The Golden Notebooks

At the start of each week here I’ll post some materials, videos, and thoughts and questions related to the readings. Read through, watch or listen to them.  Then do a short writing responding to the questions at the bottom and email it to me sometime during the week: proflaurat@gmail.com. This takes the place of the assignments originally on the syllabus. That’s it. Grades will reflect effort and no one will be penalized for circumstance beyond our control. As I add notes for each week, they’ll be at the top, but you can always scroll down to see earlier materials and you can always send earlier pieces of writing.

Let me know if you have problems accessing any of the videos or images. If you do not have a computer at home, you can write your responses long hand and take a picture of them: you may find this more rewarding than writing on your phone.

If you find yourself struggling or unsure about a situation during this crises, do not hesitate to reach out to proflaurat@gmail.com or call me at 917 710-7341.

Weeks of June 1st and June 8th 

Thank you to all who joined last week’s or will join tomorrow’s group zoom. As always, feel free to reach out with questions or if you would like to meet individually. For these, the last two weeks of the semester, we’ll do some final, reflective writing. I will continue to read everything you send through the morning of Monday, June 15th when grades are due. If you have been out of touch or not turning in work, please reach out so we can figure out the best solution and outcome for your work in this class. These final writings are the last assignment and take the place of an “exam.”

Our reflective work will come in two parts:

1. Choose one assignment from the website to revise. Look at the feedback I gave you and make changes to add clarity, specificity, or examples. Work to show evidence of close reading of the texts you’re writing about. Include direct quotations if you didn’t include them in your first version.

2. Write a final reflection of at least 400 words thinking about your reading and writing from this semester. Use at least 2 direct quotations from the texts. Respond to these questions:

• Which text that we’ve read stayed with you the most and why? What details about it do you think you will remember in five years? What do you think it has to say that’s most essential about our course themes about how we mark major occasions in the life cycle?
• If you were going to write something about the extraordinary times we are living through now, maybe in a few years, which of the main genres we’ve studied (novel, poetry, play) or more specific genres (coming of age novel, ode, elegy, oral history) do you think you would use? Why do you think this form would be suited to these experiences? What techniques used by the works of this genre we studied do you think would be useful?

Weeks of May 18th and 25th

Welcome to the home stretch. What you have managed to accomplish despite all the obstacles is remarkable. We’re going to do one more set of reading and writing about the play, and then I’ll ask you to revisit a piece of writing from the semester and/or reflect on your reading and writing from across the semester.

We’re having group zooms on May 27th and June 1st. I’ll be sending invitations shortly – choose whichever works for you. One will be in the morning and one in the afternoon. We’ll discuss especially the poetry imitations and this week’s work with interviews. Bring your thoughts and questions, and bring something to write with and write on. As always, feel free to be in touch with questions about your work in this class, at LaGuardia, or beyond.

Over the last two weeks, you read Anna Deveare Smith’s play Let Me Down Easy and shared ideas about one of her interview subjects. You wrote about what they had to say about the themes of the body, giving care, receiving care, illness, mortality and death, and you also thought about questions Smith asked to get the responses she got.

If you haven’t yet, start this and next week’s work by watching this short lecture about the play and the idea of oral history.

Then look at some  additional readings related to the play and oral history, to prepare for a short writing where you think about how you might do the early stages of an oral history.

•  Some of you wrote about inequality and the factors that prevent the health care system from providing care fo all. This essay by Tressie McMilliam Cottom talks about how racism and sexism shaped how she was treated by health care workers while pregnant. What does this essay add to the plays depiction of the health care system? (There’s a longer version of the essay in your course pack). Note that this essay describes a pregnancy loss so make your own judgment if this is a difficult thing for you to read.
• Thinking about oral history, here are some short readings that are part of an oral history someone might right abot the historical moment we are living through now:
  • “Alone,” a collection of interviews, photos and videa of those living alone during the coronavirus quarantine around the world.
  • Belabored Stories by Sarah Jaffe and Michelle Chen: Interviews with workers on how th coronavirus crisis is affecting their work. You can scroll down to see different headlins of kind of workers interviewed and select a few to read.
  • Writing for these Weeks 

• Originally, my plan was for us to follow in Smith’s footsteps and conduct an interview with someone we know about the experience of giving or receiving care. Because of the difficulty of doing this, we’re going to work on the first part: thinking of someone you would want to talk to and what you would ask them.

