Last week, we talked a lot about the importance of definitions in writing and argumentation.
We need to make sure that we are not assuming that the reader is agreeing with us – as that is an easy way to confuse or alienate the reader.
We need definitions, just like we need to make sure there are “warrants” in our writing – i.e., good explanations of how our claims and evidence are connected.
So we came up with a few definitions:
PLAY: activities undertaken for amusement.
INCOME: An individual’s financial means with respect to the financial means of other people within a given community or region.
CLASS: An individual’s behavior with respect to the social standards of his or her community or region.
LOWER-INCOME: Generally, to lack the financial means to choose the materials one uses to meet basic needs: clothing, shelter, food, ect.
SETTING: The geographic and social situation within which action occurs.
One of the things I want you to begin to notice this week is that a lot of the terms that we will be using to examine stories are terms that can be as easily applied to the world of the stories we read as they can be to the world as you experience it.
If you can make this connection, this class will be much easier for you than it otherwise might be.
Literature is not “something” external to you. Literature “is” you – you may not believe that, but be open to the idea! It will help.
So, we’ll be dealing with some new definitions today and this week.
But let’s start class by going over our homework. We will get to the précis in a bit, but let’s start by thinking about the two-page writing assignment.
The assignment was:
Read: The Gift of The Magi by O. Henry (157) Annotate for Details that relate to PLAY, INCOME, LOWER-INCOME, CLASS, LOWER-CLASS, AND SETTING.
Write a two-page blog post on the following:
Explain to me how specific details in “The Gift of The Magi” can be related to two or more of the major terms we have already defined in this class.
Some of you connected events in the story to specific definitions – which is good.
Example:
When she gave Jim his present he ended up telling her the news that he had sold his watch so he could afford to buy her the combs. Those particular details in the story could relate to class. The term class means an individual’s behavior with respect to the social standards of his or her community or region. The reason that those behaviors could relate is because they were willing to sacrifice things they loved in order to give the perfect give to someone they loved. Those actions showed that each character was not selfish and cared about others.
Some of you made connections with specific quotes,which is ideal.
Example:
The setting in The Gift of the Magi quickly illustrates that Della and Jim are far from wealthy. “A furnished flat at $8 per week, It did not exactly (meet) beggar description, but it certainly had that word on the lookout for the mendicancy squad” (158). The fact that Della had been saving her pennies for months and had only accumulated $1.87 also spoke to the fact there was precious little “play” money after paying for the basic essentials. The mention also that Jim’s salary has been reduced by ten dollars a week illustrates the financial struggle faced by the couple. The setting also denotes that sense of desperation Della has as she’s thinking about how to come up with enough money to get Jim a gift. “She stood by the window and looked out dully at a gray cat walking a gray fence in a gray backyard” (158).
Many of you were working towards making warrants, connections, between your evidence and your claims.
Example:
“The Gift of the Magi” starts off showing how they are lower income individuals. The author writes, “One dollar and eighty-seven cents. That was all. And sixty cents of it was in pennies” (157). That was all the money Della had for her Jim’s Christmas present. She had been saving for months and with that amount of money Della wasn’t able to buy Jim what he deserved.
Writing this way lets us get away from a few habits that are no longer useful for us.
But first — how I deal with writing issues:
In this class, I may or may not note all of the writing issues in your work.
This mirrors real professional life, where no one has the time to hold your hand every step of the way.
However, I will always, always mention the major issues that I am looking for in class, and talk about how to address them.
It is your responsibility to fix both the issues that I point out as being wrong on your papers _and_ to correct the parts of your papers that do not meet the standards I discus in class (so good note taking is key!)
Here are some issues in today’s writing:
1) Summary – there is no need to write extended summaries anymore.
A few posts began with brief summaries, and that’s fine.
But we want to be avoiding long summaries of the story, as there is no need for that any more.
In high school, they had you write summaries to prove you had read the material.
At University, it is assumed you have – and that you now have something interesting to say about what you read.
2) Definitions let us get away from “I am going to tell you” language.
At the University-level, there is no need for this kind of indicator. If this helps you when you are writing, that is fine, but make sure they are removed before you submit.
The fact that you are writing about something makes it obvious that you are going to talk about it.
Something that was generally good about the writing was the way many of you quoted specific material to back up your claims. Let’s talk about that for a moment.
Example, Bob said, “At the end of the day, everyone is sleeping” (34).
