WITH THE FIRST DRAFT of your research paper done and the unit on American war literature complete, we are moving on to Ralph Ellison's Invisible Man. The canonical novel tells the story of white entitlement and the invisibility of racial inequity in 1940s America.

Monday

Short lecture on Ellison's novel, the preface, and your thematic annotations. Afterwords, we'll look closely at Auden's "September 1, 1938" from the speaker's perspective.
HW: Read the preface to Invisible Man (IM)

Tuesday

Continuing our discussion of yesterday's poem. Is the speaker an isolationist? Or would he prefer America intervening to stop the spread of Nazi troops? We will then discuss the preface to IM.
HW: Finish reading chapter one (and re-skim it, carefully annotating for the themes we discussed).

Wednesday

In class essay on the American war literature that we've been reading.
HW: Make certain to have read chapter one for class on Friday.

Thursday

We will sign up for writing conferences that begin next week. Reviewing the pre-reading questions. Finally, students will compare annotations of chapter one, and I will lecture on that same chapter.
HW: Read chapter two of IM. Annotate.

Friday

Understanding Jim Trueblood, the history of sharecropping, and white paternalism. What does the dream mean? Why does Mr. Norton give Trueblood $100?
HW: Read chapter three of IM. Annotate. On Monday, we will discuss The Golden Day: institutionalized black war veterans, prostitutes, and a no-holds-barred barroom brawl. Why does the IM bring Mr. Norton from one terrible place to an even more terrible place?