AMERICAN LITERATURE CONTENT: (2 parts)

Part 1: Choose three of the following questions to answer regarding “Richard Cory” by Edward
Arlington Robinson. Being wrong is okay...remember these are graded for completion, but I still
should be able to tell that you really read. You can delete the questions that you did not
complete from your copy of this document. The poem is in the Naturalism PowerPoint in the
Remote Learning Module, along with all of the other information you will need to answer these
questions.
1. How would you characterize the speaker in the poem? What specific information
does the speaker provide about the appearance and demeanor of Richard Cory?
Make sure you can point to specific lines as proof.
a. The narrator of the poem is just a simple man of the town. He is likely of a lower
social class because he describes Richard Cory as far above him, social status-
wise. He uses regal diction to describe Cory, such on line 3 when the narrator
describes him as a “gentleman from sole to crown,” or in line 6 when the narrator
points out that Cory is richer than a king. From these descriptions of Cory that
point to Cory being similar to a king, it can be inferred that the narrator is of a
much lower class than Cory.
2. Line 13 opens with the conjunction “So”, which suggests causality. What is the
cause-effect relationship between stanza 3 and the first two lines of stanza 4?
a. In stanza 3, the narrator first describes the wealth that Cory possesses, calling
him richer than a king. The narrator then follows that up with saying that the
people in the town wish they had the same kind of wealth as Cory. In the first two
lines of stanza 4, the narrator describes how the people of the town went to work,
and then did not eat more expensive food such as meat and bread so they could
save money. This demonstrates the cause-effect relationship because the
narrator and the people in the town believe that just working hard and not
spending money will be enough to make them rich like Richard Cory. After
seeing his wealth, they think that if they just work hard enough they will
eventually receive the same wealth.
3. Go back over the traits of Naturalism. Which ones show up here, and where?
What is realistic about the events in the poem?
a. One trait of Naturalism that is in the poem is being blunt and detached. The
narrator does not get involved in the plot and is merely reporting the events. One
example of this is when he describes how Cory committed suicide. The narrator
does not say anything about how horrible that Cory killed himself, or put any of
his thoughts into the poem when he describes it. The narrator merely says that
Corey went home and shot himself, having a very blunt and to-the-point tone.
Another trait of naturalism that occurs in the text is that Corey’s character
declined in the text. Corey was originally described as having a life of luxury
where it is made to seem as though he is happy, evident by how he “glittered
when he walked”. However, this is quickly contrasted in the end of the poem with
his suicide. The events display a quick degradation of Cory’s character from
being happy and content to having enough turmoil to end up shooting himself.
One realistic aspect of the poem is that when people commit suicide, often there
is mystery surrounding the reason a person killed themselves. Much like the
mystery around Cory’s death, it is sometimes unknown what caused a person to
decide to take their own life. Another realistic aspect is that people idolize the
rich. The narrator repeatedly compares Cory to a king because of his wealth.
This occurs in real life also where people will treat rich CEOs or celebrities as
 people above them, even if they are just as human as the people who idolize
them.

Part 2: Go back to the Naturalism PowerPoint. Get to the final slide and then come back here.
Read Kate Chopin’s super-short story, “The Story of an Hour.”
(https://www.katechopin.org/story-hour/) Answer #2 below and one other question of your
choice (#1, 3, or 4). You can delete the questions you did not answer.

