Week 15: Assata Shakur’s Autobiography continued

General Announcements:

• Jesus Papoleto Melendez’s play The Junkies Stole the Clock will be produced as part of the New York Theater Festival. Details here.
• The public radio show Latino USA did a segment on the history of the Nuyorican Poets’ Café last week, talking to Jesus Papoleto Melendez, La Bruja, and Lois Griffith. The total time is 39 minutes: it’s well worth listening to!
• I finally saw the documentary film Making the Impossible Possible on the founding of Puerto Rican Studies at Brooklyn College and it’s fantastic! You can rent it on Vimeo for only $5.

Course Announcements:

• NO ZOOM MEETING FOR Thursday 11/25 because of the holiday.
• The SECOND (and last, besides the final exam) paper of the semester is DUE MONDAY NOVEMBER 29. (Re)download a copy from the Assignments page.
  
• You’ll have to use library databases to get some of the articles needed for the written assignment! If you’ve procrastinated (it’s ok: we all do it), even though CUNY libraries are closed, you can get help from the New York Public Library system! You can access their databases from home. Stuck? Ask a librarian for help finding exactly what you need!
• NYPL has 16 copies of Assata available to borrow if you still need one. You can also read an electronic copy online (CUNY login required).
• See the FAQ page for quick answers to common questions about the course. The audio tour of the website is there, too.

Highlights from week 14 Zoom meeting:

• Started Assata’s Autobiography with a focus on the first few chapters: specifically, form, content, and context. We discussed the structure of the book as autobiography, significance of poetry in the text, and locations she travels through.
• Slide deck is on the Lecture Notes page and audio is on the Zoom archive page
• Zoom audio: Common’s “A Song for Assata,” On YouTube here.

What to do for November 30 and 12/2–week 15:

FINISH and SUBMIT the second paper on Monday 11/29.

For Tuesday 11/30: READ pages 80-140 (Chapters 5-8) in Assata Shakur’s Autobiography. Again, make sure to pay attention to the various poems she includes in the story on page 130 (“Love”). Think also about the themes that you should now be able to identify that we’ve been working on all semester. Note specific places in the book where they appear and mark examples of them in your text.

For Thursday 12/2: READ pages 140-207 (Chapters 9-13)

RESPOND to the questions at the bottom of this post and DISCUSS them with classmates and myself using the comment field on this post. (Scroll all the way to the bottom after the sharing buttons to see the comment field.)

JOIN the live Zoom session on Tuesday and Thursday. Bring questions and comments on the assigned reading.

Pay close attention to the following:

• Assata’s poems: What do they add to the narrative? What insight do they give you about Assata’s inner thoughts?
• What spaces/ neighborhoods does she move through? Note them and how each of them either shapes the story and what it means to Assata.
• Keep track of major themes that emerge in the story as you read. It’s a good idea to mark examples of them in the text and make a small note in your notebook.

OPTIONAL–LISTEN to my 52 minute lecture (sorry about the length!) on the first half of Assata:

What’s next?

We finish Assata in the last week of class, so keep reading ahead. The final exam will be online during exam week. Details will be announced in class and with the next post. The exam itself posted the week of December 13. Please do not email me for details before the outline is posted.

If you keep up with the weekly reading and take good notes, then you’ll be well prepared for the final exam and get much more out of the class!

Comments on posts:

You’ll notice the “Let’s Talk” button is below. Here’s how it’ll work: you can use this to discuss points raised here.  A few points:

• Your first comment will have to be approved by me: after that, you can comment without approval
• Comments section will only be open to enrolled students
• You have to leave your name (enter as first name and last initial only) so a) I can make sure only people in the class are commenting and b) you get credit for the comment
• Remember to be respectful, especially when responding to classmates
• The comments section closes 14 days after a post goes live

To ‘participate’ in the class, I’d like to see everyone 1) post a substantive comment of their own based on either the reading or my lecture using some of the questions raised or conversation prompts, and 2) to respond thoughtfully to someone else’s comment—not just agree/disagree, but add on evidence or ask a follow-up question. You can also ask a question–for me or others–but that doesn’t count toward your comment and reply needed for the grade. It’s fine with me if conversation continues in a thread as long as it does, but two responses showing a clear engagement with the reading will count for being ‘present.’ Does that make sense? You have 14 days to write those two comments for credit.

