The Words of Ralph Waldo Emerson

As you have discovered from his writings, Ralph Waldo Emerson was an man of profound thought and incisive observation. His calls to live simply and understand ourselves through the natural world around us have resonance even in, perhaps especially in, today's society.

Your task is to choose one of the following Emerson quotes and explain what you believe it means. You may wish to include examples from your own life, or what you know about transcendentalism, to help illustrate your point. Please use no more than three sentences. You must post your response by the end of class.

Please write the number of the quote in your response so I know which one you picked.This assignment is worth one homework grade.

1. "A man in debt is so far a slave."

2. “Finish every day and be done with it. You have done what you could; some blunders and absurdities no doubt crept in; forget them as soon as you can. Tomorrow is a new day; you shall begin it serenely and with too high a spirit to be encumbered with your old nonsense.”  

3. "Don't be too timid and squeamish about your actions. All life is an experiment. The more experiments you make the better."

4. “What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us.”

5. “Is it so bad, then, to be misunderstood? Pythagoras was misunderstood, and Socrates, and Jesus, and Luther, and Copernicus, and Galileo, and Newton, and every pure and wise spirit that ever took flesh. To be great is to be misunderstood.”

6. “It is easy in the world to live after the world's opinion; it is easy in solitude to live after our own; but the great man is he who in the midst of the crowd keeps with perfect sweetness the independence of solitude.”

7. “I cannot remember the books I've read any more than the meals I have eaten; even so, they have made me.”

8. “Cultivate the habit of being grateful for every good thing that comes to you, and to give thanks continuously. And because all things have contributed to your advancement, you should include all things in your gratitude.”

9. “Guard well your spare moments. They are like uncut diamonds. Discard them and their value will never be known. Improve them and they will become the brightest gems in a useful life.”

10. "A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds, adored by little statemen and philosophers and divines. With consistency a great soul has simply nothing to do"

11. "Shakespeare will never be made by the study of Shakespeare."

12. "Society is a wave.  The wave moves forward, but the water of which it is composed does not."

The Crucible: Film Clip Response

This is your next blog response assignment. It will count as one homework grade.

1. Please view the following clips from the 1996 film version of The Crucible and select one that you would like to write about. Underneath each is the page number that it can be found in the play, along with a brief description.

2. Respond to the clip by answering the following question:

What does the passage mean? Focus on individual words and/or phrases. How does it serve to develop or enlarge the character or characters speaking it? Please focus on the text and not so much on the film-related aspects of the scene.


Your response should be no more than three sentences. Please indicate which clip you've chosen (#1, 2, etc). Keep in mind that some clips skip or omit a few words or phrases, but overall the scenes retain most if not all of the text.

The deadline for this assignment is Friday, 11/18/11 at 11 PM

1.) This is the scene in which Abigail talks to the other girls about what happened in the woods. (Top of pg. 20)

2.) This combines Hale's two speeches on pgs. 38 and 39.

3.) This is Proctor's speech after ripping up the arrest warrant. (pg. 77)

4.) Danforth's "Invisible Crime" speech on pg. 100.

5.) Proctor and Elizabeth's scene. (pg. 136)

6.) Proctor "Name" speech (pg. 143)

Live Blog #2: "The Monsters Are Due on Maple Street"

Today we are live-blogging and and looking at your thesis statements again. Your task is divided into two stages:

1: After you log in, type your thesis statement in to the comments section, just as you did before.

2. Constructively comment on someone else's thesis statement, using only that person's display name. Try to include a positive, as well as a recommendation.

Live Blog #1

Author: please write your revised thesis statement.
Class: what is good about the thesis statement? What still might need some work?
Author: revise and repost your statement, using comments and suggestions from the class as guidance.

"Huswifery"

Read "Huswifery," by Edward Taylor. Take notes and define any unfamiliar words. Then, respond to the following prompt, in no more than three sentences:

What comparison does the speaker make in "Huswifery"? Why does he make it? What effect does it have?

The deadline for responses is 3:00 PM on Thursday, September 29th, 2011. By 5 PM on the same day I will post all acceptable responses. After 5, it is up to you to go online to ensure that your response is posted; if it is not, let me know on Friday. Otherwise, I will assume there are no problems. Therefore, claiming you posted but had a problem with the technology will not be an excuse.

There will be no late penalties. If you miss the deadline, you will get a 0.

Think about the discussion we had on Tuesday. I will be looking for focus, structure, clarity and grammar/mechanics. With such a short format, remember to use words wisely and avoid "excess verbiage."

Test

Once you have signed in, notate your display name on the sheet and click comments under this post. Then type in "Response." I will let it through once I have your permission form.

First

What, in your opinion, truly defines America?

Please respond in no more than three complete sentences. You may want to make references to readings or class discussions we've had thus far. Please keep all responses responsible and respectful to your peers. This will count as one homework grade.