the end approaches!

My students, 

As the end of the semester rapidly approaches, here are some important things you need to know about:

Tomorrow (Wednesday), we're going to do a revision exercise in class. That means you need to bring a copy of your first draft. It should be at least four full pages, double spaced. We will also have our final vocab quiz. 

Friday is our LAST CLASS. We will discuss "Water Liars," and I can answer any questions or problems you're having with the paper. We'll wrap up the semester, and I will bid you adieu, confident that you are now a CAPABLE COLLEGE WRITER! (That is, if you've been coming to class, paying attention, and doing your work :-) 

Your final paper is due on MONDAY. You must e-mail your final paper to me AND to Dr. Chappell by Monday morning. NO EXTENSIONS ARE POSSIBLE!

Yours by the Word, 

Chris Bolster 

Your Final Paper

This week, there is no response due on "The Misfits." Instead, you are required to post the first paragraph of your final paper (including a thesis statement), although I'll give you until Wednesday to post. I will grade it as though it were a response essay.

You will have another vocab quiz on Wednesday as well, so study up!

"Shiloh"

Post your response to "Shiloh" below.

Also, remember that the 9am class will meet this Wednesday and Friday in the Higgins Lecture Room (the same place as Monday's class).  The 8am class will meet in the normal Berkshire classroom.

(And at time I'm writing this, only five people have posted a response to the essays on "Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?" This was due today!)

"The Story of a Scar"

There is no response due this week on "The Story of a Scar." Instead, your homework is to read two critical articles on Joyce Carol Oates's "Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been." You may want to re-read the story before you read the two articles. Both of these articles are available through the MLA International Bibliography, one of the library's databases. After you've read the articles, post a SHORT response below (about one paragraph for each article, for two paragraphs total). This post is not due until Monday, to give you some extra time to complete the assignment.

"The Shadow of a Satyr in Joyce Carol Oates's 'Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been" by Joan Easterly

"Joyce Carol Oates's 'Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?' As Pure Realism" by A.R. Coulthard

Wolff's "The Liar"

Post your response to "The Liar" below. You should have plenty to write about, considering our discussion on Wednesday!

Remember that there will be a vocab quiz at the beginning of this Friday's class.

Your Weekly Task

EDIT: There is no response paper due this week.
Also, this Friday's grammar quiz will cover sentence structure, with a special emphasis on the passive voice. You can prepare by studying the Bedford Handbook, pages 142-151.

Your Choice

Below, you may post EITHER on "The Weekend" or on "The Fat Girl." You do not need to do both. This response is due next Friday, March 9th.

So in other words, if you've already written on "The Weekend," then you get a break next week.

"Sonny's Blues" and "Redemption"

You have a few options, so choose one:

1) Write on "Sonny's Blues."

2) Write on "Redemption."

3) Write on both of them. As I hope you noticed, there are many interesting intersections and commonalities between the stories. 

Keep in mind that you are still expected to READ both of the stories, even if you only write on one of them! 

Your response is due by class time on Friday, Feb. 24. 

Your Research Paper

As I announced in class, you have been granted a reprieve. You do not need to write a response to "The Amish Farmer" for this Friday.

However, you're not completely off the hook. Instead, your assignment is to read BH 593-599 and then formulate a tentative thesis statement for your research paper. This should be an arguable statement that says something meaningful about the story or stories on which you're writing.

You research paper is due on March 7, and should be 5-7 pages. It should FOCUS on one or more of the stories from our class. If you like, you may ALLUDE to other stories by other authors. This paper will require research: you will need 5-7 secondary sources: either books or articles from a database, anthology, or journal.

Your homework, due by class time on Wednesday Feb 22, is to post your tentative thesis statement and THREE sources that you plan on using for you paper. Do not wait to the last second to do this!

Remember that there is no class on Friday Feb 17 or Monday Feb 20. Enjoy the holiday!

Standing on "The Ledge"

Please post your response to "The Ledge" below.

Also, remember that on Wednesday (Feb 8) we have a quiz on the next 6 vocabulary words, and on Friday (Feb 10) we will have a quiz on punctuation. You can prepare for the quiz by reading BH 372-391.

As per your request, here is a brief summary of the guidelines by which I grade your responses. The following information is paraphrased from the handout I gave you on the first day of class.

• Thesis (Does your essay have a clear thesis statement? Is it arguable? Persuasive? Original?)
• Organization (Does the essay "flow"? Does one idea follow logically from the previous one? Are transition words and phrases used correctly?
• Argument (Is your thesis well-supported? Do you give appropriate attention to possible objections to your thesis?)
• Prose Style (How is your grammar? Punctuation? Style? Spelling? Clarity?)
• Creativity (Do you demonstrate creative reading? Creative use of language? Creativity of thought? Or are you just going through the motions? Varied and interesting use of punctuation, vivid verbs, and strong nouns all help here.)
• Research (Although this category will be more important when I evaluate your research papers, right now it basically means that you quote relevant passages from the text and follow MLA format when doing so.)

A Poetics for Bullies

Please post your response to "A Poetics for Bullies" below.

Also, note that I am changing my office hours. I will be available in the Warner lobby from 11am-12pm on Monday and Wednesday.

1/3, 1/3, 1/3

Please post a response of 250-500 words (or 1-2 pages) on Brautigan's short story, "1/3, 1/3, 1/3."

Remember to organize your ideas into paragraphs. Please include your name, so that I know who is writing what!