Literary Interpretation 2

For Monday Nov. 17

2008-11-14T03:51:00.000-08:00

Dear Students,

After successfully working through Shakespeare's play A Midsummer Night's Dream,
please view, then complete the following to contribute to the activities and in-class discussion that we will conduct on Monday:

Some responses/interpretations of the play I thought you might find helpful or interesting:

"What the Puck?"

Text and Illustration, A Midsummer Night's Dream

Manga Shakespeare

Kate Brown, Illustrator Scroll to Midsummer Night's Dream and view panels

Animaniac Shakespeare??

Composer Felix Mendelssohn's Midsummer Night Dream Can you hear the mischievous fairies?

In your blogs, please choose one of the following pairs/groups to write about:

Theseus/Hippolyta
Titania/Oberon
Oberon/Puck
Hermia/Lysander
Helena/Demetriuss
The "Rude Mechanicals"

Using specific lines, speeches, and passages, describe the complicated interactions between these characters. Consider the language that the pair/group employs. Post passages along with your interpretive ideas in your blog by Sunday. Feel free to post any other pictures, links, or videos you may have encountered regarding the play as well.

Visit each other's blogs and begin a conversation with your peers through positive feedback and comments.

Looking forward to reading your posts!

Midsummer Night's Dream for Weds. Nov. 12

2008-11-09T14:33:00.000-08:00

Click on the link in this blog to access the full text of Shakespeare's play:

A Midsummer Night's Dream

Read Act 1 and Act II for discussion on Weds. In addition, please watch the BBC version. You can access this version through WMU's video and film archive here:

http://www.wmich.edu/library/film/

You may need to set up an account or type in your Bronco ID and password to access this site.

Once on this page, click Theatre in Video

From here you can click on the link for the "complete works of Shakespeare as produced by the BBC and other theatrical companies." You can scroll down from here to find A Midsummer Night's Dream.

I find it particularly helpful when working through Shakespeare's plays to be able to listen to professional actors say the lines. I generally follow along with the words in the text and take notes in my book or my notebook as the play progresses. You should set aside at least 2-3 hours to watch/read the play.

Below is a link created by Dr. Debora B Schwartz at California Polytechnic State University:

A Midsummer Night's Dream Study Guide

She has created a comprehensive, hyper-linked study guide on this page. For Weds. pay particular attention to her links on language. Review prose, blank verse, and rhyme. Consider as you read, the way in which Shakespeare's language is employed.

Read through the study questions in this guide. These will likely become talking points as we progress in our reading and discussion of this play.

For Weds, make sure you have completely read and viewed Acts I and II. Come prepared with a good grasp of the characters and their role (so far) in the play.

It may be worth mentioning as well, that there is a recent "Hollywood" version of this play available in your local video stores. You may choose to watch any version of the play you like.

Happy reading!

Paper #2 Workshop

2008-11-09T14:26:00.000-08:00

Today you will be doing two readings of two of your classmates' papers. Instructions for how to participate in the workshop follow:

First Reading:
For most papers, (and with literature as well), I have found that it is important to do two or more readings of the text in order to become as familiar with the text as possible.

In your first reading:

* Read the paper for knowledge and understanding (comprehension).

* Gloss over the text. Text-glossing is underlining, hi-lighting, circling, or making comments in the margins. These may be points that you revisit in your second read.

* If necessary, add small edits (though editing grammar is not the main focus of the workshop experience)

In your second reading you will be responding in writing to the paper by recording the following. Copy the text below, paste it into a word document, and begin to write your comments there.

Workshop Response Form:

1. How does the writer lead you in to their idea? Does it work? Why/why not?

2. What is the thesis or main focus of the paper? Is it clear, narrow, and focused?

3. List the main points or panels the writer uses for support.

*

*

*

Do these points work to defend or demonstrate the focus of the paper? Clarify.

How is outside research (scholarly books or journals) used in this paper? Are the passages balanced with the author's writing and point of view?

4. How does the paper conclude? Is it effective? Why/why not?

5. Do you understand the close reading that the writer is using in his/her paper? Are you able to visualize the information/passages/panels he or she is writing about?
Give an example why or why not.

6. What was the strongest section of this paper? Why?

7. What was the weakest section of this paper? How might it be addressed?

8. (Last part!) Write a personal response (about 1/2 to 1 page double spaced) for the writer. This response should help the writer consider how you responded to the paper along with the personal connections you were able to make with the writing. Use "I" statements to write this portion of the paper. Some possible sentence starters follow:

"I was reminded of...."
"I connected with your idea on...."
"I enjoyed....."
"I struggled with...."
"I did not understand...."
"I needed more....."
"I lol'ed when...." :)

9. Sign your name on the workshop response form.

When you have finished your peer-review of two other papers, return to your own papers and the comments you see there. Read carefully through the ideas suggested by your two readers.
Finally, attach a "revision plan statement" with your papers to be handed in to me. This statement should include your response to your peers' reading of your paper and your plans/strategies for revision of this paper before its appearance in your portfolio.

Once these two segments are completed: 2 peer reviews, 1 Revision statement,
THEN you may hand in your paper to me for a grade.

Be sure you review the Portfolio Expectations posted in my blog. This will give you a good idea of how you will be graded at the end of the semester.

Looking forward to engaging in your ideas!

