Assignments

Semi-Weekly Talking Points: Informal notes that summarize/identify/explore/ analyze key issues and concepts of the readings--due each class meeting in which there is no other paper due. Use these "talking points" to speak from in class--you'll also hand them in to me. One, tight page is sufficient.

Summary/Response Papers: You'll write four one-page, single spaced, beautifully polished, and terribly insightful papers that are interested less in opinions than in relationships and that are to be read aloud in class and then handed in to me. Margins are optional, but no smaller than 11 point font and no more than one letter-sized page. The first half of each paper should be a concise but thorough summary of the assigned text. The second half should be your reading of that work "across" another text we have read in class. Please don't be fooled; these one-pagers are hard as hell—they demand a higher level of reading/writing savvy than a traditional essay. Until you get the hang of the process and the style-cramping format, expect to rewrite at least once, maybe several times. The grading will be rigorous; excellence will be required. The hope is that when you leave this course, these short, dense papers will offer you a base for one or more publishable papers and also provide you with some valuable study resources for your comprehensive exams.