End of the Year Festivities!

Hello All,

I liked Ms. Tracy's idea of a picnic.

But instead of one person bringing all the food, I thought that we could all bring our own food and meet somewhere outside. 

And so:

___________

You are all cordially invited to:

***THE RHETORIC TO-GO BOX PICNIC***

Who: Everyone who is eligible to post on this blog.

What: A Post-Rhetoric Celebration

When: Friday, May 15th @ 7:00pm

Where: Memorial Glade

Why: To get a few extra hours for revisions, of course!

Bring: A to-go box with your dinner in it, and possibly a blanket to sit on.

*To-go box means that you actually went somewhere and bought food with the intention of eating it with us! And no leaving once you turn in your paper!

___________

(Ben and Hui-Hui:

If you would so kindly distribute this invitation to all worthy recipients, I would be much obliged.)

Hope to see you there! Good luck with finals!

Your Earnest Party Planner,

Ms. Cohen

Peer Editing Worksheet

Hey all,

Papers are coming in as I write! Anyway, if people happen to need more copies of the Peer Editing Worksheet, you can download a copy here.

Have a nice weekend!

-Ben

Music for Wednesday

Hey everybody,

Here's the music we'll be talking about this Wednesday. It's two performances by Jimi Hendrix, "Are You Experienced?" and his version of the Star Spangled Banner. As usual, you want to be thinking about how these songs work, what they're doing, what sort of arguments they might be making, how they read America, etc.

If you want to download them to your computer, you can click here.

Jimi Hendrix - "Are You Experienced?"


Jimi Hendrix - Star Spangled Banner (from Woodstock)

Enjoy!

-Ben

Peer Editing Groups

Hey all,

Here are the peer editing groups for the final papers. I'll announce these in class, too, but just in case, these are the people whose drafts you'll be reading.

Group 1
Kim
Gibson
Kahng
Duitch
Fendor

Group 2
Juberg
Chu
Joo
Bergstrom
Golan

Group 3
Liu
Malone
Gomez
Cohen
Copprell

Group 4
McGeoch
Reimer
Leong
Oh
Iwata
Gu

Group 5
Zhu
Schuster
Wong
Shiovitz
Tracey

Group 6
Rodriguez
Varee
Tomatsu
Yeung
Saxe

style 6.2

1. When Shakespeare began work on what was perhaps his greatest tragedy, Lear, he must have had several versions of the story available to him as the story of King Lear was very popular during the reign of Queen Elizabeth.  While many of these stories contained undeveloped characters with a simple narrative, Shakespeare turned these legendary characters into credible human beings with complex motives. 

2. In order to allow the union to put forth proposals on behalf of its members, companies are obligated to disclose major changes in an operation during bargaining.  For example, it is part of managements' "duty to disclose" to announce the date an operation intends to close down.  The main goal for both the union and management, ultimately, is a minimization of conflict. 

3.  The focal point in Thucydides' History of the Peloponnesian War is Athens' catastrophic Sicilian Invasion.  In fact, three-quarters of the book is devoted to the step-by-step Athenian decline leading up to this inevitable event.

4. Hydrodynamic transport of fluid into the interstitial tissue and then through the mucosa into the lumen of the gut is believed to depend on altered capillary permeability.  A current hypothesis to explain this condition is that a toxin elaborated by the vibrio alters mucosal and vascular permeability.  This theory is supported by the changes in small capillaries located near the basal surface of the epithelial cells and the appearance of numerous microvesicles in the cytoplasm of mucosal cells.

5. Between July 1-August 31, the Ohio and Kentucky areas saw an increase in revenue of approximately 73%, from $32,934 to $56,792.  The Indiana and Illinois areas also saw an increase in revenue of about 10%, from $153,281 to $168,651.  At the same time, however, the Wisconsin and Minnesota areas saw a decrease in revenue of almost 5%, from $200,102 to $190,580.

6.2

1. During the reign of Queen Elizabeth, the story of King Lear and his daughters was popular. By the time Elizabeth died, there were at least a dozen books that made the story available. It was a simple narrative because it had an obvious moral and undeveloped characters. Shakespeare must have read several versions before beginning work on Lear, perhaps his greatest tragedy. His characters were based on the stock figures of legend, but he turned them into credible human beings with complex motives.

2. It would appear that the issue is whether the date an operation intends to close down might be part of management's "duty to disclose" during contract bargaining. Management has to bargain in good faith in order to minimize conflict. Companies are obligated to disclose major changes in an operation during bargaining so that the union can put make proposals, although case law in scanty on this matter.

3. In Thucydides' History of the Peloponnesian War, the most important event is Athens' catastrophic Sicilian Invasion, so three-quarters of the history is devoted to setting it up. We can see how Thucydides anticipates the invasion through his step-by-step description of Athens' decline. We need to anticipate the invasion because we see the tragic drama as inevitable.

4. A current hypothesis to explain this kind of severe condition is a toxin, elaborated by the vibrio, which alters musosal and vascular permeability. Evidence in favor of htis hypothesis includes changes in small capillaries located near the basal surface of hte epithelial cells and the appearance of numerous microvesicles in the cytoplasm. Altered capillary permeability is believed to contribute to hydrodynamic transport of fluid ito the interstitial tussue and then through the mucosa into the lumen of the gut.

5. Changes in revenues are as follows. In the Ohio and Kentucky areas, the net increase from July 1-August 31 was approximately 73 percent, from $32,934 to $56,792. During the same time period, the Indiana and Illinois areas saw a 10 percent increase, from $153,281 to $168,651. However, in the Wisconsin and Minnesota regions, A 5 percent decrease, from $200,102 to $190,580, occured in almost the same time period.

