William Shakespeare

English 101:  Rhetoric and Culture Fall 2007 Jefferson Hendricks Centenary College of Louisiana

Edwin Rolfe

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Writing About Cultural Events

A significant part of "English 101:  Rhetoric and Culture" at Centenary College is not only learning to write about ideas as expressed in other writing, but also learning how to write about ideas embodied in cultural events, particularly events in the fine and performing arts.   You will be expected to attend numerous outside-of-class cultural events during your  semester in 101, and also to practice responding thoughtfully and critically to these events.  In Dr. Hendricks's section of 101, you will be asked to do this both in your personal blog for the class (somewhat informally) and in your more formal essay/reviews to be turned in.  

Centenary College offers a rich and varied cultural life that we believe is a significant part of a quality college education, and we expect the members of our community to support and to engage in an on-going conversation about these events and what they mean.  English 101 will help give you the critical tools to articulate with confidence your own thoughts and feelings about what you experience and learn outside of the classroom.   You may be asked  to attend film showings, plays, art exhibitions, lectures, or musical performances.  

Below are some links to help you formulate how to write analytically about a wide range of cultural events.     



General:  

• The Arts as Modes of Communication  --  Lennox Grey
• The Rhetoric of the Popular Arts  --  Irving J. Rein
•  “Art, Philosophy, and the Philosophy of Art"  --  Arthur Danto
• “‘Psychical Distance’ as a Factor in Art and as an Aesthetic Principle”   --  Edward Bullough 
• “Art” --  Clive Bell
• "What is Art?"  --  Leo Tolstoy
  
•  “Of the Standard of Good Taste” --  David Hume

• Writing Reviews of Fine and Performing Arts Events (Part of Essays and Arguments)   --  Ian Johnston,  Malaspina University-College, Canada
• [How to Write]  Reviews  --  The Writing Center,  U. of North Carolina
• Writing Arts and Entertainment Reviews  --  SchoolNet News Network, Canada
• Prewriting Questions for Book, Movie, or Play Reviews  --  LEO:  Literacy Education Online,  St. Cloud State U.,  MN
• A Guide to Writing about [the] Art[s]  --  The Writing Center, U. of Iowa
  
• reviews @  --  The New Yorker
• reviews @  --  New York Magazine
• reviews @  --  The New York Times
• reviews @  The Village Voice  (NYC)
• reviews @  LA Weekly  (Los Angeles)
• reviews @ Pop Matters
• reviews @ Chicago Reader
• Artslynx:  International Arts Resources
  

Film:

• Writing About Film  --  Dartmouth College
• Writing About Film  --  Hunter College  (pdf file)
• Suggestions on "How to Read a Film"  --  Michael Goldberg,  U. of Washington, Bothell
  
• Writing About Film  --  University of Western England, Bristol
• Guide to Writing About Film  --  Metropolitan State College of Denver
  
• Guidelines for Writing About Film  --  Rick Lewis,  Sandhills Community College
• Writing About Films  --  Agnes Scott  College  (pdf file)
  
• Writing About Film  --  George Mason University
• Writing About Film  --  Robert M. Seiler,  U. of Calgary, Canada
• Writing About Film  -- AngliaCampus,  UK
• Writing About Film  --  Langara College, Canada
  
• How to Write a [Film] Review  --  Wutho
• Taking Notes on Classroom Screenings  --  Bryn Mawr College

Theatre:  

• Writing a Theatre Review  --  Emily Carr Institute, Canada
• Writing About Drama  --  Robert M. Seiler,  U. of Calcary, Canada
• [Writing About]  Drama  --  The Writing Center, U. of North Carolina
  
• A Few Words on [Theatre] Reviewing  --  Nathan Cohen
  
• A Five Step Guide to Writing Quality Theatre Reviews  --  Candance Cain,  Associated Content
• Seeing and Hearing Theatre  --  ArtsWork
  
• Curtain Up Writing Guidelines  
• It's Curtains for the Critics  --  AA Gill,  (London) Times Online

Music:

• Writing About Music  --  Robert M. Seiler,  U. of Calcary, Canada
• Writing About Music  --  The Writing Center,  U. of Iowa
  
• Writing the Music Paper  --  Dartmouth Writing Program
• Some Suggestions for Writing About Music  --  James William Sobaskie,  U. of Wisconsin, Stevens Point
• Listening and Responding to Music  --  ArtsWork
  
• Writing in Music  --  Writing Studio,  Duke U.   [pdf file]
  
• Writing Good Sense About Music:  The Art of Listening  --  Andrew Ford,  Lingua Franca
• Writing About Music in a Time of Change  --  Tim Page,  Washington Post  @ The Library of Congress   [webcast]
  

Dance:

• Writing About Dance  --  Robert M. Seiler,  U. of Calcary, Canada
• Guidelines for Writing a Dance Critique  --  David Marchant,  Washington U., St. Louis
• Writing Guide for Dance  --  Gretchen Hildebran and Andreas Burgess, Writing Workshop,  Wesleyan U.  
• Deciphering Dance  --  ArtsWork
• The Philosopher in the Dance Department  --  Julie Van Camp,  California State U. at Long Beach
  
• Philosophical Problems of Dance Criticism  --  Julie Charlotte Van Camp, Ph.D. dissertation, Temple U. 

Visual Arts:

• Writing About Painting  --   Robert M. Seiler,  U. of Calcary, Canada
• Strategies for Looking At, Talking and Writing About Art  --  Meredith Green, Charlotte Country Day,  North Carolina
• Writing the Art History Paper  --  Dartmouth Writing Program
• [Writing About]  Art History  --  The Writing Center,  U. of North Carolina
• Art History Writing Guide  --  Writing Workshop,  Wesleyan U.
• Tips On Writing About Art  --  Marcia Seabury,  U. of Hartford
• Learning to Look/Looking to Learn  --  ArtsWork
  
• Writing an Art Critique  --  Custom Writing.org
  
• Art History Resources on the Web
  
• ArtLex: A Visual Arts Dictionary
  
• Words of Art: A Glossary of Art History Terms