Assignments for Wednesday, Feb. 1, and Friday, Feb. 3

For Wednesday, finish chapter 1 of Virginia Woolf's A Room of One's Own. (We left off at the top of p. 13).

For Friday, read all of chapter 2 of Woolf's A Room of One's Own.

Assignment for Thursday, Jan. 26

In Virginia Woolf's A Room of One's Own, read to the top of p. 13. (Stop when you finish the sentence "Was that what women hummed at luncheon parties before the war?") While reading, anticipate counterarguments to the points Woolf develops.

Assignment for Wednesday, Jan. 18, and Friday, Jan. 20

For Wednesday: On a 1 -9 scale, score the AP synthesis essays distributed in class. Be sure to read the prompt, sources, and scoring guidelines carefully before you begin scoring the three essays at the back of the handout. During Wednesday's class, we will discuss the synthesis essays that you scored, discuss the Griftopia essay that you will write, and then work on the STP research paper.

On Friday, you will write a synthesis essay on Matt Taibbi's Griftopia. You'll have a total of fifty-five minutes to read the sources and write the essay. You should not take more than fifteen minutes to read the sources, which will leave you with forty minutes to write the essay. (On the AP exam, you will have two hours to write three essays, which leaves an average of forty minutes to write each essay.) During Friday's class, you will write the Griftopia essay, and then we will introduce our next book.

Assignment for Wednesday, Jan. 11

In Griftopia, read the Epilogue (pp. 241-250), "Looting Main Street" (pp. 265-276), and "Invasion of the Home Snatchers" (pp. 277-296; you can skim this chapter).

Come to class prepared to work on your STP research paper. Bring any materials you need to begin writing the research paper.

Assignment for Tuesday, Dec. 20

Finish the exploratory essay; it is due in class on Tuesday.

Assignment for Wednesday, Dec. 14

Read Chapter 2 of Matt Taibbi's Griftopia (pp. 35-77),

If you missed class, we introduced the exploratory essay for the research paper, which is due Tuesday, Dec. 20. A description of the assignment is posted to the right; see me for the related handouts that were distributed in class.

Also, in class we began viewing the documentary The Flaw, which covers the 2008 financial crisis.

Assignment for Thursday, Dec. 8

Read Ch. 1 of Matt Taibbi's Griftopia. Pay attention to the big picture; don't get lost in the details. Also, pay attention to Taibbi's writing style. Some readers believe Taibbi is biased; while reading, think about whether he is biased about or has a perspective on the financial crisis.

Assignment for Friday, December 2

Finish revising the research prospectus. It is due in class. Then, finish reading Matt Yglesias explanation of income inequality. Lastly, read this excerpt from Felix Martin's 2013 book, Money: The Unauthorized Biography.

Reading for Class

http://www.vox.com/cards/income-inequality/what-is-income-inequality

Assignment for Tuesday, Nov. 17

Complete the writing piece that responds to Between the World and Me. As we discussed in class, be sure to include a sentence that imitates a sentence written by Coates. Set that sentence in bold or underline it, and include a footnote with the original sentence. Be sure to include the page number of the original sentence.

Assignment for Tuesday, Nov. 15

Write as much as you need to to complete your writing piece on Between the World and Me. The final version is due on Thursday, Nov. 17. Also, develop a tentative version of your research question for the research prospectus. The research prospectus will be due on Wednesday, Nov. 30.

Assignment for Thursday, Nov. 10

Write one more page of your writing piece that responds to or is inspired by Between the World and Me. Given the work that you did in class, you should come to class with about three written pages.

Assignment for Tuesday, Nov. 8

Come to class with one and a half pages written for your writing pieces that responds to or is inspired by Ta-Nehisi Coates's Between the World and Me. These pages should be printed. Also, read something interesting or informative about the election, and bring it to class. You can print it out, photocopy it, or have it available to you on a digital device (including your phone). Lastly, be sure to bring Approaching Great Ideas (the white book that we started the year with) to class.