Finding Scholarly Research 101

2008-10-31T06:17:00.000-07:00

No matter which paper option you choose for your Research paper, both require the addition of scholarly research. While the internet offers a wide variety of sources, and if used well, can be a rich resource for literary criticism, I expect that you will find articles on your topics that have been published in academic or literary journals.

Let's go over how to find this information. First, go to the WMU library homepage. Next, click the "Articles" tab and type in a search. This search will take you to Proquest, and there are many ways to navigate this arena for appropriate, academic work. You can seek scholarly articles specifically. You can search for full-text articles only and you can ask for a ready-made citation. You can also email these articles to yourself.

Browse this search function and send a few sources to yourself to read more closely at home.

Help Answering the Question, "What are you looking for?"

2008-10-31T06:08:00.000-07:00

In an effort to help you better visualize the creative project option and get a sense of what others have done in a similar fashion, I've come up with two styles of "projects" that relate fairly closely to what "I am looking for"--before you take that too much to heart and before you think that I want your project to look exactly like one of the projects linked below and freak out,

REMEMBER that these are just examples to get your brain moving.

In part, "what I am looking for" is a lot like what we call a "Multigenre Paper"--what this means in simple terms, is a paper that is written using a variety of creative sources. Rather than writing a traditional 5-paragraph essay, students who write multigenre essays incorporate music lyrics, recipes, epigraphs, comics, short stories, plays, pictures, interviews, journals, dialogue, etc....into their papers to create a unified whole or "theme" on a particular subject.

Check out these example below to see what these papers looks like:

Multigenre papers
I like the Dracula and "Black and White Colored Glasses" ones myself

As you glance through these projects, you should note how each "paper" is focused on a particular theme. The writers of these projects use a variety of media to think around this topic. In this sense, the reader is left to make some interpretations about the text. While we are not directly confronted with a bold, in-your-face style thesis as readers, we are asked to consider how all of the pieces fit together in order to determine how the story is being told.

Your projects may look similar to this--the only addition I see is that you will be writing it online, therefore you have the opportunity to create sections that focus on hyperlinks of music, video, etc. You are creating a type of "digital multigenre paper" in this project.

If you want to take this project a step further, you might consider how your story can be told through digital storytelling.

Some of you have expressed creating a type of video or film that would include narration of your themes and "cuts" of literature, video clips, music, photography, etc.

This is an example of a digital story that discusses the problem of advertising.
Here is another digital story that examines the problem of heroes in society today.

In both stories, you will notice that there is a clear and distinct focus around a particular theme. The writer's narration propels the viewer through the story, guiding them to the heart of their message. The stories include graphs, maps, photographs, text, advertisements, etc.
While there is not a "written thesis" persay, it is clear that a well-developed thesis guides these projects. The visuals unify and clarify the themes the creator presents.

Furthermore, All projects include CITATIONS! You will need to create a list of citations to show where your information came from. This demonstrates academic integrity.

I hope these examples help to clarify some of your questions regarding "what this project should look like."

Again, there are many ways to do this project. None of them are wrong as long as they have a clear focus, point to a variety of media that explores this focus, and give your viewers/readers a better understanding of the focus.

I wish you well on your creative journeys!

Paper #2 Research--Requirements, Options, and Guidelines

2008-10-31T05:26:00.000-07:00

For Paper #2, your research paper, you will be allowed to choose between the following:

A) A Traditional Research Paper (similar to what we've written so far with the addition of scholarly criticism and outside research)

OR

B) A Multigenre Research Project (a non-traditional, hyper-linked research paper, posted on your blog)

Both papers, require a specific thesis constructed around any of the texts or themes we have discussed in our class. Both choices also require you to incorporate outside, scholarly articles and research to lend credence to the arguments expressed in your thesis. And finally, each paper must include internal citations and a Works Cited page in MLA format.

Paper A: The Traditional Paper

would consider a theme or text from the literature we've read, for example, systems of privilege in Toni Morrison's The Bluest Eye or war and conflict in Persepolis, and discover through both the literature and outside research, how this theme is presented. It would have a clear, direct thesis that guides the reader through the theme/idea being explored in the paper. It would make use of several passages/panels as support and consider the ways we have been taught about how to talk about both traditional literature and graphic texts (literary theory and graphic theory, ie: McCloud). Finally, it would balance personal insight and assertions with support from scholarly critics who investigate the same text.

Paper B: The Contemporary Project

would be a creative mash-up or montage of a theme/text we have considered in class. It would incorporate critical discussion and pertinent outside research on your text/topic, however, it might also include a variety of other mediums that "play" to the theme you choose to explore in your paper. For example. Perhaps the topic of your paper is "9/11" or "The War in Iraq"--in this paper, you would show how the literature we have studied in class addresses the theme of conflict, but you would also expand your interpretation to include contemporary media such as music, mp3's, movies, youtube debates, cartoons, poetry, fox news reports, political commentary, documentary, wikis, podcasts, websites, and on and on.

Together these media should all unite to present a variety of positions or a type of logical debate. The debate that happens in your paper becomes the argument or thesis that you put forward for your "readers." Because this project extends beyond "paper", it would be acceptable for you to publish this on your blog. This type of publication would allow you to use hyperlinks to all of the media you discover that helps you to present or address your topic.

In a project on "9/11" for example, a writer might wish to discover the attitudes and prejudice that arose after this event. An argumentative thesis for this type of "paper" might read: "The events of 9/11 sparked a windfall of prejudices against middle-eastern and Muslim Americans. As Americans, it is our responsibility to fight this prejudice through thoughtful analysis of the media that perpetuates these careless beliefs."

