English 2120: Short Assignments

Due date: Throughout the Semester Check Calendar

Choose one of the following assignments and complete it using the description as a guide. You should complete ALL of these assignments by the end of the semester, but you can choose the order in which you complete them. Short assignments take the place of your class time, so you should expect to spend around an hour on each short assignment. Because they take the place of class time, you cannot submit them late. They must be submitted on the date due, no exceptions. You can submit them early, however, so if you know you’ll be busy on the day the assignment is due, submit early.

1. Create a video question for consideration and post a link on the class blog.  The question should be detailed and you should provide a reason for why you think that question is an important one for us to consider. You don’t have to put a video of your face. You can talk over an image, if you’d prefer.
2. Pick one quotation from a work in this section that you find pivotal to the development of the text and submit it to the blog along with an explanation of the quotation and why you think it should be included.  Consider why the quotation has significance to the overall meaning of the work. Try not to just choose plot-focused quotations.
3. Using your iPad, take a picture of something in your everyday life that relates to your reading.  Post a link to the image on the blog.  Provide an explanation of the image and how the image relates to the reading.
4. Choose one of the analysis styles from the “Analyzing Literature” handout and write a paragraph arguing why one particular style of analysis would work well with our reading. Make direct reference to the text.
5. Find a scholarly article related to one of the works we’ve read and write a paragraph or two explaining why it would be a good resource for us to examine.  Provide the MLA citation information to the article and post a link to it.  ***Remember copyright.  Don’t scan the article in, just post a link to an existing online version.
6. Find a short documentary on youtube that relates to one of our texts or time periods. Post a link to the video along with a paragraph explaining what you learned from watching it and why you would recommend it to your classmates.
7. Find a high-quality website related to the author or time period. Explain why you think this website is really useful for people learning about the text and what you learned from looking through the site. ****Do Not link to Spark Notes, Bookrags, or any other general Cliff’s Notes style website.
8. Choose one historical/cultural artifact present in the text (for example, a piece of clothing in “Lanval” or a carriage in “Scandal in Bohemia”). Research the artifact and explain why understanding the artifact is important to understanding the piece of literature.

Assessment:

The assignments will be assessed on a scale of 0-3 with three being the highest. I will consider their completeness with an eye to the following perameters:

•  Connection to text: The short assignment is clearly connected to the text we read in this section.
• Addition of knowledge: The short assignment provides additional information for the class to consider.
• Explanation: The significance of the information provided is explained clearly.
• Source Identification: Any outside sources are clearly identified in the response, even if paraphrased and not quoted directly.