Second Semester Welcome
Find a seat to stand behind
before you are given your
new seats.
Kick-off: Monday, January 25th 2016
On your “Exploring Identity Markers”
handout, indicate your beliefs on the following
statements. Prepare to share!
“I
see myself as a racialized being”
“I see myself as ‘ethnic’
I participate in a particular culture
I have biases about race and culture
Systemic racism is a relevant, contemporary issue
Hard work and high achievement in school ‘level the
playing field’ for everyone in America’
Kick-off: Monday, January 25th 2016

Next, for each of the following people, describe who they
are. What is their job? Their personality? Their taste in
music? Their goals? What are they good at? With what do
they struggle? Etc.
Unit 3: Uncovering Invisibility &
Invisible Man
Why do we refuse to “see” what’s going on?
Who or what is invisible in our society?
What do we refuse to
“see”?
 Janitors
 Slaughterhouse workers
 Child labor
 Slavery
 Elderly
 Imprisoned
 The homeless and hungry
What do we choose to
“see”?
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All Muslims are terrorists
All Latinos are Mexican
All gay men are flamboyant
All Asians are good at math
Obese people are lazy
IMPORTANCE of IDENTITY
POWER of PERCEPTION
Sociocultural Consciousness

“The awareness that one’s worldview is not universal,
but is profoundly shaped by one’s life experiences.”
Sociocultural Consciousness

The extent to which you are award of your beliefs and
your belief’s relationships to your experiences and
identity.

Understanding that a person’s perspective, while
accurately reflecting his or her personal experience, is
not necessarily shared by others by others is prerequisite
for communication in a multicultural society.
EXPLORING IDENTITY MARKERS
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RACE
ETHNICITY
CLASS
LANGUAGE
GENDER
SEXUAL ORIENTATION
RELIGION
AGE
RACE


A grouping or classification based on genetic variations in
physical appearance, most notable skin color.
We can see race (skin color, eye shape, eye color nose
shape, hair color, hair texture, etc.)
ETHNICITY

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The shared historical, linguistic, religious and cultural
identity of a social community, group, nation, or race.
Can’t see ethnicity – have to observe
RACE and ETHNICITY are not
synonymous.
CLASS
Also known as socioeconomic status
 Access to financial resources (healthcare, food,
shelter, education, etc.)

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More wealth means more choices, more
opportunity, more access
LANGUAGE
“Students’ Right to Their Own Language”
Conference on College Composition and Communication
(1974)
“We affirm the students’ right to their own patterns and
varieties of language – the dialects of their nurture or
whatever dialects in which they find their identity and
style…The claim that any one dialect is unacceptable
amounts to an attempt of one social group to exert its
dominance over another.”
LANGUAGE
African American Vernacular
a dialect of American English

(NOT Ebonics)
Spanish

is a language
Many of you are bilingual
English (AAVE) – is
GENDER SEXUAL ORIENTATION
RELIGION

AGE
Examples)
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Christian
Jewish
Muslim
Agnostic
Atheist
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Elderly
Middle-aged
20-something
Teenager
Child
Infant
YOUR IDENTITY MARKERS

Complete the table with your identity markers on your
handout
YOUR IDENTITY MARKERS in
CONTEXT

First – rank the relative importance of your identity
markers when you are at home, where the top identity
marker is most salient and the bottom identity marker is
the least salient.
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Second, rank the relative importance of your identity
markers when you are at school, where the top identity
marker is the most salient and the bottom identity
marker is the least salient.

Salient (adj) – most noticeable or important
Excerpt from Sister Outside: Essays and Speeches by Audre Lorde
“Age, Race, Class, and Sex: Women Redefining Difference
RACISM
List as many authors, texts and
characters as you can that you have
read in your Literature classes at MCP
SO WHAT?

The concept of identity is a complex one, shaped by
individual characteristics, family dynamics, historical
factors, and social and political contexts. Who am I? The
answer depends in large part on who the world around
me says I am. Who do my parents say I am? Who do my
peers say I am? What message is reflected back to me in
the faces and voices of my teachers, my neighbors, store
clerks? What do I learn from the media about myself?
How am I represented in the cultural images around me?
Or am I missing from the picture altogether?

Dr. Beverly Daniel Tatum (1997) "Why Are All the Black Kids Sitting Together in
the Cafeteria?" And Other Conversations About Race.
Why are we reading Invisible Man?
To think about:
How do you identify
yourself?
In what ways are you
responsible for – or in
control of – your identity?
Your choices? In what ways
are you not?
Who do you “see” in
yourself and who or what
do others “see” in you?
What do you choose to
“see” in other people?
Final Word:
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On your handout:
What do you wish people would see first or consider
most important you? Why?
Homework

Read and take notes on W.E.B. DuBois’ The Souls of Black
Folk by W.E.B. DuBois, Excerpt from Chapter 1: Of Our
Spiritual Strivings
Kick-Off: Tuesday, January 26th, 2016