Sometime over this week and next, think about someone you know who you would like to interview, either about the themes of Smith’s play (giving and receiving care), or about their expereinces of the current crisis, or a combination of these topics. In your short response, write about why you would want to talk to them about these experiences. Then come up with at least ten quesitons you would ask. Think about what makes a good question: it should be open-ended, not a yes/no question, and allow thm to describe their experiences with details.

Your response should be at least 400 words. Along with the questions you would ask them, include a little about who the person is, what you know about their experience, what you don’t know, and what you would find out. In your response, make at least one connection to Smith’s play AND one to one of this week’s additional readings: what connections do you see between their experiences, and what in Smith’s play and the additional readings? What questions do these readings make you want to ask. Use at least one direct quotation. 

Email to proflaurat@gmail.com anytime over these weeks. We’ll talk about this more at the zoom group meetings.

Week of May 4th and May 11th 

During these weeks, we’re beginning our third main unit about our third main literary genre, drama.

This unit revolves around a play by Anna Deveare Smith, Let Me Down Easy. Throughout the semester, we’ve looked at texts that deal with different aspects of the life cylce and the rituals we use to mark them. Smith’s play deals with the body: what it can do, and, especially, what happens when it faces extraordinary challenges, illness, and death. It also deals with the system of care we have in this country to aid those who are ill or dying. I put this on the syllabus before the current crisis; some of these stories will take on more meaning fo us now.

Start by watching this short interview  with Smith about this play, noticing what she says about how it is created and its topic. Then watch this short excerpt of Smith performing parts of her play.

Then, look at this short lecture in which I talk more about how Smith’s play differs from many you may be familiar with, the role of oral history and non-fiction in theater, as well as some of the themes and ideas explored in the play.

Over the course of these two weeks, read this short play.   If you weren’t able to buy the play before everything shut down, you can try ordering it online or as an ebook. If you aren’t able to do this, let me know and I will look for alternatives.

In a short response of at least 300 words, respond to the following questions. If you don’t have the book yet, try your best to answer them based on the videos. Email your response to proflaurat@gmail.com anytime during these weeks.

• How does Deveare Smith put her plays together? How is this different from other plays you are familiar with?
• Choose ONE of the characters Smith interviewed and portrays. What do you notice about the way this person describes their experience regarding their body, illness, and or/death? What surprised you and what did it make you think or feel?
• What questions do you think Smith asked this person to get their story and reflection?

Week of April 27th

Here is the link to this week’s video, in which I talk about two main things: a little more about elegies and a lot more about imitations.

Here are links to the elegies I talk about in the video:

“When Lilacs Last in the Dooryard Bloom’d” by Walt Whitman – elegy for Abraham Lincoln.

Video of Allen Ginsberg reading “Kaddish” for his mother, Naomi Ginsberg, text to read here.

Video of Pedro Pietri performing part of his long poem “Puerto Rican Obituary”, an elegy for many in the Puerto Rican community (read the whole poem here)

And here again are materials for the imitation:

Listen to Allen Ginsberg’s poem “America” (which you can read here). This time in the lecture I go a little more into the history and context for the poem.

Here is this video of the poet Craig Santos Perez reading “America 2017 (after Allen Ginsberg). Again we’ll think about what we notice about the relationship between the two. How is Perez’s poem an “imitation” of Ginsberg.

Writing for this Week

This week you’re going to do a poetry imitation of one of the poems we’ve read in the class. It can be one you wrote about last week, but it doesn’t have to be. In this week’s email, I sent 2 handouts that will help you:

– Examples of student imitations.

