Blog Post 1
~Use the label blogpost1 in your post~ ! Labels can be set on the right side menu.
By now, you should have read and discussed in class "The Method" (WA 26-32). Despite the fact that this strategy may sound like an instrument of a dystopian society, it can be very helpful in approaching texts in a productive and analytical way.
By now, you should have read and discussed in class "The Method" (WA 26-32). Despite the fact that this strategy may sound like an instrument of a dystopian society, it can be very helpful in approaching texts in a productive and analytical way.
For your first Blog Post, you will perform "The Method" on Miller's article, "Fresh Hell." Write down your work for each step and then post it on the blog.
1. List at least two repetitions from Miller's article. Pay special attention to stronger words that carry substantive meaning or interesting connotations.
2. List at least one strand from Miller's article. This may have some overlap with your repetitions. Also indicate what connects these words together (i.e. polite, courteous, and decorous might fall under the label manners.)
3. List at least one binary from Miller's article.
4. Choose one repetition, strand, or binary from your list above and write a 2-3 sentences explaining a) why this concrete detail is significant and b) its significance in relation to the whole.
Example: In James Baldwin's article "If Black English Isn't a Language, Tell Me, What Is?" the strand of words "submerged/beaten/whipped/dangerous/fatal" appears. These words are all associated with violent acts. This is significant because it establishes a pattern of violent imagery in the article.
5. You've established a significant pattern in step four. Now identify an anomaly - something that doesn't fit the pattern. This could be a previously unseen binary.
Example: A notable pattern in Baldwin's article is the violent imagery he uses. However, the article's central topic is about language development, dialect, and education. The thrust of his article, then, comes from the associations he draws between the evolution of American dialect and the violence of slavery. In pairing these disparate elements together, Baldwin insinuates that there is a violence to the way we form and use language that is always linked to the social problems in a culture.