The writer of this paper must write an introduction that presents his/her position on this idea and then, through a variety of "literatures" demonstrate how these attitudes prevailed. The writer might link readers to popular mp3's that address the events of 9/11 or prejudice in song lyrics. The writer might hyperlink interviews with Michael Moore regarding his controversial documentary Fahrenheit 9/11. The writer could include conflicting points of view, arguments or debates demonstrated on Youtube through clips of Fox News and the like. To include a graphic novel, the writer might refer to Spiegelman's In the Shadow of No Towers or The 9/11 Report. The writer might also consider where or how the theme of prejudice or war has traditionally been represented in classical literature (you are allowed to choose any literature that you see fit, not simply the selections we have read in class). The writer would also investigate scholarly articles and research that support his/her point of view, and weave these perspectives into the narrative language of their paper. As readers of these papers, we engage in multimodal ways. We hear interviews, see pictures, interpret gestures and attitudes. We read poetry, biography, opinion columns, youtube videos, maps, graphs, movie clips, etc...the possibilities are limitless.

The choice is yours! Feel free to ask any questions you may have, and have fun creating your final paper/project.

For Monday Oct. 27

2008-10-22T14:31:00.000-07:00

"Look Down Fair Moon"

From Leaves of Grass, Walt Whitman

Look down, fair moon, and bathe this scene;
Pour softly down night’s nimbus floods, on faces ghastly, swollen, purple;
On the dead, on their backs, with their arms toss’d wide,
Pour down your unstinted nimbus, sacred moon.

Persepolis is a novel deeply embedded in the cultural history of the Iranian Revolution.
To understand the novel in its historical context, click on the links above for further information.

In addition, please read through the poetry posted here. Begin to consider how conflict shapes identity and disturbs the human spirit. How do the words of these poets resonate with Satrapi's story? How do they speak to the contemporary conflicts evident in our country and in our world today?

Poems about War

Stephen Crane, "War is Kind"
e. e. cummings, "next to of course god america i"
Yehuda Amichai, "Memorial Day for the War Dead"
Pablo Neruda, "I Explain a Few Things"
Hayden Carruth, "On Being Asked to Write a Poem Against the War in Vietnam"

Please post a response to any aspect of these readings in your blog.

Intersections

2008-10-20T04:16:00.000-07:00

In your blogs today, choose 2 panels (or areas) that you wish to discuss in class. Write down the page numbers and the significance of these panels. Consider meaning and interpretation along with the multimodal structure of the panels as well.

Additionally, I would like each of you to reflect back on the literature we have read so far and consider the ways in which Blankets and Oranges intersect with other selections we have read.
How do these themes, structures, ideas, etc relate to prior themes and structures? In what ways does the literature "speak"?

In your "intersections," discuss how at least three different texts work in relationship to one another. You might also consider how the literature we have read so far relates to other, outside sources, for examples song lyrics, TV sitcoms, film, blogs, news media, etc.

What connections can you make? Write them in your blog and be prepared to discuss them in class.

Texts in Conversation: Emily Dickinson

2008-10-13T04:15:00.000-07:00

As we read these two poems by Emily Dickinson, consider the ways in which words and language combine to create a distinct image for the reader. What metaphor is created in these poems? How do these poems relate to our discussions on belief, conformity, self-awareness, and personal transformation?

Much Madness is Divinest Sense

Some Keep the Sabbath

2008-10-13T03:59:00.000-07:00

Oranges are Not the Only Fruit, and Blankets (the book we will be reading next) are stories of belief. Often our growth and development into a code of beliefs is referred to as a "Coming of Age" experience. Coming-of-age narratives, or what scholars often refer to as the Bildungsroman, are extremely prevalent in mainstream literature.

How a character moves through the stages of self-awareness and evolves into an independent thinker are often points for critical discussion and debate. Outside of literary criticism, belief and the coming-of-age experience are ideas that connect to us personally as well. Who we are today is often a result of how we have been raised, the choices we have made, and the experiences we have encountered in life so far.

Belief is not stagnant. It changes with our experiences and varies greatly from person to person and culture to culture. Consider the following questions below to write about in your blog. Be prepared to discuss your answers (along with text from the novel) with your classmates.

What do you believe? (or, perhaps like Morpheus in the Matrix, we might ask, "What is it that you choose to believe?" Will you take the red pill or the blue pill?)

What or who has shaped your system of belief?

Think of a time when your belief system was challenged. How did you respond?

Consider "belief" in Oranges are Not the Only Fruit. What beliefs are firmly upheld? What beliefs are challenged or change? What self-revelations or "awakenings" occur in Winterson's modern-day Bildungsroman? Use quotes from the text as support.

How are Jeanette's changing beliefs demonstrated symbolically or through foreshadowing within the pages of the novel?

What struggles still exist for Jeanette, even after she has "accepted" herself?

Portfolio Expectations

2008-10-05T13:55:00.001-07:00

In response to some questions that have been posed to me, by several of you on different occasions, the purpose of this blog is to help clarify the "Portfolio" grading method employed by this class as a final evaluation.

As you know from the syllabus, each paper makes up a portion of your final portfolio grade.
Each paper has its own deadline, and is assigned an initial "grade," as you have already experienced.