Okay, let’s move on…
Draft Review: (Suggested: 10 minutes)
Take out your draft for today. On the back page of this draft, explain to me why this draft is better than the last draft.
Use specific details from the paper to back up your claims, make sure to stress how the paper has been improved in ways that connect with the topics we covered last class.
Peer Review: (Suggested: 10 minutes)
Exchange papers and proofread for précis structure and content. Sign your name to the paper when you are done.
Class Discussions on improvements and challenges: (Suggested: 7-10 minutes)
Hand in papers
In-class writing: (Suggested: 10 Minutes)
Let’s begin today with a question we will be revisiting a few times next week:
What is something that someone you know finds to be entertaining but that you do not find to be entertaining?
What is it? And why, specifically, do you think you do not find it to be “fun”?
Articulate your answer in terms of income, class, and setting?
Group Discussions: (Suggested: 10 minutes)
Begin by sharing your writing, but then I want you to take up the following related questions:
What does it mean to be bored? Is it possible to be bored while you are playing? If so, how and why?
If not, how and why not? Come up with a definition or definitions for this term. How can an understanding of class and setting be used to back up your answers, do you think?
Break
Group Presentations: (Suggested: 7-10 minutes)
One member from each group will present to the class (someone who did not present last week)
Basic Rules:
No Leaning on Podium
No Hats
No Hands in Pockets
Attempted intermittent eye-contact.
Class Discussion: (Suggested: 7-10 minutes)
Part One: Discuss group presentations and findings. How might our comments relate to “The Untold Lie” by Sherwood Anderson as we have considered the story so far?
If we find something to be boring, why do we find it to be boring?
Part Two: What are the kinds of stories that we like, and why do we like them? How might this topic relate to the issues we have addressed in class so far today? Class, income, setting?
Boredom: The inability to demonstrate your desired level of “class” within a given “setting.”
In-class writing: (Suggested: 10 minutes)
What does the word “plot” mean to you when it is used in reference to how a story is told?
What makes up a plot, and how can an understanding of plot inform our understanding of class and setting in a story like “The Untold Lie?”
Group discussion of writing (Suggested: 5-7 minutes)
Mini-Lecture: (Suggested: 10 Minutes)
Plot = the series of events in a story that are linked by causal relationships.
Class Discussion: (Suggested: 5-7 minutes)
Discussion of group findings, focused specifically on how important it is to define plot with events that actually occur in the story.
Begin working on Homework pre-writing with the remaining time:
Homework:
Pre-writing (one page blog post): Break down your average day into its “plot.” What are the major CONNECTED events – not the minor disconnected events – that define a general day for you?
Re-Read:
The Gift of the Magi by O. Henry (157-163)
Précis (two pages maximum).
Here, again, is the description of the Precis:
The Précis (Pray-SEE)
There are three simple parts to a Précis.
The point of a précis is to lay out an argument for an audience who needs to know about a text without reading the entire ten-, twelve- or twenty-page document. We have to inform the audience on the argument without “dumbing it down” or oversimplifying it!
To write a précis, you will need to incorporate direct quotations from a story to express those points that are better articulated by the author than you yourself could articulate them.
You will sometimes need to use words in quotes to emphasize the author’s original tone. It is hugely important that you do not comment on or editorialize the story. Do not use “I” anywhere in this piece.
You will need to paraphrase quite a bit in this document. The point here is to report on the narrator’s comments, and to leave your own opinions at the door (there will be time enough for voicing your opinions in the future).
The three parts of the précis: Situation, Issue, Thesis
*Each section should be titled as such. This is okay in a précis.
Situation
· The very beginning of your précis.
· It should lay out what the audience needs to know about the author, the full title (including subtitle), and whatever publication info you have in MLA style (except for the author’s name which should be done first name first).
· Next, you need to establish the basic context for the writing: who is writing it (what do we know about the author and or his or her position, profession etc), to whom are they addressing the piece (audience), when was it written, and whether there is any particular EVENT that has driven this response. Some stories may have this, and some may not. You can expect to take the better part of a paragraph to convey this information.
· SITUATE the writing for an audience who WILL NOT READ THE FULL STORY. What general information do they need to know about it in order to have a clear idea of what the story is about?
Section II
Issue
· The author may use culturally specific lingo in the argument. You need to begin your ISSUE section by defining these terms for the contemporary reader. Clarify for the ready any terms or phrases you think may cause him or her difficulty.
· Lay out the basic questions that the author addresses or raises about the nature of play and how it relates to lower-income financial status and setting.
