Short Fiction Discussion and Quizzes

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Hello and welcome to Section 5: Parents and Children in Short Fiction

In this section you will be required to complete the following tasks:

1. Carefully read the stories and assignments outlined in The Readings folder. We will have quizzes and writing assignments based upon these assignments so take your time and take notes.

A. The Readings

  • Flannery O’Connor’s biography and story, “Good Country People,” pg. 690
  • Alice Walker’s biography and story, “Everyday Use,” pg. 843
  • Tillie Olsen’s biography and story, “I Stand Here Ironing”, p. 718

Please also read the Author Highlight on Alice Walker. (in course folder)

2. Complete the quizzes on the required readings. There are 10 questions on each quiz and you will only have 15 minutes to complete the assignment, so please be familiar with the readings and the literary terminology we covered in Section 1.

I will send you the login info after you accept the assignment. IF YOU GET LESS THAN A 85 ON THE QUIZZES. I WILL REQUEST A REFUND.

3. Complete the writing assignment posted in the Section 5 Discussion Board.

For this discussion board assignment, I am going to be asking you to create plot diagrams for each of the stories that we have read in this unit. Please go back to the Section 1 pdf on Plot and look carefully over the diagram of Freytag’s Plot Structure. Once you have done so, I would like you to identify the scenes or moments in each story that fit the criteria for each of the following plot points, Exposition, Inciting Incident, Rising Action, Climax, Falling Action, Resolution, Denouement. Please carefully explain your reasoning behind your choices for each plot point.

As you are charting the plots of these stories, please consider how these structures inform the relationships between parents and children in these works. The author manipulates the events of the plot much in the same way as a composer arranges the different parts and movements in a musical composition. While there may be moments of creative inspiration, the organization of the events in a story are not accidental. They are carefully contrived to manipulate the mood and overall experience of the audience as they proceed through the work. As you chart the events in the stories, think about the decisions the authors have made and their decisions for doing so.

In your final assignment for this semester, you will be asked to write a short story of your ownand you will be required to carefully orchestrate the sequence of events in your own work of fiction, so be sure to take some notes on these author’s choices.

Remember to submit your assignment to the Pre Post Drop box to be checked for plagiarism prior to turning it in to the Discussion Board. You do not need to wait after submitting it to the drop box, simply submit it to the drop box, then to the discussion board.

THIS MUST BE PROPER ENGLISH. NO WAYS AROUND MAKING IT UP OR PLAGIARIZING IT.

4. You will have 1 day after the due date of the discussion board assignments to respond to at least two of your peers’ original posts. Please be thoughtful and thorough in your responses as you will be graded on these assignments.

YOU MUST SIGN BACK INTO THE ACCOUNT AFTER YOU TURN IN THE DISCUSSION TO ME AND RESPOND TO 2 OR MORE STUDENTS