Due Now: "Learning to Read," by Malcolm X, in 50 Essays. Read it with Wikipedia open; he makes a lot of allusions. Due Now: Bring your Grammar as Rhetoric handout Due Monday: "Just Walk on By," by Brent Staples, in 50 Essays. (Please don't start reading until Friday night.) Start Cookin': Write
about a time you experienced injustice. You may have been the victim,
the perpetrator, or a bystander. Details coming soon.
Due Now: "Learning to Read," by Malcolm X, in 50 Essays. Read it with Wikipedia open; he makes a lot of allusions. Due Tomorrow: Bring your Grammar as Rhetoric handout Due Monday: "Just Walk on By," by Brent Staples, in 50 Essays. (Please don't start reading until Friday night.) Start Cookin': Write about a time you experienced injustice. You may have been the victim, the perpetrator, or a bystander. Details coming soon.
A Quick Quiz. You may use your notes and your texts but not your friends or your phones.
Due Now: "How it Feels to be _______ Me." Due Tomorrow: "Learning to Read," by Malcolm X, in 50 Essays. Read it with Wikipedia open; he makes a lot of allusions.
Typed. Double Spaced. Twelve point. No blank lines between
paragraphs, except to indicate a major shift in tone or setting. Three – five
pages. Don’t forget a title. Be sure to include a header on each page except the first (Last name - pg): Kline 2
Required: Include at least one short sentence or fragment,
used to create a specific effect. Underline your short sentence or fragment.
Suggested: Close your essay with a powerful analogy.
Audience: 1) A reader who does not know you well. 2) A
reader who is familiar with the personalities teens bring to the classroom. 3)
Yourself.
Purpose: 1) To explore one of your avowed or ascribed
identities with a depth that surprises yourself and your reader. 2) To use this
exploration to make a comment about society in general.
Excellent topics include identities that are unique to you,
identities about which you are uncertain, and identities that are commonly
misunderstood.
Due Yesterday: "Learning to Read and Write," by Frederick Douglass, in 50 Essays. Be sure to read the right one! Due Thursday: "Learning to Read," by Malcolm X, in 50 Essays. Due Tomorrow: "How it Feels to be _______ Me."
How to comport yourself tomorrow
Essay Questions?
What is King's dream?
Grammar as Rhetoric
Learning to talk about "Learning to Read and Write"
Due Monday: "Learning to Read and Write," by Frederick Douglass, in 50 Essays. Be sure to read the right one! Due Wednesday: "Learning to Read," by Malcolm X, in 50 Essays. Due Wednesday: "How it Feels to be _______ Me."
Essay Questions?
Continuing to "Dream"
Learning to talk about "Learning to Read and Write"
Due Now:Everything's an Argument,
pages 3-45. This is a textbook, like science or social studies. You do
not need to analyze this reading. Whatever techniques you've used to
master content in other classes will work with this text. Due Monday: "Learning to Read and Write," by Frederick Douglass, in 50 Essays. Be sure to read the right one! Due Wednesday: "How it Feels to be _______ Me."
Due Tomorrow:Everything's an Argument,
pages 3-45. This is a textbook, like science or social studies. You do
not need to analyze this reading. Whatever techniques you've used to
master content in other classes will work with this text. Due Wednesday: "How it Feels to be _______ Me."
Typed. Double Spaced. Twelve point. No blank lines between
paragraphs, except to indicate a major shift in tone or setting. Three – five
pages. Don’t forget a title.
Required: Include at least one short sentence or fragment,
used to create a specific effect. Underline your short sentence or fragment.
Suggested: Close your essay with a powerful analogy.
Audience: 1) A reader who does not know you well. 2) A
reader who is familiar with the personalities teens bring to the classroom. 3)
Yourself.
Purpose: 1) To explore one of your avowed or ascribed
identities with a depth that surprises yourself and your reader. 2) To use this
exploration to make a comment about society in general.
Excellent topics include identities that are unique to you,
identities about which you are uncertain, and identities that are commonly
misunderstood.
Due Now: "How it Feels to be Colored Me," by Zora Neale Hurston, in 50 Essays. Be sure to take good notes. Follow the advice in "How to Read an Essay You Must Analyze." Due Friday:Everything's an Argument, pages 3-45. This is a textbook, like science or social studies. You do not need to analyze this reading. Whatever techniques you've used to master content in other classes will work with this text. Due Wednesday: "How it Feels to be _______ Me."
"How it Feels to be ______ Me."
Avowed v. Ascribed Identities
How it Feels to Have a Whole Class Discussion Me: purpose, diction, analogies (and metaphors)
You should NOT attempt to answer these questions in writing before class tomorrow; however, it might be helpful if you thought about them and let them guide your reading tonight. Enjoy!
All of the following questions imply the additional
questions of “How does this help you understand her purpose?” and “How does
this help her communicate her purpose?”
1.Identify
the arguments Hurston counters in this essay. For example, what is the argument
that prompts her to counter, “But I am not tragically colored” in paragraph 6?
