Out, Out--
poetry

SEYTON

The queen, my lord, is dead.

MACBETH

She should have died hereafter;
There would have been a time for such a word.
To-morrow, and to-morrow, and to-morrow,
Creeps in this petty pace from day to day
To the last syllable of recorded time,
And all our yesterdays have lighted fools
The way to dusty death. Out, out, brief candle!
Life’s but a walking shadow, a poor player
That struts and frets his hour upon the stage
And then is heard no more: it is a tale
Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury,
Signifying nothing.

Posted by Michael L Umphrey on 04/26 at 11:29 AM
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Readings •

Writing Rules
How to get it wrong

Avoid alliteration. Always.
Prepositions are not words to end sentences with.
Avoid clichs like the plague. (They’re old hat.)
Parenthetical remarks (however relevant) are unnecessary.
Contractions aren’t necessary.
Foreign words and phrases are not apropos.
One should never generalize.
Comparisons are as bad as clichs.
Don’t be redundant; don’t use more words than necessary; it’s highly superfluous.
Be more or less specific.
One-word sentences? Eliminate.
Analogies in writing are like feathers on a snake.
Go around the barn at high noon to avoid colloquialisms.
Even if a mixed metaphor sings, it should be derailed.
Who needs rhetorical questions?
Exaggeration is a billion times worse than understatement.

Posted by Michael L Umphrey on 04/25 at 12:06 AM
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Announcements •

Themes in A River Runs Through It
Norman Maclean

Religion
Truth (and Story)
Fishing Culture
Drinking Culture
Montana Culture (vs East Coast culture, vs. urban culture)
Male vs. Female roles

Posted by Michael L Umphrey on 04/20 at 10:59 AM
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Assessing a comparative essay
"Winter Dreams" and "A Wagner Matinee"

1. Does the writer state clearly a point of comparison between the two stories?
2. Is the point nontrivial? Does it matter?
3. Does the writer talk in enough detail about both stories for a reader to fully understand the point that is being made?
4. Is the writing organized, so that it doesn’t jump between thoughts too quickly, without developing the insights? Is the writing organized, so the writer doesn’t keep returning to the same insights at different points, repeating things rather than developing them?
5. Is the writing graceful--is every sentence easy to read and understand?
6. Are all the sentences complete (no fragment and no run-ons)?
7. Is the punctuation (including capitalization and apostrophes) perfect? Are all the words spelled correctly?

Posted by Michael L Umphrey on 04/19 at 08:51 AM
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Handouts •

Reading Schedule: A River Runs Through It
American Literature

April 16 (Monday)Pages 1-15
April 17 - pages 16-30
April 18 - pages 31-45 - Writing on Mosaic
April 19 - pages 46-60 - Writing on Mosaic
April 20 - pages 61-75 Multiple choice test over class discussions and pages 1-60
April 23 (Monday) Pages 76-90
April 24 - 91-104
April 25 (Wednesday) Multiple choice test over complete novel

Posted by Michael L Umphrey on 04/12 at 10:56 AM
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Handouts •

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