· END WITH THE MAJOR QUESTION ABOUT THE NATURE OF PLAY and how it relates to lower-income financial status and setting. The major issue question is the question the author attempts to illuminate.
Section III
Thesis
· Thesis section. This is where the THESIS appears (the statement or argument the story appears to be making about the nature of play and its relationship to lower-income financial status and setting).
· It is also where the other, secondary claims about the nature of play and its relationship to lower-income financial status and setting and evidence for those claims (as well as the major claim) will appear.
· This is the lion’s share of the précis.
Be particularity attentive to paragraph structure!
My day consists of a routine. It has to in order for me to stay somewhat sane. Throughout the day and night there are many things that happen which cause me to have to do something else later on in the day or even right away to hold a balance. This is called my plot. Plot is defined as the series of events in a story that are linked by causal relationships. This is my story.
I would love to say that I wake up every morning refreshed. Unfortunately that is not the case because my 21 month old baby has yet to sleep through the entire night. She keeps me up at night and causes me to become tired more readily throughout the day. My husband leaves for work before I leave for school so it only makes sense that I drive our daughter to daycare and also pick her up since she is on the way home for me. I then head off to school to get an education and hopefully someday soon I can walk away with my degree. Because my daughter’s daycare is on the way home from Bangor, I have to do all of my errands after I leave school because it is too difficult and time consuming to do them while I have her. I try to squeeze in a workout at the gym as well. After I get home with Madyson I have to clean up the house as a result of the morning madness that happens when we are trying to leave the house. Like everyone else, we get hungry so I cook dinner after I done with the house cleaning. After we eat dinner, I try to squeeze some homework in as a result of my instructor assigning too much per night. I don’t want to be up every night until midnight so I keep my laptop on and try to type whenever I get a free minute. Around this time it is usually Madyson’s bath time. She tends to get pretty dirty throughout the day so I have to hose her down. After her bath, it is again time for homework as mentioned above. As a direct result of the day’s key events, I then try to relax and enjoy some luxury reading if I have time.
My day has to have a routine, I am not sure how I would survive without one. This is a pretty standard day for me during the week. I have responsibilities and I don’t take them lightly. I think that my big causal relationship is my daughter alone. If she wasn’t around, I can’t imaging what I would be doing, most likely it would still consist of the same things listed above but there would be much more time for play. Everything we do has a cause and effect, it may be tiny and it may be huge but it is up to us to make the right decisions with our judgment.
Comment by Aggie Thurber — June 7, 2010 @ 11:24 pm
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A plot is a series of events in a story that are linked by causal relationships. This plot is based on one single event that I do routinely but not every day. The property my house is located on requires up-keep. As with other homes, lawn care is never ending and depends on the weather as to when it gets done. This job starts in the Spring and progresses through the Summer and in to Fall. Mowing the lawn takes some planning and organization. How often it needs to be done depends on how much rain we get to water the grass and sunshine to make it grow.
The beginning of my task is to look out the window to see if it’s raining or the sun is shining. If I’m lucky enough for sunshine, I put on my mowing shoes and head out to the garage. The gas can is full so I don’t have to go the gas station which saves me some time. The lawn mower I pull from the corner and fill up the tank with gas. But before I start the mower, I need three other items: bottle water, sunscreen, and bug spray. Bug spray being the most important of the three. Without this, the lawn will not be mowed. Sunscreen is to prevent sunburn, and water is to keep me from getting dehydrated. I prime the lawn mower and pull the cord to get it going. Now that this is all done, I am ready to mow.
How hard a job this is depends on how tall the grass is. When we have days of rain, the grass grows quickly. This, followed with sunshine, encourages the grass to grow even faster and higher. The lawn mower can not do a good job cutting the grass in this situation. Smaller sections need to be cut at a time and it takes longer to complete the task. Eventually the grass is cut, the lawn mower is put away, and I can enjoy the lawn.
Comment by Sheila Wilkes — June 7, 2010 @ 11:34 pm
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Alisha Gilbert
EH 200
Adam Crowley
My days are planned out ahead of time. I follow a routine on a daily basis in order to keep myself organized and to remain mentally focused. Although every day is never the same as the next, there are certain things that I do daily, and others’ I do occasionally. This is what I call my plot. A plot is a series of events in a story that are linked by causal relationships. Throughout my day I find myself doing one thing that causes something else to occur.
