English 1B
Sept. 15, 2009
Today we watched the film, Piece by Piece. Write a minimally 3-paragraph essay about graffiti culture. What is graffiti and how is it emblematic of hip hop culture (clue: define hip hop culture).
What do the graf movement in San Francisco and New York share and where do the two depart? Make sure you define graffiti art from the perspective of the “crews” and the civic officials who perhaps do not like this art form. Talk about the legality of this art form. Are there any historic parallels. Are there any other instances where "the artist" was considered an outlaw?
The art form has a unique language. Do you recall any of those words? Define them in your essay.
Other Homework
Other homework is to identify analogies, consequences, testimony and definitions in the essay: The Politics of Graffiti.
Note: We have a library orientation on Tuesday, Sept. 22, 9 AM. We will meet in the library at the desks. Bring your questions about potential research essays.
Piece by Piece
http://www.kqed.org/arts/programs/trulyca/episode.jsp?epid=192903
Piece by Piece documents the history of San Francisco's controversial graffiti art movement, with a fast-paced journey into the world of San Francisco street art, as seen through the eye of the artists. Chronicling more than 20 years of creation and destruction -- honestly, accurately, and critically, the film takes you alongside those who lived in what is arguably one of the most influential youth cultures of our time.
San Francisco's graffiti style arose in the period from 1983 to 1993. Piece by Piece starts by documenting what laid the groundwork for today's Bay Area graffiti: "Cholo" writing and the impact of PBS's 1983 documentary, Style Wars. The film includes not only San Francisco's graffiti originals, but also commentary from noted New York "writers" such as Seen, Cope 2, and Case 2. It also covers the tragedy of Dream One, a San Francisco graffiti pioneer and a vocal figurehead in Bay Area urban welfare activism.
From 1993 to 2000, San Francisco became an international magnet for ground-breaking graffiti styles yet to be seen in other parts of the world. The film elaborates on what it takes to establish credibility among the graffiti community, featuring classic works from KR and the horses of Reminisce; and documenting the creative expression of these and other "writers." The film also features well-known graffiti artists such as Grey, Buter, Joro, Norm, and Barry McGee (Twist).
While graffiti is largely considered an underground movement, it's no secret that this art form has provoked a huge response from everyday citizens. The final segment of Piece by Piece explores the wide range of public opinion towards graffiti by giving a voice to the citizens of San Francisco and the law enforcement officers who claim to represent their interests. The film also captures the artists' heartfelt confessions of their love of and addiction to graffiti art and typographic lettering, as well as their social activism, and the short life span of their works.
[Original air date: Sun, Feb 10, 2008]
Filmmaker Profiles: Nic Hill, director/editor of Piece by Piece.
Nic Hill graduated from the University of San Francisco's Media/Film Studies program, where he studied communication/media theory and documentary filmmaking. He was an assistant producer on various short films for San Francisco director Melinda Stone. His 2003 short film Diet took Best in Show at the Mira Costa DV Festival in San Diego. He currently lives and works in San Francisco as a director and editor, and is directing a feature length documentary about Wikipedia.
See http://www.piecebypiecemovie.com/site.htm
Piece by Piece: Crew & Credits
Directed by: Nic Hill
Coordinating Producers
Ed Walker Jr.
Tom Quickel
Noah Tsusui
Editors
Nic Hill
John Murillo
Assistant Editor
Adam Hazard
Narrator
Senor One
Cinematography & Audio
Nic Hill
John Murillo
Vu Pham
Mike Mattson
Noah Tsutsui
Caroline Cho
One Werd
Mike Tran
Susan Ali
Sect
Joey Alone
Devon Huges
Akasha Rabut
16mm
David Stucky
Justin Lawrence
Chris Osborn
Graphic Design
Brishen Mahoney
Mike Tran
Damon Anderson
Adam Hazard
Titles & Motion Graphics
Adam Hazard
Credits
Chris Sanchez
Technical Assistance
Noah Tsutsui
Nixon Hazard
Audio Mastering
Dominique C. Toulon
@ Capp Studios
Videography
Jason Gigs Ed Walker
Norm Demon Dement
Check Awe Diet
Giant Maseo Eskae
Deen Twick Skrag
Crayone Igni Vegan
Gigs Jorone Estria
Vogue Apex Sibl
Skrag K2 Tryal
Kasper Phresk Gabe
Krupt Renos Haze
Nate DJ Rise Brock
Neon Shady Essec
Heis Lanes Abhor
Norm Reyes Asia
Shuman Orfn Bles
Jason Vaughn Charo
Malicios Mischief
Josolin Superstar
Patrick Nelson Barnes
BayAreaGraffiti.com
Contributing Writers
Alone India Cope2
Ader Erupto K2
Estria Cyme Krupt
Vogue Kode MQ
Skew Dalex Dement
Renos Sac Eskae
Bisaro The MUNI Deat
Chief Bus Hoppers
Fury Diet BST
Heis Doper Pastime
Kasper Rolex Naka
Orfin Dare Werd
Oven King Yern
Sect Delux Bask2
Seen Nez Onset
Skrag Apex Tryal
Awe Iz the Wiz Case2
Breakdancers
BeatsNpieces Crew
Thanks to
My family -- for the support
Deen TMF -- for the trust
Sean -- good lookin out
All the writers who put it down in the bay
FE, ETC, 2SR5, 340
Dr. Melinda Stone
Shelby Ulibarri Dr. Kidd
Katie Argurie Anni Tran
John Rogers Nick Nack
Niles Tucker Tin
Nixon Hazard Sarah Quickel
Slick Ricky Sherri Brenner
Gibran soto USF Media Lab
Jake Kozel Jennifer Morgan
Niko Coucouvanis
The Mac Addict Staff
FTC
Thank you to Society
Sergeant Nevel, SFPD
BART Police
James Prigoff
DJ Qbert
The people of San Francisco
KTVU Channel 2 news
Found Footage
Internet Archive (at archive.org)
"Boy in Court"
"Act Your Age"
"Vandalism"
"Saint Paul"
Music Contribution
"War Night"
by A.A. Kertz
"Untitled"
"Untitled"
by TD Camp
"Razorblade Alcohol Slide"
"Invasion of the Octopus People"
by DJ Qbert
"Lit Up and Protruding"
by Electric Company
"Off the Block"
by R Clothing & Music
"You Just Don't Understand"
by Kid 606
"Silly", "Havana", "Take Over"
by Archetect
"Catharsis"
by All Bets Off
"Bad Bender"
by B Student
"A.C.P.P.F.G.", "Trapture"
by Ika Dry (Gus & Dryhump)
"Straight Outta Frisco"
by D-Styles
"Electosynthesis"
by Bas1
TMF Section
"Untitled"
by Unknown
"Cleanrok"
by rundown
"H.T.s Mist"
"Interrupted Silence"
by Josh Hertel
"Are You With Me"
"That's How It Was"
by Ink One for Bhrn Poppie Music
"SF Mafia"
by Angelo Shadik
"Random Thought"
by Kool DJ Rize
"Evacuate"
by Baligerance
"Untitled"
by Wash House Music
"Untitled"
by Morgan Tucker
"Untitled"
by Dystopia
"West Side," "Misbehaving," and "SlooShea"
by Chris Fox
"Roko"
by Crayone
"Move to the Left"
by Board Stiff
"Lost"
by Crash Faster
"Lil J Says Wus Up"
by Equipto
"San Francisco Knights"
"Slow Bullet"
by The People Under the Stairs
"Taste Your Own Medicine"
"Population Birth Control"
Dystopia
"Fifteen"
by Stab1
written/produced by Jason Foote
"DWA"
by TOPR
written/produced by
Dick Nasy & Bootleg
"White Film"
by Tujiko Noriko
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
Thursday, September 10, 2009
Dyson Essay in Class Cyber-Post
Today in small groups and as individuals students discussed the essay: Dyson & Hurt in groups: Identified 5 key arguments numbered them & the evidence. Developed 5 thesis sentences. Wrote a 3-4 paragrpagh essay--incorporated 1 paraphrase, 1 direct quote, 1 block quote (in that order) and post here on the blog.
This is homework now due by sundown (7:30 PM)--if you have to post it later, that's fine. Get it in before Friday evening.
List the names of the group, so everyone can get credit for the assignment. Students need to come to class with the reading completed in advance, the article annotated.
This is homework now due by sundown (7:30 PM)--if you have to post it later, that's fine. Get it in before Friday evening.
List the names of the group, so everyone can get credit for the assignment. Students need to come to class with the reading completed in advance, the article annotated.
We Can't Bomb the World into Peace
Homework is to read the article: Craig Castleman's "The Politics of Graffiti." Bring in an annotated copy and be prepared to respond to a question connected to the reading. We will watch a classic film entitled: Style Wars. It is a long film, bring coffee. Thursday, I will show you another film about Bay Area Graffiti scene. The essay related to this genre will be due October 6-8.
Read pp. 33-51 in Chaos.
Read pp. 33-51 in Chaos.
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
Assignment Due Dates this Semester
Assignment Due Dates this Semester
Unlike classes in the past, this semester I am trying something new, besides looking at the global reach of hip hop and key stakeholders beginning with women in hip hop, students will make several short presentations for each unit. In each unit the student has to indentify one artist who is representative of the genre discussed and use their life and work as emblematic of the core values, themes and aesthetics of the art form. Again, for each essay take a free write which you have posted and expand ideas already explored, the idea is not to write an entirely different essay, but to reflect more deeply on ideas already shared perhaps in hast. It is also an opportunity to do more research to sharpen or strengthen your position. Students will write and present 3-4 essays from the list below. (If you like one of the extra credit topics better, we can talk about your swapping it for one of the seven listed below.)
Each research essay is 3-4 pages long, not including the works cited. Include 1 direct citation, 1 free paraphrase, and 1block quote in each essay—three citations in total:
Presentations and Essays
1. Women in Hip Hop with a side-bar on Hyper-Masculinity: October 1
2. The Graf or Writing Movement, October 6 essay is due for peer review, Oct. 8presentation
3. Dance or Bi-boying, Bi-Girling, October 13 essay/15 presentation
4. DJing, Oct. 20 essay/22 presentation
5. MC or Poet/Rapper Oct. 27/29 writing workshop, Nov. 3 presentation
6. Nov. 5/10 Project reports in small groups
7. Nov. 12/17 Fiction presentations
8. Extra credit projects: Hip Hop as a Global Movement, Hip Hop Theatre, Hip Hop Spirituality, Hip Hop Visual Artists
End of semester.
Revision workshop—11/19…portfolio narratives begun in class. Posted by 11/20
Announcement
M1 of Dead Prez is in town this month. He will be talking about his trip to Gaza with the Hon. Cynthia McKinney, former Congresswoman and Green Party Presidential nominee. I will post the flier later
Unlike classes in the past, this semester I am trying something new, besides looking at the global reach of hip hop and key stakeholders beginning with women in hip hop, students will make several short presentations for each unit. In each unit the student has to indentify one artist who is representative of the genre discussed and use their life and work as emblematic of the core values, themes and aesthetics of the art form. Again, for each essay take a free write which you have posted and expand ideas already explored, the idea is not to write an entirely different essay, but to reflect more deeply on ideas already shared perhaps in hast. It is also an opportunity to do more research to sharpen or strengthen your position. Students will write and present 3-4 essays from the list below. (If you like one of the extra credit topics better, we can talk about your swapping it for one of the seven listed below.)
Each research essay is 3-4 pages long, not including the works cited. Include 1 direct citation, 1 free paraphrase, and 1block quote in each essay—three citations in total:
Presentations and Essays
1. Women in Hip Hop with a side-bar on Hyper-Masculinity: October 1
2. The Graf or Writing Movement, October 6 essay is due for peer review, Oct. 8presentation
3. Dance or Bi-boying, Bi-Girling, October 13 essay/15 presentation
4. DJing, Oct. 20 essay/22 presentation
5. MC or Poet/Rapper Oct. 27/29 writing workshop, Nov. 3 presentation
6. Nov. 5/10 Project reports in small groups
7. Nov. 12/17 Fiction presentations
8. Extra credit projects: Hip Hop as a Global Movement, Hip Hop Theatre, Hip Hop Spirituality, Hip Hop Visual Artists
End of semester.
Revision workshop—11/19…portfolio narratives begun in class. Posted by 11/20
Announcement
M1 of Dead Prez is in town this month. He will be talking about his trip to Gaza with the Hon. Cynthia McKinney, former Congresswoman and Green Party Presidential nominee. I will post the flier later
Syllabus
English 1B, Fall 2009
College of Alameda; Professor Wanda Sabir
Course code 43489, Room C-211 9-10:50 TTh
Class Meetings: August 20-Dec. 10; No classes: 9/7; 10/23; 11/11; 11/26-27
Final Exam: 8-10, Tuesday, Dec.15 (Portfolios due via e-mail)
Drop dates: Sept. 5 (w/refund), Sept. 19 (w/out a W), Nov. 25 (w/W).
Syllabus for English 1B: College Composition and Reading
English 1B is a transferable college writing course. It builds on the competencies gained in English 1A with a more careful and studied analysis of expository writing based on careful reading of selected plays, poems, novels, and short fiction.
Plan to have a challenging, yet intellectually stimulating 18 weeks, which I hope you begin by setting goals for yourself. Make a schedule and join or create a study group. Writing is a social activity, especially the type of writing you’ll be doing here. We always consider our audience, have purpose or reason to write, and use research to substantiate our claims, even those we are considered experts in.
We’re supposed to write about 8000 words or so at this level course. This includes drafts. What this amounts to is time at home writing, time in the library researching, reading documents to increase your facility with the ideas or themes your are contemplating, before you once again sit at your desk writing, revising, and writing some more.
Writing is a lonely process. No one can write for you. The social aspect comes into play once you are finished and you have an opportunity to share.
I thought it might be interesting this semester to look at the global reach of hip hop as we also look at how hip hop has influenced or perpetuated certain views of women. Byron Hurt directs a film, Hip Hop Beyond Beats and Rhymes, which looks at misogyny in hip hop culture. I am still trying to decide on what books we’ll use, so for the moment we will look at essays about genre from scholars and artists, to compare the personal with the theoretical. At each meeting we will listen to an artist or watch a film to analyze the work—is it fair to look at rap’s literary quality, minus the performance aspect? What happens when we take a song out of context?
As the weeks progress we will develop a list of the key architects of this genre. Why aren’t their names more well-known by contemporary fans? Does their absence from popular culture limit or change the nature of hip hop? What is this argument that hip hop is dead? Who is KRS-1 who calls himself “hip hop” and refers to the genre as a nation?
Keep a reading log. Discussion groups will meet each week. Students will also keep a reading log/journal/notes with key ideas outlined for each discussion section, along with vocabulary and key arguments listed, along with primary writing strategies employed: description, process analysis, narration, argument, cause and effect, compare and contrast, definition, problem solving.
Unlike classes in the past, this semester I am trying something new, besides looking at the global reach of hip hop and key stakeholders beginning with women in hip hop, students will make several short presentations for each unit: Women in Hip Hop with a side-bar on Hyper-Masculinity, the Graf or Writing Movement, Dance or Bi-boying, Bi-Girling, DJing, Fiction and the MC or Poet/Rapper.
Everyone will write an essay on each genre—a short 250 word response posted on the blog. The new twist is each student will have to choose four elements to expand into a longer paper to present to the class this semester. Each research paper will be between 3-4 pages long. We will toss the lower graded paper.
Everyone has to do fiction or poetry. It’s your choice. Independently, students need to read a hip-hop novel or a collection of poetry by a hip-hop artist and write a paper analyzing its merits and themes. This is your final essay and the first draft is due November 16, final draft due via email by Nov. 20 8 AM to professorwandasposse@gmail.com
We’ll work on your portfolios the following class. The portfolio is due by Wednesday, November 25 at 3 PM via email or on CD. There is no final the day of the final. Revisions need to be in by December 15 if necessary.
For each genre or element, students need to profile a person representative of the art form analyzed or critiqued. I would like for students to look for artists who are also social entrepreneurs, artists who use their work for social change, to better society—
Each essay needs to use at least 3-4 outside sources which should include at least one (1) scholarly article along with other material. Each essay should also include One (1) direct quote, one (1) free-paraphrase and one (1) block quote—one citation per page—no more, no less. Each essay also needs to include a works cited page and a bibliography. We will practice this in class. We will write many of the shorter essays in class or for homework. The task should be simple once students decide which four (4) elements they’d like to respond to in depth.
Midterm
There will be a midterm. We will probably look at a theme we’ve already discussed, perhaps the objectification of women in rap music and how this tendency is a by-product of a larger problem confronting American society. Students might be asked to bring in a song and an article to develop a position on the issue.
Another question might look at the history of rap and how it was defined fifty years ago and how it has evolved. Would the founding parents be proud or dismayed by its offspring? Remember the conversation a few years back about Hip Hop being dead?
I think we’ll look at poetry for our midterm question. We’ll analyze some of the poetry of some of the artists portrayed in The Spoken Word Revolution (slam, hip hop and the poetry of a new generation). There are some great programs happening at EastSide Arts Alliance this month students might want to check out. Visit www.eastsidearts.org
Also, this weekend Michael Franti’s Power to the Peaceful is Saturday, Sept.12, 9-5 in San Francisco at Golden Gate Park, Speedway Meadows, and on Sunday, Sept. 13, 10-7 at the Herbst Theatre. Visit http://powertothepeaceful.org/ It’s $5 but no one is turned away.
Hopefully the material we are covering will encourage you to leave your comfort zone and venture out to have primary experiences: attend concerts, performances, poetry readings. If any student wants to organize an outings let me know. If you hear of an event you think the class might enjoy let us know. The anniversary of Tupac’s killing is Sept.13, there might be something happening locally. Also, in Berkeley there is a production of Machiavelli's The Prince at the Berkeley City Club (2315 Durant Ave., (510) 848-7800). $14-$25 CentralWorks.org Ticket prices are: $14-$25 with shows Thursdays-Saturdays, 8 p.m., Sundays, 5 p.m. and Sat., Sept. 19, 5 p.m. Continues through Sept. 19. Visit http://www.eastbayexpress.com/events/machiavelli_s__i_the_prince__i_/ Event?oid=1179438 for a review.
