1. 
CLASS 8
EWRT 1B

2. AGENDA
 Presentation: Terms List 2
 QHQ Discussion: "Recitatif"
 Lecture: Thesis statements, outlining, using
evidence, introductions.
 In-Class Writing: Essay #2
 Author Lecture: Leslie Feinberg

3. TERMS LIST 2
 Ableism: A pervasive system of discrimination and exclusion that
oppresses people who have mental, emotional, and physical
disabilities.
 Ally: A person who supports marginalized, silenced, or less privilege
groups without actually being a member of those groups. This person
will often directly confront and challenge biphobia, homophobia,
heterosexism, racism, transphobia and other systems of oppression.
 Binary Gender: A system that defines and makes room for two and
only two distinct, natural and opposite genders (i.e. male and female).
These two genders are defined in opposition to each other, such that
masculinity and femininity are seen as mutually exclusive. In this
system, there is no room for any ambiguity or intermingling of gender
traits.

4.  Classism: Bias based on social or economic class.
 Critical Consciousness: a process of continuous self-reflection and action to
discover and uncover how we continue to be shaped by societal
assumptions and power dynamics: an essential tool to help us to
recognize, understand and work to change the social forces that shape our
societies an ourselves.
 Cultural Appropriation: The adoption of cultural elements not in one’s own
culture, without full knowledge of or respect for its value within the
original culture.
 Cultural Oppression: Social norms, roles, rituals, language, music, and art
that reflect and reinforce the belief that one social group is superior to
anther.
 Dominance: The systematic attitudes and actions of prejudice, superiority,
and self- righteousness of one group (a non-target group) in relation to
another (a target group). Internalized dominance includes the inability of a
group or individual to see privilege as a member of the non-target group.

5. 
QHQ Discussion: "Recitatif"
Where do you think the author came up with the idea to name this story “Recitatif”?

6. Racial Ambiguity: Class Difference?
 Why did Morrison choose to leave the girls’ races ambiguous?
 Does this story make the reader reinforce the black/white
racial binary?
 What are the effects of stereotypes?
 Is racial identification still important to a person nowadays?
 What was the bigger conflict, class difference, or racism?
 What really IS the big problem nowadays? [race or class]

7. Reunions
 When Twyla sees Roberta, why is Roberta not as
happy to see Twyla. In other words, why does she
act so shallow?
 What did Roberta gain from being so shallow and
mean to Twyla?

8. Mental Illness?
 Why does Roberta seem so mentally messed up?
 The story hints at the fact that Twyla may have
some form of mental problems, due to her
suppression of certain memories, lack of somewhat
basic knowledge (poor grammar in her story as
well), and irrational behavior at times. What is the
author’s purpose for this?
 Does Twyla or Roberta have a memory problem or
is something more complex than that?

9. Maggie
 Why was the Maggie reference important?
 Why can’t Twyla remember what really happened to Maggie?
 Why did Roberta want Twyla to believe that they beat up Maggie?
 Was Maggie pushed or not?
 Was Maggie really deaf/mute?
 What did happen to Maggie in the end?
 Why does the story end with the mystery of what happened to
Maggie?

10. Comparing Works We Have Read
 What does” Morrison’s “Recitatif” have in common with
Hughes’s “Who’s Passing for Who?
 What do they share with other works? How are they
different?
 “Passing” the poem
 “Passing” the short story
 “The Passing of Grandison”
 The Human Stain
 Do you have any other insights into “passing” that you
have realized through our readings or discussions.

11. Does Passing
Reinforce the social Disrupt the social
construct? construct?

12. Reinforcement of Social Construct
 Passing scholar, Leo Spitzer writes that passing was “by
and large a personal solution to discrimination and
exclusion. It was an action that, when accomplished
successfully, generally divorced its individual
practitioners from others in the subordinated group, and
in no way challenged the ideology of racism or the
system in which it was rooted. Indeed, because
individuals responding to marginality through . . .
passing could be viewed as either conscious or unwitting
accomplices in their own victimization—as persons
consenting to the continuing maintenance of existing
inequalities and exclusionary ideologies—it is certainly
understandable why they often elicited such scathing
criticism from their contemporaries” (Kennedy 11-12)

13. Disruption of Social Construct
 “Passing, however, does pose at least some challenge to
racist regimes. That is why they typically try to prevent
it. Fleeing bondage by passing may have been an
individualistic response to the tyranny of slavery but it
did free human beings and helped to belie the canard
that slaves were actually content with their lot. The
successful performance of “white man’s work” by a
passing Negro upset racist claims that blacks are
categorically incapable of doing such work. The extent of
the disturbance is severely limited by the practical
necessity of keeping the passing secret. But under some
circumstances a limited disturbance is about all that can
be accomplished” (Kennedy 12).

14. 
Writing Essay #2

15. 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?

16. Your Thesis
Your refined thesis will be your position on
William Pickens’s Statement: Do you agree
with him or not? Why or why not? You may
refer to Pickens or not in your thesis. You may
forecast your reasons in your thesis, or you
may refer to a broader theme and provide your
reasons in the body of your essay.