Getting up and out of bed in the morning is what I dread most when I go to sleep at night. When I wake up in the morning I have to see what the weather is like, and depending on the condition outside, I choose what to wear for the day. I then eat my breakfast and watch the morning news before I head to school. One thing that I do every day is go to the gym, which is part of my daily regime that doesn’t change, and this takes place after class. Once I’m finished at the gym I return back to my apartment and clean because of the mess I made earlier in the day. Because I’m in school, it causes me to do homework for most of the night, in which I squeeze a break in between to eat my dinner and maybe visit a few friends. I end my day by crawling into bed and dreading the sound of my alarm the following morning.
I have a routine for every day because my days do not always consist of the same thing. This particular routine is mainly focused on the days I attend classes. If I didn’t have a routine to follow, I feel like my life would be a mess. Most things in life have a cause and effect, but it’s how you place them in your daily life that determines if you have a strict or loose daily routine and how your story is told.
Comment by Alisha Gilbert — June 8, 2010 @ 12:10 am
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Isaiah Underwood
EH 200
Adam Crowley
My Plot
My plot is nothing crazy to anyone else; my days are usually planned out for me depending where I wake up in the morning. Plot is the series of events in a story that are linked by causal relationships. For my summer I work for my parents on a strawberry farm but during the past fall, winter and spring, I attend school. During the day there are steps I take to keep myself organized and not bored. There are certain things that might occur daily routine day.
Wake up in the morning by an alarm, the alarm is set 20 minutes ahead so the snooze button can be at use. Stubble out of my comfortable bed along with cursing at what time I went to bed last night. Don’t really care about the weather, unless there’s a foot of snow on the ground, than I know what to prepare to wear. Take a shower, which causes me to brush my teeth and if I’m looking lower class than I will shave. Breakfast is a have to consume meal, with no breakfast or coffee I will not be able to function during the first half of the day. Watch E.S.P.N or play a game of Call of Duty or checking facebook real quick than it’s off to school. Before I go to class I do one hundred and twenty five push ups just to stay in a little bit of shape. Leave to go to class for a few hours than back to the apartment. After arriving back to the apartment homework comes out because summer classes aren’t a joke. Instead of spending the late hours of doing homework, it will be done a little bit after I get home. Dinner comes with a group of friends, than we invite other people to come and hang out. Maybe will watch T.V. play a board game or even go to Pushaw Lake. I end my night by crawling in bed with soft music that makes me dream of different places.
These days go on the routine, if I have class. My days change a significant amount when I am at home. My father (ex military) doesn’t believe in sleeping so my day changes to be longer. Every day, is a new mission so it’s like being on call. Depending on the setting, when you wake up effects and is how your daily routine goes.
Comment by Isaiah Underwood — June 8, 2010 @ 5:26 am
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Bruce Jipson
EH200 Approaches to Literature
June 8, 2010
A plot is a series of events that is linked by causal relationships. That is one thing causes another thing to happen. My day basically consists of a routine. I get up early in the morning to be able to finish my homework that I didn’t finish from the day before and to do things around the house. I finish my homework before I have to leave for class. I drive an hour to attend a class at Husson College. I attend this class in hopes of getting a much higher paying job. By keeping this in mind I am able to concentrate on the class and do my best in the class. After class I drive home to start my homework. The more homework I can complete after class the less I will have to complete in the morning before I leave for class. Then I have to go to work. I work to be able to pay my bills and to buy the extra things that I want. That comes back to going to college to complete my degree. Once I complete my degree, I will be able to earn more money in which I will be able to buy more things and hopefully help the economy. As we know the economy is really bad at this time. We all need to buy more things so we can put the economy back on the right track.
I have a routine that is basically the same each day. I have certain things that have to be completed each day and I just do them. I know that I have to travel to class with my completed homework assignments in order to complete the class and finish my degree. I also know that if I don’t go to work that I won’t be able to pay my bills and then I would lose all of my possessions and probably would have to live in a shelter.
My routine is pretty dull compared to many people, but I would rather have a dull routine then being pulled every which way all of the time. I couldn’t survive being pulled every which way. I like being able to know what I am going to do for the day. That is not to say that things don’t just pop up. I have them happen all the time, but I find a way to deal with them.
Comment by Bruce Jipson — June 8, 2010 @ 11:02 am
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My Day and How It’s Connected!
