HW for Tuesday, Nov. 4:

1. Complete Essay 3 and hand in your typed draft. Seriously, do it. Stop being late!

• Attach all pre-writing strategies to the back of the draft (essay on top).

2. For your Midterm revision: continue reading We, the Drowned while using the Organizing Character chart for your own idea organization. 

3. Read Rules for Writers chapter 16 on Wordy Sentence (156-161). We will review a handout on Tuesday.

Essay 3: Outline One Body Paragraph, Then...

Again, before trying to answer everything in essay or in paragraphs, focus on each smaller part that an outline has. In other words, FOLLOW DIRECTIONS and don't jump ahead.


Open up a new Word Document. Put your name at the top left hand side. Label this Essay 3 Body Paragraph Outline. Then go step by step in answering each of the questions. (Don't waste time rewriting these questions, just place the answers in your outline.)


II.  Body Paragraphs

A. Topic Sentence Claim (answer the question to get the claim):  What is one illogical belief/stereotype against your subject group, and what is the biggest reason the belief is illogical?  [use sentence combining techniques to answer both what and why]

Answer:



1. What is further reason that develops from, or relates to, that main reason? (answer in one sentence)

Answer:

• Who/what is an example that fits your reason? Explain how the example fits.
• Answer:

2. What is another reason that your topic sentence claim is valid? (answer in one sentence)

Answer:

• Who/what is an example that fits your reason? Explain how the example fits.
• Answer:

Reverse Outline

Pull out the thesis statement and subtopics from your from your Midterm or Midterm revised introduction.

I.  Introduction:

A. Thesis Statement:

1. Subtopic claim 1:

2. Subtopic claim 2:

3. Subtopic claim 3:


After you outline these points, you are going to work on making them more coherent, more specific, more concise, and more insightful. We are going to critique these as a class, on the overhead, so that we can go through different, directly relevant rhetorical strategies in order to improve these sentences (ideas) based on their individual issues.

Driving Example

Who is a person or a group who represents your issue as a positive role model? What traits and actions make them a great, contradicting example to a negative stereotype (and which negative stereotype)?

Spend 30 minutes brainstorming (word bank?), then draft a descriptive example that can be included in your Essay 3 next draft.

Descriptive Value:

For both Essay 3 and for any revision done on the Midterm, as well as any essay writing you ever do(!!!), you may want to help out the vocabulary of your piece by creating TOPICAL WORD BANKS.

Topical Word Banks, as I call them, are lists of relevant terms you brainstorm, Google (by googling the topic), pull from notes/professors and textbooks that directly relate to the topic and your possible examples to be used.

adjectives
adverbs
nouns
verbs


For instance, in Essay 3, in dealing with SOLVING a PREJUDICE, those two words inspire the start a vocabulary:


oppression, oppressive, misogynist, patriarchal, systemic, social mobility, peaceful protest, Twitter, organize, stage, sit in, privilege, access, historical, agenda, racism, ideology, ideal, cynicism, implicit, explicit, denigrate, exult, equity, equality, justice, humane, decency, moral, immoral, enduring, patient, judgment, better, ...

Aristotle's Appeals

Ethos (ethics/people)

• Making an appeal using one's own credibility/character
• Using things about yourself (personal history, age, race, religion) to make an argument

How to attempt:

• Describe what you think are moral or positive characteristics and actions of a specific person/group of people if you want to show their goodness or authority.

• Describe immoral actions and negative characteristics and actions of a person/group of people if you want to put them in a 'bad light' or have them lose authority.

Logos (logic/facts)

• Making an appeal using your logic, your reasoning skills.

How to attempt:

• Cite facts. Basic facts of life that can found anywhere, or specific facts that give a view of the situation. 
• Explain what your facts mean. Interpret them for your audience. Never let a fact speak for itself! Facts can be distorted into different truths.

Pathos (apathy/empathy/sympathy/feelings)

• Making an appeal to the readers' emotions. 

How to attempt:

• Describe an event that represents an idea to you, and try to describe the actions and details that help build a particular emotion. 
• Using figures of speech like hyperbole (gross exaggeration), anaphora (repeat an important phrase for emphasis), and metaphor may be helpful.
• Try to use words to draw an image. 
• Use dialogue or quotes that represent things said that illicit emotion. 
• Pose questions that illicit an emotion.
• Huge generalizations and huge consequences. Formulate these in a way that comes off syntactically as possibilities. 
• Make sure something or someone is impacted by somebody else's actions, but make sure that you specify who each someone is!

Kairos

• Using time and setting to give context to your argument! What's going on in the world, recently, currently, historically, that supports your points?

