English 4
Dr. Murphy
Web Publishing and the Art of Story
85 Points
“Unlike the novel, the short story may be, for all purposes, essential”
--Jose Luis Borges
Edgar Allan Poe viewed writing to be a moral task that worked not only through teaching
lessons but also by providing good entertainment. By creating texts of absolute integrity,
he simultaneously stimulated his readers' mental, emotional, and spiritual faculties. Poe
also loved the short story because all of these issues could be “accessed” in one sitting.
He called this phenomenon the “Single Effect.” One wonders about short fiction today: in
this media fragmented age, is Poe’s “single effect” still of central importance? Is short
fiction getting shorter? How much space does an author need to create an authentic
aesthetic experience? Think about these things as you re-read your featured short story—
with a keen eye on creating a vibrant online space.
Primary Texts
From The Art of Story
1) Wolff: “The Night in Question” (637)
2) Alvarez, “Amor Divino” (15)
3) Saro-Wiwa: "Africa Kills Her Sun" (519)
4) Banks: “My Mother’s Memoir, My Father’s Lies…” (64)
5) Danticat: “The Night Women” (196)
6) Huong: “Reflections of Spring” (227)
7) Cisneros: “Never Marry a Mexican” (179)
8) Murakami "The Elephant Vanishes" (457)
Goal: The Assignment
The main goal is to review and refine our knowledge of the elements of fiction/literature
as they appear in shorter fiction. What literary devices do authors use to tell stories and
convey meaning? What other components contribute to both writing and (critical) reading
of short stories? Together with your colleagues, you will discuss these matters and
publish your findings on a website. Your assignment, then, is to comprehensively
respond to one of the above short stories through the medium of an original website.
Models for this assignment—both positive and negative (and remember, negative
examples can be uniquely instructive)—will be posted on the class blog.
Process: Content, Journey, and Schedule
The plan is that you collaborate in a variety of areas. You will have time to discuss your
featured story together, time to locate and discuss the literary elements of the story, time
to design (visualize, organize, sketch, mock-up) your website, and time to execute your
plan. We have plenty of library time; still, you may need to work at home. It’s all about
organization, communication, creativity, and, of course, a sturdy/reliable work ethic.
Schedule:
Thursday, 1/19: Receive Assignment
Friday, 1/20: Meet Team Members; Begin Organization. Discuss:
Team Contracts.
Friday-Monday, 1/20-1/23: Imagining, researching, communicating (do
you have contact info for your team?)
Monday, 1/23: In C-Lab. (Tutorial on creating a PBWIKI)
Tuesday, 1/24: in C-Lab (at work)
TR, 1/26: In Class—Laptops (at work)
Friday, 1/27: in C-Lab (at work)
Monday, 1/30: In Class—Laptops (at work)
Tuesday, 1/31: in C-Lab (at work)
Thursday, 2/2: in C-Lab (at work)
Friday, 2/3: in C-Lab (at work)
Monday, 2/6: In Class—Presentation Prep
AND: Look out for the QUEST (part Quiz, part Test)—this comes at the
end.
Your Web Pages: The Elements of Literature (and More!)
Each of your pages (which, together, will comprise your website) should be roughly 100
words in length (sometimes more, sometimes less. You decide!) The first thing we need
to see when we click on any given page is a definition of the term or concept (and be
sure to cite properly.) Then, you move on to the examples from your story (again, be sure
to cite properly.) Much of the time the pages will be purely textual; however, there are
plenty of opportunities for you to mix your media. For example, is there a call for an
audio component or two? Something of a video nature? Other visual imagery? Other
media? You decide: you will be rewarded for a judicious and a creative use of all
available media. In our culture, Design carries a lot of weight. Mix Design with
Substance and you’re Golden.
Mandatory Elements:
1. Main Page: Make it Pop. Include title, author, year of publication, and a superb
synopsis (of the story and, if you want, what you hope to accomplish in your site
and/or a brief description of your approach.)
2. About the Author (important biographical facts, etc)
3. Vocabulary from the story (at least 10 words people are less likely to know.)
4. Point of View (Narrative voice)
5. Setting
6. Conflict(s)
7. Antecedent Action
8. Plot/sub-plot
9. Character(s) (flat, stock, round, protagonist, antagonist, etc)
10. Characterization
11. Climax
12. Resolution
13. Themes (3-5)
14. Notable Quotes/Excerpts/Passages (be comprehensive; be bold)
15. Essential Questions (4-6 multidimensional discussion questions)
16. Style (research/apply this well)
17. Mood
18. Tone
19. Imagery
20. Symbol (be specific: literary, conventional, universal, etc.)
Optional Elements
1. Cross-Disciplinary Connections (As discussed in class, this page is a chance to
show additional content. If skateboarding is a topic, create a page describing it as
a phenomenon; if the main character is a cellist, maybe a page on the cello; a
character is reading a book on the Dalai Lama…you get the picture.)
2. Foil
3. Antihero
4. Editorial omniscience
5. Neutral omniscience
6. Limited omniscience
7. In media res
8. Flashback
9. Stream of consciousness
10. Unreliable narrator
11. Naïve narrator
12. Irony (verbal, situational, etc.)
13. Sarcasm
14. Allegory
15. Exposition
16. Initial Incident
17. Rising Action
18. Turning Point (catastrophe)
19. Falling Action
20. Allusion
21. Archetype
22. Epiphany
23. Foreshadowing
24. Hyperbole
25. Genre
26. Metaphor (synecdoche, metonymy)
27. Parody
28. Recognition
29. Satire
30. Persona
All of the above terms—both “mandatory” and “optional”—will appear on your Quest©;
they need not appear, except, of course, for the “mandatory,” on your web page.
Note: You may use any source for term definitions; again, you are looking for the literary
definitions of these terms. Cite properly. Here’s a pretty good site:
http://www.uncp.edu/home/canada/work/allam/general/glossary.htm
It’s made by college undergrads, and there are better ones out there, but what the heck?
There will also be a link to the Literary Terms Glossary on our Class Web Page.
AND: Why not use a book source from the library. Superb sources are here
at your finger tips!
Cite Properly
Cite Properly
Cite Properly
Cite Properly
Assessment/Accountability
There is no “I” in “team.” This is a group project—not four sub-projects where the minibits are grafted together in a Frankensteinian fashion; and you will be graded not only on
the excellence of the final version your website, but on the style, method, and character of
your working community. For example, there are ways for your instructor to verify your
labor hours on Wikispaces. More on this in due course.
EXCELSIOR