By Susan Patten
A typical day for me during the summer is a bit different from my day when I’m teaching in the fall. So let’s take today as an example of causal relationships. I have two dogs; one German Shepherd and one Black Lab/Shepherd mix. I need no alarm clock because the Shepherd dutifully wakes me when his bladder says it’s time to do so, and that’s usually around 5am. I am up, subsequently; I’m able to be sure my daughter gets up in time for school. Then I have to take her to school and when I come home I can finish my homework before I have to head to my class. I am taking this class to complete my BS. I need to complete my BS so I can proceed on to my Master’s in Criminal Justice. I do this because it benefits my employer, NESCom, when they undergo accreditation. The more instructors they have with degrees the better it looks for the institution. In addition, my MS in CJ will allow me to make a career change, in the event I find that to be necessary.
When I finish my education responsibilities I return home to fulfill my wifely and motherly duties such as cleaning and cooking. Why do I do this? Because the house will disappear under mounds of dog hair and dust and I really prefer a clean kitchen and bathrooms. I also know that eating is important to maintain our good health, not to mention the fact it calms the savage beast disguised as our stomach. Tonight, I need to make dinner much earlier than normal, because my daughter needs to be back at school for her 8th grade graduation ceremony.
I also need to make time in the day to play with the dogs. Why? Because I have learned that when the young Shepherd is adequately exercised and worn out there’s a better likelihood he will let me sleep a few minutes longer tomorrow!
Comment by Susan Patten — June 8, 2010 @ 11:11 am
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Heather Leighton
“Average Day Plot”
6/7
Because I am going to college to get a good job, I have to wake up early and get ready for my classes. I wake up at 6:00 to change and feed my daughter on top of getting any homework done that I didn’t finish the previous night. I take a quick shower while my boyfriend is still home so he can tend to the baby. I may or may not have time to get some breakfast. I can’t take my baby with me so I have to drop her off at the baby sitter on the way. I drive from Sullivan to Bangor which is an hour and twenty minute commute. It occasionally takes 10 minutes longer due to current construction on Route One in Ellsworth. Finally at school, I walk to my English class and then break. I have to remember to bring money with me every day in order to buy lunch because I don’t have time to make it in the morning. Lunch break takes fifty minutes and I usually spend it eating and preparing for my next class. After lunch I head for my precaculus class, which has recently had thirty minutes added onto an already long two hour class, which only leaves me with less time at the end of the day. Leaving school is the same routine but backwards, all the way through construction and to the baby sitter’s to pick up my daughter. Back to the house I go to do a bit of picking up around, because if I don’t my boyfriend would not be too pleased. I immediately start studying by 6:00. My boyfriend makes supper because I don’t have time to stop studying. I take a couple breaks to tend to my little girl, but studying takes place for a good four hours; one hour studying for every hour at school. Right before I start to fall asleep while reading or typing (normally around 10:00), I make sure everything is shut down, the dog is let out, and the baby is put to bed. Just after, I put myself to bed by 10:30, leaving seven and a half hours sleep. My day consists of all the necessary things that must get done and doing them in a way that saves the most time. I have absolutely no time for myself and that’s the way it will have to be for another four weeks.
Comment by Heather Leighton — June 8, 2010 @ 11:36 am
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We all have some set of routine for our days, weeks, or months. Some of us have rigid routines, and some have flexible routines. My daily routine is a plot. A plot is a series of events linked by causal events. I have minor events in my typical day that usually build up to my major events.
My typical day I wake up at 5:30am, sometimes 6:00am if I have that reflex to hit the snooze button. I lay my stuff out the night before in order to not run around in panic trying to get ready, and of course something may get in my way or being on time to work. Most times I take a shower the night before, but if I don’t, then that is more time to take a shower that morning. After my shower, I get dressed, do my hygiene necessities, do my hair, do my makeup, and get my work and school stuff together. I usually go start my car to warm it up, and let the dogs out to go the bathroom in the mean time. I throw in a load of laundry so it is ready to dry when I get home. I feed the dogs, make sure their room has clean blankets, or if it Is not raining, I will put them in the fenced in play pen, and make sure I pick up any poop there is. In between getting ready, I clean up here and there, do the few dishes that are in the sink, sweep kitchen or dining room, and anything else I see needs to be done. I pack up my breakfast to go, and grab my lunch and head out the door for work. I do this morning routine in order to go to work, which enables me to make money to stay above water, to stay in school. I then go to school, getting there early most times in order to get a parking spot. Attending school, leads to me to eventually being able to walk across that stage at graduation and walk away with my degree in nursing. I then go home after a long day, cook dinner, take care of the dogs, clean, do homework, and then prepare for the next day by laying everything out to start all over again. All of this will enable me to have a job that I love and make more money in order to get things I want in my life, such as a house, a new car, and have a loving family.
