1. English B50
Monday 2/25/13

2. Reading Quiz
Mac Donald says Gibor Basri, Berkeley’s vice chancellor for equity and diversity, “obeyed the ironclad script for all such minor perturbations in the …reign of campus political correctness.” What does she mean?
Mac Donald notes that a gender and women’s studies major protested the bake sale. What group, according to the protestor, was not represented?
How would SB 185 violate the state’s constitution, according to Mac Donald?
Korbe explains another bake sale, “The REAL Affirmative Action Bake Sale,” which takes into account all college admissions factors. Other than race, what is one admissions factor she mentions?
Krobe says, “college has become about so much more—and so much less—than education.” What is she referring to?

3. Style in Arguments
In academic arguments, you should use formal language.
Slang, or colloquial language, can lead readers to assume that you have a flippant attitude towards a serious subject.
Keep in mind both the definition and the connotation of a word
Look at the following examples:
Students from the Labor Action Committee (LAC) carried out a hunger strike to call attention to the below-minimum wages that are being paid to campus temporary workers, saying, “The university must pay a living wage to all its workers.”
Left wing agitators and radicals tried to use self-induced starvation to stampede the university into caving in to their demands.
Champions of human rights put their bodies on the line to protest the universities tightfisted policy of paying temporary workers scandalously low wages.

4. Sentence Structure Use a variety of sentence types.
There are four different sentence types.
Simple--Independent Clause
My daughter loves watching Max and Ruby.
Compound—Independent Clause, coordinating conjunction, Independent Clause OR IC;IC
Wuthering Heights is my favorite novel; many of its themes are echoed in Twilight.
Complex—Independent Clause Dependent Clause OR Dependent Clause, Independent Clause.
Although Robert Pattinson is very handsome, he is not my favorite actor.
Compound-complex—at least 2 Independent Clauses and at least 1 Dependent Clause
Even though I want a pet, I don’t have time to get one, so I’ll have to wait.

5. Punctuation
Punctuation adds rhythm to your sentences. Use it effectively for persuasion.
Semicolons are great ways to add sophistication to your writing. Use them between two independent clauses that are too closely related to separate with a period.
My husband and I are high school sweet hearts; we’ve been together for 13 years.
Exclamation points should be used sparingly for maximum effect.
The dash and the colon can be used synonymously. Generally, the colon is considered the more formal version. Use it after an independent clause to introduce an example or explanation.
I’ve got an explanation for her attitude: the “terrible twos”.
Asking rhetorical questions of your readers can be an effective way to call attention to issues.
Why should the schools punish the children for their parents’ mistakes?

6. Figurative Language
Figurative language is a way to draw interesting parallels between things that, on the surface, seem incomparable.
Metaphors are comparisons between two items.
You’re my rock.
Similies are comparisons using “like” or “as”.
My love is like a red, red rose.
Analogies are more lengthy comparisons designed to prove a particular conclusion.

7. Figurative Language Cont’d.
Hyperbole is deliberate exaggeration for a particular effect.
I had a ton of homework.
Irony is the expression of one's meaning by using language that normally signifies the opposite, typically for humorous or emphatic effect.
A man who is a traffic cop gets his license suspended for unpaid parking tickets.
Effective repetition can be very eye catching and can emphasize your point.
Now is the time to make real the promises of democracy. Now is the time to rise from the dark and desolate valley of segregation to the sunlit path of racial justice. Now is the time to lift our nation from the quicksands of racial injustice to the solid rock of brotherhood. Now is the time to make justice a reality for all of God’s children.

8. Activity
Turn to page 315 of Everything’s an Argument. Look at the Response prompt toward the bottom of the page. Take a few minutes and jot down your answer. Be prepared to share with the rest of the class.