Addendum to Essay #1 - Mandatory

Take a moment to reflect on the first essay you've written for this semester. How do you feel about it? How did it measure up after you examined it with the rubric? On the BACK of your essay, explain your thoughts regarding this paper. What--specifically--do you think you did well? What did you struggle with? Were your greatest challenges in writing lack of ideas or in-depth analysis OR more basic--dealing with editing for grammar, mechanics, sentence formation? It DOES make a difference. If YOU and I both see you need assistance in some areas, it will be something we can both address.

So . . .

Topics for Essay #1

1. O’Brien himself has said:

War stories aren't always about war, per se. They aren't about bombs and bullets and military maneuvers. They aren't about tactics, they aren't about foxholes and canteens. War stories, like any good story, is finally about the human heart. About the choices we make, or fail to make. The forfeitures in our lives.

Discuss the internal conflicts of at least three of the characters in the first two stories in The Things They Carried, how they resolve those conflicts and at what cost.

2. Jimmy Cross is the obvious protagonist of both "The Things They Carried" as well as "Love." In what way does his character develop and change from the moment the reader first encounters him to the end of the second story? Include in your discussion his loss of innocence, his alienation, and finally, how his encounter with Martha contributes to his development.

3. How does the role of the narrator change in the course of storytelling? Why does he choose to use third person in the first story and first person in the second? What seems to be the narrator's purpose in the first story? Why does he choose to insert himself in the second story? Explore and explain this deliberate choice the author makes.

4. For any literary work to last beyond a few years, it must have a common quality—or theme. It must present characters who are representative of all people in situations that most people face, whether those situations are literal or figurative. Theme is deeper than the events that make up plot; the elements of fiction combine to produce theme. Characters, irony, symbolism –taken together, these become the vehicles of theme; each element is relevant to the whole. The two initial stories of Tim O’Brien’s The Things They Carried contain themes we have come to think of as “universal.” Choose ONE of those themes and by using specific examples from both the first and second story, analyze what the author is saying about human nature or life.

Writing Prompts - Week 3

Remember: think deep, reflect, explain clearly and thoroughly. You need to only copy and paste the boldface capitol letters--not the entire prompt. Choose TWO of the following as your writing prompts this week:

1. STORY vs. ESSAY - Rather than simply state: "Men die unexpectedly in war," or "People in authority often find themselves isolated and disconnected from society and sometimes, even people who would be their friends," the author of The Things They Carried makes it more interesting and memorable and less didactic by creating a story in which he SHOWS this happening. Because he is a master storyteller, we connect with Jimmy Cross and better understand what he feels and what O'Brien means for us to see. What movie can you think of that deliberately revealed a truth about life? What was the truth it revealed and HOW was it shown?

2. IRONY - In "The Things They Carried," there is tremendous tension developed when the narrator begins to describe the tunnels that men like Lee Strunk must explore alone. When he emerges, there is celebration cut short by Lavendar's sudden death. The author has created irony by having the reader prepared for one man's death, but it is another man who is killed. We experience irony every day, of a milder sort. Relate an experience when you were prepared for one circumstance but encountered its opposite. If you would rather relate a literary irony or an experience of someone else's, that would be fine. REMEMBER to SHOW the experience; don't just TELL.

3. INTERVIEW - Find a thoughtful, older person who remembers the Vietnam War. If(s)he doesn't mind discussing his/her remembrance with you, ask him/her about the controversial nature of the war. What does he remember about the Vietnam conflict that set it apart from other wars? Did he/she know anyone directly involved in the war? Were their any lasting effects of the war? Write your response to this prompt AFTER you have had the discussion, along with your perception of the person you spoke to--did he/she seem effected?

4. THE HEART IN CONFLICT - Tim O'Brien, the author, has said that he writes about the heart in conflict and that he often uses war because it naturally and automatically puts the heart under pressure. What book, story, or movie have your read or seen in which the protagonist underwent the same thing? Discuss briefly.

Conventions of Writing About Literature - IMPORTANT!

Writing about literature is different from most essays that are assigned and written in English 1101. For one thing, the focus of the paper is on the analysis of the story, poem or play that has been assigned. Therefore, it is written in third person; there should be no first ("I") or second person ("you"). There are other important differences outlined below.