Comment by Jackie Files — June 8, 2010 @ 12:16 pm
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[...] Class 4 [...]
Pingback by Syllabus: Summer « Approaches to Literature — May 19, 2010 @ 2:54 pm |
My day consists of a routine. It has to in order for me to stay somewhat sane. Throughout the day and night there are many things that happen which cause me to have to do something else later on in the day or even right away to hold a balance. This is called my plot. Plot is defined as the series of events in a story that are linked by causal relationships. This is my story.
I would love to say that I wake up every morning refreshed. Unfortunately that is not the case because my 21 month old baby has yet to sleep through the entire night. She keeps me up at night and causes me to become tired more readily throughout the day. My husband leaves for work before I leave for school so it only makes sense that I drive our daughter to daycare and also pick her up since she is on the way home for me. I then head off to school to get an education and hopefully someday soon I can walk away with my degree. Because my daughter’s daycare is on the way home from Bangor, I have to do all of my errands after I leave school because it is too difficult and time consuming to do them while I have her. I try to squeeze in a workout at the gym as well. After I get home with Madyson I have to clean up the house as a result of the morning madness that happens when we are trying to leave the house. Like everyone else, we get hungry so I cook dinner after I done with the house cleaning. After we eat dinner, I try to squeeze some homework in as a result of my instructor assigning too much per night. I don’t want to be up every night until midnight so I keep my laptop on and try to type whenever I get a free minute. Around this time it is usually Madyson’s bath time. She tends to get pretty dirty throughout the day so I have to hose her down. After her bath, it is again time for homework as mentioned above. As a direct result of the day’s key events, I then try to relax and enjoy some luxury reading if I have time.
My day has to have a routine, I am not sure how I would survive without one. This is a pretty standard day for me during the week. I have responsibilities and I don’t take them lightly. I think that my big causal relationship is my daughter alone. If she wasn’t around, I can’t imaging what I would be doing, most likely it would still consist of the same things listed above but there would be much more time for play. Everything we do has a cause and effect, it may be tiny and it may be huge but it is up to us to make the right decisions with our judgment.
Comment by Aggie Thurber — June 7, 2010 @ 11:24 pm |
A plot is a series of events in a story that are linked by causal relationships. This plot is based on one single event that I do routinely but not every day. The property my house is located on requires up-keep. As with other homes, lawn care is never ending and depends on the weather as to when it gets done. This job starts in the Spring and progresses through the Summer and in to Fall. Mowing the lawn takes some planning and organization. How often it needs to be done depends on how much rain we get to water the grass and sunshine to make it grow.
The beginning of my task is to look out the window to see if it’s raining or the sun is shining. If I’m lucky enough for sunshine, I put on my mowing shoes and head out to the garage. The gas can is full so I don’t have to go the gas station which saves me some time. The lawn mower I pull from the corner and fill up the tank with gas. But before I start the mower, I need three other items: bottle water, sunscreen, and bug spray. Bug spray being the most important of the three. Without this, the lawn will not be mowed. Sunscreen is to prevent sunburn, and water is to keep me from getting dehydrated. I prime the lawn mower and pull the cord to get it going. Now that this is all done, I am ready to mow.
How hard a job this is depends on how tall the grass is. When we have days of rain, the grass grows quickly. This, followed with sunshine, encourages the grass to grow even faster and higher. The lawn mower can not do a good job cutting the grass in this situation. Smaller sections need to be cut at a time and it takes longer to complete the task. Eventually the grass is cut, the lawn mower is put away, and I can enjoy the lawn.
Comment by Sheila Wilkes — June 7, 2010 @ 11:34 pm |
Alisha Gilbert
EH 200
Adam Crowley
My days are planned out ahead of time. I follow a routine on a daily basis in order to keep myself organized and to remain mentally focused. Although every day is never the same as the next, there are certain things that I do daily, and others’ I do occasionally. This is what I call my plot. A plot is a series of events in a story that are linked by causal relationships. Throughout my day I find myself doing one thing that causes something else to occur.
Getting up and out of bed in the morning is what I dread most when I go to sleep at night. When I wake up in the morning I have to see what the weather is like, and depending on the condition outside, I choose what to wear for the day. I then eat my breakfast and watch the morning news before I head to school. One thing that I do every day is go to the gym, which is part of my daily regime that doesn’t change, and this takes place after class. Once I’m finished at the gym I return back to my apartment and clean because of the mess I made earlier in the day. Because I’m in school, it causes me to do homework for most of the night, in which I squeeze a break in between to eat my dinner and maybe visit a few friends. I end my day by crawling into bed and dreading the sound of my alarm the following morning.
