Tuesday, August 20th--7:15 pm

Hello,

a few things to know before tomorrow:

1. the 10:30 am class will be meeting at noon instead of 10:30

2. remember to bring ALL graded work to class with your tomorrow, along with your Grade Sheet

3.  IF YOU HAVE NOT REVISED AN OUT OF CLASS ESSAY YET, AND YOU PLAN TO REVISE OUT OF CLASS ESSAY #3, IT IS DUE BY THURSDAY AT 3:45 PM. You may either place it in my mailbox in Calaveras 105 OR you may email it to me. If you email it you must be able to highlight the changes AND scan and send me the original with my commentary

4. IF YOU PLAN TO PLACE THE REVISION IN MY MAILBOX, YOU MUST EMAIL ME AND LET ME KNOW THAT IT IS THERE. If you email me the revision and the original, be sure that you receive an email back from me that I have indeed received it

Monday, August 19th--5 pm

Hello,

I am sure you all realize that there is one more quiz left to be taken.
That will take place tomorrow, along with the in class essay #2.

If you sent your Viewer's Journal via email, you may want to bring it to class tomorrow.
Those who attached the journal to their hard copy will receive theirs back tomorrow.
The quiz will be on Packet #9 and on Breaking Bad.

For the Breaking Bad section of the quiz, you will be given quotes from the series and you will identify who spoke the words. (very EASY). Referring to your Viewer's Journal will most likely NOT be  necessary, but just in case....

See you tomorrow.

Friday, August 16th, 1 pm

Greetings....

Packet 9 Assignment (due Tuesday instead of Wednesday)
http://toteachornototeach.wordpress.com/2013/08/15/a-society-with-poor-critical-thinking-skills-the-case-for-argument-in-education/

Other items of interest and importance:

1. If you have NOT revised essay 1 or 2, you now have the option to revise essay 3. This revision of essay 3 is due no later than Thursday, August 22nd, by midnight, via email to me.
Those students who submitted essay 3 via email will receive their graded essay back via email from me before Tuesday. Those who submitted hard copies in my mailbox will receive their graded essay back on Tuesday in class.

2. Remember to bring a blue or green book to class on Tuesday for in class essay 2.

3. Wednesday will be our last class session. Be sure to bring ALL graded work to class. You will be comparing your grade sheet to the one I have maintained for you during the semester.

Have a wonderful and safe weekend.

Wednesday, August 14th--12:15 pm

Greetings,

Reminders and a change of plans.....

As announced in class today, Wednesday, I will be unable to hold class tomorrow due to very significant family issues.

Consequently, there will be no class tomorrow, Thursday, August 15th.

Out of class essay is STILL due tomorrow, the 15th.

You have a few choices as to how you wish to submit the essay.

Choice 1: place it in my department mailbox in room 105 in Calaveras. Be sure to attach the viewer's journal to the essay. Your essay must be in the mailbox NO LATER THAN 3:45 pm tomorrow, Thursday, August 15th. The mail room closes at 3:45 pm.

Choice 2: you may email me your essay NO LATER THAN 3:45 pm tomorrow. If you are able to scan the viewer's journal and email it as well, great. If not, you must bring your journal to class on Tuesday or you will have 20 points deducted from your earned score on the essay. IF YOU EMAIL ME YOUR ESSAY, I WILL COMMENT AND GRADE YOUR ESSAY AND EMAIL IT BACK TO YOU.

Check the blog again for Packet #9 assignment.

Friday, August 9th--9 am

Greetings,

Below are the assignments for Packets 7 and 8. Stay tuned later this weekend for a posting on Packet 9

Packet #7 Assignment (one article and one video):

http://www.alternet.org/speakeasy/2010/04/19/human-trafficking-mixing-up-views-on-immigration-to-the-united-states/

http://www.ted.com/talks/sunitha_krishnan_tedindia.html

Packet #8
"Sexual Abuse in Immigration Detention"
http://www.aclu.org/sexual-abuse-immigration-detention

(please note: the article includes three first hand narratives of three women--Raquel, Sarah and Kimberly. Read their complete stories as part of the packet.)

Wednesday, August 7th--6 pm

Greetings:

A few things about Essay 3 requirements:

1. A Works Cited page IS required for Essay 3. At a minimum, you must have Season One listed. If you utilize other seasons, you need to note those as well. And of course, if you utilize any critic reviews, etc., you will also need to document those.

2. Here is how you cite a TV series on your Works Cited page.

Breaking Bad. Season 1. AMC. 2008. Television.

