HW for Thu 9/26

  1. Complete today’s feedback for Dagianny Cuello; (don’t worry about Danicel Delossantos—we’ll get to his draft later).
  2. Read Renee Gladman’s “Calamities” (excerpts) in Packet 1 (p. 49).  Notice the way she uses repetition. Look up a photo and bio of Renee Gladman.  Come to class prepared to discuss what you think Gladman is trying to do when she suggests, with a wink, that people think of her as an “Eastern-European African-American.”  Also bring in 1 sentence and 5 vocabulary words.

HW for Tue (9/24)

1. Finish writing up feedback and posting it to the blog for any essays you haven’t yet completed comments for.  This will be the LAST CHANCE to submit late work.
2. Read and print Junot Diaz’ “The Money” ( <– click link).  Come to class prepared to discuss one sentence and 5 vocabulary words from the text.
3. If you haven’t yet, print the following student essays (they should be in your e-mail; if not, email the class list to request a copy): Dagianni Cuello, Danicel Delossantos, Aissatou Diallo, Amenah Elenani.

HW for Thu 9/19

1. Finish typing and posting to the blog any essay feedback you have not yet posted.  Late posts will not be accepted after this week.  Remember: your participation in providing other writers in the class with feedback is 30% of your grade for this course.
2. Pick one of the “scenes” from Serpell’s text that we discussed in class and write a detailed scene for your own Essay 1 in a similar style.  Come to class on Thursday prepared to share this work.
You can post your scene here or bring it with you to class–either way, just be prepared to share it on Thursday.  Thanks.

HW for Tue (9/17)

In Packet I (not the packet we’ve been reading out of so far), read Namwali Serpell’s “Triptych: Texas Pool Party” (pp. 53-60).  As you read Serpell’s narrative, I want you to think about 2 things: how does Serpell play/experiment with the perspective (and how might you do this in your essay)?  What is the conflict at the center of this narrative—and through what details does Serpell highlight this conflict?

HW for Thu (9/12): Post Responses Here

Pick one of the following prompts and write a paragraph response to it (here, on the blog, under this post).
1. In “The Discovery of What it Means to be an American,” James Baldwin mentions the “hidden laws” that govern all communities.  It occurs to me that our class at City Tech constitutes a unique community with its own laws—hidden and not.  It’s still the beginning of the semester and we are in the process of figuring out what these “laws” are—and, more broadly, what the “community” of our class should be like in order to maximize learning.
  Respond below with a description or a list containing descriptions of what you want the “learning community” of our class to be like.  You can (but don’t have to) respond to any of these questions: What will help you learn in this class?  What might prevent you from learning?  What are the “hidden laws” of City Tech?  Are there any “laws” or rules that you think we should uphold in our in-class community?  Be honest!
2. Baldwin’s essay “The Discover of What it Means to be an American” leads us into an “educational experience” he has after he moves to Europe.  This experience leads him to a more complicated understanding of what the word “American” means (and doesn’t mean).  Write about Baldwin’s new understanding of what it means to be an American—and, perhaps more specifically—how living in Europe alters his sense of race and class.  You might also write about an educational experience you had while traveling to (or living in) a different place: how did this experience change your perception of the two places—the one you began in and the one you traveled to?

HW for Tue 9/10 (no class Thu)

Read James Baldwin, “The Discovery of What it Means to Be an American” (pp. 7-10 in Language packet).  Come in prepared to discuss your thoughts on the form/style/craft of one sentence as well as 5 helpful vocabulary words.  

Write a response to the below prompt (on your personal history of your relation to language):

Etel Adnan, “To Write in a Foreign Language”
Re-read excerpts: p. 1—”I was born in Beirut…”—through p. 3—”…French as a commercial language

Discussion Qs
–What “educational experiences’ do we notice?
–How is the influence of colonization on language registered in this essay?
–To what extent and in what ways might we think of English a “colonial” language?
–What do we make of Adnan’s interest in “copying” the language of other Arabic writers?  Is “copying” a viable way to learn? Why/not? In what ways?

Writing Prompt / Freewrite
Begin making an outline (a list) of a 5-10-step history of your own relation to language(s).  Make a list of the experiences whereby your relationship to language—English and/or others—has evolved in some way.

HW for Tues 9/3

HW:
1. Find another sentence you love (or hate)—in Naylor’s text, Adnan’s text, or elsewhere (anywhere: TV script, rap lyrics, etc.)—and come in with it written down and ready to talk about why you love (or hate) it as well as how it works (or fails) as a grammatical sentence.
2. Bring in five written down definitions of new words you like or were not familiar with in Naylor’s or Adnan’s text.   Also write a sentence  for each word that shows its meaning.
3. Finish Reading Etel Adnan’s “To Write in a Foreign Language” in the Language packet, especially pages 2, 5-6.

HW for Thu 8/29

1. Find a sentence you love (or hate)—in Naylor’s text or elsewhere (anywhere: TV script, rap lyrics, etc.)—and come in with it written down and ready to talk about why you love (or hate) it as well as how it works (or fails) as a grammatical sentence.
2. Bring in five written down definitions of words you like it or were not familiar with in Naylor’s text.   Also write a sentence  for each word that shows its meaning.
3. Read Etel Adnan’s  Oh “To Write in a Foreign Language” in the Language packet, especially pages 2, 5-6.
4. Finish reading the syllabus and come in with any questions you have about it.

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