CONTENT

1. Always mention the title and author of the work(s) you are discussing early in your essay. Titles of books should be underlined or italicized; stories should be in quotation marks.

2. Mention characters' names whenever possible. Be specific about character identification; that is, when you first refer to a character, add a simple appositive phrase to identify him or her. It does not have to be long nor interrupt the “flow” of your writing. Example:

In Tim O’Brien’s “The Things They Carried,” Kiowa, a soldier from Oklahoma, carries the New Testament and a hatchet, each representative of his mixed heritage.

3. Use illustrations, examples, and explanations to prove your assertions. Stick closely to the text of the work you are discussing. Read carefully and closely. Don't hesitate to quote briefly from the primary source for illustration -- a well-chosen quote can help to illustrate your point. However, be sure to use the quote as illustration -- not as the text of your essay.

4. Clearly state the central idea or thesis of your essay in the introduction. Be sure your essay has a thesis. Do NOT state your thesis by using writer-based phrases such as: The two poems I have chosen to write about are.... Rather, focus directly on your point: The snake is a potent symbol, often invoking fear, in Western mythology. Both Emily Dickinson and D. H. Lawrence invoke that fear in their poems, but with very different results.

5. Look up the definition of any word that you are not totally familiar with. Try to find the source of and understand any literary or historical allusion that the author uses.

6. Underline key passages, even key words, in the work you are studying, particularly those passages that have reference to your thesis. Be sure that any time you quote form an author's work, you quote exactly -- word for word and comma for comma.

7. In an essay about literature, it is most important to try to show your understanding of the work. Concentrate on writing a unified essay around a central thesis. Avoid going off on tangents. Stick to your main idea, develop it, prove it, deepen it by showing implications of your idea. Use class discussion as a springboard, but do not hesitate to go more deeply into the analysis. You may have been hesitant to speak in class, but do not be hesitant to incorporate your own thoughts and ideas into the paper.

8. Don't confuse the author with the narrator of the story or the voice of the poem.

WRITING CONVENTIONS – or How to write correctly about literature:

 Double space all work, unless otherwise directed. Use a 12 point, non-italic, common font such as Times New Roman, Garamond, Courier, or Comic Sans. Center your title. Follow MLA Guidelines for essay set-up.

 Titles of most long works, books, plays, newspapers, and magazines are italicized or underlined. Titles of poems, short stories, songs, articles, and titles that are parts of longer works are put inside "quotation marks." (EXCEPTION: the title of your own work should be neither underlined nor quoted).

 When you first refer to authors, use their full names; afterwards refer to them by last names.

 Use present tense verbs when writing about literature and maintain verb consistency.

 Avoid using 2nd person “you.” In academic essays write in the 3rd person unless the assignment calls for 1st person.

 Incorporate quoted material into your writing in one of 3 ways: (1) Interweave it into your own words: Poe’s use of the words “dark, “ ”dreary,” and “weary” suggests a somber mood (lines 11-13). (2) Introduce it with a “tag phrase” and comma: As Creon says, “The ship of state is safe” (I.8). (3) Introduce it with an explanatory sentence and colon: At the beginning of the play, Creon is concerned that the country is unified: “The ship of state is safe” (I.8).

 Document poems by line number; document plays by Act, Scene, and Line; document short stories by page number.

 When the quotation is followed by the parenthetical documentation, place periods and commas after the parenthesis. If the quote contains a question mark or exclamation point, it remains before the quotation marks, but a period (or comma) is still placed after the parenthesis.

Sammy asks, “Who is that customer?” (36).

Granny Weatherall says, “Nonsense” (177).

When the quotation marks are not followed by the parenthesis, then commas and periods go before the quotation mark.

 Use single quotation marks to quote a quotation within a quotation.

 Use slashes ( / ) to indicate the end of a line of poetry when you run the lines together in your own writing: “My young brother’s house is filled / I go there to sing / We have not spoken of you/ but our songs are sad” (lines 13-16).

Papers should be free of grammatical, mechanical, and punctuation errors: avoid comma splices, fragments, fused sentences; make sure subject/verb and noun/pronoun agree in number; use correct spelling; follow conventions of punctuation and capitalization (especially apostrophes).