17. What are your “reasons” for agreeing or
disagreeing with the act of passing? Your reasons
should connect to your thesis. Each one should be
a topic for at least one body paragraph
 Consider your best support for your
assertion. This will likely be from your
brainstorming using FREECASH.
 Find textual evidence to support your
position.
 Explain how your examples support your
thesis.
 You can also use secondary sources if
you would like to, but they are not
necessary for this paper.

18. Building Body Paragraphs
 Topic Sentence: This is reason #1 that you agree or disagree.
 Textual Evidence: This is an example from one of the texts that we
read.
 Explanation/Analysis: This is where you explain how your example
supports your topic sentence. You can also draw conclusion from
inferences.
 Other Evidence: This could be from another primary text, a secondary
text, or from your personal experience.
 Explanation/Analysis: This is where you explain how your example
supports your topic sentence. You can also draw conclusion from
inferences.
 Transition: This section moves your reader from your first body
paragraph to your second body paragraph.

19. Introductions
You never get a second chance to make a first impression. The
opening paragraph of your paper will provide your readers with
their initial impressions of your argument, your writing style, and
the overall quality of your work. A vague, disorganized, error-filled,
off-the-wall, or boring introduction will probably create a negative
impression. On the other hand, a concise, engaging, and well-
written introduction will start your readers off thinking highly of
you, your analytical skills, your writing, and your paper.

20. Start by thinking about the
question you are trying to answer:
Write an essay of 500 to 750 words arguing for or against William Pickens’s statement:
"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"
Your entire essay will be a response to this question, and your
introduction is the first step toward that end. Your direct answer
to the assigned question will be your thesis, and your thesis will
be included in your introduction, so it is a good idea to use the
question as a jumping off point.

21. Open with an attention grabber. Consider
these options:
• A provocative quotation: Consider a line or two from one of the texts we
read.
• An intriguing example of passing: Provide a situation or two in which a
person might be inclined to pass.
• A puzzling scenario: Imagine a scene that makes a reader consider the
consequences or benefits of passing.
• A vivid and perhaps unexpected anecdote: Open with a short story about
a successful or failed passing attempt.
• Find common ground with your reader: Offer a contemporary example of
passing (maybe a humorous one, even) and then explain the more
reasons for passing in this earlier time period.

22.  Avoid statements like "In this paper, I will argue
that racial passing destabilizes the social construction
of race and is therefore beneficial to society."
 While this sentence points toward your main
argument, it isn't especially interesting. It might be
more effective to say what you mean in a declarative
sentence: “Racial passing destabilizes the social
construction of race and is therefore beneficial to
society."
 It is much more convincing to tell your readers that
than to tell them that you are going to say that it does.
Assert your main argument confidently. After all, you
can't expect your reader to believe it if it doesn't sound
like you believe it!

23. Introductions to Avoid
1. The restated question introduction: Twists the question to take up space in the
introduction.
2. The place holder introduction: Offers several vague sentences that don’t really say
much.
3. The Webster's Dictionary introduction. This introduction begins by giving the dictionary
definition of one or more of the words in the assigned question.
4. The "dawn of man" introduction. This kind of introduction generally makes broad,
sweeping statements about the relevance of this topic since the beginning of time.
5. The book report introduction. This introduction gives the name and author of the book
you are writing about, tells what the book is about, and offers other basic facts about
the book.

24. Let’s Try to Write an Introduction or Two Now.
 An intriguing example of  A vivid and perhaps
passing: Provide a situation unexpected anecdote: Open
or two in which a person with a short story about a
might be inclined to pass. successful or failed passing
attempt.
 A provocative quotation:
Consider a line or two from  Find common ground with
one of the texts we read. your reader: Offer a
contemporary example of
 A puzzling scenario: Imagine passing (maybe a humorous
a scene that makes a reader one, even) and then explain
consider the consequences the more reasons for passing
or benefits of passing. in this earlier time period.

25. Possible Outline
Introduction:
Thesis: This will likely be near the end of your introduction
Multiple Body Paragraphs supporting your thesis: The topic sentences of your body paragraphs
(probably situated fairly early in the paragraph) should connect directly to your thesis. You should use the
following rhetorical strategies to support your topic sentence:
define (describe and/or characterize unfamiliar terms, situations, or events)
classify (briefly distinguish between types)
exemplify (provide examples from primary or secondary texts)
analyze (explore and/or evaluate, particularly in terms of the connections of the
examples to your reasons or thesis)
explain (give details about) the connection between your example and your assertions.
conclude (provide a logical conclusion for your readers)
Transition (prepare your reader for the next paragraph.
Counter Argument: Anticipate your readers questions or doubts. Will will discuss this in our next class.
Conclusion: We will discuss this in our next class.

26. Writing
Sketch out a rough outline.
Intro: What kind?
Thesis: Write out a working thesis or your refined thesis
Body 1: One of your strongest arguments supporting your thesis.
support/example
Body 2: Another reason
support/example
Body 3: Another reason
support/example
Body 4:One of your strongest arguments supporting your thesis.
support/example
Counterargument:
Conclusion:

27. HOMEWORK
 Reading: Begin Stone Butch Blues (1-65)
Post #12: Post partial draft: Introduction, Thesis,
Minimum three body paragraphs (with topic
sentences, evidence, and explanation)
Studying: Vocab/Terms