2.What
is the effect of Hurston’s metaphor describing the end of slavery in paragraph
7?
3.What
is the purpose of paragraph 8? What is the “dark ghost” she refers to?
4.How
would you characterize the language Hurston uses in paragraph 11 to describe
her reactions to the music in The New World Cabaret?
5.Hurston
divides her essay into four sections. What is the purpose of these divisions?
6.The
term “colored” was considered pejorative even during Hurston’s time. Why does
Hurston use it in her title and throughout her essay? Note other words and
descriptions Hurston uses to refer to skin color. What is she suggesting by the
range of terms she uses?
7.What
is your reaction to the analogy in the concluding paragraph? Is it consistent
with Hurston’s overall tone, or does it induce a different “note”? Does the
final sentence provide an effective ending?
8.Who
do you think Hurston’s audience is in this essay?
Due Now: "How it Feels to be Colored Me," by Zora Neale Hurston, in 50 Essays. Be sure to take good notes. Follow the advice in "How to Read an Essay You Must Analyze."
Due Tuesday: "How it Feels to be Colored Me," by Zora Neale Hurston, in 50 Essays. Be sure to take good notes. Follow the advice in "How to Read an Essay You Must Analyze."
the gullible
the mean
the incompetent
the unwise romantics
the hypocrites
Finding specific examples of the targets (and how Twain treats them) in Huck Finn might help you understand his definition of justice. Just in case, you know?
Due Now: What is Twain's definition of justice? Be concise! Due Now: Notes on Sherburn's speech Due Monday: Bring your copy of Huckleberry Finn. Due Now: Rhetorical Devices Quiz Due Tuesday: "How it Feels to be Colored Me," by Zora Neale Hurston, in 50 Essays
DueYesterday: Collect a total of 10 colloquialisms from your assigned chapters. Due Now:
"How to Read an Essay You Must Analyze" (handout). Apply the
appropriate skills to the handout of Pap's speech about the Guv'mint. Due Tomorrow: What is Twain's definition of justice? Be concise! Due Tomorrow: Notes on Sherburn's speech (if we don't have time) Due Every Day This Week: Bring your copy of Huckleberry Finn. Due Friday: Rhetorical Devices Quiz
Questions about Rhetorical Devices
5 sentences I liked
290 colloquialisms: what do they stylistically mean?
I am having trouble editing my blog posts. Grrr. When you finish "How to Read an Essay You Must Analyze," apply the appropriate skills to Pap's speech about the Guv'mint.
DueNow: Collect a total of 10 colloquialisms from your assigned chapters. Due Thursday: "How to Read an Essay You Must Analyze" (handout) Due Every Day This Week: Bring your copy of Huckleberry Finn. Due Friday: Rhetorical Devices Quiz
5 sentences I liked
Let the rumble contine
290 colloquialisms: what do they literally mean?
290 colloquialisms: what do they stylistically mean?
Due Now: Read the Room for Debate discussion on the New York Times
website. Pull at least one quotation from each article. Be prepared to
articulate your own opinion about the issue and argue for the other
side. Due Tomorrow: Collect a total of 10 colloquialisms from your assigned chapters. Due Every Day This Week: Bring your copy of Huckleberry Finn. Due Some Time This Week: Rhetorical Devices Quiz
Due Tomorrow: Read the Room for Debate dicussion on the New York Times website. Pull at least one quotation from each article. Be prepared to articulate your own opinion about the issue and argue for the other side. Due Every Day This Week: Bring your copy of Huckleberry Finn. Due Some Time This Week: Rhetorical Devices Quiz
My name is a verb
Quote yourself: What is your definition of justice?
So I'm pretty sure the page numbers I've been giving you haven't been terribly useful. Sorry 'bout that. I grabbed a different copy of the book this morning, so tomorrow's post will have page numbers that ought to match your texts.
What did the Duke and the Dauphin do to get in trouble before they met Huck?
When do you first realize the Duke is lying about his past?
At the end of chapter 19, Huck tells the reader that he knows the Duke and the Dauphin are lying. What is the effect of revealing that information so early?
Do you agree with Huck's advice at the end of chapter 19? In what contemporary situations would it be applicable (or inapplicable)?
Compare and contrast the King's "repentant pirate" scene with Pap's rehabilitation in chapter 5. Does the second scene merely reinforce the theme of the first or does it add something new?
Is there any difference between Huck's lies and the lies of the Duke and the Dauphin?
Why is the Hamlet soliloquy funny? Who is Twain mocking?
How does Twain's description of the town prepare the reader for the events that follow?
What is the purpose of Huck's internal conflict on pages 78-9?
What do the events on pages 80-1 reveal about Twain's view of human nature?
On page 81, Huck says "it warn't no use for me to try to learn to do right; a body that don't get started right when he's little ain't got no show" (Twain 81). Do you agree? Does Twain?