NOTES: Metafiction

THE THINGS THEY CARRIED is unique because much of it is writing that focuses on writing, on storytelling. This is called METAFICTION. The following, more detailed information on metafiction comes from Associated Content:

A Definition of Metafiction - By Eric Martin
Metafiction is a style of writing that uses the act of writing as subject. A metafiction story might feature the author as a character. . . . In metafiction, the craft, the intricacies, and the sources of writing are put on display. . . .
metafiction is fiction that brings attention directly to the act of writing.
Is metafiction new?
No. If we consider metafiction to be inclusive of any fiction that uses writing as its subject, then it has been around for quite a long time. Wikipedia cites One Thousand and One Nights (Arabian Nights) as a very early example of metafiction because the book directly considers the act and power of story telling.
What is special about metafiction?
The relationships between creator and created, reality and fantasy, between fiction and truth are all open to exposition in meta-fiction. This is a rather rich subject for reflection and even philosophy and so makes meta-fiction an approach ripe with potential and with depth.

. . . metafiction [may be]defined as fiction that purposefully draws attention to its own nature (ie., fiction ie., "made-up" writing).

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Writing Prompt #1 - week 2

Directions: Choose one of the following. Copy and paste the title of the one you choose onto your blog, then follow it with your response. Think deeply, deliberate carefully, respond thoughtfully and coherently.

1. Title: Things Carried - Make a list of objects you carry on a regular, daily basis. What are the items you must have with you when you leave your house? After you have made your list, try to look at it from a different perspective. What would those objects reveal about the person you are to someone else? Are there any that you carry that are unique to you? Are any of them similar to items other students carry? Are any items connected to your memory of another time, another place? Do you carry anything that represents something else to you? Which physical objects are necessary for physical survival? Which are necessary for your peace of mind or your emotional survival? YOU NEED NOT ANSWER ALL OF THESE QUESTIONS. INSTEAD, THINK, DELIBERATE, THEN WRITE A COHERENT REFLECTION OF YOUR MENTAL EXERCISE.

2. Title: Memories - Everyone has memories; we remember on both a long term and short term basis. We remember dates we learned in history [July 4, 1776; December 7, 1941]; facts from science [the scientific method; acid into water, not the other way around]; we automatically remember that an octagonal red sign with white letters tells us to STOP. We also have memories connected with emotion. Try to remember an early emotional memory from school, one that you may have experienced with someone else. What are the facts you remember about the experience? How are the facts connected to how you felt? Do your emotions get in the way, in remembering the facts? If you know someone who was with you, who had a similar experience, are his/her remembrances the same as yours? Is his/her remembrance colored by emotions? If so, how?

Elements of Fiction: A Necessary Review

Plot
Customary outline:
introduction
rising action
climax
falling action
resolution/denouement
NOT ALL STORIES FOLLOW THE ABOVE ORDER--NOR ARE ALL NOVELS OR STORIES TOLD IN CHRONOLOGICAL ORDER Example: The Things They Carried
Conflict
5 most common:
Man vs. man
Man vs. nature
Man vs. society
Man vs. himself
Man vs. fate
Protagonist
Antagonist

Characterization:
Round Character
Flat Character
Stereotype
Static Character
Dynamic Character
DIRECT
INDIRECT – involves INFERENCE –based on author’s indirect information—what the character says, does, what is said about him AND your own knowledge and observation

Setting – time and place – the location

Irony
3 types:
Dramatic irony
Verbal irony
Irony of situation

Symbolism – a symbol is often an object, color, name, number or other device an author uses to suggest or represent MORE than it actually presents

Point of View
3rd person omniscient - the author/narrator (sometimes the same; sometimes NOT in THE THINGS THEY CARRIED) - is able to relate to the reader what the characters (specifically Jimmy Cross) is feeling and thinking
1st person - in the 2nd story, "Love," the narrator is part of the story and tells it from his perspective, using the personal pronoun "I"

PERSONA - a persona is a character the author creates and uses as a often his voice in the novel, but . . . he is NOT the author; Tim O'Brien, the author, creates the character of Tim O'Brien the soldier in Vietnam

CATHARSIS - a release of emotions

Theme – is greater than the story itself – Theme reveals a truth about life—not just life in the story, but life in the real world, life in the present.