For Wednesday: Hopper, Portraits of America

Remember that Paper #2 is due by 5pm on Wednesday (not during class). Check the second post down which has information about finding sources if you missed today's class (or simply forgot what we covered).

For Wednesday, we're going to start discussing the book on Edward Hopper, Portraits of America. You don't have to start reading yet, but if you have time, we'll read pages 7-41 for Friday. However, for our next class, flip through the book and choose ONE painting to answer the following TWO questions:

Q1: What do you think is happening in this painting? What is the 'story' that's taking place before, after, or during the painting? Why do you think he painted it? 

Q2: The author of the book writes that Hopper's paintings "perceive things that remain hidden to us, beyond our field of view" (74). How does this painting show us things we might not otherwise notice? What kinds of things/ideas does he seem most interested in...and why don't we often see them? 

Schedule Change and Paper #2 due date--moved back!

Having lost two more days to the snow, I'm going to change the schedule slightly and move back the Paper #2 due date to Wednesday instead of Monday. You can find the Paper #2 assignment a few posts below this one if you've lost it. The new schedule is as follows:

W 23               SNOW DAY

F 25                 SNOW DAY

 

M 28                Writing Workshop #7  

MARCH

W 2                 Schmeid, Portraits of America / Paper #2 due by 5pm 

F 4                  Schmeid, Portraits of America 

 

M 7                  Schmeid, Hopper: Portraits of America

W 9                 Schmeid, Hopper: Portraits of America

F 11                 Writing Workshop #9

 

M 14                Spring Break

W 16               Spring Break

F 18                 Spring Break

 

Tips on Finding Sources for Paper #2! (we'll talk about this more on Friday)

Finding Sources for Paper #2

If I was writing a paper about the advice society gives us about success vs. what I feel/know, I would talk about “impostor syndrome.” Society tells us that successful people are confident people, and you just need confidence and courage to succeed. But most people who succeed then feel like impostors, like they ‘faked’ their way to success. So the best advice I’ve learned is that this is a real thing that everyone feels (more or less), and we need to acknowledge it and learn how to deal with it. So the question is, who else is talking about this, and where to find their words/ideas?

Linscheid Library—EBSCO Discovery Service

• Use this like you would Google, except you’ll have access to thousands of academic journals, reviews, and other legitimate sources
• For example, let’s say I want to search for “impostor syndrome.” Choose “Articles” from the top tabs, and then choose “All Subjects.” Later you can confine this to “full text” articles, too.
• I found a number of great articles, including a recent one from 2020 entitled “Feeling Like a Fraud?” by Jasmine Aquino. I can read this on-line, save it to my computer, e-mail it to myself, and even learn how to cite it according to MLA format! (check the Tools on the right hand side).

Wikipedia

• Don’t quote from a Wikipedia page, since it has no author, and therefore is not a legitimate source (anyone can technically change a Wikipedia article, or make opinions look like facts).
• However, you can scroll down to the bottom of an article and look at the Links and References, many of which are clickable sources that are legitimate.
• For example, on the “Impostor Syndrome” I found a great article from 2015 called “Learning to Deal With the Impostor Syndrome” by Carl Richards. It would be a great addition to the conversation of advice in my paper, since it tells younger people how to deal with this issue, which many people face, and don’t have a name for (or think it’s just them).

Some Other Valuable Paper Resources

* Interview with Neil Hughes, one of the 49-Up participants (we didn’t see his part) who has some great advice: “if you can change your neighborhood, you change the world.” Link: https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2019/jun/03/neil-hughes-seven-up-63-up-itv-documentary

* Interview with Michael Apted, director of the Up-Series, on what the film shows us about society and the people in it: https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2019/jun/03/neil-hughes-seven-up-63-up-itv-documentary

* The Latest Stories from Humans of New York--longer stories, and lots of advice! https://www.humansofnewyork.com/

* "Seven Things I Wish I Knew at 18," an article by Tywan Wade: https://www.huffpost.com/entry/seven-things-i-wish-i-kne_b_5413757

Paper #2: The Nature of Success: due Monday, Feb.28th!

NOTE: The Conference Schedule is in the post BELOW this one...

English 1213/Paper #2: The Nature of Success

A “Conversation Paper” is a paper that introduces your audience to a conversation going on in our society, and brings in other voices (sources) to discuss it along with your own. To truly understand why a topic matters, we need to see several sides of the story, and we need you to guide us through it, helping us see which side/argument has the most validity, in your opinion.

For this paper, I want you to have the conversation: what does it mean to be successful in our society vs. what do I think it means to be successful? As you try to write this paper, consider some of the following ideas:

• What do you think it means to be successful according to society? Where do we see this (shows, movies, ads, etc.)?
• Is success based more on comfort or happiness? Does one lead to another?
• Is there only one way? Or are there multiple theories?
• What unique challenges does your generation face in becoming successful? Why is it different for you?
• How do older people define it vs. younger people? What advice might older people give you (esp. in 49 Up?).
• What ‘bad advice’ does our society give about success? Hw do we know its bad?
• Who are your role models in finding success today? What did they do at your age, or what are they doing at your age?
• Is college the key to success in our society? Or does it no longer work like it’s supposed to? Is anything a guaranteed ticket to success?

