Handout on Notebooks

This semester, we'll do a simple reading log--collected four times: 

     Tuesday, February 18
     Monday, March 10
     Monday, April 14 
     Monday, May 12 (the last day of class)

Each of these will be worth 50 points.

By February 18, you should have read some Virginia Woolf, George Orwell,
James Baldwin.  Read enough of each to get a feel for what he/she is doing.

With Woolf, concentrate on that moth piece and "Professions for Women";
with Orwell, concentrate on either the Elephant piece or the hanging piece,
"Marrakech," and "Politics" (his big heavyweight essay that everybody thinks
is so fantastic); and take a look at Baldwin's first two essays (his two big
ones--maybe his only big ones), concentrating on the "Notes of a Native
Son."

By March 10, take a look at E.B. White, Joan Didion, Cynthia Ozick. 
(Look at most of White, Didion's first two essays and as much of "John
Wayne" as you can read; read Ozick's Snail piece and her Drugstore piece--
these get anthologized a lot.)  For E.B. White, the lake piece, the ring piece
and pig piece are standard readings.

By April 14, read Alice Walker (especially "In Search of Our Mothers'
Gardens"), the Mailer, Thomas, Bly, and Hoagland essays at the end.

By May 12, look at James McConkey, Forster, and find a couple of more
readings on your own.

*  *  *  *  *  *

This log is an exercise, not a punishment.  In your reading logs, you don't
need to tell me everything that happens in what you read, but you ought to
say something about your reading.  (Focus on what you think is important,
what you find useful, helpful, interesting about technique, method,
approach, vision.  Don't write down plots or outline essays.  Don't say the
style is "good" or "beautiful" or "boring" unless you explain why.  Don't say
the sentences "flow."  In fact, if you can't articulate it or don't try to
articulate it, I'll think you are copping out and I'll be very very disappointed
in you.  

Don't spend all your time analyzing the images in something or comparing
and contrasting characters in stories or finding themes or looking for
denouements or discovering symbols.  I don't want you claiming that you're
not "interested" or that someone is "not relevant" or that you "disagree."  

Stick to being insightful, clear, concise.  I don't want to read volumes of
stuff, but I want evidence that you read things and can  think about them
like a writer might think about them.

If you get stuck, think about subjects and verbs, transitions, moves that
sound nice, words that sound stupid, quirks, tics--things you could imitate or
parody or borrow.  Think about the ways writers mark time, tread water,
pace ideas.  Think about where writers begin and where they end.  Think
about how well writers bluff. (All writers bluff all the time.)  Think about
how well writers use their tools.  If you hate something, think about what
leads to you to hate it. (Usually that means getting beyond the "ideas.") 
Think about why and why not.  Make comparisons.

Got questions?
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