3. You MUST refer to the show at least ONCE in your essay.

4. You do not need to utilize in text citations to indicate what episode you are referencing. If you use any support from OTHER seasons, you do need to at least mention that the event is from a different season than season 1.

ALSO,
I have read through all the Musings on Immigration and have prepared the material for our group exercise tomorrow. I wanted to address a question that one student posed on his or her Musings. It might be a question other students wondered about as well. The question was:

"Anyone who put the minimalist of efforts into this is going to display obvious writing quirks unique to them that most likely appeared in their other writings for this class. Why is this "anonymous"?"

My reply is this:

It is true that as an instructor I can sometimes determine who the writer is based on previous writings I have read from the student. However, it is really not important if I can "recognize" the student's rhetoric. What IS important is that the student feels safe and comfortable enough to express his or her opinion without other students knowing the student's identity. And interestingly enough, I do not know the identity of the student that asked this question. In fact, I honestly only recognized FOR CERTAIN two of the sixty students who submitted. :)

See you tomorrow.

Tuesday, August 6th--6:30 pm

Greetings,

a few things:

1. Reminder: anonymous immigration homework assignment due TOMORROW, Wednesday, August 7th. Typed and double spaced. No length requirement. NO NAME ON ASSIGNMENT, PLEASE. Type at the top of your paper:
MUSINGS ON IMMIGRATION
Then go on to record what comes to mind when you think about the word "immigration." As discussed in class, the format is open. You can write in prose, bulleted points, numbered points, or?
When you arrive to class, please sign your name on the paper I will provide when you submit your Musings.

2. Earlier in the semester, I posted the assignment for Essay 3 on the blog. So it should obviously be no surprise to you. I will NOT be handing out a hard copy of the assignment tomorrow. However, I will post it below, again, for your convenience. :)


3. If you did not revise Essay 1 and you wish to revise Essay 2, the revision is due by Tuesday next week.

English 20, Summer 2013, Instructor: C. Fraga

Out of Class Essay Assignment #3 (200 points)

Assigned: Wednesday, August 7

Optional Rough Draft Due: no later than Tuesday, August 13

Due: Thursday, August 15

Requirements:

• MLA format

• If you utilize any outside sources (not required) you must follow MLA format for in- text citations, Works Cited page, etc.

At the very least, you must have a Works Cited page that lists Season 1 of Breaking Bad.

• Attach your Viewer’s Journal (all 7 entries) to back of essay when submitting.

Before we began viewing the first season of Breaking Bad, I assigned a Viewer’s Journal. You were to record your observations and any other notes you wished in order to eventually select a character to focus on more carefully than others. However, as we have discussed, your first few journal entries, or perhaps more than a few, might just be summary plots and notes regarding several different characters.

This Viewer’s Journal will now be a valuable source as you write your last out of class essay for this course.

Assignment:

Write an in-depth character analysis of one of the characters in the first season of Breaking Bad.

Your essay must include the following:

• Assertion(s) about your character

• Evidence from the episodes that support your assertions (how did you come to the conclusion(s) you did regarding this character?)

Your supportive evidence might include but is not limited to:

• what others observe/say (or don’t observe/say) about the character—either directly or in private

• the actions of the character in particular situations

• the reactions/responses of the character in particular situations

• what drives this character

• what terrifies this character

• what pleases this character

• what does this character long for

• what does this character need

Your thesis must be assertive…it is YOUR opinion as a viewer of these episodes.

·      Whether or not you LIKE or DISLIKE this character is not an issue in this essay.

·      Whether you LIKE or DISLIKE the series is also not an issue in this essay.

Proving to the reader that this character has the attributes (good, bad, layered, shallow) that you assert he or she has is your goal.

Keep in mind that your reading audience HAS viewed each of the seven episodes so avoid writing extensive summaries of each episode.

Your thesis might read something like this:

Once Walter learns of his terminal cancer and begins cooking meth, he appears very unstable and irresponsible; however, his behavior truly represents a very determined, loving, highly intelligent and moral father and husband.

or…

Marie is a very insecure and lonely woman who is unhappy and uncomfortable living in the shadows of her power-driven DEA husband and her happily married and very bright sister, Skylar.

Monday, August 5th--5 pm

Hello,
just a short note.
I assume you always carry your Viewer's Journal with you to class, but just in case you do not, I recommend that you bring it to class tomorrow.  We will be discussing the last episode of BB and other issues regarding the series.
See you tomorrow!

