Why Read Spring 2020

Please go here for the lecture on Annihilation.

For Thursday's class, please answer the following questions in 2-3 pages (double-spaced) and post your concept proposal to the forum on Moodle. You may write your concept in the style of a paper with paragraphs, or you can reply question-by-question. Please use complete sentences. The more information you provide, the better, but try not to go over 3 pages out of consideration for your peer who will respond to your ideas in the workshop.   *There is no Works Cited page required for your concept proposal. OVERALL QUESTIONS: What primary issue did you decide to focus on, and why? (Ex. homelessness, a shift in attitudes toward capitalism, etc). Tell us about your main character. Give as many details about them as you can in one paragraph (no more than 200 words). Who are they? Age, gender, species, race, home, goals, personality, family, vocation/job, skills, etc. *Note you may wish to not have a main character or take a different approach to this element of the project.

  Reality TV, Entertainment Culture, and Cruelty Scene from The Hunger Games film - televised reaping in District 12 When Suzanne Collins wrote The Hunger Games trilogy back in 2006-2007, she could not have predicted that ten years later, Americans would elect their first reality TV star as President. However, just as Ray Bradbury inadvertently predicted reality TV's rise with his parlor families in F451 back in the 1950s, Collins had her pulse on something in the early 2000s zeitgeist: the fact that reality TV was a big form of entertainment. She saw the rise in certain early forms of social media (such as Myspace), that how these social media platforms were merging with our "real, offline lives" in all kinds of complicated ways that made the line between "reality" and "digital performance" very blurry. With the rise of social media, the idea that "life is a surveillance style performance" for an audience became more and mo

DIRECTIONS:  Please answer in complete sentences and take time and care in responding, as you will be graded on your answers. Remember to give constructive criticism, and not to simply praise the work. You will want to give at least one fully formed suggestion for each question. :-) 1)  Is the essay's thesis clear? Point out any areas where it could be clearer. Is it arguable? Is it well-qualified (specific)? Even if the thesis seems to be specific enough, suggest a way for the writer to make it even more specific and narrow (i.e. do they list the topics they plan to discuss in the body paragraphs?). Also note any awkward grammar or unclear word choice. (Note: the thesis should not just be a list of topics with no indication of why they matter and what ties them together). 1.5) Does the introduction introduce the book(s), the year published, and a brief summary with relevant details? If not, point out what is missing. 2) Does the writer incorporate research from schol

Describe/create a dystopian future for the United States of America, centered around the banning of one important thing. Just as books are banned in F451, something vital to our society will be banned in your dystopia. Make an argument for how banning that one particular thing restructures society and shows what they value. Additionally, please make sure what you ban is something that is central enough to our existence that removing it will reshape society significantly. Banning beanie babies might not do that, but banning electricity probably would. Describe how people's lives have changed and how society has changed in big and small ways as a result of the ban. Why was the ban enacted in the first place? Be as specific with all of this as possible. Write 1 page total (double-spaced is fine). If you get inspired and want to keep going, feel free! Submit your assignment on Moodle under the Assignment "Ban Dystopia Exercise."

Questions 1-6 directions: For these first six questions, pick three to answer (they can be any three you like). You should write 75-100 words per answer, providing specific examples from the novel to support your ideas. These examples need not be direct quotations, but they do need to have accurate information, and describe specific scenes, interactions, and use proper names. If I cannot tell you read from your response, you will receive a 0. 1) Consider Mildred's experience at the hospital. What is wrong with the healthcare system in the novel? It's effective, but it's also lacking certain things. What are those things that are lacking? Do you see any parallels between their healthcare system and ours? 2) What is Clarisse ’s role in the narrative? Why is she important to Montag? 3) Why does the woman who refuses to leave her house and her books allow the firemen to burn her? What do you think she finds so valuable about the books that she is wil