Under Construction

Which quote from The Art of War relates most obviously to the concept of "the art of invisible strength" in "Rules of the Game"?

"These military devices, leading to victory, must not be divulged beforehand."

Close reading

A careful reading that is attentive to organization, figurative language, sentence structure, vocabulary, and other literary and structural elements of a text.

seminal document

A document or speech that has shaped the country and its people.

Feature film

A fictional movie that is at LEAST 60 minutes long.

Which phrase describes a key feature of contemporary literature?

A willingness to mix popular culture with serious themes.

What would need to happen for the United States to become the America that Vonnegut imagines in "Harrison Bergeron"?

Additional constitutional amendments would gradually remove individual rights and freedoms.

Why were many people weary of war during the Vietnam War era?

America had fought in three wars since the beginning of the 20th century, and many people did not see the rationale for getting involved in Vietnam.

Which phrase describes a feature of Postmodern fiction?

An unconventional narrative.

How does chess divide Waverly from her family and her community?

Because Waverly works hard to be good at chess, she wants all the glory for herself, a desire that conflicts with Chinese cultural norms.

In Tim O'Brien's story "Where Have You Gone, Charming Billy?", why does Paul Berlin point out that no one gave him lessons for how to have courage?

Because courage isn't something that is learned.

Soundies

Black and white short films of live performances presented in video jukeboxes in the 1940s

What difficulties did African Americans and second‐generation Americans face in America between the 1940s and 1960s, and how did at least two of the writers in this module address these issues?

Black people had to face the difficulties of lynching and their lives generally being constantly threatened on a day to day basis, even just by walking on a sidewalk or going to a store, between the 40s and 60s. A Black author named Alice Walker (the same person who wrote The Color Purple) made a flash fiction story about a sharecropper's small child coming across the skeleton of a lynched Black person, which shows a snippet of the fact that these were common during that time frame, and even now in modern-day America. Ida B. Wells wrote an essay about the statistics of lynching from 1882 to 1891, which said that 800 Black people -- men, women, and children -- were lynched *in just that span of time*. This shows that during this time, no Black person was safe, and they had to walk on eggshells around basically everyone, especially whites. Amy Tan, an American first-gen writer who's the daughter of a Chinese immigrant mother, showed -- through many of her books, especially The Joy Luck Club (1989) -- the difficulties that first-gen children and their immigrant parent(s) go through, specifically with connection with their culture v/s assimilation into American culture.

Which aspects of the soundie Bubbling Over reveal stereotypes that were associated with African Americans in the 1940s?

Characterization and plot resolution.

What conditions did Civil Rights activists organise to publicise and ultimately to end?

Educational and political discrimination.

What is the best way to find out if the piece you wrote is having the impact you intended?

Have someone else read and comment on your draft.

In "Where Have You Gone, Charming Billy?" by Tim O'Brien, why does Paul Berlin laugh uncontrollably about Billy Boy Watkins' death?

He is suffering from combat and operational stress reactions.

In Vonnegut's story "Harrison Bergeron," George thinks about his son being in jail (before the sound of a 21-gun salute distracts him). What label has he clearly accepted as a description of his son, and why does he think of his son in this way?

He thinks of his son as abnormal because Harrison doesn't follow the rules like everyone else.

What do the differences between Bubbling Over and Winner by Decision reveal about representations of race in the 1960s, compared to the 1940s?

In the 1960s, African Americans were portrayed as more sophisticated and complex than in earlier multimedia.

How can reading a manual about combat and operational stress reactions help you better understand a short story such as O'Brien's "Where Have You Gone, Charming Billy?"

It can help you spot symptoms of this problem and better understand what is happening in this story.

In what way is the Bill of Rights a seminal document?

It established a purpose and form on which other similar documents are based.

What is the effect of the gritty, dark, and indistinct imagery in John and Faith Hubley's animated short The Hole?

It mirrors the sense of fear and uncertainty surrounding current issues like nuclear disarmament.

Why is it important to paraphrase what has happened before you determine what the author wants you to understand, think, or feel?

It's important to paraphrase what's happened before you determine what the author intends you to understand, think, or feel, because it's vital to form your own thoughts with your own words, rather than trying to interpret the words that the author has said without context. Also, it helps you create a habit of thinking, "Ok, what do *I think* this means?"

What does the splotchy, disjointed background imagery in The Hole suggest about the social climate of the United States during the early 1960s when the film was created?

Life was full of uncertainties and dangers.

What unique aspect of poetry should you pay attention to in the revision stage of the writing process?

Line breaks and stanzas.

What role did media bias play in Vietnam War literature?

Media often presented soldiers in a bad light, or it "sanitized" or left out much of what was happening in Vietnam. Vietnam War literature set this record straight.

What aspects of Vonnegut's life during the latter half of the 20th century might have shaped how he wrote "Harrison Bergeron"?

Multiple wars and disillusionment with government as a source of authority.

Which current art form is most like the "soundies" of the 1930s?

Music videos

One thing that many postmodern writers have written about is the changes to society in the latter part of the 20th century and the first fifteen years of the 21st century. What were some of these changes and how did two of the writers in this module represent them?

