Show:
What the Heck Does That Mean?
Vocabulary
Recalling What We Just Read
Digging Deeper
What Does This Have to Do with Me?
100
At the top of page 106, Covey describes his grandparents' television as "sans remote control." What the heck does that mean?
It means their TV had no remote control. "Sans" is a French word meaning "without" -- but it has been absorbed into American English as a figure of speech.
100
On page 107 (at the bottom), Covey says "we should lament, at least a little, the loss of the front porch." Define "lament."
To "lament" means to "regret": we should mourn or grieve over the front porch's decline in importance in our everyday lives.
100
Covey observes that in many neighborhoods, front porches are now replaced by what?
Garages (p.105)
100
In Chester McCovey's essay, "The Front Porch," what does the front porch represent to him?
Interpersonal connections -- Porches were a place for people to sit and talk face to face, getting to know each other better.
100
State a true sentence about yourself using the word "sans" (as used at the top of page 106).
Example: I would really hate to work so hard for this expensive degree and still be sans job when I graduate.
200
At the bottom of page 109, Scott says, "Everyone resting in that place, under or above the earth, Catholic, Protestant, or Jew, poor or rich, remembered or forgotten, has succumbed to the scythe." What the heck does that mean?
It means no matter who you are, everyone dies. No matter how different we may think we are in life, we are all the same in death.
200
Define "colloquy" (used in the essay's title).
A discussion, conversation, dialogue, or exchange between two or more communicators.
200
Does Covey suggest that we should give up our fancy garages and new-age technology altogether?
No. He says we can have both modern innovations and old fashioned simplicity. We can have both the garage and the porch (p.107).
200
Covey observes that over the years, garages have gotten bigger and bigger. What is the significance of this?
The bigger the garage is, the more room we have for our "stuff" ... But Covey suggests that this may not be a good thing, because we start to prioritize material possessions over human relationships.
200
Give us an example of something you've observed lately that you thought was ironic (see Scott's use of this term on page 109, second column).
Example: Woman was afraid to ride in a boat and avoided boats all her life; and when a family member finally convinces her to take a very short boat ride, the boat capsizes.
300
Midway down the first column on page 109, Scott says, "Class warfare spills into the afterworld." What the heck does that mean?
People sometimes use their grave sites to try to preserve the status they had in life -- causing many cemeteries to be segregated by class.
300
Page 109 (second column, fourth paragraph): "Modern society has a calculated and placated feel to it." Define "placated."
Appeased, pacified, or half-heatedly accommodated by conciliatory gestures (that usually aren't very meaningful).
300
TRUE or FALSE: When Justin Scott wrote "Corpse Colloguy," he was an accomplished English professor at Western Michigan University.
FALSE. Scott was a college student when he wrote this essay -- a Biology major (p.109).
300
On page 107, Covey discusses those people who do sit outside, but who only go the back porch instead of the front porch. In Covey's observation, are these two experiences the same? Why or why not?
He argues that they are not the same, because going to the back porch is still isolating oneself from the world. He says we lose something important by eliminating "the front porch culture" in favor of going to a private back yard or not going outside at all.
300
Covey argues that when we retreat to our computers, televisions, and cell phones, we lose a sense of community. What counter-arguments can be made to refute this claim?
Some would say that we still have community -- it's just a different kind of community. The virtual world is still a world: a unique type of community that has many advantages. Back then, societal discourse took place on front porches, but now it takes place in blogs and on FaceBook (which has just as many benefits as shortfalls).
400
In the fourth paragraph of the second column on page 109, Scott observes that in today's busy society, "we are medicated to be placid and unfeeling..." What the heck does that mean?
He's suggesting that nowadays we move so fast that we don't ever really feel anything. We stress over so many petty little things that we sometimes lose track of what's important and what's just temporary or trivial.
400
Scott says the "testament [of the dead] is spoken to us from within the maelstrom of coffins and gravestones..." (top of page 110). Define "maelstrom."
Pandemonium: A restless, frenzied, disordered state of affairs (example: a maelstrom of traffic during rush hour; a maelstrom of students in the cafeteria)
400
What sorts of people were buried in the "common grave" at the cemetery that Scott observed (top of page 109)?
"The forgotten" -- the mentally ill, criminals, vagrants, etc.
400
Covey notes that his grandparents' televisions had only three channels, they weren't able to travel much, and they had no air conditioning. Obviously, times have changed now. According to Covey, how have these changes affected our behavior and relationships?
Covey suggests that now we are more likely to be out "on the go" or sitting inside staring at the television or computer screen, instead of spending quality time with loved ones away from distractions.
400
At the bottom of page 109, Scott asks, "Do people value their association with a group more than their own identity?" Give your personal opinion as to the answer to this question.
[everyone has a different personal opinion]
500
On page 110, Scott says "More time should be spent learning the dead." What the heck does that mean?
He simply means we should learn from the dead. The dead have no use for material possessions, racial superiority, political differences, or any of the things that keep us apart in life.
500
On page 110, Scott says, "Life is finite, precious, and far too short to waste on arrogant trappings..." Define "finite."
When something is "finite," it has a limit. It has a set amount. Eventually, it will run out. "Finite" is the opposite of "infinite" (where something goes on forever or is in endless supply).
500
Describe some of the details that Scott observed about the cemetery -- not his analysis, but just what he witnessed with this eyes.
The cemetery was called Oakwood, and it sits in the middle of the city. Tombstones of the wealthy were luxurious, while pauper's graves were not. Some gravestones bore the names and ranks of military personnel. Unknown people were buried in common graves. He also saw masonic symbols, insignia of other secret societies, and signs indicating people's religion. There were roads in the cemetery, and they were paved but unnamed. The landscaping was neat and meticulously well-kept.
500
Scott spends most of the essay observing how the cemetery is segregation by class based on the profession, wealth, or status of the people buried there. Then he suggests that this peculiar characteristic of the cemetery is ironic (bottom of page 109). Why?
It's ironic that the cemetery separates people into classes because there is really no difference between any of them: they are all dead.
500
What's the difference between a personal essay (like the ones we wrote last week and the observation essay (like the one I'm going to write this week)?
Our personal essay reflected upon a memory from own past that changed us, that taught us something, or that we see completely differently now. An observation essay examines a common sight, event, location, or occurrence and expounds upon larger revelations we may draw from them.