That grade is carried into your portfolio, where I begin to take a closer look at your work. Several things may happen here. Perhaps a paper was initially given a grade of "75", this grade may be raised through evidence of genuine reflection and revision--which of course is to your benefit. However, the "new" grade does not automatically replace the "old" grade. If the "new" grade is an "85" then I average the two grades to come up with the final grade of "80" overall.

This is done in part to keep you honest in your deadlines, and in your writing itself. Let's consider another scenario. Perhaps you did not submit one of your papers. Your initial grade for that paper would then be a "0". While I am willing to give you some feedback if you choose to submit the paper via email at a later date, the late paper will receive no grade at the time of the deadline. For portfolio, however, the paper must appear (so, yes, you do indeed have to write them all) Perhaps you knock my socks off and earn a "95" in your portfolio version. Yet by averaging the two grades together, your overall grade for the paper is a "57"--this may not sound great, but in the world of numbers, even a 48 is better than a zero, especially to your overall grade.

Let's consider one last scenario. On your first submission, you received a "97" and you're patting yourself on the back, feeling pretty confident that you've got it made. Even with a glorious 97, I expect that your Portfolio version will demonstrate continued thought, revision, and polish--beyond just the grammar P's and Q's. This is why I leave specific comments in the margins of your papers, so that when you go back to revise your papers you will understand that even with a 97, there are still "miles to go before you sleep..." so to speak. It is possible, though rare, for an initial paper of 97 to turn into a much lower grade. This generally happens when it is evident that the writer did not spend any time re-examining his/her work in a significant way, or handed in virtually the same paper as the first.

Remember.....it's a PROCESS....we get better as we go....or at least, that's the idea in writing, and in life.

So yes, your initial grade matters. It matters if you don't do the paper when it is due. It matters if you hand in the same paper for portfolio without revising it. It matters if you put serious effort into the revision (or as I like to call it, the "re-seeing") process. It all matters.

I hate these testy talks about grades. I hope this clears things up, and I might add, I'm really happy with the work all of you are doing! So this isn't a "bad" talk, please don't take it that way :) I hope this helps bring a bit more clarity to "what I'm thinking" when I sit down to do your grades. I'm much more interested in your personal growth and learning than I am about getting nit-picky about a "number"--Come. Learn. Sit down at the "Table". We all have a lot to gain from one another. Please let me know if you have further questions. I'm happy to chat with you!

Shannon

Paper #1 Workshop Guidelines

2008-10-05T13:44:00.000-07:00

Today you will be doing two readings of two of your classmates' papers. Instructions for how to participate in the workshop follow:

First Reading:
For most papers, (and with literature as well), I have found that it is important to do two or more readings of the text in order to become as familiar with the text as possible.

In your first reading:

* Read the paper for knowledge and understanding (comprehension).

* Gloss over the text. Text-glossing is underlining, hi-lighting, circling, or making comments in the margins. These may be points that you revisit in your second read.

* If necessary, add small edits (though editing grammar is not the main focus of the workshop experience)

In your second reading you will be responding in writing to the paper by recording the following. Copy the text below, paste it into a word document, and begin to write your comments there.

Workshop Response Form:

1. How does the writer lead you in to their idea? Does it work? Why/why not?

2. What is the thesis or main focus of the paper? Is it clear, narrow, and focused?

3. List the main points or panels the writer uses for support.
Do these points work to defend or demonstrate the focus of the paper? Clarify.

4. How does the paper conclude? Is it effective? Why/why not?

5. Do you understand the close reading that the writer is using in his/her paper? Are you able to visualize the information/passages/panels he or she is writing about?
Give an example why or why not.

6. What was the strongest section of this paper? Why?

7. What was the weakest section of this paper? How might it be addressed?

8. (Last part!) Write a personal response (about 1/2 to 1 page double spaced) for the writer. This response should help the writer consider how you responded to the paper along with the personal connections you were able to make with the writing. Use "I" statements to write this portion of the paper. Some possible sentence starters follow:

"I was reminded of...."
"I connected with your idea on...."
"I enjoyed....."
"I struggled with...."
"I did not understand...."
"I needed more....."
"I lol'ed when...." :)

9. Sign your name on the workshop response form.

When you have finished your peer-review of two papers, return to your own papers and the comments you see there. Read carefully through the ideas suggested by your two readers.
Finally, attach a "revision plan statement" with your papers to be handed in to me. This statement should include your response to your peers' reading of your paper and your plans/strategies for revision of this paper before its appearance in your portfolio.

Once these two segments are completed: 2 peer reviews, 1 Revision statement,
THEN you may hand in your paper to me for a grade.

Looking forward to engaging in your ideas!

MLA and Close Reading Paper #1

2008-09-24T05:46:00.000-07:00

Dear Students,

Posted here is a link to MLA and writing help sites. You can also type in your citation information here and have it translated into MLA style.

In preparation for your first paper (due Oct. 6), begin to select a specific set of passage or panels that you would like to examine in a close reading. Any of the materials we have read so far are appropriate for a close read.

For the purposes of this paper, a close reading means a critical examination of a small portion or select passages/panels of text. This paper should "narrow in" and avoid generalizations of the text as a whole. As you examine our text, consider the following:

patterns
repetitions
contradictions
similarities
structural elements
multimodal elements
iconography
cultural references
universality of the texts

Be sure to include quotes or photocopies of the panels (if writing about a visual text) into the body of your paper.

