McMahon 1C Syllabus Spring 2015
Essay One: Man's Search for Meaning
Choice 1: Support, refute, or complicate the assertion that Frankl Lite is a more compelling orientation than Full Potency Frankl. Use Toulmin or Rogerian model. The essay should be 1,000 words with a Works Cited page of no fewer than three sources.
Choice 2: Develop a thesis that shows how Man's Search for Meaning can be applied to an analysis of the film Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind or Silver Linings Playbook in a 4-page essay. Include no fewer than 3 research sources for your Works Cited page. For a comparison essay, you may want to consult these thesis templates.
Choice 3: Support, refute, or complicate the assertion that unless we can sacrifice on the scale described in Peter Singer's essay "What Should a Billionaire Give--What Should You?" we cannot live a life of true meaning as defined by Viktor Frankl. Use the Toulmin essay model.
Choice 4: Support, refute, or complicate the assertion that the lifestyle described in Joseph Epstein's essay "The Perpetual Adolescent" is antithetical to the kind of meaning that Viktor Frankl defines in his book Man's Search for Meaning. Use the Toulmin essay model.
Choice 5: Support, refute, or complicate the assertion that logotherapy is vastly superior than traditional psychotherapy for achieving the kind of meaning Frankl defines in his book Man's Search for Meaning.
Essay Two: The Geography of Bliss
Support, refute, or complicate the notion that The Geography of Bliss evidences a strong connection between morality and happiness. Use Toulmin or Rogerian model. The essay should be 1,000 words with a Works Cited page of no fewer than three sources.
Essay Three: The Culture Code
In a 1,000-word essay, typed and double-spaced, support, refute, or complicate the assertion that The Culture Code evidences that marketing and advertising are evil agencies preying on anthropology, sociology, human psychology, the unconscious, the reptilian, and neuroscience to manipulate people into becoming helpless consumers. Be sure to use Toulmin model of argumentation and have a Works Cited page with no fewer than three sources.
Essay Four (Final): 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 or Rogerian model. Because this is your Final, it is a bit longer than your previous typed papers. While they are four pages (1,000 words), this essay is five pages (closer to 1,200 words). Be sure to have a Works Cited page with no fewer than three sources.
Grading 700 Total Points
Four in-class writing exams: 50 each for 200 total
Three typed 1,000-word essays: 100 each for 300 total
One Final 1,200-word essay 200
Attendance and Class Participation Deductions of 50 for more than 4 absences or more than 3 tardies; repeated use of smart phone in class or leaving class repeatedly to "take a call." More than 5 absences or more than 4 tardies is a loss of 100 points.
Lessons for 23 Classes Updated on July 22, 2014 (one 1,300-word annotated bibliography for last essay)
- January 20 Introduction to English 1C
- January 22 Man's Search for Meaning 1-40
- January 27 Man's Search for Meaning 41-80
- January 29 Man's Search for Meaning 81-120
- Feb 3 Man's Search for Meaning 121-160
- Feb 5 Man's Search for Meaning 161-end
- Feb 10 Reading Exam 1 for 50 points
- Feb 12 Typed Essay 1 Due 100 pts; Geography of Bliss Chapter 1
- Feb 17 Geography of Bliss Chapter 2
- Feb 19 Geography of Bliss Chapter 3
- Feb 24 Geography of Bliss Chapter 4
- March 3 Geography of Bliss Chapter 5
- March 5 Geography of Bliss Chapter 6
- March 10 Geography of Bliss Chapter 7
- March 12 Reading Exam 2
- March 24 Typed Essay 2 Due 100 pts; The Culture Code Chapters 1 and 2
- March 26 The Culture Code Chapters 3 and 4
- March 31 The Culture Code Chapters 5 and 6
- April 2 The Culture Code Chapters 7 and 8
- April 7 The Culture Code Chapters 9 and 10
- April 9 The Culture Code Chapter 11
- April 14 The Culture Code Chapter 12
- April 16 Reading Exam 3
- April 21 Typed Essay 3 Due 100 pts; New Jim Crow Lesson 1
- April 23 New Jim Crow 2
- April 28 NJC 3
- April 30 NJC 4
- May 5 NJC 5
- May 7 NJC 6 Annotated Bibliography Due
- May 12 In-Class Essay Exam 4
- May 14 Final Research Paper Due 200
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