6.2

1. During Queen Elizabeth's reign, the story of King Lear and his daughters was popular. By the time Elizabeth died, at least a dozen books offered the story to anyone. The story was a simple narrative with obvious an obvious moral because of undeveloped characters. Shakespeare must have had several versions available when he began work on perhaps his greatest tragedy Lear. Although the characters were based on stock figures of legend, Shakespeare turned the characters in credible human beings with complex motives.
2. The issue here is whether management has a "duty to disclose" the date of a closure operation during contract bargaining. Management has the duty to bargain in good faith for the minimization of conflict. Although the case law is scanty, companines are obligated to disclose major operational changes during bargaining in order to allow the union to put forth member proposals.
3. The most important event in Thucydides' History of the Peloponnesian war is Athen's catastrophic Sicilian invasion. Because of this, three quarters of the history is devoted to setting up the invasion. We can see how he anticipated the Sicilian Invasion through the step-by-step decline in Athenian society. The basic reason for anticipating the invasion is the inevitability we associate with the drama.
4. The current hypothesis to explain the severe condition is that the alteration mucosal and vascular permeability is a result of a toxin elaborated by the vibrio. The evidence in favor of this hypothesis are changes in small capillaries located near the basal surface of epithelial cell and the appearance of numerous microvesicles in the cyoplasm of mucosal cells. It is believed the hydrodynamic transport of fluid into intersitital tissue and further through the muscoa in the lumen of the gut is depended upon altered capillary permeability.
5. Revenue changes are as follows. In Ohio and Kentucky there was a net increase of approximately 73 percent from $32934 to $56792 realized from July 1-August 31. In the same period a 10 percent increase of $15370 from $153281 to $168652 occured in Indiana and Illinois. In almost the same time period there was a decrease of 5 percent from $200102 to $190580 occurred in Wisconsin and Minnesota.

Ryan Saxe Style 6.2

Ryan Saxe
Style 6.2

1. During the reign of Queen Elizabeth, the story of King Lear and his daughters was popular. By the time Elizabeth died, at least a dozen available books offered the story to anyone wishing to read it. They story was a simple narrative with an obvious moral, because the characters were undeveloped. Shakespeare must have had several versions of this story available when he began work on Lear, perhaps his greatest tragedy. Though they were based on the stock figures of legend, he turned the characters into credible human beings with complex motives.
2. What the issue here is whether the management has a “duty to disclose” the date an operation intends to close down during contract bargaining. The management has to bargain the minimization of conflict for the duty in good faith. Although the case law is scanty, companies are obligated to disclose major changes in an operation during bargaining in order to allow the union to put forth proposals on behalf of its members.
3. The most important event in Thucydides’ History of the Peloponnesian war is Athens’ catastrophic Sicilian invasion. Because of this importance, three-quarters of the history is devoted to setting up the invasion. We can see how Thucydides anticipated the Sicilian invasion through the step-by-step decline in Athenian society. WE need to anticipate the invasion in order to associate inevitability with the tragic drama.
4. To explain this kind of severe condition, a current hypothesis is that mucosal and vascular permeability altered by a toxin elaborated by the vibrio. Evidence in favor of this hypothesis includes changes in small capillaries located near the basal surface of the epithelial cells, and the appearance of numerous microvesicles in the cytoplasm of the mucosal cells. It is believed that hydrodynamic transport of fluid into the interstitial tissue and then through the mucosa into the lumen of the gut depends on altered capillary permeability.
5. Changes in revenues are as follows. In the Ohio and Kentucky areas from July 1 – August 31, an increase to $56,792 from $32,934 was realized, a net increase of approximately 73 percent. In the same period in the Indiana and Illinois areas, there was a 10 percent increase of $15,3370 from $153,281 to $168,651. However, in the Wisconsin and Minnesota regions, a decrease of 5 percent occurred from $200,102 to $190,580.

Style - Exercise 6.2

1. Throughout the reign of Queen Elizabeth, King Lear remained a popular story. By the time of her death, the story was available in at least a dozen books. However, these variations were simple narratives that merely stated an obvious moral due to undeveloped characters. When Shakespeare began work on King Lear, perhaps his greatest tragedy, he must have had several versions of the story available. Though the characters were based on stock figures of legend, Shakespeare was able to not only turn them into credible human beings, but provide them with complex motives as well.

2. The issue at hand appears to be whether the closure date of an operation may or may not be part of management's "duty to disclose" during contract bargaining. The central rational for management to bargain in good faith is the minimization of conflict. Though case law on this matter is scant, companies are obligated to disclose major operational changes during bargaining to allow the union to put forth proposals on behalf of its members.

3. The most important event in Thucydides' History of the Peloponnesian War is Athens' catastrophic Sicilian Invasion. As such, the setup of the invasion comprises three-quarters of the text. The manner in which Thucydides anticipates the Sicilian Invasion is observed through his description of the decline in Athenian society. The basic reason for the need to anticipate invasion is the inevitability that we associate with the tragic drama.

4. A current hypothesis to explain mucosal and vascular permeability is a toxin elaborated by vibrio. Evidence favoring this hypothesis include changes in capillaries near the basal surface of epithelial cells and the appearance of numerous microvesicles in the cytoplasm of mucosal cells. Altered capillary permeability is also believed to effect hydrodynamic transport of fluid into interstitial tissue and the lumen of the gut.

5. Please note the following changes in revenue during the July 1-August 31 time frame. In the Ohio and Kentucky areas, a 73 percent increase from $32,934 to $56,792. In the Indiana and Illinois areas, a 10 percent increase from $153,281 to $168,651. During almost the same time period, the Wisconsin and Minnesota regions saw a 5 percent decrease from $200,102 to $190,580.

