Welcome to the Course (Fall 2021)

Welcome to the course! Remember that all our course materials--the reading questions, paper assignments, and other announcements, will be found here, and not on Blackboard. I've also posted the syllabus below in case you lose your hard copy. Please e-mail me with any questions or concerns, or respond to this post with a comment below. Here's hoping we have a successful and safe semester together!  

NOTE: The posts below this one are from Fall 2020, so you are not responsible for any of them, and they do not reflect the work you'll be doing this semester. So only read through them if you're interested. 

English 1113 (Sections 20 & 22):

Freshman Composition 1 “Travel and Culture” (Fall 2021)

 

Professor:        Dr. Joshua Grasso

Office:             HM 348

Dates:              TR 9:30-10:45 (Section 20)

                        TR 11:00-12:15 (Section 22)

E-mail:            jgrasso@ecok.edu

Office Hours:  MWF 10-11 & 2-3; TR 2-3

COURSE BLOG: grassocomp1.blogspot.com (instead of Blackboard)

 

“Travel is not a means of escaping the self; travel is a means of revealing the self. Or, in the process of journeying the road less traveled, the self is unraveled and thereby revealed.” –Alexandra Fuller

 

REQUIRED BOOKS (yes, we will read these, so you must own them!)

• The Best American Travel Writing 2020, ed. Robert MacFarlane   
• Songs For the Open Road, ed. American Poetry & Literacy Project

 

REQUIRED WORK (out of 100 points)

• Attendance: see below
• Reading Questions: 25 pts.
• Writing Workshops: 20 pts.
• Papers 1-2: 15 pts. each = 30 pts.
• Paper 3 (Abstract): 10 pts.
• Paper 4 (Final): 15 pts.

 

ATTENDANCE: Since this is a twice-a-week class, I usually allow you TWO WEEKS of unexcused absences (4 days). Of course you can have excused absences (team travel, sickness, etc.) which don’t count against you. Otherwise, I hope to see you in class so you can contribute to our discussions, and learn important material that is very difficult to communicate on-line. If you miss more than 4 classes (unexcused), you will lose 10 pts from your final grade. If something comes up and you need to miss class, or you think you’re sick, etc., please tell me before hand and I can work with you. If you just miss class without explanation, I have to assume the worst. So let me help you!

 

READING QUESTIONS: Every Tuesday (with some exceptions) you’ll have a reading due and a series of questions for the reading due. You can find these readings on the blog a few days before each class. These are ‘active reading’ questions, which aren’t just yes/no, this/that questions; they ask you to make informed opinions based on how you read/understand the essay. We will discuss these answers in class, so by bringing them with you, you’ll always have something to say in the event you get called on (or if you simply want to talk).

 

To get full credit for each set of questions, all you need to do is give an honest answer that is informed by the reading. Don’t guess, don’t make things up, and always write more than a single sentence or two. In other words, “think on paper.” If you give inadequate answers, skip a question, or don’t turn it in, you won’t get credit for the assignment. Like your absences, if you miss more than TWO responses, you’ll lose 10 points for your Responses grade (and an additional 10 points for each set of questions you miss). So be careful and let me know if you have problems with the questions and/or the reading. I’m happy to help you either by e-mail or in my office.

 

WRITING WORKSHOPS: These are basically in-class writing responses that are geared to some element of writing. Often, the responses will piggy-back off of our readings, and ask you to consider new ideas that we haven’t discussed. You can only miss ONE Writing Workshop without penalty. After that, you lose ten points. So again, let me know if you need to miss class, and if you have an excused absence, you can easily make up the writing.

 

PAPERS 1-2: These are ‘conversation’ papers that are informed by three things: the readings, our class discussions, and your own ideas/background. The goal of these papers is to enter into a conversation between yourself and other voices in our society, and learn how to respond to ideas that complement and run counter to your own. I will give a detailed assignment sheet two weeks before each paper is due.

 

PAPERS 3-4: This is a combined project where Paper #3 introduces the paper you will intend to write/research for Paper #4. I’ll give you more information about this after Fall Break. Paper #4 is basically a Final, and will be due during Finals Week.

 

LATE PAPERS: You can turn in a paper up to 2 days late, losing a letter grade each day (so, if you turn in a ‘C’ paper 2 days late, that would equal an ‘F’). In general, it’s always better to turn in a rough paper on time, than get a more polished paper to me late. If you’re having trouble with a paper, e-mail me before it’s due—I can help or possibly given you an extension if you have a justifiable reason (illness, etc).

