Timed Midterm Prompt Due Dates Submit the Timed Midterm by 10/16 at 11:59pm with a two-day grace period ending 10/19 at 11:59pm Texts The link to all texts can be found under Modules.

1. “How to Tame A Wild Tongue” by Gloria Anzaldua 2. “Leave Your Name at the Border” by Manuel Munoz 3. “Invisibility Is An Unnatural Disaster: Reflections of An Asian-American Woman” by Mitsuye Yamad

Requirements This essay will be approximately 2 pages, and any essays that do not meet the requirement will lose points. Create a properly formatted works cited page, and correctly use in-text citations. Writing Task Our textbook states in Chapter 5, “Once we’ve assessed the quality of another person’s argument, there is an opportunity to take our reflection a step further.” For this midterm, you will be doing just that. Pick one text from this unit, and write a response that takes the author’s argument a step further. Some strategies for crafting a response include:

? Add to the sense of urgency about the argument with our own explanation for why it matters. ? Recommend ways to draw attention to the issue. ? Suggest that the argument has implications even beyond what the writer discusses. ? Remove limitations on the argument to make a broader claim. ? Argue that the argument’s claim points us toward a particular course of action. ? Call for clarification, more support or inquiry, or a middle ground on the topic.

Tips

? Reading Chapters 5 and 7 from How Arguments Work will be crucial to your success. ? Use quotes correctly (review LECTURE: Paraphrasing and Using Quotes and Chapter 7.7). ? Even though you are stating your opinion, do not use first person.

Suggested Outline

1. Introduction. See Chapter 7.1 for tips on writing a conclusion. 1. A good thesis will craft a clear response to the author’s argument and present a rationale for

your response. You may use the template below: [Author] argues/clarifies/points out [author’s argument], and/but/so [your response] because [rationale]. EXAMPLE: Mitsuye Yamada points out that silence is extremely harmful for minorities, and this argument must be addressed in schools today because discrimination runs rampant.

2. Body #1: Summarize the author’s argument in detail 3. Body #2: Create your response that takes their point a step further 4. Conclusion. See Chapter 7.8 for tips on writing a conclusion.

LECTURE: Gloria Anzaldúa -2

Texts?“How to Tame A Wild Tongue” by Gloria Anzaldua

https://www.everettsd.org/cms/lib07/WA01920133/Centricity/Domain/965/Anzaldua-Wild-Tongue.pdf

Background and Summary

Gloria Evangelina Anzaldúa (1942-2004) is one of the most prolific writers we will read in this course. She “was a

scholar of Chicana cultural theory, feminist theory and queer theory,” and in her “writings, Anzaldúa combines

autobiography, poetry, historical narratives and myths. She not only moves seamlessly between these ‘genres’

but also between languages (English and Spanish) and also different variations of the languages. Thus, her

writing itself is an act of questioning and transforming the boundaries and categories of ‘genres’. She uses the

term autohistoria-teoria to describe this genre of writing that presents a non-linear history and includes personal

narratives, factual accounts, myths and poetry.”

One of her most famous metaphors describes the U.S.-Mexican border as an open wound that she “tries to heal

through her writing […] She develops concepts that aim to transform binary constructions such as Borderlands,

neplanta (the Nahuatl word for an in-between space), mestiza consciousness, new tribalism and Coatlicue state

among many others. The aim is to ‘bridge’ the dividing line imposed by borders, labels and binary thinking. […]

She sees the very act of writing as being liberating and transformative.”

Thinking Ahead

Anzaldú’s work is challenging, as she moves seamlessly between genres and perspectives. As you read her

creative non-fiction text “How to Tame A Wild Tongue,” see if you can understand her main argument. Keep in

mind the following questions:

? How does Anzaldúa define borders?

? How is this similar or different to the other authors we have read thus far?

? What are some terms Anzaldúa uses that you are unfamiliar with? Define them.