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Anti-Suffragist Propaganda & Response
I use this slideshow in conjunction with Susan Glaspell’s “A Jury of Her Peers.” The suffragists’ decision to base their argument around their roles as homemakers demonstrates excellent understanding of rhetorical strategy. I use their response to introduce the idea of strategic positionally, as presented in this slideshow.
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Jason Reynolds’ Commencement Address
This brilliant speech offers excellent examples of rhetorical technique. For starters, it is a counternarrative with a “yes, but…” or “agree, but with a difference” multi-layered thesis. Reynolds begins by identifying the standard “spread your wings,” trope of graduation speeches, affirms it, then makes it clear what it overlooks. Here is his “three-story thesis”: First…
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Ursula LeGuin’s “The Carrier Bag Theory”
LeGuin’s “The Carrier Bag Theory” is not only super interesting and pertinent for a writing studies course, but it’s the only short and relatively accessible narrative I could find that tackles the overall purpose and use of stories. However, the text is dense and far more “writerly” than my freshman are comfortable reading. If I…
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“How to Tame a Wild Tongue,” writing prompts
I use the quotes and prompts in these slides to help my students prepare to write their literacy narratives.
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The 3-story Thesis
I like Amy Guptill’s explanation of the “three story thesis” for concretizing the difference between a high-school level thesis and a college-level thesis. These slides review her examples and also break Ursula LeGuin’s “Carrier Bag Theory” thesis into three levels, since I introduced them to that around the same time. Some students prefer to practice identifying three-story…