English 3336 Restoration and Eighteenth Century Poetry and Prose
Prompt # 50
20 Foreveruary 2012

Reporting back, moving forward

Reports on reading

Among the works we've already identified as nonfiction possibilities are the following

There are descriptive reports on all of these on the forum. I had thought we might spend some time in class today reading them,  but as I read through them it seems pretty clear that a number of them will repay more attention than we could give them in that situation. Many people took the instructions seriously: "Tell the rest of us, as clearly and descriptively as you can, what it was like to read what you read (and exactly what you read, if it was less than the whole work, and in some cases it will clearly need to be). Quote typical passages. Give us a sense of how it sounds; tell us how it's organized. Let us hear the voice."

So I've decided not to print them. What I'm going to ask  now is that each person who's written one give us a quick characterization of what you found, and what we can expect when we read your reflection. We'll do this by work rather than by person.

For next time

For next time, first, read the descriptive reports -- it should not take very long -- paying special attention, of course, to others on the same work you read. If you spent less time with the work you're reading than you'd planned, or hoped, take some time to catch up.

And then spend an hour or so in the library (if you go up to the Defoe section on the 4th floor you find lots of material, easily), or on line, and find at least one scholarly resource that you think has something interesting or illuminating or thought-provoking to say about the work you've been reading.  Quote or summarize it, explain why you found it worth bringing to our attention, and post it as a reply to your own descriptive report (with a full reference to what you found at the bottom). Again, do this by class time Wednesday.

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