Class Notes: 1/24-2/4

In Semester 2, we will be focusing on significance

Lecture Summary: Medieval and Allegory

• Allegory:
• Extended Metaphor
• TSTL Heroines = Too Stupid To Live
• readers irrationally rationalize them because they have previous knowledge of the story - makes stories plausible
• Medieval Allegory: figures personify qualities like gluttony or truth
• Everyman:
• how to refer to something having the qualities from a different era
• EX: Romantic/romantic ; Existential/existential
• J.P. Sartre was an Existentialist/my cat's existentialist qualities are impressive

Lecture Summary: Archetypal and Mythological Criticism

• Archetype: a plot, setting, symbolic object, or any other element of fiction seen repeated over and over with its core meaning unchanged
• James Frazer believed that myths have similarities from culture to culture
• Carl Jung speculated that the reason for these recurring patterns was the "collective unconscious" shared by all humans
• Monomyth: one myth so pervasive that it unifies almost all other mythology (described by Joseph Campbell)
• Northrop Frye postulated that there is one story being repeatedly told - sometimes telling the whole story, sometimes just a part - but all can be placed into a greater context
• Romance: travels full circle
• fundamental societal text
• happy ending
• Tragedy: only a fall
• sad ending
• Irony: begin and end at a low point
• "anti-romance"
• Comedy: only a rise
• appears during periods of social strife
• social rewards of money or love

Reflective Essay: 2/27

Copper Taste in My Mouth

(*Note: This is an example college essay.  Neither the date published nor the specific publisher were mentioned)

This reflective essay was taken from a website called teenink.com where teens can write articles and submit them for others to read.  "Copper Taste in my Mouth" is a college essay that someone submitted and was voted #1 by readers.  Personally, I have a hard time agreeing with this rating.

The piece begins with short, choppy sentences.  "It’s a story. Not a simple one. Not an attractive one. But, it’s my story. I think I should tell it."  Yes, this is eye-catching and dramatic, however, I can't help but think it sounds a little cliche.  This melodramatic syntax is hard to take seriously and therefore distracts from the effectiveness of the piece.

The reader is set up for a thrilling tale full of twists and intrigue after this opening but are never satisfied.  A short story about watching a car accident and tasting copper (which was never explained) did not match the high expectations.  Although the imagery was clear, I believe that there could have been much more emotion added into a story about witnessing a tragic event.

The essay ends without effectively wrapping up.  With the cliche-feeling of the piece, I felt as though there should have been at least a moral in the conclusion; something about selflessness or driving safety.  However, we are just left with a meaningless pun: "Life is what you make of it, even if it’s hard to swallow."

This essay may work for college admissions officers because it is unique and contains humor.  But, with its childish techniques and underdeveloped story, it would never pass for an AP essay.

Editorial Analysis: 2/27

Have You Driven a Smart Phone Lately? written February 26, 2011

This editorial article was written by Maureen Dowd for the New York Times.  She begins her article by telling a story about her experiences with technology while driving.  This use of a personal experience is an excellent way to add imagery into an editorial.  The reader feels like they are there, in the car with her, feeling her fear as she looks up for a 2-second check of text messages to find herself inches from a truck.  This is an effective way to get the audience emotionally involved in her point of view, and bolsters her argument.

From the title to the meat of the editorial, Dowd utilizes humor in language to add to her article:

"Ford, Chrysler, Chevy and other car companies are betting on the proposition that, as long as your eyes don’t stray from the road for more than a moment, your other senses can enjoy a cornucopia of diversions on your dashboard."

She especially uses sarcasm to make the topic of safety while driving engaging.  Humor is perhaps the easiest way to interest the population most affected by the issue of distractions while driving - teenagers.  They will be attracted to this strategy of argument and therefore her editorial will be more successful.

As an AP Essay, this piece would be very successful.  First, it establishes a clear, unique voice which captures the reader while managing to make successful points.  Also, Dowd adds a counter-argument.  She recognizes that some say that because people will be using technology while driving anyway, car manufacturers should make it as safe for them to do so as possible.  She nicely addresses this by stating that it would be better to "curb the addiction, rather than indulging it".

Book Review: 2/27

Book Review: 'Water for Elephants' written July 12, 2007

This book review by Elizabeth Judd analysed the book "Water for Elephants" by Sara Gruen.  It was extremely informative and insightful and therefore the reader is receiving the best a book review can offer.

Judd begins by giving a detailed summary of the plot.  Although her summary was lengthy, there was much plot to cover in this book and she did a good job shortening it as much as possible.  Also, her use of honorific diction throughout the summary provided the reader with a small glimpse of her true critique to come.

It was especially interesting that Judd chose to use imagery in this review.  She stated that the circus (the main setting of the novel) symbolized "the warped vigor of capitalism".  This deep analysis of the author's message is important to add into a review because it gives the reader perhaps the most important information about the book's message.  Judd backed up her claims, but she could have used more examples from the text in order to make her claims more valid.

Judd states that "Gruen's prose is merely serviceable" which is a bold statement to make without any explanation.  Also, it is interesting that the language that Judd exemplified in this review (which was advanced and adjective-heavy) would be so much deeper than her opinion of Gruen's.  In other words, she claims that Gruen used "serviceable" prose, and therefore the audience that reads that novel will probably be at that reading level.  It is therefore strange to write a review catering to a more advanced reader than the book seemed to be intended for.  She could have fixed this by writing with simpler diction.

Overall, I thought that Judd's book review was successful.  The audience is left feeling well-informed about the plot of the book and also about some of the critiques.  However, using simpler diction would have ensured that the review could reach a wider range of readers, especially those that the book was intentionally written for.