Post Tuesday's class roundup

Vietnamese Slothropians,

There are a lot of moving parts in the course right now, so I thought I'd list them all here:

1. Read the communism packet material. You will be better for having done so.
2. Read Chapter 1 of "How to Write about Movies" in your course packet for Thursday and preferably before you write your first analysis.
3. Remember to post before Wednesday at 9pm to both the community blog and your personal blog. Let me remind you of the distinction between the two:

The community blog should focus on the texts we're looking at during a particular week. Any text is fair game, so for this week you can write about: Jimi Hendrix, "The Naming of Parts", Patton's movie speech, Patton's original speech (in your course packet), questions and answers with regard to Communism, and Full Metal Jacket. What do they mean? What is the point they are getting at? And how are they getting that point across? Or, in rhetorical terms, what are the arguments made by these texts, and how do they argue it?

Your personal blog can be just that: A more personal reaction to certain texts that might have moved you, or failed to move you; Connections you make between the texts and things you're thinking about in the real non-classroom world; Connections you're making between the texts and insights to life. Anything we covered in class. Or just about anything that you want to share with me that in some way is tied in with the class. If Patton reminds you of your boyfriend or girlfriend, I'd love to know how and why so I can extend to you my sympathies. Think of it as a conversation you and I are having about life, but at the center of that conversation are observations and revelations you're having with regard to the material we either covered in class, or material that I assigned but we didn't get a chance to cover. Dig?

4. On Thursday we'll talk about Full Metal Jacket, and look at a few maps you've made. I recommend keeping the Map alive by adding to it throughout the semester. This will be especially useful since you can embed the map in your blog, which will make your work that much more credible and thorough.

5. I posted four rhetorical analyses options in a post below, and would like to add these as further options. Take your pick. (The rhetorical analys is your weekly chance to write a thought provoking analysis of a text that is longer than any of your posts, but is limited to 1page single spaced thereby demanding efficiency and clarity of thought. It asks you to think deeply about a topic and to write clearly. Not an easy task, but the place where much learning will take place.)

Options 5-8:
V) How does the rhetoric of the movie version of Patton's speech differ from the original speech?
VI) What is "The Naming of Parts" about? What is its argument? How does it do that, structurally?
VII)Patton was made in 1970, during the Vietnam war. How does that historical context affect its rhetoric? In other words, would that opening speech mean something else had the film been made in, say, 1953?
VIII) How would you describe Jimi Hendrix's stage rhetoric? How does it affect the meaning of his songs?

6. I thought this morning's class was groovy. Let it rain, let it rain.

KP