Forgot to mention: Poetry/fiction reading today!

A poet, Anthony Carelli, and a fiction writer, Maaza Mengiste, will be reading TODAY at Smith house (the yellow house up the street from the English bldg) at 4.30. They both look young and interesting--it should be fun, and there will be refreshments. Come join the creative writing program at a rainy-day reading!

Do you say LOL or just write it?

And actually, DO you write it? Here's an article on who does or doesn't speak those abbreviations.

For Tuesday, Sept 20

Finish 1984, and write a 1-2 page short paper that, if you like, could be an extension of your in-class writing today. You might consider any or all of these questions: What do you make of the novel as a whole? What, to you, is it about? What interests you most in it? What is your overall attitude about it? Which passages help to illustrate your point (include page numbers). Your paper should be informal but clear writing, as though you're writing the class a letter. You could focus on the novel as a whole, or zero in on one particular idea/character/concept in it. Make it personal, growing out of your own particular reading. There's no right answer, other than whatever thoughts grow out of YOUR reading of the novel. Post the paper on your blog, and read others'. Also bring a hard copy of your paper to class. Consult Alyssa or me if you have questions.

The Shame of College Sports

Here's that article I mentioned--click here.

For Thursday

1. Read 1984 to page 150, noting intriguing passages and your thoughts.

2. Write your 1-2 page paper on the one issue or question. Bring a

hard copy to class, and post it on your blog. (This is a separate post from

the one about your general area of interest.)

An event in the Trinity public sphere.

There will be an open forum discussion on Trinity's harrassment policy in the Washington Room tomorrow from 12.15-1.20, check it out! It will give you a feel for the public sphere of your college. If you can't open the link, go to "Thursday Common Hour--Participating in Democracy" on Facebook.

For Tuesday

Read the first section of 1984. Keep a notebook or computer with you as you read, and note places (with page numbers) where you have a response or question. When you finish, write a comment to this post with your preliminary impressions of the novel so far. Avoid generalizations in your comment ("it was good," "I hated it," "I thought it was cool.") Instead, write thoughtfully and informally about a specific moment or idea in the text.

For Thursday

1. Explore the area for which you will be an Ambassador to our class. Write a blog post with your reflections about which issues and questions in the area most interest you. Mention some specific sources that you will follow and report about. Bring your ideas about one particular issue or question to class.

2. Link to your classmates' blogs on yours. Read and occasionally comment on theirs.

3. Begin reading 1984--we will discuss part one on Tuesday, Sept. 13.

Questions about Mountains Beyond Mountains

1. Did Farmer affect Haiti more with his physical work or with his spirit and the hope he provided?
2. What makes Farmer different from everyone else that makes him help people to the extent that he does?
3. How did Farmer's childhood in poverty affect his adult life? Would it have been different if he'd grown up in a more affluent community?
4. Given Farmer's extreme empathy, can a normal individual replicate what he did?
5. How did his upbringing affect his career path?

Welcome, class!

Here are your assignments for Tuesday:

1. Set up your own blog--make it on blogspot--use a name different from your own if you like.

2. On your blog, post a response to one of the questions about Mountains Beyond Mountains--go back to the book and refer to one or two passages (include page number) to support your thinking. Include some reflections about Kidder's talk.

3. Post here, as a comment to this post, about what area(s) of the public sphere are most interesting to you, and why. What public issues would you like our class to pay attention to this semester? What news sources do you like, or would you like, to follow?

4. Here's a link to an opinion essay from the New York Times, Aug 28, 2011. Read it and post a response on your blog.