Yearly Archives: 2021

“Araby” by James Joyce is not a love story. It is a coming-of-age story with a very particular protagonist at the heart. What words would you use to describe the boy in the story, and how does his character affect what happens at the end? To submit your  post, follow the steps below. 1. Scroll up to the black strip at the top of the screen and click the black “plus” sign inside the white circle. It is located to the right of the course title. 2. In the box that reads “Add title,” type in a title that includes your first name, last name, and the words “Discussion 5” (example: John Hart Discussion 5). 3. Type your response in the text box. Remember that your first post must be at least 150 words in order to receive full credit. 4. Navigate to the right side of the screen and choose the Post Category “Week 3 Discussion.” DO NOT CHANGE ANYTHING UNDER THE BOX THAT READS “CATEGORY STICK.” LEAVE THAT AS IT. (It will read “Select Category.”) 5. Publish the post by clicking the blue button on the right. 6. Please leave a thoughtful reply to the post of one other classmate. Remember that your comments to others should be at least 75 words in order to receive full credit.    

In Oedipus the King, the Chorus functions as the collective voice of the citizens of Thebes. The Odes, sung by the chorus, also exemplify one of Aristotle’s criteria for great tragic theatre: “language enhanced by varying beauties.” Select one short passage from this week’s reading (You do not have to discuss the entire ode) sung by the Chorus that is rich with beautiful language, and tell why you have chosen this particular passage.  Include the quote and the line numbers of your chosen quote. Please do not use a passage that someone has already used.   And please do not Google this. Trust your own intelligence.  Find some phrasing that you find to be beautiful.  To submit your post, follow the steps below. 1. Scroll up to the black strip at the top of the screen and click the black “plus” sign inside the white circle. It is located to the right of the course title. 2. In the box that reads “Add title,” type in a title that includes your first name, last name, and the words “Discussion 6 (example: John Hart Discussion 6). 3. Type your response in the text box. Remember that your first post must be at least 150 words in order to receive full credit. 4. Navigate to the right side of the screen and choose the Post Category “Week 3 Discussion.” DO NOT CHANGE ANYTHING UNDER THE BOX THAT READS “CATEGORY STICK.” LEAVE THAT AS IT. (It will read “Select Category.”) 5. Publish the post by clicking the blue button on the right. 6. Please leave a thoughtful reply to the post of one other classmate. Remember that your comments to others should be at least 75 words in order to receive full credit.  

In the essay about suspense in her story “A Good Man Is Hard to Find,” O’Connor writes that readers, like the ancient Greek viewers of tragedy, “should know what is going to happen in this story so that the element of suspense in it will be transferred from its surface to its interior.” We know what the story is about on the surface. What do you feel the story is about in its “interior?” To submit your Week 8 post, follow the steps below. 1. Scroll up to the black strip at the top of the screen and click the black “plus” sign inside the white circle. It is located to the right of the course title. 2. In the box that reads “Add title,” type in a title that includes your first name, last name, and the words “Discussion 8” (example: John Hart Discussion 8). 3. Type your response in the text box. Remember that your first post must be at least 150 words in order to receive full credit. 4. Navigate to the right side of the screen and choose the Post Category “Week 8 Discussion” (or whichever week is current). Never choose anything in the box that reads “Category Sticky.” Click for screenshot. 5. To add media (optional), click the “add media“ button in between the title box and the text box. Do not add the image directly to the media library. To get the image to show in the tile preview, go to “featured image > add featured image, in the lower right-hand side.” Click for screenshot. 6. Publish the post by clicking the blue button on the right. 7. Please leave a thoughtful reply to the post of one other classmate. Remember that your comments to others should be at least 75 words in order […]

Prompt: This is a 3-part question. With specific reference to one or more of the week’s readings, answer each question. What surprised you and why? What intrigued you and why? What puzzled you and why? Please avoid repetition of what others have already noted. Please be sure that your response directly addresses the prompt. Note Re Discussion Board: Please do not rely on online searches for discussion board responses. It is clear from the similarity of many posts during Week 8, that some of you do not trust your own ability to offer an interpretation. If there is one thing I hope you will get from this class, it is the confidence to trust in your own intelligence and the validity of your own ideas. To submit your Week 9 post, follow the steps below. 1. Scroll up to the black strip at the top of the screen and click the black “plus” sign inside the white circle. It is located to the right of the course title. 2. In the box that reads “Add title,” type in a title that includes your first name, last name, and the words “Discussion 9” (example: John Hart Discussion 9). 3. Type your response in the text box. Remember that your first post must be at least 150 words in order to receive full credit. 4. Navigate to the right side of the screen and choose the Post Category “Week 9 Discussion” (or whichever week is current). Never choose anything in the box that reads “Category Sticky.” Click for screenshot. 5. To add media (optional), click the “add media“ button in between the title box and the text box. Do not add the image directly to the media library. To get the image to show in the tile preview, go to “featured image […]

