Week 1: Homework Specifications

Good Afternoon Everyone!


In order to avoid confusion, I want to remind you to stick to your syllabus to keep informed regarding the assignments and necessary deadlines. However, we will use this website for specific information regarding assignment details and any updates to be made to the schedule. Should you have any questions or concerns, feel free to email me at: profogbara1@gmail.com Note: if  you email me after 6pm on any given weekday, I will try to get back to you by the next morning. I typically do not respond to emails during the weekend.

The following includes the homework assignment for week 1.


Tuesday Homework:

Assignment:

1. Read Gregory Petsko's "The Blue Marble" on pages 348-353 of Models for Writers. (If you do not yet have the book, check your email for the essay I have sent you, print out the essay, and number your paragraphs 1-15, so that you may be able to follow along with the class when we discuss this essay).
2. Read the essay critically, following the directions given in pages 48-55 in MFW.
   1. Read the essay the first time to get an “overall sense of what the writer is saying, keeping in mind the essay’s title and the facts you need to know about the writer,” checking for bias or unsupported opinions, and placing question marks near passages you do not understand.
   2. Read the essay a second time for analysis (relating each part to the whole). Now, you should be “pay[ing] special attention to the author’s purpose” and “determin[ing] whether the writer adequately supports his or her opinions.”
   3. Annotating the text by “writ[ing] down your thoughts in the margins or on a separate sheet of paper,” “mark[ing] the selection’s main point,” “look[ing] for…patterns of development the author uses to explore and support that point,” agreeing or disagreeing with statements made by the author, writing questions you may have, marking significant passages, and jotting down any additional points or connections. The annotations will not be collected for credit.
3. Complete the Vocabulary Assignment. Go to www.MerriamWebster.com (or a print dictionary), and look up the parts of speech and definitions for the following words: iconic, agate, auspicious, frailty, conflagration, demonize, galvanize, egoist, ethical, and one other word, of your own choice, from this reading. Then, use each word in an appropriate sentence. Create a document in MLA format of your words, their definitions and parts of speech, and your sentences.

Example:  Zeppelin (noun): “a large aircraft without wings that floats because it is filled with gas and that has a rigid frame inside its body to help it keep its shape.” Zeppelins are no longer used for travel, but have been reduced to vehicles carrying wedding proposals and advertising slogans.

IV. Complete the Questions for Study and Discussion (Use MLA format)

1. Why does Petsko choose the “blue marble” photo as the most iconic of all the famous images he discusses in this essay? Why does it have lasting power?
2. Why were the 1970s an “auspicious” time for this photograph to appear (2)? How did it fit into the political and social concerns of that decade?
3. What other images does Petsko offer to illustrate his point that “the right image, offered at the right time, can have effects far greater than those imagined by the one creating it” (4)?
4. Why does Petsko tell us about the meeting of Mary Ann Vecchio and photographer John Filo, or the reaction of Eddie Adams to the death of General Nguyen Ngoc Loan? What do these stories tell us about the way iconic images work?
5. Why does Petsko think that present-day scientists are in a good position to find their own iconic image? What examples does he use to illustrate the photogenic nature of science?
6. What is Petsko’s purpose for writing this essay? What fact about iconic images he discusses complicates his call to action?

The Vocabulary and QSD responses are worth up to ___ points.


Thursday Homework

PURPOSE: The following activity calls upon students to reflect on what Petsko calls the “Power of Images.” This assignment will allow you to conduct research to find an image that will l “galvanize an entire generation” (Petsko 351).

DIRECTIONS: Choose a photo you think is representative of the current decade. You can follow Petsko’s suggestion and search www.famouspictures.org. Email the photos you have to profogbara1@gmail.com .

Then, write a 500 word essay in which you describe the photo and explain why you think it is significant. What issues or concerns does it suggest? Find other photos that illustrate your point, and discuss what they have in common. Use Petsko’s essay as a model for focus, organization, and development by illustration and example.

Your essay must be typed in MLA format (1” margins, proper heading, page numbers, and list of Works Cited). Do not refer to any other written sources for this assignment.

This assignment is worth up to ___ points.