John

Tiedemann
writ 1122
Blog: 1122world-making.blogspot.com
Email: John.Tiedemann@du.edu
Office hours: TR: 24.
Office: 380U Anderson Academic
Commons

writ 1122: world-making: writing, rhetoric, and reinvention

THE CLASS
This section of WRIT 1122 explores how we make the world anew through language. Drawing upon
ideas from the classical rhetorical tradition, we will examine how writers seek to reinvent the world
that we share, and, through our own writing, well practice some world-making ourselves.
Some of our time will be spent discussing assigned readings and viewings, but most of it will be
devoted to drafting and revising a series of short pieces based upon what the Greeks called the
progymnasmata: i.e., writing exercises designed to give practice in the argumentative, storytelling,
and other writerly skills needed to intervene effectively in public discourse. Students will practice
adapting old tales for new audiences, turning news stories into gripping fictions, applying universal
principles to particular situations, taking stances on public debates, painting vivid pictures in words,
and more.
Students will draft one or two such writing exercises per week, selecting from among their eight drafts
the six that theyll revise and turn in for a grade.
Students will also help one another to develop their work, providing suggestions for revision to their
peers.
At the end of the course, students will write a reflection upon the work theyve done all quarter, thus
demonstrating and consolidating what theyve learned.

TEXTS
Copies of (or links to) all assignments, readings and viewings will be posted on Blackboard or on our
course blog: http://1122world-making.blogspot.com/.
Your own texts are a central element of this class so please bring your laptop to every class
meeting.

GOALS AND FORMAT

Goals

The goal of WRIT 1122 is to teach you strategies vital to writing for in a variety of different situations.
You will be introduced to fundamental principles of rhetorical analysis and rhetorical practice, to
techniques for using readings and other source materials effectively, and to methods for generating,
revising, and editing texts designed to meet specific situations. You will receive sustained practice in
writing, with systematic instructor feedback, resulting in several polished texts, totaling some 25 or
more pages by quarters end.

Class-time

Thinking and composing well take practice, practice, and more practice. So well typically spend
half of our time in discussion and the other half writing. The writing portion of class may involve
responding to a prompt, completing an exercise, drafting or revising, or helping each other to
brainstorm or revise in small groups. You can also expect to spend approximately four or more hours
each week working at home. Finally, because a quality composition results from many revisions, you
will revise each of your projects severally, with guidance from your classmates and from me.

Conferences

Each of you will meet with me individually for two required conferences, to discuss your work. Ill send
around a sign-up sheet the week before the conferences take place. These conferences are
required and youll receive a grade for the preparation you do beforehand. Each conference is
worth 50 points toward your final grade.
Apart from the required conferences, Im also available to meet by appointment between 2:00 p.m.
and 4:00 p.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays. (I can usually find time to meet on Fridays, too.) The best
way to make an appointment to meet with me on a Tuesday or Thursday is to schedule it online.
Please go to http://tiedemann.simplybook.me/ and follow the instructions. If youd like to meet on a
Friday, please send me an email (John.Tiedemann@du.edu) letting me know all the times youre free
that day.

POLICIES

Participation

For each class meeting, you will receive up to five points toward your final grade: up to 2 for the
writing assignment you complete at home up to three for your participation in class discussion.
Homework: All writing assignments are to be posted on Google Drive and shared with me by the
start of class on the day they are due. A student will receive 2 points for posting a complete and
manifestly thoughtful draft of their response to the assignment. (By manifestly thoughtful I mean
clear, coherent, and on topic.) S/he will receive no more than 1 point for posting a draft that is
either incomplete and/or seems to be hastily composed. A student will receive no points should
s/he fail to post and share his or her assignment when it is due.
Class discussion: A student will receive 3 points for the day when s/he makes more than one
meaningful contribution to that days discussion. (By a meaningful contribution I mean a
contribution thats thoughtful and fully elaborated, thus moving the conversation forward and
contributing to our collective understanding of the topic under discussion). S/he will receive 2
points when s/he contributes only once or when his/her contributions arent fully formed. S/he will
receive one point if s/he attends class without speaking up. A student will receive no points if s/he
fails to attend class, if s/he distracts his or her classmates, or if s/he wastes valuable class time
checking email, facebook, etc.

Attendance

As the above indicates, there are no excused absences from class. If you miss class, you will not
receive credit for class discussion for that day.

Late Work

Assignments are due when they are due. Drafts that come in late will receive 0 points and will not
receive feedback from me. To receive feedback on a late draft, you will need to make an
appointment to see me during office hours.

