1B: Short Story Assignment/Schedule Update 10/20/15

Follow this schedule, NOT the syllabus
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English 1B Fall 2015   Essay re: the short story

"Fiction in general, and war stories in particular, serve a moral function, but not to give you lessons, not to tell you how to act.  Rather, they present you with philosophical problems, then ask you to try to adjudicate them in some way or another. But it's an imperfect world, and we can't find perfect solutions in an imperfect world.  And yet, even in this imperfect world, we seek proximate solutions.  That's the business of living, and fiction tries to address that." (10-11) -- Tim O'Brien. "Responsibly Inventing History: An Interview with Tim O'Brien" by Brian C. McNerny. War, Literature, and the Arts. Fall/Winter 1994. Print. 1-26.

Writers of fiction often express ideas about the qualities of a good story, as O’Brien does, above. For this assignment select one of the short stories named below and explain how it illustrates O”Brien’s remarks about the nature of fiction. Integrate O’Brien’s critical remarks throughout your essay and connect them to specific passages in the story you are analyzing. 

Short Stories (pick one for analysis):

Baldwin’s “Sonny’s Blues”

Boyle's "Balto"

Adichie’s “Birdsong”

You are responsible to find the correct MLA citation method for this assignment. Cite both O’Brien’s theory of fiction and the short story you are examining within your essay. You are, then, providing in-text citations and a Works Cited page. (Note: the O’Brien quote, above, does not follow MLA guidelines.) You can find MLA guidelines in your textbook, Literature, and there is more information at Purdue Online Writing Lab. 

Length: 3-4 pages (plus a Works Cited page)

Plagiarism: See the syllabus for information about this depressing subject. If you do plagiarize any portion of your essay, you will get an “F” for this assignment and may not pass the course.

Manuscript Style and Grading Rubric: See the syllabus

Deadlines: (note schedule update re: deadlines)

THURS. 10/15

Diaz (425)

Adichie (434); Postcolonial Criticism (1272); Watch TED videos with Adichie: “The Danger of the Single Story” and “We Should All Be Feminists”.  You’ll find links to the videos on the Adichie post on English with McCabe.
In-class: Quiz on Diaz and Adichie stories

Update: Bring the first three paragraphs of your essay to class, and we'll work on it and more of it during class.

TUES. 10/20

Essay (Draft #1) Due (For complete credit a complete draft of at least 3 pages plus a Works Cited page is required.)

Bring Miller’s Death of a Salesman and a copy of his essay “Tragedy and the Common Man” to class. His essay is linked on English with McCabe Arthur Miller post. Also bring Literature. 

THURS. 10/22

Essay (Draft #2) Due (For complete credit a complete draft of at least 3 pages plus a Works Cited page is required.)

Student presentations re: short stories
Bring Miller’s Death of a Salesman and a copy of Miller's essay “Tragedy and the Common Man” to class. His essay is linked on English with McCabe Arthur Miller post. Also bring Literature. We’ll begin to discuss “Writing about Plays” (1223-1230), and Miller’s Death of a Salesman.

Tues. 10/27 
Essay Due (Typed Revision aka The Masterpiece for a Letter Grade)

Bring Miller’s Death of a Salesman and a copy of Miller's essay “Tragedy and the Common Man” to class. His essay is linked on English with McCabe Arthur Miller post. Also bring Literature. We’ll begin to discuss “Writing about Plays” (1223-1230), and Miller’s Death of a Salesman.