Paper #1 Assignment Sheet

Hi, friends. Here is assignment sheet for Paper #1. Have fun!

Reading and Listening for This Snowy Week

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Hi, friends.

Long time no see! Obviously, because we haven't seen each other for a week, we will be pushing conferences back-- WE WILL MEET ON FRIDAY.

In light of the classes we've missed, I'll be doing some restructuring to make sure you get the time you deserve to work on Paper #1-- I'll be introducing it on Friday. If you have any questions, feel free to get in touch.

In the meantime, please read Daley's take on vocal performance in Bob Dylan's 1965 recording of "Like a Rolling Stone", and respond on your blog.  I know this song is neither rap nor country-- I did that on purpose. It would be great if you could get this done by Friday, as you'll have additional homework over the weekend, but because this is going up a day late, you post your response NO LATER THAN MONDAY 2/2.

You'll want to listen to the recording in question, linked below.

See you all on Friday, snow-free and healthy!
Anna

Class Activities for 1-23: Make Your Own Playlist

Hi, friends,

So sorry that I had to cancel class today due to my illness. Hopefully I'll be all healed up next time we see one another!

Instead of coming to class, please create a four song-playlist of songs that, in Barthes' words "desire you" (you may focus on a single genre or mix it up) and post it on your blog. For each song, please write at least one sentence answering the following questions:

1. What is it about this song that "desires you"?
2. What are the selective "screens and baffles" of style, culture, or message that pull you to this song?
3. What is noteworthy about the song's historical and or/cultural context?
4. Who wrote/performed the song and why does it matter?

Please post the playlist and annotations to your blog by the end of class time-- this will serve as your participation and attendance for today.

I'll hold off on introducing the paper until Tuesday. Keep your eyes open for the reading roundup and weekly playlist to be posted later today.

See you Tuesday!
Anna

In-Class Reading and Listening 1-20

Hi, friends,

Today we'll listen to these songs in class:


We'll also be using Wikipedia's Glossary of Literary Terms, paying special attention to the following terms:

-Allegory
-Allusion
-Analogy
-Apology
-Archetype
-Ballad
-Bildungrsoman
-Close Reading
-Conceit
-Context
-Criticism
-Dialect
-Discourse
-Epithet
-Euphemism
-Figurative Language
-Hagiography
-Hyperbole
-Imagism
-Intertextuality
-Lyric
-Morality Play
-Pathos
-Post-colonialism
-Psychoanalytic Theory
-Refrain
-Semiotics
-Simile
-Soliloquy
-Symbolism
-Verism
-Voice


Go team!

Barthes Update

Hi, friends

So sorry that the Barthes link was not looking. BECAUSE OF THIS, YOU WON'T HAVE TO TURN IN THE RESPONSE TILL FRIDAY. If you've done it already-- great! If not, I understand, and we'll hold off on discussing it till you've all hard the chance.

HERE is the updated link. Tomorrow, I'll just expect your playlist response.

Anna

Reading: Barthes' Ideas about Text

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Dear friends, for next class, please read this excerpt from Rolande Barthes' "The Pleasures of the Text" and write a 250-word blog response.

In particular, please consider in your response how Barthes' ideas might (or might not) be applied to "reading" music as a "text".  Another, deeper consideration-- are both country and hip hop "texts" in the same sense, or in different senses? Tackle that only if you want.

This Week's Playlist: From 1993 on Forward

Hi, friends! Here's this week's playlist. Please write a 250-word response to ONE of these songs based on the close listening heuristic you developed in class. You'll notice the Garth Brooks song is from Grooveshark, just below the Spotify list. Have fun!


 

Introduction Letter Instructions

I'd also like for you to write to me an email of introduction (due Friday). I'm looking forward to talking to each of you one-on-one, but this helps get the ball rolling.

Please write me a carefully proofread, paragraphed letter introducing yourself in relationship to the course topic and goals. Skip the basic personal stuff since we'll do that in class, and try and answer these questions:

• What (if any) are your personal writing goals for this course?
• What (if any) are your scholarly writing goals for this course?
• What (if any) are your professional writing goals for this course?
• What are your feelings about the course topic and title? 
• Do you have any preexisiting experience or hold any preexisting opinions related to the course topic?
• What are five questions about writing that you'd like to answer over the course of the semester?
• What are five questions about the course topic that you'd like to answer over the course of the semester?

Finally, please create your Blogger Blog, and share the URL with me at the end of this email.

Thanks for your patience during all of this start-up stuff! We'll get into the swing of things as quickly as we everly can.

Anna

Reading Response Instructions

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For each reading assignment you read in this course, you'll need to write a minimum 250 word blog response.

So long as the writing is properly polished and proofread with complete sentences, clear thoughts, and proper mechanics, you may write whatever you like concerning the reading in question. Sometimes that may mean summarizing a particularly sticky essay, other times it may mean expressing your original thinking about it, or relating it to your own life experience. I may also offer some questions to consider along with specific reading assignments. You may discuss these in your blog entry, but it is not required.

In any case, the purpose of these responses is to: 

a) Hold you accountable for completing reading assignments 

b) Help you to chew on each reading assignment by responding to it in your own words.

Again, you will turn in the reading responses by posting them to your blog by class time on designated discussion date.  Have fun!

Reading Roundup: Close Listening

Friends, here is the roundup of resources we'll be using to guide our discussion of "close listening".

I'm also interested in talking about how "close listening" is similar to (and different from) "close reading", and how each can inform the other.

We'll start out exploration of close listening by reviewing Mystery Tricycle's instructions for developing a "listening heuristic".

We'll watch Evelyn Glennie's TED Talk, "How to Truly Listen", which models some great close listening techniques.
Finally, we'll be following Salford University researcher James Thirkettle's fantastic new blog, "How Do You Listen to Music?".

Please review each of these resources, and write a 250 word blog post that discusses your own perspective on listening, and that references each of the resources in some way.