Theatre
Next week there is a free production of San Francisco Mime Troupe’s current play at Laney College, Sept. 16, 6:30 (music), 7 p.m. (show). Visit http://www.sfmt.org/schedule/
Jot down briefly what your goals are this semester. List them in order of importance.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Presentation 1: Due Tuesday, Sept. 29
Bring in an object that represents the intersection between hip hop and American culture. How does the object signify a tradition older than itself—go deep and philosophical… while at the same time represent a progression into something fresh or new or is it all an illusion, a trend, hip hop culture just a cycle human-kind has cycled through before and will again—all that changes is the treads?
Be prepared to share. Write a brief profile on the object justifying its inclusion in the archives (100 words or so). You will post the written response on the blog. I’ll take photos.
Index Cards Sept. 14-24
Please list your contact information: Name, Address, phone number e-mail address, best time to call and the class you are in with time.
What strengths do you bring to the class? What do you hope to obtain from the course – any particular exit skills? What do I need to know about you to help you meet your goals
Assignment
Written Response to the Syllabus due next week either Sept. 22 or 24
Write a comment to me regarding the syllabus: your impressions, whether you think it is reasonable, questions, suggestions. This is our contract, I need to know you read it and understand the agreement.
Library Orientation
We will meet at the Library Tuesday, Sept.22, for the entire class meeting, 9-10:50 AM. Please arrive on time.
Grading
Blog essays and comments: 15 percent
Discussion Groups and Preparedness: 10 percent
Midterm: 15 percent
Research Essays/Presentation: 25 percent
Portfolio: 25 percent
Peer Reviews from Lab teachers/class aide (Dominique) or college tutor: 10 percent
The blog and in-class essays, which take their themes from the class: hip hop as global movement, hip hop and women, the aesthetics of hip hop, are practice essays, and are about a fourth of your grade, your midterm is another fourth with the peer reviews. The short research essays or expanded freewrites are another fourth. Your portfolio is the final chunk bringing the grand total to 100 percent! The portfolio is really just a compilation of your work this semester with two cover essays, each just one page in length. (Save all of your work.) I suggest students start a personal blog for the class and send me the link for your portfolio at the end of the course.
To encourage participation and for this students have to be prepared, I weighed the preparedness and participation strongly which means I will be taking notes when students do not do their homework. If you are in a group where students are pretending to be prepared when they are not, drop me an anonymous note.
I am not above the pop quiz on readings. Remember, this plan can change in a twinkling of the eye, if we find it isn’t working.
Writing Center
You will also need to plan to spend time weekly in the Writing Lab (L-234-235, 748-2132). It is a great place to get one-on-on assistance on your essays, from brainstorming and planning the essays, to critique on the essay for clarity, organization, clearly stated thesis, evidence of support, logical conclusions, and grammatical problems for referrals to other ancillary materials to build strong writing muscles such as SkillsBank, the Bedford Handbook on-line, Diana Hacker’s Rules for Writers on-line, Townsend Press, and other such computer and cyber-based resources. Call for hours. There is also an Open Lab for checking e-mail, and a Math Lab. All academic labs are located in the Learning Resource Center (LRC) or library.
Students have to enroll in LRNE 501 (Supervised Tutoring) Class Code: 43990. It is free and there no penalties. All it does is allow you to use the academic labs on campus. It takes 24-hours to kick in, so register now. Go to www.peralta.edu Click enroll now link. Click activate my account link… and follow the instructions to activate your account and set your password. The steps are too many to type here. If you have questions see Pat Denoncourt, LRC Coordinator, Rm. L204
The student ID is necessary to use the labs and to check out books. The IDs are free and you can take the photo in the F-Building, Student Services.
Have a tutor of teacher sign off on your essays before you turn them in; if you have a “R,” which means revision necessary for a grade or “NC” which means “no credit,” you have to go to the lab and revise the essay with a tutor or teacher before you return both the graded original and the revision (with signature) to me. Revise does not mean “rewrite,” it means to “see again.”
When getting assistance on an essay, the teacher or tutor is not an editor, so have questions prepared for them to make best use of the 15-20 minute session in the Lab. For more specific assistance sign up for one-on-one tutoring, another free service. For those of you on other campuses, you can get assistance at the Merritt Colleges’ Writing Center, as well as Laney’s.
All essay assignments you receive comments on have to be revised prior to resubmission; included with the revision is a student narrative to me regarding your understanding of what needed to be done; a student can prepare this as a part of the Lab visit, especially if said student is unclear over what steps to take.
Students can also visit me in office hours for assistance; again, prepare your questions in advance to best make use of the time. Do not leave class without understanding the comments on a paper. I don’t mind reading them to you.
English language fluency in writing and reading; a certain comfort and ease with the language; confidence and skillful application of literary skills associated with academic writing. Familiarity if not mastery of the rhetorical styles used in argumentation, exposition and narration will be addressed in this class and is a key student learning outcome (SLO).
We will be evaluating what we know and how we came to know what we know, a field called epistemology or the study of knowledge. Granted, the perspective is western culture which eliminates the values of the majority populations, so-called underdeveloped or undeveloped countries or cultures. Let us not fall into typical superiority traps. Try to maintain a mental elasticity and a willingness to let go of concepts which not only limit your growth as an intelligent being, but put you at a distinct disadvantage as a species.
This is a highly charged and potentially revolutionary process - critical thinking. The process of evaluating all that you swallowed without chewing up to now is possibly even dangerous. This is one of the problems with bigotry; it’s easier to go with tradition than toss it, and create a new, more just, alternative protocol.
Grades, Portfolio
We will be honest with one another. Grades are not necessarily an honest response to work; grades do not take into consideration the effort or time spent, only whether or not students can demonstrate mastery of a skill - in this case: essay writing. Grades are an approximation, arbitrary at best, no matter how many safeguards one tries to put in place to avoid such ambiguity. Suffice it to say, your portfolio will illustrate your competence. It will represent your progress, your success or failure this summer session in meeting your goal.
Office Hours
I’d like to wish everyone good luck. I am available for consultation on Monday mornings 9:30-10:30 a.m. , Wednesday 9:30-10:30 a.m., Wednesday afternoon 3 p.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays, if you want to take me to lunch—just kidding, I am available after 12 for appointments if you notify me in advance. All the office hours take place in my office, L-236. I am not on campus on Fridays. (Jot my cell number down in this section.) My office number is (510) 748-2131, e-mail professorwandasposse@gmail.com.
I am more a phone person than an email person, so you can call me if I don’t respond to an email. I do read your blog posts.
I’d encourage students to exchange phone numbers with classmates (2), so if you have a concern, it can be addressed more expediently when I am not available. Study groups are recommended, especially for those students finding the readings difficult; don’t forget, you can also discuss the readings as a group in the Lab with a teacher or tutor acting as facilitator. Dominique is hosting a study group on Thursdays, L-bldg., second floor, 12 noon to 1 p.m.
Keep a vocabulary log for the semester and an error chart (taken from comments on essay assignments). List the words you need to look up in the dictionary, also list where you first encountered them: page, book and definition, also use the word in a sentence. You will turn this in with your portfolio.
I do not expect students to confuse literal with free paraphrase (a literal paraphrase is plagiarism). Students should also not make confused word errors, sentence fragment errors, comma splice errors, subject verb agreement errors, errors in parallel structure, subject verb agreement errors, MLA citations errors, errors with ellipses, formatting an essays—margins, headings, etc. If you are not clear on what I mean, I suggest you run through Stewart Pidd Hates English. It is on reserve in the library.
Students are expected to complete their work on time. If you need more time on an assignment, discuss this with me in advance if possible to keep full credit, also certain assignments, such as in-class essays cannot be made up. All assignments prepared outside of class are to be typed, 12-pt. font, double-spaced lines, indentations on paragraphs, 1-inch margins around the written work (see Hacker: The Writing Process; Document Design.)
Cheating
Plagiarism is ethically abhorrent, and if any student tries to take credit for work authored by another person the result will be a failed grade on the assignment and possibly a failed grade in the course if this is attempted again. This is a graded course.
Homework
If you do not identify the assignment, I cannot grade it. If you do not return the original assignment you revised, I cannot compare what changed. If you accidentally toss out or lose the original assignment, you get a zero on the assignment to be revised. I will not look at revisions without the original attached – no exceptions. Some student essays will be posted on-line at the website. Students will also have the option of submitting assignments via email.
All assignments completed away from class should be typed. Use blue or black ink when writing responses in class. You can annotate your books in pencil.
Textbooks:
Total Chaos: The Art and Aesthetics of Hip Hop. Ed. Jeff Chang. Basic Civitas Books, 2006. ISBN: 10: 0-465-00909-3 (I’m thinking about this book.)
The Spoken Word Revolution (slam, hip hop & the poetry of a new generation). Ed. Mark Eleveld. Sourcebooks MediaFusion, 2004. ISBN: 1-4022-0246-6.
Students also need a dictionary. I recommend: The American Heritage Dictionary. Fourth Edition.
Recommended:
Can’t Stop, Won’t Stop: A History of the Hip Hop Generation. Jeff Chang. Picador, 2005. ISBN: 0-312-42579-1
Know What I Mean? Reflections on Hip Hop. Michael Eric Dyson. Basic Civitias Books, 2007. ISBN: 0-465-017716-9 (I am making copies of certain chapters).
Black Noise: Rap Music and Black Culture in Contemporary America. Tricia Rose. Wesleyan Press, 1994.
The Africanist Aesthetic in Global Hip Hop: Power Moves. Halifu Osumare. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2008.
Fiction
Students have to chose a work of fiction to read on their own to present later in class. There is a written and an oral aspect to this assignment.
The Coldest Winter Ever. Sister Souljah. Simon & Schuster. 2006.
http://www.simonsays.com/content/book.cfm?tab=1&pid=514298&er=9781416521693
Angry Black White Boy or The Miscegenation of Macon Detornay. Adam Mansbach. Crown/Three Rivers Press, 2005.
The Brief Wondrous Times of Oscar Wao. Junot Díaz. Penguin, 2007.
Interesting article
http://www.libsuccess.org/index.php?title=Urban_Fiction/Street_Lit/Hip_Hop_Fiction_Resources_for_Librarians
Students need a grammar style book. You don’t have to purchase mine, but you need something comparable.
Rules for Writers. Fourth or Fifth edition. Diana Hacker. Bedford/St. Martins. (If you don’t already have such a book.)
Elements of Style (any edition)
Additional Items
Along with a dictionary, the prepared student needs pens with blue or black ink, along with a pencil for annotating texts, paper, a stapler or paper clips, floppy disks, a notebook, three hole punch, a folder for work-in-progress, and a divided binder to keep materials together.
Also stay abreast of the news. Buy a daily paper. Listen to alternative radio:
KPFA 94.1 FM (Hardknock), KQED 88.5, KALW 91.7. Visit news websites: AllAfrica.com, Al Jazeera, CNN.com, AlterNet.org, DemocracyNow.org, FlashPoints.org, CBS 60Minutes.
College of Alameda; Professor Wanda Sabir
Course code 43489, Room C-211 9-10:50 TTh
Class Meetings: August 20-Dec. 10; No classes: 9/7; 10/23; 11/11; 11/26-27
Final Exam: 8-10, Tuesday, Dec.15 (Portfolios due via e-mail)
Drop dates: Sept. 5 (w/refund), Sept. 19 (w/out a W), Nov. 25 (w/W).
Syllabus for English 1B: College Composition and Reading
English 1B is a transferable college writing course. It builds on the competencies gained in English 1A with a more careful and studied analysis of expository writing based on careful reading of selected plays, poems, novels, and short fiction.
Plan to have a challenging, yet intellectually stimulating 18 weeks, which I hope you begin by setting goals for yourself. Make a schedule and join or create a study group. Writing is a social activity, especially the type of writing you’ll be doing here. We always consider our audience, have purpose or reason to write, and use research to substantiate our claims, even those we are considered experts in.
We’re supposed to write about 8000 words or so at this level course. This includes drafts. What this amounts to is time at home writing, time in the library researching, reading documents to increase your facility with the ideas or themes your are contemplating, before you once again sit at your desk writing, revising, and writing some more.
Writing is a lonely process. No one can write for you. The social aspect comes into play once you are finished and you have an opportunity to share.
I thought it might be interesting this semester to look at the global reach of hip hop as we also look at how hip hop has influenced or perpetuated certain views of women. Byron Hurt directs a film, Hip Hop Beyond Beats and Rhymes, which looks at misogyny in hip hop culture. I am still trying to decide on what books we’ll use, so for the moment we will look at essays about genre from scholars and artists, to compare the personal with the theoretical. At each meeting we will listen to an artist or watch a film to analyze the work—is it fair to look at rap’s literary quality, minus the performance aspect? What happens when we take a song out of context?
As the weeks progress we will develop a list of the key architects of this genre. Why aren’t their names more well-known by contemporary fans? Does their absence from popular culture limit or change the nature of hip hop? What is this argument that hip hop is dead? Who is KRS-1 who calls himself “hip hop” and refers to the genre as a nation?
Keep a reading log. Discussion groups will meet each week. Students will also keep a reading log/journal/notes with key ideas outlined for each discussion section, along with vocabulary and key arguments listed, along with primary writing strategies employed: description, process analysis, narration, argument, cause and effect, compare and contrast, definition, problem solving.
Unlike classes in the past, this semester I am trying something new, besides looking at the global reach of hip hop and key stakeholders beginning with women in hip hop, students will make several short presentations for each unit: Women in Hip Hop with a side-bar on Hyper-Masculinity, the Graf or Writing Movement, Dance or Bi-boying, Bi-Girling, DJing, Fiction and the MC or Poet/Rapper.
Everyone will write an essay on each genre—a short 250 word response posted on the blog. The new twist is each student will have to choose four elements to expand into a longer paper to present to the class this semester. Each research paper will be between 3-4 pages long. We will toss the lower graded paper.
Everyone has to do fiction or poetry. It’s your choice. Independently, students need to read a hip-hop novel or a collection of poetry by a hip-hop artist and write a paper analyzing its merits and themes. This is your final essay and the first draft is due November 16, final draft due via email by Nov. 20 8 AM to professorwandasposse@gmail.com
We’ll work on your portfolios the following class. The portfolio is due by Wednesday, November 25 at 3 PM via email or on CD. There is no final the day of the final. Revisions need to be in by December 15 if necessary.
For each genre or element, students need to profile a person representative of the art form analyzed or critiqued. I would like for students to look for artists who are also social entrepreneurs, artists who use their work for social change, to better society—
Each essay needs to use at least 3-4 outside sources which should include at least one (1) scholarly article along with other material. Each essay should also include One (1) direct quote, one (1) free-paraphrase and one (1) block quote—one citation per page—no more, no less. Each essay also needs to include a works cited page and a bibliography. We will practice this in class. We will write many of the shorter essays in class or for homework. The task should be simple once students decide which four (4) elements they’d like to respond to in depth.
Midterm
There will be a midterm. We will probably look at a theme we’ve already discussed, perhaps the objectification of women in rap music and how this tendency is a by-product of a larger problem confronting American society. Students might be asked to bring in a song and an article to develop a position on the issue.
Another question might look at the history of rap and how it was defined fifty years ago and how it has evolved. Would the founding parents be proud or dismayed by its offspring? Remember the conversation a few years back about Hip Hop being dead?
I think we’ll look at poetry for our midterm question. We’ll analyze some of the poetry of some of the artists portrayed in The Spoken Word Revolution (slam, hip hop and the poetry of a new generation). There are some great programs happening at EastSide Arts Alliance this month students might want to check out. Visit www.eastsidearts.org
Also, this weekend Michael Franti’s Power to the Peaceful is Saturday, Sept.12, 9-5 in San Francisco at Golden Gate Park, Speedway Meadows, and on Sunday, Sept. 13, 10-7 at the Herbst Theatre. Visit http://powertothepeaceful.org/ It’s $5 but no one is turned away.
Hopefully the material we are covering will encourage you to leave your comfort zone and venture out to have primary experiences: attend concerts, performances, poetry readings. If any student wants to organize an outings let me know. If you hear of an event you think the class might enjoy let us know. The anniversary of Tupac’s killing is Sept.13, there might be something happening locally. Also, in Berkeley there is a production of Machiavelli's The Prince at the Berkeley City Club (2315 Durant Ave., (510) 848-7800). $14-$25 CentralWorks.org Ticket prices are: $14-$25 with shows Thursdays-Saturdays, 8 p.m., Sundays, 5 p.m. and Sat., Sept. 19, 5 p.m. Continues through Sept. 19. Visit http://www.eastbayexpress.com/events/machiavelli_s__i_the_prince__i_/ Event?oid=1179438 for a review.
Theatre
Next week there is a free production of San Francisco Mime Troupe’s current play at Laney College, Sept. 16, 6:30 (music), 7 p.m. (show). Visit http://www.sfmt.org/schedule/
Jot down briefly what your goals are this semester. List them in order of importance.
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3.
4.
5.
Presentation 1: Due Tuesday, Sept. 29
Bring in an object that represents the intersection between hip hop and American culture. How does the object signify a tradition older than itself—go deep and philosophical… while at the same time represent a progression into something fresh or new or is it all an illusion, a trend, hip hop culture just a cycle human-kind has cycled through before and will again—all that changes is the treads?
Be prepared to share. Write a brief profile on the object justifying its inclusion in the archives (100 words or so). You will post the written response on the blog. I’ll take photos.