I have a routine for every day because my days do not always consist of the same thing. This particular routine is mainly focused on the days I attend classes. If I didn’t have a routine to follow, I feel like my life would be a mess. Most things in life have a cause and effect, but it’s how you place them in your daily life that determines if you have a strict or loose daily routine and how your story is told.
Comment by Alisha Gilbert — June 8, 2010 @ 12:10 am |
Isaiah Underwood
EH 200
Adam Crowley
My Plot
My plot is nothing crazy to anyone else; my days are usually planned out for me depending where I wake up in the morning. Plot is the series of events in a story that are linked by causal relationships. For my summer I work for my parents on a strawberry farm but during the past fall, winter and spring, I attend school. During the day there are steps I take to keep myself organized and not bored. There are certain things that might occur daily routine day.
Wake up in the morning by an alarm, the alarm is set 20 minutes ahead so the snooze button can be at use. Stubble out of my comfortable bed along with cursing at what time I went to bed last night. Don’t really care about the weather, unless there’s a foot of snow on the ground, than I know what to prepare to wear. Take a shower, which causes me to brush my teeth and if I’m looking lower class than I will shave. Breakfast is a have to consume meal, with no breakfast or coffee I will not be able to function during the first half of the day. Watch E.S.P.N or play a game of Call of Duty or checking facebook real quick than it’s off to school. Before I go to class I do one hundred and twenty five push ups just to stay in a little bit of shape. Leave to go to class for a few hours than back to the apartment. After arriving back to the apartment homework comes out because summer classes aren’t a joke. Instead of spending the late hours of doing homework, it will be done a little bit after I get home. Dinner comes with a group of friends, than we invite other people to come and hang out. Maybe will watch T.V. play a board game or even go to Pushaw Lake. I end my night by crawling in bed with soft music that makes me dream of different places.
These days go on the routine, if I have class. My days change a significant amount when I am at home. My father (ex military) doesn’t believe in sleeping so my day changes to be longer. Every day, is a new mission so it’s like being on call. Depending on the setting, when you wake up effects and is how your daily routine goes.
Comment by Isaiah Underwood — June 8, 2010 @ 5:26 am |
Bruce Jipson
EH200 Approaches to Literature
June 8, 2010
A plot is a series of events that is linked by causal relationships. That is one thing causes another thing to happen. My day basically consists of a routine. I get up early in the morning to be able to finish my homework that I didn’t finish from the day before and to do things around the house. I finish my homework before I have to leave for class. I drive an hour to attend a class at Husson College. I attend this class in hopes of getting a much higher paying job. By keeping this in mind I am able to concentrate on the class and do my best in the class. After class I drive home to start my homework. The more homework I can complete after class the less I will have to complete in the morning before I leave for class. Then I have to go to work. I work to be able to pay my bills and to buy the extra things that I want. That comes back to going to college to complete my degree. Once I complete my degree, I will be able to earn more money in which I will be able to buy more things and hopefully help the economy. As we know the economy is really bad at this time. We all need to buy more things so we can put the economy back on the right track.
I have a routine that is basically the same each day. I have certain things that have to be completed each day and I just do them. I know that I have to travel to class with my completed homework assignments in order to complete the class and finish my degree. I also know that if I don’t go to work that I won’t be able to pay my bills and then I would lose all of my possessions and probably would have to live in a shelter.
My routine is pretty dull compared to many people, but I would rather have a dull routine then being pulled every which way all of the time. I couldn’t survive being pulled every which way. I like being able to know what I am going to do for the day. That is not to say that things don’t just pop up. I have them happen all the time, but I find a way to deal with them.
Comment by Bruce Jipson — June 8, 2010 @ 11:02 am |
My Day and How It’s Connected!
By Susan Patten
A typical day for me during the summer is a bit different from my day when I’m teaching in the fall. So let’s take today as an example of causal relationships. I have two dogs; one German Shepherd and one Black Lab/Shepherd mix. I need no alarm clock because the Shepherd dutifully wakes me when his bladder says it’s time to do so, and that’s usually around 5am. I am up, subsequently; I’m able to be sure my daughter gets up in time for school. Then I have to take her to school and when I come home I can finish my homework before I have to head to my class. I am taking this class to complete my BS. I need to complete my BS so I can proceed on to my Master’s in Criminal Justice. I do this because it benefits my employer, NESCom, when they undergo accreditation. The more instructors they have with degrees the better it looks for the institution. In addition, my MS in CJ will allow me to make a career change, in the event I find that to be necessary.
