There are four types of post in this class

[ Close Reading Response, Peer Response Posts (I.e. Comments), Through the Lens, and Free Posts ].  At the end of the semester, you are responsible for having done three of each type of post, which is a total of 12 posts.  Please remember to remark the appropriate category box, so I know which post you’re doing each week.  

Close Reading Response:  I will post a couple of questions about the readings.  In a response post, you should: 1) Pick one of the questions to which you’d like to respond.  It is not enough for you to just generally respond off the top of your head.  You  must 2) Gather textual examples (i.e. specific references, quotes with page citations) that support your response. 3) write a response to the question using textual examples. Your quotes must have page number citation). 4) your response should explain how the quoted evidence actually responds to the question/articulates your thoughts.

Note:   I have already given you the gift of a topic with the question, so it is not enough for you to just make a general statement.  You should go beyond saying something is “good” or “bad” or pointing out that it is a “symbol.”  I want to see you thinking here.

Peer Response Posts (I.e. Comments):   It’s important that we engage one another online as well.   I expect that you read all the posts every week!   However at least three times, I expect that you will respond to a post by one of your peers.   Your response should be thoughtful and relevant to the original posts.   Whether you agree, disagree, complicate, or extend an idea presented in a post, your response should include textual evidence (with page citations).   Comment limit:  While you can always comment to any post, if a post already has 3 comments, you should comment on a different post if you want it to count as a Peer Response Post.

Through the Lens:  In a lens post, you are ultimately using one theory as a (optical) lens through which you will look at a particular text.  The nature of the lens affects how you see/read the text.   In a lens post, you should:  1) Pick one of the theory texts on the syllabus.  2) Identify a main argument in the chapter, section, or (if the piece is small enough) the whole text.  3) Identify a literary texts which you think resonates with the theory text and 4) Using examples from the literary work, show how the philosophy argument you identified is at work in or challenged by the literary text you’ve chosen.