Assignment for Wednesday, Nov. 1, and Thursday, Nov. 2

Apologies for the late posting of this assignment; read what you can of the two articles below. I will give you some time in class to read them, but not all of class. You will probably be fine if you read the first one, and then use class time to read the second. You may have a quiz on these readings (multiple-choice, true-false, and short answer).

Proof That Life Is Getting Better for Humanity, in 5 Charts
Is the World Really Better Than Ever?

Assignment for Monday, Oct. 30, and Tuesday, Oct. 31

Complete the SOAPSTone handout for Man on Wire. (If you misplaced yours or you missed class, it is posted to the right.) Then, on the reverse side of the handout, make connections between these broad categories and your specific observations of the documentary. In particular, answer the following question: Why tell this story of Philippe Petit's adventure at "the top of the world"? (As we discussed in class, whenever you're writing about rhetoric, be mindful of the unstated, implied question—What I'm really asking is, Why tell this story in this way? That latter, "in this way" part of the question is how you'll incorporate the observations you recorded on the note-taking sheet.)

I'd prefer that you hand write your response on the back of the sheet given out in class, but you may type your answer if you prefer. If you do type it, do not write more than two pages.

Assignment for Wednesday, Oct. 25, and Thursday, Oct. 26

From the articles linked below, read one of the first two pieces (the second is shorter; the first is more interesting), and read the last piece.

"Why the Rise of Authoritarianism Is a Global Catastrophe" or
"Decline in Democracy Spreads Across the Globe As Authoritarian Leaders Rise"

"Democracy Can Plant the Seed of Its Own Destruction"

In class, we will finish watching Man on Wire before we discuss the above readings. If you missed the odd day class, watch Man on Wire to about the 1:12:00 (one hour, twelve minutes) mark. If you missed the even day class, watch Man on Wire to about the 51:00 mark.

Assignments for Friday, Oct. 20, Monday, Oct. 23, and Tuesday, Oct. 24

For Friday (Day 2): In Approaching Great Ideas, read (and annotate) Cornel West, "The Deep Democratic Tradition in America" (pp. 111-117) and Fareed Zakaria, "Illiberal Democracy" (pp. 120-125). Again, pay attention to the stylistic elements in these essays. You will not respond to a prompt in class, but we will discuss these essays in comparison to Dahl's writing style and argument. In addition, we will spend a good part of class viewing Man on Wire.

For Monday (Day 3) and Tuesday (Day 4): If you missed class on Thursday or Friday, watch Man on Wire to the 22:00 mark, which is available on Netflix and Hulu. I will not be in class either day due to accreditation meetings. Read the three articles linked below. For the first twenty minutes of class, you will have some questions to respond to in a few sentences. After that, you will finish viewing Man on Wire. While watching Man on Wire, you will need to take notes (on a handout) about rhetorical aspects of the movie.

How Inequality Undermines Democracy
Inequality and the Fracturing of Democracy
Why Income Inequality Doesn't Matter

Assignment for Thursday, Oct. 19, and Friday, Oct. 20

In Approaching Great Ideas, read (and annotate) Cornel West, "The Deep Democratic Tradition in America" (pp. 111-117) and Fareed Zakaria, "Illiberal Democracy" (pp. 120-125). Again, pay attention to the stylistic elements in these essays. You will not respond to a prompt in class, but we will discuss these essays in comparison to Dahl's writing style and argument. In addition, we will spend a good part of class viewing Man on Wire. 

Assignments for Monday, Oct. 16, Tuesday, Oct. 17, and Wednesday, Oct. 18

For Monday (Day 4), In Approaching Great Ideas, read Lafayette's Declaration of the Rights of Man (pp. 71-74) and the excerpt from Wollstonecraft's A Vindication of the Rights of Woman (pp. 77-81). Read closely. I expect that you will annotate the readings. I will see if you don't annotate, and I will know that you haven't read closely. Although these readings are short they, especially the Wollstonecraft, will demand your attention.

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:
Compare and contrast Lafayette's and Wollstonecraft's tones. In developing your response, pay careful attention to identify and explain the words, phrases, and sentences that contribute to their tones. This is a brief response, so you can't give attention to everything. Be sure to focus on those qualities that are especially prominent.

If you missed class on Friday or Monday, click here to view the short documentary we watched. Don't read the accompanying article until after you watch the film.

