Fall 2001
Dr. R. Nordquist
Victor Hall 1-10
(912) 921 5991
nordquist@mail.com  

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American Heritage Dictionary, 4th ed.

NOTES

Notes are listed here in reverse chronological order--i.e., the most recent notes appear at the top of the page, past notes below.   Notes on upcoming assignments (PREVIEWS) are intended to help guide your reading and prepare you for class discussions.  Notes on class meetings (POSTSCRIPTS) provide information and links to help improve your understanding of  concepts and texts introduced in class.  These notes are meant to supplement your own notes, not substitute for them.  (TIP: underlined links to literary terms and authors' pages will usually take you to other web sites; after reviewing the relevant definitions and/or information, simply hit the BACK button on your browser to return to this web page.)

Weeks 14 & 15: Project Tips (Topic Sentences)
As discussed throughout the term, one of the secrets of writing a good critical essay (in addition to following the guidelines, keeping up with the online notes, getting an early start, seeking feedback on a draft, and--most important of all--carefully re-reading the works you're writing about several times) is beginning each body paragraph with a well-focused topic sentence that relates to a particular aspect of the thesis--and which you then proceed to support (with specific details and commentary: "show me" and "so what?") in the rest of the paragraph.   The examples that follow (first the bad examples, then the good ones) are all drawn directly from essays submitted this term.

What's NOT a well-focused topic sentence?
A statement that summarizes the plot of a story (for example, "'The Summer People' is a short story about a couple who had spent most of their lives with their children in a home very distant from the city of New York during the summer" or "Upon entering the forest, Young Goodman Brown meets the older man with the staff that resembles a serpent") or one that "boils down" a poem to its "moral" (for example, "Basically, Herrick is telling the virgins to get married as fast as they can") is not a well-focused topic sentence.  (Remember that you're writing for someone who has already read the story, play, or poem.  A summary at the start of a paragraph suggests that what follows is just a further re-telling of the plot--not an analysis of the text.)

Similarly, a sentence that states an obvious fact about a character (for example, "From Oedipus Rex we have Jocaste, the wife and mother of Oedipus" or "In 'Battle Royal' Ellison depicts the main character to be the narrator, whose name is never revealed" or "Tom Wingfield, a young man who works down at the factory, a show factory, I do believe, dreams of someday traveling the world")  is not a well-focused topic sentence.

Usually, a quotation or paraphrase (for example, "In Death of a Salesman, Linda--talking about Willy--tells her boys that "attention must be paid.") is not a well-focused topic sentence.     Use (brief) quotations for specific support later in the body paragraph.

A statement that identifies a writing strategy (for example, "In Oedipus Rex, Creon and Oedipus are foils for each other" or "Each story has symbols") without suggesting its purpose or effect is not a well-focused topic sentence.

A statement offering some broad observation about life (for example, "'The Lottery' shows that you can't judge a book by its cover") is generally not a well-focused topic sentence.

So what IS a well-focused topic sentence?
A well-focused topic sentence identifies a particular writing strategy or a particular character trait--and suggests the purpose of that strategy or the significance of that trait.  A well-focused topic sentence serves as a guide for both the writer of the essay (who's on a course to support the topic sentence with specific details and commentary) and the reader (who recognizes the direction that the writer is about to follow). 

Here's an example of a good topic sentence:
"Despite Willy's fabrications throughout the play, at times he reveals that he is aware of reality."

Here's another good one:
"Unlike the 'Cask of Amontillado,' which gradually progresses into a darker mood, 'The Fall of the House of  Usher' begins grim and retains this quality throughout the story."

And another one:
"Although Linda adores and admires her husband, she fully realizes tha his dreams are just dreams."

And another one:
"The final stanza in Herrick's poem also carries a call-to-action theme although for a nobler cause than the one intended by Marvell."

And another one:
"Linda displays her passivity once again when she and Willy are discussing their finances."

And another:
"King Oedipus neglects his responsibilities as king when he is faced with finding the truth about his own being."

And one more:
"In Oedipus Rex, the role of Iocaste serves to provide both comfort and a sense of calmness to King Oedipus's conflicts."

Weeks 14 & 15: PREVIEWS
Following are links to information about some of the authors (and poets) and texts that we'll be studying on November 27 and 29.

--Study questions on "Shiloh"
--More study questions on "Shiloh."
--Biographical sketch of Bobbie Ann Mason (author of "Shiloh")
--Review of Mason's stories

--Profile of James Alan McPherson
--James Alan McPherson

--"When I was one-and-twenty"

--"A Martian Sends a Postcard Home"
--Auden's "Funeral Blues" (recited in the film Four Weddings and a Funeral)
--The W. H. Auden Society
--Tennyson's "Ulysses"
--"Ulysses" read by Sir Lewis Casson
--Annotated version of Tennyson's "Ulysses"
--Study questions for Tennyson's "Ulysses"
--Study guide with questions for Tennyson's "Ulysses"
--"Symptoms of Love"

Week Thirteen
Tips on Writing about Plays (for Project #3)
--As you work on Project #3, make a point of reviewing Chapter 17 (1201-1216) in our text: "Writing about Drama."  The first few pages offer some good advice on taking notes for your paper: i.e., how to re-read the texts carefully to find appropriate passages that support your points (the "show me" part)--and also how to jot down observations (the "so what?" part) that comment specifically on those passages.   The questions at the end of the chapter (1212-1214) should help to get you thinking about your topic and may lead you to some fresh insights. 