Style Lesson (in Clarity and Grace) 6.2

1. During Queen Elizabeth’s reign, the story of King Lear was so popular that by the time she died, there were at least a dozen books that offered the King’s story. However, most of the characters in these stories were undeveloped, leading to a simple narrative with an obvious moral. With multiple versions of the story available to him, Shakespeare turned the characters into credible humans with complex motives, despite their origins in legend.

2. What the issue is here is whether it is the management’s “duty to disclose” the date an operation intends to close down. As part of the management’s duty to bargain in good faith, companies are obligated to disclose major changes in an operation bargaining, in order to allow the union to put forth proposals on behalf of its members.

3. Since the most important event in Thucydides’ History of the Peloponnesian War is the Athenian catastrophic invasion of Sicily, three-quarters of the history is devoted to it. We can see this anticipation, displayed by the steady decline of Athenian society, so he could enforce the inevitability of the tragic drama.

4. One hypothesis to explain this condition is that the mucosal and vascular permeability altered by a toxin elaborated by the vibrio. This hypothesis is supported by the changes in small capillaries located near the basal surface of the epithelial cells, and the appearance of numerous micro vesicles in the cytoplasm of the mucosal cells. Of course, Hydrodynamic transport of fluid into the interstitial tissue and then through the mucosa into the lumen of the gut depends on altered capillary permeability.

5. While there was an increase of approximately 73% from $32,934 from July 1^st to August 31^st in the Ohio and Kentucky areas, the Indiana and Illinois felt a 10% increase from $153,281 and even a decrease of 5% (from $200,102) in the Wisconsin and Minnesota regions.

Final Paper Topic

Rhetoric 1B, Final Essay

First draft of the paper is due by 8pm on Friday, May 8, e-mailed to the members of your group and to Ben. Drafts should be a minimum of 5 pages long. Final papers are due by 3pm on Friday, May 15 in either Ben’s or Hui-Hui’s mailbox in 7408 Dwinelle. Your essay should be 8-10 pages long, and should employ standard formatting (double-spaced, 12pt Times New Roman or equivalent, standard margins, etc).

For this paper you should write an essay that engages two texts we’ve read in class, at least one of which comes from the final third of the semester (since nobody wrote their second paper about either the John Coltrane or the Nina Simone musical pieces, I’ll count the final third as starting there). This text (“text” here includes music and film) needn’t be the primary focus of your essay; it may be the secondary piece or counterweight to the text on which you focus more. The other text may be anything we’ve read this semester, with the one caveat that it cannot be a text about which you’ve written one of your earlier papers. We may be open to exceptions, however, if you come to office hours and demonstrate to us how the angle from which you’ll be investigating a text that you’ve already written about will be completely different on your final paper. Needless to say, both texts in the paper may also come from the final third of the semester.

As with our second paper, you’re free to choose and develop your own topic. Importantly, what you should be shooting for is not a simple compare/contrast paper. Rather, you want your paper to read one text in terms of the other, to illustrate how a given text recasts the terms or argument or conclusions of another, to show how understanding one text properly requires the use of another, to prove that one text raises problems another text hasn’t foreseen, to trace how a given term gains complexity or sophistication in its passage from one text to another and why that matters (you needn’t do all of these things; they’re just examples of relations between texts you may want to highlight). Put differently, you want to take a stand on whatever relation you’re demonstrating, to show why that particular relation matters and to make about claim about what it means for us to be comparing two texts along the axis you’ve chosen. This paper may therefore require a certain amount of comparing and contrasting, but it should be sure to lay out the stakes of that comparison/contrast and demonstrate how that particular mode of comparison or contrast is important.

As usual, we encourage you to come to office hours and discuss your ideas with us as you develop them. Good luck!

Daughtry's "Home" and Daughtry

The songs "Home" and "It's Not Over" by Daughtry are similar in terms of
instruments used, but differ in terms of structure, tempo, and intended
audience. Both songs are dominated by the underlying guitar player, and
also use drum beats at critical junctures to transition from section to
section. However, "It's Not Over" reaches its chorus more quickly than
"Home", has a noticeably quicker beat, and also contains lyrics that seem
to be more intended for a failing relationship than a return to one's
home. Daughtry contrasts his two songs in this fashion to illustrate how
different songs prove more effective in certain situations, and also how
it is necessary for artists to not become one dimensional in their work.
The variances between "It's Not Over" and "Home" reinforce Chris
Daughtry's underlying creative intent behind his songwriting, and serve to
verify his status as an artist with a diversified song portfolio.

Juicy Fruit and Orbit

Juicy Fruit and Orbit are two different gum companies that have different ways of approaching an audience through their television advertisement. While looking into the different ads aired by these brands, it is apparent that their intended audience is different since the effect they advertise is different. While Juicy Fruit uses young, stylish, and famous people, Orbit tends to portray everyday type of people. What this difference says is that one gum makes you be active and feel young, while the other will lighten up a common persons day. More specifically, I compared the ad of Julianne Hough where she dances and sings along with the advertising song of "makes you move," in comparison to an Orbit ad or a couple fighting due to infidelity. The kind of effect Juicy fruit provides is the feeling of satisfaction, of wanting to become active, it basically cheers up an audience with the song, person, and colors used. On the other hand, Orbit plays in a dramatic situation where a persons life is so bad and dramatic that one of the only highlights that can result is the satisfaction of feeling clean ( with your teeth). In the end, cheerful kind of people should use Juicy Fruit and feel "great" while sad people with issues should rely on Orbit to make them feel a bit better about themselves.

