Reading Selections

Authentic Voices The Writing Process The four stages of the writing process Writing Descriptions Written descriptions often follow a specific direction: near to far, top to bottom, bottom to top and vice versa. Introductions and Conclusions Multiple strategies to introduce and conclude your essays On Natural Death An article that illustrates the importance of organization and emphasis Roseanne Paragraph development and support Model Essay: Comparison and Contrast My English Grandmother Why Small Businesses Fail Mindfulness, Self-Compassion and Resilience Model Essay: Cause and Effect Model Essay: Argument (PDF) Virginia Woolf, Professions for Women The Story of an Hour by Kate Chopin Youtube: The Story of an Hour Langston Hughes, "Salvation" Joseph M. Williams, Style: Toward Clarity and Grace My Wood Mary Rowlanson's Capitivity Narrative James Baldwin, "Stranger in the Village" Charlotte Perkins Stetson, "The Yellow Wall-paper" Plato, The Allegory of the Cave Scott Russell Sanders, "Under the Influence" N. Scott Momaday, "Way to Rainy Mountain" Nancy Mairs, "On Being a Cripple" Michael Pollan, "An Animal's Place" Eudora Welty, "One Writer's Beginning" Bouncing Back They Say I Say Short Process Essay Toni Morrison's Nobel Lecture in Literature (1993) Read and listen to Morrison's speech. 'Idiot,' 'Yahoo,' 'Original Gorilla': How Lincoln Was Dissed in His Day Anaphora and Epistrophe: Two Rhetorical Devices You See Everywhere Benjamin Franklin, "Learning to Write" Summary of "My Wood" "The Yellow Wall-paper" The Rest Cure Silas Weir Mitchel, inventor of the rest cure. Credits:Wellcome Library, London Influential American neurologist Silas Weir Mitchell developed the rest cure in the late 1800s for the treatment of hysteria, neurasthenia and other nervous illnesses. It became widely used in the US and UK, but was prescribed more often for women than men. It was frequently used to treat anorexia nervosa. The treatment kept some patients alive and others out of asylums, though some patients and doctors considered the cure worse than the disease. More on "The Rest Cure" Both Virginia Woolf and Charlotte Perkins Gilman were prescribed the rest cure. George Orwell, Politics and the English Language Listen to Orwell's "Politics and the English Language" Shakespeare's Sister Anaphora: A Definition with Examples Epistrophe: A Definition with Examples George Orwell, "Shooting an Elephant" MLK's Letter from a Birmingham Jail Rhetorical Appeals in Letter from a Birmingham Jail (Color Coded) Bruce Catton, "Grant and Lee: A Study in Contrasts" Toni Morrison, "Strangers" Interrogating Texts From Harvard Library: Reading Critically Francis Bacon, "Of Studies" The Essays of Francis Bacon These essays are searchable for key words. Paulo Freire, Pedagogy of the Oppressed Helen Keller, The Story of My Life PDF of Toni Morrison, Nobel Lecture on Literature, 1993 Use this file for your annotation. PDF of George Orwell, "Politics and the English Language," 1946 Use this PDF for your annotation. Shakespearw's Sister PDF Use this copy for annotation assignment. George Moore, Esther Waters Notes on George Moore's Ester Waters The Victorian Web Letter from a Birmingham Jail The Death of Socrates Why and How Socrates Died The Trial and Death of Socrates PDF of The Trial and Death of Socrates Rhetorical Analysis of The Declaration of Independence College Composition Elizabeth Johnston, OER Rhetoric and Composition This book is written as a practical guide for students struggling to improve their writing to meet the standards expected of them by their professors, instructors, employers and co-workers. We have avoided complicated "textbook language" and jargon in favor of plain, easily understood language. Instead of complex theories of composition or linguistics, we have simply passed on what has worked well for us in our own experiences as college writers and instructors. This book is largely written by real college writers who know what it takes to earn an A on their writing projects.'