World News 02.23.13

• IRAN: IOC's decision to drop wrestling unites Iranian, American, and Russian teams (NBC Sports)
• NORTH KOREA: Pyongyang promises that the US will "meet a miserable destruction" if joint American/South Korean military exercises happen (New York Times)
• INTERNATIONAL: Winners of the prestigious 2013 World Press Photo contest unveiled (National Geographic)
• EGYPT: Authorities arrest students after posting a Harlem Shake video (Huffington Post)
• CHINA: Government officially acknowledges existence of "cancer villages" (BBC News)
• FRANCE: Shunned in the UK, horsemeat still has many fans in France (Time)

Close Read Essay: War Photography

Below are the photos you may choose from for next week's in-class close read essay. You will be responsible for just one photo. The photos represent international conflicts in Syria, Afghanistan, Mali, and Mexico. Choose whichever photo you like.

Section 1: Syria
A.

A man is treated for wounds after a Syrian government forces jet attacked the Karm al-Aser neighborhood in eastern Aleppo, on October 31, 2012. (Javier Manzano/AFP/Getty Images in The Atlantic)

B.

Syrian residents walk on a street among the debris of buildings damaged by heavy shelling in the southeast of Aleppo City, on October 27, 2012. (AP Photo/Narciso Contreras in The Atlantic)

Section 2: Afghanistan
C.

Children crowd around a coalition force member maintaining security in Farah province, on January 24, 2013. (USMC/Sgt. Pete Thibodeau in The Atlantic)

D.

A victim at the scene of a suicide car bomb attack in Kabul, on January 16, 2013. Six militants—one driving a car packed with explosives—attacked the gate of the Afghan intelligence service in the capital Kabul on Wednesday, setting off a blast that could be heard throughout downtown and which sent a plume of dark smoke rising into the sky. (AP Photo/Ahmad Jamshid in The Atlantic)

Section 3: Mali
E.

A woman who fled northern Mali at a camp for internally displaced persons in Sevare on Jan. 23, 2013. (Fred Dufour/AFP/Getty Images in Time)

F.

A soldier of the French foreign legion wearing a skeleton mask stands next to an armored vehicle in a street in Niono, on Jan. 20, 2013. (Ssouf Sanogo/AFP/Getty Images in Time)

Section 3: Mexico
G.

Relatives and friends light candles in August 2012 to mark the anniversary of the deaths of 54 people killed by criminals. They died in Monterrey when gunmen of the Zetas drug cartel attacked the Casino Royale. (Reuters in The Guardian)

 F.

Chalk circles marked the locations of bullet casings at a murder scene in Tijuana. (Erod Hoagland in The New York Times)

Reflection 03: What's on Telly?—Televison Around the World

Just as American music dominates the world, so, too, does American television. This is particularly true for our English-speaking cousins in the UK, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. In fact, American shows, ranging from Mad Men to How I Met Your Mother have found huge audiences in those countries. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said of their shows in the United States. The American preference for television produced in this country means that programs even from other English-speaking countries have a difficult time finding an audience here. It doesn't help that Americans are often confused by English accents and idioms from other parts of the world. And while some Canadian and British shows have achieved US success (e.g. Degrassi, Downton Abbey), most of the television from these countries is largely unknown to American viewers. For this reflection, watch, then write about three programs (one from the UK, one from Canada, and one from Australia/New Zealand). In your analysis, examine the differences and similarities between our countries, such as tone, language, subject matter, and humor. As you did with international music, consider if the shows you watched have any potential for mainstream success in America. Why or why not?

Look for an email on February 20th with links to the shows.

Note: Broadcasting standards in these countries are different than those in the United States, so you may find more profanity, violence, even nudity, in these shows.

Requirements:

• Be in MLA Style
• Be two full pages in length
• No works cited page necessary for this reflection

Due: Th 02.28

WEEK 05: THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

"My dream is of a place and a time where America 

will once again be seen as the last best hope of Earth."  

—Abraham Lincoln

WEEK 05: THE UNITED STATES

Read: FOREVERS—Part 4: Up and Out; eR—“The Insular American” (Boston Globe), “Leaving Empire: The Risks of American Insularity” (Religion Dispatches), “Outward Bound” (Foreign Policy)

Tu 02.19
Reading discussion, Presentations; Lecture—“On Wordiness: Exercises”

Th 02.21
Reading discussion; Presentations; Lecture—“How to do a Close Reading”
Due: (ANNOTATED) EXPOSITORY ESSAY—INSTRUCTIONS TO BE GIVEN IN CLASS PRIOR TO DUE DATE

UPCOMING:

WEEK 06: KENYA

Read: eR—“Ignorant America: Just How Stupid Are We?” (AlterNet), “Young Americans Geographically Illiterate, Survey Suggests” (National Geographic), “Getting to Know the World Around Us” (Chicago Tribune), “How Dumb Are We?” (Daily Beast), “Afghan Troops Get a Lesson in American Cultural Ignorance” (Washington Post)

Tu 02.26
Reading discussion; Lecture—“The Most Common Grammatical Errors—And How to Avoid Them”
Due REFLECTION 03

Th 02.28
CLOSE READ ESSAY