 

Week of November 26 (BOTH class sections): Assata Shakur’s Autobiography continued

Announcements:

• I gave out hard copies of the last written assignment of the semester. Download yours from the assignments page if you missed class on Thursday. It’s due on or before Tuesday December 10.

For Tuesday 11/26: read pages 80-147 (Chapters 5-9) in Assata Shakur’s Autobiography. Again, make sure to pay attention to the various poems she includes in the story on page 130 (“Love”). Think also about the themes that you should now be able to identify that we’ve been working on all semester. Note specific places in the book where they appear and mark examples of them in your text.

For Thursday 11/28 is a holiday, so we don’t meet.  Enjoy and see you next week.

I’ll update next week, but you should just keep reading ahead and taking good notes in Assata.

Week of April 30: (Night Class) Assata Shakur’s Autobiography

Announcements:

• I gave out hard copies of the last written assignment of the semester. Download yours from the assignments page if you missed class. It’s due Tuesday May 7.
• Of course, next week’s spring break. See you all in 2 weeks.
• Don’t forget that we have pop quizzes! Make sure to keep up with the reading!

For Tuesday April 30 read the first 79 pages (chapters 1-4) of Assata: An Autobiography. Be sure to read the foreward by Angela Davis and Lennox Hinds. Also make sure to pay attention to the various poems she includes in the story on pages 1,17,44, and 62.

Questions to think about:

• How effective is her style of storytelling? Does the non-linear narrative with flashbacks make the book more engaging?
• How does Assata go about re-telling history?
• What role do poems play in an autobiography? What do they tell you about Assata or the other people that the regular story does not?

What physical spaces and places does Assata describe in the story? What is the significance of them?

We are not primarily concerned with figuring out guilt innocence here (and in any case don’t have all the court documents to review): the goal is to read her story as we would any other autobiography and focus on how the story develops and how she develops into the person she is today. Look for clues of these things in the story.

Extra: Listen to “A Song for Assata” by Common, from his 2000 Like Water for Chocolate release, featuring CeeLo Green.

 

For Thursday May 2, read pages 80-147 (Chapters 5-9) in Assata Shakur’s Autobiography. Again, make sure to pay attention to the various poems she includes in the story on page 130 (“Love”). Think also about the themes that you should now be able to identify that we’ve been working on all semester. Note specific places in the book where they appear and mark examples of them in your text.

Presentation by Diamond, Cariely, Tony, and Yvane

Announcement:

• There’s a Dominican Writers Conference at our sister school, The City College of New York in Harlem on Saturday May 4. Angie Cruz will be there on one of the panels, though isn’t scheduled to speak about Soledad. You can probably ask her questions before/after her talk, though. Conference details here.

Week of April 30: (Day Class) Assata Shakur’s Autobiography

Announcements:

• I gave out hard copies of the last written assignment of the semester. Download yours from the assignments page if you missed class. It’s due Tuesday May 7.
• Of course, next week’s spring break. See you all in 2 weeks.
• Don’t forget that we have pop quizzes! Make sure to keep up with the reading!

For Tuesday April 30 read the first 79 pages (chapters 1-4) of Assata: An Autobiography. Be sure to read the foreward by Angela Davis and Lennox Hinds. Also make sure to pay attention to the various poems she includes in the story on pages 1,17,44, and 62.

Questions to think about:

• How effective is her style of storytelling? Does the non-linear narrative with flashbacks make the book more engaging?
• How does Assata go about re-telling history?
• What role do poems play in an autobiography? What do they tell you about Assata or the other people that the regular story does not?

What physical spaces and places does Assata describe in the story? What is the significance of them?

