happy thanksgiving

So I am sitting here, wishing I were at home but realizing that I will in all likelihood be here for another few hours attending to school stuff and forensics stuff, and I need to get this out before my room is inundated with people who, for whatever reason, decide that they don't need to start their four day weekend until hours after everyone else does.

:-)

So here goes:

E3H and E2H:

We're doing workshopped essays this week. You need to come in on Monday with a printed copy of a 2-3 page essay that follows the prompts below. A few general principles:

• Don't open with a rhetorical question. (If your essay starts with "Have you ever...?" I'll stop reading right there.)
• A strong essay invites the reader into it in some way from the beginning: a powerful or provocative quote, a clever opening metaphor, an interesting comparable scenario, even a personal anecdote. Strong, clear and dynamic writing always helps. Show us your own voice from the start.
• A strong essay has a clear and specific thesis that works as the rubric says a strong thesis ought to work.
• A strong thesis paragraph has a clear map, whether or not that map is divided into individual sentences.
• Body paragraphs follow the map and are developed logically and thoroughly. They bild from each other.
• Points are supports with the text.
• Text is cited according to MLA internal support guidelines. (For the movie, you only need to use the name of the film, not any page number.)
• A strong conclusion does far more than merely restate the thesis or summarize the paper. It takes the reader somewhere new, building on everything we have learned. And it concludes whatever opening device you used in the thesis paragraph.
• Don't forget a title; a clever title works wonders. (Note that the name of the play or book is not a title that you should use as yours.)
• Do not refer to the author by his or her first name; you are not old friends.

E3H Essay: In My Name is Asher Lev, Chaim Potok shows us an internal battle between faith and tradition on the one hand and personal freedom and artistic passion on the other. In a 2-3 page essay, explore one specific element of the book that illustrates this dynamic.

E2H Essay: In both Our Town and Harold and Maude, we see modern writers tackle Transcendentalist themes. Thornton Wilder's play and Colin Higgins' screenplay (along with Hal Ashby's direction) show us that the ideals of Emerson and Thoreau are still alive in the modern world. In a 2-3 page essay, compare these works in their exploration of specific transcendentalist concepts.

CW: Guess what? There is finally a letter!!!! It's on Edline!!!


In Thanksgiving Tradition, Bush Pardons Scooter Libby In Giant Turkey Costume

j:thank you to the holiday gods
music: thank you--the redwalls



--kt