The document provides an agenda and materials for an English writing class, including a terms list, discussion questions about the story "Recitatif", and an outline for an upcoming essay assignment arguing either for or against a statement about racial passing. Students will analyze texts, discuss themes of passing and identity, and begin drafting their essay in class.

1. CLASS 8
EWRT 1B


2. AGENDA
 Presentation: Terms List 2

QHQ Discussion: "Recitatif"

Lecture: Thesis statements, outlining, using
evidence, introductions.
 In-Class Writing: Essay #2

3. TERMS LIST 2
 Ableism: A pervasive system of discrimination and exclusion that
oppresses people who have mental, emotional, and physical
disabilities.
 Ally: A person who supports marginalized, silenced, or less privileged
groups without actually being a member of those groups. This person
will often directly confront and challenge biphobia, homophobia,
heterosexism, racism, transphobia and other systems of oppression.
 Binary Gender: A system that defines and makes room for two and
only two distinct, natural and opposite genders (i.e. male and female).
These two genders are defined in opposition to each other, such that
masculinity and femininity are seen as mutually exclusive. In this
system, there is no room for any ambiguity or intermingling of gender
traits.

4. 
Classism: Bias based on social or economic class.

Critical Consciousness: a process of continuous self-reflection and action to
discover and uncover how we continue to be shaped by societal assumptions and
power dynamics: an essential tool to help us to recognize, understand and work to
change the social forces that shape our societies an ourselves.

Cultural Appropriation: The adoption of cultural elements not in one’s own
culture, without full knowledge of or respect for its value within the original
culture.

Cultural Oppression: Social norms, roles, rituals, language, music, and art that
reflect and reinforce the belief that one social group is superior to anther.

Dominance: The systematic attitudes and actions of prejudice, superiority, and
self- righteousness of one group (a non-target group) in relation to another (a
target group). Internalized dominance includes the inability of a group or
individual to see privilege as a member of the non-target group.

5. In Groups, Discuss “Recitatif”
Consider the questions below.
 What does the title “Recitatif” mean?
 How does the title fit the story?

What does” Morrison’s “Recitatif” have in common with Hughes’s “Who’s
Passing for Who?

What do they share with other works? How are they different?




“Passing” the poem
“Passing” the short story
“The Passing of Grandison”
The Human Stain
 Discuss any other insights into “passing” that you have realized through our
readings or discussions.

6. QHQ Discussion: "Recitatif"
Where do you think the author came up with the idea to name this story “Recitatif”?


7. St. Bonny’s
 Why would Twyla say “my mother won’t like you
putting me in here” when Roberta was assigned as
her roommate?
 Q: Why did Twyla kept on referring to the other
children at the shelter as the “real Orphans”? Why
wasn’t she a real Orphan?
 Why didn’t Roberta’s mother want to shake hands
with Twyla’s mother?

8. Racial Ambiguity: Class Difference?
 Who was the black girl and who was the white?
 Q: What was Toni Morrison’s intention for not
revealing the races of both Twyla and Roberta in the
short story?
 Did the racial differences between the two girls
affect their friendship at all?
 Q: Do children actually classify people immediately
by color at a young age or does society influence
that decision?
 What was the bigger conflict, class difference or
racism?

9. Reunions
 Q: Why did Roberta act like she did not know Twyla at the
diner?
 Q: Would Roberta have acted the same way to Twyla if
she wasn’t with the two other guys?
 Q: Twyla meets Roberta another time while shopping for
groceries. Why is Roberta suddenly more open and close
to Twyla than she was before?
 Why doesn’t Roberta help Twyla when the crowd rocks
her car?

10. Maggie

Q: Why is Maggie such an important character in the story? What is her
purpose?

Q: Why was Twyla and Roberta so concerned with what happened to Maggie?

Why did Roberta make up the lie that both her and Twyla kicked Maggie?

Q: Was Maggie attacked by Twyla or not, who is telling the truth(fact)?

Q: Twyla didn’t seem willing to accept Maggie as black when Roberta had told
her she was, was Twyla also wanting to kick Maggie when the other girls did?
Or was Roberta the only one of the two who wanted to join in?

Q: What race was Maggie?

Q. Was Maggie a metaphor for something?

11. Comparing Works We Have Read
 What does” Morrison’s “Recitatif” have in common with
Hughes’s “Who’s Passing for Who?
 What do they share with other works? How are they
different?