1. How could the story be viewed as a criticism against marriage and the gender
expectations that governed marriage in the 1800’s? What controversies would the
story create for its time period?
a. The story could be viewed as a criticism against marriage because it displays the
oppressive nature of marriage. After hearing of her husband’s death, Louis’ first
thought is that she is now free for years to do whatever she wants to do, without
her husband being there to boss her around. This shows a negative connotation
of marriage where one person is subordinate to the other and only follows what
they want to do, instead of the traditional view that both people are equal to one
another. This message that marriage is oppressive would raise controversy in the
1800s, because it opposes the traditional idea of marriage. In the 1800s almost
all families were nuclear with a husband, wife, and their children, and this was
thought of as the ideal model for families. This short story opposes that however,
as it displays that marriage, and by an extent nuclear families, are oppressive
because it leads to unequal distribution of power and the oppression of one
person. Any challenge to this traditional view of marriage would be controversial
in the 1800s when everything was very strict and orderly.
2. Look at the imagery Chopin uses to describe Mrs. Mallard’s view out the window
of her bedroom. What is unusual about the symbolism in this passage, especially
juxtaposed against the news Mrs. Mallard has just received? You could think
about the kind of imagery you would expect from an author addressing grief
versus what Chopin has Mrs. Mallard see out the window.
a. The symbolism used to describe the view Mrs. Mallard sees out of the window
after hearing of her husband’s death is unusual because it is very happy and
positive when one would expect her to see the negative side of life. After hearing
that her husband had died in an accident, one would expect Mrs. Mallard to see
the negative side of life outside her window, the aspect of nature that is
depressing, as a result of losing her husband. This is the complete opposite
however as Mrs. Mallard sees only positive symbols, such as budding trees that
show new life, a “delicious breath of rain” in the air, and sparrows flying about. All
of these symbols positively display new life and happiness. This implies that Mrs.
Mallard is actually happy about her husband’s death because, much like the
trees that show new life, she now has a new life, free from her husband’s
oppression.

RHETORICAL ANALYSIS PRACTICE

Part 1: Make sure you clicked through the Thesis, SPACE, and Intro Paragraphs presentation:

Part 2: Read the transcript of Queen Elizabeth’s brief recorded speech on the coronavirus. You
do not need to watch the video, unless of course you want to be soothed by Her Majesty’s
smooth British accent ;) The introduction to the speech will give helpful information. Annotate as
you would any other argument/text in our class.

Part 3: Do a SPACE breakdown of the Queen’s speech. Be thorough in how you consider each
facet. Use your notes on SPACE (should be in the very front of your spiral, or you can access
the original SPACE CAT PowerPoint in the Start of School Module if you need a quick
refresher). You also have a couple of handouts with a chart version of SPACE that you have
filled in that you can consult.

● Speaker: The Queen of England, while she does not have any actual power in the
English government, she is massively influential in the realm of politics and in the
leading the English people
● Purpose: to calm her readers in the midst of the global pandemic. She wants to reassure
them that while the current situation may be scary and they may feel hopeless, better
times will eventually come, and so people must look towards those better days.
● Audience: The immediate audience is the people of England, whom the queen rules
over. However, she is also speaking to a wider global scale to people in all countries that
they must also remain calm. People who are scared due to the pandemic
● Context: The Coronavirus pandemic has led to thousands of deaths, leading to people
being forced to shelter in their homes with no knowledge of when it will end and to what
extent the destruction will be.
● Exigence: People are beginning to panic so she must attempt to calm them

Part 4: Write both a device-driven thesis and an ideas-driven thesis. You won’t be able to do this
part if you haven’t viewed the presentation in Part 1 above. :)

● Device-driven: The Queen supports her argument that citizens must remain calm in spite
of the global pandemic using allusions to past events, anaphora, and repeated use of
the word “we.”
● Idea-driven: By making readers feel as if they are not alone and encouraging them to
look towards a better future, the Queen of England is able to support her argument that
citizens must remain calm in spite of the global pandemic.

Part 5: Write a great introductory paragraph by following the format from the presentation.
Incorporate SPACE elements and choose one of the thesis statements from Part 4.

The Coronavirus has led to a global pandemic that is threatening the lives of everyone, leading
to mass panic and fear. In her address to the English people, the Queen of England wants to
reassure them that while the current situation may be scary and they may feel hopeless, better
times will eventually come. By making readers feel as if they are not alone and encouraging
them to look towards a better future, the Queen of England is able to support her argument that
citizens must remain calm in spite of the global pandemic.

Part 6: Write down any questions or concerns you have about the information in this rhetorical
analysis section. In next week’s Google Meet, I will cover some of those as a whole class.

Is it ok to still write a device-driven thesis. For me, it is so much quicker to develop a thesis that
focuses on the specific devices, and I think i would feel a lot less overwhelmed during the exam
if i can just focus on that, especially because I have a lot of practice using device-driven theses
from opeds.