Index Cards Sept. 14-24
Please list your contact information: Name, Address, phone number e-mail address, best time to call and the class you are in with time.
What strengths do you bring to the class? What do you hope to obtain from the course – any particular exit skills? What do I need to know about you to help you meet your goals
Assignment
Written Response to the Syllabus due next week either Sept. 22 or 24
Write a comment to me regarding the syllabus: your impressions, whether you think it is reasonable, questions, suggestions. This is our contract, I need to know you read it and understand the agreement.
Library Orientation
We will meet at the Library Tuesday, Sept.22, for the entire class meeting, 9-10:50 AM. Please arrive on time.
Grading
Blog essays and comments: 15 percent
Discussion Groups and Preparedness: 10 percent
Midterm: 15 percent
Research Essays/Presentation: 25 percent
Portfolio: 25 percent
Peer Reviews from Lab teachers/class aide (Dominique) or college tutor: 10 percent
The blog and in-class essays, which take their themes from the class: hip hop as global movement, hip hop and women, the aesthetics of hip hop, are practice essays, and are about a fourth of your grade, your midterm is another fourth with the peer reviews. The short research essays or expanded freewrites are another fourth. Your portfolio is the final chunk bringing the grand total to 100 percent! The portfolio is really just a compilation of your work this semester with two cover essays, each just one page in length. (Save all of your work.) I suggest students start a personal blog for the class and send me the link for your portfolio at the end of the course.
To encourage participation and for this students have to be prepared, I weighed the preparedness and participation strongly which means I will be taking notes when students do not do their homework. If you are in a group where students are pretending to be prepared when they are not, drop me an anonymous note.
I am not above the pop quiz on readings. Remember, this plan can change in a twinkling of the eye, if we find it isn’t working.
Writing Center
You will also need to plan to spend time weekly in the Writing Lab (L-234-235, 748-2132). It is a great place to get one-on-on assistance on your essays, from brainstorming and planning the essays, to critique on the essay for clarity, organization, clearly stated thesis, evidence of support, logical conclusions, and grammatical problems for referrals to other ancillary materials to build strong writing muscles such as SkillsBank, the Bedford Handbook on-line, Diana Hacker’s Rules for Writers on-line, Townsend Press, and other such computer and cyber-based resources. Call for hours. There is also an Open Lab for checking e-mail, and a Math Lab. All academic labs are located in the Learning Resource Center (LRC) or library.
Students have to enroll in LRNE 501 (Supervised Tutoring) Class Code: 43990. It is free and there no penalties. All it does is allow you to use the academic labs on campus. It takes 24-hours to kick in, so register now. Go to www.peralta.edu Click enroll now link. Click activate my account link… and follow the instructions to activate your account and set your password. The steps are too many to type here. If you have questions see Pat Denoncourt, LRC Coordinator, Rm. L204
The student ID is necessary to use the labs and to check out books. The IDs are free and you can take the photo in the F-Building, Student Services.
Have a tutor of teacher sign off on your essays before you turn them in; if you have a “R,” which means revision necessary for a grade or “NC” which means “no credit,” you have to go to the lab and revise the essay with a tutor or teacher before you return both the graded original and the revision (with signature) to me. Revise does not mean “rewrite,” it means to “see again.”
When getting assistance on an essay, the teacher or tutor is not an editor, so have questions prepared for them to make best use of the 15-20 minute session in the Lab. For more specific assistance sign up for one-on-one tutoring, another free service. For those of you on other campuses, you can get assistance at the Merritt Colleges’ Writing Center, as well as Laney’s.
All essay assignments you receive comments on have to be revised prior to resubmission; included with the revision is a student narrative to me regarding your understanding of what needed to be done; a student can prepare this as a part of the Lab visit, especially if said student is unclear over what steps to take.
Students can also visit me in office hours for assistance; again, prepare your questions in advance to best make use of the time. Do not leave class without understanding the comments on a paper. I don’t mind reading them to you.
English language fluency in writing and reading; a certain comfort and ease with the language; confidence and skillful application of literary skills associated with academic writing. Familiarity if not mastery of the rhetorical styles used in argumentation, exposition and narration will be addressed in this class and is a key student learning outcome (SLO).
We will be evaluating what we know and how we came to know what we know, a field called epistemology or the study of knowledge. Granted, the perspective is western culture which eliminates the values of the majority populations, so-called underdeveloped or undeveloped countries or cultures. Let us not fall into typical superiority traps. Try to maintain a mental elasticity and a willingness to let go of concepts which not only limit your growth as an intelligent being, but put you at a distinct disadvantage as a species.
This is a highly charged and potentially revolutionary process - critical thinking. The process of evaluating all that you swallowed without chewing up to now is possibly even dangerous. This is one of the problems with bigotry; it’s easier to go with tradition than toss it, and create a new, more just, alternative protocol.
Grades, Portfolio
We will be honest with one another. Grades are not necessarily an honest response to work; grades do not take into consideration the effort or time spent, only whether or not students can demonstrate mastery of a skill - in this case: essay writing. Grades are an approximation, arbitrary at best, no matter how many safeguards one tries to put in place to avoid such ambiguity. Suffice it to say, your portfolio will illustrate your competence. It will represent your progress, your success or failure this summer session in meeting your goal.
Office Hours
I’d like to wish everyone good luck. I am available for consultation on Monday mornings 9:30-10:30 a.m. , Wednesday 9:30-10:30 a.m., Wednesday afternoon 3 p.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays, if you want to take me to lunch—just kidding, I am available after 12 for appointments if you notify me in advance. All the office hours take place in my office, L-236. I am not on campus on Fridays. (Jot my cell number down in this section.) My office number is (510) 748-2131, e-mail professorwandasposse@gmail.com.
I am more a phone person than an email person, so you can call me if I don’t respond to an email. I do read your blog posts.
I’d encourage students to exchange phone numbers with classmates (2), so if you have a concern, it can be addressed more expediently when I am not available. Study groups are recommended, especially for those students finding the readings difficult; don’t forget, you can also discuss the readings as a group in the Lab with a teacher or tutor acting as facilitator. Dominique is hosting a study group on Thursdays, L-bldg., second floor, 12 noon to 1 p.m.
Keep a vocabulary log for the semester and an error chart (taken from comments on essay assignments). List the words you need to look up in the dictionary, also list where you first encountered them: page, book and definition, also use the word in a sentence. You will turn this in with your portfolio.
I do not expect students to confuse literal with free paraphrase (a literal paraphrase is plagiarism). Students should also not make confused word errors, sentence fragment errors, comma splice errors, subject verb agreement errors, errors in parallel structure, subject verb agreement errors, MLA citations errors, errors with ellipses, formatting an essays—margins, headings, etc. If you are not clear on what I mean, I suggest you run through Stewart Pidd Hates English. It is on reserve in the library.
Students are expected to complete their work on time. If you need more time on an assignment, discuss this with me in advance if possible to keep full credit, also certain assignments, such as in-class essays cannot be made up. All assignments prepared outside of class are to be typed, 12-pt. font, double-spaced lines, indentations on paragraphs, 1-inch margins around the written work (see Hacker: The Writing Process; Document Design.)
Cheating
Plagiarism is ethically abhorrent, and if any student tries to take credit for work authored by another person the result will be a failed grade on the assignment and possibly a failed grade in the course if this is attempted again. This is a graded course.
Homework
If you do not identify the assignment, I cannot grade it. If you do not return the original assignment you revised, I cannot compare what changed. If you accidentally toss out or lose the original assignment, you get a zero on the assignment to be revised. I will not look at revisions without the original attached – no exceptions. Some student essays will be posted on-line at the website. Students will also have the option of submitting assignments via email.
All assignments completed away from class should be typed. Use blue or black ink when writing responses in class. You can annotate your books in pencil.
Textbooks:
Total Chaos: The Art and Aesthetics of Hip Hop. Ed. Jeff Chang. Basic Civitas Books, 2006. ISBN: 10: 0-465-00909-3 (I’m thinking about this book.)
The Spoken Word Revolution (slam, hip hop & the poetry of a new generation). Ed. Mark Eleveld. Sourcebooks MediaFusion, 2004. ISBN: 1-4022-0246-6.
Students also need a dictionary. I recommend: The American Heritage Dictionary. Fourth Edition.
Recommended:
Can’t Stop, Won’t Stop: A History of the Hip Hop Generation. Jeff Chang. Picador, 2005. ISBN: 0-312-42579-1
Know What I Mean? Reflections on Hip Hop. Michael Eric Dyson. Basic Civitias Books, 2007. ISBN: 0-465-017716-9 (I am making copies of certain chapters).
Black Noise: Rap Music and Black Culture in Contemporary America. Tricia Rose. Wesleyan Press, 1994.
The Africanist Aesthetic in Global Hip Hop: Power Moves. Halifu Osumare. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2008.
Fiction
Students have to chose a work of fiction to read on their own to present later in class. There is a written and an oral aspect to this assignment.
The Coldest Winter Ever. Sister Souljah. Simon & Schuster. 2006.
http://www.simonsays.com/content/book.cfm?tab=1&pid=514298&er=9781416521693
Angry Black White Boy or The Miscegenation of Macon Detornay. Adam Mansbach. Crown/Three Rivers Press, 2005.
The Brief Wondrous Times of Oscar Wao. Junot Díaz. Penguin, 2007.
Interesting article
http://www.libsuccess.org/index.php?title=Urban_Fiction/Street_Lit/Hip_Hop_Fiction_Resources_for_Librarians
Students need a grammar style book. You don’t have to purchase mine, but you need something comparable.
Rules for Writers. Fourth or Fifth edition. Diana Hacker. Bedford/St. Martins. (If you don’t already have such a book.)
Elements of Style (any edition)
Additional Items
Along with a dictionary, the prepared student needs pens with blue or black ink, along with a pencil for annotating texts, paper, a stapler or paper clips, floppy disks, a notebook, three hole punch, a folder for work-in-progress, and a divided binder to keep materials together.
Also stay abreast of the news. Buy a daily paper. Listen to alternative radio:
KPFA 94.1 FM (Hardknock), KQED 88.5, KALW 91.7. Visit news websites: AllAfrica.com, Al Jazeera, CNN.com, AlterNet.org, DemocracyNow.org, FlashPoints.org, CBS 60Minutes.
Tuesday, September 8, 2009
Hip Hop: Beyond Beats and Rhymes
Today in class we watched Byron Hurt's film, Hip Hop: Beyond Beats and Rhymes. Students then composed thesis sentences based on themes pulled from the film: violence, misogyny, masculinity, homophobia, media, and power.
1. Homework is to read the essay handed out from Michael Eric Dyson's book, "Know What I Mean: Track 4, Cover Your Eyes As I Describe a Scene So Violent" pp. 91-122. Extra copies will be in the hallway outside the Writing Center (near L-235).
Assignment: Identify Hurt's argument(s). In 250 words minimum, discuss the evidence Hurt presents in the film and whether or not you agree with his premise that commercial rap is misogynistic, violent, and promotes a negative stereotype of manhood.
1. Homework is to read the essay handed out from Michael Eric Dyson's book, "Know What I Mean: Track 4, Cover Your Eyes As I Describe a Scene So Violent" pp. 91-122. Extra copies will be in the hallway outside the Writing Center (near L-235).
Assignment: Identify Hurt's argument(s). In 250 words minimum, discuss the evidence Hurt presents in the film and whether or not you agree with his premise that commercial rap is misogynistic, violent, and promotes a negative stereotype of manhood.
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
Cyber-Assignment 1 Due by Thursday, Sept. 3, 9-10:50 AM
Counting Headz is the film to watch for those interested in hip hop, the growing number of female artists tackling this genre and for those of us intrigued with the spirit of South Africa.
Until recently, the South African hip hop music scene was exclusively a male domain. This has changed and along with it the content of the music. Women are addressing crime and the hard life in inner cities unlike their male counterparts who dwell on fashion, fancy homes and cars. Featuring three major women performers, the film captures the evolution in overall content from a copy of American rap into a vehicle for addressing socio-political issues. MC Chi asks if there’s a contradiction of values between African and hip-hop cultures, and if it’s possible to reconcile the two. Her questions reflect the obstacles encountered by her fellow sistaz. DJ Sistamatic, challenged by a distorted media portrayal of her persona, addresses the influence of male-formed images of women.
World-renowned graffiti artist Smirk finds a way beyond her family’s initial misgivings about her art to merge a life with hip hop and motherhood. These talented and formidable women tell us of their struggles, their passion, their successes and their hopes and in the process, the music is phat! (http://www.docnz.org.nz/2007/ak/film/counting-headz-south-afrikas-sistaz)
Resources: http://www.myspace.com/countingheadz
This film was the topic of our freewrite this morning. Post your reflections here. Students were asked to look at the connections between the women MCs and hip hop artists and that of the women profiled on Say My Name. If students missed the film last week, then look at an artist you know.
Cyber-Assignment due Sept. 3, 2009
Read the Introduction and the preface to Part One (3-4),Part Three (161-163) and Part Four (247-8), in Jeff Chang's Total Chaos. Because our focus is women in hip hop presently, read the article in Part Three: The Real: Identity in Flux, chapter 22, "A Brand-New Feminism..." p. 233. Also read from Part Four, Chapter 26, "Cape Flats Alchemy: Hip Hop Arts in South Africa, p. 262.
Feel free to augment this reading with any other sources (some mentioned in the articles themselves) which will help you respond to the questions and to better grasp the intricacies of the topic discussed. For each essay respond in 250 words minimum. Use the Total Chaos article as one source. The second source can be your choice.
1. The authors in Cape Flats Alchemy "embrace the transgressive nature of hip hop, and ...look to push and jar conventional boundaries or what is acceptable or accepted" (269). How is art the perfect vehicle for this journey? How does the development of hip hop culture in South Africa mirror this idea that art is a critique of what is what, as it soars towards what is possible? How does this alchemy process work? Use one of the women artists from Counting Headz to illustrate this.
What does it mean to be a woman immersed in hip hop culture in South Africa? The article seemed to stay within the boundaries of its authors' geography. I felt it didn't address certain aspects of the genre the women profiled in the film, spoke of, even though one of the authors is a woman. I also wish they'd spoken more about other African artists from the Bantu or black South African society, men and women whose experiences were vastly different from that of the coloured SA.
How does the history of racial segregation, Apartheid and the rich cultural legacy of South Africa's indigenous people shape the SA hip hop artists' response to their cultural landscape? Is there something tangible the women bring which is unique? How is the imposition of patriarchy echoed cross-culturally among the women profiled in Counting Headz and Say My Name? Be specific, use examples from the films, from the reading and from your personal experience.
How does the presence of these artists offer their communities hope? Look at one of the artists profiled, find a sample of her work and use this artist to illustrate your point here--the hope.
You might not be able to answer all these questions. That's okay. These are talking points.
2. Black feminist? Mark Anthony Neal sees himself as a black feminist. What does this mean? His friend journalist Joan Morgan grew up with Mark and her brothers and thus says that this comfort in male dominated spaces allows her a certain facility, fearlessness and movement. Reflect on these two hip hop scholars. Do you remember the Mike Tyson verdict? Is the incident with the black woman raped by the Lacrosse team an event which left a mark on you dashboard as it faded into the collective oblivion associated with much media today?
How perfect a setting speak about black women and their bodies, their sexuality and sensuality or its absence. Why is the title of the transcribed conversation or panel discussion -- A Brand-New Feminism, perfect? Do you think the addition of the term "womanism" would have expanded the discussion? See
Talk about some of the ideas explored in the conversation between Mark and Joan and what new insights you've gained from its exploration.
The only answer which is unacceptable is the one uttered without thought. Translate: Success is already yours. Think about it.
I loved the examples Joan gives from the music: Mos Def's "Ms. Fatbooty" and Dr. Dre's Chronic. Do you know Ice Cube's first album,"Amerikkka's Most Wanted"? If anyone wants to bring music in to share Tuesday, Sept. 7, please do. We can add Joan's book "When Chickenheads Come Home to Roost" to the list of recommended books for this class. If students want to post the URLs for the articles mentioned by Kevin Powell ("The Sexist in Me" Essence), or Greg Tate's obits for Miles Davis, Joan Morgan's stories on Queen Latifah, Monie Love, Mike Tyson, and Ice Cube...this will count as extra credit.
Until recently, the South African hip hop music scene was exclusively a male domain. This has changed and along with it the content of the music. Women are addressing crime and the hard life in inner cities unlike their male counterparts who dwell on fashion, fancy homes and cars. Featuring three major women performers, the film captures the evolution in overall content from a copy of American rap into a vehicle for addressing socio-political issues. MC Chi asks if there’s a contradiction of values between African and hip-hop cultures, and if it’s possible to reconcile the two. Her questions reflect the obstacles encountered by her fellow sistaz. DJ Sistamatic, challenged by a distorted media portrayal of her persona, addresses the influence of male-formed images of women.
World-renowned graffiti artist Smirk finds a way beyond her family’s initial misgivings about her art to merge a life with hip hop and motherhood. These talented and formidable women tell us of their struggles, their passion, their successes and their hopes and in the process, the music is phat! (http://www.docnz.org.nz/2007/ak/film/counting-headz-south-afrikas-sistaz)
Resources: http://www.myspace.com/countingheadz
This film was the topic of our freewrite this morning. Post your reflections here. Students were asked to look at the connections between the women MCs and hip hop artists and that of the women profiled on Say My Name. If students missed the film last week, then look at an artist you know.
Cyber-Assignment due Sept. 3, 2009
Read the Introduction and the preface to Part One (3-4),Part Three (161-163) and Part Four (247-8), in Jeff Chang's Total Chaos. Because our focus is women in hip hop presently, read the article in Part Three: The Real: Identity in Flux, chapter 22, "A Brand-New Feminism..." p. 233. Also read from Part Four, Chapter 26, "Cape Flats Alchemy: Hip Hop Arts in South Africa, p. 262.