For Tuesday (Day 5) and Wednesday (Day 6), in Approaching Great Ideas, read Robert Dahl's "Why Democracy?" (pp. 96-108). The reading is dry, so be patient and maintain your attention. In particular, focus on Dahl's writing style, i.e., his diction, imagery, details, language, and syntax. Again, I expect that you will annotate this reading.

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:
Does Dahl's writing style make his argument more or less persuasive? Be sure to identify his argument, and focus on one or two stylistic elements that stand out to you. Of course, quote from the essay to support your points.

Assignment for Friday, Oct. 13, and Monday, Oct. 16

In Approaching Great Ideas, read Lafayette's Declaration of the Rights of Man (pp. 71-74) and the excerpt from Wollstonecraft's A Vindication of the Rights of Woman (pp. 77-81). Read closely. I expect that you will annotate the readings. I will see if you don't annotate, and I will know that you haven't read closely. Although these readings are short they, especially the Wollstonecraft, will demand your attention.

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:
Compare and contrast Lafayette's and Wollstonecraft's tones. In developing your response, pay careful attention to identify and explain the words, phrases, and sentences that contribute to their tones. This is a brief response, so you can't give attention to everything. Be sure to focus on those qualities that are especially prominent.

Assignments for Thursday, Oct. 5, Friday, Oct. 6, and Tuesday, Oct. 10

For Thursday (Day 4): Read at least three of the readings below on the issue of Confederate monuments; you must read either the piece from The American Conservative or The National Review. (You may read both of them; note that the National Review piece is a response to the Atlantic essay on Lee.) The first four pieces were written before the march and protests in Charlottesville; the last two were written in response to them.

The Stubborn Persistence of Confederate Monuments (The Atlantic)
A Monumental History (The American Conservative)
The Myth of the Kindly General Lee (The Atlantic)
A Myopic View of Robert E. Lee (The National Review; this is a response to the prior article on Lee)
Confederate Statues Are the Easy Part (The New York Times)
In Monument Debate, Calls for an Overdue Reckoning on Race and Southern Identity (The New York Times)

Please note that possible topics for the writing piece on Between the World and Me are posted to the right. That assignment is due on Wednesday, Oct. 11 (Day 1) or Thursday, Oct. 12 (Day 2).

For Friday (Day 1): Write at least one page for the Coates writing piece. Do not email it to me; be sure to have access to it during class so I can see it and you can continue working on it. We will begin class with a continuation of the discussion about Confederate monuments.

For Tuesday (Day 2): Write at least two pages for the Coates writing piece. Do not email it to me; be sure to have access to it during class so I can see it and you can continue working on it. Depending on how far we get during Thursday's class, we may or may not continue discussing the issue of Confederate monuments.

Assignment for Tuesday, Oct. 3, Wednesday, Oct. 4, and Thursday, Oct. 5

For Tuesday (Day 2): From the documents listed below, read three of the reviews of Between the World and Me.

"Loaded Dice" (London Review of Books)
"Ta-Nehisi Coates's Between the World and Me" (New York Times Book Review)
"Ta-Nehisis Coates and a Generation Waking Up" (The New Yorker)
"Letter of Despair" (The Economist)
"Why Ta-Nehisi Coates's Between the World and Me is Not the Masterpiece We Hoped For (The New York Observer)"
"A Caricature of Black Reality (The American Prospect)"

The following articles are not required, but essential in their own ways.

First, if you're ambitious, you'll want to read this review essay of several memoirs by black writers, including Between the World and Me.

And finally, here's a profile of Coates that gives more information about his background and also explores the book's argument.

For Wednesday (Day 3) and Thursday (Day 4): Read at least three of the readings below on the issue of Confederate monuments; you must read either the piece from The American Conservative or The National Review. (You may read both of them; note that the National Review piece is a response to the Atlantic essay on Lee.) The first four pieces were written before the march and protests in Charlottesville; the last two were written in response to them.

The Stubborn Persistence of Confederate Monuments (The Atlantic)
A Monumental History (The American Conservative)
The Myth of the Kindly General Lee (The Atlantic)
A Myopic View of Robert E. Lee (The National Review; this is a response to the prior article on Lee)
Confederate Statues Are the Easy Part (The New York Times)
In Monument Debate, Calls for an Overdue Reckoning on Race and Southern Identity (The New York Times)

Please note that possible topics for the writing piece on Between the World and Me are posted to the right. That assignment is due on Wednesday, Oct. 11 (Day 1) or Thursday, Oct. 12 (Day 2).