Civility and Tolerance

The Writing Program affirms DUs Code of Student Conduct (http://www.du.edu/ccs/code.html),

which in part expects students to recognize the strength of personal differences while respecting
institutional values. Because writing courses rely heavily on interactions between all members of the
class, students and faculty must act in a manner respectful of different positions and perspectives. A
student who behaves in an uncivil or intolerant manner will be asked to stop and/or formally reprimanded and/or subject to action by the Office of Citizenship and Community Standards.
Becoming educated requires encountering new ideas and information, some of which may conflict
with an individuals existing knowledge or perspectives. I expect students to engage such materials
thoughtfully, in ways that reflect the values and mission of the University of Denver.

Plagiarism

The Writing Program follows the Council of Writing Program Administrators policy Defining and Avoiding Plagiarism, which states, In an instructional setting, plagiarism occurs when a writer deliberately
uses someone elses language, ideas, or other original (not common-knowledge) material without
acknowledging its source (http://wpacouncil.org/node/9). DUs Honor Code also maintains that all
members of the University must responsibly use the work of others. Students who have plagiarized a
project will receive an F on that project, and the professor will inform the Director of Writing and the
Office of Community and Citizenship Standards, which may take further action. Any documented
acts of plagiarism after the first may be subject to more severe actions.

Accommodations for Students with Disabilities

The Writing Program will provide reasonable accommodations to every student who has a disability
that has been documented by The University of Denver Disability Services Program
(http://www.du.edu/studentlife/disability/ or 303.871.2455).

Email

I usually respond to email within a day or two during the week; I check email less often on weekends.

GRADES
Ill give you suggestions for revision and a provisional grade on each assignment draft you turn in.
Youll select six exercises to revise for a final grade (three from the first part of the course and three
from the second). The grade for each exercise will rise, fall, or stay the same depending upon how
effectively you revise it. All final drafts of all six revised exercises are due to me via Google Docs by
noon on Tuesday, March 15.
In addition to grades for exercises, you will also receive a grade for your final reflective essay, for class
participation, and for the work you do to prepare for required conferences with me. Heres the
breakdown:
Revised exercises:
Reflective essay:
Class participation:
Conference prep:
TOTAL

100 points each

200 points
5 points per class
50 points per conference

x
x
x
x

6
1
19
2

=
=
=
=

600 points
200 points
100 points (You get 5 points free.)
100 points
1000 points

And heres the scale Ill use to calculate your final grade for the course:
A
AB+
B
BC+
C
CD+
D
DF

930-1000
900-929
870-899
830-869
800-829
770-799
730-769
700-729
670-699
630-669
600-629
0599

CALENDAR
Detailed descriptions of each days work will appear on our blog: http://1122world-making.blogspot.com/.
W1

T Jan. 5
R Jan. 7

Introduction to the course.

Introduction to Exercise 1: Once upon a time.

W2

T Jan. 12
R Jan. 14

First draft of Exercise 1 due.

Revised draft of Exercise 1 due.
Introduction to Exercise 2: Based upon a true story.

W3

T Jan. 19
R Jan. 21

First draft of Exercise 2 due.

Revised draft of Exercise 2 due.
Introduction to exercise 3: Let us now appraise famous persons.

W4

T Jan. 26
R Jan. 28

First draft of Exercise 3 due.

Revised draft of Exercise 3 due.
Introduction to Exercise 4 due: Picture this (1).

W5

T Feb. 2
R Feb. 4

Class cancelled for conferences. (First draft of Exercise 4 due.)

Class cancelled for conferences.

W6

T Feb. 9
R Feb. 13

Assignment 5 (This I believe) will be drafted in class.

First draft of Exercise 5 due.
Introduction to Exercise 6: Picture this (2).

W7

T Feb. 16

First draft of Exercise 6 due.

Introduction to Exercise 7: I object!

R Feb. 18

First draft of Exercise 7 due.

Introduction to Exercise 8: You be the judge.

W8

T Feb. 23
R Feb. 25

First draft of Exercise 8 due.

Revised draft of Exercise 8 due.
Introduction to reflective essay.

W9

T March 1
R March 3

Class cancelled for conferences. (First draft of reflective essay due.)

Class cancelled for conferences.

W10

T March 8

Revised draft of reflective essay due.

FINAL DRAFTS OF ALL WORK DUE ON GOOGLE DOCS BY NOON ON TUESDAY, MARCH 15.