Assignments for EWRT 1B3/31
Due April 6
Logs on Spaghetti and On a Leaf of Collard, Green
Log Question In both of these essays, the authors consider a food from their childhood and how it defines them or connects them to their families. Choose one of the essays and discuss what the writer discovers or reveals about him/herself or his/her family through the memories of the experiences with this one food.
Begin keeping record of food you eat
Essay #1
Draft Due April 13
Final Due April 18
Think about experiences in your life involving food—memorable meals, pleasant or unpleasant childhood memories, unusual experiences with cooking or eating, holiday food, experiences with fasting or hunger, growing or buying food.
Write a narrative essay. Why would you want to tell someone about your experience? Why would someone want to read about it? What is it about this experience that makes it memorable or signficant? What purpose could you have for this narrative? Does it illustrate some point? Do you want to compare your experience to some other experience? Did your experience cause something or was it the effect of something? In your essay, use your experience to make a larger point about something—food, family, traditions, values, society. Try to compose a narrow, specific thesis. In narrative essays the thesis may not be at the beginning, but there should be some point and purpose guiding your decisions about content, organization, and style.
Due April 11
Logs on The Quest for Pie, Meat, St. Joseph's Bread, Soups
The Quest for Pie
Dorris, like Moore, associates pie with childhood memories and uses it as a symbol or metaphor. Which of these essays do yo prefer? Why? Consider the style, tone, organization, and content.
Meat
What themes/ ideas does Tisdale associate with meat? Identify a few images from her descriptions that capture these themes. How do you respond to these images? What do they make you think about? Feel?
St. Joseph’s Bread
Who is the audience for Simeti’s essay? Why does she want to tell them about St. Joseph’s bread? What does she want them to understand, to realize?
Soups
Like “St. Joseph’s Bread” “Soups” conveys culinary and historical information about a particular food. How is the content of Grigsen’s essay different from Simeti’s? How are their purposes and audience’s different?
Record of food you've eaten in the last week is due.
Due April 13
Draft of Essay #1--Food Memory
Due April 18
Final Draft of Essay #1
Due April 25
Possible Topics for Research Paper
Bring Like Water for Chocolate to class
Due April 27
Readings and logs for the following essays from Slice of Life
The Pleasures of Eating, p. 405
Wendell Berry asks his readers to “eat responsibly” and to recognize that “eating is an agricultural act.” Why does Berry argue for these changes in people’s behavior? What does he think will be the results of such a change in outlook and behavior?
Vegging Out, p. 302
Steingarten says the “Mother Nature never wanted us to become strict and unyielding vegetarians.” What evidence does he have for his position? Is his evidence convincing? Why or why not?
A Plea for Culinary Modernism: Why We Should Love Modern, Fast, Processed Food, p. 289
Laudan argues that “modern, fast, processed” food should not be eliminated from our lives. She compares modern life with more ancient societies as a way to support her argument. Why does she think that ancient methods of food production are not always better than modern ways? What reasons does she give in support of modern food production?
Due May 2
Draft of Essay #2
Due May 4
Final Version of Essay #2
Log Assignments for Processed Food Readings
Due May 4
- Choose “Vatican Council Backs Genetically Modified Foods on Moral Grounds” or “Myths and Facts about Processed Foods” and anaylze the article’s credibility. Identify the organization responsible for the article and describe their goals and interests. (You may need to go online to find more information about these sources). Can you detect any biases in the choice of evidence, the way the evidence is presented or the wording? How does the source relate to any of the essays we’ve already read in A Slice of Life?
2.“The McNugget Truth in the Lawsuits Against Fast-Food Restaurants” raises the issue of personal responsibility for food choices. Do any of the other articles or essays we have read also raise that issue? What is the difference between the two author’s points of view? What is your opinion on the issue?
- How would the author of “A Plea for Culinary Modernism” respond to the author of “Back to Great Grandma’s Cooking”? Pick out some of Tudge’s major points and use quotes from Laudan to argue against his view.
Due May 9 or 11
- In “Grandma’s Table” Yarbrough describes a particular kind of diet/culture from the 1950s and 1960s in the Mississippi Delta and then describes how it changed. What are the differences between the “old” food and the “new”? In what way is each better or worse?
May 9-11
Conferences--Bring completed Research Paper Topic Worksheet
May 16
Essay #3 Assignment
Write an essay that makes a point about processed foods or any of the related issues. Your essay should have the following:
A narrow, precise, meaningful thesis
Unified, coherent paragraphs that use topic sentences
Supporting material from the essays or articles we’ve read
At least one quote AND one paraphrase from the articles and essays
The supporting material must be properly introduced or identified. You do NOT need to document the source material for this essay. You should use at least two of the articles or essays in your paper.
Final Draft of Essay #3
May 18
Log Assignments for Slice of Life Readings
Due May 18
“Naturally,” p. 153
“In Memory’s Kitchen,” p. 27
“Our Daily Bread,” p. 259
For one or all of these readings, do the following:
Summarize the article making sure the summary contains the thesis and supporting points.
Describe the kinds of evidence the writer uses to support his or her point. Where does the evidence come from? Does it seem relevant, appropriate, reliable? Is there some other kind of evidence that might be provided that would improve the argument?
Explain the “so what?” of the article. Why does the writer want to tell about this topic? What does he or she hope to accomplish?
May 25
Draft of Research Paper
June 8
Final Draft of Research Paper
June 13
Finished Reading Like Water for Chocolate
Logs Due
Log Questions for Like Water for Chocolate
You may do all four of these logs.
1. How do the recipes add to and relate to the plot? Would the book be the same without the recipes at the beginning of each chapter? Give some specific examples to support your answer.
2. In what ways is Tita an admirable character? In what ways is she not? Give specific examples from the book to support your response.
3. This novel includes many fantasy elements—for example, Tita’s birth and death, Gertrude’s leaving of the ranch, the appearances of Nacha, and many more. How do these elements improve the novel or detract from it?
4. Why do you think this novel is so popular?
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