Feel free to augment this reading with any other sources (some mentioned in the articles themselves) which will help you respond to the questions and to better grasp the intricacies of the topic discussed. For each essay respond in 250 words minimum. Use the Total Chaos article as one source. The second source can be your choice.
1. The authors in Cape Flats Alchemy "embrace the transgressive nature of hip hop, and ...look to push and jar conventional boundaries or what is acceptable or accepted" (269). How is art the perfect vehicle for this journey? How does the development of hip hop culture in South Africa mirror this idea that art is a critique of what is what, as it soars towards what is possible? How does this alchemy process work? Use one of the women artists from Counting Headz to illustrate this.
What does it mean to be a woman immersed in hip hop culture in South Africa? The article seemed to stay within the boundaries of its authors' geography. I felt it didn't address certain aspects of the genre the women profiled in the film, spoke of, even though one of the authors is a woman. I also wish they'd spoken more about other African artists from the Bantu or black South African society, men and women whose experiences were vastly different from that of the coloured SA.
How does the history of racial segregation, Apartheid and the rich cultural legacy of South Africa's indigenous people shape the SA hip hop artists' response to their cultural landscape? Is there something tangible the women bring which is unique? How is the imposition of patriarchy echoed cross-culturally among the women profiled in Counting Headz and Say My Name? Be specific, use examples from the films, from the reading and from your personal experience.
How does the presence of these artists offer their communities hope? Look at one of the artists profiled, find a sample of her work and use this artist to illustrate your point here--the hope.
You might not be able to answer all these questions. That's okay. These are talking points.
2. Black feminist? Mark Anthony Neal sees himself as a black feminist. What does this mean? His friend journalist Joan Morgan grew up with Mark and her brothers and thus says that this comfort in male dominated spaces allows her a certain facility, fearlessness and movement. Reflect on these two hip hop scholars. Do you remember the Mike Tyson verdict? Is the incident with the black woman raped by the Lacrosse team an event which left a mark on you dashboard as it faded into the collective oblivion associated with much media today?
How perfect a setting speak about black women and their bodies, their sexuality and sensuality or its absence. Why is the title of the transcribed conversation or panel discussion -- A Brand-New Feminism, perfect? Do you think the addition of the term "womanism" would have expanded the discussion? See
Talk about some of the ideas explored in the conversation between Mark and Joan and what new insights you've gained from its exploration.
The only answer which is unacceptable is the one uttered without thought. Translate: Success is already yours. Think about it.
I loved the examples Joan gives from the music: Mos Def's "Ms. Fatbooty" and Dr. Dre's Chronic. Do you know Ice Cube's first album,"Amerikkka's Most Wanted"? If anyone wants to bring music in to share Tuesday, Sept. 7, please do. We can add Joan's book "When Chickenheads Come Home to Roost" to the list of recommended books for this class. If students want to post the URLs for the articles mentioned by Kevin Powell ("The Sexist in Me" Essence), or Greg Tate's obits for Miles Davis, Joan Morgan's stories on Queen Latifah, Monie Love, Mike Tyson, and Ice Cube...this will count as extra credit.
Thursday, August 27, 2009
Value Statements re: The Message
Please post your responses to Felecia Pride's "Not Enough" and "Express Yourself." Respond to a student's (1) response (one or both).
Homework...
Continue the theme of art and politics, the reference: Hurricane Katrina four years later and the US government's response to this man made (levees breaking) and natural disaster (in Mississippi, Alabama, Florida). Read and listen to news coverage this weekend and include this information in a response to the question in the freewrite about hip hop and activism or why the idea of the hip hop community's outrage. Their need to speak for the silent disenfranchised people and be a voice for the voiceless, was in "the tradition".
Bring your response to class to share and also post here Tuesday either before or after class. Remember, to respond to a classmate's post. Do this on Tuesday, Sept. 1.
Bring your response to class to share and also post here Tuesday either before or after class. Remember, to respond to a classmate's post. Do this on Tuesday, Sept. 1.
Hurricane Katrina Freewrite
Look at the lyrics to the following artists' lyrics: Kanye West's "George Bush Doesn't Care About Black People," Mos Def's "Katrina Clap," Paposse's "Mother Nature," to songs composed in response to our government's response to the catastrophe August 29, 2005. Read the lyrics, do your own research and write a response taking into consideration hip hop cultural roots and whether or not this activism is to be expected. Reference Jeff Chang's book on the history of hip hop, Can't Stop Won't Stop, Introduction, Prelude, and Loop 1: Babvylon is Burning: 1968-1977.
"Dollar Day for New Orleans (Katrina Klap)"
by Mos Def
(Speaks)
This is for the streets, the streets everywhere,
The streets affected by the storm called, America,
I’m doin’ this for ya’ll, as for me, for the Creator,
(Chorus)
God save these streets,
One dollar per every human being,
Feel that Katrina Clap,
See that Katrina Clap,
(Verse I)
Listen homie, It’s dollar day in New Orleans,
It’s where there water everywhere and people dead in the street (eet eets),
And Mr. President he ‘bout that cash,
He got a policy for handlin’ the bruthas and trash,
And if you poor you black,
I laugh a laugh, they won’t give when you ask,
You betta off on crack, dead or in jail, or with a gun in Iraq (a aq),
And it’s as simple as that,
No opinion my man it’s mathematical fact,
Listen, a million poor since 2004,
And they got illions and killions to waste on the War,
And make you question what the taxes is for,
Or the cost to reinforce the broke levee wall,
Tell the boss he shouldn’t be the boss anymore (or or),
Ya’ll bae-li-means (???),
(Chorus)
God save these streets,
One dollar per every human being,
Feel that Katrina Clap,
See that Katrina Clap,
God save these streets,
Quit bein’ cheap brutha freedom ain’t free,
Feel that Katrina Clap,
See that Katrina Clap,
Lord have mercy,
Lord God God save our souls,
A-God save our souls, A-God,
A-God save our souls,
Lord God God save our souls,
A-God save our soul soul soul,
Soul Survivor,
(Verse II)
It’s dollar day in New Orleans,
It’s where water everywhere and baby’s dead in the stree (ee eets),
It’s enough to make you holler out,
Like where the fuck is Sir Bono and his famous friends now,
Don’t get it twisted man I dig U2,
But if you aint about the ghetto, Then Fuck You Too,
Who care bout Rock N’ Roll when babies can’t eat food,
Listen homie that shit ain’t cool,
It’s like dollar day for New Orleans,
It’s where the water everywhere and homies dead in the stree (ee eets),
And Mr. President’s a natural ass,
He out treatin’ bruthas worse than they treat the trash,
(Chorus)
God save these streets,
One dollar per every human being,
Feel that Katrina Clap!
See that Katrina Clap!
God save these streets,
Quit bein’ cheap brutha freedom ain’t free!
Feel that Katrina Clap!
See that Katrina Clap,
Soul Survivor,
Lord God God save our souls,
A-God save our souls, A-God,
A-God save our souls,
Lord God God save our souls,
A-God save our soul A-God A-God save us,
(Verse III)
Lord did not inten (yen-end) for the wicked to rule the world,
Say God could not inten (yen-end) for the wicked the rule the wor (o oorld),
God did not inten (yen-end) for the wicked to rule the world,
And even when they knew it’s a matter of truth, before they wicked ruling is through,
(Chorus)
God save these streets,
A-dollar day for New Orleans,
God save these streets,
Quit bein’ cheap homie freedom ain’t free,
God save these streets,
One dollar per every human being,
Feel that Katrina Clap!
See that Katrina Clap!
God save these streets,
Quit bein’ cheap brutha freedom ain’t free!
Feel that Katrina Clap!(Ha)
Ghetto Katrina Clap!(Ha)
Soul Survivor,
Lord God God save our souls,
A-God save God save our souls,
Feel that Katrina Clap!
Let’s make them dollars stack!
And rebuild these streets,
God save these streets,
God save these streets,
God save the soul,
Feel that Katrina Clap!
See that Katrina Clap!
Soul Survivor,
Don’t talk about it, Be about it, Peace.
http://mosdef.funky4u.com/2005/09/29/katrina-klap-lyrics/
Mother Nature - Papoose
I Got A $250,000 Personality
I Got Another Quater Mil Mentality
Im in the $500,000 Mood
I Cant Loose, Damn I Feel Like A Million Dollars
How Can i Rap about my life and claim honor?
When people out in new orleans dont have water
I Dedicate this to the sons who lost fathers
A Tribute to mothers who lost daughters
Because they pump chemical fumes into the atsmosphere
They put toxic fumes into the atsmosphere
They even launch aircrafts into the atsmosphere
They keep this up than somethings gonna happen here
Mother nature gotta clean her frame
So she forms a clycone full of winds and rain
This process has a name its called cleanin the atsmosphere
The government calls it a hurricane
Ohh child things are gonna get easier.
Ohh child things will get brighter
Ohh child things are gonna get easier.
Ohh child things will get brighter
They say wave water bore the children (cant understand him here)
They say gods gonna tumble the water
But when a tsunami happens in troublesome waters
The president aint hesitate to cross that border
He took a hole army wit him when he came to war
But when he traveled to new orleans he came with his dog
Is he indirectly trying to call us dogs?
Or just traveling with his pet i aint sure
A grown man cry how pitiful it is
His whole house split in half nowhere to live
He said I held my wifes hand i tried i did
But she let go and said take care of the kids
Alotta property was lost crushed by the trees
Evacuated the city they was forced to leave
They was forced outta their homes they would never leave
So why the media keep callin em refugees
Ohh child things are gonna get easier.
Ohh child things will get brighter
Ohh child things are gonna get easier.
Ohh child things will get brighter
Natural disaster look at the aftermath
They use it as an excuse to raise the price of gas
We worry about things like gettin the last laugh
But your mind state is half fast
Everybody wanna get the last laugh
But when somebody die cuz, the laugh never comes last the cry does
People searchin for food they call it lootin
Marshall law the cops shootin
So now hungry people on the run
They say this aint the time to point fingers
Tell em This aint the time to point guns
Donatin money thats thug love
But people dying over there donate some blood
I dont mean physically, I Mean spiritually
Donate some of your time out lyrically
Make a song that could reach somebody seriously
People who lost their lives your all livin through me
Ohh child things are gonna get easier.
Ohh child things will get brighter
Ohh child things are gonna get easier.
Ohh child things will get brighter
http://www.hiphop-universe.com/underground/lyrics/7314-mother-nature-papoose.html
Kanye West's "George Bush doesn't care about black people"
Now I ain't sayin' he's a gold digger, but he ain't messin' with no broke niggas, x2
George Bush don't like black people x4
Hurricane came through fucked us up round here, government acting like its bad luck down here,
All I know is that you better bring some trucks round here, wonder why I got my middle finger up round here,
People's lives on the line, you declining to help, since you takin' so much time we survivin' ourself,
Just me and my pets and my kids and my spouse, trapped in my own house looking for a way out,(...)
Five days in this muthafucking attic, can't use the cell phone I keep getting static,
Dying cause they lying instead of telling us the truth, other day that helicopter got my neighbours of the roof,
Its cool cause they said ther're comin' back for us too, that was 3 days ago I don't see no rescue,
See a mans gotta do what a mans gotta do, since God made the path then i'm tryin' to walk through,
What? Swam to the store tryin' look for food, corner stores kinda flooded, so I broke my way through, I got what i could but before I through the news said police shot a black man tryin' loot.
Don't like black people,
George Bush don't like black people x3
Now i ain't sayin' he a gold digger, but he ain't fuckin' with no broke niggas x2
George Bush don't like black people x4
5 damn days, 5 long days and at the end of the fifth he walkin' in like "HEY!"
chilling on his vacation sitting patiently, them black folks gotta hope, gotta wait and see,
if FEMA really comes through on an emergency, but nobody seems to have a sense of urgency,
Now the millions been reduced to crime, and I guess Bush said 'niggas been used to dying'
He said I know it looks bad just have to wait, forgeting folks too broke to evacuate,
Niggas starving and they dyin' of thrist, bet he had to go and check on them refinerys first,
makin' a killing of the price of gas, he would have been up in connetecuit, twice as fast,
After all that we been through, nothings changed, you can call red cross but the fact remains that,
George Bush ain't a gold digger, but he ain't fuckin' with no broke niggas x2
Come down Bush, come on come down x4
George Bush ain't a gold digger, George Bush don't like black people x3
Come down George , come on come down x4.
http://www.songmeanings.net/songs/view/3530822107858588519/
Lil Wayne — Georgia ... Bush lyrics
This song right here, is dedicated to the president of the United States of America
Y'all might know him as George Bush
But where I'm from, lost city of New Orleans... we call him this
[Ray Charles sample:] Georgia.........
Noooowww
This song is dedicated to the one wit the suit
Thick white skin and his eyes bright blue
So called beef wit you know who
Fuck it he just let him kill all of our troops
Look at the bullshit we been through
Had the niggas sittin on top they roofs
Hurricane Katrina, we shoulda called it Hurricane (Geeoorrggiaa) Bush
Then they tellin y'all lies on the news
The white people smiling like everythin cool
But I know people that died in that pool
I know people that died in them schools
Now what is the survivor to do?
Got to no trailer, you gotta move
Now it's on to Texas and to (Geeoorrggiiaa)
They tell you what they want, show you what they want you to see
But they don't let you know what's really goin on
Make it look like a lotta stealin goin on
Boy them cops is killas in my home
Nigga shot dead in the middle of the street
I ain't no thief, I'm just tryin to eat
Man fuck the police and president (Geeoorrrggiiaa) Bush
So what happened to the leverage, why wasn't they steady
Why wasn't they able to control this?
I know some fok' that live by the lever
That keep on tellin me they heard this, stole this
Same shit happened back in Hurricane Betsy
1965, I ain't too young to know this
That was President Johnson now
But it's president (Geeoorrggiiaa) Bush
[Chorus - 2X]
We from a town where (Georgia)
Everybody drowned, and
Everybody died, but baby I'm still prayin wich ya
Everybody cryin but (Georgia)
Aint nobody tried, there's no doubt on my mind it was (Georgia) Bush
Noooowwww
I was born in the boot at the bottom of the map
New Orleans baby, now the white house hatin, tryin to wash away like we not on the map
Wait, have you heard the latest, they sayin you gotta have paper if you tryin to come back
Niggas thinkin it's a wrap, see we can't hustle in they trap, we ain't from (Geeoorrggiaa)
Noooww it's them dead bodies, them lost houses, the mayor say don't worry bout it
And the children have been scarred, no ones here to care bout em
And fash out, to all the rappers that helped out
Yea we like it they callin y'all, but fuck president (Geeoorrggiaa) Bush
We see them Confederate flags, you know what it is
A white cracker muthafucka that probably voted for him
And no he ain't gonna drop no dollas, but he do drop bombs
R.I.P. Tay 'cause he died in the storm, fuck president (Geeoorrggiiaa) Bush
See us in ya city man, give us a pound
'cause if a nigga still movin then he holdin it down
I had two Jags, but I lost both them bi-tch-es
I'm from N.O. the N.O. Yea!
[Chorus] niggas like ta poop
([DJ Drama:] oh yea, you thought we was done? Naw)
YEA!
Money money money get a dollar and a dick
Weezy Baby that crack, muthafucka get a fix
Got money out the ass, no homo but I'm rich
Bout to go get surgery and put some diamonds on my wrist YES
Yep, I'm a muthafuckin trip
I'ma trip to Japan and buy some brand new shit
Nine hundred to a grand, get you twenty eight grams
If you talkin bout bricks, I'm the interstate man
And the women say damn, them niggas don't say a damn thing
Boy I bet that shotty make you bounce like a bed-spring
Walkin a thin line, gotta defend mine
And wit no pen I'm sorta like a bomb BOOM
Young toon, yea that's what my people call me
Fifty thousand for the cause, tryin keep the reaper off me
I drink a lotta syrup, bitches say I'm sleep walkin
Big money for the grill, so I'm never cheap talking, yea
Keep talking and the flame leap off the hip
And keep sparking, pap pap sleep softly
Yea, nap nap, nap sack, three forties
Like fuck another nigga, nigga just don't be da target
Young New Orleans nigga, nigga just don't be retarded
We done lost everythin and you lookin like a bargain
Purple weed, purple drink, purple heart sergeant
I'm the best rapper in the game no argin (arguing)
And I don't ever write, pause
Un-pause this, so keep ya bitch ass lines inside the margin
Lil Wayne dot com bitch log in
Put a pillow under your knees and keep ya jaws in
All in ya girl mouth, use her like a toilet
They usually want a baller and the young nigga ballin
Mike Jordan, pardon my swag
Even my father rich as fuck and all my brothers left the family
We said fuck it bought two houses in Miami
I can't wait to do cribs, MTV c'mon get at me
Any rapper wan get at me, tell ya label contact me
Half four hundred for a feature, wanna battle, I'll beat ya
I'm a beast, I'm a preacher, I'm the son of miss cita
Mom dukes, my jeter, she the reason, she the reason
Everybody woman wanna be da boy diva, not even
There's a 305 dime I wanted ever since I seen her
Got a topic of this evenin, hotter than a tub steamin
Gotcha girlfriend dreamin of one day bein Trina
Notta sim seemer, ten ki's in the Beamer
Got a white girl drivin, couldn't do it much cleaner
I'm fly in the sky like that muthafuckin ribbon
Bitches got my name on em, and the nigga still livin
Spend a condo and a club, one bottle won't do
Two bottles won't do, bottles for the whole crew, thanks
And bring me that Patrone, I don't play
No ice I like my drink straight, not gay
And bitch that bank come everyday, I'm paid
I wish a nigga come invade, get sprayed
I stomp a nigga out like I got ten legs
Then they fish the nigga up out the lake in ten days
Behave, no ho, I'm on that Rage Rov
Cash Money, Young Money, ho that money age old
And can't a cage hold this animal from Hollygrove
Sorry mami I be stoned, I be, I be, I be blowed
Got me copy rock star, Weezy Baby fuck these hos
Gotta pay me now for me to even take these hos
Price sizin for a show and the flow
So either Drama is my nigga, or that boy got doe
Go figure that's my nigga, that's my nigga, my nerve
If anybody else want it, sixty thousand a verse
http://www.lyricsty.com/lyrics/l/lil_wayne/georgia_bush.html
"Dollar Day for New Orleans (Katrina Klap)"
by Mos Def
(Speaks)
This is for the streets, the streets everywhere,
The streets affected by the storm called, America,
I’m doin’ this for ya’ll, as for me, for the Creator,
(Chorus)
God save these streets,
One dollar per every human being,
Feel that Katrina Clap,
See that Katrina Clap,
(Verse I)
Listen homie, It’s dollar day in New Orleans,
It’s where there water everywhere and people dead in the street (eet eets),
And Mr. President he ‘bout that cash,
He got a policy for handlin’ the bruthas and trash,
And if you poor you black,
I laugh a laugh, they won’t give when you ask,
You betta off on crack, dead or in jail, or with a gun in Iraq (a aq),
And it’s as simple as that,
No opinion my man it’s mathematical fact,
Listen, a million poor since 2004,
And they got illions and killions to waste on the War,
And make you question what the taxes is for,
Or the cost to reinforce the broke levee wall,
Tell the boss he shouldn’t be the boss anymore (or or),
Ya’ll bae-li-means (???),
(Chorus)
God save these streets,
One dollar per every human being,
Feel that Katrina Clap,
See that Katrina Clap,
God save these streets,
Quit bein’ cheap brutha freedom ain’t free,
Feel that Katrina Clap,
See that Katrina Clap,
Lord have mercy,
Lord God God save our souls,
A-God save our souls, A-God,
A-God save our souls,
Lord God God save our souls,
A-God save our soul soul soul,
Soul Survivor,
(Verse II)
It’s dollar day in New Orleans,
It’s where water everywhere and baby’s dead in the stree (ee eets),
It’s enough to make you holler out,
Like where the fuck is Sir Bono and his famous friends now,
Don’t get it twisted man I dig U2,
But if you aint about the ghetto, Then Fuck You Too,
Who care bout Rock N’ Roll when babies can’t eat food,
Listen homie that shit ain’t cool,
It’s like dollar day for New Orleans,
It’s where the water everywhere and homies dead in the stree (ee eets),
And Mr. President’s a natural ass,
He out treatin’ bruthas worse than they treat the trash,
(Chorus)
God save these streets,
One dollar per every human being,
Feel that Katrina Clap!
