ENGL 102H, Spring, 2016
Dr. Harnett
TuTh Week 1, Thursday, Class Notes, page 1
Thursday, February 18, 2016
Announcements:
1. SI will start next week: Monday and Wednesday, 12:30 rooms TBA. SI
Leaders will be Tatianna Giron, Carina Nalbandian, and Carolina Maranian
on Mondays, Viktoriya Shumakova, Minelie Asadorian, and Ala
Babakhanians on Wednesdays.
2. Books: Be sure to have all of the books by the time you need to read them! I
strongly recommend that you buy and/or order them all now.
3. Mark your calendars for our attendance of the play You Never Can Tell
[proposed date is Thursday, 3/31 or Friday, 4/1]. I expect to be able to have a
group rate for tickets. I collect money from you and get all of them at once in
advance. How many people (including guests you’d like to bring) can go?___
4. Exam 1 (Short Fiction) will be one week from today.
5. I am returning the graded Diagnostic Essays as soon as possible. Remember
that the grade is only advisory and does not count toward the course grade.
There are some important aspects of successful essays, especially support
for the thesis, that we can discuss and that I can help you improve. Let’s meet
individually about it and discuss your writing. Always feel free to ask me
questions and to call on me for help.
6. Scholars Announcement: Remember to attend the first General Assembly of
the semester this Friday, 2-19-2016, 12:20 (check-in)-1:30 PM in the Student
Center (SC 212).
7. Also, come with me on a hike!
Stories with Tragic Turns.
1. “Orpheus and Eurydice” at http://www.bartleby.com/181/241.html
2. Kate Chopin, “The Story of an Hour” at
http://www.vcu.edu/engweb/webtexts/hour/
3. John Steinbeck, “The Chrysanthemums” at
http://nbu.bg/webs/amb/american/4/steinbeck/chrysanthemums.htm
4. Irwin Shaw, “The Girls in their Summer Dresses” at
http://www.classicshorts.com/stories/dresses.html

Complete the chart to show the basic movement of the stories toward their
tragic turns and endings.
Story
Before the
tragic turn
The tragic
turn
Causes
Results
“Orpheus and
Eurydice”
“The Story of an
Hour”
“The
Chrysanthemums”
“The Girls in their
Summer Dresses”
 Now write up your analysis of the four stories’ tragic turns in a
substantial paragraph (you may decide to make more than one
paragraph, but this is not a complete essay):
ENGL 102H, Spring, 2016
Dr. Harnett
TuTh Week 1, Thursday, Class Notes, page 2
a. What do they share in common?
b. What does this common aspect reveal to you as a theme, maybe a
fundamental truth or concept?
Support your analysis with quotations, paraphrases, and summaries, as
appropriate, from each of the four stories. Cite all such references correctly,
according to MLA format.
Elements to include in your writeup:
 Topic sentence (background information and setup of it beforehand
optional) showing an insight you derived from your analysis of the 4
stories’ tragic turns.
 Supporting example for each of the 4 stories’ tragic turns in relation to
your insight (quote, paraphrase, summary, with citation) as you focus on
these aspects:
o Before
o During
o Causes
o Results (note that you might combine some of these factors)
 Summation of your insight. What your insight and analysis mean and
imply.
Show me your work for Participation credit (save it on GoogleDrive, etc. or email
it to me if I don’t see it in person). I would like to save as much paper as possible.
Save all classwork in a reliable place for yourself as a backup.
Discuss the best ways to develop an idea in depth and precisely. Note
that length does not ensure depth, though a certain amount is needed.
For Next Time:
Stories about Imagination vs. Reality to read:


Ambrose Bierce, “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge” at
http://www.gutenberg.org/files/375/375-h/375-h.htm
Frank O’Connor, “First Confession” at http://www.irelandinformation.com/firstconfession.htm