– Guidelines for your imitation.

In short, an imitation is what you see Perez do, and what you’ll read that students did: take something essential about the form and make it your own. So, Perez updated Ginsberg’s protests to his own time and identity. In the student examples you’ll see Daniela Vargas update Ginsberg to protest the high cost of living in NYC and the mistreatment of EMTs and Iris Alufohai update Audre Lorde to another life stage, Daniel Min take Neruda’s form to make an ode to his cup, and more.

The hand out talks more about what to keep and what to change in your imitation: keep the length (number of lines) and something essential about the purpose and form, and changes to make it yours: the person you want to remember in an elegy, the thing you want to praise in an ode, or whatever it may be to suit your emotions, ideas, identity and experiences.

It may be helpful to look a little more at your chosen poet’s other work and learn more about them – the great Poetry Foundation  and American Academy of Poets websites have more about and by the poets we are reading.

Normally we would share these in class, so if you would like to film yourself reading one, that’s awesome. Or you can just send the text. I’m working on setting up a class zoom where we can share these while also talking about our work going forward.

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Week of April 20th

I hope you are all well, and have been able to enjoy some piece of spring. As always, if you need help with anything, related to this class or not, please reach out by email, phone, or however your prefer.

Thank you for your thoughtful responses to the introduction to poetry, this week, along with responding to the questions at the end of these materials, please respond to the question I included in the email about your options for going forward in the class, and think about times for one-on-one online meetings if that is your option.

For this week, here’s a video of me, talking more about what poetry is, how it is, what it looks like, how it sounds, and what it can do.

When you come to my discussion of certain poems, pause and watch or rewatch, read or reread, listen to or relisten to, using the links below.

Poems Discussed in Video of Me!

Except for the first, these are also all in your pink packets if you prefer reading on dead trees.

Video Staceyann Chinn performing “If Only Out of Vanity,” (you can read text of poem underneath the video)

Video of Pedro Pietri performing part of his long poem “Puerto Rican Obituary” (read the whole poem here)

Audio of Allen Ginsberg’s performing “America” (read the poem here).

Audio of Gwendolyn Brooks performing “When You Have Forgotten Sunday”  (read the poem here)

“Ode to My Socks,” by Pablo Neruda


“Hanging Fire,” by Audre Lorde

Other Poems to Read and Listen to this Week

Also all in the pink packet in dead tree form.

“Fifth Grade Autobiography” by Rita Dove


”Dead Butterfly” by Ellen Bass


Audio of “Poem at 30” by Sonia Sanchez (read it here)


“The Sisters of Sexual Treasure,” by Sharon Olds

“The Guild,” by Sharon Olds


“Ode on Periods,” by Bernadette Mayer


Naomi Shahib Nye, “Burning the Old Year,”


Video of Joy Harjo reading  “Perhaps the World Ends Here”; read the poem here 


Video of Adrienne Rich, “What Kind of Times are These,” read the poem here

Written Response

Choose ONE of the poems discussed in the video and ONE you looked at/read/listened to/watched on your own. Answer these questions about each one in a response of at least 400 words:

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                                                              Weeks of April 6th and 13th

Happy almost Spring Break, whatever version of that this may be. When I was thinking about this class and its theme of how writing and literature mark the seasons of our lives, I could not have imagined what we are now marking. I hope if you are able to see some sun through the window or even some flowers when you are home, some little part of spring will find its way to you.

I hope everyone continues to be well. Please reach out if you need anything. If you or someone you know has lost income or is having a hard time paying for food, free meals are being  distributed at locations around the city. This is available to everyone, not just students, no matter if they are citizens are not, no ID required: follow the link for locations.

Some of you have expressed concerns about other classes. One thing you should know is the at the end of this semester, after you get your grades, you have the opportunity to change any grade into a P/F so that it will not affect your GPA.

Welcome to Poetry!

