For your initial discussion post, you should select one of the prompt questions below and write a strong response paragraph that uses the assigned readings for the week as the basis for your response.

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For your initial discussion post, you should select one of the prompt questions below and write a strong response paragraph that uses the assigned readings for the week as the basis for your response. Your paragraph should establish a claim followed by quoted support from the literature. Follow MLA formatting guidelines for in-text citations when you quote. For the purpose of this course, “literature” is defined as poems, short stories, novel excerpts, non-fiction narratives, speeches, sermons, etc. While you can quote from the editorial sections (author biographies, historical context sections, summaries of artistic and geopolitical changes, etc.), you must focus your response paragraph on the assigned literature and quote from the assigned literature. You should spend time explaining how the the quoted evidence you offer proves your claim to be true. Your response paragraph should be five to seven well developed sentences long. 

Question to answer:

  • What social problems are apparent within these assigned works of literature?

Readings to use:

  • From The Norton Anthology of American Literature: 1865 to Present, Shorter, 9th edition:  
    • Allen Ginsberg pp. 1392-1394
    • “Howl” pp. 1394-1401
    • Toni Morrison pp. 1427-1428
    • “Recitatif” pp. 1429-1442
    • John Updike pp. 1450-1452
    • “Separating” pp. 1452-1460
    • Raymond Carver pp. 1531-1532
    • “Cathedral” 1532-1542
    • Alice Walker pp. 1567-1568
    • Everyday Use: for Your Grandmama” pp. 1568-1574
    • Sandra Cisneros pp. 1613-1614
    • “Woman Hollering Creek” pp. 1614-1622