Month: September 2021

For Thursday (9/23)

Today, we’ll be talking about Dagoberto Gilb’s short story – – “Look on the Bright Side.”

I’ve read and commented on and graded all of your first reflection papers.  Check your reading journal/google doc.  If you don’t have comments/grade on your reflection essay – – let me know in class on Thursday afternoon.

For Thursday (9/9)

For Thursday, we’ll discuss John Cheever’s short story – – “The Swimmer” (1964).  Cheever publishes his story at the height of America’s post-war prosperity – – even as the social and cultural fabric of that prosperity is starting to fray and tear.  As you read, think about “Neddy Merrill” as a protagonist – – his goals, traits, obstacles.  And, given that the story is all about swimming pools – – let’s talk a bit about setting and the use of setting in Cheever’s story.

For Tuesday (9/7)

Don’t forget for Tuesday: another visit to the Reading Room and another entry into your reading journal. (To add an entry to your reading journal – – simply copy and paste the reading journal table into your existing google doc. You can find a copy of that rubric below or here.)

For Thursday, we’ll talk about Cheever’s “The Swimmer” – – which can be found in our course textbook.

Short Story Rubric (English 524)

Title and author of short story: 
Location (url or journal info) of short story:
General: What was the most confusing, irritating, moving moment in the story?  What made this particular moment confusing, irritating, and/or moving?
Answer:
Character: who is the protagonist? What are his/her/their goals? What conflicts do they face? What are their main character traits? How do they change?
Answer:
Plot: what are the main events in the story?  Which story event gets the most time/space in the text? How does the story resolve its plot? 
Answer:
Setting: social, historical location of story? Important details in the description of the setting(s)? How are different settings related to each other?
Answer:

 

For Thursday (9/2)

For Thursday, make sure to read Hemingway’s “Cat in the Rain” and Faulkner’s “Barn Burning” – – both included in our course anthology. [Trigger warning: Faulkner’s story uses some language that we might object to in other contexts.].

I’m not so interested in the “meaning” of these two stories.  I’m more interested how the two stories reflect different approaches to narrative – – especially characterization and narration.  In other words, as you read the stories, don’t worry about thematic issues or problems and try to focus more on the way each story is told.

I’ve read all of your reading journals – – and they are great!  I’ve commented on them. However, due to a technical blunder, you may not see my brief comment.  I’ve since resolved things so that in the future you can see that I’ve read your journal.

Bonus: As I was preparing the class, I stumbled upon this fascinating story – – “Barn Burning” – – by renowned Japanese writer, Haruki Murakami.  Murakami isn’t just name-dropping Faulkner’s story; he seems to be rewriting and interpreting Faulkner’s story.  I wonder what it is about the original story that Murakami finds so engaging?