Your paper should begin with a question you ask of the text, then answer through your thesis statement in the beginning of the paper. The writing that follows should be organized around specific quotes/panels etc. that address and support the ideas you express in the thesis.

Please bring your thesis ideas to class with you on Monday.
Your second Response Paper is also due on Monday!

Check back in my blog over the weekend for any questions/links related to Monday's reading, The Bluest Eye.

Assignment for Weds. Sept. 24

2008-09-22T15:09:00.000-07:00

Consider how the texts we discussed in class today (Monday Sept. 22) work in conversation with one another. In your blog, choose specific quotes, panels, or passages to help demonstrate your connections. Don't forget that you, the reader, should be a part of this conversation.

Additionally, it's important for me to remind you that you have the freedom to work "outside of the box." If you have additional connections to literature, youtube videos, poetry, TV sitcoms, movies, blogs, etc. feel free to post them here. We all benefit from the contributions of others.

As a reminder, you may submit your second response paper on Weds, or you may wait to submit your paper until Monday. Your second response paper (and all response papers) should be written with a critical question in mind. The paper should demonstrate your ability to use specific examples from the text, along with your own interpretation, to build and "flesh-out" a conversation or argument presented by the texts you choose. For your second paper you may choose from any (or a combination) of the following:

American Born Chinese, Emerson's "Self-Reliance," bell hooks lecture, "Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack," the Dove ad, and Morrison's The Bluest Eye.

Happy writing. Looking forward to discussing this post and the second half of American Born Chinese on Weds.

P.S. I need your English Fee Cards!

Texts in Conversation

2008-09-21T13:55:00.000-07:00

In your blogs today, record your initial impressions of Yang's book American Born Chinese. Describe your reading experience of the text. Consider the content and ideas expressed in the story. Once you've recorded your first impressions of the text, choose a specific set of panels to respond to with more depth. This could be a page, one panel, a short set of panels. Try to narrow your focus, and avoid generalizations of the story. What is happening in these panels? Consider the the multimodal forms of interpretation available from the text.

Along with our discussion of the first half of American Born Chinese today, we will also be considering how this text works in conversation with other texts. We may return to our blogs later in the class to record our thoughts on the conversation these texts create with one another.

Read the following excerpts from Ralph Waldo Emerson's Essay "Self-Reliance":

There is a time in every man's education when he arrives at the conviction that envy is ignorance; that imitation is suicide; that he must take himself for better, for worse, as his portion; that though the wide universe is full of good, no kernel of nourishing corn can come to him but through his toil bestowed on that plot of ground which is given to him to till. The power which resides in him is new in nature, and none but he knows what that is which he can do, nor does he know until he has tried. Not for nothing one face, one character, one fact, makes much impression on him, and another none. This sculpture in the memory is not without preestablished harmony. The eye was placed where one ray should fall, that it might testify of that particular ray. We but half express ourselves, and are ashamed of that divine idea which each of us represents. It may be safely trusted as proportionate and of good issues, so it be faithfully imparted, but God will not have his work made manifest by cowards.

...

Trust thyself: every heart vibrates to that iron string. Accept the place the divine providence has found for you, the society of your contemporaries, the connection of events. Great men have always done so, and confided themselves childlike to the genius of their age, betraying their perception that the absolutely trustworthy was seated at their heart, working through their hands, predominating in all their being.

...

Whoso would be a man must be a nonconformist. He who would gather immortal palms must not be hindered by the name of goodness, but must explore if it be goodness. Nothing is at last sacred but the integrity of your own mind. Absolve you to yourself, and you shall have the suffrage of the world. I remember an answer which when quite young I was prompted to make to a valued adviser, who was wont to importune me with the dear old doctrines of the church. On my saying, What have I to do with the sacredness of traditions, if I live wholly from within? my friend suggested, — "But these impulses may be from below, not from above." I replied, "They do not seem to me to be such; but if I am the Devil's child, I will live then from the Devil." No law can be sacred to me but that of my nature. Good and bad are but names very readily transferable to that or this; the only right is what is after my constitution, the only wrong what is against it

...

What I must do is all that concerns me, not what the people think. This rule, equally arduous in actual and in intellectual life, may serve for the whole distinction between greatness and meanness. It is the harder, because you will always find those who think they know what is your duty better than you know it. It is easy in the world to live after the world's opinion; it is easy in solitude to live after our own; but the great man is he who in the midst of the crowd keeps with perfect sweetness the independence of solitude...

...

A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds, adored by little statesmen and philosophers and divines. With consistency a great soul has simply nothing to do. He may as well concern himself with his shadow on the wall. Speak what you think now in hard words, and to-morrow speak what to-morrow thinks in hard words again, though it contradict every thing you said to-day. — 'Ah, so you shall be sure to be misunderstood.' — Is it so bad, then, to be misunderstood? Pythagoras was misunderstood, and Socrates, and Jesus, and Luther, and Copernicus, and Galileo, and Newton, and every pure and wise spirit that ever took flesh. To be great is to be misunderstood.

Choose one of these segments to read closely. How do Emerson's ideas work in conversation with Yang's?

A final "text" comes in the form of an advertising campaign. Consider the "evolution" depicted here and how this message relates to those of our other two authors.

Finally, how do you and your ideas fit into this conversation?

