed, double-spaced, and in accordance with the MLA guidelines (see Rules for Writers). Cite the essay(s) you refer to and be sure to provide a works cited list.

1. The Ideal. As we have seen, even though most people emphasize the importance of education, they often disagree about what effect education is supposed to have. Keeping in mind what we have read and discussed in class, what do you think education is for? Provide specific evidence to support your opinion with at least one example from our readings and one from your own experience/observation.

2. The Real. People have many opinions about what education should do for society, but as a few of our readings point out, the true purpose of education can sometimes be surprising and even the opposite of what most people believe it should be. Keeping in mind what we have read and discussed in class, what does the intent of education seem to really be? Use at least one example from an essay that we have read and at least one example from your own experience/observation. 

The goal of this essay is to engage with the ideas brought up in the class. Both prompts ask you to connect at least one of the readings with your own experience and/or observation. In order to get started, you could begin with your own beliefs about education and see which reading best supports your opinion. Or you could take an insight about education articulated in one of the readings and then think of a personal experience that could act as an example. In any case, the best way to get ideas is to read the texts for the class actively and to participate in class discussion.

Also, keep in mind that you are trying to show what education does, so your examples need to demonstrate that. Negative examples, such as people who failed to achieve the purpose of education, don’t adequately demonstrate the effect of education. Lastly, your personal example does not have to be limited to the U.S. Just make sure it connects to an essay we’ve read and to your thesis.

Remember that a first draft and a final draft are both required.

first draft due October 9

final draft due October 21

EWRT1A sections 37 and 63: Reading Response 1

Reading Response 1:

After reading “The 'Banking' Concept of Education,” explain the effects of the two categories of education that Freire describes by providing examples from your own experience and/or observation. Do you agree with the effects that Freire describes? If so, make this clear in your examples. If not, explain why.

Due: Tuesday, September 30th.

If you want more information about Freire, this page is good. And this page puts some of his main ideas into bullet points.

Paradigms in Education

This video is just to help you get thinking about education and what it is actually for. Why do we have public education at all? What do we want citizens to learn? And are they learning what they should? The video is an animated lecture given by Ken Robinson. In it, he talks a little about the history of education in the U.S. and the beliefs behind it, and what he sees as the necessity for change. Do you agree with his ideas? Why or why not?

Fall 2014: EWRT1A section 37 and 63

Welcome!

This page will serve as the class blog. This is where you can get the prompts for the out-of-class writing assignments as well as other information.

The class page through MyPortal will have a few files you'll need for the quarter. For instance, right now you can get a pdf of the syllabus for the class. You can access it by clicking on the "Files" link in the menu.

Then click on the file name to download the file.

If you have any questions, feel free to e-mail me.

I'll see you all Tuesday.

for any old 1A students: Fun Home controversy in South Carolina

You can read about it and Alison Bechdel's reaction here.

EWRT1B sections 16 and 61

This quarter, I am attempting to use Course Studio through My Portal. So I'll be announcing information and posting needed files there.