 

THE FINE PRINT

1. You must buy all the books for the course. Trying to use on-line summaries will doom you to vague, uninformed responses. If the goal of any class is to become more engaged with the material, reading the books is essential. Read and enjoy the material. :)
2. If you miss class, check the blog to see if there are any new assignments or material. You can also e-mail me if the blog hasn’t been updated to be sure.
3. When you e-mail work to me, check the attachments carefully. If I can’t open it (or it’s simply not attached) it doesn’t count. I will contact you if this happens, but the clock is ticking...if you turn in an e-mail without an attachment at 4:59 and the paper is due at 5, it might be late!
4. If you have any kind of emergency, please contact me as soon as possible. If I know you’re going through something difficult, I can work with you and help you get the work. If you only tell me weeks or months later, it’s too late.
5. The COVID situation can change our class dynamic at any time. If you’re confused by what’s going on or feel you can’t complete the work, etc., please contact me first. Let’s talk through it to make sure it’s not as bad (or as hard) as you think. I’m always available by e-mail and will respond within an hour or two at most (unless you e-mail me at one o’clock in the morning!).
6. Academic Integrity link: https://www.ecok.edu/sites/default/files/siteContent/administration/academic-affairs/documents/AcademicIntegrityPolicy.pdf

 

ADA Statement: East Central University is committed to providing equal access to University programs and services for all students. Under university policy and federal and state laws, students with documented disabilities are entitled to reasonable accommodations. If any member of the class has a documented disability requiring academic accommodations, he or she should report to the Office of Disability Services.  A student seeking reasonable accommodations originating from a documented disability must register with the Office of Disability Services so that said accommodations may be provided. Contact the Academic Affairs Office if any assistance is needed in this process.

 

72-Hour Transition Statement: Should on-campus instruction be suspended for any reason, ECU’s face-to-face and blended courses will transition to online/virtual delivery within 72 hours.  Online courses will continue as scheduled.

 

TENTATIVE COURSE CALENDAR (subject to change)

 

AUGUST

T 17     Introduction to the Course

R 19    Writing Workshop #1

 

T 24     From BATW 2020: Brown, “If You Are Permanently Lost” (42-46)

R 26    Writing Workshop #2

 

T 30     From BATW 2020: Jones, “Such Perfection” (97-110)

 

SEPTEMBER

R 2      Writing Workshop #3

 

T 7       From BATW 2020: Morris, “My Father’s Land” (186-200)

R 9      Paper #1 due by 5pm

 

T 14     From BATW 2020: Anderson, “Rick Steves Wants to Set You Free” (1-19)

R 16    Writing Workshop #4

 

T 21     Paper #1 Conferences (in my office, HM 348)

R 23    Paper #1 Conferences (in my office, HM 348)

 

T 28     From BATW 2020: Budd, “The Volunteer’s Dilemma” (49-60)

R 30    Writing Workshop #5

 

OCTOBER

T 5       From BATW 2020: Powers, “Who Lives in Palermo Is Palermo” (224-232)

R 7      Writing Workshop #6

 

T 12     Paper #2 due by 5pm

R 14    FALL BREAK

 

T 19     Writing Workshop #7

R 21    From Songs from the Open Road: TBA

 

T 26     From Songs from the Open Road: TBA

R 28    Writing Workshop #8

 

NOVEMBER

T 2       From Songs from the Open Road: TBA

R 4      Writing Workshop #9

 

T 9       From Songs from the Open Road: TBA

R 11    Writing Workshop #10

 

T 16     From Songs from the Open Road: TBA

R 18    Paper #3 (Abstract) due in class

 

T 23     [extra class if needed]

R 25    THANKSGIVING BREAK

 

T 30     Discuss Paper #4/Wrap-Up

 

DECEMBER

R 2      Optional Conferences

 

Paper #4 due TBA

 

 

 

Paper #4: Eating from a Distance (Final Exam)

In the last chapter of A Cook’s Tour, “Perfect,” Tony Bourdain writes,

“The whole concept of the ‘perfect meal’ is ludicrous. ‘Perfect,’ like ‘happy,’ tends to sneak up on you. Once you find it—like Thomas Keller says—it’s gone. It’s a fleeting thing, ‘perfect,’ and if you’re anything like me, it’s often better in retrospect. When you’re shivering under four blankets in a Moroccan hotel room, the perfect meal can be something no more exotic than [the] breakfast…you had four months ago. Your last Papaya King hot dog takes on golden, even mythic proportions when remembered from a distance” (272). 