Please complete all four steps in your response this week: 1. Identify the author and the literary work you are focusing on for your research essay. 2. Please share the actual word-for-word thesis statement of your research essay in your post. 3. Explain what specific kind of secondary source information you feel will support your thesis. 4. Identify the BMCC databases you have explored to date and what the results have been. To submit your post, follow the steps below. 1. Scroll up to the black strip at the top of the screen and click the black “plus” sign inside the white circle. It is located to the right of the course title. 2. In the box that reads “Add title,” type in a title that includes your first name, last name, and the words “Discussion 10 (example: John Hart Discussion 10). 3. Type your response in the text box. Remember that your first post must be at least 150 words in order to receive full credit. 4. Navigate to the right side of the screen and choose the Post Category “Week 3 Discussion.” DO NOT CHANGE ANYTHING UNDER THE BOX THAT READS “CATEGORY STICK.” LEAVE THAT AS IT. (It will read “Select Category.”) 5. Publish the post by clicking the blue button on the right. 6. Please leave a thoughtful reply to the post of one other classmate. Remember that your comments to others should be at least 75 words in order to receive full credit.

This is quote from the reading in Activity 1, “How to Read  Poem” by Edward Hirsch. “Reading a poem is part attitude and part technique.” Please answer both 1 and 2. 1. Restate this in quote in your own words. 2. With specific reference to one of the week’s sonnets, discuss your personal experience with these two components of reading poetry. Be sure to support your response with a short quote from the poem you are discussing. Note: This is a personal response question. Posts containing researched information will not receive credit.  To submit your post, follow the steps below. 1. Scroll up to the black strip at the top of the screen and click the black “plus” sign inside the white circle. It is located to the right of the course title. 2. In the box that reads “Add title,” type in a title that includes your first name, last name, and the words “Discussion 12 (example: John Hart Discussion 12). 3. Type your response in the text box. Remember that your first post must be at least 150 words in order to receive full credit. 4. Navigate to the right side of the screen and choose the Post Category “Week 3 Discussion.” DO NOT CHANGE ANYTHING UNDER THE BOX THAT READS “CATEGORY STICK.” LEAVE THAT AS IT. (It will read “Select Category.”) 5. Publish the post by clicking the blue button on the right. 6. Please leave a thoughtful reply to the post of one other classmate. Remember that your comments to others should be at least 75 words in order to receive full credit.

Prompt: “Most readers make three false assumptions when addressing an unfamiliar poem,” writes Edward Hirsch in his article “How to Read a Poem” (Activity 1) Which of the three prior assumptions did you make with respect to one of the poems read this week? Be sure to refer to specific lines or phrasing in your discussion. To submit your Week 13 post, follow the steps below. Scroll up to the black strip at the top of the screen and click the black “plus” sign inside the white circle. It is located to the right of the course title. 2. In the box that reads “Add title,” type in a title that includes your first name, last name, and the words “Discussion 13” (example: John Hart Discussion 13). 3. Type your response in the text box. Remember that your first post must be at least 150 words in order to receive full credit. 4. Navigate to the right side of the screen and choose the Post Category “Week 13 Discussion” (or whichever week is current). Never choose anything in the box that reads “Category Sticky.” Click for screenshot. 5. To add media (optional), click the “add media“ button in between the title box and the text box. Do not add the image directly to the media library. To get the image to show in the tile preview, go to “featured image > add featured image, in the lower right-hand side.” Click for screenshot. 6. Publish the post by clicking the blue button on the right. 7. Please leave a thoughtful reply to the post of one other classmate. Remember that your comments to others should be at least 75 words in order to receive full credit.                  

What specific observations in Bettleheim’s psychologically oriented reading of the story strike you as insightful and relevant to “Little Snow White,” “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” by Joyce Carol Oates, or the poem “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs” by Anne Sexton? Warning: Any comments that maintain that “Little Snow White” is just a simple tale for children that should not be overanalyzed will not receive credit. To submit your Week 15 post, follow the steps below. 1. Scroll up to the black strip at the top of the screen and click the black “plus” sign inside the white circle. It is located to the right of the course title. 2. In the box that reads “Add title,” type in a title that includes your first name, last name, and the words “Discussion 14” (example: John Hart Discussion 14). 3. Type your response in the text box. Remember that your first post must be at least 150 words in order to receive full credit. 4. Navigate to the right side of the screen and choose the Post Category “Week 14 Discussion” (or whichever week is current). Never choose anything in the box that reads “Category Sticky.” Click for screenshot. 5. To add media (optional), click the “add media“ button in between the title box and the text box. Do not add the image directly to the media library. To get the image to show in the tile preview, go to “featured image > add featured image, in the lower right-hand side.” Click for screenshot. 6. Publish the post by clicking the blue button on the right. 7. Please leave a thoughtful reply to the post of one other classmate. Remember that your comments to others should be at least 75 words in order to receive full credit. […]