Final Reminders

Final Exams for English 1101:

English 1101-09:

Tuesday - 10:30-12:30 - PSC 111

English 1101-17:

Thursday - 10:30-12:30 - PSC 255

English 1101-26:

Thursday - 1 - 3 - PSC 134

REMEMBER:  You may use ONE note card--4x6.  I WILL have names listed for you, along with the topics, so you will have those for spelling.

***If you have not received your research paper (and this includes several students in Engl. 1101-09 and 1101-26, feel free to email me and I will return your email with a grade and brief evaluation; I will also have your paper on the day of the final. In all honesty, though, you want to know how you stand before the final and this will provide it to you.)

E-mail: sharon.aiken@maconstate.edu

How to prepare for the final essay in English 1101

How to prepare for the final essay in English 1101

Read the potential topics carefully. Make notes of those which could be paired together; for example, #1 and #6 are closely related so it makes sense to assume that only one of these could be a topic for the final essay.

Next, determine what the topic is asking you to write about and put the topic in your own words, which need not be complicated. For example, 1 & 6 could be asking:

What are the other influences on the life of Amir . . . OTHER THAN the rape of Hassan and the torment and guilt Amir feels afterward?

Before you begin your essay, you begin a list of possible influences and make notes of how each incident or person affected Amir. You might list any of the following:

Rahim Khan - Dad’s business partner- tells Amir that “there is a way to be good again.” This prompts Amir to return to Afghanistan . . . why? To try to restore the relationship between he and Hassan, but… Hassan is dead. Keep going with explanation . . . Sohrab   - - - R.H. is one of the people who encourage Amir when he is a child—esp. in regards to his writing . . .

Soyraya - in sharing her past “sins” Amir realizes that it is possible to accept oneself, to atone for past mistakes and to regain one’s self-esteem (for lack of a better word) 

Baba - is a primary influence on how Amir sees the world and how Amir’s values are formed – The greatest teaching  Baba presents to Amir is that  . . there is only one sin, which is theft; Baba’s actions leave their impression on Amir as well . . . the exodus from Afghanistan . . . Baba leaves a land where he is among the wealthy landowners; when they arrive in CA., USA, Baba . . .

Sohrab

Assef

His exodus from Afghanistan

The notes you make to answer the question might go on a 4 x 6 index card. You probably would not need a large number of notes, just names spelled out, reminders, etc. to help you on the day of the final.

ORGANIZATION OF ANY ESSAY TOPIC FOR THE FINAL:

1^st paragraph – you introduce the book & the author, give any necessary background to the topic you’ve chosen. EXAMPLE:

In Kahled Hosseini’’s novel, The Kite Runner,  Amir, the narrator and main character, is driven to become the man he is because of his cowardly response and guilt after he witnesses his best friend’s rape when they are children. However, Amir does not realize that many other influences have shaped his life. Among the many other influences are Rahim Khan, ___________________, __________________________, ____________________________ and __________________.

2^nd paragraph - Rahim Khan – details, examples, explanations

3^rd para. – Soyrara – details, examples, explanations

4^th par. – Baba- details, examples, explanations

NOTE: REMEMBER TO KEEP THE ORGANIZATION TIGHT—whatever the order you chose to follow in nthe first paragraph, follow in the development of the body

WRITE AS THOUGH THE AUDIENCE HAS NOT READ THE BOOK.  THIS IS AN ANALYSIS, NOT A BOOK REPORT.

6^th par. Conclusion  - perhaps it would be helpful or effective to describe or characterize the person that Amir becomes—NOT from HIS perspective in the book, but as an objective reader (OR even subjective reader)

FOR MACON STATE CLASSES ONLY

Copy and paste the following questions to the body of a Ms Word document, answer them, then, either copy and paste your questions and answers onto an email and send them to my email address OR attach them as a Word document and send them. This will stand in lieu of the quiz over The Kite Runner. 

NOTE: I am not looking for words from the book to answer these questions. I'm looking for your insight after reading the novel and thinking about it. Your response needs to be sent by Sunday evening.  

1. Kahled Hosseini said that, "Writing fiction is the act of weaving a series of  lies to arrive at a greater truth."  Explain the greater truth(s) that are drawn from the fictional story in The Kite Runner.

2. Explain the importance of kite flying, kite tournaments and kite running in the Afghanistan in which Amir and Hassan grew up. 

3. Amir says, “History isn’t easy to overcome. Neither is religion. In the end, I was Pashtun and he was Hazara. I was Sunni and he was Shi’a and nothing was ever going to change that.  Nothing” (25).  This prejudice is central to understanding the relationship between Hassan and Amir. It is clear that Hassan and Ali suffer because of the difference in social class, but in what way does Amir suffer as well?

4. Rahim Khan is most like the voice of the author in this book.  What point does he try to impress on Amir in the following quote:  “A man who has no conscience, no goodness, does not suffer.”

For BOTH Macon State Classes and JCHS Classes

Potential Topics for the final in-class essay over The Kite Runner:

1.  Amir, the narrator of  The Kite Runner,  claims that he became the adult he is when the reader first meets him on a winter day in 1975.  However, while that incident leaves a permanent scar on the psyche of Amir, there are other influences on his childhood and his development as a man of conscience. Identify three additional influences on Amir, other than Hassan, and through plentiful examples and explanation, show how Amir was forever marked by them.
 