So for your final paper assignment, I want you to describe the best meal you’ve ever had. Now “best” could mean the same as “perfect”: it might not be the absolute best, but for some reason, it was the best for you. Explain where you were, who you were with, what you ate, and what made this food, or this experience, your favorite meal. Could you replicate this meal today if you ate the same food? Or was it frozen in a specific moment in time that can never be truly relived even with the same food, people, and surroundings? 

QUOTE a passage from A Cook’s Tour to help explain what made this meal so wonderful to you, and how it helped you look at food, friends, family, or something much larger. How did you have your own “Tony Bourdain” experience somewhere out in the world with food? 

MUST be at least 3 pages double spaced, but can be longer

CITE and INTRODUCE according to MLA format

DUE no later than Friday, December 11th by 5pm (no later papers accepted—that’s the absolute last day I can accept it, so be careful! You can turn it in earlier, of course!) 

Last Questions! Read "Fire Over England" and "West Coast" in A Cook's Tour

These are the last questions I'll give you for the class! So after this, you'll only have Paper #3 and the Final left to finish. Amazing how quickly it went! We'll discuss these last chapters on Tuesday/Thursday, and I'll give you an idea about what to expect on the Final as well (not a traditional final where you come to class, of course).

Answer 2 of the following:

Q1: Both of these chapters concern the "Evil Axis" of the food world as Tony sees it--the people who are actively trying to ruin the traditions and passion of food. Who are they, according to him? Why do they threaten the future of cooks both in England and America?

Q2: In "Fire over England," he showcases the chefs who continue to make "simple, unassuming, unpretentious--and absolutely and unapologetically English" dishes. Why is he so impressed with these chefs? And what, in his mind, makes them 'saviors' of their country's traditions? 

Q3: In the "West Coast" chapter, Tony berates those who look down on meat-based cultures by writing, "Being able to read these words, no matter how stupid, offensive, or wrongheaded, is a privilege, your reading skills the end product of a level of education most of the world will never enjoy" (240). Why does this underline one of his main grievances against groups like PETA and in some way vegetarians in general? Do you think he's fair in saying this, or is he missing the point? 

Q4: Clearly, he worships at the shrine of the great French chef, Thomas Keller. But why, specifically? How does he embody exactly the kind of chef Tony most strives to be, who makes the kind of food he thinks the world--and specifically America--most needs to eat?   

Reading & Questions for Bourdain's A Cook's Tour, Chapter 8: "Tokyo Redux"

NOTE: Be sure to watch the Writing Workshop #6 video below and respond with a comment sometime this weekend or next week. The Paper #3 assignment is in the post below that one (the video will help you with that, too). For next week, just read Chapter 8, "Tokyo Redux" for class. We're almost done!

Answer 2 of the following:

Q1: According to Tony, why are the Japanese as a culture so obsessed with making pleasure an art? Why do activities like eating, relaxing, and even drinking tea become rituals that have to be followed religiously? Another way of answering this question is, why aren't we built this way? What characteristic makes Americans and Japanese so different?

Q2: Somewhat related to Q1, when Tony goes to the ryokan retreat, he feels like the clumsiest, most uncouth barbarian. As he writes, "We are big, hairy, smelly, foreign devils, unsophisticated, loud, clumsy, overexpressive, and overfed, bliundering thoughtlessly through life" (143). Though he's only half-serious here, what makes him feel this way? Why might a lot of Japanese culture produce this effect on Western tourists?

Q3: When forced to eat a "mountain potato" and natto, Tony is unpologetic about how disgusting he finds both of them, even writing that "I thought I would die" (153). In general, what makes one culture find another culture's food disgusting? Does he explain what he objects to? Is taste culturally constructed like language and religion? 

Q4: On page 144, Tony lists some (but not all!) of the taboos to avoid during the kaiseki meal. As Westerners (and Americans, especially) we have relatively few taboos about the eating of food beyond "don't use your hands, don't burb at the table, etc." Do you think these rules can actually increase one's enjoyment of the meal? Or are they merely a way to exclude people who don't understand them (making a division between "them" and "us")? 

