Rationale
The point of the course blog is to 1) practice the literacy of digital writing, and 2) practice writing about course topics and themes before the major essay assignments.
Given the changing landscape of writing across the curriculum, you will very likely be required to use some kind of Web 2.0 format to express yourself in your college courses. Practicing how to write in this format will thus be good college preparation. Think especially about the design of your posts: how you integrate original text, quotations, images, and other elements both aesthetically and analytically.
My hope is that the blog will also be an online forum for us to discuss course texts as well as broader issues relating to course themes. Ideas about the novels under study will be covered on the blog. But we will also explore how music videos and current events not necessarily studied formally in class are relevant to course topics. The blog is thus a continuation of class discussion and a place to brainstorm for formal essays.
Assignment
Choose a text or context that relates to The Great Gatsby, Citizen Kane, The Bluest Eye, or Six Degrees of Separation, or any minor text from the Fall term, including poems and films.
Your text or context could be a current event or something from contemporary popular culture (a particular issue in the 2012 election, for example, or a “hot” hip hop song from the radio).
Or it could be something from history (a jazz song from the Roaring 20s or the Slave Trade Act of 1807).
(If you are having trouble coming up with a solid text or context, here's a list of songs relating to the them of the "American dream" compiled by NPR listeners.)
(If you are having trouble coming up with a solid text or context, here's a list of songs relating to the them of the "American dream" compiled by NPR listeners.)
1. Introduce and analyze (close read) your chosen text or context. Offer some kind of overall analysis (thesis-ish statement).
2. The body paragraphs of your post should consist of close readings of your chosen text or context. Do not move chronologically through the text. Divide your paragraphs as you would in a traditional essay by separate but related themes/topics.
3. Conclude by relating your text or context to the plot and themes of one of the novels, films, or plays studied this term. Be specific, quoting the course material or citing details.
Throughout your entry, you will want to use a selection of artifacts to visibly represent your chosen text or context on the blog. They could be quotes (selections from a speech or the lyrics to a song), or a photograph, or a video clip, or a combination of the above). The balance of text and image is critical in a good blog entry.
Each blog entry should contain at least the following:
ü 250 (at least) words of original writing (about one double-spaced page)
ü 1 good, clear, and intriguing title
ü 1 blocked or indented quotation
ü 2 (at least) images or videos
ü 2 hyperlinks
ü 3 or more content "labels"
A note on images, video, and quotes: Digital writing is a highly visual medium. You always want to be thinking about an appropriate balance between text and images, video, etc. Images and videos make your writing look better, but should also be used to support and further your argument. Indented quotes can also be used to break up text and highlight major ideas.
A note on hyperlinks: Links are, in a sense, the citations in your digital writing. They should link to websites that support your points or allow your readers to learn more about a topic.
A note on "labels": Labels are key terms and concepts discussed in your entry. They act as a kind of organically generated "index" for the content of the blog. This will be helpful in your paper-writing process, as you will be able to review writing on a certain course topic ("," for example), by clicking on the label and reading through the entries on that topic.
A note on hyperlinks: Links are, in a sense, the citations in your digital writing. They should link to websites that support your points or allow your readers to learn more about a topic.
A note on "labels": Labels are key terms and concepts discussed in your entry. They act as a kind of organically generated "index" for the content of the blog. This will be helpful in your paper-writing process, as you will be able to review writing on a certain course topic ("," for example), by clicking on the label and reading through the entries on that topic.
Begin drafting your blog entry well ahead of time after okaying the text or context with me. (You can wait to publish your entry until the due date.) Save often and don’t leave the online portion until the last minute—you will need to spend time formatting text and images to optimize online presentation.
More Help
Here are some sites that might be helpful to you as you begin to practice your blogging skillz (note that my tutorials are based on an older Blogger format and that the newer format makes things like embedding YouTube videos much easier):
