By Christopher Simpson V8 Juice and Canadian unity By Christopher Simpson Anglophone Canadians trembled recently when Lucien Bouchard revealed a secret American plan to annex Western Canada in the wake of Quebec separation And while the Bloc Quebecois Leader later denied making such statem ID: 676707
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COLLEGE ENGLISHCOMM1007
By Christopher SimpsonSlide2
V8
Juice and Canadian unity
By Christopher Simpson
Anglophone Canadianstrembled recently when Lucien Bouchard revealed asecret American plan to annexWestern Canada in the wake of Quebec separation. And while the Bloc Quebecois Leader later denied making such statements by arguing “I would be crazy. Am I crazy? Am I crazy? Do I look crazy?” his skilled rhetoric came too late to quell Anglo anxieties.
At least city's priorities show clarity
By CHRISTOPHER SIMPSONOn March 7, St. Catharines city councillors held a special meeting to "identify" their priorities. While I lack details on how this "identification" process works, I envision it as being similar to a police lineup.In any event, they picked out 10 suspect priorities.
Fear and self-loathing in the WestBy CHRISTOPHER SIMPSONI teach English at a college in Toronto. Most of my students have been drilled in the Five Paragraph Essay format since early grade school, and are therefore almost completely incapable of actually thinking before writing about a subject. Because I am a Neanderthal with nothing but a BA in English and 30 years of writing experience behind me, I tend to lean towards the idea that the written word should actually incorporate a certain amount of thought.
The first of the last times By Christopher SimpsonThe three of us formed a tight little group back in high school: Ian, George and me. “The Mod Squad,” they called us, although our little trinity contained neither blacks nor females. Still, as witticisms went, it was certainly better than some of the others we faced. “Are you gay?” one young tough sneered at me. “I’m reasonably happy,” I answered, puzzled to hear such an archaic word from someone who appeared to be an inarticulate thug.But we weren’t gay in the “not-that-there’s-anything-wrong-with-that” sense. We were just good friends. Ian and George were the most important people in my life at the time. “I never had any friends later on like the ones I had when I was twelve,” says Gordie Lachance in Stand by Me. My special friendships came in my late teens, but I understand the sentiment.
Chicken art and Canadian politics
By Christopher Simpson
Considering the spate of controversy surrounding Rob Thompson’s recent performance-art in Ottawa, a naive observer could be forgiven the impression that caging two people for a week is somehow “strange” or “peculiar.”
Of course, nothing could be further from the truth.
Despite those critics who doubt the validity of Thompson’s art, he is in fact following a long tradition of avant-garde aesthetes, not the least of whom was the late, great Rudolph Schwarzkogler who amputated various portions of his body until he ran out of material and died.
What’s On Queen
Who am I?
Christopher Simpson.
Editor/writer since 1975.
Started with the
Welland Tribune.
Wide variety of topics and styles including book and movie reviews, advertising, marketing analysis, history, crime, and Celtic culture.
Most
recently, corporate editing and columnist for the St. Catharines Standard. Slide3
What does this mean?
This is not a typical College English class.
I’m going to treat you as though you were capable of coherent thought and professional writing.
What I tell you comes from real world experience – not something dreamed up to make it possible for software to mark essays.Slide4
So this is important...
Pay attention!
Come to class! Much of what is being taught here requires lecture and conversation.
Take part! Ask questions!Trust no one!Slide5
Class InformationWebsite and e-mail informationSlide6
Class information
Don’t use
WebCT or George Brown e-mail.
Class website:http://gbccollegeenglish.wordpress.com/Class E-mails
Monday 1
– 3comm1007a@gmail.com
Wedesday 8 – 10comm1007b@gmail.com
Thursday 8 – 11comm1007c@gmail.comThursday 2 – 5
comm1007d@gmail.comSlide7
The Truth About College EnglishSlide8
WHAT IS COLLEGE ENGLISH?
Nobody knows.
It involves writing.
It involves essays.Slide9
What is an essay?
We don’t know.
What then is time? If no one asks me, I know what it is. If I wish to explain it to him who asks, I do not know
(Augustine).Essays can include short stories, editorials, articles in newspapers and magazines, special news reports, documentaries, commentary, and way, way more.Slide10
How you have been prepared
The Five Paragraph Essay
(
5PE)Slide11
The 5PE teaches
That an essay should have a beginning, a middle and an end.
That arguments should have a number of supports.
That text should be broken into discrete blocks, called “paragraphs.”That each paragraph should have an internal consistency.That essays should begin by introducing the overall topic, and end by stating the conclusion.Slide12
But the 5PE has limitations
It is mechanical
It is imaginary
It is a toolSlide13
The 5PE does not exist
The Five Paragraph Essay is an artificial construct virtually impossible to find in the real-world.
The only Five Paragraph Essays (as described in the so-called “Hamburger Essay” format) are those which have been created for one of two reasons:
Showing how a Five Paragraph Essay is done for English classes.Written after having been shown how to write one in English classes.Slide14
So...
We don’t know what College English is.
We don’t know what an essay is.
And the Five Paragraph Essay you’ve been taught all through your schooling is crap.What’s left?Slide15
Analytical writing
Analysis tends to take the form of an “essay.”
The word comes from Old French, essayer, and means “to try.”
In analytical writing the best we can do is try.Analysis is never finished:New informationNew definitionsNew shifts of knowledgeSlide16
Analytical writing
Analytical writing is special
We can never consider a subject “finished.”
In analysis, as in real science, “the debate” is never over.Slide17
What can we analyse?
Anything
Feelings
HumourTraffic patternsThe relative merits of dental materialsWritingAnalysisSlide18
Analytical writing
Unlike “College English,” Analytical Writing is what people do in the real world.
It consists of two parts:
AnalysisWritingBoth parts rely on clear thinking.Slide19
Rules for Clarity
The rules are flexible and can be bent, but they can’t be broken.
Be concise: Keep to the topic
Make sure the reader understands what you mean.Use concrete examples.The “blocks,” or “paragraphs” must be organic to the subject matter and help reader comprehension.The information must “flow.”Slide20
Clear Analysis
Involves knowing the difference between:
Valid and invalid conclusions.
Logical and illogical reasoningYour thoughts and other people’s thoughts.Slide21
Clarity & the Style Guide
The style guide can help keep your thinking and writing clear.
APA = American Psychological Association
Different disciplines have their own style guides:Humanities: MLA (Modern Language AssociationHistories: Chicago Style GuideSlide22
Style guides cover...
Distance between lines
The manner in which titles are written.
The form and placement of citations.The form and placement of references.Example: The titles of independent publications are written in italics. A book title, for instance (A Farewell to Arms). This also applies to movies (The Dark Knight)Slide23
Know your own mindStyle guides also help develop the habit of distinguishing between what you know personally and what you have been told. Slide24
Know your reader’s mind
Write to an audience.
Style guides can help:
They provide a kind of audience, fairly conservative in natureSlide25
Two Prime DirectivesIn order to write well, you have to:
Have something you
want
to say.Honestly try to express it to a given audience.Slide26
Why is this important?
There are many reasons for learning to think and articulate clearly, but the most important one is this:
You’re being lied to
.