Assignment 2: Ongoing Assignment
Due Date: Every Friday
This assignment will give you a
chance to keep track of the readings and the concepts of
the class, and to practice writing. For each reading,
find one phrase or word or concept or argument and
rewrite it in your own terms. The item
you pick should be precise, and your re-definition should
relate it to the context of the reading it comes from.
Try not to go overboard, keep in mind these three
suggestions:
- Pick something you find confusing or counter-intuitive. Write what
you think it means, then write what you think the author means by
it. Bring it to class for discussion on Fridays.
- Pick terms or ideas that appear more than once. Read the
assignments through first, then go back and look for a term or idea
that was used consistently in the text. This will also help you
distinguish the key arguments of an article from the obscure
references or less important ideas.
- Remember that the purpose is to rewrite in your own terms, which does
not mean simply replacing words with other words, it
means challenging yourself to explain the idea
at least as clearly as the author. The proof of your
ability to do this will be discussion on Fridays, where
you can use these exercises to help your fellow students
understand the readings.
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