Since it’s almost spring break, what I’m posting this week is short and sweet, and mostly a “preview” of our next unit: poetry! People have often turned to poetry in emotional and difficult times and I hope you’ll find something here that’s useful for you.

As I said, this is a short one, and so I won’t be posting new materials that week. Please do take some time to rest, reach out to loved ones. You can send the (very short) writing for this week anytime over the next two weeks, and you can also send the work from the past few weeks if you haven’t yet.

What is Poetry?

Great questions! Instead of answering, let’s experience a little.

First, on a blank piece of paper, write “Poetry Is” and write whatever comes to mind.

Then, write “poetry isn’t,” and again, write whatever comes to mind.

Then watch these to videos, one from the Brooklyn poet Staceyann Chinn reading “If Only Out of Vanity” and this one from Pedro Pietri reading part of his long poem “Puerto Rican Obituary”

Does watching these two poets perform their work change what you wrote/make you want to add or alter your sense of what poetry is?

After break you’re going to do a poetry imitation. For a preview of that, listen to Allen Ginsberg’s poem “America” (which you can read here). It was written in the 1950s and will probably refer to historical events and names you’re not familiar with. That’s ok! You can look up some of them, or not. Just listen for the feel, the tone. What is Ginsberg expressing? How is the audience responding?

Then watch this video of the poet Craig Santos Perez reading “America 2017 (after Allen Ginsberg). What do you notice about the relationship between the two. How is this an “imitation” of Ginsberg?

Email me a brief response at some point and let me know what you thought, responding to some combination of these questions?

– What is your experience with poetry? Reading it, listening to it, writing it?

– Did the videos change at all your perception of what poetry is?

• What did you notice of the relationship between Ginsberg and Perez: the two Americas. What do you think I mean by “imitation”?

Week of March 30th

Hi all. How are you doing? Hope you are all as healthy, safe, and sane as possible.

For many of us, the first of the month means rent is due. If you have lost income and/or have questions/concerns about how and whether to pay the rent here is a useful resource. Please know you can’t be evicted at this time because of the crisis.

This week, I’m trying something new. Here is a link to a video where I do a little lecture on some of what we’d be discussing if we were together and the writing for the week. This week, do your best to finish Go Tell It on the Mountain and think about some of the things I mention in the video.  Below you’ll see a few more links with materials related to some of these themes, and a short prompt for this week’s writing, with a choice of topics.

As always, please reach out with any questions, concerns, or feedback on these materials.

LINKS

Coming of Age: 

Here is a short video by Professor Christina Greer about Baldwin’s early life and writing, and his coming of age, with many connections to John’s story in the novel. It also touches on his evolving perspective on religion, what was going on in the world during his young adulthood, and why the FBI spied on him.

Religion:  

Here is a very short video of Baldwin talking about the impact of his early experiences in the church, which mirror John’s in the novel.

Here is a link to the 1962 essay by Baldwin, “Letter from a Region of My Mind” where he writes more about his experiences with the church. You don’t need to read the whole thing, but do look at the first part, especially if you are interested in this topic. Spend a little time with this passage, which I discuss in the video lecture:

“The church was very exciting. It took a long time for me to disengage myself from this excitement, and on the blindest, most visceral level, I never really have, and never will. There is no music like that music, no drama like the drama of the saints rejoicing, the sinners moaning, the tambourines racing, and all those voices coming together and crying holy unto the Lord. There is still, for me, no pathos quite like the pathos of those multicolored, worn, somehow triumphant and transfigured faces, speaking from the depths of a visible, tangible, continuing despair of the goodness of the Lord. I have never seen anything to equal the fire and excitement that sometimes, without warning, fill a church, causing the church, as Leadbelly and so many others have testified, to rock. Nothing that has happened to me since equals the power and the glory that I sometimes felt when, in the middle of a sermon, I knew that I was somehow, by some miracle, really carrying, as they said, “the Word”—when the church and I were one. Their pain and their joy were mine, and mine were theirs—they surrendered their pain and joy to me, I surrendered mine to them.”