German Shepherds Vs. Pugs

Although pug species have grown more popular in European countries, they still lack the work obedient characteristics of the German Shepherds. The playful little devil or monkey personality of pugs, make them an appealing choice for families. However, they still lack the protective dispositions to efficiently guard families from burglars or other foreign threats. And this is one of the qualities of German Shepherds that appeal to families. Because German Shepherds are eminently known for their unique strength, intelligence, and obedience, these dogs are used in all kinds of occupations. Whether herding sheep on farmlands, or working in police S.W.A.T. teams, these dogs are chosen for their diligence and loyalty to their masters. Thus, the common appearance of these dogs working on the fields and streets, give these dogs credibility as charming and astute guardians. And this is not to say that pugs are not protectors in any sense. Just like any shrewd and vigilant dog, pugs can use their barks to defend homes. However, if a home was broken into, the physical shape and size of pugs do not intimidate assailants. Instead, their short and stubby form may only startle a foreigner in the dark, not frighten them away. Also, because of their size, the pugs themselves are in harm’s way. In contrast, German Shepherds are naturally built with aggressiveness and wolf-like characteristic when facing unwanted guests. Therefore, though some people choose to select dogs for only their cute and charming personalities, other individuals choose to breed and raise dogs for not only companionship, but security as well. Hence, German Shepherds fulfill both demands, while not losing their ability to stay attractive or amiable.

Writing Analytically: Chapter 6, Assignment 4

Two versions of the same song by different artists: Stormy Weather, Ethel Waters and Etta James

Ethel Waters and Etta James versions’ of Stormy Weather use of volume and beat varies. Waters’ cabaret-like rendition stays away from climactic points of vibrato and sonority and instead utilizes a steady beat and low, muffled volume. Although this emphasizes the misery and sorrow she feels since she and her man “ain’t together,” the heavy consistency suggests a restrained rage. This rage is fully present in James’ performance, where she freely highlights her intense feelings of fury and distress through a variation in volume and moments of strong vibrato. However, although the vocals highlight and seem to reflect this fury as Etta’s sole emotion, the wailing, weary sounds of the background instrumentals (violin and cymbals) call attention to her equal degree of heartache and mourning. Emotional pain is therefore present in both versions, echoed through the steady background beat of the piano. This common thread suggests that, although James’ adaptation is complicated by sporadic waves of emotion, sorrow is as dominant as it is in Waters' rendition.

Homework 6.4

G) Compare two breeds of dog

Doberman Pinschers and Chihuahuas are both breeds of dog portrayed in the media and because of the way in which they are portrayed, it is apparent that Chihuahuas would be the better dog for one to own. Doberman Pinschers are often represented in movies as the attack dogs. They are shown as vicious dogs that will show aggression towards humans in any situation. In commercials the Taco Bell dog is a Chihuahua, which signifies that they are a common and friendly breed of dog. They are made out to be the dogs owned by the people of the higher class, including celebrities. Chihuahuas are known to be cute dogs with personality which, most would agree, is better than a dog seen as brutal. Although both breeds of dogs are portrayed in the media, due to the differences in which they are portrayed, Chihuahuas would be the better type of dog for one to own.

Group Number Six?

Hi guys (preferably those in my group)
Sorry I couldn't make it to class on Wednesday (I kinda sorta had an ordeal with getting locked out of my room...for 10 hours...) but I was wondering if anyone wanted to meet up so I could hand out my peer reviews today? If not that's cool too, I can perhaps email you the gist of my thoughts? Or perhaps someone could do that for me as well? Let me know, ashiovitz@hotmail.com. We'll work something out
Have a great weekend,
I'll see you...tomorrow

Andrew Shiovitz

Film screening in 242 Dwinelle

Hey all,

I'll remind you in class today, but the film screening on Sunday night (April 5), will be in 242 Dwinelle, from 6 to approximately 8 pm. This will be treated as a regular class for attendance purposes, so if you can't make it let us know sooner rather than later!

See everyone there.

Ben

Music and info for next class

Hi everyone,

As promised, here's the music for our next class (Monday, March 30), and some background information about it. We'll be talking about these pieces as aesthetic responses to historical events, and as usual we'll be wanting to think about the vision of America implied, condemned or parodied by each of the songs.

There are two pieces here: Nina Simone's song "Mississippi Goddamn" and John Coltrane's tune "Alabama." Feel free to do some research on either performer if you'd like.

Both songs were written in response to the 1963 Baptist Church bombing in Birmingham, Alabama, in which four young girls were killed. You can find some background information on the bombing here and here. Nina Simone's song also references Medgar Evers' murder in 1963 in Mississippi. Info on Evers here, courtesy of our old friend wikipedia.

Here are the pieces:

Nina Simone - Mississippi Goddamn (4:51) (lyrics here)


John Coltrane - Alabama (5:14)


If you'd rather just download both files to your computer, you can click here.


If you'd like to write your paper about one or both of these pieces (or either of them in relation to either Cane or Dutchman), go for it! Just let me know sooner rather than later.

All best,
Ben

Reminders

Hey everybody,

Just so there's no confusion: Paper drafts are due at the beginning of class on Monday, March 30. Drafts should be the same length as the final paper (5-6 pages). You should bring 4 copies of your draft to class. Papers can be on the topic of your choice, as long as that topic is about either Cane, Dutchman, or some relationship between the two.

If you have questions or want to run potential theses by us, the best thing is probably to e-mail me until next Wednesday, at which point you'd probably be better off e-mailing Hui-Hui (you can always try to e-mail whichever of us you're most comfortable with, but you're more likely to get a quicker response if you e-mail us during the periods when we're most free).

Good luck - have a great spring break!

Please bring Writing Analytically to class tomorrow

Hey all,

If you read this, please bring Writing Analytically to class tomorrow (Wednesday). No need to prepare anything from it; you just need to have it in hand.

Pass it on.

