Position: Writer Internship
Company: The Borgen Project
Description: This is a 12-week, part-time internship and is unpaid. Ability to work from home with a flexible own schedule, but must be able to meet weekly deadlines/duties which include: writing blog posts, doing research, writing web content, editing, assisting with fundraising, and attend a weekly conference call.
Link: http://www.idealist.org/view/internship/8X4BMgHXSHSP/
In the comments section here I have included thesis statements that we did NOT get a chance to discuss in class today. Everyone must comment on ALL of them by replying to the comment! Feel free to ask questions, give suggestions, or give other critically helpful comments to Jason, Andee, Michael, and Megan.
You will be sent a PDF called "Topics to Questions" to read over the weekend. This will help you confirm your research topic, as well as understand why and how it's necessary to ask research questions.
In the comments field below, post your Research topic and THREE research questions you have as now by MONDAY, NOV 11th at 5pm.
Quiz Intro The ending of a poem serves as a final thought, but can also be ambiguous which lets the reader participate in making meaning of the poem. The poet Elizabeth Bishop ends her well-known poem The Fish with the line "was rainbow, rainbow, rainbow! / And I let the fish go." (The Academy of American Poets). This ending includes assonance and repetition; two kinds of literary devices that help the audience interpret the ambiguity of the poem. An older poet and contemporary of Bishop, William Carlos Williams, ends his well-read poem This is Just to Say, with the lines: "...so sweet / and so cold" (The Academy of American Poets). Like Bishop, Williams, uses assonance and repetition, in the end of this poem to create ambiguity. While both literary devices both create ambiguity--they also offer different moral possibilities.
Corrected The ending of a poem serves as a final thought, but can also be ambiguous. This ambiguity lets the reader participate in making meaning of the poem. The poet Elizabeth Bishop ends her well-known poem “The Fish” with the lines "was rainbow, rainbow, rainbow! / And I let the fish go" (The Academy of America Poets). This ending includes assonance and repetition, two kinds of literary devices that help the audience interpret the ambiguity of the poem. An older poet, and contemporary of Bishop, William Carlos Williams, similarly ends his well-read poem “This is Just to Say” with ambiguity. The lines “so sweet / and so cold" (The Academy of America Poets) contain assonance and repetition as well. While both literary devices create ambiguity, they also offer different moral endings as possibilities. Sample Conclusion As discussed in this paper, the ending of a poem is integral to how the reader interprets the poem's entirety. While assonance and repetition aren't the only way to achieve ambiguity at the end of a poem, these literary devices have obvious roots in Bishop and Williams' work. Some people prefer their endings to be neat and tidy, pointing to a singular way of understanding language. Personally, I enjoy an ending that offers ambiguity; I like to mediate on an idea and come to my own conclusions rather than be told what to think. Williams once wrote, "That which is possible is inevitable," which speaks to the value and necessity of individual reader's interpretations of poetry. Without a bit of ambiguity, discovering a poem's meaning wouldn't be as open to inquiry, nor would it be as pleasurable to read.
Each group will be assigned a poem to analyze. After your group discusses the poem, you will present your work to the class. For your presentation, you will answer the following:
1. Find three SOUND devices (alliteration, assonance, consonance, rhyme, or rhythm) in the poem and explain why that sound is important for your understanding of the poem. How sound contributes to the tone and the meaning of the poem? Also, is there an absence of sound? If so, how does this also contribute to your understanding of the poem?
2. Look at the FORM/STRUCTURE of the poem. How is it composed? Discuss line length, stanzas, syllables, and space. Is there repetition in this poem? Discuss how the form/structure of the poem helps you understand how this poem wants to be read.
3. MEANING: Who are the characters in this poem? Is there a narrative? Is there ambiguity in the poem? Allusion? An epigraph? Maybe an oxymoron (when contradictory terms are combined)? How do all these elements help you understand the general meaning of the poem?
4. FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE helps us understand the poem in interesting ways. Find THREE examples of figurative language: simile, metaphor, personification (Add this to your list - it's when you give inanimate objects human characteristics. For example, "the lamp shed a tear."), hyperbole (an exaggeration), and cliches. How does each example help you find an under-the-surface meaning?
5. How is the title of the poem significant to your understanding of the poem?
1. Does the essay have a
clear introduction that follows the proper format: hook, summary, thesis?
2. Is there a clear
thesis? Is it specific, take a stand, and answer the prompt?
3. Does each body
paragraph make a specific point that leads back to the thesis statement?
4. Does each paragraph
begin with a “transition” sentence (does the sentence move back & look
forward?)
5. Does at least one
SPECIFIC example from the film accompany each point?
6. Is each point
accompanied by a thoughtful response from the author?
