English 102
Assignments and Due Dates: January 22 – February 21
The due dates have changed from those in our original schedule. This handout takes
precedence over that one. Disregard the original schedule.
Wed 1/23: Due: Summary.
Thu 1/24: In-class writing and discussion. Bring The Language of Baklava.
Fri 1/25:
Due: Journal on the “Farmers” section of Berry (1 Journal)
Mon 1/28:
Tue 1/29:
Wed 1/30:
Thu 1/31:
Fri 2/1:
Class discussion and writing: food and the immigrant experience.
Due: Journal on The Language of Baklava, pages xi-88.
In-class writing and discussion. Bring The Language of Baklava.
In-class writing and discussion. Bring The Language of Baklava.
Due: Journal on The Language of Baklava, pages 89-193.
Mon 2/4:
Tue 2/5:
Wed 2/6:
Thu 2/7:
Fri 2/8:
In-class writing and discussion. Bring The Language of Baklava.
Due: Journal on The Language of Baklava, pages 194-end.
Librarian Elinor Appel will visit our classroom.
Generate essay ideas.
Due: 1 ABCD (A separate sheet of instructions will be provided) on an online
article you might want to use in your essay. Also, bring a printout of the article
or some other way to show it to others—laptop, smartphone, etc.
Mon 2/11:
Tue 2/12:
Wed 2/13:
Thu 2/14:
Fri 2/15:
About the thesis sentence and the outline.
Due: Thesis sentence for Essay #2.
In-class work on thesis sentence and outline.
Due: Outline for Essay #2.
Due: Draft of the first paragraph of Essay #2 (typed and double-spaced)
for in-class discussion and workshop.
Mon 2/18:
Tue 2/19:
Wed 2/20:
Presidents’ Day Holiday
Due: Analysis Essay due in writing groups. Bring 3 copies
Bring two sentences from the draft of your essay, sentences that you think
might be made better.
Discuss research topics for the research project.
Due: Analysis Essay. Meet in Library Classroom, and turn in your
essay to me there.
Thu 2/21:
Fri 2/22:
Journal Assignments
Thu 1/24: Journal due on the entire “Farming” section of Bringing It to the Table (1
journal). See earlier journal assignment sheet for formatting and other requirements.
1. What’s your new favorite vocabulary word from this whole group of chapters? Use the
word in a sentence of your own that clearly defines its meaning.
2. Summarize the overall main point of this group of chapters taken together.
3. Summarize the sub-points..
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4. Choose one of the farmers profiled and write a brief portrait of him, incorporating the
personal characteristics, values, farming practices, and work habits that Berry
a. describes.
5. What issues or questions does this section suggest for further research?
Instructions for All The Language of Baklava Journals
Format: Typed, double-spaced. Name in upper right corner.
Length: About 1 1/2 to 2 pages (depending on the questions), or approx. 300-400 words.
More about formatting: Number each question. No need to re-copy the question.
MLA: For all quotations, paraphrases and summaries from the text, use in-text parenthetical
documentation to show the author and the page number. A works cited entry is not required. Use
MLA conventions for quoting, paraphrasing, and summarizing.
Titles: The should be italicized. Chapter titles should be in quotation marks. Your own title
should be just plain, not underlined, italicized, or in quotation marks (unless it contains the title
of the text, which should be formatted appropriately).
Points: 8 points each.
Tue 1/29: Journal due on The Language of Baklava, pages xi-88.
1. In the foreword, Abu-Jaber says, “The immigrant compresses time and space—starting
out in one country and then very deliberately starting again, a little later, in another. It’s a
sort of fantasy—to have the chance to recreate yourself. But it’s also a nightmare,
because so much is lost” (xi).
How do the characters in the book seem to be recreating themselves? And in what ways
are they having the nightmare of losing their past selves and backgrounds?
2. What particular moment stands out to you in the selection, and why? (It might stand out
to you because of the writing, or because of how it connects to a theme or for some other
reason.)
3. What specific things do you notice about the author’s writing style—the way she uses
words or shapes a story or creates imagery? Cite specific examples and discuss the effects
of these writing choices.
Fri 2/1: Journal due on The Language of Baklava, pages 89-193.