Saturday, August 3rd--7:30 pm

Hello,
Just a very quick note.
Out of 60 students, I received only 8 responses to the one sentence assignment assigned in class and posted on the blog July 31st.

???

Friday, August 2nd--8:30 pm

Greetings,

Again, I apologize for having to cancel class on Thursday. 

Enjoy your weekend and be safe.

Below you will find the assignment for Packet #6 (3 items). The overall topic is immigration, which rears its head in Breaking Bad, but not too obviously until later in the series. However, it IS a significant issue to study--its history and its rhetoric.

PACKET #6
1.  http://www.myimmigrationstory.com/WYSO%2090%20SEC.mp3
(under two minute audio)

2. "Illegal Immigrant Deaths Set Record"
http://www.npr.org/player/v2/mediaPlayer.html?action=1&t=1&islist=false&id=130369998&m=130370353
(audio)

3. "Pros and Cons of Illegal Immigration"
http://immigration.procon.org/view.resource.php?resourceID=000842

Wednesday, July 31st--4:30 pm

Greetings,

Just a quick reminder:
Due tomorrow is the one sentence completed that I wrote on the board in class today:

Honesty in a marriage is less about __________________and more about _____________

This will count for 10 points of the 50 points for quiz 3.

Monday, July 29th--11:30 am

Greetings:

Below you will find Packet #5 assignment.

***ALSO, be sure to bring the handout on Reading an Essay Critically to class tomorrow. We will be finishing up on that lecture.

PACKET #5:

"Why Does Health Care Cost so Much?:
http://www.thedoctorwillseeyounow.com/content/healthcare/art2809.html?getPage=1
(Please note: this article is three pages in length.)

"Abraham Verghese: A Doctor's Touch"--TED TALKS
http://www.ted.com/talks/abraham_verghese_a_doctor_s_touch.html

Thursday evening, July 25th--9 pm

Greetings,

1.  Attention: a minor error on the syllabus. I inadvertently listed Group Exercise 2 TWICE. Please cross it out where I have it listed for Tuesday, July 30th.

2.  Packet 4 Assignment:
"Lauren Zalaznick: The Conscience of Television"
http://www.ted.com/talks/lauren_zalaznick.html


3. I have only completed reading and scoring six of the sixty out of class essay #1's that were submitted today. Sadly, two out of those six have sections that are plagiarized word for word. If you are someone who did end up plagiarizing parts of your essay, this is a fairly serious act. Hopefully, the two I have encountered are the only ones. Sigh.

3. Also, please find below the assignment of out of class essay #2 which was distributed and discussed in class today. 

English 20, Summer 2013---C. Fraga

·       Date assigned: Thursday, July 25

·       Rough draft (optional): due no later than Tuesday, July 30

·       Final draft due: Thursday, August 1

Details:

1. MLA format OR APA format

2. At least 4 outside sources on your Works Cited page

3. Please, no Wikipedia

4. No formulaic, 5 paragraph essay

OUT OF CLASS ESSAY ASSIGNMENT #2

Among many things, the series Breaking Bad focuses on the family entity and what happens when something quite extraordinary occurs—how do members of the family cope, adjust, and/or “deal” with the event/situation? (In the case of this series, obviously it is Walter’s cancer that is the ‘event’).

I am not referring to the everyday “bumps in the road” that occur for all families. Instead, I am asking you to consider the family unit when faced with an especially challenging situation. These situations could include but are not limited to:

• death

• birth

• infidelity

• serious injury

• dementia

• serious illness

• divorce

• unemployment

• new employment

• moving to a new home/state/area/country

• the return of a war veteran

• moving BACK home after initially moving OUT

• alcoholism

• drug abuse

Select ONE situation that you are most interested in exploring. You may NOT focus on a topic/situation that you have actually experienced. (I will explain in class why)

You will conduct research (and possibly personal interviews, if possible) in order to write an essay that offers the reader background on the topic and makes an assertion about what elements impact a family in the most challenging of ways and supports it logically and interestingly.

Your thesis might read something like this:

When a family member develops dementia, the challenges are often devastating, yet the disease definitely impacts family members more than the dementia patient.

Or…

When a couple divorces, it most certainly impacts the children still living at home; however, it is the older children who have already moved away that are most affected by the split.

Wednesday, July 23rd--6:30 pm

Greetings,
Yet another reminder...
bring blue or green book to class tomorrow along with your Viewer's Journal.
We will also be discussing out of class essay assignment #2 and looking at a sample student response.