See that Katrina Clap!
God save these streets,
Quit bein’ cheap brutha freedom ain’t free!
Feel that Katrina Clap!
See that Katrina Clap,
Soul Survivor,
Lord God God save our souls,
A-God save our souls, A-God,
A-God save our souls,
Lord God God save our souls,
A-God save our soul A-God A-God save us,
(Verse III)
Lord did not inten (yen-end) for the wicked to rule the world,
Say God could not inten (yen-end) for the wicked the rule the wor (o oorld),
God did not inten (yen-end) for the wicked to rule the world,
And even when they knew it’s a matter of truth, before they wicked ruling is through,
(Chorus)
God save these streets,
A-dollar day for New Orleans,
God save these streets,
Quit bein’ cheap homie freedom ain’t free,
God save these streets,
One dollar per every human being,
Feel that Katrina Clap!
See that Katrina Clap!
God save these streets,
Quit bein’ cheap brutha freedom ain’t free!
Feel that Katrina Clap!(Ha)
Ghetto Katrina Clap!(Ha)
Soul Survivor,
Lord God God save our souls,
A-God save God save our souls,
Feel that Katrina Clap!
Let’s make them dollars stack!
And rebuild these streets,
God save these streets,
God save these streets,
God save the soul,
Feel that Katrina Clap!
See that Katrina Clap!
Soul Survivor,
Don’t talk about it, Be about it, Peace.
http://mosdef.funky4u.com/2005/09/29/katrina-klap-lyrics/
Mother Nature - Papoose
I Got A $250,000 Personality
I Got Another Quater Mil Mentality
Im in the $500,000 Mood
I Cant Loose, Damn I Feel Like A Million Dollars
How Can i Rap about my life and claim honor?
When people out in new orleans dont have water
I Dedicate this to the sons who lost fathers
A Tribute to mothers who lost daughters
Because they pump chemical fumes into the atsmosphere
They put toxic fumes into the atsmosphere
They even launch aircrafts into the atsmosphere
They keep this up than somethings gonna happen here
Mother nature gotta clean her frame
So she forms a clycone full of winds and rain
This process has a name its called cleanin the atsmosphere
The government calls it a hurricane
Ohh child things are gonna get easier.
Ohh child things will get brighter
Ohh child things are gonna get easier.
Ohh child things will get brighter
They say wave water bore the children (cant understand him here)
They say gods gonna tumble the water
But when a tsunami happens in troublesome waters
The president aint hesitate to cross that border
He took a hole army wit him when he came to war
But when he traveled to new orleans he came with his dog
Is he indirectly trying to call us dogs?
Or just traveling with his pet i aint sure
A grown man cry how pitiful it is
His whole house split in half nowhere to live
He said I held my wifes hand i tried i did
But she let go and said take care of the kids
Alotta property was lost crushed by the trees
Evacuated the city they was forced to leave
They was forced outta their homes they would never leave
So why the media keep callin em refugees
Ohh child things are gonna get easier.
Ohh child things will get brighter
Ohh child things are gonna get easier.
Ohh child things will get brighter
Natural disaster look at the aftermath
They use it as an excuse to raise the price of gas
We worry about things like gettin the last laugh
But your mind state is half fast
Everybody wanna get the last laugh
But when somebody die cuz, the laugh never comes last the cry does
People searchin for food they call it lootin
Marshall law the cops shootin
So now hungry people on the run
They say this aint the time to point fingers
Tell em This aint the time to point guns
Donatin money thats thug love
But people dying over there donate some blood
I dont mean physically, I Mean spiritually
Donate some of your time out lyrically
Make a song that could reach somebody seriously
People who lost their lives your all livin through me
Ohh child things are gonna get easier.
Ohh child things will get brighter
Ohh child things are gonna get easier.
Ohh child things will get brighter
http://www.hiphop-universe.com/underground/lyrics/7314-mother-nature-papoose.html
Kanye West's "George Bush doesn't care about black people"
Now I ain't sayin' he's a gold digger, but he ain't messin' with no broke niggas, x2
George Bush don't like black people x4
Hurricane came through fucked us up round here, government acting like its bad luck down here,
All I know is that you better bring some trucks round here, wonder why I got my middle finger up round here,
People's lives on the line, you declining to help, since you takin' so much time we survivin' ourself,
Just me and my pets and my kids and my spouse, trapped in my own house looking for a way out,(...)
Five days in this muthafucking attic, can't use the cell phone I keep getting static,
Dying cause they lying instead of telling us the truth, other day that helicopter got my neighbours of the roof,
Its cool cause they said ther're comin' back for us too, that was 3 days ago I don't see no rescue,
See a mans gotta do what a mans gotta do, since God made the path then i'm tryin' to walk through,
What? Swam to the store tryin' look for food, corner stores kinda flooded, so I broke my way through, I got what i could but before I through the news said police shot a black man tryin' loot.
Don't like black people,
George Bush don't like black people x3
Now i ain't sayin' he a gold digger, but he ain't fuckin' with no broke niggas x2
George Bush don't like black people x4
5 damn days, 5 long days and at the end of the fifth he walkin' in like "HEY!"
chilling on his vacation sitting patiently, them black folks gotta hope, gotta wait and see,
if FEMA really comes through on an emergency, but nobody seems to have a sense of urgency,
Now the millions been reduced to crime, and I guess Bush said 'niggas been used to dying'
He said I know it looks bad just have to wait, forgeting folks too broke to evacuate,
Niggas starving and they dyin' of thrist, bet he had to go and check on them refinerys first,
makin' a killing of the price of gas, he would have been up in connetecuit, twice as fast,
After all that we been through, nothings changed, you can call red cross but the fact remains that,
George Bush ain't a gold digger, but he ain't fuckin' with no broke niggas x2
Come down Bush, come on come down x4
George Bush ain't a gold digger, George Bush don't like black people x3
Come down George , come on come down x4.
http://www.songmeanings.net/songs/view/3530822107858588519/
Lil Wayne — Georgia ... Bush lyrics
This song right here, is dedicated to the president of the United States of America
Y'all might know him as George Bush
But where I'm from, lost city of New Orleans... we call him this
[Ray Charles sample:] Georgia.........
Noooowww
This song is dedicated to the one wit the suit
Thick white skin and his eyes bright blue
So called beef wit you know who
Fuck it he just let him kill all of our troops
Look at the bullshit we been through
Had the niggas sittin on top they roofs
Hurricane Katrina, we shoulda called it Hurricane (Geeoorrggiaa) Bush
Then they tellin y'all lies on the news
The white people smiling like everythin cool
But I know people that died in that pool
I know people that died in them schools
Now what is the survivor to do?
Got to no trailer, you gotta move
Now it's on to Texas and to (Geeoorrggiiaa)
They tell you what they want, show you what they want you to see
But they don't let you know what's really goin on
Make it look like a lotta stealin goin on
Boy them cops is killas in my home
Nigga shot dead in the middle of the street
I ain't no thief, I'm just tryin to eat
Man fuck the police and president (Geeoorrrggiiaa) Bush
So what happened to the leverage, why wasn't they steady
Why wasn't they able to control this?
I know some fok' that live by the lever
That keep on tellin me they heard this, stole this
Same shit happened back in Hurricane Betsy
1965, I ain't too young to know this
That was President Johnson now
But it's president (Geeoorrggiiaa) Bush
[Chorus - 2X]
We from a town where (Georgia)
Everybody drowned, and
Everybody died, but baby I'm still prayin wich ya
Everybody cryin but (Georgia)
Aint nobody tried, there's no doubt on my mind it was (Georgia) Bush
Noooowwww
I was born in the boot at the bottom of the map
New Orleans baby, now the white house hatin, tryin to wash away like we not on the map
Wait, have you heard the latest, they sayin you gotta have paper if you tryin to come back
Niggas thinkin it's a wrap, see we can't hustle in they trap, we ain't from (Geeoorrggiaa)
Noooww it's them dead bodies, them lost houses, the mayor say don't worry bout it
And the children have been scarred, no ones here to care bout em
And fash out, to all the rappers that helped out
Yea we like it they callin y'all, but fuck president (Geeoorrggiaa) Bush
We see them Confederate flags, you know what it is
A white cracker muthafucka that probably voted for him
And no he ain't gonna drop no dollas, but he do drop bombs
R.I.P. Tay 'cause he died in the storm, fuck president (Geeoorrggiiaa) Bush
See us in ya city man, give us a pound
'cause if a nigga still movin then he holdin it down
I had two Jags, but I lost both them bi-tch-es
I'm from N.O. the N.O. Yea!
[Chorus] niggas like ta poop
([DJ Drama:] oh yea, you thought we was done? Naw)
YEA!
Money money money get a dollar and a dick
Weezy Baby that crack, muthafucka get a fix
Got money out the ass, no homo but I'm rich
Bout to go get surgery and put some diamonds on my wrist YES
Yep, I'm a muthafuckin trip
I'ma trip to Japan and buy some brand new shit
Nine hundred to a grand, get you twenty eight grams
If you talkin bout bricks, I'm the interstate man
And the women say damn, them niggas don't say a damn thing
Boy I bet that shotty make you bounce like a bed-spring
Walkin a thin line, gotta defend mine
And wit no pen I'm sorta like a bomb BOOM
Young toon, yea that's what my people call me
Fifty thousand for the cause, tryin keep the reaper off me
I drink a lotta syrup, bitches say I'm sleep walkin
Big money for the grill, so I'm never cheap talking, yea
Keep talking and the flame leap off the hip
And keep sparking, pap pap sleep softly
Yea, nap nap, nap sack, three forties
Like fuck another nigga, nigga just don't be da target
Young New Orleans nigga, nigga just don't be retarded
We done lost everythin and you lookin like a bargain
Purple weed, purple drink, purple heart sergeant
I'm the best rapper in the game no argin (arguing)
And I don't ever write, pause
Un-pause this, so keep ya bitch ass lines inside the margin
Lil Wayne dot com bitch log in
Put a pillow under your knees and keep ya jaws in
All in ya girl mouth, use her like a toilet
They usually want a baller and the young nigga ballin
Mike Jordan, pardon my swag
Even my father rich as fuck and all my brothers left the family
We said fuck it bought two houses in Miami
I can't wait to do cribs, MTV c'mon get at me
Any rapper wan get at me, tell ya label contact me
Half four hundred for a feature, wanna battle, I'll beat ya
I'm a beast, I'm a preacher, I'm the son of miss cita
Mom dukes, my jeter, she the reason, she the reason
Everybody woman wanna be da boy diva, not even
There's a 305 dime I wanted ever since I seen her
Got a topic of this evenin, hotter than a tub steamin
Gotcha girlfriend dreamin of one day bein Trina
Notta sim seemer, ten ki's in the Beamer
Got a white girl drivin, couldn't do it much cleaner
I'm fly in the sky like that muthafuckin ribbon
Bitches got my name on em, and the nigga still livin
Spend a condo and a club, one bottle won't do
Two bottles won't do, bottles for the whole crew, thanks
And bring me that Patrone, I don't play
No ice I like my drink straight, not gay
And bitch that bank come everyday, I'm paid
I wish a nigga come invade, get sprayed
I stomp a nigga out like I got ten legs
Then they fish the nigga up out the lake in ten days
Behave, no ho, I'm on that Rage Rov
Cash Money, Young Money, ho that money age old
And can't a cage hold this animal from Hollygrove
Sorry mami I be stoned, I be, I be, I be blowed
Got me copy rock star, Weezy Baby fuck these hos
Gotta pay me now for me to even take these hos
Price sizin for a show and the flow
So either Drama is my nigga, or that boy got doe
Go figure that's my nigga, that's my nigga, my nerve
If anybody else want it, sixty thousand a verse
http://www.lyricsty.com/lyrics/l/lil_wayne/georgia_bush.html
Student Narrative Reponse to James Baldwin's "The Creative Process"
Please post your narratives describing your creative process. Make certain you include a brief summary of Baldwin's essay and references to it in your essay.
Say My Name... Students Reflection on Artists' Creativity
Please post your essays on an artist, artist profiled in the film, Say My Name. Respond to a student essay. Please include your name on all responses and the author's name.
Letter of Introduction
Letter of Introduction
August 24, 2009
Dear Students:
I hope your summer was fun and exciting and that you are prepared for classes. I’m sure, especially if you attended summer school, that this semester came sooner than anticipated. Even though we give human attributes to time, like “time runs, flies, and is fleeting,” time actually moves the same or not at all—maybe we’re the ones who are moving, our cosmic body of water this thing called time—invisible with visible consequences—lines, aches, sadness.
However we define this illusive phenomena—time, we need to make the most of our brief flash in the universe or on this planet earth. Given the finite nature of life, if we don’t take advantage of the time—I am intentionally redundant, to refine the talents we have been given or developed to get from here to yonder we might look up years later, older but no wiser.
Obviously, your presence in this classroom means you respect the passage of time and have decided to actively engage this process by not passively letting it pass you by. Your presence, says to me that you want to be an active not passive observer in this phenomena—aging, developing, growing, deteriorating. Each moment, we die a little, so this writing, this active engaging of oneself in one’s life is like planting a stake on the moon, a stake that says, I am here, I was here, and I will be here, even after I am no longer visible.
Life is a gift; we don’t want to waste it. That said, you might be here under duress. Sometimes life circumstances dictate that we try new activities, change old ways and develop more positive habits. Reflection, in the form of reading and writing is one of the most productive ways to spend one’s time, especially when one is trying to figure out what one plans to do with this finite time each of us has been given.
I am recovering from an injury. I was riding my bike down San Leandro Street in Oakland, near Seminary. I was headed back home from the Bay Trail at Zone Way and 66th Street, I was feeling great having climbed steep Hegenberger Blvd., sailed by BART without getting off my bike. The sun was going down, visibility wasn’t great, but I was trying to avoid the uneven sidewalk, going around municipal obstacles, utility poles until I find myself suddenly on the ground—BAM! My head hits the pavement, my bike is on top of me, and after I check to make sure there is nothing broken and get up, check my bike, my hand—right hand is killing me. I can barely stand it, it hurts so badly.
Do I call my daughter to come get me? Where are the police I just saw at the Coliseum BART just moments before? Where is the Good Samaritan, who with concern asks me if I’m okay?
I get on my bike and try to ride home. Yes, I must have been in shock, because the pain in my hand tells me to get off the bike and walk. Unlike other times I’ve fallen, my gloves protected my hands and there were no cuts—just a bad bruise on my hand—it was purple, and a bruise where my helmet hit the pavement. This was July 13. I was going camping that weekend at Oakland Feather River Camp with my granddaughter July 18-24, so I went to the hospital the following day to get an x-ray—no broken bones. Yet, over a month later I am still in pain. I can’t open jars, turn a key in the ignition, steer the car once I am in it, parallel park, or use the computer for extended periods.
We have fun at camp, but perhaps I should have stayed home? I put ice on my hand while there along with a homeopathic remedy, wear my brace and don’t use it.
Yes, it isn’t easy when my hands, right hand in particular, are how I make a living. So I cancel the rest of my summer vacation—I was returning to camp the following week, but can’t navigate the mountainous road alone to Plumus National Forest. I rest my hand and rest it and rest it. Last week, I return to the doctor for a follow-up the day before we’re back on campus. She gives me a referral to physical therapy, but I can’t get an appointment until Friday, August 28 I find out when I call last week.