“Passing” the poem
“Passing” the short story
“The Passing of Grandison”
The Human Stain
 Do you have any other insights into “passing” that you
have realized through our readings or discussions.

12. Discussion: Does Passing
Reinforce the social
construct?
Disrupt the social
construct?

13. Reinforcement of Social Construct
 Passing scholar, Leo Spitzer writes that passing was “by and large
a personal solution to discrimination and exclusion. It was an
action that, when accomplished successfully, generally divorced
its individual practitioners from others in the subordinated group,
and in no way challenged the ideology of racism or the system in
which it was rooted. Indeed, because individuals responding to
marginality through . . . passing could be viewed as either
conscious or unwitting accomplices in their own victimization—as
persons consenting to the continuing maintenance of existing
inequalities and exclusionary ideologies—it is certainly
understandable why they often elicited such scathing criticism
from their contemporaries” (Qtd. in Kennedy 11-12)

14. Disruption of Social Construct
 “Passing, however, does pose at least some challenge to racist
regimes. That is why they typically try to prevent it. Fleeing
bondage by passing may have been an individualistic response
to the tyranny of slavery but it did free human beings and
helped to belie the canard that slaves were actually content
with their lot. The successful performance of “white man’s
work” by a passing Negro upset racist claims that blacks are
categorically incapable of doing such work. The extent of the
disturbance is severely limited by the practical necessity of
keeping the passing secret. But under some circumstances a
limited disturbance is about all that can be accomplished”
(Kennedy 12).

15. Writing Essay #2


16. The Prompt:
If passing for white will get a fellow better accommodations on the train, better seats
in the theatre, immunity from insults in public places, and may even save his life from
a mob,” only idiots would fail to seize the advantages of passing, at least occasionally if
not permanently.”
Write an essay of four to six pages arguing for or against William Pickens’s statement.
Use support from the texts you have read so far, our discussions, and your own
insights.
Do you agree with Pickens's statement?
If yes, why?
If no, why not?

17. Your Thesis
Your refined thesis will be your position on
William Pickens’s Statement: Do you agree
with him or not? Why or why not? You may
refer to Pickens or not in your thesis. You may
forecast your reasons in your thesis, or you
may refer to a broader theme and provide your
reasons in the body of your essay.

18. Write a Working Thesis
You can use these as models or examples
Racial passing is a personal decision, and people should seize the
opportunity if they can in order to defeat racism and discrimination.
Passing is a selfish act that reinforces hierarchy in society, and it should
be avoided despite the opportunities it offers the individual.
While racial passing for personal safety is a necessary and acceptable
passing in
behavior, general violates community norms
and reinforces the social construct of racism.
While full time passing violates familial and
community connections and should be avoided,
the wise person will pass part time to take
advantage of the benefits it can reap, including
the opportunities to escape racism and
oppression.

19. Refer to your FREECASH chart. What are your “reasons” for agreeing or
disagreeing with the act of passing? Your reasons should connect to your thesis.
Each one should be a topic for at least one body paragraph. Some reasons will
require multiple paragraph explanations.
 Consider your best support for your assertion.
This will likely be from your brainstorming
using FREECASH.
 Find textual evidence to support your
position.
 Explain how your examples support your
thesis.
 You can also use outside sources if you would
like to, but they are not necessary for this
paper.

20. Building Body Paragraphs

Topic Sentence: This is reason #1 that you agree or disagree. This sentence
should clearly support your thesis.

Textual Evidence: This is an example from one of the texts that we read.

Explanation/Analysis: This is where you explain how your example supports
your topic sentence. You can also draw conclusion from inferences.

Other Evidence: This could be from another primary text, a
secondary text, or from your personal experience.

Explanation/Analysis: This is where you explain how your example supports
your topic sentence. You can also draw conclusion from inferences.

Transition: This section moves your reader from your first body paragraph to
your second body paragraph.

21. Introductions
You never get a second chance to make a first impression. The
opening paragraph of your paper will provide your readers with
their initial impressions of your argument, your writing style, and
the overall quality of your work. A vague, disorganized, error-filled,
off-the-wall, or boring introduction will probably create a negative
impression. On the other hand, a concise, engaging, and wellwritten introduction will start your readers off thinking highly of
you, your analytical skills, your writing, and your paper.