Tuesday, July 23rd--6 pm

Greetings,

A few things:

1. If you submitted a rough draft of out of class essay #1, please attach it to the final draft when submitting on Thursday.

2. Reminder: in class essay #1 on Thursday. Bring a blue or green book to class--size does not matter.  If you have viewed the first five episodes of  Breaking Bad, you will be prepared to write the essay. You will be able to refer to your Viewer's Journal during the planning and writing of the essay if you wish.

3. It is disturbing that I have to remain in the classroom during the entire time students are completing a quiz. Yet, after my observations today, it appears that I will have to stay and monitor. Quizzes are to be an individual endeavor and not a community sharing event.

Thursday, July 18th--9:15 pm

Greetings,

Assignment for Reading Packet #3--due Wednesday, July 24th:
"More and more Americans Want Pot Legal"
http://www.cnn.com/2013/01/16/opinion/nathan-comments-on-pot-column

**********************************************************
Reminder: please bring the second sample student essay I distributed in class today with you on Tuesday. As you know, we did NOT end up having enough time for Group Work #1. Discussion within the small groups on Tuesday will focus on your evaluation of the essay--its strengths and weaknesses.

Those who were absent today will be able to pick copies of both samples on Tuesday. My scanner is not working, so I am unable to scan and post them online. You may want to utilize your class contact sheet; perhaps a fellow student can scan and email them to you. (?)

Another reminder: optional rough draft for essay 1 is due on Tuesday. It must be typed, double spaced and stapled.

Wednesday, July 17th--5:30 pm

Hello,
below you will find three items:
1. Reading Packet #2, due to be read by class on Tuesday, July 23
2. Out of class essay assignment #1, distributed in class today
3. Instructions regarding the Viewer's Journal, distributed in class today

PACKET 2
***"How the Drug War Hurts Everybody" 
http://www.salon.com/2012/04/12/how_the_drug_war_hurts_everyone/


***"Tackling America's Drug Addiction"
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=127937271
(this is actually an audio--a 4 minute and 50 second interview that was recorded on National Public Radio in June of 2010.)

***"Confessions of a Mom (and a Former Teen Pothead)"
http://www.npr.org/blogs/tellmemore/2010/10/19/130677774/confessions-from-a-mom-and-former-teen-pot-head
*******************************************************************************

English 20, Sections 3 and 4

Summer, 2013

Catherine Fraga, Instructor

Out of Class Essay Assignment #1—200 points possible—VOICES AGAINST CONFORMITY

• Assigned: Wednesday, July 17

• Rough Draft Due (OPTIONAL), typed & double spaced, no later  than Tuesday, July 23

• Final Draft Due:  Thursday, July 25, typed & double spaced

***Note that you have eight (8) days to research and write this essay.

Let’s take a closer look at the issue of conformity/non-conformity.

The most interesting, focused and articulate essays I receive from students are ones where students select their own specific topic and are genuinely intrigued by the topic.

For this essay, you will research and write about one person who is/was considered a non-conformist in his/her field of interest. Consider the possibility that the person deemed a non-conformist may not, in your opinion, actually BE a non-conformist. So your essay could support or disprove the label given by the majority of society.

This topic allows for a wealth of flexibility and choice.

Your focus ideally will be on a person working in an area (and perhaps a time period in history) that you are most interested in: photography; art; literature; politics; film; computers; music; fashion; science; mathematics; education; or ???

To get a better idea of some possibilities, and for purpose of illustration, let’s look at some examples of topics within in the time period of the 1950s in America.

Premise: Many in the 1950s worked diligently for the comfort and conformity displayed on such TV shows as “Father Knows Best” and “Leave it to Beaver.” But regardless of the affluence of the new American middle class, there was still poverty, racism and alienation in America rarely depicted on TV.

Dozens of people rejected societal norms through their artwork, creativity and lifestyle. They used words, art, film and music to rebel against the cookie-cutter mentality of the established power structure and mass-marketed culture.

Many writers during this time period (referred to as the Beat Generation) adamantly refused to submit to the conformity of the 1950s. (these writers included Jack Kerouac, Allen Ginsberg, Diane Di Prima, Sloan Wilson, J.D. Salinger, William Burroughs, and others)

Likewise, many artists during this time period adamantly refused to submit to the conformity of the 1950s. (these artists included Willem De Kooning, Hans Hoffman, Mark Rothko, Jackson Pollock, Clement Greenberg, and others)

Also, according to an Internet article on Conformity in U.S. History: “While the 1950s silver screen lit up mostly with the typical Hollywood fare of Westerns and romances, a handful of films shocked audiences by uncovering the dark side of America’s youth.”

