Assignment for Thursday, Jan. 20, and Friday, Jan. 21

Write 1-2 pages of your funny story. Try to incorporate the rhetorical elements of humor that we discussed in class (e.g., the conceit and unexpected contrasting elements), but do not get hung up on making it funny the first time around; in class, we will work on making it funny.

Readings for Tuesday, Jan. 18, and Wednesday, Jan. 19, and Some Other Stuff You Might Find Amusing

Read the following essays from McSweeney's Internet Tendency, and once again identify three or four elements in each that contribute to the humor.

Marissa Medansky, Oompa Loompa Revolutionaries
Seth Reiss, "Eyewitness News with Tom Denardo and Cheryl Clayburn"

On Tuesday and Wednesday, we will also discuss the previously assigned humor pieces, so you may wish to review those.

Here are two other pieces you may find amusing: Fran Lebowitz's "Introduction by the Author," a short list that rephrases clichés in amusing and thoughtful ways, and this clip of standup by Hannibal Buress, a 30 Rock writer whose routine here reminds me of Bill Cosby:

Homework for Thursday, Jan. 13 (Day 5), and Friday, Jan. 14 (Day 6)

No additional reading. We will discuss the comic pieces that were assigned for Tuesday and Wednesday but that we didn't get to in class. Also, give some thought to pieces you would like to write but have never had a chance to. This could be a nonfiction piece on any topic, of any length, in any nonfiction genre. We won't start writing it until February, but I'd like you to start thinking about what that might be now.

Political Rhetoric and Recent Events

Here are some articles that address the relationship between violent political rhetoric and violent actions:

"Tucson Rampage Casts Light on Toxic Political Tone"
"Bloodshed in Arizona Casts New Light on Vitriol in Politics"
"In the Shock of the Moment, the Political Bickering Stops...Until It Doesn't"
New York Times Room for Debate: Assassins and American History
"Beck Channels Palin on Tucson Shooting"
"In Defense of Inflamed Rhetoric"
"Sometimes a Tragedy Is Just a Tragedy"

Homework for Tuesday, Jan. 11 (Day 3), and Wednesday, Jan. 12 (Day 4), and In-Class Essay Information

Read the first two essays linked below, and either the Dave Barry essay or the David Sedaris essay. For each essay, use the list of varieties of humor covered in class to identify and classify three or four of the qualities that make the piece funny. The pieces are arranged in order of declining political relevance. The first is quite political, the second tangentially so, and the third pieces, not at all. Enjoy the reading!

George Saunders, "My Gal"
The Onion, "Aliens Demand More Positive Portrayal in the Media"
Dave Barry, "Taking the Zip out of Zippy" or Dave Sedaris, "Big Boy"

In addition, you will write a rhetorical analysis of your independent reading book. You will have to relate your author's rhetorical strategies to his or her purpose. Be mindful of the broad rhetorical categories as they relate to your book (ethos, logos, pathos, SOAPSTone, DIDLS). You may use your book while writing the essay, but you should not have to rely on it. If you plan on using your book, you should have two or three parts identified for handy use while writing the essay.

Homework for Friday, Jan. 7 (Day 1), and Monday, Jan. 10 (Day 2)

For Friday, read the essays handed out in class. You do not have to write anything with these readings; instead, focus on understanding the authors' explanations and critiques of power and propaganda in American politics.

For Monday, read the essays handed out in class. You do not have to write anything with these readings; instead, focus on understanding the authors' explanations and critiques of power and propaganda in American politics. In addition, view this clip of the political ad analyzed in Drew Weston's "The New Frontier" (in your handout) and the following Daily Show clips. Be prepared to discuss the effectiveness of the ad, and to explain what Jon Stewart does to be funny. (Total viewing time is about twenty minutes.)

The Ever-Spending Story

Mission Accomplished

Indecision 2000

Homework for Wednesday, Jan. 5 (Day 5), and Thursday, Jan. 6 (Day 6)

Complete Lesson 8 in Advanced Composition Skills (pp. 45-58). Spend about twenty minutes responding to the writing prompt on either p. 55 or p. 58. I would prefer that you type this assignment, but you may hand write it neatly.

Vacation Reading Assignment and Suggestions

Over the vacation, read a non-fiction book at least 200 pages in length, written in English (i.e., not translated from another language). I am not placing any other restrictions on your choice of a book. It may be serious, light-hearted, comic, and about any subject matter (as long as your parents won't disapprove). The week after we return from the break, you will write an in-class rhetorical analysis of your book. As you read your book, pay attention to the rhetorical strategies we have discussed all year. Below are eight suggestions that, so far, are available at the Barnes and Noble on Erie Boulevard or in Clay. (Note that the online price may be significantly less than the in-store price, and if you are ordering online, you might want to check Amazon's prices, too.) Try to keep up with reading The New York Times, too. Stay informed!

