For many people language is as invisible as air. We use it in a constant stream of taking it in and giving it out, unaware that it is something of substance, worth studying for its own sake. Good writers, however, must observe it closely and use it carefully. In order to do so, it helps to have a vocabulary for discussing it.
So we'll start our discussion of language and how writers use it by examining the following twenty key terms: semantics, syntax, metaphor, grammar, convention, punctuation, mechanics (in language), allusion, documentation, citation, voice, trope, linguistics, rhetoric (used as a noun), code, verbal, civility, tone, flow, technology.
For Thursday, February 10, Step 1:
a. Using the sheet entitled "Initial Definitions of a Writing Vocabulary," write a definition for each word, giving your current understanding of the word. Guess if you need to, but include in your definition that it is a guess and why you make that particular guess.
b. Using the sheet entitled "Dictionary-Based Definitions of a Writing Vocabulary," look up each word in a reputable desk dictionary (for example Webster's Collegiate or American Heritage) and in the glossary at the back of our textbook, if the word is there. Compose your second definition for each word, using your understanding of the most pertinent definition you can find after reading its dictionary or glossary entry. Make a statement in this definition about how this word might be relevant to learning about writing.
c. Type and email your two definitions to me (Jan.Cooper@oberlin.edu) as email attachments in Word 6 or above Format by 6 pm Thursday, February 10.
On Friday, February 11, Step 2:
a. I will assign everyone to a small group.
b. The groups will co-author a paper comparing the definitions everyone came up with. This paper should be 2-3 pages long, answering questions like (but not limited to) these: What happened to your sense of the words after you looked them up? How has your sense of each word and its usefulness in discussing writing changed after looking at its dictionary definition? Did the dictionary you consulted or the glossary leave out any important meanings that you recorded in Step 1? How did your sense of the words change after comparing your definitions to those compiled by your fellow group members?
c. One person in each group will be responsible for emailing me the group's paper as an attachment in Word Rich Text Format by 6 pm on Tuesday, Feb. 15.
For Friday, February 18, Step 3: In class we will take a look at all the groups' papers and discuss them.
At the end of the semester, Step 4: We will revisit these definitions to see if they've changed for you after a whole semester of studying writing and how language works in general.