Cultural Criticism, bell hooks, and Invisible Knapsacks

2008-09-16T18:09:00.000-07:00

Okay. Gonna throw some pretty heavy stuff at you today. Before we begin discussing American Born Chinese and The Bluest Eye, in particular (though these theories apply very nicely to future readings as well), I want us to take a closer look at cultural criticism and begin to discuss the ideas of "Representation" and "Transformation" as discussed by hooks. hooks as well (yes, her name is intentionally spelled in lower case letters), is concerned with the ways that race, class, and gender are all interconnected and how these "representations" determine (or indeed undermine) personal identity.

A Postmodern feminist scholar, hooks is deeply interested in how we define racism and how we address systems or institutions that perpetuate oppression. Today we will watch a few segments from hooks' video lecture "Cultural Criticism and Representation"

You can watch these links (and click to related links) here.

As you listen to hooks, jot down ideas that puzzle, interest, frustrate, excite, or anger you. Consider as well, the way that hooks focuses on texts from popular culture and the media to illustrate her ideas regarding race, representation and transformation. Why does hooks use examples from popular culture to carry her message? How does this represent a postmodern lens of interpretation?

hooks' discussion of the "white supremacist capitalist patriarchy" generally generates heated interest and debate. In what sense is she using this term?

Further heat might be generated from our discussion on Peggy McIntosh's article, "White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack." Briefly skim through this article, focusing specifically on the list that McIntosh creates. Jot down the numbers of a few articles that you wish to discuss with the whole group.

Overall, consider the following questions:

Why are issues of race, gender, and class important to discuss? Is it possible to read literature without "reading the world" into the text? What does a critical examination of literary texts intertwined with examples from popular culture have the potential to teach us?

Looking forward to your debate and input as we discuss these ideas together in class today.

Monday. Sept. 15 Visual Literacy/Imagism

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How does the structure of a picture/image affect our emotional responses?

In the Foreword to Molly Bang's Picture This, Rudolf Arnheim writes that Bang's "special talent derives from her natural response to what comes alive when one is open to the elements of vision, the disks and the rectangles, the reds and the blacks. Far from being mere shapes, they transmit joy and fear, awe and gentleness. . . . These simple shapes, animated by Molly Bang, do more than tell a story: they offer an order, a kind of grammar for the eyes, a recipe for yet further things to say. Therefore, they also teach" (x). These are 10 (though by no means all) of Bang's insights (all are direct quotations from Bang):

Smooth, flat, horizontal shapes give us a sense of stability and calm. See Bang, pp. 42-43.
Vertical shapes are more exciting and more active. Vertical shapes rebel against the earth's gravity. They imply energy and a reaching toward heights or the heavens. See Bang, pp. 44-46
Diagonal shapes are dynamic because they imply motion or tension. See Bang, pp. 46-54.
The upper half of a picture is a place of freedom, happiness and triumph; objects placed in the top half often feel more "spiritual." The bottom half of a picture feels more threatened, heavier, sadder, or more constrained; objects placed in the bottom half also feel more "grounded." An object placed higher up on the page has "greater pictorial weight." See Bang, pp. 54-62.
The center of the page is the most effective "center of attention." It is the point of greatest attraction. The edges and corners of the picture are the edges and corners of the picture world.
Light backgrounds feel safer to us than dark backgrounds because we can see well during the day and only poorly at night. See Bang, pp. 68-69.
We feel more scared looking at pointed shapes; we feel more secure or comforted looking at rounded shapes or curves. See Bang, pp. 70-71.
The larger an object is in a picture, the stronger it feels. See Bang, pp. 72-76.
We associate the same or similar colors much more strongly than we associate the same or similar shapes. See Bang, pp. 76-80.
We notice contrasts; contrast enables us to see. See Bang, p. 80.

American Gothic

La Guernica

Manga Shakespeare

Imagism

Wheelbarrow

Theory Notes and Links of Interest

2008-09-13T07:50:00.000-07:00

As promised, here are the notes on the theories we discussed last Monday. The Dumbest Generation link is at the bottom as well :)

New Criticism:
New Criticism grew out of the 1930's & 40's. New critics place emphasis on the artistic or aesthetic aspects of literature, where metaphor, irony and poetic devices are interpreted in an attempt to find or create an "organic" whole or "unity" in the text. New criticism celebrates the complexities of individual literary works themselves, and argues that literature is best understood apart from the lives of the authors who created it or the historical time periods in which it was written.

This style of criticism was greatly popularized in the 1950's and its structure is the basic foundation or "institution" for the way that textbooks/anthologies organize and discuss literature today. New Criticism has been criticized for its rigidity or "mechanical, reductionist vision" of teaching literature as a result. Yet New Criticism has been a great influence on the ways we study literature, paving the way for many of the literary theories that follow.

New Historicism
New Historicists, unlike New Critics, believe that literature is deeply involved within the time period it was written in and thus reflects the tension and diversity of any historical moment. Literature viewed through this lens is unafraid of examining how the author's life and background help to contribute to our knowledge and interpretation of the work itself. Literature then, is freely discussed alongside the wide array of the political and historical issues of its time, and our interpretation of literature reflects not only our ability to decipher the words on the page, but to consider as well, how the author's life and the world that the author lived in help to create meaning for readers within this larger context.