One of the changes in society from the latter part of the 20th century to the first 15 years of the 21st century is the spike and then steep downfall of immigrants, especially from Western Europe and Eastern Asia. This is one of the ideas in Amy Tan's writing (considering that The Joy Luck Club is based around the issues between the relationships of first-gen children and their immigrant parent(s)). Another change is the significant push of more civil rights action, since -- while Black Americans had the right to vote -- they were still barred from voting by domestic terrorists, segregated from using "white-only spaces", and lynched and murdered on a regular basis by racists when they were only walking down the street or accidentally visiting a "white-only" store. Ida B. Wells talks about this in her essay about lynch laws.

Postmodernism

Post-World War II intellectual movement and cultural attitude focusing on cultural pluralism and release from the confines and ideology of Western high culture.

Which persuasive methods work better in informational articles than in short stories?

Relating the details of many people's stories; making and supporting direct claims about the issue.

Which of these phrases describes a characteristic of Postmodern literature?

Representations of confusion or chaos.

Which of these phrases does describes a characteristic of postmodern literature?

Representations of confusion or chaos.

How does Waverly's mother demonstrate her belief in the Confucian principle that a person "should overflow in love to all, and cultivate the friendship of the good."

She tells the charity group that their gift of a used chess set is too generous.

What aspects of Alice Walker's life are reflected in her fiction?

She writes about Black women who grew up poor and abused.

Which conflict was most relevant to American authors writing during the late 1950s and early 1960s?

The Cold War

Which of these political situations most influenced the first or earliest postmodern writers?

The Cold War

In Kurt Vonnegut's short story "Harrison Bergeron," George is unable to think through an answer because he is forced to listen to loud sirens every few minutes. What does this detail suggest about the mechanisms that make Vonnegut's future America operate as it does?

The government has complete control--people aren't allowed to even think for themselves.

Which phrase describes one of the reasons that Americans were opposed to US involvement in the Vietnam War?

The reinstatement of a military draft to provide troops for the war.

Assimilation

The social process of absorbing one cultural group into another

Satire

The use of humor, irony, exaggeration, or ridicule to expose and criticize people's stupidity or vices, particularly in the context of contemporary politics and other topical issues.

Story structure

The way the character, setting and plot are organized.

Why are music videos considered multimedia?

They combine both audio and visual elements.

Why were first-generation Americans often in conflict with their parents?

They did not understand their parents' customs or personal histories.

How do infographics, such as maps and charts, help readers grasp big ideas?

They present information in a visual way.

What is different about the way contemporary poets use poetic forms, compared to poets of earlier eras?

They stretch the limits of form to add to a poem's meaning and impact.

What does Alice Walker's story "The Flowers" suggest about African Americans in the early part of the 20th century?

They were often poor and the victims of violence.

What is a writer's main goal when writing a piece of flash fiction?

To make a strong impact using as few words as possible.

Why did the NAACP begin its pamphlet about lynching with two maps of the United States?

To show how often lynching had occurred in a 10-year and a 30-year span.

To determine how an author conveys his or her message, what question should you ask yourself?

What does the author want me to understand, think, or feel about the characters and/or the events?

In "Rules of the Game," Waverly asks her mother a sly question about what Chinese torture is. To better understand the story's themes, what question should you ask yourself about this detail?

What does the mother's answer say about her beliefs?

In Amy Tan's short story "Rules of the Game," Waverly and her mother argue in the street and Waverly runs away. The story ends with Waverly, alone in her room, planning her next "move." What question should you ask about this ending to figure out what the author is trying to say?

What does the scene suggest about Waverly's future as a Chinese mother's daughter?

As you read George and Hazel's discussion about breaking the laws, what is the best question to ask yourself?

What does this conversation reveal about the narrator's and the author's points of view?

What is the BEST close reading question to ask about Vonnegut's short story "Harrison Bergeron"?

Why does Vonnegut begin the story after Harrison has been imprisoned?

What are several close reading questions you could ask when performing a close reading of Kurt Vonnegut's "Harrison Bergeron"?

Why does the author include hazel thinking about having bell chimes as the mental handicap sound? Also, after the scene with Harrison being shot, why does George Bergeron's mind handicap sound like a "riveting gun"? What's the significance of Harrison's dance with the ballerina? What's the theme that the inclusion of Harrison Bergeron's rebellion (and his general character) suggests? What does Harrison declare himself as when he breaks into the studio? What's the symbolism of the Bergeron's' television burning out?

Read this passage from "Lynch Law" by Ida B. Wells: A lynching equally as cold-blooded took place in Memphis, Tennessee, March, 1892. Three young colored men in an altercation at their place of business fired on white men in self-defense. They were imprisoned for three days, then taken out by the mob and horribly shot to death. Thomas Moss, Will Stewart and Calvin McDowell were energetic business men who had built up a flourishing grocery business. Their business had prospered and that of a rival white grocer named Barrett had declined. Barrett led the attack on their grocery, which resulted in the wounding of three white men. Which words in this excerpt are meant to affect readers on an emotional level? What emotions do the words evoke?

Words that're meant to affect readers on an emotional level: "equally as cold-blooded" "taken out by the mob and horribly shot to death" "were energetic business men... flourishing grocery business" "prospered and that of a rival white grocer named Barrett... led the attack on their grocery" these words evoke strong Emotions like sympathy and anger with the situation in Memphis, as well as an urge to do something about lynchings and violence against BIPOC, especially Black people, so that things like this wouldn't happen again.

The Art of War

Written by Sun Tzu -- albeit assumedly, many aren't sure whether Tzu actually wrote it -- this book presents military strategy and is still used today.

What aspect of editing creative texts is similar to editing other texts?

Your concerns about spelling and punctuation errors should be saved for this stage.