2. AGENDA
Exam 1: Vocab and Terms
Discussion:
Kennedy
The Human Stain
QHQ: "The Passing of Grandison”
Presentation: Introduction to Essay 2:
The Argument: Brainstorming with FREECASH
In-Class Writing: Essay 2 Brainstorming
Author Lecture: Toni Morrison
3. Terms Exam 1
You may take either test: crossword or definition list
You have 20 minutes to complete the exam.
If you finish early, feel free to go outside, but please
be ready to begin class at 11:25.
4. Discussion:
“Racial Segregation,” Randall Kennedy
The Human Stain, Phillip Roth
"The Passing of Grandison,” Charles Chesnutt
5. Kennedy
• Anita Hemmings stood out to me for multiple reasons.
• I particularly enjoyed reading the story, The Garies and Their
Friends.
• Walter White is really interesting.
• Walter‟s Father Hospital story shows me that it was a confusing time
• The stories regarding anti-passing were the most interesting to me:
Iola Leroy or the descendant of Madison Hemmingway who
demanded he be assigned to a black unit in the military.
• Ellen Craft influenced my thinking of passing because it shows how
far a person has to hide their true identity in some situations.
• I enjoyed and slightly related to Rachel Kennedy.
• I found the story “Passing Today” in Kennedy‟s article to be most
interesting. It talks briefly about the “don‟t ask, don‟t tell” policy, [and]
tells us of Paul and Phillip Malone.
• A story that stood out to me was the one about Fred Toyosaburo
Korematsu.
6. The Human Stain
• The scene where it first shows his family at the dinner table.
• The scene when Coleman walks into the record store
• The girl leaving him after she found out he was African American.
• The scene in which he is beating up the black guy in the ring and impudently calls
his opponent a “negro.”
• the dialogue between Coleman and his mother when he informs her of his newly
assumed identity.
• The one scene when Coleman Silk‟s mother called him a „murderer.‟
• Coleman refers to students who haven‟t shown up to class as “spooks.”
• Why didn‟t Silk reveal that he was a black man when he was accused of being a
racist?
• Why did he decide to tell Faunia; why did she accept him for who he truly was?
• Why was the character Faunia attracted to much older men?
• The scene the morning after, when Faunia gets angry at Coleman.
• The ice fishing scene at the end.
• Is Lester passing?
• What was the significance of the crow in the cage?
7. "The Passing of Grandison”
• Why was Dick Owens so lazy?
• Why has no one tried to motivate Dick?
• Why did Charity Lomax have such power over Dick Owens?
• Why was marrying Charity so important to Dick? What made her so special?
• Why did Charity Lomax pressure Dick Owens into being a man when she ended
up marrying him even though he didn‟t prove himself a man?
• Why did Owen try to help Grandison escape?
• Why does Dick Owens choose to free a slave to prove he is worthy of doing
something for Miss Lomax?
• Are Owen‟s action really heroic ?
• Why did Grandison agree with the colonel‟s views of the abolitionists when he
asks him to take care of Dick in his trip up North, like he was happy as a servant
to him and his family?
• Why did the colonel want Grandison to be „abolitionist-proof‟?
• Why did Grandison come back?
• Why did Colonel Owens trust Grandison so much?
• How did Grandison escape to Canada?
• In what ways were Dick Owens and Grandison alike?
8. Introduction to Essay 2:
“If passing for white will get a fellow better accommodations
on the train, better seats in the theatre, immunity from
insults in public places, and may even save his life from a
mob,” wrote William Pickens, “only idiots would fail to seize
the advantages of passing, at least occasionally if not
permanently” (“Racial Segregation,” Opportunity, December
1927 (3).
Write an essay of 750 to 1000 words arguing for or against
William Pickens‟s statement. Use support from the texts
you have read so far, our discussions, and your own
insights. Remember to format your essay in MLA style. This
essay will require citations and a works cited page.
9. The Prompt:
If passing for white will get a fellow better accommodations on the train,
better seats in the theatre, immunity from insults in public places, and may
even save his life from a mob,” only idiots would fail to seize the
advantages of passing, at least occasionally if not permanently.”
Write an essay of 750 to 1000 words arguing for or against William
Pickens’s statement. Use support from the texts you have read so far, our
discussions, and your own insights.
Do you agree with Pickens's statement?
If yes, why?
If no, why not?
10. Brainstorming with FREECASH
F= Freedom, Fairness, Legality, Human Rights, Social Justice
R = Religion, Morality, Ethics
E = Economics, Monetary Issues, Finances, Expenses
E = Environment (types of environments = natural, rural, urban, workplace, home, school)
C = Convenience, Comfort
A = Appearance, Aesthetics
S = Safety, Security
H = Health, Well Being (types of health = individual, societal, mental, physical, emotional,
spiritual)
11. Practice organizing an essay on the issue of school uniforms.
Use the FREECASH in the chart below.
CATEGORIES PRO/FOR CON/AGAINST
FREEDOM Students should be free to Students should be free from
wear what they want stigma attached to class.
RELIGION/MORALI
TY
ECONOMICS
ENVIRONMENT
CONVENIENCE
APPEARANCE Makes the students look like
clones
SAFETY Keeps students safe from
gang violence due to colors
HEALTH
12. List all the reasons to agree with Pickens on one side and all the reasons to
disagree on the other. The side with the most or best reasons will probably
make a better argument.
CATEGORIES PRO/FOR CON/AGAINST
FREEDOM
RELIGION/MORALI
TY
ECONOMICS
ENVIRONMENT
CONVENIENCE
APPEARANCE
SAFETY
HEALTH
13. Toni Morrison
1931-
Toni Morrison was born in Lorain Ohio.
She is the author of seven novels, a play,
and a work of literary criticism. „„Recititaf‟‟
is her only published work of short fiction.
Since 1987 she has focused mainly on
writing but has also taught classes at
Yale and Princeton Universities.
Morrison is one of the most loved and
respected writers of the late twentieth
century. Several of her books have been
bestsellers, and she is the recipient of a
number of prestigious literary awards. In
1993 Morrison was awarded the Nobel
Prize for Literature, becoming the first
African American to win this honor.
14. HOMEWORK
Reading: Hughes: "Who's Passing for Who?,"
Morrison: “Recitatif.”
Writing: Write a paragraph defending “passing”; give
at least three reasons from your brainstorming with
FREECASH. Then, write another paragraph
condemning passing using another three reasons.
Use examples from our readings to support your
reasons.
Blog Shot #6: QHQ Hughes or Morrison
