Author Archives: JSylvor

Just a reminder that on Monday, March 4th, you will be submitting your topics for your first formal writing assignment. The topic can be typed or handwritten and should include the text you have selected as well as the issue, element, or aspect of the text that you will be focusing on in your response. You can find a copy of the assignment here on the blog under the “Writing Assignments” tab. Feel free to reach out if you have any questions.

• In what sense does “Tintern Abbey” offer readers a “religion of nature”? What are some of the specific ways in which nature works as a substitute for traditional religion?
• Why do you think Wordsworth gives “Tintern Abbey” such a precise and detailed sub-title? What is the significance of this poem’s full titile?
• In the final portion of “Tintern Abbey,” the speaker turns to his “dear friend.” Who is this friend and what role does he/she play in the poem?
• “Composed upon Westminster Bridge” and “The World Is Too Much with Us” are both sonnets. Why do you think a poet might choose to work with such a highly structured form?
• Describe some of the ways in which Wordsworth’s poetry conforms to some of the features of Romanticism that we’ve discussed. What evidence can you find to illustrate this?

1. Blake describes innocence and experience as “the two contrary states of the human soul.” What do you think he means by this?
2. Compare the mode of creation described in “The Lamb” with that of “The Tyger.” How are they similar? How are they different?
3. In “London”,  the speaker says he hears “mind-forged manacles” (line 8) What do you think that phrase means?
4. What differences do you see between the two “Chimney Sweeper” poems?
5. Choose a single line from any of the poems that made a strong impression on you and share it here.  What is going on in this line in terms of language and meaning?  Why do you think this line resonated with you?
6. The introductory poem to Songs of Innocence refers to a poet/singer/piper who composes “…happy songs,/Every child may joy to hear.” To what extent does this line describe the poems in Songs of Innocence?

1.  What is the narrator’s purpose in writing these “confessions”?  How do you know?

2.  For Rousseau, what is the relationship between feeling and thinking?

3.  How does Rousseau describe his childhood?  What significance can we draw from this description

4. Why do you think Rousseau chooses to include the anecdote about stealing from his employer?

5. Using your own language, how would you describe the narrator, given his self-presentation in The Confessions?

I hope that your understanding of Pope’s “Essay on Man” was deepened and enriched by our class on Wednesday, February 21st.  In a comment on this post, please share your most important “takeaways” from our exploration of the poem together.  What idea made the strongest impression on you?  What lingering questions are you left with?  What did you learn?  How did your view of the work change as a result of our discussion?  (These questions are just suggestions.  It’s up to you to decide what direction you’d like your response to take.). Please share your thoughts at any point after our class discussion on Wednesday (2/21), but no later than Sunday, February 25th.

Here are the groups for the presentations. Please make contact with your group members sooner rather than later, and plan on having a brief conversation with me either before or after class during the week before your presentation.

February 26* William Blake: Belkis, Lola, Stephanie

March 6 Frederick Douglass: Kayla, Mitchell, Tanvier

March 18 Herman Melville: Mardoitchy, Matthew, Sanel

April 1 Rabindranath Tagore: Lames, Umaimah, Joshua

April 8 Lu Xun: Allan, Arezu, Derek

April 10 Franz Kafka: Gilda, Anthony, Farhan, Kevin

May 8 Toni Morrison: Adrian, Joan, Antonio

* Don’t worry if you are in this group. I know that it is very soon. Please plan on speaking with me either before or after class on Wednesday, Feb 21st.

Read Alexander Pope, “An Essay on Man”. You can find the text in Volume D of our anthology.  If you don’t have the book yet, you can easily locate it on the internet.  Please come to class prepared to share a few words about the section of the work you’ve been assigned below (Look for the Roman numerals in the poem to find your section.)  Rather than trying to explicate the whole section, you may want to identify a particular line or pair of lines, figure out what you think it means, and then connect that passage to the rest of your section or to the text as a whole.  This isn’t a formal presentation – just a chance to help your classmates find meaning in a work that may initially seem challenging. 

I: Tanvier, Mitchell

II: Lames, Belkis

III: Zilola, Sanel

IV: Arezu, Joan

V: Gilda, Kayla

VI: Kevin, Antonio, Derek

VII: Allan, Matthew, Stephanie

VIII: Adrian, Anthony

IX: Mardoitchy, Joshua

X: Farhan, Umaimah

1. Why do you think Toyo-o continues to be involved with Manago even after he suspects that she is a demon of some sort?
2. Why do you think people (both in the 18th century, when Akinari was writing, and in our own day) are attracted to ghost stories or tales of the supernatural?
3. Does “Bewitched” have anything to teach its readers? If so, what? What is Akinari’s message in this text?
4. The text describes Manago as”bewitchingly voluptuous.” What does the character of Manago tell us about feminine beauty?

As part of your work this semester, you will be working in small groups to prepare short presentations to accompany some of our readings. Each group will be working with one of our assigned texts. Your task is to come up with a CREATIVE way of exploring some aspect of the author, the work, or its context. These are NOT intended to be powerpoint reviews of an author’s biography, nor should they undertake an analysis of the text assigned. Instead, your job is to prepare a presentation that will complement or enrich or reading. For example, a presentation on Feng Menglong’s, “Du Tenth Sinks the Jewel Box in Anger” might explore the social history of prostitution in 17th c China, or a presentation on Moliere might present a scene from the play using contemporary rhyming English. I am happy to meet with you to help you brainstorm!

Please use the linked Group Presentation Preference Form to identify your top three choices for this project. I will do my best to see that each of you is assigned to one of your choices. Please complete this form no later than Monday, February 12th.

Please respond to one of the following questions about Tartuffe.  Share your response as a comment on this post, rather than creating a new post.  You should also feel free to respond to your classmates’ comments.

— Discuss the theme of appearances or masks in Tartuffe? How does the issue of appearances vs. reality connect with the central concerns of the play?

— Discuss the role of Dorine, Mariane’s lady maid. What kind of servant is she? What role does she play in the action of the drama?

— How is the institution of marriage treated in Tartuffe? What are some of the models or ideals of marriage that are raised by Moliere or his characters?

— Describe the character of Orgon. Why do you think he’s so vulnerable to Tartuffe?

— Can you think of a contemporary example of the kind of religious hypocrisy exemplified in Tartuffe?

— Describe one aspect of the play that seems very modern to you and one that seems very dated or old-fashioned.