7. (continued from
#6)…does each response exhibit maturity of thought>
8. Does the essay
respond to the film, akin to a conversation?
9. Does the conclusion
move the conversation forward or does it summarize the essay?
10. Can you point out
grammatical mistakes such as:comma misuse, run-ons, passive voice, semi-colon
and colon misuse, tense disagreements, pronoun disagreements, and
singular-plural disagreements?
1. Trauma plays a role in how Boy, Rocky, and Alamein function with
the absence of the mother figure. How do they find proxies to fill this
role? At the end the film, we see them reunite at the gravesite. As an
ambiguous ending, how will the family move forward?
2. As much as this film is a coming-of-age story of Boy, how is this the
same for Alamein? How does he negotiate his role as father or "hulk"?
3. When his grandmother leaves for a funeral, Boy must assume authority
and takes care of this household. How does the appearance of Alamein undermine
his role and challenge his notions of being a man? What is Boy's
"potential"?
4. In Boy we see references to 80's pop culture. Two
important figures in the film are Michael Jackson and the film E.T. Michael
Jackson is the "King of Pop" and E.T. is an iconic coming of age
story about a boy who befriends an alien. Why are these references important to
our understanding of "Boy" and his relationship with his father?
5. Alamein (the elder) desires to name himself Shogun, and his gang the
"Crazy Horses." As Alamein himself points out, he and his buddies are
"renegades." Is Alamein a true renegade? Why or why not? How do
the real and imagined depictions of "Shogun" and the "Crazy
Horses" add to the significance of Alamein's character (which
is, at times, full of narcissism and self-delusion)?
In a brief, 500-600 word essay, please respond to one of the following questions. Remember that this is a practice essay.
1. Soft is a film that is largely about the relationship between a father and a son, and their roles as man and child--respectively. In your essay, focus on how this relationship shifts throughout the film, and why you think the director chose to exhibit this role reversal. If you have an applicable experience that will further help your readers understand your points, please include this in your essay.
2. Soft is an interesting title for the film. Give three examples from the film that shed light on the meaning of Soft--as it relates to themes of masculinity (and thus, femininity), power, and/or violence, and discuss how and why the title becomes necessary for understanding the film in this context.
3. Pick a major theme from Soft-- either masculinity, sexuality, class, violence, power, age, or violence--and make it personal. In this response, pick a theme that you can connect to your life, or the lives of others. Use specific examples from the film that help establish this connection. Focus on how the theme becomes relevant off-screen to a current social issue.
DUE ON BLOG by SUNDAY at 5pm (in the comments sections). You will receive comments from both Lisa and Jaimie.
In the comments section of this post, please paste the URL to the Instagran image, Advertisement, or Album Cover you will use for your presentation. If you have problems posting, please email me the image ASAP.
Steve
Jobs, creator of Apple, and former CEO of Apple and Pixar Animations gave a
speech for the graduating class of 2005 for Stanford University. The speech was
given after Steve Jobs was thought to be cured from an extremely rare
pancreatic cancer. The basis of the speech is the story of his life. From
dropping out of college to starting Apple to be fired from Apple to reuniting
with Apple to becoming a cancer patient was the series of events Steve Jobs spoke
about to Stanford graduates. He talks about how experiences throughout his life
as affected who he is as a human being. Talking about these experiences Steve
Jobs tries to inspire future innovators and discoverers. Steve Jobs stresses
two key points in life. One key point he stresses is to truly love what you do,
as in your job, and to follow your heart and to be happy in life. The other key
point is quoted here: “you cannot connect the dots looking forwards, you can
only connect them looking backwards…you must trust the dots....believing that
they will connect...even if they lead you off the well-worn path.” From a
graduating student at Stanford to a freshman at the University of Hawaii at
Manoa would be basically the same. To inspire and motivate us to do well in
life, learn from your mistakes and to keep following your heart.
The above quote to me
means two things. That you learn best from your mistakes, I can’t tell you how
many lessons I’ve learned from screwing something up in the past. I believe
that this is true for just about everybody; that it is ok to make mistakes in
life because you learn. As a freshman at the University of Hawaii at Manoa I
will most likely encounter lessons that I will learn that will remember for the
rest of my life. I’ll learn what to do in certain situations and what not to do
in other situations. For example I am a student athlete so I will learn things
from personal experiences and even from teammates. I will learn how to manage
my time as an athlete and when I make a mistake it will only make me better. I
will become more mature from being around the older teammates. I will also
learn what to do and what not to do from their personal experiences. Steve Jobs
would tell me to do the exact same thing, to gather information from your
surroundings and to use that information to move forward in life.