How to attempt:

• Write about an event and its known impacts...
• Write a point about the historical aspects of the event--is what is going on today a reoccurrence?
• or, talk about an event and what the results could be if the world doesn't act (and act the way you urge them to!).

***Many times, we mix and match our appeals, and that is fine and dandy. It's most important that you are very conscious about trying to appeal to your audience, thinking of your audience and using language to affect them. 

Writing Gestures in Argument/Persuasive Essays

ATactful, Courteous Language:

• Avoid large, sweeping statements (Everyone, Nobody, All, . . .)
• Avoid boxing in you, your readership, or those with differing viewpoints into overly general teams/categories.
• Avoid personal attacks (ad hominem) or bold judgments of anyone you are speaking about!

• However, one might consider a persuasive way of describing the action of a person/group in regards to TONE
• How do academics like bell hooks  get away with using profanity and obscenity, then? Because they are analyzing that language! One cannot write about an ugly phrase if one doesn't identify the phrase, right? 

Point Out Common Ground: if there is something within the larger argument that you agree with, it is effective to make reader see your open-mindedness.  

• Discussing in your argument where you agree with others will logically be followed by your contrasting interpretation of what sides agree upon.

• Quick Brainstorming:  Write down a couple of ideas that you may share with "the opposition." Specify who this person/group is...

Acknowledge Differing Viewpoints: start with the different viewpoint and use a change in direction transitional word/phrase (however, while, although, in contrast, …) and then go into your viewpoint.

• You may also start with the proper transitional phrase and differing viewpoint, insert the comma at the end of that point, and then go into your viewpoint

Make Reader Aware of the Merits of Differing Viewpoint: beyond just stating different views, adding some of the positives of that other view will enable you to compare and contrast the positives of the other side with the positives of your side! 

Quick Brainstorming:  Write down what you feel is "good" or "right" about "the opposition's" point of views.

Rebut Differing Viewpoints (even published critics/authorities): Many large issues have common arguments made for either side. After acknowledging a differing view, make arguments for why the view is less valid than your own.

• Quick Brainstorming:  Write down what you think "the opposition" is missing or ignoring in their own point(s). 

Confronting Society: Making Provocative Arguments

First, let's read "bell hooks Was Bored by 'Anaconda'" from New York Magazine and discuss just how audacious and yet academically permissible the language can be!  (Warning: profanity and highly sexual language is used--adults only, please)

Finish reading this article and breaking down bell hooks' argument.

• Summarize her main point about sexuality and feminism. 

HW for Tuesday, 10/14:

As far as in-class work, we will be focusing on preparation for and taking of the Midterm over the next week. Make sure to clarify with Professor A. when your class is taking the Midterm if you are absent! 

1. Read up to page 375 in We, the Drowned. As you read, use the following strategies below to help guide your thinking and preparation for the Midterm.

 What are two cultural topics that you find discussed within the setting of Marstal? Which characters are involved, and what are the strongest passages that support your understanding of Marstal?

• Define the general Marstal worldview on each topic. 

• Also, define individual mindsets of Marstallers who discuss these topics. 

Cultural Analysis: Gender Roles as Example

There is a very interesting map on the Washington Post website that gives a brief historical, worldly perspective of Gender. 

How can such a map help your critical thinking about gender, and thus, about understanding more about various world views? 

• What are gender roles? 

• A gender role is a theoretical construct in the social sciences and humanities that refers to a set of social and behavioral norms that, within a specific culture, are widely considered to be socially appropriate for individuals of a specific sex. Socially accepted gender roles differ widely between different cultures. Proponents of gender role theory assert that observed gender differences in behavior and personality characteristics are, at least in part, socially constructed, and therefore, the product of socialization experiences; this contrasts with other models of gender that assert that gender differences are "essential" to biological sex. Gender differences exist in almost all societies. With differences in the norms adopted, this suggests that gender differences are, at least partly, influenced by culture.^[1]

Cultural Analysis of Marstal: gender roles as a subtopic of "way of life"

• What are different general roles in Marstal, and where are those roles constructed--based on the textual evidence? (Such a question is multilayered, of course)

Cultural Analysis of Marstal: other subtopics of "way of life"

• What are other cultural topics that are discussed within the novel? (We have started to discuss culture, already, in a more probative light.) 

Citation Guidelines

Within your Essay final draft you must do the in-text citation, which includes these basic elements:

• Include the author's last name the first parenthetical citation:
• the first time you use the source, and
• anytime you use multiple sources and go back and forth between cited works

• Use of (p.#) at the end of all cited passages. 