Additional study questions on Oedipus appear here; questions on Salesman appear here; and on Menagerie, here.   Use your answers to relevant questions to generate fresh ideas for your essay.  And then re-read the plays.  And think again about your answers to these questions. 

The two sample student papers at the end of the chapter are adequate models of organization--though the long block quotations (for example "To be, or not to be . . .") are not needed--and most likely such long quotations won't be needed in your essays either.  Quote key words and phrases.  When you want to refer to entire speeches, simply identify the page number: you're writing for somebody who has read the plays, so you don't need to bulk up your papers with lengthy quotations.

Titles of full-length plays, by the way, are underlined (Oedipus Rex, for example). 

When you come to draft and then revise your essay, go back to the advice I provided on your first project--advice about introductory paragraphs, about beginning each body paragraph with a topic sentence, about balancing specific observations ("so what?") with specific evidence ("show me") throughout the body of the paper.  Once again, re-read the model "A" essay on "Miss Brill."  

Then revise--perhaps several times.  Most essays that have received grades of "D" or "F" this term aren't really revised essays--they're often just second drafts.  The best work often needs to be revised several times--and then edited carefully.  Start right away.  And schedule an appointment with me to review your drafts and provide some feedback.


Week Eleven
October 30 & November 1: PREVIEWS
--We'll conclude our discussion of Glass Menagerie on Tuesday and begin considering this week's collection of short stories, all of which focus on the experiences of women.  The first story we'll look at is Alice Walker's "Everyday Use" (make certain that you've read this story for Tuesday's class); a brief summary and analysis of the story appear online, but by now you should know enough not to trust everything you read--especially what you read on the web.   A more academic study (by Helga Hoel of Norway) of "Everyday Use" provides an historical context for  Walker's story.

--A few more web sites that you may want to visit in conjunction with this week's readings: Anniina's Alice Walker Page; the Tillie Olsen page at the Nebraska Center for Writers site; the Katherine Anne Porter page at PAL; a biographical sketch of Irish author Edna O'Brien; and a Kay Boyle page.   

Week Ten
October 23 & 25 (Tues. & Thurs): PREVIEWS
--Video of The Glass Menagerie will be shown during Tuesday's class period.  Attendance is optional.
--Folders for Project #2 are due in the box outside my office no later than 6:00 p.m. on Wednesday, October 24.  Remember to follow all assignment guidelines (re. length of essay, self-evaluation, inclusion of rough drafts, format, and so on).
--On Thursday we'll take a quick quiz on The Glass Menagerie before our class discussion of the play.  The Seaside Music Theater has posted a study guide for the play, which you may find helpful, and you're welcome to have a look at the L.A. Theatre Works guide for teachers of the play (available as a PDF file).  

Week Eight
October 9 & 11 (Tues. & Thurs).:PREVIEW
--Death of a Salesman.  Some worthwhile articles on the play (including excerpts from Arthur Miller's essay "Tragedy and the Common Man" and some provocative discussion quuestions) and on the playwright Arthur Miller appear at this theatre site.   The  production of Death of a Salesman with Dustin Hoffman is available on video.

Week Seven
October 2 (Tuesday): PREVIEW
--Oedipus Rex (sometimes called Oedipus the King or Oedipus Tyrannus) may be the best known tragic play of all time: it has been translated countless times into English (no two translations, of course, are the same) and has been subject to several operatic and film adaptations (including  Pasolini's 1967 version).  A few of the numerous online resources that are available may help you to understand the various mythological and cultural references in the play as well as the values of the ancient world in which Oedipus Rex  is set.  Keep in mind, however, that some of these resources refer to translations of Oedipus that are quite different from ours (the Fitts & Fitzegrald version), and even characters' names may be spelled in different ways:
--Introduction (brief summary followed by good concise notes on the characteristics of classical Greek theater);
--Oedipus the Wreck (Prof. Hibbison's site provides background , to help you understand the context in which the play's actions occur as well as a more detailed summary of the play and an online student discussion regarding the significance of Oedipus Rex.)  
--40 Oedipus Rex Plot Questions should help you test your understanding of the play's plot before next Tuesday's class quiz. 
--The Oedipus Game: an interactive web game to help you test your knowledge of the play.

Week Seven
September 27 (Thursday): POSTSCRIPT
--Following the quiz and a brief background discussion on our assignment for next week (see above), we discussed Marlowe's "Passionate Shepherd" and Raleigh's "The Nymph's Reply" (for more information on Marlowe's brief life and violent death, go here; to read Raleigh's last letter to his wife before he was beheaded, go here --and, by the way, I misled you: Raleigh's head was not jammed on a stake on London Bridge after his death: it was embalmed and delivered to his wife, who reportedly "carried it with her at all times until she died 29 years later").  We concluded with a close reading of Marvell's "To His Coy Mistress."   On Tuesday, we'll finish up our first stage of love poetry with the remaining sonnets.

