University:
Louisiana Tech University
Course:
ENGL 102 | Freshman Composition II
Academic year:

2023
Views:

145

Pages:

3
Author:

Cheyanne Irwin

#1 David Sedaris, “Jesus Shaves.” Prompts: - What is revealed about the narrator in this passage? - What, besides the obvious point of the passage, might the author be talking about? In David Sedaris’ story, “Jesus Shaves,” the narrator is faced with both a language barrier and cultural barrier when trying to discuss holidays in his french class. During class time, a Moroccan student asked the teacher to explain what the holiday Easter was, to which the teacher asked the rest of the class to explain in french to the student. After many attempts by various students from different cultures, the narrator decided he would give it a try as well. He said to the teacher “‘The Rabbit of Easter. He bring of the chocolate.’ My classmates recreated as though I’d attributed the delivery to the Antichrist. They were mortified” (24-26). Though the narrator was just sharing how his culture practiced the holiday, his classmates saw him as silly or irrational compared to their versions of celebration. Sedaris clearly showed the reader how language and cultural barriers can bring complications when trying to understand other’s practices, but each way of practice is unique and valid in it’s own way. #2 Barbara Hamby, “Ode to American English.” Prompts: - What is revealed about the narrator in this passage? - What, besides the obvious point of the passage, might the author be talking about? In Barbara Hamby’s ode, “Ode to American English,” the narrator expresses their desire for the American culture, through all of the good, bad, and ugly. The story begins with the author reading an English to French dictionary in Paris, France when they begin reminiscing about the American culture. After listing everything from the doo-wop music and monster stereos rattling their windows, the narrator ends their monologue by stating, “I miss them all, sitting here on my sidewalk throne sipping champagne verses lined up like hearses, metaphors juking, nouns zipping in my head like Corvettes on Dexedrine, French verbs slitting my throat, yearning for James Dean to jump my curb” (42-45). Though the narrator seems to be in this fabulous aristocratic city, all they could think about in this moment reading their dictionary is how much they miss their hometown culture. Hamby’s ode clearly shows the reader that no matter how far you go, there truly is no place like home. - “I “ means the narrator, not the author. - Separate the two. - Set in Paris, France. - It’s an ode, she does miss it while she was in that singular moment looking at an English to the French dictionary. - They miss the good, the bad, the ugly of the American culture. - But if they went back they may see how annoying it was initially. - The narrator is shown in a language barrier situation in class - The Moroccan student probably was not asking a genuine question since she was there to improve her grammar and has been in much french class. Meaning she used her question to chaos in the classroom. - This passage reveals that language barriers can change the understanding of different cultures and show how other countries celebrate different holidays. - Barrier of culture - We tend to be overconfident about our celebration practices, so we may get defensive. - Like when he thought the bell was stupid compared to his practice which is the easter bunny.

Participation Paragraphs Lecture 3

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