Unit 4 Writing Assignment
Unit 4 Writing Assignment
The Cochise College Library has a plethora of information you will need to access for both this class and your academic career. If you are not familiar with the library, I hope the next couple of weeks give you ample opportunity to learn about its resources. Under assignments for this week you are asked to access the library and use its movie directory.
*** To access the library, use your portal which you will find in the upper right hand of the Cochise College webpage. You will not be required to use usernames and passwords when using the portal.
- Read Chapter 15 in our textbook as an introduction to poetry.
- The poems we will be reading for this unit deal with voice (Chapter 16), words (Chapter 17), and similes and figures of speech (Chapter 20) in our textbook. I will be looking for your understanding of these terms in your assignment.
- Read Langston Hughes’ poem, “The Negro Speaks of Rivers” (p. 1006 in our textbook) and Jimmy Santiago Baca’s poem, “Cloudy Day” (follow this link) Both poems are rooted in setting. They are also a reflection of each poets’ life. There is a great deal of biographical information on Hughes on both poets online. Incorporate and then reference in your paper at least one source for each poet. Make sure to cite your source on a works cited page. Again, this is a literature class. Sources like Wikipedia, Sparknotes or any other such site is NOT acceptable. When in doubt, ask me.
- This paper is to be 2 to 2 ½ pages long. Beginning on page 779 in our textbook, you will find a section called, “Thinking about Imagery”. You may want to follow some of the suggestions to help you organize your paper.
- Underline your thesis.
- Use at least one quote from each poem that supports your thesis and one quote from a biographical source for each poet. Cite properly in your paper and provide a Works Cited page.
Literary Circle
Have you seen the movie, Dead Poets Society with Robin Williams? If you think poetry is boring, think again!
My favorite author is Langston Hughes. Of course, he doesn’t have to be your favorite poet. Here are some places you might want to go to check out poets and poetry for yourself:
If you like more whimsical things, try Shel Silverstein and Dr. Suess.
Here is the big secret I forgot to share with all of you earlier: Literature (fiction, poetry, drama) is simply language rearranged. Think about the many ways you can tell someone you love them. Think of your audience. How do tell a child you love them versus your first love at sixteen? Words are powerful! We have gone to war over them and have been persuaded to do things we never dreamed possible because of them. We have even fallen in love while listening to the words of another person.
Poetry can be found is some unusual places. Right now, I am reading Straight Man by Richard Russo. He has a remarkable way of using language in is prose that is both funny and sad. Prose is the narrative of a story- the words.
In our third Unit, I mentioned Pat Conroy. He is another writer who writes beautiful prose. His book, Beach Music is not only an amazing story, but it is lyrical. He does an extraordinary job playing with words.
If you want to challenge yourself, and I suggest you ALWAYS challenge yourself, read, Gabriel Garcia Márquez, A Hundred Years of Solitude.