1. The essay “The Language of Baklava” gives the book its title. What might be the reasons
for this? In other words, what themes does this essay explore that the other essays in this
selection of the reading also explore? Point out specifically where you find these themes.
2. a: what food from this selection of the reading do you personally respond to the most, and
why? b: If food is symbolic, what might this food symbolize to Abu-Jaber?
3. What is your favorite sentence from the selection? Discuss what you like about this
sentence, and then write a sentence of your own (about anything) that has these same
qualities.
Tue 2/5: Journal due on The Language of Baklava, pages 194-end.
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1. In this selection, Abu-Jaber grows from a high-school girl to an adult who is a teacher
and a writer. Discuss the ways in which she changes during this period. You might
consider the following: How has she adjusted to her Jordanian and American heritage?
What meaning has she found for food in her life?
2. Now that you’ve read this whole book, close the book while casting your mind back over
it. Make a list of all the events, moments, and images in the book that stand out in your
mind without your looking at the book.
3. If you were to write an essay modeled on Abu-Jaber’s, about your own life, what incident
would you pick and what food would you focus on to represent it or symbolize something
important about it?
Grading of the journals:
 The journal answers all the assigned questions as fully as possible within the
length limit, giving examples from the text and discussing them.
 The journal shows that you have read and understood the assigned material.
 The journal uses MLA conventions of quotation, summary, and paraphrase, and
includes in-text page citations.
 The journal is proofread and grammatical.
Essay #2: Analysis of The Language of Baklava
Due Dates: See the schedule at the beginning of this assignment sheet.
Format: Typed and double-spaced.
Length: About 5 pages, or 1250 words. This is a general guideline. If your essay is very much
shorter than 5 pages, your thesis might not be focused or complex enough, or you might not have
gathered enough evidence, or you might not have explained your ideas enough. If your essay is
much longer than 5 pages, it’s likely that your sentences waste words and require editing. So yes,
aim for about 5 pages, but beyond that, aim to discuss an interesting idea clearly and fully.
Required sources: Three sources are required. One of these is the book itself, The Language of
Baklava. The other two might be any of the following:
 Academic articles about the immigrant experience.
 Interviews of Diana Abu-Jaber.
 Personal interviews (conducted by you): If you have friends or relatives who have
immigrated from one country to another, ask them about their experience. You might
generate questions for this interview by considering the themes and topics in The
Language of Baklava.
 Academic or popular articles about the foods mentioned in the book. These can include
recipes and reminiscences, and can be from food websites or blogs.
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Avoid including too many sources: Stick with the three required sources. I want you to use
good sources meaningfully. More sources will not get you a better grade. If you find more than
two outside sources that you feel you must use, check with me.
The Audience: The members of our class, including the instructor—people who are familiar
with The Language of Baklava but might be interpreting it in a different way or looking at it
from a different angle.
The Assignment: Write an essay which sets forth a thesis about The Language of Baklava, and
which explores and defends this thesis. Your essay can explore any of the topics below, and your
essay will make a claim (thesis) about this topic and support the claim using evidence and
analysis of the book and using additional material from your research.
 A character in the book. The following questions might help you think of a thesis: How
has the character changed? What does the character represent? How does the character
interact with another character in the book? What theme or issues might the relationship
illustrate?
 The immigrant experience. The following questions might help you think of a thesis:
What does the book conclude about the immigrant experience? What are its positive and
negative aspects? How does a parent’s immigrant experience affect his or her children?
How do children absorb or respond to their parents’ connections to the old country? What
are particular challenges of moving to the United States in the book’s time period?
 Food. The following questions might help you think of a thesis: What does it mean in a
person’s life? In what ways is food symbolic? Is it different for different people? How
might one use food to cope with life’s difficulties? You might look at the different
meanings and instances of food in this book, comparing what it means in the different
situations in the book, and coming to an overall conclusion.
 The three topics above are not exclusive: That is, a book analyzing a character will
probably of necessity have to talk about food and the immigrant experience, since these
are pervasive throughout the book.
Your own opinion: The entire essay is your interpretation of the book, and so is a product of
your brain, of your particular ways of looking. All your statements are supported by evidence
from the book and from your other sources, and by your analysis and discussion of this evidence
and sources. Your essay should not include any evaluation of the book or any opinion that is not
supported by evidence and analysis.
