Up to the second story; making another decision
Story discussion
We'll begin by hearing what the group decided from last time were the relevant facts about Eudora Welty and her story, then talk a bit about how "A Worn Path" compares to "The Yellow Wallpaper."
Decisions, decisions
There's been a lively and entertaining discussion of texts we all might read on the Ceilidh forum. I think so far the list comes down to:
I believe I said in class that we were looking for texts written before 1900, but I don't find it stated in the prompt, so I'm not sure I'd be justified in eliminating the Frost. I did say that "a major purpose here is to give people as wide a range of experience as possible in the time we have," which seems to me a pretty strong argument for skipping a discussion of the Kate Chopin story (which qualifies under the time limit by only six years, rather like "The Yellow Wallpaper."
Here's the deal. For Thursday, read "My Last Duchess" and "Once by the Pacific" and write out one question about each that you think might be answered, that you don't know the answer to, and that might matter. Write them on a piece of paper and bring them to class.
Also, read as much as you can (skim them; size them up) of the other works on the list. All are available on line -- in fact, reasonably good versions can be found by clicking on the links in this prompt, on the course Web site -- and many are probably in your anthology. Before class time, post to the Ceilidh forum (in response to my invitation to do so, that is, below it and indented) a nomination of one of them that you think we should read. Put the title in the "title" slot of your posting, and in the message part make an argument, not as to why it would be good to read, but why an introductory English class might profit by discussing it.
I'll read the recommendations tomorrow night, and if there's a consensus I'll go with it; if not I'll make my own decision. I'll send an email to truth@stu.ca saying which item you should read for the class meeting on Thursday.