-Ben

Alice Walker on Cane

For those of you who are interested, here's a short reading by Alice Walker (The Color Purple) on the women in Cane. It's from Walker's famous essay "In Search of our Mother's Gardens" (here). If anyone is further interested in this issue (maybe for a final paper?), come talk to me and I can point you in some similar directions:

I described her own nature and temperament. Told how they needed a larger life for their expression. . . . I pointed out that in lieu of proper channels, her emotions had overflowed into paths that dissipated them. I talked, beautifully I thought, about an art that would be born, an art that would open the way for women the likes of her. I asked her to hope, and build up an inner life against the coming of that day. . . . I sang, with a strange quiver in my voice, a promise song.

"Avey," Jean Toomer, Cane

The poet speaking to a prostitute who falls asleep while he's talking-

When the poet Jean Toomer walked through the South in the early twenties, he discovered a curious thing: Black women whose spirituality was so intense, so deep, so unconscious, that they were themselves unaware of the richness they held. They stumbled blindly through their lives: creatures so abused and mutilated in body, so dimmed and confused by pain, that they considered themselves unworthy even of hope. In the selfless abstractions their bodies became to the men who used them, they became more than "sexual objects," more even than mere women: they became Saints. Instead of being perceived as whole persons, their bodies became shrines: what was thought to be their minds became temples suitable for worship. These crazy "Saints" stared out at the world, wildly, like lunatics-or quietly, like suicides; and the "God" that was in their gaze was as mute as a great stone.

Who were these "Saints"? These crazy, loony, pitiful women?

Some of them, without a doubt, were our mothers and grandmothers.

In the still heat of the Post-Reconstruction South, this is how they seemed to Jean Toomer: exquisite butterflies trapped in an evil honey, toiling away their lives in an era, a century, that did not acknowledge them, except as "the mule of the world." They dreamed dreams that no one knew-not even themselves, in any coherent fashion-and saw visions no one could understand. They wandered or sat about the countryside crooning lullabies to ghosts, and drawing the mother of Christ in charcoal on courthouse walls.

They forced their minds to desert their bodies and their striving spirits sought to rise, like frail whirlwinds from the hard red clay. And when those frail whirlwinds fell, in scattered particles, upon the ground, no one mourned. Instead, men lit candies to celebrate the emptiness that remained, as people do who enter a beautiful but vacant space to resurrect a God.

Our mothers and grandmothers, some of them: moving to music not yet written. And they waited.

They waited for a day when the unknown thing that was in them would be made known; but guessed, somehow in their darkness, that on the day of their revelation they would be long dead. Therefore to Toomer they walked, and even ran, in slow motion. For they were going nowhere immediate, and the future was not yet within their grasp. And men took our mothers and grandmothers, "but got no pleasure from it." So complex was their passion and their calm.

To Toomer, they lay vacant and fallow as autumn fields with harvest time never in sight: and he saw them enter loveless marriages, without joy; and become prostitutes, without resistance; and become mothers of children, without fulfillment.

For these grandmothers and mothers of ours were not "Saints," but Artists; driven to a numb and bleeding madness by the springs of creativity in them for which there was no release. They were Creators, who lived lives of spiritual waste, because they were so rich in spirituality-which is the basis of Art-that the strain of enduring their unused and unwanted talent drove them insane. Throwing away this spirituality was their pathetic attempt to lighten the soul to a weight their work-worn, sexually abused bodies could bear.

5.1, 5.2

5.1
2) Our report will highlight the advantages of Acbo over its competitors, Acbo’s profitability components, and particularly, growth in Asian markets. The analysis will be supported by revenue returns along several dimensions: product type, end-use, distribution channels, etc. The growth prospects of Acbo’s newest product lines will depend on the development of distribution channels in China. The introduction of new product lines will require the support of a range of innovative strategies.

5.2
1) Vegetation covers the earth, except for those areas continuously covered with ice or utterly scorched by continual heat. Plans grow most richly on richly fertilized plains and river valleys, but grow also at the edge of perpetual snow in high mountains. Dense vegetation area exists in the body and edges of oceans, lakes, and swamps. Plants also exist in seemingly barren cliffs as well as city sidewalks. Vegetation will cover the earth even long after evolutionary history swallows us up.

2) Animals do not naturally create and communicate new messages. Their genetic code limits their communication. For example, bees can only communicate information about distance, direction, source and richness of pollen in flowers. In all significant aspects, animals of the same species share a limited repertoire of messages delivered in the same way.

3) Jones (1985) stresses, in his paper on children's thinking, the importance of language skills in their problem-solving ability. Children who improved in language skills also reported an improvement in nonverbal problem solving. The habits and knowledge gained in language-learning also improve problem articulation. Verbal formulation of non-linguistic problem may enhance problem-solving.

5.1, 5.2

5.1

2.To demonstrate the advantages of Acbo over its competitor, Acbo’s profitability components, particularly growth in Asian markets, will be highlighted in our report. The analysis will be based off revenue returns along several dimensions: product type, end-use, and distribution channels, to name a few. According to our projections, the development of distribution channels in China will determine the growth prospects of Abco’s newest product lines. The introduction of new products will require the support of a range of innovative strategies.

5.2

1. Vegetation covers most of the earth, except for those areas continuously covered with ice or utterly scorched by continual heat. Plants grow most richly in fertilized plains and river valleys, as well as at the edge of perpetual snow in high mountains. Dense vegetation is also found in the body and edges of oceans, lakes, and swamps. Plants also exist in the cracks of busy city street sidewalks as well as seemingly barren cliffs. Just as vegetation covered the earth before human, it will continue long after evolutionary history swallows us up.

2. The creation and communication of new messages to define a novel experience is not a competence animals naturally have. The messages that animals can communicate are limited by their genetic code. For instance, the information communicated by bees is limited to the distance, direction, source, and richness of pollen in flowers. A limited repertoire of messages delivered is characteristic of animals of the same species.