David Colbert, The Magical Worlds of Harry Potter

Jessica Kerwin Jenkins,  Encyclopedia of the Exquisite 

Michael Lewis, The Big Short
Richard Preston, The Hot Zone: A Terrifying True Story
Stacy Schiff, Cleopatra: A Life
Charles Seife, Zero: The Biography of a Dangerous Idea
David Shields, Reality Hunger: A Manifesto
Bethlehem Shoals, et al., The Macrophenomenal Pro Basketball Almanac

Before the Thanksgiving break, some students asked for a list of the books that have most influenced me.  It's an impossible list to assemble, but the following is a list of favorite and influential non-fiction books that were written in English. (At the end of the column to the right, there is a link to my Blogger profile, which has lists of some favorite movies, music, and books. I left off from that list most of the following books. I'm not sure how.)

Hannah Arendt, The Human Condition
W. E. B. Du Bois, The Souls of Black Folk
Terry Eagleton, Literary Criticism
Gerald Early, Tuxedo Junction

Bobbito Garcia, Where'd You Get Those? New York City's Sneaker Culture, 1960-1987  

Stephen Jay Gould, The Mismeasure of Man
Stephen Greenblatt, Will in the World: How Shakespeare Became Shakespeare
Michael Herr, Dispatches
Gilbert Highet, The Art of Teaching
Jane Jacobs, The Death and Life of American Cities 

Russell Jacoby, The Last Intellectuals
C. L. R. James, The Black Jacobins 

LeRoi Jones, Blues People
Charles Mingus, Beneath the Underdog
George Orwell, Homage to Catalonia
Orlando Patterson, Slavery and Social Death
Orlando Patterson, Freedom in the Making of Western Culture

Russell Sherman, Piano Pieces 

Judith Shklar, American Citizenship
Art Spiegelman, Maus
The Autobiography of Malcolm X

Enjoy the vacation!

Homework for Wednesday, December 15 (Day 6), and Thursday, December 16 (Day 1)

For those who have class on Wednesday, finish reading and annotating Shklar's American Citizenship.

For those who have class on Thursday, read and annotate as much of Shklar's American Citizenship as you can, but strive to finish it.

Homework for Monday, Dec. 13 (Day 4), and Tuesday, Dec. 14 (Day 5)

For Monday, the even day class must read and annotate to p. 62 in Judith Shklar's American Citizenship.

For Tuesday, the odd day class must revise their 9/11 stories and begin reading some part of Judith Shklar's American Citizenship. Keep in mind that we will finish it by the end of the week.

Here is a video from last night's Newshour, a PBS news show broadcast weeknights from 7-8 p.m., that addresses some of the issues we have discussed in class concerning conservative and liberal policies:

Links for Loose Change and More 9/11 Readings

If you wish to see parts of Loose Change, click here for the version we viewed in class.

If you wish to complicate your understanding of Loose Change, here is a site that criticizes it heavily.

If you wish to know more about the coroner's role at the Flight 93 crash site, click here.

If you look at these sources, you may at first feel that it will be harder to write your story. Keep in mind, however, that what you are telling is a story, and in telling that story, you have to decide what is important for your audience to know about 9/11.

Assignment for Wednesday, Dec. 8 (Day 1)

Your assignment for Wednesday is the same as it was for Monday: bring three pages of your 9/11 story to class. Tuesday's assignment for the even day class remains the same.

Your 9/11 Story

For Monday, 12/6 (Day 5), and Tuesday, 12/7 (Day 6), bring three pages of your 9/11 story. Your 9/11 story should tell the story of that day and its aftermath. You may write it in the first-person, but realize that you're not writing only about yourself; you are telling the story to convey what happened that day.

If you have struggled with this assignment, here are some issues to consider as try to write your story. You may not find all of these helpful, feel free to skip whichever steps don't help you. You  :

First, have a clear sense of your audience--whom are you telling the story to? Is it in adult who already has a strong opinion about 9/11? Is it a peer from another country who doesn't know much about that day? Is it a child who wasn't yet born when it happened?

Second, have a clear sense of your purpose for telling the story--what do you want your audience to know about 9/11? Do you want them to think terrorists are responsible for the attacks? Do you want them to think there are many unanswered questions about that day? Do you want them to have conflicted feelings about the day? Do you want them to have a sense that many are mistaken to think the day is significant?

Third, decide on the facts that you think are important, the facts that your audience must know about 9/11. Since you can't include everything, you should have a good working list (maybe five to ten items) that you think are indispensable to the story.

Fourth, have a sense of the conflict you want to develop and resolve. Have a sense of when and where you need to include the indispensable facts that bring the conflict to its climax and resolve the consequences of the climax. It may seem that the story's climax comes right at the beginning. That's fine; just make sure you have a good sense of how you want to show the consequences of that climax (otherwise known as the falling action).

Fifth, write your 9/11 narrative. You are telling a story, so including personal details is appropriate, but you're not just writing about yourself; your goal is to tell a (hopefully) compelling story about that day and its aftermath.