120 For Instructors: My Antonia
Pre-Discussion:
My Ántonia by Willa Cather
What is home? That sounds like a dumb question, doesn’t it? Growing up, home, for me, was where I lived with my parents and had my own bed to sleep in. As I grew older, I moved off to college, and when I came back to my parents’ home, it still felt like home, for a while. With time, it began to lose that feeling. I grew up in Ohio, went to graduate school in Pennsylvania, yet neither place felt like home during that time. Eventually, I moved to Georgia and spent seven years there. That definitely was not home. Now, in Texas, I can tell you that the house where my wife and I live, where we have lived for several years and have the mortgage payments to prove it, well, that place is not home either.
As you read this novel, you are going to enter the mind of a young woman who is struggling with the idea of place, home, and growing up. My students have loved this novel ever since the first time I taught it. I did not think they would, but it seems like this is the story they like most. Perhaps it is because many of you have left a familiar place, be it home or high school, and you are now living in a place that is different from what you are used to. As you read this text, I want you to think about what places are important to you. That will become key in your essay. You should also think about what makes this novel an “American” novel. It is an American novel written about America by an American writer. So what? I would argue that this novel is very American. What does that mean? That is for you to figure out and think on.
In-class work:
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- Compare and contrast the lives of Jim Burden and Antonia. Explain what drew them together and enabled them to become close friends.
- Besides “place,” what makes this an “American” novel?
- Discussion the importance of nature in the novel.
- Discuss how the city life and the country life are different for Jim. Do you think he likes one life over the other?
- This, in many ways, is in stark contrast to “Maggie Girl of the Streets.” Keep in mind this was published in 1918 and “Maggie” was written only 25 years earlier. What do you make of the differences? What was going on in the world when My Antonia was written (or before) to influence it?
Essay Assignment:
For this assignment, you will be analyzing the text in a way where you talk about what you think the text means and how your meaning changed as you looked at the material presented in class. As you write about what you think the text means, think about the way Antonia enjoyed and wondered about the place where she lived. Place is always important to us. Think about where you are from and where you would like to be. Write about your attachment to place. What place are you attached to? What is so special about this place that makes you enjoy it so much. Be descriptive! Please pull passages from the text and discuss how your life has been similar or different. Finally, discuss which portions of the text influenced you the most.
This essay must be at least 1000 words and no more than 1250 word. You will be graded as follows:
| Superior (A)
25 points |
Good (B)
20 points |
Acceptable (C)
14 points |
Needs Improvement
(D) 12 points |
Failing (F)
10 points |
Not Submitted
0 points |
|
| Essay objective (analysis) | Demonstrates mastery performance and/or skill toward this objective. | Demonstrates above average performance and/or skill toward this objective. | Demonstrates moderate performance and/or skill toward this objective. | Demonstrates partial performance and/or skill toward this objective. | Demonstrates lack of performance and/or skill toward this objective. | Not submitted |
| Grammar and sentence structure | For the most part, the submission is free of grammatical and spelling errors. Sentence structure is sophisticated and varied | Though the submission may have occasional grammatical errors, the errors do not interfere with the reader’s understanding of the writer’s main ideas. Most sentences are properly developed and varied. | There is one pattern of error or many proofreading errors, but these do not cause reader confusion. Sentence structure is adequate, but many sentences lack thoughtful development and variation. | There are errors in sentence structure or other grammatical errors that cause reader confusion. Sentences may be too simplistic and lack proper development. | There are significant errors in sentence structure or other grammatical errors that cause reader confusion. Sentences are simplistic and underdeveloped. | Not submitted |
| Audience and Purpose | The writer demonstrates an exceptional understanding of the subject and shows consideration of the audience (readers). | For the most part, the writer demonstrates an understanding of the subject and shows consideration of the audience, but with the essay may be less sophisticated than a “Superior” response. | For the most part, the writer demonstrates an understanding of the subject and shows consideration of the audience, but one or both of these areas may need attention. | The essay may be weak in either audience consideration or understanding of the subject called for in the assignment. | The essay demonstrates a lack of serious consideration of the audience and shows the writer’s lack of understanding of the subject called for in the assignment. | Not submitted |
| Content and Development
(direct citation of the literature and other sources as needed) |
The thesis of the essay is supported with details and strong examples throughout the essay, as required by the assignment. | There are adequate details to support the main idea (thesis), but more details are necessary to fully understand the writer’s ideas. | More details are needed to fully understand the writer’s ideas. Some examples are unrelated to the main ideas of paragraphs and/or to the overall thesis of the essay. | The submission is on topic, but the development of the response is lacking. The essay also may have problems with tone and/or approach to the assignment. | The development of the essay is very weak and does not meet the minimum expectations of development for a college-level writing assignment | Not submitted |
| Overall Score | 100 | 80 | 70 | 60 | 50 |