Well, before my 10 minutes on the computer are up let me tell you a bit about this semester and what you can expect:
The theme is hip hop culture in its purest form, by this I mean hip hop from its inception or the roots of the genre or musical form. In a few classes—I teach four classes, three preps: English 201, English 1A and English 1B, we explore the life of Tupac Shakur, a controversial, charismatic and creative architect in this movement. We will read books about him, reflect on him in our research and look for other artists who are also using their craft to better society—
Hip hop culture has influenced youth globally, and in my English 1B we will reflect on this global movement via the various aesthetic forms of expression: poetry, music, dance, theatre, spirituality, politics, visual arts, and media such as photography and journalism.
Though you might find the class fun, or entertaining, we are scholars, so the music and the videos, even the fieldtrips to concerts, all have a written component—the discourse is documented in what is called essays—short 250 word reflections and longer pieces depending on the assignment. We will have some assignments due on-line on the class blog called cyber-assignments and others will be due in class.
This is a draft syllabus until I learn how to use Dragon Naturally Speaking. My office is L-236, (510) 748-2131. The email address I check is professorwandasposse@gmail.com Office hours will probably be on Tuesdays and Thursdays in the morning (TBA) and perhaps Wednesday after 3 PM. I am not on campus on Fridays. I am hiring an aide who will be available to help with Stewart Pidd assignments and other work.
We will meet in a classroom in the A-bldg. with technology on Thursdays for the M-Th, T/Th classes and on Wednesdays with the MW classes. More on this later.
I highly recommend SPHE. It is required for English 201 and English 1A. Deceptively simple, the book is useful for all college writing levels as a refresher and also as an introduction to essay writing for college. SPHE gives students the language to talk about their writing and the skills to intentionally produce competent essays.
Students analyze the character Stewart Pidd’s essays and grade his essays by critiquing this work in essays they compose. The authors tell students how to write these essays and the assignments are prescriptive. Many essays are written in class and the exercises are also run on class. The book grows more complex as skills increase. I received good feedback on the text from some of my more accomplished writers in English 1A last year. Some students said that they learned a lot about writing that they hadn’t know before.
Keep all of your work, this is a portfolio based class. More on this later.
August 24, 2009
Dear Students:
I hope your summer was fun and exciting and that you are prepared for classes. I’m sure, especially if you attended summer school, that this semester came sooner than anticipated. Even though we give human attributes to time, like “time runs, flies, and is fleeting,” time actually moves the same or not at all—maybe we’re the ones who are moving, our cosmic body of water this thing called time—invisible with visible consequences—lines, aches, sadness.
However we define this illusive phenomena—time, we need to make the most of our brief flash in the universe or on this planet earth. Given the finite nature of life, if we don’t take advantage of the time—I am intentionally redundant, to refine the talents we have been given or developed to get from here to yonder we might look up years later, older but no wiser.
Obviously, your presence in this classroom means you respect the passage of time and have decided to actively engage this process by not passively letting it pass you by. Your presence, says to me that you want to be an active not passive observer in this phenomena—aging, developing, growing, deteriorating. Each moment, we die a little, so this writing, this active engaging of oneself in one’s life is like planting a stake on the moon, a stake that says, I am here, I was here, and I will be here, even after I am no longer visible.
Life is a gift; we don’t want to waste it. That said, you might be here under duress. Sometimes life circumstances dictate that we try new activities, change old ways and develop more positive habits. Reflection, in the form of reading and writing is one of the most productive ways to spend one’s time, especially when one is trying to figure out what one plans to do with this finite time each of us has been given.
I am recovering from an injury. I was riding my bike down San Leandro Street in Oakland, near Seminary. I was headed back home from the Bay Trail at Zone Way and 66th Street, I was feeling great having climbed steep Hegenberger Blvd., sailed by BART without getting off my bike. The sun was going down, visibility wasn’t great, but I was trying to avoid the uneven sidewalk, going around municipal obstacles, utility poles until I find myself suddenly on the ground—BAM! My head hits the pavement, my bike is on top of me, and after I check to make sure there is nothing broken and get up, check my bike, my hand—right hand is killing me. I can barely stand it, it hurts so badly.
Do I call my daughter to come get me? Where are the police I just saw at the Coliseum BART just moments before? Where is the Good Samaritan, who with concern asks me if I’m okay?
I get on my bike and try to ride home. Yes, I must have been in shock, because the pain in my hand tells me to get off the bike and walk. Unlike other times I’ve fallen, my gloves protected my hands and there were no cuts—just a bad bruise on my hand—it was purple, and a bruise where my helmet hit the pavement. This was July 13. I was going camping that weekend at Oakland Feather River Camp with my granddaughter July 18-24, so I went to the hospital the following day to get an x-ray—no broken bones. Yet, over a month later I am still in pain. I can’t open jars, turn a key in the ignition, steer the car once I am in it, parallel park, or use the computer for extended periods.
We have fun at camp, but perhaps I should have stayed home? I put ice on my hand while there along with a homeopathic remedy, wear my brace and don’t use it.
Yes, it isn’t easy when my hands, right hand in particular, are how I make a living. So I cancel the rest of my summer vacation—I was returning to camp the following week, but can’t navigate the mountainous road alone to Plumus National Forest. I rest my hand and rest it and rest it. Last week, I return to the doctor for a follow-up the day before we’re back on campus. She gives me a referral to physical therapy, but I can’t get an appointment until Friday, August 28 I find out when I call last week.
Well, before my 10 minutes on the computer are up let me tell you a bit about this semester and what you can expect:
The theme is hip hop culture in its purest form, by this I mean hip hop from its inception or the roots of the genre or musical form. In a few classes—I teach four classes, three preps: English 201, English 1A and English 1B, we explore the life of Tupac Shakur, a controversial, charismatic and creative architect in this movement. We will read books about him, reflect on him in our research and look for other artists who are also using their craft to better society—
Hip hop culture has influenced youth globally, and in my English 1B we will reflect on this global movement via the various aesthetic forms of expression: poetry, music, dance, theatre, spirituality, politics, visual arts, and media such as photography and journalism.
Though you might find the class fun, or entertaining, we are scholars, so the music and the videos, even the fieldtrips to concerts, all have a written component—the discourse is documented in what is called essays—short 250 word reflections and longer pieces depending on the assignment. We will have some assignments due on-line on the class blog called cyber-assignments and others will be due in class.
This is a draft syllabus until I learn how to use Dragon Naturally Speaking. My office is L-236, (510) 748-2131. The email address I check is professorwandasposse@gmail.com Office hours will probably be on Tuesdays and Thursdays in the morning (TBA) and perhaps Wednesday after 3 PM. I am not on campus on Fridays. I am hiring an aide who will be available to help with Stewart Pidd assignments and other work.
We will meet in a classroom in the A-bldg. with technology on Thursdays for the M-Th, T/Th classes and on Wednesdays with the MW classes. More on this later.
I highly recommend SPHE. It is required for English 201 and English 1A. Deceptively simple, the book is useful for all college writing levels as a refresher and also as an introduction to essay writing for college. SPHE gives students the language to talk about their writing and the skills to intentionally produce competent essays.
Students analyze the character Stewart Pidd’s essays and grade his essays by critiquing this work in essays they compose. The authors tell students how to write these essays and the assignments are prescriptive. Many essays are written in class and the exercises are also run on class. The book grows more complex as skills increase. I received good feedback on the text from some of my more accomplished writers in English 1A last year. Some students said that they learned a lot about writing that they hadn’t know before.
Keep all of your work, this is a portfolio based class. More on this later.
Saturday, January 3, 2009
Finals grades are filed
January 3, 2009
Dear Students:
I just filed my grades yesterday, Friday, January 2, 2009. I am in New Orleans, it's storming, and the mosquitoes are eating me alive with the repellent. I waited to give more students the opportunity to get their work in. Nonetheless, I still found many students who didn't pass the class or turned in sloppy or incomplete portfolios or skipped the process altogether. Some of these students presented their final research on one of the elements.
It's a shame.
I am looking to change my class assignment and exercises strategy for Spring 2009. I'm thinking of making the first 6-8 weeks really intense. Give the heavy assignments toward the end of the first month, and then by the time Spring Break rolls around and students start to drop, perhaps more will stay around because the intense portion of the course will be over. 18 weeks is a long time and it seems to encourage students to put off the work for a later time which never comes.
For those of you who received less than satisfactory grades. Don't worry. Writing is a process and for some scholars it takes longer to grasp the concepts and apply them than others.
KEEP WRITING AND READING AND WRITING AND READING.
Many of you didn't take the course seriously. Academic resources are for your use, so use them to your advantage. We also lost more than a few of our scholars who were not challenged intellectually to another college campus where they feel the atmosphere there will be more collegial.
I received more than one comment about assignments and the changing deadlines. The problem was students were not doing the assignments and if we'd kept going, more would have failed, than did. It's always difficult for me in a class where the students resist reading and preparing in advance for class discussions.
I am going to offer all my courses as hybrid Fall 2009, which might address this a bit, but I agree the morale suffers when everyone isn't engaged.
Future Plans
I'd like to have a “Book of the Semester” for the College, a “Summer Reading Selection” and a “College Retreat” at the beginning of the Fall Semester, mandatory for all entering students. This is where we can pair freshmen up with sophomores. Any volunteers?
I am looking at having an on-line class television show broadcasting minimally three times next semester, this will include the portfolio presentations and perhaps a few other assignments. I am also thinking about a radio show, bi-monthly where we discuss writing or literature topics. I'd like it to be a call-in with featured guests.
I am around for the duration, so look me up. I'll be facilitating College Prep Luncheon Rap Sessions Spring 2009. Some of the topics I'm considering are: Academic Services on Campus, Time Management and Study Habits, Financial Aide, Mentoring, College Life: Academic Clubs and Offices, Studying for Tests, Emergency Preparedness or How to stay in college, and keep your grades up when you have a personal emergency, and when to drop, the Grievance Process, Student Rights, Academic Integrity or why cheating is not an option for serious students.
The panels will consist of faculty, staff and students.
Of course we won't be able to offer sessions on all of these topics, but if students like the idea then maybe we can continue these conversations outside of this arena in a Study Hall type setting, like the LRC.
This would be good to broadcast on the Peralta Television Station.
Send me topics you are thinking about also.
Happy New Year! And good luck in your academic career!
Wanda Sabir
Dear Students:
I just filed my grades yesterday, Friday, January 2, 2009. I am in New Orleans, it's storming, and the mosquitoes are eating me alive with the repellent. I waited to give more students the opportunity to get their work in. Nonetheless, I still found many students who didn't pass the class or turned in sloppy or incomplete portfolios or skipped the process altogether. Some of these students presented their final research on one of the elements.
It's a shame.
I am looking to change my class assignment and exercises strategy for Spring 2009. I'm thinking of making the first 6-8 weeks really intense. Give the heavy assignments toward the end of the first month, and then by the time Spring Break rolls around and students start to drop, perhaps more will stay around because the intense portion of the course will be over. 18 weeks is a long time and it seems to encourage students to put off the work for a later time which never comes.
For those of you who received less than satisfactory grades. Don't worry. Writing is a process and for some scholars it takes longer to grasp the concepts and apply them than others.
KEEP WRITING AND READING AND WRITING AND READING.
Many of you didn't take the course seriously. Academic resources are for your use, so use them to your advantage. We also lost more than a few of our scholars who were not challenged intellectually to another college campus where they feel the atmosphere there will be more collegial.
I received more than one comment about assignments and the changing deadlines. The problem was students were not doing the assignments and if we'd kept going, more would have failed, than did. It's always difficult for me in a class where the students resist reading and preparing in advance for class discussions.
I am going to offer all my courses as hybrid Fall 2009, which might address this a bit, but I agree the morale suffers when everyone isn't engaged.
Future Plans
I'd like to have a “Book of the Semester” for the College, a “Summer Reading Selection” and a “College Retreat” at the beginning of the Fall Semester, mandatory for all entering students. This is where we can pair freshmen up with sophomores. Any volunteers?
I am looking at having an on-line class television show broadcasting minimally three times next semester, this will include the portfolio presentations and perhaps a few other assignments. I am also thinking about a radio show, bi-monthly where we discuss writing or literature topics. I'd like it to be a call-in with featured guests.
I am around for the duration, so look me up. I'll be facilitating College Prep Luncheon Rap Sessions Spring 2009. Some of the topics I'm considering are: Academic Services on Campus, Time Management and Study Habits, Financial Aide, Mentoring, College Life: Academic Clubs and Offices, Studying for Tests, Emergency Preparedness or How to stay in college, and keep your grades up when you have a personal emergency, and when to drop, the Grievance Process, Student Rights, Academic Integrity or why cheating is not an option for serious students.
The panels will consist of faculty, staff and students.
Of course we won't be able to offer sessions on all of these topics, but if students like the idea then maybe we can continue these conversations outside of this arena in a Study Hall type setting, like the LRC.
This would be good to broadcast on the Peralta Television Station.
Send me topics you are thinking about also.
Happy New Year! And good luck in your academic career!
Wanda Sabir
Monday, December 22, 2008
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
Can't Stop, Won't Stop CD...Coldest Winter Ever
If you were absent and didn't get your copy of Can't Stop, Won't Stop, CD I have a copy for you.
For those who need to read essay responses to The Coldest Winter, email me. Also, students, please paste the question on the page with the essay response and read your completed essay before submitting it to me out aloud. Use Kurzweil. I have more copies if you need another. I'll be around for two finals tomorrow. I am not here Thursday, Dec. 18. I'm free at 2 p.m. 12/17, and I have an appointment with Kimmy. Following this appointment, if anyone wants to stop by my office let me know. Send me an email or call me.
I like this part of the semester, when students bring in their writing and we finally have a opportunity to workshop it and fine tune the process. It works better when we are revising, and assembling the portfolio but if you have gotten this far, if you are not behind on the reading and know how to write, then you will pass the course.
At the English 1B level there should be no shifts in voice or point of view, any SV Agreement problems, sentence fragments, and clarity issues, like wrong word "WW," missing word MWs. The works cited and bibliography has to be perfect. Oh, I also noted problems with signal phrases--they were absent. You have to introduce quotes.
We write in Standard English. If you want to use slang, quote a character from the book. At the English 1B level students should know the difference between plot summary and analysis. I thought we laid the groundwork for this in the early freewrites and class writing assignments. We practiced developing thesis sentences, summary, outlines and, essay planning and even how to read for information, how to use the index and table of contents.
Many students chose to not buy my books or bring them to class, but you were assigned the proper tools and if you still have them, pull them out now and use them to edit your essays.
Some students didn't cite the book at all or the author in the "Winter" essay. We are scholars, you always have to bring in other reliable, nondebateable, sources. Make sure you read the end of the book where Souljah is asked certain pertinent questions about the text, if you haven't already done so and haven't turned in your essay yet or have to revise it.
For those who need to read essay responses to The Coldest Winter, email me. Also, students, please paste the question on the page with the essay response and read your completed essay before submitting it to me out aloud. Use Kurzweil. I have more copies if you need another. I'll be around for two finals tomorrow. I am not here Thursday, Dec. 18. I'm free at 2 p.m. 12/17, and I have an appointment with Kimmy. Following this appointment, if anyone wants to stop by my office let me know. Send me an email or call me.
I like this part of the semester, when students bring in their writing and we finally have a opportunity to workshop it and fine tune the process. It works better when we are revising, and assembling the portfolio but if you have gotten this far, if you are not behind on the reading and know how to write, then you will pass the course.
At the English 1B level there should be no shifts in voice or point of view, any SV Agreement problems, sentence fragments, and clarity issues, like wrong word "WW," missing word MWs. The works cited and bibliography has to be perfect. Oh, I also noted problems with signal phrases--they were absent. You have to introduce quotes.
We write in Standard English. If you want to use slang, quote a character from the book. At the English 1B level students should know the difference between plot summary and analysis. I thought we laid the groundwork for this in the early freewrites and class writing assignments. We practiced developing thesis sentences, summary, outlines and, essay planning and even how to read for information, how to use the index and table of contents.
Many students chose to not buy my books or bring them to class, but you were assigned the proper tools and if you still have them, pull them out now and use them to edit your essays.
Some students didn't cite the book at all or the author in the "Winter" essay. We are scholars, you always have to bring in other reliable, nondebateable, sources. Make sure you read the end of the book where Souljah is asked certain pertinent questions about the text, if you haven't already done so and haven't turned in your essay yet or have to revise it.
Finals are over!
Today we had student presentations most of which focused on music, though Jennifer's looked at hip hop dance--specifically the group: Jabbawockrez (sp?) and Loren's spirituality. Ronnie shared an artist born in Hawaii whose work mixes genres: MCing, DJing and song writing. Kimmy spoke about Eminem, a rap artist, whom Arron agreed was one of the best writers this generation has produced. She shared two songs, one as Marshall Mathers, the other Eminem's nemesis.
Aerin was going to present something on hip hop visual art, including poetry and style, but changed her mind. Deon's presentation was on MC Lyte, who hails from Brooklyn like him and has done much to promote hip hop culture and help her family and by extension the community.
Aaron's poem, "Swagger," which he is going to send me and I'll post it, was a lyrical, poetic journey through hip hop culture with a shout out to the innovators--recent innovators--as in the past 30-40-50 years, who are credited with pushing the cultural movement into the 21st century. (I say recent, because while speaking to Boots Riley, the Coup, he said hip hop can be traced to "hambone.") Listen to http://www.wandaspicks.asmnetwork.org (9:30 a.m., Dec. 5, 2008).
Dominique is a dancer, but she didn't feel inclined to dance or demonstrate visually what Jenny was talking about in her presentation, but Deon started to, and then noticed how close the tables were to each other and changed his mind, but it was a nice thought.
It would have been instructive and appreciated if Jenny would have brought in the film, RIZE or a film like this, then played the segments which illustrated certain types of dances she mentioned.