And just for fun, here is Dolly Parton singing the hymn that gives the novel its title.

More on the Great Migration/Northern Racism

I talk more in the video about how this history helps us understand the novel and give a little background.

I’m posting again  this link  to an interview with Isabel Wilkerson if you didn’t watch it last week or want to write about this topic and want to look at it again: after reading the Elizabeth section, think especially about what she says about what happened to migrants when they arrived in the north.

Related to this, also re-linking to this short clip of Baldwin talking about how racism is not a “feeling” but connects to all aspects of American life which also connects especially to the Elizabeth section.

OPTIONS FOR SHORT WRITING:

Here are four possible topics to write about this week, related to each of these themes. Choose one and write about 400 words in response. More is fine if you get on a roll. Include at least one direct reference to the novel (mention something specific from it whether you quote or not) and one reference to some other material: anything linked to here or last week.

OPTION ONE: COMING OF AGE (Personal/Creative Option)

Week of March 23rd

This week, read through the “Florence’s Prayer” and “Gabriel’s Prayer” sections of Go Tell it On the Mountain if you haven’t already. These sections that deals with the experiences of John’s father and aunt. This older generation, which was the generation of James Baldwin’s parents, who were part of the Great Migration. This generation were themselves only one generation from slavery. They lived under the Jim Crow south: a system in which every aspect of life was segregated by law: from schools and restaurants to swimming pools and even cemeteries.

While the novel starts as a coming of age story, focusing on how John is beginning to move away from his father’s religion and his family’s expectations of him. But then, we go in a different direction, towards the stories of the parent’s generation in the South and the events that led them to be part of the Great Migration of African-Americans to the north in search of jobs, freedom and a better life.

As you read, think about the stories of this generation and what they tell us about the decisions people make to leave one life behind and start again. The videos and website below offer some non-fiction sources about the Great Migration: think about connections to the novel as you watch them.

Here is a link to an interview with Isabel Wilkerson, author of The Warmth of Other Suns, a small section of which is in your course pack:

And here is a TED talk she gave entitled: “The Power of a Single Decision”

And here is a website with images of The Migration by the painter Jacob Lawrence. You can watch a short video of him talking about the inspiration for this art and click on the different images to see them a little bigger and read the captions which together tell a story.

For those who didn’t yet see it, here is a clip from the documentary about the life of James Baldwin which highlights some connections between his life and the novel: The Price of the Ticket 

And here is a clip of Baldwin talking on the Dick Cavett show about why he doesn’t believe the United States will some day live up to its “ideals” and end racism.

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The writing: Sometime this week, email me something like 400 words in any format that responds to as many of these questions as you like:

–  What struck you from the excerpt of The Warmth of Other Suns and/or the video interview and TED talk by  Isabel Wilkerson, the author of that book? What experiences struck you from the people Wilkerson interviewed?

– How do these stories compare to those you know about your experiences of family members or other people you know (including your own experiences if you wish) who have immigrated or migrated within a country or between counties? What do they make you want to know more about these experiences?

– What do we learn about why John’s family members (Florence, Gabriel or Elizabeth) migrated? How do these reasons compare to what we see in The Warmth of Other Suns, the videos with the author, or the images from Jacob Lawrence?

– What comparisons does the novel or the video or other materials make between life in the south and in the north for African Americans? What do migrants expect or hope for and what do they find?

– Anything else you noticed about any of the readings, videos, or images from this week?

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In addition, read at least one of these profiles/oral histories and choose one as the basis for your reader response, thinking about how they build on interviews and other techniques in the profile.

Thinking about interviews and portraits:

Stacy Abramson, “The Stories of One Brooklyn Block,” from The New York Times.

For visit of Dr. Briallen Hopper, Queens College, a piece by her from Killing the Buddha:

Fine Homebuilding

You can find more of Professor Hopper’s work and information about her book on her website: https://briallenhopper.contently.com