1. Week 7 Week 7 Doyle, Fisher, and Florey

2. Doyle - Language Anaphora is the repetition of words or phrases used at the beginning of sentences or clauses, used in the bible, some poetry of Walt Whitman and hip hop music. What effect do writers hope to achieve using this kind of repetition? What is the effect of the lack of punctuation and rapid pacing in the third paragraph when Doyle states that hummingbirds “have incredible enormous immense ferocious metabolism”?

3. Doyle – Structure This essay is structured in six separate paragraphs. Though the essay rallies around hearts, how does Doyle’s description of hearts create a movement in the essay? Look at the size of the hearts he describes. How does Doyle tie together these seemingly unconnected concrete details?

4. Doyle - Perspective What sort of information did Doyle need to write this essay? Why does he write this kind of prose poem instead of include all of this kind of detail of heart beats and size in a scientific essay? Does this essay turn personal in the end? What is the effect of the mixture of the pronouns “you” and “we” in the final paragraph?

5. Fisher - Language Why does Fisher use a lot of tactile imagery (images that evoke physical sensation or touch) to describe objects? How does he convey physical sensation in words? How does this imagery link with the central idea or ideas of Fisher’s essay?

6. Fisher - Structure What is the significance of opening the essay with a memory of a watch and a clock radio? Note his descriptions of these objects. How are these objects and remembrances of them tied to the theme of the essay? Is there some kind of loose chronology in the essay?

7. Fisher - Perspective How would you characterize the tone of the essay? Is it melancholy? Nostalgic? Sentimental? Is Fisher looking at the past objectively? What is the effect of the references to Baker and Nabokov? How does that complicate the nostalgic perspective? How does Fisher’s conclusion further complicate the essay’s mood? Why does Fisher feel nostalgic about some objects and not others?

8. Florey - Language Florey’s concrete descriptions help us better “see” the art of diagramming sentences. Where do you find instances of how Florey makes the reader imagine language in different ways, making it physical rather than mental? Notice when she compares diagramming questions to turning a sock inside out. How does this help her succeed in helping the reader to “see”?

9. Florey - Structure Notice how the actual sixth grade diagrammed sentences is both instructive and amusing. How does she use diagramming to structure her essay? Is there any logical progression? Notice how skillfully Florey manages to cover so many areas of her life in the essay. Is this essay mostly reflective or analytical or merely amusing? Did you learn something from the essay on how to diagram sentences?

10. Florey - Perspective Is Florey reflecting on the good old days when diagramming taught young school children about grammar? Is her attitude formal or educational? What distinction is she making between writing correctly and writing well?