We are not primarily concerned with figuring out guilt innocence here (and in any case don’t have all the court documents to review): the goal is to read her story as we would any other autobiography and focus on how the story develops and how she develops into the person she is today. Look for clues of these things in the story.

Extra: Listen to “A Song for Assata” by Common, from his 2000 Like Water for Chocolate release, featuring CeeLo Green.

 

For Thursday May 2, read pages 80-147 (Chapters 5-9) in Assata Shakur’s Autobiography. Again, make sure to pay attention to the various poems she includes in the story on page 130 (“Love”). Think also about the themes that you should now be able to identify that we’ve been working on all semester. Note specific places in the book where they appear and mark examples of them in your text.

Presentation by Adelaida, Neil, and Mislie

Announcement:

• There’s a Dominican Writers Conference at our sister school, The City College of New York in Harlem on Saturday May 4. Angie Cruz will be there on one of the panels, though isn’t scheduled to speak about Soledad. You can probably ask her questions before/after her talk, though. Conference details here.

Week of November 27: (Night Class) Assata Shakur’s Autobiography

Photo: Baba Zayid Muhammad | Hank Williams

Announcements:

• I gave out hard copies of the last written assignment of the semester. Download yours from the assignments page if you missed class. It’s due Tuesday December 4.

For Tuesday November 27, We’re going to have a guest speaker on Assata Shakur and the Black Panther Party: Baba Zayid Muhammad. To prepare, read the first 79 pages (chapters 1-4) of Assata: An Autobiography. Be sure to read the foreward by Angela Davis and Lennox Hinds. Also make sure to pay attention to the various poems she includes in the story on pages 1,17,44, and 62.

Questions to think about:

• How effective is her style of storytelling? Does the non-linear narrative with flashbacks make the book more engaging?
• How does Assata go about re-telling history?
• What role do poems play in an autobiography? What do they tell you about Assata or the other people that the regular story does not?

What physical spaces and places does Assata describe in the story? What is the significance of them?

We are not primarily concerned with figuring out guilt innocence here (and in any case don’t have all the court documents to review): the goal is to read her story as we would any other autobiography and focus on how the story develops and how she develops into the person she is today. Look for clues of these things in the story.

Extra: Listen to “A Song for Assata” by Common, from his 2000 Like Water for Chocolate release, featuring CeeLo Green.

 

For Thursday November 29, read pages 80-147 (Chapters 5-9) in Assata Shakur’s Autobiography. Again, make sure to pay attention to the various poems she includes in the story on page 130 (“Love”). Think also about the themes that you should now be able to identify that we’ve been working on all semester. Note specific places in the book where they appear and mark examples of them in your text.

Presentation by Mislie, Tati, and Nadira

Week of November 27: (Day Class) Assata Shakur’s Autobiography

Announcements:

• I gave out hard copies of the last written assignment of the semester. Download yours from the assignments page if you missed class. It’s due Tuesday December 4.

For Tuesday November 27, read the first 79 pages (chapters 1-4) of Assata: An Autobiography. Be sure to read the foreward by Angela Davis and Lennox Hinds. Also make sure to pay attention to the various poems she includes in the story on pages 1,17,44, and 62.

Questions to think about:

• How effective is her style of storytelling? Does the non-linear narrative with flashbacks make the book more engaging?
• How does Assata go about re-telling history?
• What role do poems play in an autobiography? What do they tell you about Assata or the other people that the regular story does not?

What physical spaces and places does Assata describe in the story? What is the significance of them?

We are not primarily concerned with figuring out guilt innocence here (and in any case don’t have all the court documents to review): the goal is to read her story as we would any other autobiography and focus on how the story develops and how she develops into the person she is today. Look for clues of these things in the story.

Extra: Listen to “A Song for Assata” by Common, from his 2000 Like Water for Chocolate release, featuring CeeLo Green.

 

For Thursday November 29, read pages 80-147 (Chapters 5-9) in Assata Shakur’s Autobiography. Again, make sure to pay attention to the various poems she includes in the story on page 130 (“Love”). Think also about the themes that you should now be able to identify that we’ve been working on all semester. Note specific places in the book where they appear and mark examples of them in your text.

