Blood Will Out; It's Beginning to Hurt; Cheever Stories; The New Jim Crow
Blood Will Out:
NYT reviewer Nina Burleigh reviews Walter Kirn's Blood Will Out (possible book for 1C?) and observes that Kirn saw himself as a "collaborator" who allowed the "trickster incubus" to possess him.
Assignment:
Defend, refute, or modify the assertion that both Blood Will Out and F.Scott Fitgerald's "Winter Dreams" are cautionary fables about the American Hunger for More. Here's another PDF of "Winter Dreams."
Defend, refute, or complicate the assertion that Walter Kirn and Dexter Green are innocent victims of that "trickster incubus," the American Dream. Be sure to have a counterargument-rebuttal sections.
One. Ambition, Faustian Bargain, envy (Moldova); the need to strike a pose; Pascal and the need to make others think you're something on the outside when you're nothing on the inside. The psychology of a cipher. Walter Kirn's parallels to Clark. And their differences, including Kirn's appreciation for self-deprecating irony.
Two. Symbiosis, enabling, willed ignorance, collaborating; Kirn's deeper motivations including egotism
Three. Archetype of the Trickster and society's collaboration
Four. The psychology of a sociopath who uses words to gain advantage over others. The Sociopath Next Door.
Five. Lawyers are tricksters spinning the truth. The world of BS according to Harry Frankfurt's On Bullshit. It's ironic that the impostor is tried in a court in which trickery is rewarded. An lecture on BS could take an entire class
Six. Determinism, free will, Sam Harris' book about the subject
Seven. Kirn's parallels with Dexter Green (see essay options) and the pursuit of a chimera. The students will compare the two characters.
James Lasdun Final Essay: It’s Beginning to Hurt
In your first paragraph, your introduction, write an extended definition of the chimera and its connection to the Dionysian force in humankind. Then contrast that with metacognition and its connection to Apollonian force in human consciousness. This paragraph must show a clear understanding of extended definition.
In your second paragraph, your thesis paragraph, write a thesis that supports, defends, or complicates the assertion that in James Lasdun’s short stories the characters’ demise is the result of a juggernaut-like chimera obliterating their powers of metacognition. Follow your thesis with supporting paragraphs, including two paragraphs that show counterargument and rebuttal as modeled after the Toulmin argument. You must refer to no fewer than three of the assigned stories from Lasdun’s collection.
Your conclusion should be a restatement of your thesis in more powerful rhetorical form. You should end your paper with an MLA Works Cited page with a minimum of three credible sources. A week before your research paper is due, you will need to turn in an annotated bibliography with 5 sources (even though you don’t have to use all 5 sources, just 3).
Some Arguments Against the Above Thesis
The chimera is not necessarily a destructive agent. It can bring purpose to our lives.
We need Dionysian outlets to restore and rejuvenate our tired psyches.
By placing too much emphasize on chimeras, we paint people as victims rather than holding them morally responsible for their actions.
One. "The Half Sister"
Two. "The Natural Order"
Three. "The Old Man"
Four. "An Anxious Man" and "The Incalculable Life Gesture"
Five. "Oh, Death" and "Lime Pickle"
Six. "Peter Kahn's Third Wife" and "It's Beginning to Hurt"
Seven. "Cleanness" and "Caterpillars"
Cheever Stories
Assignment for John Cheever Stories
Defend, refute, or complicate the notion that Cheever's short stories show that sacrifice of private desires for public duty results in a sort of psychosis that leads to unhappiness and self-destruction. Use the Toulmin model to structure your argument.
Put in other words:
One camp of readers argues that Cheever’s short stories affirm the notion that the sacrifice of private desires for public duty results in a sort of psychosis that leads to unhappiness and self-destruction. However, another camp of readers argues that Cheever’s stories evidence the opposite phenomenon, that the sacrifice of private desires for public duty is essential for achieving a balance that protects us from falling into the abyss of our own madness. Which camp do you belong to? Defend your position in an argumentative essay that adopts the Toulmin model complete with a counterargument-rebuttal section. If you want to complicate the matter and develop an argumentative thesis that addresses the paradox of the opposition described above, you can do so as long as you can execute your thesis with the Toulmin model.
The New Jim Crow
Support, refute, or complicate Michelle Alexander's thesis that the current justice and prison system are perpetuating the old Jim Crow into a new Jim Crow. Use Toulmin method.
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