Week Six
September 27 (Thursday): PREVIEW
--Following the quick quiz, we'll continue our discussion of some well-known love poems, with special attention to the most famous expression of the carpe diem spirit: Marvell's "To His Coy Mistress." 

• This poem . . .  is a dramatic monologue. Who is the speaker of this poem? Who is he speaking to? What is the dramatic situation that the speaker presents? What does he want from the listener?
• Does the speaker in the first stanza think that he and his lover have "world enough and time"? If they did, how would he choose to spend that time?
• In the second stanza, the speaker describes his awareness of time and immanent death. How does time influence his relationship with his lover?
• If we view this poem as the speaker's attempt to create a logical argument (1. "If we had"; 2. "But"; 3. "Therefore") to persuade his lover, the third stanza presents the final statement of that argument. What does the speaker offer as the logical conclusion to be drawn from the ideas presented in the first two stanzas?
  Theme: carpe diem (seize the day)   The poem is a carpe diem poem with some major differences from the convention in 1. the praise of the lady--exaggerated to be ironic of the convention, 2. the macabre image of death, 3. the intensification of pleasure.  What do you think about the poet's offer ("devour our time"; " Let us roll all our strength, and all/Our sweetness, up into one ball"; "tear our pleasures with rough strife"; "make [the sun] run")?

Week Five
September 18 (Tuesday) & 20 (Thursday):
POSTSCRIPTS
--This week we considered how to move from collecting notes for a rough draft to connecting them in a revised critical essay.  In examining the three sample essays on "Miss Brill," we considered how the A essay not only employs a thesis statement and topic sentences as organizational strategies, but also maintains a clearly developed balance between "show me" and "so what?" statements throughout the essay: each paragraph (like each sentence within each paragraph) builds on the one that precedes it.   The C essay offers a series of general observations (some more insightful than others) about the main character but very little specific analysis (note the total absence of quotations).  The F essay is simply illogical, leaping from one supposition to the next without providing any serious analysis of how the character is developed.  
--Some excellent tips on how to write an effective critical (literary) essay appear online at the Feminist Pedagogy site.   (Note, however, that for Project #1 we are not relying on secondary sources.)  Have a look.  However, if you see anything here that appears to contradict advice that I've given you, go with my advice.
--We quickly reviewed format guidelines for Project #1.  When you turn in your completed project (to the box outside my office) by 4:30 on Tuesday afternoon, make sure that all of your work is in a pocket folder, final version of your essay on top, rough drafts below. 
--In Tuesday's class, we discussed why Shirley Jackson  chose to employ third-person objective point of view in "The Lottery" and third-person  limited in "The Summer People."   We also considered some of the details of setting in each story that foreshadowed the climax, underscored the conflict, and helped to dramatize the theme(s). 
--In Thursday's class, we reviewed the answers to the quick quiz and briefly considered how Poe employs melodramatic settings not only to establish mood but also to help reveal the conflicts of his central characters.  Some fairly basic notes on "The Cask of Amontillado" appear at the Poe Decoder site.  (Be sure that you understand what's meant by an "unreliable narrator.")  
 
Commentary on "The Fall of the House of Usher" can also be found at the Poe Decoder.  But don't let the ideas of others distract you from your own thoughts on these stories.  We'll continue our discussion of Poe's writings on Tuesday (Sep. 25). 

Week Five
September 18 (Tuesday): PREVIEW
--This afternoon we'll consider the strengths and weakness of the three sample essays on "Miss Brill" (see Postscript for Sep. 13, below), and begin discussing how to organize our own notes for Project #1 into rough drafts.  I'll also give you a guide to formatting your essay.
--As you work on your essay, please feel free to set an appointment (921 5991) to meet with me to review your progress (I've left late Wednesday afternoon and Wednesday evening free this week for such appointments).   Also, you may e-mail me (at nordquist@mail.com) your drafts (even if it's just a single rough paragraph you'd like me to have a look at it).  I'll try my best to get back to you within 24 hours.
--Today we'll also begin discussing the four short stories assigned for this week (see ASSIGNMENTS for Sep. 18), all falling under the broad theme of "fear and loathing."  Fans of Stephen King may get a kick out of this high school student's comparison of King of Poe, while fans of Poe may find some materials of interest at the Poe Society of Baltimore web site and the online House of Usher.  Shirley Jackson, the other author we're reading this week, also has numerous online fans: see The Haunted World of Shirley Jackson and The Works of Shirley Jackson.   One of Jackson's novels, btw, was turned into the unfortunate 1999 film The Haunting.  


NOTES FOR WEEKS ONE THROUGH FIVE HAVE BEEN MOVED TO THE NOTES ARCHIVE .