FINAL EXAM & FINAL ASSIGNMENT

For Thu: Read and re-read the final exam article handed out in class.  Look up any words you don’t know.  Brainstorm things you might write in response to the article: questions about it, critiques of it, ideas and experiences you’ve had on topics relevant to it.  At Thursday’s exam, you will be allowed to bring in the article and notes on it (but no full sentences of prose).  You will then be given the essay prompts to choose from.
For Friday: Email me your revised Essay 1 and Essay 2–as well as Essay 3 (extra credit) if you’ve done one.  ALSO, for your final blog assignment, post to the blog (under this post) a list of 3 things you revised in each essay (meaning 2 lists of three things you revised—one list for Essay 1, one list for Essay 2).  Your lists can be in note form (not necessarily complete sentences) but should be very specific and clear as to the feedback (from me and classmates, etc.) that you have used and the significant changes you’ve made to each essay.

HW for Thu 12/12

Read “MLA Citation Guide” in Packet II, pp. 5-7.
Do:
1) Add in-text citations to your Essay 2.
2) Write out your list of articles used in Essay 2—alphebatized by the last name of your authors.
3) Use this citation generator to create properly formatted entries for each source in your Works Cited.
4) Post your Works Cited list for Essay 2 to the blog and bring a revised paper copy of your Essay 2 to class.

Make-up/Home-work for Tue

Apologies for missing class today—this cold really knocked me out!  To make up for our classtime lost, please complete the writing we’ve begun this week on memes, Drake, and Caraminica’s article on “Hotline Bling”–a short assignment in which we are working on building connections between your own thoughts about memes, Drake’s music video, and Caraminica’s text.  I’m copying below the guidelines for this work.  Note that there are 3 steps, but the writing you produce doesn’t need to be a numbered list of responses to each step–you could, for instance, have 2-3 paragraphs of prose in which you touch on the prompts given below.
Please post your work on Drake and memes here.  In addition, prior to Monday’s class please be sure you’ve read Jace Clayton’s article on Vince Staples (handed out in class and available online) as well as K-Hole’s “Youth Mode” (p. 34 in Packet II).

HW for Thu 11/21

3 things:
1) Keep working on writing your text from today connecting your thoughts on memes to Drake’s video and/or Caraminica’s article on it.  Instructions below:

1) In 2-3 sentences, describe a couple details from Drake’s video that stand out to you (the background, the outfits, the lighting, the dancing, the facial expressions, etc.)

2) Find a quotation from Caraminica’s article that connects to what you wrote in #1.  In 1-2 sentences, write about the connection between the details you noticed in the video and the passage you’ve found in Caraminica’s article.  EX: This aspect of Drake’s video can be connected to Jon Caraminica’s analysis of it: ________ (explain the connection)

3) Now make a connection back to what you wrote about memes earlier.   How does Drake’s video and/or Caraminica’s text about it relate to what you said about meme’s earlier?
EX: Earlier I mentioned how memes ______(re-state something you said about the topic earlier).  This connects to ________(something you’ve noticed in Drake’s video or Caraminica’s text)____.

2. Read Jace Clayton’s text called “on rap and white noise” (handed out in class and available online).

3. Begin reading K-Hole’s “YOUTH MODE” in Packet II.

HW for Thu 11/14

1) Finish writing and post your responses to Zizek’s article on the blog by Thursday.  (I’ve copied the questions below.)  In your response, introduce and discuss at least one quotation from the article (we’ve been practicing this recently—see Course Notes for help).
2) Finish reading Michelle Nijhuis’ guide to bullshit prevention and come to class prepared to talk about what she’s saying and how it might be important for thinking about research strategies.
Zizek Response Qs:
—1) What is the argument Zizek is responding to? Where does it become clear that he agrees/disagrees with this argument?
—2) Which points in this argument does Zizek respond to with criticism?
—3) What are some of the strategies Zizek uses to critique the argument he disagrees with? (e.g. analogy/comparison, logical reasoning, rhetorical questions, etc.)
—4) What is YOUR response to all of this?  Do you agree with Zizek? Why/why not?  Do you have any life experience with any of the topics mentioned in the article (eg, video games)?  How does this experience influence your response to this topic?