Homework for October 10 - "The Balloon Hoax" by Edgar Allan Poe

The "Balloon Hoax" presents two narrative instances. Characterize the subject of enunciation of each, and point out the most relevant elements of style and tone in their "voice". Alternatively or complementarily, identify marks of sensationalist prose in the text.

Representative Men and the Masses

Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882), considered by many the Father of American Letters is rather ambiguous in his essay Representative Men (1850) about the relationship of the man of genius and the public (or "the common people" or "waste stock", as he says in p.52 of the essay reproduced in the anthology).

On the one hand, he starts out by contesting that "great genial power" consists in being original; rather, it lies "in being altogether receptive, in letting the world do all, and suffering the spirit of the hour to pass unobstructed through the mind" (51), which seems to tie in with his defense of "a ground of popular tradition on which he may work", holdng him to the people (52). On the other hand, as he is talking about Shakespeare, he seems to assume an elitist position by stating "To secure possession, by the stage, of the public mind, is of the first-importance to the poet who works for it." (idem)

One of the interesting aspect of the essay is the suggestion that the stage was for Shakespeare what newspapers are for the writers of Emerson's day. He also says "There was no literature for the million. The universal reading, the cheap press, was unknown." The same could not be said of Emerson's United States. Here are some of the milestones of the progress of the dime novel and the penny press:

- 1817 - foundation of Blackwood's Magazine (Edinburgh)

- 1833 - foundation of The New York Sun by Benjamin Day, with the objective of giving "all the news of the day, and at the same time afford an advantageous mean for advertising." Other similar press followed fast (tabloids)
at the end of August 1835, the Sun broke its most incredible story – that the eminent scientist Sir John Herschel had discovered life on the Moon – it sold 19,360 copies.
Edgar Allan Poe, Walt Whitman and Herman Melville all worked and/or published in this newspaper.

- 1839 - two "story papers" founded by Park Benjamin and Rufus Griswold (serialized stories, including life stories, brief sermons, humour, arcane knowledged, etc.)

- 1842 - Park Benjamin issues a "pamphlet novel" (the forerunner of the dime novel) for the readeres of the newspaper New World.

- 1851-52 - Harriet Beecher Stowe's Uncle Tom's Cabin was serialized in the newspaper The National Era.

- 1860 - Beadle's Dime Novels series inaugurated in New York (millions distributed to US soldiers in the Civil War)
emphasis was on early Westerns, portraying the struggles, exploits, trials, dangers, feats, hardships and the early life of the American pioneer (characteristically for boys and men)
Later, there was a shift toward outlaw tales, urban life and detective stories (pulp fiction), somewhat perceived as a degeneration of the spirit of the dime novel.

Home_Lands and the Borders of America - 27 Sep, room 5.2

Homework for Sep 28

Before the class of Oct. 1 we will study a structured way of analysing images (anthology, p 20). Please comment on ONE of these images in relation to the reading of chapters I and VIII of the late 19th century Dime Novel which appears in your coursebook, p. 47 and 49-50.

Sitting Bull e Buffalo Bill, 1885

cover of "dime novel", Buffalo Bill: From Boyhood to Manhood, circa 1882

See p. 20 of the anthology - guidelines for analysing an image
- format
- kind of image (abstract, representative, expressionist)
- intended audience
- emotions coveyed
- prominent and secondary elements - how parts contribute to the whole
- layout - where is the eye drawn to - how does the focus order the elements'
- relation between text and image
+ (multimodal analysis)
- light / shadow or kinds of colours
- high and low planes  (high generally corresponds to the ideal while low to the factual)
- left and right (left generally corresponds to the know and right to the new - order of reading, theme and rheme)
- if image represents characters, how do they engage with us? Looking straight (defiance, appeal), looking away (offering themselves to our look), etc.

Homework for September 26: Essay "Nostalgia Mongering at City Walk"

For those of you who have not yet bought the anthology here is the a not very good copy of the article for analysis in the next class that I found in the net: http://uiswcmsweb.prod.lsu.edu/ArtSci/english/English_UWriting/FILES/item34709.pdf

And a reminder of the factors for analysis:
i - main argument(s)
ii - key words and key terms
iii - evidence / substantiation
iv - underlying assumptions
v - audience
vi - style and tone
vii - genre

Lincoln in Dalivision (Salvador Dali, 1977)

Why Pop Culture?

Capicua
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QPldHdOtuMU

TED talk
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u_3UYncNwz4

Class debates - Proposed format

1. Opening Statements (with at least 3 arguments, two of them must be literary)  

YES/PRO 3 min     NO/CON 3 min

2. Rebuttal - teams argue against each others' arguments  (2 rounds of 3 min each) 

3. Clarification / Questions from the audience (5 min)

4.  [Conference of teams] 5 min

5. Closing Statements  YES/PRO 3min NO/CON 3 min

Debate Preparation: 

1. Obtain information from reputable sources.

2. Provide at least two substantiated pieces of evidence (examples).

3. Prepare a quality open statement that shall be publicized   previously to the opposing team and to classmates (via blog)

4. Reflect clearly on the ethical theory/theories and principles involved with the issue.

5. Present your information effectively and convincingly (you may use props or audio-visual material, but you cannot exceed the alloted time)

6. In addition to preparing arguments for their position, each team should anticipate their opponents’ arguments and identify possible flaws or weaknesses in those arguments

Debate Rules:

You must raise your hand if it's not your time to speak.  
Teams lose 1 point for each interruption.  
Teams lose 1 point for whispering while another speaker is talking. 

Debate evaluation:

- by peers (classmates) who fill a handout with pre-set parameters

- by teacher, whose evaluation includes feedback from colleagues and appreciation of written post on the blog.

Calendar and Assessment Criteria 2016/17