Friday, Dec. 19, 12 noon, for those who were not able to present their papers, come by L-226 and we will have a make up final for the hour 12-1. Portfolios are due now via email. If you need an extension talk to me. Aerin, your portfolio is incomplete. You are missing the narratives. They are not optional. You are missing the check-list. You also didn't include your contact information--another important detail.
Students need to fill out the checklist (I can email it to you and you can get a copy from the folder outside my office in the bin. Give me the check-list by Friday, if you did not give it to me today. Attach copies of your freewrites and other notes from class. Make sure your name is on everything. You can also email me the completed check list as a part of the portfolio.
Thanks to the students who gave me their freewrites regarding future plans and a class critique. This class was hard for me, just for the seeming absence of engagement. I assumed at English 1B that students has a certain level of writing and research skills. In some sense this was true, in others, it was not true.
I always find it hard to get students to read the textbooks. This semester it was harder than other times, which is why I tried to be creative in the assignments so that students would have to use Jeff Chang's "Can't Stop, Won't Stop" and "Total Chaos." I certainly agree that the writing is important, but I think what you have to say is more important that the writing, because I've read a lot of structurally correct writing which is empty of content.
The students this semester were engaging and astute, sharp and critical in their analysis of hip hop culture. There were so many places we could take this and some of my favorite moments were the Felicia Pride reflections, the artifacts, the discussion on key stakeholders, the lyrical analysis, the field trip to the gallery and the interaction observed between students and the art and the artist, the global movement process more than the writing that came from it, and today, the finale.
I'd hoped we would have had discussions on "The Coldest Winter Ever," but such was not the case. I also enjoyed the brief conversation on poetry and "nommo." Oh, it was fun reading "Angry Black White Boy" in class, and Intersection for the Arts is mounting it again in January.
I enjoyed learning more about hip hop culture. I don't think I've saturated myself like this in a movement in a long time: Mac B, Ebony and Johnny, The Living Word Project with Mos Def, Goapele, and graffiti artist contest in the park, The Living Word Project featuring: Animal Farm and War Peace, The Angry Black White Boy, Hybrid Project (12/12 and 12/18-21), both at Intersection for the Arts, Destiny Arts 20th Anniversary (12/13); AeroSoul. Concerts: Wu-Tang Clan, Nas, KRS-ONE, the Coup, Lil Wayne? Films: Slamnation, Slam, Wu Tang Clan (documentary). Lectures: Sister Souljah author event, "Midnight," "Women in Hip Hop," featuring MC Lyte, hosted by Chuck D as East Side Cultural Center and the concert later on at the Uptown, in Oakland.
Aerin was going to present something on hip hop visual art, including poetry and style, but changed her mind. Deon's presentation was on MC Lyte, who hails from Brooklyn like him and has done much to promote hip hop culture and help her family and by extension the community.
Aaron's poem, "Swagger," which he is going to send me and I'll post it, was a lyrical, poetic journey through hip hop culture with a shout out to the innovators--recent innovators--as in the past 30-40-50 years, who are credited with pushing the cultural movement into the 21st century. (I say recent, because while speaking to Boots Riley, the Coup, he said hip hop can be traced to "hambone.") Listen to http://www.wandaspicks.asmnetwork.org (9:30 a.m., Dec. 5, 2008).
Dominique is a dancer, but she didn't feel inclined to dance or demonstrate visually what Jenny was talking about in her presentation, but Deon started to, and then noticed how close the tables were to each other and changed his mind, but it was a nice thought.
It would have been instructive and appreciated if Jenny would have brought in the film, RIZE or a film like this, then played the segments which illustrated certain types of dances she mentioned.
Friday, Dec. 19, 12 noon, for those who were not able to present their papers, come by L-226 and we will have a make up final for the hour 12-1. Portfolios are due now via email. If you need an extension talk to me. Aerin, your portfolio is incomplete. You are missing the narratives. They are not optional. You are missing the check-list. You also didn't include your contact information--another important detail.
Students need to fill out the checklist (I can email it to you and you can get a copy from the folder outside my office in the bin. Give me the check-list by Friday, if you did not give it to me today. Attach copies of your freewrites and other notes from class. Make sure your name is on everything. You can also email me the completed check list as a part of the portfolio.
Thanks to the students who gave me their freewrites regarding future plans and a class critique. This class was hard for me, just for the seeming absence of engagement. I assumed at English 1B that students has a certain level of writing and research skills. In some sense this was true, in others, it was not true.
I always find it hard to get students to read the textbooks. This semester it was harder than other times, which is why I tried to be creative in the assignments so that students would have to use Jeff Chang's "Can't Stop, Won't Stop" and "Total Chaos." I certainly agree that the writing is important, but I think what you have to say is more important that the writing, because I've read a lot of structurally correct writing which is empty of content.
The students this semester were engaging and astute, sharp and critical in their analysis of hip hop culture. There were so many places we could take this and some of my favorite moments were the Felicia Pride reflections, the artifacts, the discussion on key stakeholders, the lyrical analysis, the field trip to the gallery and the interaction observed between students and the art and the artist, the global movement process more than the writing that came from it, and today, the finale.
I'd hoped we would have had discussions on "The Coldest Winter Ever," but such was not the case. I also enjoyed the brief conversation on poetry and "nommo." Oh, it was fun reading "Angry Black White Boy" in class, and Intersection for the Arts is mounting it again in January.
I enjoyed learning more about hip hop culture. I don't think I've saturated myself like this in a movement in a long time: Mac B, Ebony and Johnny, The Living Word Project with Mos Def, Goapele, and graffiti artist contest in the park, The Living Word Project featuring: Animal Farm and War Peace, The Angry Black White Boy, Hybrid Project (12/12 and 12/18-21), both at Intersection for the Arts, Destiny Arts 20th Anniversary (12/13); AeroSoul. Concerts: Wu-Tang Clan, Nas, KRS-ONE, the Coup, Lil Wayne? Films: Slamnation, Slam, Wu Tang Clan (documentary). Lectures: Sister Souljah author event, "Midnight," "Women in Hip Hop," featuring MC Lyte, hosted by Chuck D as East Side Cultural Center and the concert later on at the Uptown, in Oakland.
Monday, December 15, 2008
Final Dec. 16 in C-104 8-10 AM
Today we met and reviewed essays. Your final is tomorrow, Dec. 16, 8-10 AM in C-104 (our classroom). Bring an abstract for your classmates with the title and topic of your research presentation (element).
Some of your Coldest Winter essays were poorly written, both structurally and grammatically. I had to give students feedback so they could re-write the essay. It was my hope that students could write a critical analysis without having to revise it. Such has not been the case. If you need an extension on the portfolio due date, it is certainly possible.
Most of you have not taken advantage of the academic resources available, most notably me, but this is a mute point. If you pass, please make sure that your get help earlier in the semester before finals week.
Some of your Coldest Winter essays were poorly written, both structurally and grammatically. I had to give students feedback so they could re-write the essay. It was my hope that students could write a critical analysis without having to revise it. Such has not been the case. If you need an extension on the portfolio due date, it is certainly possible.
Most of you have not taken advantage of the academic resources available, most notably me, but this is a mute point. If you pass, please make sure that your get help earlier in the semester before finals week.
Thursday, December 11, 2008
LOST?
Some students are confused. This is what happens when you skip class. Read the blog. The checklist I handed out today can be picked up from my office. The assignments are taken from the blog. If you don't remember the assignment, just read the blog. It is there, go back to August 2008. The syllabus is there too along with my email address: professorwandasposse@gmail.com
Your final essay, "The Coldest Winter Ever," is due ASAP, no later than 9 a.m. Monday, Dec. 15. I might not be able to give you feedback if you turn it in then. Some of the essays I am reading are pretty drafty. Students need to edit their essays before submission and if it is a research essay, include the works cited. You should have no more than one citation per page. Each essay should be minimally 4-5 pages long, this includes the works cited page.
This course is about the research process and critical analysis of texts. You are scholars, so your works cited page and bibliography should be correct, no mistakes.
Get help on your essays today, tomorrow and next week. The writing center is open and tutoring is available. My eyes should not be the first professional eyes that have seen your early draft. I don't have time to spend three hours with one student going back and forth on drafts. What you turn in should be as polished as possible.
The goal is a passing grade the first draft. I read essays this morning that did not reflect the type of writing I would expect at this level. Luckily the essay was turned in early, which means there is time to revise for a passing grade.
Some students are really behind...really behind, other students stopped coming and then showed up today LOST. You get out of the course what you put into it and many of you didn't take advantage of academic resources. Many students don't own the books, or academic writing resources?!
I am still appalled 16 weeks later!
If you pass the course, learn from this close call and use the Writing Center, Tutoring services and of course, your professor's office hours for one-on-one consultations.
I have been very available this semester and only a few students came to see me, none of them on a regular basis. This will show in your grade. Only one of your classmates, just one and he came in week 9 or 10.
Come to the study hour Monday, Dec. 15, 9-1, L-226, with your papers digitized. If you can't come, I look forward to your paper presentation of your research on one of the hip hop culture elements. Fill out the checklist and bring that in also.
Your final essay, "The Coldest Winter Ever," is due ASAP, no later than 9 a.m. Monday, Dec. 15. I might not be able to give you feedback if you turn it in then. Some of the essays I am reading are pretty drafty. Students need to edit their essays before submission and if it is a research essay, include the works cited. You should have no more than one citation per page. Each essay should be minimally 4-5 pages long, this includes the works cited page.
This course is about the research process and critical analysis of texts. You are scholars, so your works cited page and bibliography should be correct, no mistakes.
Get help on your essays today, tomorrow and next week. The writing center is open and tutoring is available. My eyes should not be the first professional eyes that have seen your early draft. I don't have time to spend three hours with one student going back and forth on drafts. What you turn in should be as polished as possible.
The goal is a passing grade the first draft. I read essays this morning that did not reflect the type of writing I would expect at this level. Luckily the essay was turned in early, which means there is time to revise for a passing grade.
Some students are really behind...really behind, other students stopped coming and then showed up today LOST. You get out of the course what you put into it and many of you didn't take advantage of academic resources. Many students don't own the books, or academic writing resources?!
I am still appalled 16 weeks later!
If you pass the course, learn from this close call and use the Writing Center, Tutoring services and of course, your professor's office hours for one-on-one consultations.
I have been very available this semester and only a few students came to see me, none of them on a regular basis. This will show in your grade. Only one of your classmates, just one and he came in week 9 or 10.
Come to the study hour Monday, Dec. 15, 9-1, L-226, with your papers digitized. If you can't come, I look forward to your paper presentation of your research on one of the hip hop culture elements. Fill out the checklist and bring that in also.
Tuesday, December 9, 2008
King of the BINGO Game
Please post your responses to the Ralph Ellison story here. If you have not emailed me your essays for critique, please do so, so you can get feedback before you turn in your portfolio. I do not want to see essays for the first time in the portfolio, the exception are narratives 1 & 2.
Monday, December 8, 2008
Resources for Coldest Winter Ever Essay Questions
Here is a link to the Rules of the Game essay by Amy Tan.
http://www.literacymatters.org/content/lessons/tan/rules.pdf
It's from this site: http://unjobs.org/authors/amy-tan
For a critical analysis of Ralph Ellison's King of the BINGO Game visit http://fajardo-acosta.com/worldlit/ellison/bingo.htm for analysis.
On the author: http://www.pbs.org/wnet/americanmasters/database/ellison_r_homepage.html
You can also visit http://www.questia.com/app/direct/SM.qst
http://www.literacymatters.org/content/lessons/tan/rules.pdf
It's from this site: http://unjobs.org/authors/amy-tan
For a critical analysis of Ralph Ellison's King of the BINGO Game visit http://fajardo-acosta.com/worldlit/ellison/bingo.htm for analysis.
On the author: http://www.pbs.org/wnet/americanmasters/database/ellison_r_homepage.html
You can also visit http://www.questia.com/app/direct/SM.qst
FINALS not optional
Well, this must just be a semester where students don't have time to visit professor office hours. You final is Tuesday, Dec. 16, 8 to 10 AM. We'll meet in the classroom, C-104, but this is negotiable depending on technology needs.
We meet in L-202E on 12/11 to write our essay on the Coldest Winter Ever. Decide what question you'd like to respond to so you can ask clarifying questions tomorrow. We'll meet in L-226 tomorrow morning.
Oh Monday, 12/15, I am hosting a study hall from 9-12 noon. If you have a final that ends at 12 noon, and want to come by my office, I can stay, just let me know in advance. I will also be around 12/16 after our final, if you need to talk.
Portfolios
The portfolio narratives for English 1B
There is an example of a portfolio in the comment section of this post. You can see more examples, just ask, I have lots of them.
1. The first narrative essaywill look at the 18 weeks, the themes we looked at this semester, as we explored hip hop culture and its impact on American society and the global community. Talk about what you've learned and discovered this semester about writing and yourself, college and life, which have transformed or changed you.
What have you learned about the discipline you are studying: reading and writing that you plan to carry forth into your lifelong pursuit of learning.
Please also comment on the texts and whether or not they were helpful in this process. You can also talk about the instruction, culture of the class and the teacher.
2.Essay 2 has students look at the writing process and discuss their own writing process: the topics chosen, the information used, revision strategies, writing as a process. This should include a definition of the difference between editing and revising and a value statement on the place for both in composition.
What have you learned about yourself as a writer? Take two essays and talk about the planning, research and revision strategies you used. It helps to choose an early paper and compare to a later paper. Often you can more easily see the differences in your writing and a better example of mastery of certain concepts. Also discuss skills you need to improve and how you plan to address that.
I am really interested in discourse about audience and how that shapes or determines how the writer approaches her topic.
I am also interested in discussion of the revision process, and whether or not seeing writing as a work in progress or a draft, liberates or stagnates the creative process. (Students are to use examples from their writing to illustrate these points.)
I'd also like students to think about and give at three specific ways how they have grown as writers and thinkers this semester. Each essay should be minimally 1-2 pages (250-500 words).
Student essays
The essays should include: the Dyson/Hurt essay critique on violence, misogyny, homophobia, etc., the essays on the elements of hip hop culture: music, theatre, graffiti or visual art, dance, literature, education and other performance art, like DJing and beatboxing.
The last essay is the one that takes it's topic from The Coldest Winter Ever. We will write that essay on Thursday, Dec. 11. You can come to class early. I have the room reserved from 8 AM to 12 noon. It is open book, open notes. You need a planning sheet, an outline and at least scholarly source, plus the novel, outside the book. Adam Mansbach's essay in Chang's Total Chaos works. (I might have left some essays out, this list is not exhaustive. If you need other essays, let me known in advance.
Students can submit a graded essay from another discipline this semester if the other instructor doesn't mind to exchange for an assignment. You have to talk me me first. You can also submit another essay for extra credit. This essay has to be one where you used research and has to be minimally 4 pages long plus a works cited page (5 pages minimally).
We will work on the narratives during the optional Study Hall, Monday, Dec. 17, in the smaller writing lab, L-226. We will also practice this as a freewrite tomorrow.
You have a copy of the assigned essays this semester. See below. The check-list is the same with grades posted next to the assignment. I'll post one later. We will look at this the last day of class. Our final is Wednesday, Dec. 17, from 10 to 12 noon. We will meet in the Writing Center, L-226. If you need technology, let me know next week.
Your portfolios are due Tuesday, Dec. 16, the day of the final, unless other arrangements are made in advance. I do not want to see any essays for the first time in your portfolio. They should all have a grade, so email me your posted ungraded essays, so I can grade them and get them back to you. I would also advise those of you who are stressing unnecessarily to come talk to me about your writing. I am available and since most of you did not come see me this semester, now is the time to do so. Also, Elements of Style will help you tremendously with your writing-- the tips there will help you write elegantly.
They are to be digitized and saved on a CD, travel drive, diskette or emailed (MS Word 2003). No exceptions. The only paper copies are the freewrites and reading logs. Do not give me your originals. I can make copies, if you can’t. Oh, there are no regular class meetings next week. You come to class only on the date of the final.
Final Presentations:
You will present one of your research essays the day of the final--it is your choice which element you'd like to share your scholarship on. The only essay you cannot share is one you've already presented. Lit Hop is okay also.
You will not read the essay. Make sure you at least have a photo of the person you chose who uses hip hop for social change. Prepare an abstract or a short summary for your classmates. If you need me to make copies, send the document to me in advance. Please rehearse your presentations so they are succinct and to the point. You can invite guests and food is allowed. If someone wants to organize a potluck let me know.
Here are the main essays again. This list is not exhaustive. I will give you a handout with all the writing assignments, which we went over in class 2-3 weeks ago, by Thursday, Dec. 11. This will serve as the table of contents for the portfolio:
1. Hip Hop Theatre: planning and draft due Nov. 20 for peer review; final due Nov. 25. We started already reading from Total Chaos and The Angry Black White Boy. The question: What is hip hop theatre and how do your examples support your definition? Total Chaos is a resource.
2. Hip Hop Music: Dec. 2 planning and draft due for peer review; final Dec. 4.
What is hip hop music? For this essay students can survey an artist whose work embodies hip hop culture. You could take an angle like: Women in Hip Hop. The musical survey needs to cover the range of the work. The artist has to be a key stakeholder in the genre.
3. Hip Lit: “The Coldest Winter Ever” –in class essay. We’ll write it Dec. 11 (in L-202E. Bring your outline and planning sheets)
Question: How is this book classic hip hop literature?
4. Hip Hop Visual Arts –already done
5. Hip Hop as a Global Movement – already done
Group Presentation Grade—already done
6. Hip Hop Spirituality—Soundz of Spirit, http://movies.yahoo.com/movie/1808614830/info Nov. 18, 2008. Assignment posted. Question: What is Hip hop spirituality?