Writing Workshop #6: 'Barbarian' Customs

This video is meant to introduce (and give you ideas for) your Paper #3 assignment in the post below. Be sure to respond as a comment to the question at the end. I'll also post some questions for Chapter 8 of Bourdain's book by Thursday. 

Paper #3: You Guys Actually Eat That?!

“The Japanese love natto, an unbelievably foul, rank, slimy, glutenous, and stringy goop of fermented soybeans. It’s the Vegemite of Japan, dearly loved by everyone there, for reasons no outsider can understand…There’s just no way to eat the stuff…All I wanted to do now was hurl myself through the paper walls and straight off the edge of the mountain (152).  

INTRO: In Tony Bourdain’s A Cook’s Tour, he explores how different cultures eat, relax, and approach life through some of their strangest (to Western eyes) events, rituals, and meals. Each one tells us something about who these people are, and by extension, who we are (since we find these customs so strange). But some of them even shock Tony, who doesn’t hesitate to tell us how weird, disgusting, horrific, and physically nauseating some of his experiences truly are! Though sometimes, he learns to appreciate something ‘bad’ through the context of the culture itself (but not with natto!).

PROMPT: So for this assignment, I want you to write about the strangest, most confusing, most disturbing, and possibly most disgusting event, ritual, or meal in your own culture (it doesn’t have to be food). But it should be something that you see as normal, and that many people you know think is normal, but that isn’t normal to people outside of your culture/circle. What makes this experience so strange and so unappealing to others (and so wonderful to you)? What would they not understand? How would it make them feel (about you, about themselves)? And if this was someone’s only experience of your culture, what would they walk away thinking about you? Would it be a fair assessment? Is that who ‘you’ are?

Remember, you can write about a strange food that you and your family loves...or you can write about an American tradition that people in other countries would find odd or downright appalling (Okie noodling??). Try to see through someone else's eyes as you look at your own life.  

IDEAS: Can’t think of anything? Our next Writing Workshop video will discuss this very topic and give you some ideas…stay tuned!

SOURCES: Try to bring at least 3-4 sources to your conversation, other people who are talking about the same experience. What do other people think this experience says about your culture? ONE of these sources MUST be Bourdain’s book: show us how his experiences in other cultures relate to your own. Use his book as a model for how to look at your own culture.

REQUIREMENTS:

• 4-5 pages double spaced
• 3-4 sources
• MLA (or other) citation throughout along with a Works Cited page
• Due THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 19^th for TUESDAY CLASSES
• Due TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 17^th for THURSDAY CLASSES 

 

Reading & Questions for Bourdain, Ch.5 "How to Drink Vodka" and Ch.6 "Something Very Special"

Read Chapters 5 & 6 (you can skip Chapter 4, unless you really want to read it), and answer 2 of the following questions. Be sure to respond to the blog video beneath this post if you haven't--and not everyone has yet! :)

Q1: Expecting a bleak, depressed wasteland in Russia, what Tony finds is quite different--and much better than he expected. However, he does write that "One thing you get plenty of in Russia, no matter what your economic circumstances, is irony" (89). What does he mean by this? (be sure to look up "irony" if you're not sure what it means--it's a good word to know!).

Q2: At the Russkaya restaurant, Tony learns that the waitress is angry with him. Not for leaving a bad tip or being disruptive, but for not drinking enough vodka! In fact, she demands that they drink much more before he leaves, leaving him incredibly drunk by the end of the chapter. In Russia, it is a faux pas not to drink enough at dinner (look up "faux pas" if you don't know that, too!). How do Russian faux pas differ from Moroccan ones? What would get you kicked out of a restaurant in Morocco? Are they the same basic rules, just expressed through different cultures? Or does each culture truly see food, and hospitality, differently? 

Q3: At one point in the "Something Very Special" chapter, Tony gets in a fight with his television producer, who accuses him of "being difficult." Why does he feel that American TV culture is fundamentally at odds with the 'old world' sensibility of Morocco? 

Q4: One of the things Tony discovers in Morocco is expressed in the very last sentence of the chapter, which reads: "The universe was large all right, but no larger, it appeared, than the world wide world ahead of me" (127). What do you think he means by this, and what did he find there that made him see the world differently, even if only for a minute? In other words, what was so special about this culture for him?