Talk with your shoulder partner: Of the following
pictures, which one do you think best captures the idea of
identity? Explain.
W.E.B. DuBois
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Born February 23, 1868 in
Massachusetts
Died August 27, 1963 in
Accra, Ghana
Attended Harvard- was the
first African American to
earn a doctorate degree
Founder of the National
Association for the
Advancement of Colored
People (NAACP)
W.E.B. Dubois’s Souls of Black Folk
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Book was published in
1903
Collection of essays on
race
DuBois felt that the cure
wasn’t simply telling
people the truth about
injustice, it was inducing
them to act on the truth
Believed in liberal arts
education for a Black
Leadership Elite
W.E.B. Dubois’s Souls of Black Folk
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As you reread
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What is the “unasked
question” DuBois refers
to?
When did DuBois realize
he was “shut out fro their
world by a vast veil?”
What is the “second-sight”
that Black people have
been gifted with?
Note the most important
word, phrase, or line that
stand out to YOU.
More on “The Veil”…
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For DuBois, the veil concept primarily refers to three things:
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First, the veil suggests to the literal darker
skin of Blacks, which is a physical demarcation
of difference from whiteness.
Secondly, the veil suggests white people’s
lack of clarity to see Blacks as “true”
Americans.
Thirdly, the veil refers to Blacks’ lack of
clarity to see themselves outside of what
white America describes and prescribes for
them.
The Major Takeaway
“The Negro is...born with a veil, and gifted with a
second sight in this American world,— a world which
yields him no true self-consciousness, but only lets him
see himself through the revelation of the other world. It
is a particular sensation, this double-consciousness...
One ever feels his two-ness,—an American, a Negro;
two souls, two thoughts, two unreconciled strivings,
two warring ideals in one dark body, whose dogged
strength alone keeps it from being torn asunder.” –
Dubois, Souls of Black Folk
Double-Consciousness
The sense of always looking at one’s
self through the eyes of others
This American Life #557 “Birds and
Bees”
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Act II “If You See Racism, Say Racism”
As you listen, think about when you were dipped (or
thrown into) The Race Pool and The Racism Pool (if you
have been…)
Take note of anything that stands out – you’ll want to
refer to theses ideas in your reflection paper
Public pool, 1964
Everybody Writes – Final Word
 What
was a moment when you realized a
part of your identity (think back to
yesterday’s identity markers)? It can be a
positive or negative experience.

Keep this for your reflection paper
Homework
Re-read Invisible Man Prologue
 Generate three-four discussions questions for
small group discussions tomorrow
 Consider theme, figurative language, symbolism,
allusions
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Kick-off: Wednesday, January 27th 2016
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Jot down the definition for epigraph
Epigraph- a short quotation or saying at the beginning
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of a book or chapter, intended to suggest its theme
Then, take a look at the epigraphs from Invisible Man
Consider the following information:
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Benito Cereno is a novella by Herman Melville (author of Moby
Dick) about a captain who encounters a slave ship; an
insurrection occurs on the slave ship and the slave ship’s
captain is overthrown
Necrophily = necrophilia (the fetish of corpses)
Carcase – British English for carcass
Invisible Man Setting, Narrator,
Summary of Prologue
Get Ready for Small Group
Discussion
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Take out your novel, notes, and prepared questions.
At the end of a 25 minute discussion, you must present:
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Your Discussion Takeaways - the THREE most insightful points
about the chapter.
This is NOT a time to review plot – it is a time to ANALYZE. Consider the
quotes and questions I gave you, in addition to:
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Thematic Ideas
Figurative language
Symbols
Allusions
In your groups, choose:
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ONE person with crazy attention to detail to track (all should be taking
notes).
TWO people who will present the information to the class.
Motif Review
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In a literary work, a motif is a recurring image, idea, or
action that has symbolic significance and contributes to
the development of theme.
Theme
The central idea or
message of a work
Motif
Symbol
A motif, a recurring
image, idea or action
that contributes to
the development of
theme
Images, ideas or
actions that
represent something
else to help readers
understand an idea
or thing. Symbols
may appear once or
twice.
Why is this Important?
We track MOTIFS in order to
identify THEMES.
For

example: Hamlet
Motif: Ears and Hearing
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Examples:

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King Hamlet is killed by poison in his EARS
Polonius’s constant meddling and spying leading to his own death.
Theme: Although curiosity can lead to the discovery of truth,
some truths are meant to stay hidden as their discover can
lead to more destruction.
Symbol: Flowers = Ophelia’s femininity, innocence and
virginity
As you continue to discuss…
Consider motifs in the Prologue (there are a
couple!)
 Read the Louis Armstrong lyrics to “What Did
I Do to Be so Black and Blue?”
 Consider the symbolic significance of the song
to the narrator
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(10) Discussion Takeaways
(5) Final Word - jot down
points from today’s
discussion to incorporate
into you reflection paper
Kick-off: Thursday, January 28th 2016

Organize your work space with laptop, notebook, DuBois
excerpt, notes from This American Life #557 and Invisible
Man discussion notes, Invisible Man text
Identity Markers
Reflection Assignment
Due Monday, February 1st 8:00 am to
turnitin.com
Reflection Planning Time
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A word about laptops…
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Plan your reflection before you write!
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Consider how you want to organize your reflection
Look at the rubric to make sure you cover all content
Final Word

Create personal deadlines for your Identity
Markers Reflection paper.
 When
will you complete your outline?
 Your first draft?
 Who will review your first draft? When?
 When will you submit the final paper to
turnitin.com?