22. Start by thinking about the
question you are trying to answer:
Write an essay of four to six pages arguing for or against William Pickens’s statement:
"If passing for white will get a fellow better accommodations on the train, better seats in the
theatre, immunity from insults in public places, and may even save his life from a mob," wrote
William Pickens, "only idiots would fail to seize the advantages of passing, at least occasionally if
not permanently"
Your entire essay will be a response to this question, and your
introduction is the first step toward that end. Your direct answer
to the assigned question will be your thesis, and your thesis will
be included in your introduction, so it is a good idea to use the
question as a jumping off point.

23. Open with an attention grabber. Consider
these options:
• A provocative quotation: Consider a line or two from one of the texts we
read. Then give some background about passing.
• An intriguing example of passing: Provide a situation or two in which a
person might be inclined to pass.
• A puzzling scenario: Imagine a scene that makes a reader consider the
consequences or benefits of passing.
• A vivid and perhaps unexpected anecdote: Open with a short story about
a successful or failed passing attempt.
• Find common ground with your reader: Offer a contemporary example of
passing (maybe a humorous one, even) and then explain the more
reasons for passing in this earlier time period.

24. 
Avoid statements like "In this paper, I will argue
that racial passing destabilizes the social
construction of race and is therefore beneficial to
society."

While this sentence points toward your main
argument, it isn't especially interesting. It might be
more effective to say what you mean in a
declarative sentence: “Racial passing destabilizes
the social construction of race and is therefore
beneficial to society."

It is much more convincing to tell your readers
that than to tell them that you are going to say
that it does. Assert your main argument
confidently. After all, you can't expect your reader
to believe it if it doesn't sound like you believe it!

25. Introductions to Avoid
1. The restated question introduction: Twists the question to take up space in the
introduction.
2. The place holder introduction: Offers several vague sentences that don’t really say
much.
3. The Webster's Dictionary introduction. This introduction begins by giving the dictionary
definition of one or more of the words in the assigned question.
4. The "dawn of man" introduction. This kind of introduction generally makes broad,
sweeping statements about the relevance of this topic since the beginning of time.
5. The book report introduction. This introduction gives the name and author of the book
you are writing about, tells what the book is about, and offers other basic facts about
the book.

26. Let’s Try to Write an Introduction or Two
 An intriguing example of
passing: Provide a situation
or two in which a person
might be inclined to pass.
 A provocative quotation:
Consider a line or two from
one of the texts we read.
 A puzzling scenario: Imagine
a scene that makes a reader
consider the consequences
or benefits of passing.
 A vivid and perhaps
unexpected anecdote: Open
with a short story about a
successful or failed passing
attempt.
 Find common ground with
your reader: Offer a
contemporary example of
passing (maybe a humorous
one, even) and then explain
the more reasons for passing
in this earlier time period.

27. Possible Outline
Introduction:
Thesis: This will likely be near the end of your introduction
Multiple Body Paragraphs supporting your thesis: The topic sentences of your body paragraphs
(probably situated fairly early in the paragraph) should connect directly to your thesis. You should use the
following rhetorical strategies to support your topic sentence:
define (describe and/or characterize unfamiliar terms, situations, or events)
classify (briefly distinguish between types: full time versus part time or kinds of passing)
exemplify (provide examples from primary or secondary texts)
analyze (explore and/or evaluate, particularly in terms of the connections of the
examples to your reasons or thesis)
explain (give details about) the connection between your example and your assertions.
conclude (provide a logical conclusion for your readers)
Transition (prepare your reader for the next paragraph.
Counter Argument: Anticipate your readers questions or doubts. Will will discuss this in our next class.
Conclusion: We will discuss this in our next class.

28. Writing
Sketch out a rough outline.
Intro: What kind?
Thesis: Write out a working thesis or your refined thesis
Body 1: One of your strongest arguments supporting your thesis.
support/example
Body 2: A second paragraph explaining your first reason.
Body 3: Another reason
support/example
Body 3: Another reason
support/example
Body 4:One of your strongest arguments supporting your thesis.
support/example
Counterargument:
Conclusion:

29. HOMEWORK
 Reading: Begin Stone Butch Blues (1-65)
 Post #12: Post partial draft: Introduction, Thesis,
Minimum three body paragraphs (with topic
sentences, evidence, explanation, and analysis)
 Studying: Vocab/Terms