7. Hip Hop Poetry—films and other multi-media (written in class) First week in Dec. in class. Assignment posted. We will look at hip hop poets such as Saul Williams and groups like Youth Speaks. I am looking for a link to the show: The Infinite Mind about the meaning of poetry. I'll share with you in class.
8. Freewrites: The Message and Know What I Mean posts and other responses on-going
9. Hip Hop Dance—I forgot to include this so you can substitute dance for another genre.
We meet in L-202E on 12/11 to write our essay on the Coldest Winter Ever. Decide what question you'd like to respond to so you can ask clarifying questions tomorrow. We'll meet in L-226 tomorrow morning.
Oh Monday, 12/15, I am hosting a study hall from 9-12 noon. If you have a final that ends at 12 noon, and want to come by my office, I can stay, just let me know in advance. I will also be around 12/16 after our final, if you need to talk.
Portfolios
The portfolio narratives for English 1B
There is an example of a portfolio in the comment section of this post. You can see more examples, just ask, I have lots of them.
1. The first narrative essaywill look at the 18 weeks, the themes we looked at this semester, as we explored hip hop culture and its impact on American society and the global community. Talk about what you've learned and discovered this semester about writing and yourself, college and life, which have transformed or changed you.
What have you learned about the discipline you are studying: reading and writing that you plan to carry forth into your lifelong pursuit of learning.
Please also comment on the texts and whether or not they were helpful in this process. You can also talk about the instruction, culture of the class and the teacher.
2.Essay 2 has students look at the writing process and discuss their own writing process: the topics chosen, the information used, revision strategies, writing as a process. This should include a definition of the difference between editing and revising and a value statement on the place for both in composition.
What have you learned about yourself as a writer? Take two essays and talk about the planning, research and revision strategies you used. It helps to choose an early paper and compare to a later paper. Often you can more easily see the differences in your writing and a better example of mastery of certain concepts. Also discuss skills you need to improve and how you plan to address that.
I am really interested in discourse about audience and how that shapes or determines how the writer approaches her topic.
I am also interested in discussion of the revision process, and whether or not seeing writing as a work in progress or a draft, liberates or stagnates the creative process. (Students are to use examples from their writing to illustrate these points.)
I'd also like students to think about and give at three specific ways how they have grown as writers and thinkers this semester. Each essay should be minimally 1-2 pages (250-500 words).
Student essays
The essays should include: the Dyson/Hurt essay critique on violence, misogyny, homophobia, etc., the essays on the elements of hip hop culture: music, theatre, graffiti or visual art, dance, literature, education and other performance art, like DJing and beatboxing.
The last essay is the one that takes it's topic from The Coldest Winter Ever. We will write that essay on Thursday, Dec. 11. You can come to class early. I have the room reserved from 8 AM to 12 noon. It is open book, open notes. You need a planning sheet, an outline and at least scholarly source, plus the novel, outside the book. Adam Mansbach's essay in Chang's Total Chaos works. (I might have left some essays out, this list is not exhaustive. If you need other essays, let me known in advance.
Students can submit a graded essay from another discipline this semester if the other instructor doesn't mind to exchange for an assignment. You have to talk me me first. You can also submit another essay for extra credit. This essay has to be one where you used research and has to be minimally 4 pages long plus a works cited page (5 pages minimally).
We will work on the narratives during the optional Study Hall, Monday, Dec. 17, in the smaller writing lab, L-226. We will also practice this as a freewrite tomorrow.
You have a copy of the assigned essays this semester. See below. The check-list is the same with grades posted next to the assignment. I'll post one later. We will look at this the last day of class. Our final is Wednesday, Dec. 17, from 10 to 12 noon. We will meet in the Writing Center, L-226. If you need technology, let me know next week.
Your portfolios are due Tuesday, Dec. 16, the day of the final, unless other arrangements are made in advance. I do not want to see any essays for the first time in your portfolio. They should all have a grade, so email me your posted ungraded essays, so I can grade them and get them back to you. I would also advise those of you who are stressing unnecessarily to come talk to me about your writing. I am available and since most of you did not come see me this semester, now is the time to do so. Also, Elements of Style will help you tremendously with your writing-- the tips there will help you write elegantly.
They are to be digitized and saved on a CD, travel drive, diskette or emailed (MS Word 2003). No exceptions. The only paper copies are the freewrites and reading logs. Do not give me your originals. I can make copies, if you can’t. Oh, there are no regular class meetings next week. You come to class only on the date of the final.
Final Presentations:
You will present one of your research essays the day of the final--it is your choice which element you'd like to share your scholarship on. The only essay you cannot share is one you've already presented. Lit Hop is okay also.
You will not read the essay. Make sure you at least have a photo of the person you chose who uses hip hop for social change. Prepare an abstract or a short summary for your classmates. If you need me to make copies, send the document to me in advance. Please rehearse your presentations so they are succinct and to the point. You can invite guests and food is allowed. If someone wants to organize a potluck let me know.
Here are the main essays again. This list is not exhaustive. I will give you a handout with all the writing assignments, which we went over in class 2-3 weeks ago, by Thursday, Dec. 11. This will serve as the table of contents for the portfolio:
1. Hip Hop Theatre: planning and draft due Nov. 20 for peer review; final due Nov. 25. We started already reading from Total Chaos and The Angry Black White Boy. The question: What is hip hop theatre and how do your examples support your definition? Total Chaos is a resource.
2. Hip Hop Music: Dec. 2 planning and draft due for peer review; final Dec. 4.
What is hip hop music? For this essay students can survey an artist whose work embodies hip hop culture. You could take an angle like: Women in Hip Hop. The musical survey needs to cover the range of the work. The artist has to be a key stakeholder in the genre.
3. Hip Lit: “The Coldest Winter Ever” –in class essay. We’ll write it Dec. 11 (in L-202E. Bring your outline and planning sheets)
Question: How is this book classic hip hop literature?
4. Hip Hop Visual Arts –already done
5. Hip Hop as a Global Movement – already done
Group Presentation Grade—already done
6. Hip Hop Spirituality—Soundz of Spirit, http://movies.yahoo.com/movie/1808614830/info Nov. 18, 2008. Assignment posted. Question: What is Hip hop spirituality?
7. Hip Hop Poetry—films and other multi-media (written in class) First week in Dec. in class. Assignment posted. We will look at hip hop poets such as Saul Williams and groups like Youth Speaks. I am looking for a link to the show: The Infinite Mind about the meaning of poetry. I'll share with you in class.
8. Freewrites: The Message and Know What I Mean posts and other responses on-going
9. Hip Hop Dance—I forgot to include this so you can substitute dance for another genre.
Thursday, December 4, 2008
Meeting?
I've reserved L-202E for Thursday, Dec. 11. I couldn't get it for today. We will meet in the smaller lab L-226 today. We met there last week. I can review essays while you watch the Slamnation film. We'll write an essay about poetry in class next week and continue our discussion of The Coldest Winter Ever. The Sister Souljah event is tomorrow and Saturday, Dec. 12/5-6. The 12/5 event is at the African American Art and Culture Complex, 762 Fulton Street in San Francisco. The 12/6 event is at East Bay Church of Religious Science. Call Marcus Books in Oakland or San Francisco for the times.
Visit http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jVHE-oYRKts
http://www.math.buffalo.edu/~sww/LAST-POETS/last_poets2.html
I went to see Wu Tang Clan last night at the Regency Grand Ballroom in San Francisco. They have a song that references Niggas Are Scared of Revolution. Find it and compare.
Remember I spoke about the African concept, NOMMO? Well here is more information about the concept of words as a life force. I forgot to mention MUNTU, the Bantu term for human being. MUNTU is connected conceptually to NOMMO. The person becomes human when you name him or her. I was looking for something on-line and couldn't find it. But the book: "MUNTU: African Culture in the Western World" http://www.amazon.com/gp/reader/0802132081/ref=sib_dp_ptu#reader-link is a great resource and you can find it in your public library. This is an excerpt.
The NOMMO concept is in line with the idea of words becoming flesh or the reason why hip hop artists primary reason for asserting themselves in public spaces was to assert their humanity and to declare their presence in a hostile and unfriendly and unwelcoming world. This is still the case. Hip hop culture, we have seen is a culture associated with youth rebellion. It has been and continues to be a tool for revolution or change. Now, in its 4th decade, hip hop is seen in the more established realms of society. Rosa Clemente, hip hop ran for Vice President this year on the Green Party ticket with Cynthia McKinney. Van Jones, hip hop is an attorney and has a book about the green movement on the NY Times Best Seller's List.
Words, words, word....POWER.
See http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_762504546/Nommo.html
Visit http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jVHE-oYRKts
http://www.math.buffalo.edu/~sww/LAST-POETS/last_poets2.html
I went to see Wu Tang Clan last night at the Regency Grand Ballroom in San Francisco. They have a song that references Niggas Are Scared of Revolution. Find it and compare.
Remember I spoke about the African concept, NOMMO? Well here is more information about the concept of words as a life force. I forgot to mention MUNTU, the Bantu term for human being. MUNTU is connected conceptually to NOMMO. The person becomes human when you name him or her. I was looking for something on-line and couldn't find it. But the book: "MUNTU: African Culture in the Western World" http://www.amazon.com/gp/reader/0802132081/ref=sib_dp_ptu#reader-link is a great resource and you can find it in your public library. This is an excerpt.
The NOMMO concept is in line with the idea of words becoming flesh or the reason why hip hop artists primary reason for asserting themselves in public spaces was to assert their humanity and to declare their presence in a hostile and unfriendly and unwelcoming world. This is still the case. Hip hop culture, we have seen is a culture associated with youth rebellion. It has been and continues to be a tool for revolution or change. Now, in its 4th decade, hip hop is seen in the more established realms of society. Rosa Clemente, hip hop ran for Vice President this year on the Green Party ticket with Cynthia McKinney. Van Jones, hip hop is an attorney and has a book about the green movement on the NY Times Best Seller's List.
Words, words, word....POWER.
See http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_762504546/Nommo.html
Monday, December 1, 2008
The Coldest Winter Ever Essay Questions
We will be writing our Coldest Winter Ever essays next week. In the meantime, keep reading. We will talk about chapters 4-6 tomorrow, 7-11 Thursday, Dec. 4, Tuesday, Dec. 9, 12-20. I have a discussion section at the end of my book, which I will give students copies of next week. We'll write the essay on Thursday, Dec. 11.
Each essay needs to be minimally 4-5 pages long with a bibliography and a works cited. There should be no more than one citation, in text or paraphrase, per page. If you use a block quote, then for a short essay (3-4 pages), just one block quote for the entire essay. If the essay is 5-6 pages long then I could see two especially if you were citing poetry or lyrics from a song.
Tuesday we'll look at the portfolio essays and assembly, essay revisions and last minute questions about the writing process.
The questions I am looking at are:
1. Sister Souljah's characters, Winter and Midnight, have a lot in common, yet are very different. Just on the surface their names, Midnight and Winter, ice, cold, darkness, are similarities both share. Winter is the harshest time of the year, it has the shortest days and its a time when one can perish easily if caught outdoors.
In an essay look at the characteristics of the winter season and compare and contrast them with the character Winter's life. The novel occurs in the year between her 17 and 18th birthday. In a short year, a lot happens for both she and her family, also Midnight. One could say that for Midnight, the sun comes up, whereas for Winter the sunsets.
What makes Winter's life as chilly as it becomes? Initially it sounds warm, and then tragedy strikes. But within the tragedy the sun tries to peek its head, however, Winter ignores it. Is she naive or stupid?
Talk about her choices which come back to haunt her like her decision to let her pregnant friend stay in prison, her decision to steal from the church and the doctor who was helping her, and finally to live with a man who sold out her dad.
Why does she refuse to see the consequences of her actions?
2. Midnight is the nemesis to Winter. Talk about how he is dark to her light, rich to her shallow, wise to her naivete, hot or warm to her cold.
3. Why is The Coldest Winter Ever a hip hop novel? What makes it hip hop: it's themes or issues raised, characters, scenes, language? You need support from at least one scholarly article on the topic of lit hop. If you need assistance let me know. Jeff Chang's Total Chaos has an essay on Lit Hop. You can also check in the library databases.
4. Look at themes in the novel. Time is one that is mentioned a lot when Winter speaks of becoming an adult. Her father is serving time. Both Midnight and Sister Souljah ask her what she plans to do with her life and her time on the planet. This is a question she is asked at the group home too.
Time is something Winter has a lot of when her world crashes--time to think. Time's lapse is how she measures events in her life, like life before Long Island, the time before pregnancy, etc.
Another theme is drugs. It's really clear what the author feels about drugs and drug dealers.
Spirituality is a third theme. Winter seems to be digging her own grave even though her mother is the only one who actually gets laid to rest.
Child parent relationships and role models is another theme. Who is Winter's role model? is she entirely responsible for ending up the where she does? Why not?
Winter and Santiaga are a great portrait of a father/daughter relationship and why both parents are important in a child's life, and in the case of Winter, her father's absence is her ruin. And her mother's dependence on her husband and his absence and her ruin is an affirmation to Winter that she needs a man to support her. What does she say about her father's life and the "game" he is involved in?
4. The Coldest Winter Ever introduces us to a game, where there are rules, gamekeepers and consequences for those who break the rules or loose the game. Amy Tan, the Joy Luck Club, has a short story called, Rules of the Game, which involves chess and a child who decides she doesn't want to play the game, a game which is an analogy for assimilation into American society. Ralph Ellison has a short story called, King of the BINGO Game which takes place in New York, just as The Coldest Winter does at a time in American history when black people are migrating from the south to the north for better jobs and economic opportunities and often, as is the case in this story, the winter is colder than the one they left.
Talk about the rules of the game as Winter understands them. What's at stake, what does her hand look like and when she looses, was the deal fair? Is the game any different than that experienced by the indigent black man in the Ellison story or the little girl in the Tan story?
If you choose this question, I have to supply you with the stories. The King of the BINGO Game is a film based on the story by the same title.
For all the essays, I want you to read a literary analysis of the book, and find biographical information about the author. This will be a part of your works cited page.
Just for discussion, what do you think of the author's use of her name in the book and the addition of herself as a character?
Each essay needs to be minimally 4-5 pages long with a bibliography and a works cited. There should be no more than one citation, in text or paraphrase, per page. If you use a block quote, then for a short essay (3-4 pages), just one block quote for the entire essay. If the essay is 5-6 pages long then I could see two especially if you were citing poetry or lyrics from a song.
Tuesday we'll look at the portfolio essays and assembly, essay revisions and last minute questions about the writing process.
The questions I am looking at are:
1. Sister Souljah's characters, Winter and Midnight, have a lot in common, yet are very different. Just on the surface their names, Midnight and Winter, ice, cold, darkness, are similarities both share. Winter is the harshest time of the year, it has the shortest days and its a time when one can perish easily if caught outdoors.
In an essay look at the characteristics of the winter season and compare and contrast them with the character Winter's life. The novel occurs in the year between her 17 and 18th birthday. In a short year, a lot happens for both she and her family, also Midnight. One could say that for Midnight, the sun comes up, whereas for Winter the sunsets.
What makes Winter's life as chilly as it becomes? Initially it sounds warm, and then tragedy strikes. But within the tragedy the sun tries to peek its head, however, Winter ignores it. Is she naive or stupid?
Talk about her choices which come back to haunt her like her decision to let her pregnant friend stay in prison, her decision to steal from the church and the doctor who was helping her, and finally to live with a man who sold out her dad.
Why does she refuse to see the consequences of her actions?
2. Midnight is the nemesis to Winter. Talk about how he is dark to her light, rich to her shallow, wise to her naivete, hot or warm to her cold.
3. Why is The Coldest Winter Ever a hip hop novel? What makes it hip hop: it's themes or issues raised, characters, scenes, language? You need support from at least one scholarly article on the topic of lit hop. If you need assistance let me know. Jeff Chang's Total Chaos has an essay on Lit Hop. You can also check in the library databases.
4. Look at themes in the novel. Time is one that is mentioned a lot when Winter speaks of becoming an adult. Her father is serving time. Both Midnight and Sister Souljah ask her what she plans to do with her life and her time on the planet. This is a question she is asked at the group home too.
Time is something Winter has a lot of when her world crashes--time to think. Time's lapse is how she measures events in her life, like life before Long Island, the time before pregnancy, etc.
Another theme is drugs. It's really clear what the author feels about drugs and drug dealers.
Spirituality is a third theme. Winter seems to be digging her own grave even though her mother is the only one who actually gets laid to rest.
Child parent relationships and role models is another theme. Who is Winter's role model? is she entirely responsible for ending up the where she does? Why not?
Winter and Santiaga are a great portrait of a father/daughter relationship and why both parents are important in a child's life, and in the case of Winter, her father's absence is her ruin. And her mother's dependence on her husband and his absence and her ruin is an affirmation to Winter that she needs a man to support her. What does she say about her father's life and the "game" he is involved in?
4. The Coldest Winter Ever introduces us to a game, where there are rules, gamekeepers and consequences for those who break the rules or loose the game. Amy Tan, the Joy Luck Club, has a short story called, Rules of the Game, which involves chess and a child who decides she doesn't want to play the game, a game which is an analogy for assimilation into American society. Ralph Ellison has a short story called, King of the BINGO Game which takes place in New York, just as The Coldest Winter does at a time in American history when black people are migrating from the south to the north for better jobs and economic opportunities and often, as is the case in this story, the winter is colder than the one they left.
Talk about the rules of the game as Winter understands them. What's at stake, what does her hand look like and when she looses, was the deal fair? Is the game any different than that experienced by the indigent black man in the Ellison story or the little girl in the Tan story?
If you choose this question, I have to supply you with the stories. The King of the BINGO Game is a film based on the story by the same title.
For all the essays, I want you to read a literary analysis of the book, and find biographical information about the author. This will be a part of your works cited page.
Just for discussion, what do you think of the author's use of her name in the book and the addition of herself as a character?
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