2.      The theme of possible redemption echoes through the second half of The Kite Runner. We hear it in the promising words Rahim Khan offers to Amir: “There is a way to be good again.” We follow Amir’s tortured path as it leads to his atonement (or potential for atonement) in the novel’s final pages. In addition to Amir, other characters seek their own redemption as well. Discuss what each of the following characters have done for which they seek forgiveness and redemption, their efforts to attain their own atonement, and whether they achieve it: Baba, Sanaubar, and Rahim Khan.
 
3.      The story of Amir and Hassan could not exist without the class difference between Amir and Hassan.  Defend this argument by using specific plot points and historical facts to ground your argument.
 
4.      Explore the way in which courage is portrayed in the novel. What constitutes true bravery? What are the key moments when characters are brave and who is the bravest character, if any? Use specific examples from the text to support your argument.
 
5.      The novel begins “I became what I am today at the age of twelve.” To what is Amir referring? Is his assertion entirely true? What other factors have helped form his character? How would you describe Amir?
 
6.      Amir had never thought of Hassan as his friend, despite the evident bond between them, just as Baba did not think of Ali as his friend (page 22). What parallels can be drawn between Amir and Hassan’s relationship, and Baba and Ali’s? How would you describe the relationship between the two boys? What makes them so different in the way they behave with each other? What is it that makes Amir inflict small cruelties on Hassan? Had you already guessed at the true relationship between them? If so, at what point and why?

7.  The strong underlying force of this novel is the relationship between Amir and Hassan. Discuss their friendship. Why is Amir afraid to be Hassan’s true friend? Why does Amir constantly test Hassan’s loyalty? Why does he resent Hassan? After the kite fighting tournament, why does Amir no longer want to be Hassan’s friend?

Organize your essay along the following guidelines:
·         first paragraph adequately introduces the book, author and your topic &  has an explicit thesis statement (an obvious main idea). 
·         the body paragraphs support your main idea with many definite, specific details from the novel. 
·         the conclusion brings graceful or memorable closure to your essay; it DOES NOT simply STOP abruptly. 
 
       
 
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Visuals for The Kite Runner





Reading Guide to The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini

Before reading, it would help to listen to the interview with the author at:

NPR interview with Khaled Hosseini – length is roughly 31 min. & there might be an extra credit question on the quiz from this interview

1. Topics in The Kite Runner – to HELP YOURSELF, write a clear statement about what the book says about this topic in the novel; no—I will not take it up, but it will greatly assist YOU as we discuss the book

 • Role of women
• Betrayal
• Brothers
• Guilt – hidden guilt vs. open guilt
• Redemption
• Exodus
• Fathers & sons – patriarchal society
• Class distinction

2. Style – comment on the author’s use of each of the following in the novel:

• Parallelism
• Character foils – look for characters in pairs OR characters who could be placed side by side for comparison/contrast
• Foreshadowing
• Flashback

3. Settings – both time and place and culture – consider five important cultural aspects of setting identified in the novel - e.g., Hazara vs. Pashtun

4. Identify at least 5 minor characters and their role in the novel

Movie Note:  There is a movie on The Kite Runner – I have no idea if it is a good translation of the book or not

A note on Cliff, Spark and the Monkey:

There is NO substitute for reading and studying a novel.  The concepts and connections that one makes, the knowledge one gains, the insight to humanity that is revealed cannot be summarized in the various “Study Aids” on the internet or book stores.  Yet that does not stop these cites from flourishing and providing what they claim is vital information. Listed below are three of these websites on The Kite Runner.  If you need a character list, to help remember who is who, pick one and use it. If you need to place the novel in context and understand the background and setting, pick one and use it. If you need something to do the thinking for you, forget it.  One of the greatest hazards of using a convenient Study Guide like “Spark ,” “Pink Monkey” or “Cliff,” is that by allowing the Study Guide to do the thinking, the student automatically assumes it is correct,  he  cheats himself out of evaluating the novel independently. Do you want something to tell you what to think? When used judiciously, thoughtfully, they can assist the student, but they cannot replace the critical thinking one does while reading and discussing the book.  

INFERNAL CITATIONS

Stereotypes of Latin Women

Where the concept of the stereotype of latin women originated

          While Hispanic actors gained popularity early in film-making, Hispanic women did not find success on the “silver screen” until the nineties (Cofer 232). 

Parenthetical citations

In-text citations

Internal citations

          Judith Ortiz Cofer, Professor of English and Creative Writing at the University of Georgia, and a Latina author, says that Hispanic women did not become popular in mainstream film and television until the nineties (232).

If citing an author from an online source, you do not need a page number. Most online references have NO page numbers.

If citing an online source that has NO author’s name given, use only the title of the article – in quotation marks, inside parentheses. (“Learning in Two Different Cultures”).

In the event that you have a long quote of MORE than 4 typed lines—and in a short paper, there should be NO MORE than one LONG quote—you must use a block quote.

Example of BLOCK QUOTE:

In a recent article, Cofer contends that many Latina women still suffer from prejudice and stereotype. Cofer writes:

There are thousands of Latinas without the privilege of an education or the entrees into society that I have. For them life is a constant struggle against the misconceptions of perpetuated by the myth of the Latina.  . . . Every time I give a reading, I hope the stories I tell, the dreams and fears I examine in my work, can achieve some universal truth that will get my audience past the particulars of my skin color, my accent , or my clothes (236).

Works Cited

Cofer, Judith Ortiz. “The Myth of the Latin Woman: I Just Met a Girl Named Maria.” FACTS OF PUBLICATION IN CORRECT FORMAT FROM EASYBIB.COM.