The other meaning from
the quote that I gathered was that if you work hard in whatever it is you are
doing and that you do everything correctly, good things will happen and things
will work out. Even if things seem rough or that there is no light at the end
of tunnel, things will work out because you put all that hard work and good
will into whatever it is you are doing. Steve Jobs would tell you to keep
working hard, follow your heart, and to be patient for the outcome because that
outcome will be extremely rewarding and well worth it.
Now that we've discussed the author, the audience, and the message, I want you to write a response to Steve Jobs' commencement speech, with the following prompt:
In the above commencement speech, Steve Jobs says "you cannot connect the dots looking forwards, you can only connect them looking backwards." He follows this by saying "you must trust the dots....believing that they will connect...even if they lead you off the well-worn path." He says this with the intention of imposing some wisdom on his audience, who is also concerned with issues of the past as much as the future. Even though you are only starting your college career, Jobs' gives advice that you might find relevant as your journey begins.
Using the above quote as a springboard for thinking about the author's message to his "intended" audience, write a short 500 word response to Jobs' advice, as it relates to you. What does the quote above mean to you as a college freshman? What kinds of choices would Jobs want you to make? Give specific examples, considering your own goals and life path. How does the purpose of Jobs' speech change as his audience changes from a graduating class at Stanford to an entering class in UH Manoa?
DUE: By Saturday at 5pm, posted in the comments field of this post.
---
Sumheir Hammad
Response to 9/11 - Then vs. Now
Assignment: Write a poem that either:
#1) speaks to YOUR experience with 9/11 regarding your own culture, gender, age, and social position
#2) RESPONDS to Hammad's rhetorical choises
#3) is in the voice of Hammad, 12 years after 9/11 (what kind of poem WOULD she write)?
Composition: Composition specifically focuses on the construction of thoughts and ideas into written words. Composition is the way we write: the rules of grammar that we follow and the styles we use to express our thoughts effectively. But is also, more broadly, the art of making.
Rhetoric has a number of overlapping meanings: the practice of oratory; the study of the strategies of effective oratory; the use of language, written or spoken, to inform or persuade; the study of the persuasive effects of language; the study of the relation between language and knowledge; the classification and use of tropes and figures; and, of course, the use of empty promises and half-truths as a form of propaganda. Nor does this list exhaust the definitions that might be given. Rhetoric is a complex discipline with a long history: It is less helpful to try to define it once and for all than to look at the many definitions it has accumulated over the years and to attempt to understand how each arose and how each still inhabits and shapes the field.
Patricia Bizzell and Bruce Herzberg, "General Introduction." The Rhetorical Tradition: Readings from Classical Times to the Present. p 1. (2001)
A student will hear the word “composition”
numerous times during the several years it takes to complete their education. Even
though every person has a different specific take on how they define
composition it has a general definition. Generally speaking composition is
information given through variations texts. After four high school years filled
with this word I developed a better understanding of it. To me composition is
an expression of life through dictions. The purpose of a composition is to
communicate to a specific audience. Alternately when one reads a composition
the motivation behind it is to gain some type of knowledge. Whether formal,
personal or any other form composition enters our life through everyday events
such as: reading a magazine, opening the mail, reading a book, looking at news
articles, writing or reading a review and so on. Although I have both written
and read composition I prefer to read it. Unfortunately I was not born with a
knack for writing. In fact, I would consider my overall writing skills
considerably weak in comparison to my previous peers. I constantly find myself
dedicating exaggerated time periods on my work only to produce papers of lower
quality than those of the average student. Past essays reflect my dyslexia as
well as poor grammar skills. This year I hope to drastically improve not only
my grammar but also my overall quality of work.
However, I was blessed with an outgoing personality that, in my opinion,
is my best tool for literary success. When preparing an essay, my personality
allows me to write in a fashion that draws the reader in. My easily excitable nature fuels my desire to
expand the details as well as amplify the story. Due to these factors my favorite composition without
a single doubt, is a non-formal letters. I thoroughly enjoy the personal aspect
to this composition. When writing a personal letter I feel I have more freedom
and I understand my audience better than with the alternate compositions.
Writing a letter allows me to write the way I choose while sharing the
information I choose. It is more comparable to everyday conversation when we
communicate on a personal level. When it comes to letters filling a page with
words is easy simply due to the personal element. My preference changes when I
read composition. Poetry, I believe, is a beautiful form to express feelings on
paper. When reading poetry out loud the words seem to flow off the tongue.
Poetry most commonly used to express love to a significant other. It is used
for love so often due to it’s beautiful sound. Because I was born on Valentines
Day I am a hopeless romantic, which made me destine to love poetry. Overall
composition, no matter the type, is a great way to expression any type of emotion
or information on paper.
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