Essay Structure:
Title and Opening Paragraph: Aim for a vivid, compelling beginning. The first
paragraph (perhaps in combination with the essay title) will also name the book and the
author, and will point out an intriguing problem or question, which will lead to your
thesis sentence at the end of the first paragraph.
2nd paragraph: Use PIE (Point, Illustration, Explanation): The paragraph begins with a
topic sentence which is connected to an aspect of the thesis, and which says what point
the paragraph wants to make. The paragraph goes on, using quotations and paraphrases
from the text to illustrate the point, and explaining for the reader exactly how those
illustrations relate to that point.
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The paragraph should contain a balance of quotation, paraphrase, and your own thinking,
and should take care to explain your reasoning. You’ll explain how you are interpreting a
particular quotation or example from the text, showing how it feeds into your point or
thesis. In other words, quotations do not stand alone, they need your explanations and
reasoning too.
3rd and following paragraphs: These take the same pattern as paragraph 2.
Make sure that the opening sentence of the paragraph connects to the idea in the previous
paragraph before it introduces its new topic sentence. Write as many paragraphs as you
need to explore all the aspects of the book that relate to your interpretation. Be sure also
to look at the parts that don’t at first seem to relate, or that seem to contradict your thesis.
How can you account for this?
Meeting counterarguments: It’s hard to say whether your essay will be doing this
within each paragraph, as each point comes up, or all at once. However, do make sure
that your essay addresses any arguments readers might have with your interpretations.
When we meet in groups to go over the early version, we’ll practice arguing with your
paper so that you’ll have more ideas about what kinds of objections your paper should
meet.
Complicate the thesis: Now that your essay has fully explored the topic, the reader is
ready for a more detailed version of your thesis. Perhaps your discussion has introduced a
“but” or “maybe” or “sometimes” that needs to be incorporated. Perhaps additional ideas
want to be added.
Final Paragraph: Your final paragraph should do two main things: 1) Leave the reader
with emotional impact, and 2) give us a new twist or introduce a new way of looking.
Your ending can:
 Emphasize an idea;
 Suggest how the idea can go further. Explore its implications;
 Think about how the book relates to the larger world;
 Discuss how the book relates to your own experience—Yes, it’s ok to bring in the
“I” at the end.
Whatever it does, the ending gives the reader a sense of closure, a sense that the entire
essay has taken us somewhere and taught us something.
Reminder: Tips for Writing about Literature:
for author
Writing
Literature:
1. Make sure thatReminder:
the work’s Tips
title and
areabout
mentioned
in the first
paragraph.
2. After the first mention, refer to the author by last name.
3. Write in the present tense:
Abu-Jaber suggests that food has a crucial role in helping an immigrant
adjust.
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Grading: 100 points total
1. Thesis: The essay has a clear and meaningful thesis, complex enough to require
discussion, to which everything in the essay pertains.
2. Example and evidence :The thesis is illustrated with vivid and plentiful
illustration and evidence, and there’s plenty of explanation and analysis to show
how the writer is interpreting the evidence and connecting it to the thesis. The
essay brings in counterarguments and discusses them meaningfully.
3. Opening and Ending: The opening is immediate and compelling. The conclusion
is meaningful, gives a sense of closure, and avoids repeating the beginning.
4. Organization: The essay follows the assigned structure. The paragraphs are
organized (PIE) so that each develops the point made in its topic sentence. Each
paragraph develops an aspect of the thesis. The paragraphs within the essay all
relate to the whole, and follow logically from one to another. Style and Voice:
The writing should be clear and fluid. Verbs should be strong and active. Word
choice should be accurate and specific, and the words should be used correctly.
Clutter and wordiness have been eliminated.
5. MLA documentation and mechanics of quotation: The essay avoids plagiarism,
refers to reliable sources, and correctly uses the MLA system, including in-text
citations and a works cited page. All quotation, paraphrase, and summary from
sources is formatted correctly.
6. Grammar and proofreading: The essay has been proofread and avoids
distracting errors. Grammar and spelling should be standard and correct.
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