Ignore the link at the top of the page (HISTORICAL UTOPIAS). It no longer works, and you don’t have to do that part of the assignment.
Please be aware that the link printed on your CURRENT (OR RECENT) ATTEMPTS AT UTOPIAS is not exactly correct. The correct link is below:
CLick here for the direct link to the UTOPIA/DYSTOPIA research site.
If this link is filtered by the district, use these direct links:
Due April 12
Holden’s language was considered vulgar when Catcher in the Rye was published, and it is still one of the reasons that the book is banned today in some school districts. But his story, and his language, was authentic for him. It was honest.
For this assignment, I’d like to see you take a weekend or significant event (series of events) in your life (or make one up) and write a short story (I’m calling it a graphic novella) in spoken language. I’d like to see you write in a kind of updated Holden Caulfield slang. Don’t be afraid of your language. This assignment is specifically designed to give voice to dialect and slang. I will be grading you on your ability to manipulate your SPOKEN language, not on whether you’re writing “proper” academic, Standard English. You can swear (as long as its not excessive), you can use double negatives—write like you talk, BUT make sure that it’s understandable. Notice that Holden is coherent, even if he has suffered a nervous break down and even if he is writing in slang, and Salinger is purposeful as an author.
The other major component of his assignment is the “graphic” part. This means that I’m looking for a picture book feel. You should have pictures that help us to understand your narrator and your story. You may freehand draw your own images, or you may cut and paste from magazines, take things from the internet, use your own photos. Ultimately, though, your graphics need to support your text in some way. You may be direct—i.e. you bought a dress so you show a picture of a dress—or more abstract. For instance, you are in a bad mood so you show a picture of a stormy sky or a nuclear bomb exploding.
REQUIREMENTS:
5-8 PAGES OF TEXT, DOUBLESPACED, OR MORE/ MUST BE TYPED IN A READABLE FONT, 12-14 SIZE FONT
5-8 PHOTOS/ILLUSTRATIONS/ COLLAGES/ ETC.
A CREATIVE COVER WITH A TITLE (NOT JUST MY GRAPHIC NOVELLA)
BE SURE YOU ARE THE MAIN CHARACTER, AND THAT YOU TELL A STORY ABOUT YOURSELF, ABOUT HOW YOU FEEL ABOUT THINGS, ABOUT SOMETHING THAT HAPPENED TO YOU. ADD THOUGHTS, FEELINGS, OBSERVATIONS AS HOLDEN DOES. IT MUST BE IN FIRST PERSON (“I” DID THIS.)
Thesis:
Americans today (are isolated/are depressed/ lack meaning) DUE Friday Feb 22
Using AMERICA THE BLUE, decide which section you think is most convincing (or with which you most agree), and write a paragraph (100 words or more) about it. Discuss what the author said in the paragraph as well as why you find it convincing, and any observations you have about it. Typed/ doublespaced by Friday.
Due dates for big projects will be posted here.
SOPHOMORES: Rough draft of research paper PLUS AT LEAST 16 NOTE CARDS due Feb 7. (Thursday)
Welcome to the new year. I will be your English delivery system for this year, and I hope you will find it interesting, creative, and tolerable.
I am teaching 10th and 11th grade this year. If you are a sophomore, please look to the left in the CATEGORY section and select SOPHOMORES. Then, only the posts that apply to you will be displayed. If you are a JUNIOR, go to the CATEGORY section to the left and select JUNIORS.
TURNITIN INSTRUCTIONS
Click on NEW USERS CLICK HERE button below the SignIn button on the homepage. You will need a valid email address to sign up.
CLASS ID: 2944988
PASSWORD: wolfpack
Find the assignment marked HUCKFINN PARAGRAPH
You will see the submission window. Fill it in and then hit BROWSE to find the file on your computer.
Choose the right file.
Click SUBMIT
NOTE: IF THESE INSTRUCTIONS DON’T WORK, please read the student guide on the turnitin.com homepage.
Instructions on how to write a rhetorical precis:
The Rhetorical Précis Format
1. In a single coherent sentence give the following:
• name of the author, title of the work, date in parenthesis
• a rhetorically accurate verb (such as “assert,” “argue,” “deny,” “refute,” “prove,” disprove,” “explain,” etc.)
• a that clause containing the major claim (thesis statement) of the work.
2. In a single coherent sentence give an explanation of how the author develops and supports the major claim (thesis statement).
3. In a single coherent sentence give a statement of the author’s purpose, followed by an “in order” phrase.
4. In a single coherent sentence give a description of the intended audience and/or the relationship the author establishes with the audience.
PRECIS SAMPLES:
World House Precis
1. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., world-renowned civil rights activist and philanthropist, emphasizes in his Nobel Prize acceptance speech “The World House” (1967) that all people, regardless of skin color or ethnic background, are negatively affected by the plague of racism and the decline of spiritualism that results. Dr. King begins his speech with an allusion to a famous author that ends up being the theme for his whole speech; his pre-dominant use of examples of past actions are bolstered by several other testimonies from philosophers, historians, and writers as well as an allusion to a well known story. Dr. King is attempting to make people realize the need to correct their self-destructive behavior in order to force society to take up the morals they had lost as well as alleviate the social tensions of the time period. While Dr. King’s intended audience is obviously the black community as a whole, he also tries to get in touch with anyone prejudiced against, black or not; also included are those of the period that had the power to or wanted to stop the decline of society by ending the hatred cultivated by the differences between people of the world so that world would change to be a superior place.
“Nothing Bad Ever Happens” précis
2. Oingo Boingo’s “Nothing Bad Ever Happens” inspirers the listener to think about his/her feelings towards other people’s problems. They give examples of terrible events or tragedies, such as armed robbery, unemployment, and suicide and follow them with the question, “Why should I care?” The purpose is to show the rash realities of life and make people realize what is going on everyday in order to force them into thinking about whether they care or not. Oingo Boingo intended this song to be heard by all of their fans across the globe hoping that because it is their song, the people will consider asking themselves the question, “Why should I care?” as well as answer it.
Attached you will find Powerpoint presentations that explain the various elements of the essay format. (You must have the Powerpoint program on your computer to read these files. You can also print them out.)
Remember, essay format includes a THESIS (something to prove), CDs (evidence to prove the thesis) and CM (Commentary to tie them all together, to show why the CD proves the THESIS.)
EXAMPLE:
(BT) Dorothy is an innocent girl used for ambitious purposes by the Good Witch.
(CD) For example, Glinda puts the ruby slippers on her feet without permission.
(CM) This shows that Glinda has an agenda, a reason that she chooses Dorothy to be the wearer of the forbidden slippers.
(CM) As a longtime resident of OZ, she must know that the slippers will cause Dorothy trouble, but she doesn’t seem to think about that.
THe COMMENTARY should explain why Glinda putting the slippers on Dorothy’s feet proves that Dorothy was ‘used” by the Good Witch.
Preble's Lit Lounge 