Quick fact check: what situation are Huck and Jim in at the end of Chapter 16?
Describe the Grangerford family and home. What kindnesses do they offer for Huck?
What is the target of Twain's satire on pages 90-92?
Is Colonel Grangerford a gentleman, as Huck claims?
How does Colonel Grangerford's physical description match his character?
What does "handsome" mean on page 94?
How would you characterize the tone on the top of page 102? What can we learn from this shift in tone?
Teachers return to work today; I'd much rather spend the day with y'all instead of in meetings. I'm getting antsy for school to start.
I must confess that I thought long and hard about posting the final question to the 'net. I'm sure it will attract some unwanted traffic to our page. I'm not entirely comfortable with the language but it's an important question and, more importantly, I trust Mark Twain.
In Chapter 12, who has more good sense, Huck or Jim? Is good sense the same as being smart?
On pages 61-2, what does the conversation between Bill and Jake Packard reveal about Twain's definition of justice?
On page 64, why does Huck want to rescue Bill, Jake, and Jim Turner? What does this reveal about Huck's character?
What does Huck's reflection on the top of page 67 reveal about the author's attitude towards religion?
In chapter 13, was the loot "honest," as the chapter title suggests?
In chapter 14, Huck and Jim have two debates. Who is more logical? Who is right? Is it better to be right or logical? What do these arguments reveal about Twain's opinion of Jim?
Summarize pages 72-74 in three sentences or less.
What does Jim's reaction to Huck's trick reveal about Jim's character?
At the end of chapter 15, Huck says "It was 15 minutes before I could go and humble myself before a nigger; but I done it, and I warn't never sorry for it afterward, neither" (Twain 77). Is this a racist comment?
My family and I went on a long hike yesterday, and I found myself reading Huck Finn beside Siouxon (rhymes with Tucson) Creek. I highly recommend reading this book next to rushing water.
What do we learn about Huck in Chapter VII?
What sorts of survival skills does Huck demonstrate in Chapter VIII? Would you be able to survive on Jackson's Island on your own? Do you think Huck is an ordinary teenager from the antebellum era or is Huck exceptional? Either way, would would Twain make those choices?
What does the last paragraph on page 34 reveal about Twain's attitude towards religion?
Jim's dialect causes problems for many readers. It's more important to understand the general idea of what Jim says than to understand every word, though it's easier to understand the ideas if you know the words. Try summarizing Jim's story on pages 38 and 39. Why did he run away?
On pages38 and 39, define the following: poorty, awluz, oneasy, do', de widder, dey'd, sho, b'fo', whah, bymeby.
On page 42, what is the target of Twain's satire?
At the close of Chapter 8, Jim says "... I's rich now, come to look at it. I owns myself, en I's wuth eight hund'd dollars" (Twain 43). What's the purpose of that statement?
On page 45, Jim won't let Huck see the dead man, and on Page 47, Jim doesn't want to talk about him. What does this reveal about Jim's character and his relationship to Huck?
On pages 41, 47, and 48, we hear a lot more about superstition and bad luck. Do you believe in bad luck? Does Twain?
In Chapter 11, what is Twain's attitude about lying? How do you know?
Over the next week or so, I'll be posting a few questions about Huckleberry Finn. These questions will be a mix of "Did you get it?" type questions and "What do you think?" type questions. The sole purpose of these posts is to help you sharpen your own thinking about the book.
Feel free to respond to these questions online or in your head or not at all. If you answer online, identify the question you're tackling by beginning your comment @1: or @5: or @whatever number you're working on. You're also welcome to answer a question with a question. As always, put your name in your comment. I hope you're enjoying the book!
On page 3, what does Huck mean when he says the Widow Douglas would "sivilize" him?
On page 3, what does "sugar-hogshead" mean?
On page 4, Miss Watson says, "Don't gap and stretch like that, Huckleberry" (Twain 4). What on earth is she talking about?
On page 4, what is the bad place? Why does Huck want to go there?
On pages 6-7, what is your first impression of Jim? Why does Twain want to create this impression?
On pages 8-9, we get a glimpse of Twain's definition of justice. What do the events on these pages teach us about Twain's view of justice?
Pages 11-15: At the end of Chapter III, Tom Sawyer tells Huck, "You don't seem to know anything, somehow - perfect saphead" (Twain 15). Do you agree with Tom? Why? Does Twain agree? How do you know?
Pages 15-18: Give some examples of superstitions in the first 18 pages of the book. Why does Twain offer so many examples?
Define the following examples of Jim's dialect, found on page 17 and 18: doan', a-gwyne, spec, en, dey's, uv, fust.
On pages 17 and 18, is the hairball's prediction likely to come true? Why do you think so?
On page 19, what is your first impression of Pap?
On page 20 and 21, we get another glimpse into Twain's definition of justice. What is the target of Twain's satire on these pages?
On page 23, what does it mean when Huck says, "pap got too handy with his hickory" (Twain 23)?
