Assignment for Monday, Oct. 31

Complete the annotated bibliography. Make sure it has a proper heading (name, class, assignment, date turned in), and be consistent in formatting the citation of sources.

Assignment for Thursday, Oct. 27

For Thursday, read two op-ed pieces from The New York Times. First, read this piece about Georgetown University's involvement in the American slave trade. Then, read this piece by a woman whose family was enslaved by Georgetown.

If you have time and interest, you could also watch this video from The New Yorker magazine (it's about 12 minutes long) about a Louisiana museum that tries tell the story of slavery, and read this essay from The New York Times Magazine titled "The Condition of Black Life Is One of Mourning."

Assignment for Tuesday, Oct. 25

Finish reading Between the World and Me (pp.108-152). If you get through it quickly (say, forty-five minutes or so), also work on the annotated bibliography at home.

Here is the question you'll write about in class. Feel free to respond to it at home, but you will have time to write it in class. If you do this at home, you shouldn't spend more than twenty minutes working on it: 

In several respects, Between the World and Me charts Coates individual development in relation to the ways race works in the United States. How does Coates's perspective change over the course of the book? What remains the same? What does he most want his son (or the reader) to take away from his reflections on race? (Keep in mind, given the length of the response and the time limits imposed on it, you should only devote a few sentences--including quotes--to each question.)

Election Stuff:

This piece was published a few weeks ago, but it's a good explanation of the factors that lead people to vote or stay home.

This article identifies and explains the major revelations in the Clinton campaigns hacked emails.

This article from last Saturday's Boston Globe describes the reaction of Donald Trump's supporters to his claims that the election is rigged.

This article from today's New York Times discusses the implications of Donald Trump's decision to "wait and see" whether he will accept the election's results.

Assignment for Friday, October 21

Read Between the World and Me, pp. 73-108. Pay attention to Coates's understanding of the state's role in making black Americans vulnerable to physical harm and, separately, his understanding of American history.

Here is the question you will write about in class. Feel free to respond to it at home, if you prefer; you will still have time to write it in class. If you write this at home, you shouldn't spend more than twenty minutes working on it:

Consider Coates discussion of the "below" (pp. 104-105), the following passage in particular: "You and I, my son, are that 'below.' That was true in 1776. It is true today. There is no them without you, and without the right to break you they must necessarily fall from the mountain, lose their divinity, and tumble out of the Dream. And they would have to determine how to build their suburbs on something other than human bones, how to angle their jails toward something other than a human stockyard, how to erect a democracy independent of cannibalism" (p. 105). Is Coates right about the "below"? Explain the ways Coates succeeds or fails to persuade the reader with his discussion of this metaphor.

Lastly (and optionally), here are a few readings from The New York Times that are related to the issues raised by Coates's book:

Anti-Semitic Posts Surge on Twitter
"Only White People," Said the Little Girl
An Open Letter to the Woman Who Told My Family to Go Back to China
'Go Back to China': Readers Respond to Racist Insults Shouted at a New York Times Editor

Actually, one more thing: If you are going to watch the debate tonight, you might find these observations about the state of the campaign interesting:

Assignment for Friday, October 21

Read Between the World and Me, pp. 73-108. Pay attention to Coates's understanding of the state's role in making black Americans vulnerable to physical harm and, separately, his understanding of American history.

Here is the question you will write about in class. Feel free to respond to it at home, if you prefer:

Consider Coates discussion of the "below" (pp. 104-105), the following passage in particular: "You and I, my son, are that 'below.' That was true in 1776. It is true today. There is no them without you, and without the right to break you they must necessarily fall from the mountain, lose their divinity, and tumble out of the Dream. And they would have to determine how to build their suburbs on something other than human bones, how to angle their jails toward something other than a human stockyard, how to erect a democracy independent of cannibalism" (p. 105). Is Coates right about the "below"? Explain the ways Coates succeeds or fails to persuade the reader with his discussion of this metaphor.

Lastly (and optionally), here are a few readings from The New York Times that are related to the issues raised by Coates's book:

Anti-Semitic Posts Surge on Twitter
"Only White People," Said the Little Girl
An Open Letter to the Woman Who Told My Family to Go Back to China
'Go Back to China': Readers Respond to Racist Insults Shouted at a New York Times Editor

Assignment for Wednesday, Oct. 19

Read Between the World and Me, pp. 39-71. Pay attention to any motifs that emerge in Coates's writing, and pay attention to how he shifts his attention to another subject in this section of the reading.

Assignment for Monday, Oct. 17

Read Ta-Nehisi Coates's Between the World and Me, pp. 5-39. While reading, pay attention to his narrative persona and tone. In addition, pay attention to the ways Coates addresses both specific, personal concerns and general, social matters. Relatedly, note the ways Coates moves back and forth between narrative writing and argumentative writing.

Assignment for Thursday, October 13

Complete the writing piece on democracy. Make sure that it is printed and in your hand before class on Thursday. If you would like me to look it over before you turn it in, email it to me by Tuesday afternoon.

Also, I strongly encourage you to watch Sunday night's presidential debate. It goes from 9:00-10:30. This debate has a town hall format, with the candidates taking questions from undecided voters in the audience. (The audience members have been selected by the Gallup Organization, a highly regarded polling firm.) We've never had a presidential campaign like this one, and with the town hall format, there is very little that we can anticipate about this debate.

Assignment for Thursday, October 6

Choose one of the topics posted to the right for a writing exercise about democracy. For Thursday, write one page (print it out) of this writing exercise; you will have time to work on this piece of writing during Thursday's class. The complete and final version of this writing exercise is due Thursday, October 13. Also: Bring Approaching Great Ideas and Word Hero to class on Thursday.