Many filmmakers of this time period adamantly refused to submit to the conformity of the 1950s. (these films include The Wild One; Blackboard Jungle; Rebel without a Cause, etc)

No matter what non conformist you select to research, your essay must contain the following:

·      your working definition of a non-conformist (in order to frame and set up your argument)

·      a brief history of the country’s mood during this time period;

·      background and details about the non-conformist you will focus on, in particular, those that help support your premise;

·      how his/her work challenged the status quo;

·      the impact of his/her work on others in the same field and on society;

·      and the repercussions and influence felt today or what you predict WILL be the repercussions in the future.

Your essay will be both informative and analytical: your thesis will “prove” the person’s influence, or not, on people’s lives, then and now.

Things to Consider:

This is NOT an essay in which you write an in depth analysis of the literature, film, music, fashion, etc. of the time period you are focused on. To do that, you would need to carefully read, view, or listen to the work or material at great length.

Instead, you are conducting research to discover the mood of the country and the status quo during a particular time period——why and how a person’s work was considered non conformist—and how their work influenced those living then…and now. Of course, do not feel as if you must select a person NOT living now in the 21^st century. That certainly is an option.

Your thesis might read something like this:

Although 1950s America appeared to be almost unrealistically content, many visual artists at this time, particularly Jackson Pollack, successfully combated the blissful charade by using innovative methods and themes in his work.

A BRIEF LIST OF TOPIC SUGGESTIONS:

Mahatma Ghandi                                    George Carlin

Martin Luther King, Jr.                        John Cassavetes

Eminem                                                Yves St. Laurent

Georgia O’Keefe                                    Abby Hoffman

Galileo Galilei                                    John Lennon

Emma Goldman                                    David Mamet

Janis Joplin                                                Jim Morrison

Johnny Cash                                                Ralph Nader

Steve Jobs                                                Joan of Arc

Nelson Mandela                                    Che Guevara

Karl Marx                                                Bill Gates

Dr. Jack Kevorkian                                    James  Dean

Quentin Crisp                                    Henry David Thoreau

Ayn Rand                                                Elvis Presley

Carl Jung                                               

Carl Sagan

Alexandr Solzhenitsyn

****************************************************************************

English 20, Summer 2013, C. Fraga

If one is able to write an in depth character analysis, one will be able to write ANY kind of analysis.

Observing character and determining/analyzing why someone acts, thinks, speaks, reacts, feels, and responds the way one does is both intriguing and also the most challenging of tasks.

Viewer Journal Assignment

For your Out of Class Essay #3, you will be writing a very in-depth analysis of ONE of the characters from Breaking Bad, Season 1.

(This is NOT the official assignment for the essay. You will receive that on the day indicated on the syllabus.)

However, when you do eventually submit Out of Class Essay #3 you will ALSO be submitting a Viewer’s Journal as well. If you do not submit the Journal, 20 points will be deducted from your score on the essay. And remember, you will not be able to revise this essay.

What is a Viewer’s Journal?

Simply, as you watch each episode of Season 1, you will jot down notes. There are no specific guidelines for WHAT you will write.

Record what you believe is significant or may end up being significant. Some of your entries might read a lot like recaps of the episode. That is fine.

As you view each episode, begin to think about what character you would like to write about for essay 3. More than one character may intrigue you, so you may be jotting down observations and details about more than one character.

This journal is strictly for YOU and for your use and reference when planning and preparing to write essay 3. I will not be reading through them. There is no requirement for length or content. These notes can be typed or handwritten or be barely readable. Obviously, though, they should be at least readable to YOU. J

When you submit essay 3, you will attach these journal entries to the back of the essay.

It must be clear to me that you have SEVEN distinct entries, one for each episode. Each entry must be titled by the name of the episode.

Example:

Episode 2: “Cat’s in the Bag”

As you view each episode, and observe the main characters, here are some questions to guide your note taking.

• What does this character do (and not do) and why?

• What do others think about your character? And how do you know?

• What motivates your character to do what he/she does?

• What influences this character to do what he/she does?

• What was your first impression of this character and does it change as you view new episodes? Why or why not? In which ways?

• What are this character’s goals, dreams, desires, needs? How do you know?

• Do you like this character? Why or why not?

• Is this character a believable one, a genuine one? Why or why not?