Journal #10: The Aha! Moment

Read Frances EW Harper's poem, "Learning to Read" and Charles W. Chesnutt's short story, "The Wife of his Youth" (both posted in the Webliography). Then, in the white hot fever of inspiration, you record your own process of coming to a significant insight, realization, or understanding of the texts. Get it all down and record the moment of enlightenment in 300-400 words.

Journal #9: The Contemporary Connection

Read the Introduction to Vol. 2 (1-29) about the years 1865-1914. What contemporary connection do you see between today and the years 1865-1914? Is it in politics, entertainment, sports, or education? Explain the contemporary example and its connection to an issue or idea in the assigned reading. *If you are responding to a classmate, don't just agree with them -- engage in a dialogue. Raise a question or disagree. Take a risk! Write 300-400 words.

Journal #8: The Civil War

After reading from volume 1 of The Bedford Anthology -- American Contexts (1354-56); Brown (1356-58); Davis (1359-62); Lincoln (1374-75); Garnet (1375-78); Chesnut (1379-81); Bryant (1382-83); Piatt (1383-85) -- answer ONE of the following questions with a quote (or two) to support your point. This should be a reflective analysis, not a summary that tells us what you liked or did not like. Check for spelling errors. Failure to follow these directions will reduce your grade.

Option 1: Choose ONLY two texts that seem to be in conversation with each other (they could agree or disagree). Analyze and discuss their competing visions of the American Dream. Whose is the most persuasive? How likely would 19th-century readers be persuaded by such writers/speakers? How would geography determine that audience's receptiveness to the writers'/speakers' claims?

Option 2: Choose two texts to compare and contrast for strange, intriguing, or preposterous ideas. Imagine you are a 19th-century reader (Southerner or Northerner, free or enslaved) and respond accordingly. Adopt a persona that allows you to engage with the two texts.

Post your response BEFORE class on October 6, 2011. If you decide to respond to a classmate, that response must be posted on your own blog as "Journal #8 Response to _____."

Journal #7: Abolitionist Poetry

After reading the two poems by Francis Harper (1230-33) and the two by John Greenleaf Whittier (1220-24), skim over chapter 5 in Gardner's _Writing about Literature_. Choose one of the elements of poetry (speaker, listener, imagery, sound and sense) to analyze in one of the poems.

All the poems are narrative (they tell a story) but they also are advocating social reform, specifically the abolition of slavery. In your journal analyze how one element of poetry persuades the audience to action. Write 200-300 words, citing specific evidence from the poem itself

BONUS Blog on Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl

Answer the following question by presenting an argument with concrete evidence to support your points. (Using ideas from class discussion also is a good idea)

Read chapter 10 of Incidents closely. What kind of language does the narrator use to describe her dilemma and her actions? Discuss why such language may have been chosen and how it may have worked on her intended audience.

Post your response by Sept. 28 to get a possible 3 bonus points for your blogging grade.

Slave Children of New Orleans

http://www.loc.gov/pictures/resource/ppmsca.11128/
You can find an article about these children posted on Doc Sharing.

Journal #6 Due Sept. 22

After reading Jacobs' Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl (763-791) and Child's, “The Quadroons” (http://utc.iath.virginia.edu/abolitn/abfilmcat.html) answer ONE of the following questions about social context (you may write about a single major or minor character in your posting). Remember to use specific examples from the texts to support your points: 1. Class: How does membership in a social class affect the characters' choices and their successes or failures? How does class affect the way characters view-- or are viewed by-- others? What do economic struggles reveal about power relationships in the society being depicted? 2. Race and culture: How are characters portrayed as being caught between cultures? Are any characters engaged in a conflict with society because of their races or ethnic backgrounds? 3. Gender: How are the characters' choices restricted because of gender? What are the power relationships between the sexes, and do these change during the course of the story? Do any characters resist the gender roles society has assigned to them? Do other characters choose to conform to those roles?
Post your journal before class on Sept. 22, 2011

Harriet Jacobs
http://docsouth.unc.edu/fpn/jacobs/support18.html