Deconstruction:
Deconstruction, or what others may refer to as Poststructuralism, came about in the 1960's & 70's with the work of Derrida. Highly philosophical in nature, and often misunderstood, followers of Deconstruction believe that "truth" when examined closely--when "deconstructed" turns out to be a fiction created by the language and systems whereby we create meaning itself.

Deconstruction asks readers to challenge institutionalized ways of thinking and interpreting literature by looking "behind, above, around, below, beneath" the text to find meaning and truth. Deconstruction reveals how a text is unraveled and is oftentimes self-contradictory in nature. It is a lens of interpretation that challenges our assumptions of what literature truly is.

Deconstruction is not to be mistaken with "destruction"--the purpose of deconstruction is not to destroy texts, but rather to dismantle our assumptions about the text itself.

Postmodernism:
Postmodernists see the world as a play on cultural contrasts and difference. A postmodernist seeks to discover the cultural juxtapositions that take shape in our encounters in literature (and indeed the world around us), and considers how these juxtapositions relate to individuals.

Postmodernism is sometimes described as a "mixture, blending, or hybridization" of culture. For example: A modern building shaped like a Greek temple might be considered Postmodern.
A Postmodern approach to literature would "freely examine the kaleidoscopic variety of contemporary life...it would invite different voices, find the historical in the contemporary and the contemporary in the historical." A Postmodernist examination of literature might incorporate a variety of genres, texts, and materials that might not normally be considered side-by-side. Our ability to make meaning from this juxtaposition of texts is how we bring Postmodern interpretation into the literature we study.

Reader Response:
Reader Response, developed in large part by Louise Rosenblatt in her book Literature as Exploration (1938), argues that the way a work of literature is interpreted or understood depends upon the interaction or "transaction" between the reader and the text. In this theory, meaning is created when only when the reader is able to reflect his/her personal experiences onto the text and discover himself there. According to Rosenblatt, readers bring unique personal meaning to each text that they read. The transactions we engage in as we read a text, become the lens whereby we interpret its meaning as readers.

Cultural Studies:
Cultural Studies emphasizes the integration of literary works and thematic approaches to reading literature that combine established canonical texts alongside contemporary texts and popular culture. Similar to postmodernism, cultural studies seeks to mix genres and cross boundaries while fostering critical thinking and cultural activism.

Cultural Studies asks readers to consider (include) the voices and perspectives of marginalized groups in society. Beneath the Cultural Studies umbrella, Gender Studies, Queer Theory, Post-colonialism, Multicultural Studies, and many other theories also reside. This lens of interpreting literature asks readers to look outside of themselves and into the lives and experiences of the "Other"--what do these voices have to say? Why is it important that we include them? How can we best listen to and interpret these voices?

Once again, let me state my disclaimer: What I have listed here is only the tip of the theoretical iceberg. Each theory has its own, rich history, language, examples, arguments, and debate among scholars. If you are interested in learning more about any one of these--and those that are not listed here--I encourage you to investigate these theories on your own. The supplementary materials that are optional texts for this course give an overview of many of these theories. Additionally, the WMU English department offers undergraduate courses in literary theory. Of course, our library offers thousands of articles, books, and links to those who have dedicated their lives to these approaches to texts and to literature.

The above information comes from the following sources:

Appleman, Deborah. Critical Encounters
Carey-Webb, Allen. Literature and Lives: A Response Based, Cultural Studies Approach to Teaching English.
Parker, Robert Dale. How to Interpret Literature: Critical Theory for Literary and Cultural Studies.

Below you can access the link to Mark Bauerlein and his new book The Dumbest Generation as well!

Enjoy!

Rsponse Paper #1

2008-09-12T18:36:00.000-07:00

Dear students,

Because I have not had the chance to discuss the specific requirements for the Response Papers, the due date for the first paper will be pushed back to Weds. Sept. 17, and the second paper will be moved to a due date of Weds. Sept. 24.

The basic expectation for the response paper is that you demonstrate, through your writing, that you can ask a critical question of the literature we are reading and discussing in class and discover an answer grounded in specific examples from the text/s you choose to examine.

Any texts we have discussed prior to the due date of the response paper are up for grabs. For example, for the first response paper, you might write about the set of "America" poems we discussed in class. You might also further consider the notion of multimodal literacy. Perhaps instead, you choose to focus on a few select passages or ideas from the McCloud reading. You might wish to apply a specific theoretical lens to your reading. There are many different, acceptable, ways you might approach this assignment.

I'm looking for your ability to think critically about a question that interests you and clearly investigate that question through your written response to the literature.

We will discuss this in more detail in class on Monday. Also, as a brief reminder, every student enrolled in English 1100 is expected to purchase an English Fee Card. These cards cover copy costs incurred during the course of the semester. You can pick up a Fee Card at the WMU bookstore. I need to hand these in to the English department secretary ASAP. Thanks for your help here!

More posts tomorrow! Happy reading as you finish the McCloud text for Monday.

In Class Writing Assignment 9/10

2008-09-10T05:49:00.000-07:00

What are "Real" books?

What knowledge (assumptions, prejudices, ideas, etc) do you have about visual texts such as comics or graphic novels? Be honest :)

Article for Sept. 10 -- Multimodal Literacies

2008-09-07T17:27:00.000-07:00

Describe your reading experience of McCloud's text. Have you read novels in this format before? What interested you? What challenged you as a reader? What surprised you?

Visit each other's blogs (you should have added your classmates onto your own blog), and be prepared to discuss your ideas in class.

