English 333: The Reports
Over the course of the semester you are required to pass in 4 written reports, and to deliver one orally. First, why a “report” and not a “paper”? The difference is pretty small, but basically I’m not necessarily looking for much originality here. You may freely borrow ideas and evidence discussed in class. I hope you will elaborate on what’s been said, but you have free license to repackage lectures/discussion as your report, so long as you hew to the following criteria:
- You must have an argument that responds directly to one or a part of one of the questions handed out at the beginning of each unit.
- Your statement of your argument—which should be clear and early in your report—must incorporate some of the language of the question. In other words, rewrite the question as an answer that includes the author and text (or part/element/idea within the text) you’ll be working with.
- You must substantially engage one of the literary texts we have read as a class (in the case of a very short text, such as a sonnet, you may use two, but one works perfectly fine on its own).
- You’ll need to refine these questions. Some have multiple parts; some do not identify texts; some consider multiple authors. You need to narrow, narrow, narrow. If the text is large, such as Utopia, you’ll need to focus on a limited idea, or a character, or a section.
- Be specific. Refer to specific places in the texts and cite authors. It’s simply too general to say “the humanists thought…” Since these texts are fairly complicated, you will find it easiest to work with just one (or just one author).
- Please look the rubric over carefully. I will make very few comments on these reports—everything I’m looking for is clearly indicated on the rubric.
- At least 4 pages (full pages--3 1/4 pages is not 4 pages). Typed, standard fonts, margins, etc. Please number the pages.
- You need a Works Cited list, even if it includes just one work. Look here and here if you need a refresher on quotation, citation and Works Cited.
I encourage you to see me during office hrs. (or make an appointment) with any questions you might have. I’m happy to help. One especially tricky part of paper writing is to move from a “topic” (e.g., “the importance of books to Petrarch”) to an argument (“To Petrarch, books are more important to knowledge than sensory experience”). Discussing your ideas is a very useful way of making that move.
Oral Reports
The requirements are: 1) have an argument and support it with specific references to the text; 2) don’t read your report; 3) generate some discussion; 4) 12-15 minutes. The purpose of the presentation is to hear what you think and to engage the class. It’s best to state your argument early on. “The question is…; I think ….”
Some helpful tips: we have read the works, so no need to summarize. You might look closely at two or three passages in the text that support your view. To generate discussion, ask the class direct questions (prepare two or three in advance) that have multiple answers. For example: “Astrophil does a nice job identifying his flaws, but what might a Renaissance audience—or even a modern one—admire?” Ask the questions as you go: do not wait until the end. This is also true for recorded presentations: raise questions as you go. You can pause the video, listen and discuss the student responses, and then restart the video.
We won’t be looking for flawless presentation or polished rhetoric. I’ll be looking for an argument, evidence from the text (you may quote or just describe it) that supports your view, and an attempt to “problematize,” to raise questions about what the writer is saying or even about your own argument. Most days we'll need to get 4 in a period, so you MUST finish in 15 minutes.
The last (and best!) news is that your fellow students will be grading you. See the separate scorecard.
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