When I finish my education responsibilities I return home to fulfill my wifely and motherly duties such as cleaning and cooking. Why do I do this? Because the house will disappear under mounds of dog hair and dust and I really prefer a clean kitchen and bathrooms. I also know that eating is important to maintain our good health, not to mention the fact it calms the savage beast disguised as our stomach. Tonight, I need to make dinner much earlier than normal, because my daughter needs to be back at school for her 8th grade graduation ceremony.
I also need to make time in the day to play with the dogs. Why? Because I have learned that when the young Shepherd is adequately exercised and worn out there’s a better likelihood he will let me sleep a few minutes longer tomorrow!
Comment by Susan Patten — June 8, 2010 @ 11:11 am |
Heather Leighton
“Average Day Plot”
6/7
Because I am going to college to get a good job, I have to wake up early and get ready for my classes. I wake up at 6:00 to change and feed my daughter on top of getting any homework done that I didn’t finish the previous night. I take a quick shower while my boyfriend is still home so he can tend to the baby. I may or may not have time to get some breakfast. I can’t take my baby with me so I have to drop her off at the baby sitter on the way. I drive from Sullivan to Bangor which is an hour and twenty minute commute. It occasionally takes 10 minutes longer due to current construction on Route One in Ellsworth. Finally at school, I walk to my English class and then break. I have to remember to bring money with me every day in order to buy lunch because I don’t have time to make it in the morning. Lunch break takes fifty minutes and I usually spend it eating and preparing for my next class. After lunch I head for my precaculus class, which has recently had thirty minutes added onto an already long two hour class, which only leaves me with less time at the end of the day. Leaving school is the same routine but backwards, all the way through construction and to the baby sitter’s to pick up my daughter. Back to the house I go to do a bit of picking up around, because if I don’t my boyfriend would not be too pleased. I immediately start studying by 6:00. My boyfriend makes supper because I don’t have time to stop studying. I take a couple breaks to tend to my little girl, but studying takes place for a good four hours; one hour studying for every hour at school. Right before I start to fall asleep while reading or typing (normally around 10:00), I make sure everything is shut down, the dog is let out, and the baby is put to bed. Just after, I put myself to bed by 10:30, leaving seven and a half hours sleep. My day consists of all the necessary things that must get done and doing them in a way that saves the most time. I have absolutely no time for myself and that’s the way it will have to be for another four weeks.
Comment by Heather Leighton — June 8, 2010 @ 11:36 am |
We all have some set of routine for our days, weeks, or months. Some of us have rigid routines, and some have flexible routines. My daily routine is a plot. A plot is a series of events linked by causal events. I have minor events in my typical day that usually build up to my major events.
My typical day I wake up at 5:30am, sometimes 6:00am if I have that reflex to hit the snooze button. I lay my stuff out the night before in order to not run around in panic trying to get ready, and of course something may get in my way or being on time to work. Most times I take a shower the night before, but if I don’t, then that is more time to take a shower that morning. After my shower, I get dressed, do my hygiene necessities, do my hair, do my makeup, and get my work and school stuff together. I usually go start my car to warm it up, and let the dogs out to go the bathroom in the mean time. I throw in a load of laundry so it is ready to dry when I get home. I feed the dogs, make sure their room has clean blankets, or if it Is not raining, I will put them in the fenced in play pen, and make sure I pick up any poop there is. In between getting ready, I clean up here and there, do the few dishes that are in the sink, sweep kitchen or dining room, and anything else I see needs to be done. I pack up my breakfast to go, and grab my lunch and head out the door for work. I do this morning routine in order to go to work, which enables me to make money to stay above water, to stay in school. I then go to school, getting there early most times in order to get a parking spot. Attending school, leads to me to eventually being able to walk across that stage at graduation and walk away with my degree in nursing. I then go home after a long day, cook dinner, take care of the dogs, clean, do homework, and then prepare for the next day by laying everything out to start all over again. All of this will enable me to have a job that I love and make more money in order to get things I want in my life, such as a house, a new car, and have a loving family.
Comment by Jackie Files — June 8, 2010 @ 12:16 pm |