Assignment for Monday, Oct. 20

Read one of the three articles on Shakespeare's language that are linked below, then read the famous balcony scene from Romeo and Juliet and one of the two sonnets that are also linked. In class, we will discuss the sonnets in light of the information presented in the article, and we will begin Shakespeare's Much Ado about Nothing. Lastly, we will go over the expectations for the annotated bibliography.

Article 1: Read this if Shakespeare is difficult for you.
Article 2: Read this if you're okay with reading Shakespeare, but you don't consider it a strong suit.
Article 3: Read this if you've done pretty well with reading Shakespeare in previous classes. Don't worry about remembering the names of rhetorical devices; focus on what their descriptions and the examples.

Romeo and Juliet, Act 2, scene 2, ll. 1-49
Sonnet 116
Sonnet 138

Prompts for the In-Class Essay on Thursday, Oct. 16

Here are the prompts you developed in class for Thursday's essay on Eyal Press's Beautiful Souls. I will select two of them, and you will write about one of them. This means you should prepare two of the prompts to cover your bases. 

Don't overlook the notes you took about how to write an in-class essay. I will let you use those notes (and your book), but those notes should guide your preparation for the essay. When you come into class, you should have a preliminary thesis, key supporting points, and relevant evidence for two of the prompts. The prompts will be worded a little differently, but their essence will be the same. 

1. Compare societies and conditions that lead people to act on their consciences. Refer to at least two. 

2. What defines a person's moral tipping point?  At what point would someone say, "We have to change what we're doing"? How far could someone go? (Refer to at least two of the people discussed in the book.)

3. When is it okay for your conscience to override the law? (Just to clarify, your response to this prompt needs to address the tension between following your conscience and following orders.) This prompt will probably ask you to discuss the significance of the term "beautiful souls" and allow you to discuss the character you most relate to. The emphasis, however, is on the first part, your conscience and the law. You'll have to refer to at least two of the people discussed in the book. 

Assignments for Tuesday, Oct. 14, and Thursday, Oct. 16

Tuesday, Oct. 14: Read and annotate up to p. 174 in Press's Beautiful Souls. In class, we will first discuss the reading, then you will read the Epilogue, and we'll conclude by developing questions for Thursday's in-class essay. 

Thursday, Oct. 16: You will write an in-class essay on Beautiful Souls. Prepare two of the three potential topics we agreed on in class. (You will write one essay, and you can use your book.) 

Assignment for Tuesday, October 7

In Press's Beautiful Souls, read and annotate pp. 47-84 (chapter 2, "Defying the Group"). Write a well-developed paragraph that explains how the challenges faced by this chapter's main character differ from those faced by Paul Gruninger.

For those who are interested, here is an interview with Christopher Browning, author of Ordinary Men.

Model Student Research Papers

Linked below are some model research papers by high school and college students. Not all of them are as long as yours will be, nor do they all touch on the range of topics that you are writing about. Most of these emerged from pure research interests and do not have a project component, as most of yours do. Nevertheless, it will be helpful to look at these papers as the outcomes of the same kinds of research processes you are engaged in.

Effects of Food Deprivation on Concentration and Perseverance (APA; 12 pages)
The Origins of 20th Century Islamic Fundamentalism (Chicago; 30 pages)
Toward a Recovery of Nineteenth Century Farming Handbooks (MLA; 11 pages)
Adaptive Manipulation of Offspring Sex Ratio as a Means of Ameliorating Sexual Conflict in Drosophila Melanogaster (APA; 28 pages)
Developmental Psychology Paper (APA; 19 pages)
Lollard Bible Translation (Chicago; 17 pages)
Promoting Renewable Energy Generation in the United States (23 pages)
Music Education: Its Importance and Place in Today's Education System (APA; 24 pages)
Governance, Club Structure, and Spending Power in the German Bundesliga (Chicago; 24 pages)

For those of you who are going to El Salvador, you might also be interested in the work of these students. You won't be able to see all of these papers, but some are available, and you can see the titles and abstracts.

For more student research papers, visit these sites at Yale, University of Puget Sound, University of Michigan, Virginia Commonwealth University, Columbia (science or sustainable development), The Concord Review, W. W. Norton (publisher), and The Council on Undergraduate Research.

Assignment for Monday, Sept. 29 and Friday, Oct, 3

Finish the Research Prospectus (which is posted to the right), and email it to me at mrmontasmph@gmail.com. If you have any questions, don't hesitate to get in touch with me.

For Friday, Oct. 3, read and annotate pp. 3-46 in  Eyal Press's Beautiful Souls (handed out during Wednesday's class). You don't have a writing assignment with this reading, but read it carefully nonetheless.

Assignment for Wednesday, Sept. 24

Complete the Action Plan you started in class on Monday. (If you weren't in class, the directions are posted to the right.) You should email this to me at mrmontasmph@gmail.com with the subject line "Action Plan," but print out a copy for Mrs. Neuner. (Bring the printed copy to class; I'll give it to Mrs. Neuner.) If you have finished it, you might want to look at the guidelines for the Research Prospectus that is due Monday, Sept. 29. It is also posted to the right.

The Mentor Commitment Letter, which is also due on Wednesday, Sept. 24, is posted to the right, and it is available here.