3. The importance of language skills in children’s problem-solving ability was postulated in Jones’ paper on children’s thinking. Improvement in language skills resulted in improvements in non-verbal problem solving. Knowledge from language habits

5.1, 5.2

5.1

2. In our report, we will highlight components of Abco’s profitability, particularly growth in Asian markets, to demonstrate its advantages verses competitors. This analysis will be based on revenue returns along several dimensions—product type, end-use, distribution channels, etc. According to our projections, growth of Abco’s newest product lines will depend on its ability to develop distributions channels in China. This introduction of new products will require innovative strategies.

5.2
1. Vegetation covers the earth, except for those areas continuously covered with ice or utterly scorched by continual heat. Plants grow most richly in fertilized plains and river valleys, but they also grow at the edges of perpetual snow in high mountains. The densest vegetation appears in the ocean and its edges, as well as lakes and swamps. Plants also grow in the cracks of busy city sidewalks as well as seemingly barren cliffs. Vegetation covered the earth before humans existed, and plants will continue to grow long after evolutionary history swallows us up.

2. Animals in their natural states do not have the power to create and communicate new messages to fit new experiences. Their genetic code limits the number and kind of messages that they can communicate. For example, bees are limited to communicating information about the distance, direction, source and richness of pollen in flowers. Animals of the same species are characterized by their limited repertoire of messages, delivered in the same way over many generations.

3. Children’s problem solving ability is strongly dependent on their language skills, according to Jones (1985) in his paper about children’s thinking. Children who improve their language skills are reported to have stronger nonverbal problem solving as well. When these children use the knowledge they gained through learning a language, their nonverbal abilities improve. It is possible that children who practice verbalizing nonlinguistic problems before attempting to solve them may be more successful.

Style Exercises 5.1, 5.2

5.1
1. The president had two aims in his mind when he assumed his office -- the recovery of the American economy and the modernization of America into a military power. His success in the first is testified by the drop in unemployment figures and inflation, and the increase in GDP. He was, however, less successful with the second, indicated by our increased involvement in international conflict without any clear set of political goals. Nevertheless, the American voter was pleased with the increases in the military budget and a good deal of saber rattling.

2. Our report to demonstrate Abco's advantages versus competitors will highlight the components of its profitability, particularly growth in Asian markets. This analysis will be supported by revenue returns along several dimensions -- product type, end-use, distribution channels, etc. We project that the growth prospects of Abco's newest product lines will likely depend most on its ability in regard to the development of distribution channels in China, where the introduction of new products will be needed to be supported by a range of innovative strategies.

5.2
1. Vegetation covers the earth, except for those areas continuously covered with ice or utterly scorched by continual heat. Plans grow most richly on richly fertilized plains and river valleys, but also at the edge of perpetual snow in high mountains. Densely vegetated areas include the ocean and its edges as well as in and around lakes and swamps. Plants live in the cracks of busy city sidewalks as well as in seemingly barren cliffs. Vegetation covered the earth before humans existed, and the earth will have vegetation long after evolutionary history swallows us up.

2.
In their natural states, animals don't have the power to create and communicate a new message to fit a new experience. Their genetic code limits the number and kind of messages that they can communicate. For example, bees can only communicate information about distance, direction, source and richness of pollen in flowers. In all significant aspects, animals of the same species share a limited repertoire of messages delivered in the same way, for generation after generation.

3.
In his paper on children's thinking, Jones (1985) stressed the importance of language skills in their problem-solving ability. Improvements in language skills reportedly resulted in improvement in nonverbal problem solving. Better performance is thought to be caused by the use of previously acquired language habits for problem articulation and activation of knowledge previously learned through language. Therefore, in the enhancement of problem solving in general, we should explore systematic practice in the verbal formulation of nonlinguistic problems prior to attempts at their solution.

Exercise 5.1 #1 and 5.2 ALL

2. Our report to demonstrate Abco's advantages over its competitors will highlight Abco's profitability due to growth in the Asian markets. This analysis will be based off of revenue returns along several dimensions- product type, end-use, distribution channels, ect. The development of distribution channels in china will determine the growth prospects of Abco's newest product lines. The introduction of new products will need a range of innovative strategies for support.

5.2
1. Vegetation covers the earth, except for those areas continuously covered with ice or utterly scorched by continual heat. Plants grow most richly in fertilized plains and river valleys, but plants also grow on the edges of perpetual snow on high mountains. Vegetation densely grows in the ocean, the ocean's edges, around lakes, and swamps. Plants also exist in the cracks of busy city sidewalks and in seemingly barren cliffs. Vegetation covered the earth before humans, and vegetation will remain long after evolutionary history swallows them up.

2. Animals do not have the power to create and communicate a new message to fit a new experience. Animal's genetic code limits the number and kind of messages each animal can communicate. For example, bees can only communicate information about distance, direction, source, and richness of pollen in flowers. Animals of the same species have a limited repertoire of messages delivered in the same way.

3. In his paper on children's thinking, Jones stressed the importance of language skills in children's problem solving abilities. Children improved in nonverbal problem solving as a result of improved language skills. The better performance was caused by children activating previously learned language habits for problem articulation. Problem solving in children may be enhanced by systematic practice in the verbal formulation of nonlinguistic problems.

sorry for any typos

Exercise 5.1 & 5.2

5.1
2)Our report will highlight the components of Abco's profitability, in particular, the growth in the Asian markets, to demonstrate our advantages over competitors. The analysis is based upon revenue returns along several dimensions-product type, end-use, distribution channels, etc. We project that the most likely growth prospects of Abco's newest product lines will depend most on its ability in regard to the development of distribution channels in China. The introduction of new products must be supported by a range of innovative strategies.