Presentation by Mislie, Tati, and Nadira

Week of April 24: (Night Class) Def Poetry Jam and Assata

Notes:

• I gave out hard copies of the last written assignment of the semester. Download yours from the assignments page if you missed class. It’s due Tuesday May 8.
• For anyone interested, I’m teaching Intro to Africana Studies (AAS 166) in the fall on Wednesday nights from 6-8:40 PM. Section XW81. Search by my name or the course/section in CUNYFirst. It satisfies the “World Cultures and Global Issues” core requirement and is a gateway to a major (or minor) in Africana Studies.

For Tuesday April 24 the assignment is to watch the Youtube videos of various poets from Russell Simmons’s Def Poetry Jam, which ran for several seasons on HBO. Also read Ben Brantley’s New York Times review of Def Poetry on Broadway.

Questions to think about:

• How does being in front of a live audience change the perception of the poetry?
• In the Pedro Pietri interview I posted, Pietri was critical of slam poetry and thought it relied too much on people’s personalities and being performers–do you agree?
• What do their stories say about the urban experience?
• What, if anything makes them “urban” or ties them to urban themes?
• Lastly, choose 2 poems you like, watch them a few times, take some notes, and be prepared to discuss in class.

Here are the poems. There are several, but they’re mostly short. It’s less than a half hour, total.

For Thursday April 26, read the first 69 pages (chapters 1-4) of Assata: An Autobiography. Be sure to read the foreward by Angela Davis and Lennox Hinds. Also make sure to pay attention to the various poems she includes in the story on pages 1,17,44, and 62.

Questions to think about:

• How effective is her style of storytelling? Does the non-linear narrative with flashbacks make the book more engaging?
• How does Assata go about re-telling history?
• What role do poems play in an autobiography? What do they tell you about Assata or the other people that the regular story does not?

What physical spaces and places does Assata describe in the story? What is the significance of them?

We are not primarily concerned with figuring out guilt innocence here (and in any case don’t have all the court documents to review): the goal is to read her story as we would any other autobiography and focus on how the story develops and how she develops into the person she is today. Look for clues of these things in the story.

Extra: Listen to “A Song for Assata” by Common, from his 2000 Like Water for Chocolate release, featuring CeeLo Green.

 

Week of April 24: (Day Class) Def Poetry Jam and Assata

Notes:

• I gave out hard copies of the last written assignment of the semester. Download yours from the assignments page if you missed class. It’s due Tuesday May 8.
• For anyone interested, I’m teaching Intro to Africana Studies (AAS 166) in the fall on Wednesday nights from 6-8:40 PM. Section XW81. Search by my name or the course/section in CUNYFirst. It satisfies the “World Cultures and Global Issues” core requirement and is a gateway to a major (or minor) in Africana Studies.

For Tuesday April 24 the assignment is to watch the Youtube videos of various poets from Russell Simmons’s Def Poetry Jam, which ran for several seasons on HBO. Also read Ben Brantley’s New York Times review of Def Poetry on Broadway.

Questions to think about:

• How does being in front of a live audience change the perception of the poetry?
• In the Pedro Pietri interview I posted, Pietri was critical of slam poetry and thought it relied too much on people’s personalities and being performers–do you agree?
• What do their stories say about the urban experience?
• What, if anything makes them “urban” or ties them to urban themes?
• Lastly, choose 2 poems you like, watch them a few times, take some notes, and be prepared to discuss in class.

Here are the poems. There are several, but they’re mostly short. It’s less than a half hour, total.

For Thursday April 26, read the first 69 pages (chapters 1-4) of Assata: An Autobiography. Be sure to read the foreward by Angela Davis and Lennox Hinds. Also make sure to pay attention to the various poems she includes in the story on pages 1,17,44, and 62.

Questions to think about:

• How effective is her style of storytelling? Does the non-linear narrative with flashbacks make the book more engaging?
• How does Assata go about re-telling history?
• What role do poems play in an autobiography? What do they tell you about Assata or the other people that the regular story does not?

