Tuesday- Project Tune

DUE DATES- ON TIME

1. ​Seminar Prewrite. DUE: Monday, 8/29, Start of Class.
2. Seminar Reflection. DUE: Friday, 9/2, Start of Class

DUE DATES- LATE (-10%)

1. ​Habits of Highly Cynical People Annotations/Vocab. LAST DAY TO TURN IN: Friday, 9/2, Start of Class.
2. Syllabus signed by you and parent/guardian. LAST DAY TO TURN IN: Tuesday, 9/6, Start of Class.

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Periods 3 & 4- ALL SENIORS IN COMMONS FOR PROJECT TUNE
Come help us tune our project for this fall!  We need your expertise and input.

Periods 5 & 6- SEMINAR REFLECTION WRITING TIME
​My room will be open for you to work and get help on your seminar reflection, which is due on Friday.

​Seminar Reflection:
Choose any of the seminar questions listed below, and write a 500-750 word response to the question.  Make sure to quote and use evidence from the text.  Feel free to draw on our seminar discussion.  This should be organized in formal academic paragraphs, and proofread before you turn it in to me.  HINT- Write a thesis statement at the top, but don’t worry about writing an introductory paragraph.  Just write your thesis, then jump right into your argument paragraphs.

1. What is Solnit’s definition of a naïve cynic?  What are the two types (see paragraphs 8 and 11), and what characterizes their thinking?
2. In this essay, Solnit offers a number of criticisms of naïve cynicism.  What is the most important/cutting critique she offers?  Why?
3. To what extent is cynicism useful?  Harmful?
4. What kind of thinking habits do we need to cultivate to move beyond naïve cynicism?
5. In paragraph 6, Solnit makes a number of points about complexity, uncertainty, and ambiguity.  To what extent are you comfortable with complexity and uncertainty?  Give at least one concrete example.
6. To what extent are you a naïve cynic?  How much of what Solnit describes rings true to you about yourself?  Explain.
7. How does this article connect to your education?  To your goals this year in Humanities?  To our class values and behaviors?
8. If you have a proposal for a different question to address, please let me know- I am open to this, but I need to approve it before you begin!

HONORS:  You have 750-1000 words.  This is your honors application! You must incorporate one of the additional sources linked below, and write a short essay on one of the following, that draws from Solnit’s essay and your second text:

1. To what extent are you a naïve cynic?  How much of what Solnit describes rings true to you about yourself?  Explain.
2. What are the larger impacts of the mindset of naive cynicism?  In other words, what are the real consequences?
3. How do the ideas in the second text you read relate to Solnit’s ideas?  To what extent do the ideas of the two texts reinforce or build on one another?  To what extent are they contradictory?
4. How can we reduce the prevalence of naïve cynicism?

Additional Resources:

• For 'Millenials,' A Tide of Cynicism and a Partisan Gap
• We Must Fight Political Cynicism in the Media
• Cynicism, Irony, and Politics
• Reconsidering Political Cynicism and Political Involvement
• The Relationship of Entertaining Political News Use to Political Cynicism and Mistrust
• Substance Matters: How News Content Can Reduce Political Cynicism
• Cynicism Isn’t As Smart As We Think It Is
• The Inevitable Cynicism of Youth
• Combating Cynicism