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concordancia
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« Reply #330 on: November 08, 2009, 12:01:35 PM » |
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Thesis: [Author] uses literary terms to manage what he wants the reader to see.
First example: At the beginning, the author gives a character to the sky. "The night wind spins in the sky and sings" (citation). It is important to see this literary term because with these characters the poem becomes more realistic. By thinking about what is going on outside, the reader can imagine himself in this place.
I really, don't need to read the rest of this paper to know that I am going to fail this student.
On rereading, I think I finally understand that the student wants to say that the author uses certain rhetorical tropes. So, it is the personification that we are supposed to see in this example...too bad the line quoted personifies the wind, not the sky.
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I like money. I like to buy stuff and experiences with money.
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perfect_peeyotch
New member
Posts: 8
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« Reply #331 on: November 08, 2009, 01:31:54 PM » |
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Anyone know of a nice way to tell a non native speaker who admits to not feeling entirely comfortable with the language that perhaps she is not the most qualified to decided that the syntax and lexicon of a novel are difficult for many readers?
If you mean that the student wrote this in a paper, I tell my students that this is one of the five "no, don't go there" rules from writing college essays. It's okay to tell a professor that you find a novel difficult or boring, but it's not usually relevant to a formal assignment. On the other hand, if the problem is the breadth of her comment, then you make your response about unsupported generalizations and leave the content alone. I'm actually curious what the other four "don't go there" rules are. |
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concordancia
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« Reply #332 on: November 08, 2009, 02:01:35 PM » |
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X is represented in this book by Y. Y represents X.
At least the student is being consistent!
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I like money. I like to buy stuff and experiences with money.
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mirandaf
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« Reply #333 on: November 08, 2009, 05:56:23 PM » |
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Student wrote: "The interviews with the prisoners lasted for 20 minuets."
Professor comment: "Really? They did French dancing while doing the interviews? How fascinating."
Snark, snark, snark.
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I am some stranger on the internet advising you about your uterus. I am not sure how much weight you should give to my advice. |
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der_gadfly
SSOB-hatin', snarklet-writin'
Distinguished Senior Member
Posts: 1,844
oy vey
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« Reply #334 on: November 08, 2009, 06:19:15 PM » |
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In a discussion about 'language':
"A dialect and a pigeon are not the sane, but are very dissimilar".
yup......
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(and I bow before der_gadfly) Don't forget, that cat hair can come in handy as a good luck charm! |
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mirandaf
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« Reply #335 on: November 08, 2009, 06:32:10 PM » |
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"The subject of Recidivism has always been a Favorite interest of Mine since working in the Prison System last Year. My research Question is..."
Like, what's with the oddball CAPitTALiZATioN? Do we need a lesson on proper nouns?
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I am some stranger on the internet advising you about your uterus. I am not sure how much weight you should give to my advice. |
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conjugate
Compulsive punster and insatiable reader, and
Member-Moderator
Distinguished Senior Member
Posts: 16,691
Tends to have warped sense of humor
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« Reply #336 on: November 08, 2009, 07:09:45 PM » |
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In a discussion about 'language':
"A dialect and a pigeon are not the sane, but are very dissimilar".
yup......
I can almost understand this. Did the student mean "pidgin"? Clearly the student meant "similar but different" or something like this, in which case it's an oversimplification of "pidgin," (though my understanding of this is limited) but not as bizarre as it sounds at first reading. |
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Unfortunately, I think conjugate gives good advice.
∀ε>0∃δ>0∋|x–a|<δ⇒|ƒ(x)-ƒ(a)|<ε |
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marigolds
looks far too young to be a
Distinguished Senior Member
Posts: 6,293
if it ain't ruff it ain't me
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« Reply #337 on: November 08, 2009, 07:48:25 PM » |
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"The subject of Recidivism has always been a Favorite interest of Mine since working in the Prison System last Year. My research Question is..."
Like, what's with the oddball CAPitTALiZATioN? Do we need a lesson on proper nouns?
I've noticed this lately too (except not quite so Manifold and Incomprehensible as in your example.) I do teach 19th century lit, so perhaps it's rubbing off on them. |
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"You and your mom are hillbillies. This is a house of learned doctors."