One clarification I want to make is on web sources: you do NOT include the web address. As you see with those on-line sources in the example page on 532, web sources are indicated in other ways.

In-text Citation Examples (the E of PRE): your source material is evidence, not the topic sentence! Therefore, you should NOT start off body paragraphs with evidence. Doing so will be assessed against Organizational categories on the essay rubric.

• In Kitchen Confidential, Anthony Bourdain outlines various characteristics of what he looks for in those he employs in his kitchen. Among the many qualities, Bourdain emphasizes that his employees must be humble and reliable. The chef believes that a kitchen can only put out a quality product if the staff is able to follow the boss's vision. In fact, Bourdain brashly states that Latin American immigrants are stronger employees than privileged "CIA-educated white boys" simply because of these qualities (56).

• One example where Bourdain expresses his love of ______ is when he writes: "..........." (77).

• In the chapter "Big Foot," Bourdain writes about his admiration for the qualities of one of his former bosses, which includes ...insert qualities... (89-93). 

• Being a reliable person is emphasized by Bourdain when he states, "........." (52).

Some qualities and requirements to notice in the above examples:

• Start off with your thoughts/context, then go into citation...

• Subject matter that source is supporting should be subject of your sentence

• Use a solid verb (writes, states, exclaims, argues..., but NEVER 'says')

• Lead in to your cited passages with your own idea, or at least with context from where the source is coming from. Here are some things you MAY do:

• Use transitional phrases (introductory phrases are good, right!).

• Use the author's name (last name or whole name)/character's name to set up what the author is doing with the quote.

• Contextualize the passage the excerpted passage is from. What is happening, who is involved, and how is that passage relevant to the THEMATIC IDEA?

• Start with the key idea you want the reader to see in the quote as the subject, then attach the quote as a dependent clause (such as the last example above does).

• Page number is placed in the (page#), no matter if summarizing or quoting.

• The end punctuation always comes at the end of the citation, AFTER the ( ). 

• Exception:  If a ! or ? is part of the quote, leave it there and then use a period after the ( ) to indicate end of citation.  

• Ex.:   Bourdain then wrote, "What was he thinking!" (pg.#). 

• The first parenthetical citation you have should include the author's last name IF you don't name the author within your own writing. 

• So, if you didn't introduce Bourdain in your own sentences, you'd have to also write (Bourdain, page #) in the first citation. 

• When you have multiple sources/authors that you are writing on, you will want to get in the habit of using (author's last name, pg #)

Work Cited Pages (Bibliography)

At the end of your essay, you need a page that includes a list of all sources used in the essay. There is a great model of what a Work Cited page looks like on page 532 in Rules for Writers.

• If your essay has only the one cited work and you have space left over, I am okay with you including the Work Cited page right after the essay ends (saves a tree or two!). Just make sure to:
• Give some space between final essay sentence and your label of Work Cited
• Center the term Work Cited
• Have a space or two between Work Cited and the end citation.

You will also need to consult page 526 to check all of the basic formatting requirements of this page, including:

1. Alphabetizing your list by author's last name, or whatever information (editor, book title) your particular source lists first
2. Single spacing individual citations
3. Indenting the second line on of any end citations that go past first line

General Guidelines for MLA works cited

• There is a list of types of sources (pages 490-523) and how to write an end citation for different types of source material. Use these pages to identify your type of source, or use a reliable on-line citation guide, such as Diana Hacker's MLA guide.

Work Cited citation that connects to the above example in-text citation:

Bourdain, Anthony. Kitchen Confidential. Updated ed. New York: Harper, 2007. Print. 

• In both in-text citation and in Work Cited page, the author's name is key. The reader can easily find your end citation when you do your job as the writer. This is important because:

1. Citation rules allow readers to find your sources so they can do their own reading/research
2. The in-text citation strategies allow for your essay to cleanly point to sources without distracting from the essay's own ideas. 

Literary Elements: Setting & Characterization

Authors craft worlds, similar to ours, in in the physical setting there is a chance for us to interpret a set of norms and beliefs held by characters. In each place, larger cultural points of view can be looked at as a common "worldview."  Within that worldview, each character has their own mindset--just as we do in our real world.  To find thematic understanding of what is being said about a place, you have to analyze the connections between people and place. Here are a following ways to start:

• How does an author portray the place? Does the narrator seem to like/dislike the place? 

• Who are the main characters; how are they characterized; what happens to them? How do they view the setting?

Characterization: the intended view an author wants the reader to get about a character...

