Author Archives: JSylvor

Just a reminder that Wednesday’s class will be held in VC 6-160.  We will be using a computer lab to begin research for our final papers.  Please come to class with your topic prepared in writing.

See you there!

This Thursday Baruch will be holding an all day “Art-A-Thon,” offering a wide range of experiences in music, visual art, literature, theater, and more.  I have attached the schedule of events.  In order to receive credit, you must attend one or more of the events on the schedule and post a report about your experience to our course blog (min. 250 words).  Please include a photograph in your post which can serve as documentation of your presence at the session.  This is the second year that this event is being held.  Students and faculty who participated last year had a terrific time! Enjoy!

ArtAThon.schedule.2018 (1)

You can find the details of this assignment above under the “Assignments” tab.  Don’t forget to post your destination here once you have decided where you’re going!  All trip destinations must be posted no later than Monday, April 9th, the first day we are back after break.  I can’t wait to hear where you’ve decided to go!

Have a wonderful week off!!!  Use it to relax and recharge!

Hi Everyone,

I hope you are all enjoying this unexpected day off from school!  In light of today’s school closing, I’d like to adjust our schedule as follows:

1.  Essay #2 will be due by 11pm on Tuesday, March 27th, via turnitin.com.

2.  Bring 3 copies of a completed draft of your essay with you to class on Monday, March 26th.

Because you have this unexpected extra time to work on your drafts, I expect them to be finished, polished works.  I would be happy to take a look at your draft and give you feedback, so email me if that’s something that you think would be helpful.  As you work on refining your papers, think about the following:

— Does your introductory paragraph spell out a clear thesis or main idea that you will be exploring throughout the essay? Ask yourself, “could a reasonable reader disagree with this thesis?”  If the answer is “no,” that means that you are describing what is going on in the text, but not yet analyzing it.  Ask yourself “so what? why is this important? what do we learn from this?” in order to push your thinking past description into analysis.

–Every body paragraph in your essay should begin with an idea about the text (not with an element of plot summary or description.) . Each paragraph should be organized around a single idea.  Be sure to connect each of your body paragraphs back to the essay’s thesis or main idea.

–Have you included textual evidence to illustrate and back up your ideas?  Remember that when you quote from the text, you also need to explain the significance of the quotation you’ve selected.  Don’t assume that your reader can see what you see in that quotation; offer some analysis of every quote you include in your paper.

I am looking forward to reading your work next week.  In the meantime, don’t hesitate to reach out!

Enjoy the snow day!!

Professor Sylvor

You have the following assignments to do to prepare for Monday’s class:

1.  Rewrite five sentences from your personal essay.  For each sentence, provide the original sentence as it appeared in the essay, your revised sentence, and a brief explanation of the correction.  (typewritten)
2. In connection with our conversation today about “Story in Negro Slang,” compose a brief, slang-filled dialogue.  Your dialogue should have at least ten lines. (typed or handwritten)
3. Read Walt Whitman, “Crossing Brooklyn Ferry,” Vladimir Mayakovsky, “Brooklyn Bridge,” and Hart Crane, “To Brooklyn Bridge.”  All three poems are in your anthology. Be prepared to discuss and/or write about these poem

As I put on the board in class this morning (thanks for the correction, Mohammed), for Wednesday’s class, please be ready to discuss the following texts:

Zora Neale Hurston, “A Story in Negro Slang”  (Don’t forget to use the glossary; it’s posted on the Readings tab here on the blog.)

Langston Hughes, “When the Negro Was in Vogue”

These are both in the Writing New York anthology.

For those of you who are following along on our syllabus, yes this is a change from my original plan.  I often deviate from the syllabus once the semester is underway.  Always ask if you’re confused about an assignment, but assume that whatever I announce in class or write on the board is what you need to do!

See you on Wednesday!

JS

I was incredibly moved by this article that appeared in the New York Times yesterday.  It focuses on one incredibly tragic case of mental illness and homelessness, but it also spotlights important aspects of life in NYC.  Let me know what you think of it.

“A Bright Light, Dimmed in the Shadows of Homelessness”

Welcome to our course blog for English 2150: Writing New York!  We will using this blog as an extension of our classroom space.  You will often be asked to share writing here, respond to prompts, or post assignments.   However, don’t think that you need an invitation to make use of this space.  On the contrary, you should be checking in frequently to see what your classmates (and I) have posted, and you should feel free to post any material that you think would be of interest to our group.  I can’t wait to get to know all you this semester!

See you very soon!

Jennifer Sylvor