5.2
1)Vegetation covers the earth, except for those areas continuously covered with ice or utterly scorched by continual heat. Plants flourish most in richly fertilized plains and river valleys, but they also do so at the edge of perpetual snow in high mountains. Dense vegetation occurs at the ocean and its edges, or in and around lakes and swamps. Plants even grow in cracks of busy city sidewalks as well as in seemingly barren cliffs. Vegetation has covered the earth before humans existed, and it will cover the earth long after evolutionary history swallows us up.

2)In their natural state, animals do not have the power to create and communicate new messages to fit new experiences. Their genetic code limits the number and kind of messages that they can communicate. For example, bees can only communicate information about distance, direction, source, and richness of pollen in flowers. Generation after generation, animals of the same species can only have a limited number of messages delivered in the same way.

3) The importance of language skills in children's problem solving ability was stressed by Jones (1985) in his paper of children's thinking. Improvements in language skills were reported to have resulted in improvements in non-verbal problem solving. Previously acquired language habits and knowledge learned through language are thought to be the cause of better performance. Therefore, verbal formulations of nonlinguistic problems could aid children in problem solving in general.

Cane; poems and prose notes

Note: I saw two different versions of the book in class today, so I hope my page numbers are consistent with yours.

Observations (for most of the poems, and some of the text; in order of appearance):

Reapers (p. 3)
- Begins with "black" and ends with "shade"
- Seems to suggest summer (mower, weeds), while reapers are associated with death or winter
- Undertones of industry: alliteration of "s" runs from first line into the second, some sort of hissing -- steam/factories?

November Cotton Flower (p. 4)
- Boll-weevil = beetle, specifically a type that infested US cotton growing areas in the 1920s, devastated the South's crops
- 5th line, mention of "autumn rake"... winter to autumn? then later, "season when the flower bloomed"... spring?
- Dead birds, I tend to think of birds as a symbol of freedom, flying = freedom. Dead birds make the poem feel heavy, trapped, grounded.
- Whose brown eyes do you think he's talking about?

Face (p. 8)
- Poem feels delicate
- Face of the land, the image of a natural dusk landscape
- Why are brows "recurved"... why not just curved? any significance?
- Moves from delicate to powerful - last four lines: the immense power of the land, "channeled," "cluster," "sun," "ripe": words that contain some sense of power

Cotton Song (p.9)
- I don't have much to say about this... But a recap of what we mentioned in class: men sang while working in the fields; they timed their actions to the movement of their work
- Oh, I noticed some Southern vernacular
- Third stanza: "fleecy"... sheep?

Song of the Son (p. 12)
- Son sounds like sun, "though the sun is setting... it has not set yet" (3rd stanza)
- 4th stanza, last line, "for me" ...who is me?
- ... in general, who are the pronouns referring to?

Georgia Dusk (p. 13)
- Noticed the rhyme scheme first: first and last line of each stanza, and 2nd and 3rd lines rhyme
- domicile = home, why not just say home?
- "juju-man" a mysterious or powerful sort of man?
- resinous - pertaining to resin/sap
- How does this poem relate to "Song of the Son"?

Nullo (p. 18)
- Nullo is apparently "in certain card games, a bid to take no tricks."
- Help. How does the title connect to the poem?


Other observations, concerning prose:

Karintha (p. 1-2)
- Ends mysteriously: "Karintha... [Poem]... Goes down..."
- Shift from past tense to present tense
- Foreshadow of birth/death

Becky (p. 5-7)
- The pines "whisper" ... then they "shout" - significance?
- Bible: they've turned the pages (and made lots of noise doing it) but have they learned anything? The pines whisper - tattle-tale like on the congregation
- Becky, a supernatural force on people?

Carma (p. 10-11)
- One line stuck out to me: "A black boy... you are the most sleepiest man I ever seed": struck me as particularly internalized somehow... internal dialogue?
- Also, "from far away a sad strong song" and "she does not sing; her body is a song": reminds me of Whitman, silence can as well be a song, and send an equally powerful message
- "The search began" (11). Search for...?

Fern (p. 14-17)
- Significance of Fern's eyes?
- On page 15, eyes jumped out at me (not literally obviously): "... her eyes... they gazed...they followed...they'd settle...they'd wait...they looked... Like her face, the whole countryside seemed to flow into her eyes."
- "Her eyes, unusually weird and open, held me. Held God." Where is God right now? Fern = God? touched by God?
- And again with the theme of song: "Dusk hid her; I could hear only her song"

Esther (p. 20-25)
- Broken into parts by age; I think the numbers = her age
- How her story was broken up reminded me of a song by Five for Fighting, 100 Years
- Twenty-two (last line): "Her face pales until it is the color of the gray dusk that dances with dead cotton leaves..." sounds like premature death. But ferns remind me of spring... aw no, conflict again!
- "Emptiness is a thing that grows by being moved."
- Absolute last line: "There is no air, no street, and the town has completely disappeared." Before this "somnambulist" is worth mentioning; makes me believe that this was all a dream.

And what is that lone arc about? (p.37)
This was a really long post. Why am I even up at 3.

Ice Breaker

Well, I must say, I thought the exercise from last class was pretty interesting. You could take any seemingly meaningless prose and turn into potentially life altering poetry if you tried hard enough. I think I'm semi-obsessed with making these mini poems now. And I'm just itching to post the one that I made in class...
Here goes nothin....(Its an excerpt from the Styles book--the chapter called Grace)

Title: Well Spoken

Eloquence
Indeed scarce
deserves the name of it
Consists chiefly in laboured and Polished period
An over-curious
Artificial arrangement
Words tinseled over
a gaudy embellishment of words

What time is office hours?

