Category: Intro (Page 1 of 2)

Read the first 7 pages of The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao  by Junot Diaz Don’t forget to read the footnotes! Answer the following questions on OpenLab! 

• • What did you think of this piece? Be honest! Why? Explain! 
  • What do you find difficult or confusing? Be specific! Point out particular passages that confused you and explain why you were confused.  What do you think the writer may have been trying to do?  Find a particular passage that was difficult and explain specifically where you got caught up and why. I get it. This seems like a really strange thing to do– but there’s a point to it!  The places you have difficulty are where you’re doing your best thinking.  The places you struggle are the places PhD students struggle too.  Difficulties aren’t walls to stop you but obstacles that you can (and will) overcome!
  • How does the author use footnotes? Why do you think he makes this choice?
  • What discourse community does Oscar Wao belong to? What word is important to his DC?  Why does this word matter? What does it teach outsiders about his DC?  

Read “Understanding Discourse Communities” by Dan Melzer. Write a response to the following questions on OpenLab. Make sure to thoughtfully respond to the questions. Do not just write a few words in response, write a meaningful answer that is based in the text. Use evidence and examples from the text to support your thinking. Be prepared to discuss the reading in class. 

• • What did you think of the piece? Be honest! Really! I want to know! Was it hard to understand? Interesting? Boring?
  • According to John Swale (and Dan Melzer) what features do all discourse communities have? (List all 6!)
  • What were the shared goals of Melzer’s guitar jam group? Explain! Provide an example!
  • What is a mechanism for intercommunication? What example does Melzer provide? Explain!
  • How does Melzer explain the idea of discourse communities having genres that further the goals of a discourse community? What genres did Melzer’s guitar jam group use to further their goals?
  • What does it mean for a discourse community to have a specific lexis? What is an example of the specific lexis (language) that Melzer’s guitar jam group used? Explain! Provide an example!
  • How do the beginners and experts in Melzer’s guitar jam group work together? Explain!
  • Can you think of a Discourse Community you might belong to?

Read “How to Read Like a Writer” by Mike Bunn. In this article, Bunn says that his students suggest that the advice they would give to future students is that they  “write yourself notes and summaries both during and after reading.” So I’d like you to do that. Please take out a piece of paper and a pen (or pencil) and have it beside you as you read.  Just write down whatever stands out to you from the text– jot down a few key words.  Doodle! Write a summary. Write a question. There are no right or wrong answers here. Then write a response to the following questions! 

• • What did you think of the piece? Did you like it? Or not? Why? Explain! (Don’t worry my feelings won’t be hurt! Be honest!)
  • Let’s think about the “context” of this text. What is the author (Mike Bunn’s) purpose in writing this piece? Who is his intended audience?
  • What is the genre of this text? It’s okay if you don’t know! Just give it a shot! (essay, article, poem, etc.)
  • What did you notice about HOW this text was written? Choose one observation!
  • In his article, Mike Bunn writes “You are already an author.” He’s talking to you.  What do you think he means by this? What are some of the things you write already?  (Hint: “Nothing” is not an acceptable answer.) Think of all of the ways you already use words in your everyday life.  That’s authorship! How will that existing expertise help you in your college reading and writing career?
  • Was there anything you noticed in Bunn’s article that you would like to try to do in your own writing? What, in particular? Please be specific!
  • Can you explain what you think the author means when he says, “When you read like a writer, you are trying to figure out how the text you are reading was constructed so that you learn how to ‘build’ one for yourself” (74). Be specific. Share a personal example, if possible.