What physical spaces and places does Assata describe in the story? What is the significance of them?

We are not primarily concerned with figuring out guilt innocence here (and in any case don’t have all the court documents to review): the goal is to read her story as we would any other autobiography and focus on how the story develops and how she develops into the person she is today. Look for clues of these things in the story.

Extra: Listen to “A Song for Assata” by Common, from his 2000 Like Water for Chocolate release, featuring CeeLo Green.

 

Week of 11/14: (Night class) Soledad conclusion and Def Poetry Jam

Announcements:

• Continue working on the paper based on Do the Right Thing (posted on the assignments page) and remember that you can stream the film from the video page. Remember that it is due before the break, even though class doesn’t meet on Tuesday 11/21.
• We start Assata over the upcoming break, so make plans to get your copy now if you haven’t already.

On Tuesday 11/14, [UPDATE: we’ll do this on Thursday because of the cancelled class.] we finish Angie Cruz’s novel Soledad. Read chapters 8-11 (end–page 230) in the new paperback edition. In addition to the points and themes we’ve been tracking all along, consider the following:

• What changes do we see in Soledad’s attitudes toward her mother, Richie, and Flaca?
• How do her feelings towards the Dominican Republic and Washington Heights evolve?
• What is the role of the supernatural or spirituality in the book’s conclusion?
• How do memory and trauma affect the characters?
• What do you think of the conclusion? Is it realistic? What happens to Soledad at the end?

Presentation by Veronica and Angela

 

For Thursday 11/16 [UPDATE: Follow Tuesday’s assignment instead. No Def Poetry Jam! You can still watch the videos on your own though.] the assignment is to watch the Youtube videos of various poets from Russell Simmons’s Def Poetry Jam, which ran for several seasons on HBO. Also read Ben Brantley’s New York Times review of Def Poetry on Broadway.

Questions to think about:

• How does being in front of a live audience change the perception of the poetry?
• In the Pedro Pietri interview I posted, Pietri was critical of slam poetry and thought it relied too much on people’s personalities and being performers–do you agree?
• What do their stories say about the urban experience?
• Lastly, choose 2 poems you like, watch them a few times and be prepared to discuss in class.Here are the poems. There are several, but they’re mostly short. It’s less than a half hour, total.

Week of 11/14: (Day class) Soledad conclusion and Def Poetry Jam

Announcements:

• Continue working on the paper based on Do the Right Thing (posted on the assignments page) and remember that you can stream the film from the video page. Remember that it is due before the break, even though class doesn’t meet on Tuesday 11/21.
• We start Assata over the upcoming break, so make plans to get your copy now if you haven’t already.

On Tuesday 11/14, [UPDATE: we’ll do this Thursday instead.] we finish Angie Cruz’s novel Soledad. Read chapters 8-11 (end–page 230) in the new paperback edition. In addition to the points and themes we’ve been tracking all along, consider the following:

• What changes do we see in Soledad’s attitudes toward her mother, Richie, and Flaca?
• How do her feelings towards the Dominican Republic and Washington Heights evolve?
• What is the role of the supernatural or spirituality in the book’s conclusion?
• How do memory and trauma affect the characters?
• What do you think of the conclusion? Is it realistic? What happens to Soledad at the end?

 

For Thursday 11/16 [UPDATE: Follow Tuesday’s assignment instead. No Def Poetry Jam! You can still watch the videos on your own though.] the assignment is to watch the Youtube videos of various poets from Russell Simmons’s Def Poetry Jam, which ran for several seasons on HBO. Also read Ben Brantley’s New York Times review of Def Poetry on Broadway.

Questions to think about:

• How does being in front of a live audience change the perception of the poetry?
• In the Pedro Pietri interview I posted, Pietri was critical of slam poetry and thought it relied too much on people’s personalities and being performers–do you agree?
• What do their stories say about the urban experience?
• Lastly, choose 2 poems you like, watch them a few times and be prepared to discuss in class.Here are the poems. There are several, but they’re mostly short. It’s less than a half hour, total.