A Good Man is Hard to Find

What a rich story! Read through the handout I gave you on Flannery O'Connor, and consider other ideas that we didn't have time to touch on. There is a great deal on the internet about O'Connor (as well as the other authors we are reading). Here's one to check out:

http://www2.gcsu.edu/library/sc/foc.html

An idea for a future essay:

Much of what goes wrong in life is caused by our own natures. Relate this idea to "A Good Man is Hard to Find" and "Once Upon a Time."

Once Upon a Time

Good discussion on this story. Someone asked how this relates to the unit on The Heroic Journey and that's a great question. What do you think? Because this story is framed as a fairy tale, it seems that unlike other stories, it's appropriate to talk about possible "lessons" intended for the audience. I'm still curious about how the first section relates to the "bedtime story" the narrator tells herself.

As you all pointed out, the story is ironic: the security designed to protect actually ends up harming the family. Now let's bring this into the 21st century. Do some folks live in a perpetual state of fear? Absolute safety is a myth, but is this idea something many people expect nonetheless? How do parents in particular fall prey to this idea? How does the media play into our fears? This is a rich text to connect to our daily lives.

"A&P"

This is a deceptively simple story about a boy who works in a grocery story—the Great Atlantic and Pacific Tea Company. John Updike thought that ordinary, “trivial” events in daily life present insight into contemporary American society. Updike was also read the work of the philosopher Soren Kierkegard (1813-1855), considered the father of existentialism. Kierkegard coined the term “leap of faith” to describe the movement into a new consciousness.

Consider the following questions about the story and its application to larger ideas:

1. Analyze Sammy’s character. Consdier his background, his attitudes, his values, and his interactions with the customers and with the girls. Compare and contrast his character with that of Stokesie, Lengel, or Queenie. Explore the class differences between the characters.

2. Why does Sammy quit? Explore the statement; “I felt how hard the world was going to be to me hereafter.” Does Sammy have an “epiphany” and if so, what is it?

3. What critique is Updike presenting of this early 1960’s world? Is the story still relevant? How would it change if it were set in a supermarket today?

4. How does Sammy represent a heroic archetype? How is this representation ironic?

5. Explore the themes of idealism, loss, alienation, self-awareness, individuality/conformity, and rebellion embedded in this story. How are these ideas critical to an individual’s maturation?

"Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?"

Here are some ideas to consider for your writing journal and/or your first essay:

Consider Oates’ story in relationship to the introduction to Chapter 4: The Heroic Journey (pp. 42-43). How is this story about "coming of age," or "loss of innocence"?

Joyce Carol Oates has said that “Arnold Friend is a fantastic figure: his Death, he is the ‘elf-knight’ of the ballads, he is the Imagination, he is a Dream, he is a Lover, a Demon, and all that.” How are these remarks helpful in clarifying our understanding of the story and the idea of the heroic journey?

What are the implications of the story’s title? How can this help our understanding of the idea of the heroic journey?

What are the implications of the story’s ending? What comments does the story make about the values of contemporary American life?

Check out the website on the story and the film adaptation Smooth Talk. Scroll down to read the fascinating article about the origins of this haunting story:
http://jco.usfca.edu/works/wgoing/

Discuss the relationship between music and adolescence, using examples from the story to support your ideas.

Is Oates’ “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” still relevant to contemporary teenage culture? Use Kowinski’s “Kids in the Mall” (68-71) and/or “Our Hurried Children” (328-339) as a resource to construct an argument.

Where Are We Going?

Hi everyone!
I hate that I've been absent, but it has been unavoidable. It seems like some of you are getting the hang of the blog faster than others, so let's plan on a catch up day Tuesday at 12pm. (I've left a comment about this on everyone's blog as well, so check this out.) At this point you should have posted about the film, The Power of Myth. While I always appreciate your honest reactions, I need everyone to approach assignments as academic assignments rather than entertainment. As I've said before, you don't have to like all texts to comment on them intelligently. Consider the kind of post you would leave an instructor you did not know.

For Friday, I asked Alice to lead a group discussion on the first part of "Where Are You Going, Where Have you Been?" How did this go? I only saw one posted comment from a student. Remember, these responses should be posted PRIOR to the discussion and according to the guidelines for the Online Writing Journal on your syllabus. If you're feeling behind, we'll all get caught up this week. Just make sure you read AND write about the story. You should have a second full response on the story by Wednesday.

Please email me with concerns or questions, and make sure you regularly check my blog as well as your peers'. See you Tuesday!
Clary

A Windy Sunday

Hope no one has blown away! Isn't it delicious outside?

I've gotten a chance to take a glimpse at some of your blogs, and I love what I see! As you know I won't be there tomorrow. Alice has the video on "the Hero's Journey" from The Power of Myth. I'd like you to blog about this for class on Wednesday. Joseph Campbell was an academic who wrote extensively about myth. He wrote a book called Hero with a Thousand Faces, exploring the archetypal hero's journey in world mythologies. We will be discussing similar terrain in our first unit. Go ahead and read the introduction to "The Heroic Journey" on pages 42-43, which is a good primer for the literature that will follow.

In order to respond to this film (the discussion between Campbell and Moyers, as well as the images), consider Chapters 1 and 2 in your text. Reread the quote by Einstein (pg. 2) and consider your relationship with "the mysterious." As this chapter notes, attempting to uncovering secrets is part of the critical thinking process. Consider the thinking/reading/viewing connection and the ideas of "text-to-self," "text-to-text," and "text-to-world."

For all your responses I'm expecting you to use the strategies outlined in Chapter 2: glossing and annotating; brainstorming and questioning; freewriting; and notetaking. After you've engaged in these activities as part of the reading process. You can begin journal writing (pp. 13-14) on your blog. In other words, you should take notes as you view the film (just another kind of text.)

Please send me an email or respond to this blog if you have any questions. I'll see you on Wednesday. Have fun!

playing with blogs

I realize my class does not yet have access to this blog, but I've decided to act as if I have an audience. The assignment for English 112 this evening was to "play," and I too am playing with this new format. There are a few things I'd like to do with this blog, so perhaps my brilliant students can help me figure some of this out.

I would like all of us to have links to each others' blogs. I'm trying to figure out "bloglines," which allows users to subscribe to multiple blogs and keep track of them. I haven't yet figured this out.

I would also like to be able to post files (like drafts in MSWord) to a blog site. I'm not sure how this works (if it works). I'm using a "wiki" for my American Literature classes and I find it very easy to upload files here. (You can check on the this site at openclary.pbwiki.com.) While a wiki should be interactive, right now it's not. Instead, it functions more like a blackboard. Here I mean an actual blackboard, rather than "Blackboard" which as my students know, I don't like.

So tomorrow we may continue to play--an underrated activity in our society! We'll also look at the syllabus and all the delicious literature scheduled for this semester.

It's 2008 and I'm feeling great!

Hi everyone! I'm excited to be experimenting with this new writing environment. I hope you will find your blog a useful tool as you develop your writing through engagement with literature.