Summaries part 2 - when the reading is REALLY hard

One purpose of ENG 1031 is to make you strong, independent writers who can solve their own writing challenges.  So - today we talked about strategies for writing summaries of readings that were difficult to understand (like the one I gave you) - and we worked through some of those strategies in class.

First - you took an inventory of the strategies you are already using.  Most of you read and re-read the essay.  Underlined, took notes and reviewed your notes from class; identified key terms. .  Some of you wrote main ideas and looked up "hard:" words.  Good.

Second - we looked through the text book to see if we could find tips for what to do with a "hard" reading.  We found chapters on "smart reading" and on "experts" = both of which made useful suggestions.  IN terms of smart reading - I would suggest paraphrasing main points, asking questions about how the main points relate to each other.  But if you are really stumped = talking to others can be crucial   We took time to figure out how to schedule appointments at CAS and the Writing Center on Tutortrac, and I encouraged you to ASK ME (or the instructor whose course you are working on).  Or ask each other.  Or someone you know.  The important thing is that you get some fresh input.

Third - we talked  (again) - only this time we identified our own conceptual metaphors for argument through examining the language we used to talk about arguments.  We noticed that our class discussions used the following phrases when talking about arguments:

Following are some of the conventional metaphors from the conceptual metaphor ARGUMENT is a BUILDING.

• build your argument 
• the structure of your argument is weak
• the way to construct a good argument is to provide support for your main ideas

We also identified language for the conceptual metaphor, ARGUMENT as a SHARED VISION = focus your points, I see your idea, could you draw the argument to a conclusion, this is clear/fuzzy, show me what you mean, illustrate that point = and so on.

The point is that = through conversation, asking each other for examples - thinking and talking - we came to a clearer understanding of what the essay was about.

Workshop:  You then had one-on-one conferences (using the posted protocol for the workshop) to work on your summaries.  You checked the list on the board to make sure you'd covered the content (you needed to include definitions of conceptual metaphors & conventional metaphors, a discussion of the relationship between the two kinds of metaphors - and you needed to state Lakoff & Johnson's main point => what were they saying about conceptual metaphors?  why does it matter whether we notice them or not?)  and you talked through the questions for Content, Form + Style.

Congratulations!   You have worked through a very challenging reading.  It was written for other professors and graduate students => and you read it and understood it.  I am looking forward to reading your summaries!

For Thursday:  
Read:  Men, we just don't get it by Nathan McCall (handout in class + posted under Men). This may seem like more of a "story" - but he makes a series of points.  Make sure you know what his main argument is - and what points he presents to develop that argument.

Write: Revise your summary of Lakoff & Johnson.  Send it to me as an attachment to an email with the subject line: LastnameLakoffJohnsonR  => my essay would be ChandlerLakoffJohnsonR  (the R stands for revised).

Great class!  Thank you for coming out on this cold icy day - and see you on Thursday.





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