Orange and Cheese Day

2008-09-07T17:10:00.000-07:00

Literary Theory according to an Orange:

Upon viewing an orange...

Deconstruction asks....If the orange peel and the flesh are both part of an "orange", are they not in fact, one and the same thing?

Ecocriticism asks....How does this orange fit into the wider ecosystem and the natural world around us?

Feminist theory asks....What possibilities are available to a woman who eats this orange?

Formalism asks....What shape and diameter is the orange?

Marxist theory asks....Who owns the orange?

Postcolonialsm asks....Who doesn't own the orange?

New Historicism asks....How is this orange a product of the time, place, and circumstances of its creation?

Psychoanalysis asks....What does the orange remind us of?

Reader Response theory asks....What does the orange taste like and feel like to you?

If we are to apply these ways of viewing and understanding an orange onto the poems we prepared for class, how might our reading of the texts change? What questions might we ask of the poetry?

In small groups, discuss the meaning and interpretation of your poem based on one of the theories above. Further investigate your theory through the wikipedia links on literary theory. Record responses to share with the group as a whole. Consider as well, how the poem answers the essential question: "What is an American?"

......

The poems by Whitman and Hughes are established, canonical classics. Perhaps, as a result of their recognized literary merit, you have encountered them before. What happens to our reading of these classic poems, however, when we add a little Cheese?

In your group discuss the meaning and implications of Eitan Kadosh's poem. How does this poem relate to the other two? How does it expand our understanding of the essential question? Does the poem have literary merit?

Assignment for Mon. Sept. 8

2008-08-20T12:53:00.000-07:00

Please prepare the following for our next class period.

Explore each of the textbook requirements on my blog and make preparations for securing them.
Read through the syllabus and come prepared with any questions you might have.
Create your own blog. Go to blogger.com and create an account. Begin to customize your blog with pictures, profiles, etc. The blog is a way to feature your personality, your ideas, and your style--a way to showcase yourself. You will be spending a lot of time on your blog, and others will be viewing it as well. Take some time to create a space you can be proud of. We will dedicate some class time on Monday to blog questions and creation.
Carefully read through Dr. Webb's Timeline and Context of Literary Theory, and skim through the wiki on literary theory.
In your new blog (or typed on paper if you are having blog issues), write about two of the theories that interest you. We will be discussing these in class.
Read "I Hear America Singing" by Walt Whitman and "I, Too" by Langston Hughes. Be prepared to discuss each in class and consider how the two literary theories you chose to write about in your blog might shade your reading of these two poems.

Happy reading!

Links and Resources

2008-08-20T12:42:00.000-07:00

Online Libraries:

View or download hundreds of books for free online. Check out this website.

Literature Resources:
Can't remember what a Caesura, Dramatic Monologue, or Synecdoche is? Check out The Bedford Glossary of Literary Terms

Several Resources for familiarizing yourself with the many schools of literary theory are available below:

The Dictionary of Literary Theory

Timeline and Context of Literary Theory by Dr. Allen Webb, WMU

Literary Theory Defined by an Orange

Writing Resources:

Find how to format and cite your papers using the MLA Style Guide.

You might also check out the Purdue Online Writing Lab (OWL) for help with many of your writing needs.

WMU also provides hands on tutorial help at the Writing Center on campus.

Other Notable Sites:

The National Public Radio (NPR) hosts a site where it is possible to listen and subscribe to hundreds of radio podcasts, many of which discuss literature and popular culture.

The University of Florida hosts a site dedicated to Comics study, criticism, and research. Check out other classes around the country that are exploring the same course material that we are or take advantage of the wide variety of resources this website provides.

Take the time to check back, this list will continue to grow!

Learn About Class Reading Materials Here!

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Click on the links below to check out what we will be reading this semester. Suggestions for how to obtain these texts more cheaply follow as well:

Required Texts:

Understanding Comics by Scott McCloud

The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison

Blankets by Craig Thompson

Oranges are Not the Only Fruit by Jeanette Winterson

American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang

Persepolis I&II by Marjane Satrapi

A Midsummer Night's Dream by William Shakespeare

Dream Country by Neil Gaiman

I highly encourage you to find alternative methods for obtaining the reading. Kazoo Books offers two used bookstores in town with discounted texts. Also, I purchase many of my own books through Amazon.com. The Kalamazoo Library is an invaluable resource and our own library has many of these offerings as well. In addition, I will provide links to online resources whenever applicable to cut down on costs.

Happy hunting!

Welcome to English 1100

2008-08-19T10:37:00.001-07:00

Cell phones, Ipods, mp3's, DVD's, HD, Blueray, Blackberries, Video games, TV, the Internet.

The world we live in today has become increasingly visual and interactive in nature. Why read a book when you can watch a film? Why flip through archaic pages when you can download full text to your handheld? Why read the full text when you can "google" a summary? What is the mystery of books? The power of literature? What is "true" literature?

By engaging in both traditional texts and contemporary cultural texts as well, this class will attempt to address some of these questions. While immersed in the classics and in the study of literary artistry, we will consider as well, how literature has become popularized, how it has evolved into new genres, and what the implications of this evolution might be.

Be prepared to think critically about established literature while at the same time, immersing yourselves into the aesthetics and ingenuity of comics, graphic novels, and popular culture. Where does the old meet the new? How do literary texts connect to us personally, culturally, and globally? Let's explore these questions together.