Week 5

Mon., Feb. 12

From Classic Fairy Tales

Wed., Feb 14: Class dismissed

Fri., Feb 16

From Classic Fairy Tales:

Week 6

Prompt for Critical Response (look for your name and respond to that prompt)

Describe some of the transformations and explain the significance of those transformations associated with the transformer (the toy) metaphor Yang uses in American Born Chinese. (Be sure to discuss both images and words)

In a blog, Yang writes the following: "There is always the danger, of course, that by making a comic book about Cousin Chin-Kee I'm helping to perpetuate him, that readers - especially younger readers - will take his appearance in American Born Chinese at face value. I think it's a danger I can live with. In order for us to defeat our enemy, he must first be made visible" (http://www.firstsecondbooks.com/authors/geneYangBlogMain.html). How does he make "the enemy" visible, and thus fight that enemy in American Born Chinese? (Be sure to discuss both images and words)

Jin describes the transformer as "more than meets the eye." Explain the significance of that description. (Be sure to discuss both images and words)

Roberta Trites, quoting Robyn Wiegman, writes that race and gender are "too often determined by an 'epistemology of the visual': we define race and gender in terms of physical appearance" (Trites, Disturbing the Universe 47). Considering that graphic novels rely on the visual, how does that play out in American Born Chinese? (Be sure to discuss both images and words)

Discuss how Yang both subverts and reinforces ideas regarding racial stereotypes in American Born Chinese. (Be sure to discuss both images and words)

Wed., Feb 21 American Born Chinese

Fri., Feb 23 American Born Chinese

Week 7

Week 8

Week 9

Prompt for Critical Response (look for your name and respond to that prompt):

One could say that Pinocchio learns a great deal about being human and about the world. Explain what Pinocchio learns about humans and the world, including the positive things and things that aren't so positive. What do you make of this?

Consider the roles authority figures play in Pinocchio. Discuss the positive roles and the roles wherein authority figures aren't as reliable as we would want them to be. What do you make of this?

One might think that Pinocchio provides lessons that children shouldn't lie. However, it's not as easy or straightforward as that, for Geppetto lies as does the Blue Fairy (a lot!). Discuss some situations when Pinocchio is punished for lying, but also discuss when he is rewarded for lying. What does this seem to suggest?

There is some irony involved that we have a puppet in Pinocchio, who would supposedly be controlled by a puppet master and strings, but there are no strings attached. (In other words, we don't see anyone "pulling" his strings, making him act the way he does.) Discuss how Pinocchio is ultimately controlled (by his culture, by desires, by guilt, whatever). Does that make him a human? A puppet? Or something else? (Is this a story about punishment and conformity?)

Wed., March 14 Pinocchio

Fri., March 16 Pinocchio

Week 10

Week 11

Prompt for Critical Response (look for your name and respond to that prompt):

Describe the narrator's and/or Mary's attitudes regarding India and England. Is one place valued over the other? You might also consider things such as Mary's experiences in India versus her experiences in England. What might be the significance of these attitudes?

Lissa Paul reads Mary's quest in The Secret Garden as "a thwarted story of independence [. . .]" and that Mary learns "to be a follower not a leader, learning that winning selfhood means losing self" (197). That is, she believes that Mary has done all of the work, but ultimately, Colin reaps the rewards, and what begins as Mary's story ends as Colin's story. Further, some critics believe that Mary "loses her spirit" in the last third of the novel. What evidence can you find that supports these ideas? What evidence would suggest that the critics aren't seeing the whole picture?

In what ways might Mary's secret garden be similar to the Garden of Eden? How might it differ? What might be the significance of the similarities and differerences?

Discuss how the garden might represent Mary's approaching awareness of sex and sexuality.

Wed., March 28 The Secret Garden,

Fri., March 30 The Secret Garden,

Week 12

Week 13

As you figure out the irony, It might be helpful to set up a chart that looks something like this:

What we're told The Reality What, then, is the ideology?
The community values "precision of language" (89). Provide examples of this. The community doesn't value "precision of language" for they rely heavily on euphemisms (identify those euphemisms and how they're used). In other words, what is privileged? What's the point of these euphemisms?

 

Week 14

Week 15

Week 16

Week 17