The question for journal #7, due Thursday, April 17th, is the following: what is/are the role/s of women in Leslie Marmon Silko's Ceremony? How does the novel depict women's roles within society? How does this differ from previous novels we've read?
We wrote Journal #6 in class on Thursday. The topic for this journal concerned the role of grace in Flannery O'Connor's "A Good Man is Hard to Find."
We will write journal #5 in-class on Thursday. The question we'll address is the following: Do you believe Oedipa has discovered some secret truth in the mystery of the Tristero, or is she simply paranoid?
The following sites provide a great deal of useful information on postmodernism:
Mary Klages' Postmodernism Page. This page provides a useful breakdown of the relationship between modernity and postmodernity as well.
Postmodernism and Its Critics. Though focusing on anthropology, this page defines key concepts and introduces key theorists.
Contemporary Philosophy, Critical Theory, and Postmodern Thought. This page provides links to information on key postmodern thinkers.
Berkeley's Postmodernism Page. Provides great author links.
Georgetown's Po-Mo Page. A helpful breakdown of the characteristics of modernism and postmodernism.
John Lye's Postmodern Literature Page. A good breakdown of postmodernism as applied to the study of literature.
You can find the full text of Raymond Chandler's essay "The Simple Art of Murder" here.
Click here for the power point presentation on hard-boiled fiction.
Click here for the power point presentation on the jazz age.
Click here for the power point presentation on the Harlem Renaissance.
Learn to barber like a Bruno or chin like a chippy. The following glossary of hard-boiled slang is worth a look.
William Marling's overview of detective novels is a good introduction to hard-boiled fiction.
Lee Horsley's crime fiction site also provides helpful information.
My page on hard-boiled fiction and film noir may also prove useful.
The following site provides a secondary bibliography related to Raymond Chandler's The Big Sleep.
The question you should respond to in your fourth reading journal, due Monday, 3/10, is the following: Is hard-boiled fiction a particularly American genre of literature? Why or why not? Be sure to substantiate your claims using evidence from the text.
The question you should respond to in your third reading journal, due on Monday 3/3, is the following: What relationship does The Great Gatsby suggest between the American dream and repetition of the past?