REQUIREMENTS

• Use Humans of New York as one of your sources, citing 2-3 people in the book as support. Discuss how their pictures and stories help us understand the nature of success in our society.
• Find 2-3 other sources that help you discuss any of the above questions (or related ones). You can use ideas and people in 49 Up, or you can find articles, websites, or other films/shows to help support your ideas. But remember, you need to show evidence of how we define it, challenge it, and what you’re responding to.
• At least 4 pages, double spaced (though you can write more!). Remember, you’re trying to introduce your readers to this subject, explain the different views and ideas, and persuade them of your view. You’ll need several pages to do this correctly.
• DUE MONDAY, FEBRUARY 28^th BY 5pm

For Next Week: Paper #1 Conferences

 Remember, all conferences are in my office, HM 348, right next to our classroom. If you need to reschedule, just let me know and I'll find another time for you to come. 

MONDAY

11:00 Destiny

11:10 Linea

11:20 Chandler

11:30 Laney

11:40 Ahlyra

11:50 Grace

2:00-2:50 (Open)

WEDNESDAY                                 FRIDAY

9:30 Caitlyn    

11:00 Cristal                                11:00 Oladotun 

11:10 Trevor                                11:10 Harley

11:20 Easton                               11:20 Donovan

11:30 Brittney                             11:30 Lilly   

11:40 Caleb                                11:40 Alec 

11:50 Kylie                                 11:50 (open)

2:00-2:50 (open, both days) 

This Week: Watching the documentary, 49-Up (2005)

If you missed class on Monday, we started watching the British documentary, 49-Up, which is a series of films that started in 1964, when the filmmakers chose a bunch of 7-year olds to interview about what they thought about life, love, and society. They then decided to follow up with these kids every 7 years to watch them grow and develop. Well, in this documentary they're now 49, and the film shows clips of them at all different ages before interviewing them again at 49. We don't have time to watch them all, so we watched 3 interviews today, and will watch another 3 on Wednesday. On Friday we'll do an in-class writing response based on it, which will play into your Paper #2 assignment, which I'll give you on Friday (it will also ask you to use Humans of New York, so don't get rid of the book!). 

Here are some ideas from the documentary to consider as you watch:

* Does a child's social class (rich,  poor,  divorced, etc.) determine what kind of adult they become? Do divorced children get divorced? Do poor kids stay poor? Do rich kids become happy? 

* What things seemed to make the kids happy at 7 and 14? Did they change dramatically at 49? Were they the same 'kids'?

* Why do you think so many of the people interviewed have the same challenges and troubles in their 30's and 40's? Why, especially, does marriage become problematic at this age?

* Why are so many of them reinventing themselves or trying new things in their 40's? And why does one of them, Jackie (the second interview we watched on Monday) want to go back to school and basically, "do my entire education over again?"

* What do many of the people interviewed seem to think has been lost over the past 30 years? How has society changed the most for them? What do they miss in the England from their past? 

* All the kids had kids of their own by their 30's, and most had more than one. Do you think this is typical of people today? Or was it more expected of people born in the 1950's (as they were)?

* What differences do you see between people growing up in England as compared to America (or elsewhere)? Can we relate to their ups and downs? 

* Why does it seem like their children often have it harder than they did? Why might fewer of their kids becomes as successful as independent as they are?

* Why might many of them also be more active and involved parents than their parents were? 

* How do these people seem to define success? Is it the same way we do? Could we call them all successful? Why or why not?

* Do you think a documentary like this gives a fair picture of who these people are and what their lives are like? Why does Jackie (the second interviewer from Monday) get so angry at Michael, the director? What does she accuse him of? 

Paper #1 due Friday by 5pm!

 Remember, even though school is still canceled tomorrow, your Paper #1 is due via e-mail by 5pm (or thereabouts). E-mail it to me at jgrasso@ecok.edu. The paper assignment is below in case you've forgotten to look it over again--be sure to do so before you write it! Also remember the in-class writing from Wednesday's class, which might help you get started! 

Paper #1: Acting Human in Public

INTRO: In Brandon Stanton’s book, Humans of New York, we meet dozens of New Yorkers (and some from out of town) going about their daily business. Some pose for pictures, others wait for loved ones, some give advice, while others are lost in the moment. Yet all of them are in some way relatable, and they all say something about who we are as human beings, in any city, in any country, trying to figure out the greatest question of all: why am I here?

PROMPT: For this assignment, I want you to choose THREE photos that you feel answer the question, “this is what being human means to me.” The photos should be related in some way, and you need to help us see how they’re related in your paper (especially if it’s not obvious). In your paper, you need to use the photos to help us understand how you define the idea of being a ‘human,’ and how these people represent your ideas, emotions, and experience. Think about which pictures moved you, inspired you, surprised you, or made you laugh. Why did you connect with them? What do they say about you and your own journey as a human being?

REQUIREMENTS: Your paper should do all of the following:

• Introduce the book and the author for your reader. Remember, most people probably don’t know what Humans of New York is, or where these pictures come from. (Don’t write to me, in other words).
• Briefly describe each picture so we can see the people you’re talking about, what they’re doing, what they’re saying, etc.
• Quote from some of the pictures: respond to what they say or what Stanton says about them. Cite them according to MLA format (see below).
• Explain why you connect with each image, and how you understand who these people are. Don’t assume your reader sees the same things that you do: show us!
• Be at least 3-4 pages double spaced, though you can do more.

MLA FORMAT: When you quote from a picture in your paper, it should look something like this: Before taking the girl’s photo, Stanton asked her, “Do you mind if I take your photo, just like that?” Her response was simply, “I don’t know” (Stanton).

Also include a WORKS CITED PAGE, which lists the book each photo comes from like so:

Stanton, Brandon. Humans of New York. New York: St. Martins Press, 2013.

NOTE: Paper #1 IS DUE IN TWO WEEKS: FEBRUARY 4^th, BY 5PM (you can drop it in the box on my door, HM 348, or e-mail it to jgrasso@ecok.edu).