• Appearance – how you physically describe them; what you emphasize about their looks

• Language – how they talk and what they talk about; accent, dialect, references they make, length of sentences …

• Behavior – define by actions, how they interact with other characters; how they treat themselves 

• Internal & External Thoughts – providing a character’s rationale for actions help shape the reader’s view

HW for 10/9:

Read this MLA In-text Citation Guide, and also review the same topic in Rules for Writers, pages 457-478.

Both the link and the MLA pages in RR essentially give you the same basic structure points for integrating sources. We will review how to use these techniques and also add some logical considerations, on Wednesday.

Midterm Analysis Preparation

Our In-class Midterm, which we will write next week on the day we are in the computer lab, will in some way force you to analyze the setting of Marstal, Denmark, and comment on how it culturally evolves over the years. 

***In Notes: create a vocabulary list of important terms, and define those terms. 'Setting' is one of those terms! Pick other terms from those below, and define as we discuss***


Foundational Questions:

What does culture involve? In what ways can you, the writer, narrow down that largest, broadest term into something manageable to think about and write upon?

What is a worldview? What is a mindset?

What does evolution mean, specifically in regards to Marstal?

How can you analyze Marstal's culture? What are some of the topics covered? 

• Life at sea/economy
• Technological advances
• Wars
• Gender roles
• Religion versus education

Other Relevant Topical Questions and Points to Make in Such a Case:

1. What happens to characters based on their way of life? (This is such an umbrella question that you can come up with many more once you isolate a few answers.)

2. How do the main characters feel about Marstal and what commentary do they make about life there? How does it evolve over time, for the character?  (Understanding and exploring characterization leads to insight into themes about the larger world.)

3. What physical changes in Marstal happen in the 100 years or so? What mindset/worldview changes happen in that time?

4. What doesn't change, physically, about Marstal? What other things don't change--mindsets, norms and beliefs? Specify.

Critical Thinking: Adding Ideas to Your Essay 2

What does your hope to gain/recover symbolize/illustrate about you as a person -- or about people in general? Answer this question in a unified paragraph using the Linking techniques we reviewed in our last classes together. 

1. Brainstorm your idea first
• How is your own personal journey more than just your own.
2. List a few reasons and examples (personal or universal) that first this claim
3. Start with a powerful topic sentence that directly answers the above question:

• Your topic sentence subject needs to be your Essay 2 subject matter--name the thing!
• Your topic sentence needs to use one of these verbs, or one that is relevant from the list of active verbs we reviewed earlier in the semester:
• symbolizes
• represents
• connotes
• confirms
• distinguishes
• defines
• moralizes
• exemplifies
• typifies
• corroborates
• depicts

Homework for Tuesday, 10/7: Investigating Your Essay 2 Draft's Main Idea

Dear Students: I am unable to teach today, so I have set up the following instructions for you to follow to make up for

Here is what you need to do for today and Tuesday's classes:

1. You will need to bring in two drafts of Essay 2: the first is the one you were going to hand in today, and the second draft is the revisions you make based on the workshop questions below. I STRONGLY REQUEST THAT YOU TAKE OUR CLASS TIME FROM TODAY TO WORK ON THAT SECOND DRAFT! DON't WASTE ANOTHER 120 hours in the five days before we see each other next. 


2. E-mail me your Essay 2 thesis statement at christopher.ankney AT montgomerycollege.edu by the end of today, Thursday, 10/2.

3. Make sure you have finished up to the end of "The Breakwater" in We, the Drowned. 

4. Those who have yet to hand me Essay 1's second draft--e-mail me that essay if you want to have any feedback by Tuesday.

5. Those who want me to scan and send them Essay 1's graded essay with feedback, I will do so at your request. If you want me to just summarize your grade and feedback, I will do that, instead, if you request.



WORKSHOP REVISION Questions for Essay 2:

Why do you want what you want? --> Do you answer that question? Where at in the essay do you answer this question? Ask the following and answer as you revise your draft.

• How can you introduce the "why" in the intro? Where have you already done so? How can you improve upon the why? 

• Do you devote one body paragraph to "why" you want to gain or recover? 

• Do you reiterate in some way, in your conclusion, what your "thing" means for you?

Who are you? Where are you from? What is your background? What do we get to know about you as the writer/narrator that matters towards what you hope to attain?

• Do you describe yourself? What could you add to your identity that matters--how do you think the world sees you?

"Girl"

• Do you describe where you are from? What types of things symbolize the type of life you have lived to this day? 

• Who lives in your neighborhood? What do the houses look like? What size of the place? 
• "The House on Mango Street"

• Do you describe the life you want? What types of things do you see in that life?