I lost the original syllabus, and the hours and GSI e-mail addresses are nowhere to be found.

Sorry for the spam -- if someone could answer by commenting, that'd be great.

Whitman, As I Ebb'd with the Ocean of Life

I am having trouble connecting how Whitman uses diction to convey his meaning.

In the first stanza of part one, Whitman uses the word "rustle" to describe the movement of the "ripples" (a word I associate with the movement of leaves) on an autumn day. Does his reliance on fall imagery have any significance? Does "fall" reflect the inbetween place (between spring-birth-and-winter-death) that Whitman has found himself--a place where he recognizes his poetry has not reflected his true nature? Am I reading into this too much?

Also the first part of Whitman's poem, utilizes the "sss" sound--"straw, splinters...sea-gluten" and "scum, scales from shining rocks, leave of salt-lettuce." Is this intended to mirror the "sibilant" ripples? Also, what is the purpose of using this device in the first part but not the second? Does the change have something to do with Whitman's recognition that he actually doesn't know "the shores" so the "sss" associated with the sound of waves can't be used?

Now that I've written this, I feel I may have a better idea than I thought. Input appreciated!

For Monday

Hey all,

So I posted the paper topics below. Check them out, start writing, come to office hours on Monday and talk about your ideas!

Slight change of plans from what I announced at the end of class last time: for Monday, let's make sure we do Whitman's "I Hear America Singing" and Hughes' "I, Too, Sing America." Assuming we get through those (and also Writing Analytically, Chapter 7,) let's also maybe look at "As I Ebb'd With the Ocean of Life" and, if there's still time, Dickinson's "Tell all the Truth but tell it slant."

Have a great weekend.

-Ben

Paper Topics!

Essays are due at 3pm on Friday, February 27 in either Hui-Hui or Ben’s mailbox in 7408 Dwinelle. Your essay should be 4-5 pages long (minimum 4, maximum 5), and should employ standard formatting (double-spaced, 12pt Times New Roman or equivalent, standard margins, etc).

Choose one of the topics below, or feel free to make up your own. If you choose to write on a topic of your own creation, you must get your topic approved by either Hui-Hui or Ben.

1. Despite their varying approaches to the problem, in all the texts we’ve read this semester the issue of contradiction seems to play a constitutive role. One could perhaps even argue that the arguments of all three thinkers – Nietzsche, Emerson, Whitman – gain a great deal of force from their inner contradictions. A few examples (out of many):

- Nietzsche explicitly tells us that “truths are illusions about which one has forgotten that this is what they are,” yet seems to ask us to accept his word on the issue as final (and thus truthful, it would seem).

- Emerson describes his ideal self as willing to “speak what to-morrow thinks in hard words … though it contradict everything you said to-day,” but at the same time tells us that “the actions” of this character “will be harmonious, however unlike they seem.”

- A number of Whitman’s poems announce themselves as “singing” a new notion of the self into existence, yet they often do so with lines and words that are about as un-song-like as one could imagine.

- Both Emerson and Whitman work hard to celebrate the power of the individual, but both eventually, almost grudgingly, have to acknowledge that “individual” means nothing if it is not defined in relation to something like the “collective.”

Take a single contradiction from one of these three figures (the contradiction you identify may be one of the above, or may be something else entirely) and write a paper exploring the implications of that contradiction for the figure you analyze. After locating and fleshing out the contradiction, that is, you want to provide a reading of the importance of that contradiction for the argument as a whole. Does the existence of a contradiction mean that we need to toss the argument as a whole out the window (a hint: the answer probably isn’t “yes”)? Does is lessen the force of the argument in question, or does it ask us to respond to the argument in a new, perhaps unanticipated way? Is the contradiction you identify at end only superficial, or does it rest at the core of the argument you’re engaging? If the latter, what are we supposed to do with it? The key here is to go beyond merely stating that there is a contradiction and then saying something like “therefore, contradiction is important to Whitman,” but to show how it is important.


2. Given that the theme of the class deals in part with figuration, it is not surprising that the figural as such (figural language, metaphor, analogy, etc) does important work for all of the texts we’ve read. In your paper, take one of the figures put into play in either the Nietzsche or the Emerson and explain how that figure works to assist, complicate, deepen, modify, cut across, define or otherwise engage the argument of the work as a whole. Whatever you choose, your goal should be to show both how the figure you’ve selected works as a piece of the larger text and why it matters to the argument. Your discussion may open itself up to the job “figuration” as a category does in the work you analyze (this might be especially helpful if discussing Nietzsche), but it need not do so.

Just to be clear, by “one of the figures” I mean one of the uses of figurative language found in the essay you choose. For example, Nietzsche’s opening “fable,” his claim that truth is a “mobile army” and his description of man as a “herd animal” all fit, as do Emerson’s claim that “every heart vibrates to that iron string,” his comparison (which we discussed in class) between society understood as a “joint-stock company” and the individual as an “eater,” or his description of memory as a “corpse.” There are many many more, so you should have no trouble finding one that is compelling to you.


3. Perform a close reading of one of the poems in the packet (whether we discussed it in class or not) with an eye towards the way the poem complements, complicates, contradicts or can otherwise be read in conjunction with either Nietzsche or Emerson (or if you choose Langston Hughes’ “I, Too, Sing America,” how it matches with Whitman). As a good close reading, your analysis of the poem should attend to one or more of the poem’s formal elements - syntax (word order), diction (choice of words), rhythm, meter, enjambment (line breaks), structure or punctuation, among many others. Whether you use those formal names or not isn’t important (i.e. we don’t care if you call what you describe “syntax” or not); what is important is that you show how the elements you’ve selected help us understand how the poem works, what it communicates, and how this understanding links up with either Nietzsche or Emerson (or Whitman).