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present_mirth
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« Reply #338 on: November 08, 2009, 08:09:53 PM » |
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He goes on with a metaphor, "My vegetable love should grow / Vaster than empires and more slow..." I sense that he is using the vegetable metaphor to indicate that he will nurture their love and it will grow more and more. I also think he is using the comparison to vampires because they are immortal. This comparison indicates that he will love her forever even after death. I think this student may have been reading too much Twilight. |
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peppergal
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« Reply #339 on: November 08, 2009, 08:26:44 PM » |
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He goes on with a metaphor, "My vegetable love should grow / Vaster than empires and more slow..." I sense that he is using the vegetable metaphor to indicate that he will nurture their love and it will grow more and more. I also think he is using the comparison to vampires because they are immortal. This comparison indicates that he will love her forever even after death. I think this student may have been reading too much Twilight. Also, wasn't that story written by a woman? If I recall correctly (and I have a hazy memory of reading it as an undergrad) it's by Ursula K. LeGuin. But I could be wrong. |
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present_mirth
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« Reply #340 on: November 08, 2009, 08:57:10 PM » |
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He goes on with a metaphor, "My vegetable love should grow / Vaster than empires and more slow..." I sense that he is using the vegetable metaphor to indicate that he will nurture their love and it will grow more and more. I also think he is using the comparison to vampires because they are immortal. This comparison indicates that he will love her forever even after death. I think this student may have been reading too much Twilight. Also, wasn't that story written by a woman? If I recall correctly (and I have a hazy memory of reading it as an undergrad) it's by Ursula K. LeGuin. But I could be wrong. LeGuin may well have used this quotation as an epigraph or something, but the poem the student is writing about is "To His Coy Mistress" by Andrew Marvell (who was definitely a man, last time I looked). |
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peppergal
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« Reply #341 on: November 08, 2009, 09:21:55 PM » |
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He goes on with a metaphor, "My vegetable love should grow / Vaster than empires and more slow..." I sense that he is using the vegetable metaphor to indicate that he will nurture their love and it will grow more and more. I also think he is using the comparison to vampires because they are immortal. This comparison indicates that he will love her forever even after death. I think this student may have been reading too much Twilight. Also, wasn't that story written by a woman? If I recall correctly (and I have a hazy memory of reading it as an undergrad) it's by Ursula K. LeGuin. But I could be wrong. LeGuin may well have used this quotation as an epigraph or something, but the poem the student is writing about is "To His Coy Mistress" by Andrew Marvell (who was definitely a man, last time I looked). Ah, yes, I found the LeGuin story, and it is indeed a quote within the story (properly cited, too). Strange that after all these years, the one part of the story that stays with me is the quotation. |
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conjugate
Compulsive punster and insatiable reader, and
Member-Moderator
Distinguished Senior Member
Posts: 16,691
Tends to have warped sense of humor
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« Reply #342 on: November 08, 2009, 10:50:57 PM » |
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I tried to post this earlier and it disappeared. So I am trying it again. He goes on with a metaphor, "My vegetable love should grow / Vaster than empires and more slow..." I sense that he is using the vegetable metaphor to indicate that he will nurture their love and it will grow more and more. I also think he is using the comparison to vampires because they are immortal. This comparison indicates that he will love her forever even after death. I think this student may have been reading too much Twilight. So the student doesn't know the difference between an empire and a vampire. That's gotta be disturbing. I mean, the student will read a reference to The Ottoman Empire and think of a giant blood-sucking footstool. He or she might think that the Holy Roman Empire was some fanged Saint of the night¹. And as for the Roman Empire, well, it's no wonder that Cassius had the "lean and hungry look," and wanted Caesar's blood. If "the sun never sets on the British empire," then how come it didn't turn to dust for a long time? Questions no doubt abound.
¹ "Thou art Vlad, and upon this rock...Hey! Stop trying to bite my neck and pay attention, here! I said, thou art Vlad, and upon this rock I shall build my...What did I just tell you? Never mind, then. Hey, Peter, come here. I was going to give this job to St. Vlad, but he won't stop growing fangs and turning into a bat. Besides, your name works better anyway. Um, anybody got any garlic?" I apologize to all who were offended by this post. I'm in a rare mood tonight, it seems. Probably has to do with not wanting to grade papers. |
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Unfortunately, I think conjugate gives good advice.
∀ε>0∃δ>0∋|x–a|<δ⇒|ƒ(x)-ƒ(a)|<ε |
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der_gadfly
SSOB-hatin', snarklet-writin'
Distinguished Senior Member
Posts: 1,844
oy vey
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« Reply #343 on: November 08, 2009, 11:44:38 PM » |
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In a discussion about 'language':
"A dialect and a pigeon are not the sane, but are very dissimilar".
yup......
I can almost understand this. Did the student mean "pidgin"? Clearly the student meant "similar but different" or something like this, in which case it's an oversimplification of "pidgin," (though my understanding of this is limited) but not as bizarre as it sounds at first reading. Yes, of COURSE, however, another part of the test was a case study on urban planning urban basketweaving that involved overhead power lines with a plethora of pigeons flying rats, which I suppose is what caused the error. Of COURSE the snowflake meant 'pidgin', and I was so pleased that it was a sane argument, but then the use of the double negative rally confounded the bejesus outa moi. |
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(and I bow before der_gadfly) Don't forget, that cat hair can come in handy as a good luck charm! |
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biomancer
trying to be the person my dog thinks I am
Distinguished Senior Member
Posts: 7,585
CHE Fora Hazmat Team
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« Reply #344 on: November 09, 2009, 08:25:23 AM » |
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I tried to post this earlier and it disappeared. So I am trying it again. He goes on with a metaphor, "My vegetable love should grow / Vaster than empires and more slow..." I sense that he is using the vegetable metaphor to indicate that he will nurture their love and it will grow more and more. I also think he is using the comparison to vampires because they are immortal. This comparison indicates that he will love her forever even after death. I think this student may have been reading too much Twilight. So the student doesn't know the difference between an empire and a vampire. That's gotta be disturbing. I mean, the student will read a reference to The Ottoman Empire and think of a giant blood-sucking footstool. He or she might think that the Holy Roman Empire was some fanged Saint of the night¹. And as for the Roman Empire, well, it's no wonder that Cassius had the "lean and hungry look," and wanted Caesar's blood. If "the sun never sets on the British empire," then how come it didn't turn to dust for a long time? Questions no doubt abound.
¹ "Thou art Vlad, and upon this rock...Hey! Stop trying to bite my neck and pay attention, here! I said, thou art Vlad, and upon this rock I shall build my...What did I just tell you? Never mind, then. Hey, Peter, come here. I was going to give this job to St. Vlad, but he won't stop growing fangs and turning into a bat. Besides, your name works better anyway. Um, anybody got any garlic?" I apologize to all who were offended by this post. I'm in a rare mood tonight, it seems. Probably has to do with not wanting to grade papers. I, for one, am not only not offended but am laughing pretty hard. And wouldn't Vlad have felt awful for being excluded from the Last Supper? |
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Clueless people can be dangerous. The acidic environment they can spread often needs to be neutralized, and humor is basic. - Dellaroux
Viruses invented people so that people would invent airplanes so viruses could get around better. - R. Duda
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