They have the same sort of worth only as horses and dogs.

HD Thoreau: creative use of neck hair

Hello, everyone. Let’s start with something fun and something grammar-y, uncomfortably combined.

One of my favorite critics–Sam Anderson–takes down Dan Brown.  Let’s read it first and talk a bit about the style and argument. Then, we’ll try to look at the sentences, marvel at the extreme use of colons, and try to write our own using the same structure. Go here for that.

Then, we’ll take a look at Civil Disobedience by Henry David Thoreau. Read the first part (the first 13 paragraphs, stopping at the paragraph that begins “It is not a man’s duty”) and answer the following questions in a blog post.

1. Comment on the first paragraph. What would you call the claim of his argument? How does he use the Mexican War as support for this?
2. In paragraph two, identify a rhetorical strategy and then explain a possible reason behind Thoreau’s use of that strategy.
3. Identify the basic logical claim-warrant-fact/backing process in this essay? What is the chain of logic that Thoreau attempts to establish? What assumptions does make about his audiences beliefs, their commonplaces.
4. What obstacles does Thoreau face in terms of kairos? How does Thoreau attempt to deal with them?
5. How would you characterize Thoreau’s persona? Give an example from the text that shows him constructing it. Explain how this persona does or does not aid Thoreau’s purposes.
6. Note the use of framing (especially in paragraph 11). Explain what frame Thoreau constructs and how/why he does.
7. Thoreau believes that people should not participate in injustice but that they do not have to actively promote a more just world. What is the difference between these two concepts, and why does Thoreau make this moral distinction?

After a break, we’ll look at the college essays and talk a bit about what makes a good college essay. See this set of advice:

• Here is the advice from The College Board.
• Here are the most popular College Essays from TeenInk.
• Good Example of essays that worked
• All College essays should…
• Here is some advice from a admissions admin.
• Do these things even work?
• And if all else fails, write this essay.

After getting a writing buddy, we’ll start putting together our essays in class.

HW: First draft of college essay due printed