Socratic Seminar Final Reflection (The Grapes of Wrath)

The Socratic seminar really changed the way that I thought about The Grapes of Wrath. Because it is such a long book, I tended to focus on some specific things and overlook others, so it was great to hear about the things that other people thought was important. In particular, I liked hearing about what everyone thought the different characters in the book symbolized, and everyone's different views on the social issues during the time of the book and in the modern world. One thing that someone said that made me think about the book differently was the discussion about the American dream during my seminar. I had never really thought about the American dream before and how it has changed, but hearing my classmates like Nick and Khan talk about it made me realize just how much it has changed from the 1900s to today. The American dream used to be about making a family and finding success; now it's much more about individual success; about how one person can become a billionaire, never mind the other 99%. This adds an interesting dimension to reading The Grapes of Wrath, and it really changed the way that I think about the book in the context of my own life.

I think that I probably agreed most with Ben's statement that there are people in the United States that still live in extreme poverty, even worse than during the time of the Great Depression. A lot of people act like poverty is something that only happens in other countries in regions like Africa and Latin America, when in fact it is something that affects a large percentage of people in our very own country. I think that this is something really important for us to remember to keep our class discussions in perspective-- even though we're lucky enough to have the privilege to sit in a classroom and talk about these things, there are so many people in the United States who are not. The statement I disagreed most with was Max's statement that it is a rare person who won't step on someone else in order to achieve their own personal gains. I think that this might be true for some people, but for a lot of people it isn't. There really are nice people in this world who are willing to help others and get their greatest enjoyment out of seeing their peers prosper, instead of just using them so that they alone can succeed. I certainly hope that the majority of people in our English class don't agree with this statement, because I do not think that using others is the true function of man, and I do not think that it is in any way a necessary part of human nature. One thing that I really wished I could have said during the discussion is that the function of man really does change in times of desperation. However, I'm not sure that this function is always to survive-- because in times of extreme desperation, sometimes surviving is worse than the alternative. If I could have spoken in the second discussion, I would have talked about Beloved, where Sethe is forced to kill her own daughter in order to protect her from what would be an even more terrible death from slavery. This love for a child-- love which bonds together even in times of hardship, love which brings mothers to do the impossible-- is something that transcends even survival, and I would venture to say that this truly is the most fundamental function of man (or rather of woman).

I thought that one thing that worked very well in the seminar was participation. Most people were able to share their views at least two or three times, and all but one person in my seminar circle asked a question to the group. Making sure that everyone participates can sometimes be difficult, especially for a discussion leader. However, I felt as though all of my classmates came prepared to engage in discussion, despite the fact that it was a little more difficult than normal Socratic seminars since we didn't have questions to prepare beforehand. I was impressed that everyone responded as well as they did to the questions that their peers asked, even when they didn't know what they were going to say beforehand, and I thought that it was definitely a clear sign that our class was up to the challenge of a student-guided discussion.

Something that didn't work as well in this Socratic seminar was the mandatory questions. I think that it is definitely a good idea to let students ask their own questions to guide the discussion instead of providing set questions to structure the seminar around. Hearing everyones' different questions really helped me get a new perspective on the book and understand how other people read The Grapes of Wrath. However, I did not feel as though it was a good idea to make it mandatory for everyone to ask a question. This detracted from the discussion because sometimes instead of focusing on answering the questions of others and having a meaningful discussion, people were too worried about getting their own questions out so they could get the points. This often lead to people answering someone's question with their own question, which made it so that there weren't as many interesting discussions about individual questions.

Hidden Realms of the Economy Script

Winter Break Project: Bait and Switch Script

By: Molly Wackler, Trey Babb, Alessandra Hallman, Neilah Rovinsky, and Rachel Page

Anchor: Nine hundred seventeen thousand. That’s the number of Americans today that want jobs but have given up on looking for them. Nine hundred seventeen thousand mothers who can’t buy school supplies for their children, husbands that can’t afford to take their wives on vacation, college graduates who have never known how it feels to hold a steady job. Unemployment is a serious problem for today’s white-collar workers.  

Welcome to NSMRT News. I’m Norman, reporting to you live on the state of today’s economy for middle-class workers. Stay tuned to hear the facts of the unemployment issue and see us talk to a real victim of this problem. Let’s go to Sally for a special report!

News: Hello. Thanks Norman. I’m standing here at the offices of the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, where it has recently come to light that the unemployment rate of 2013 has fallen to 6.7%. Although this statistic is better than the 7% of last month, the January figure was expected to be much lower. Only 74,000 job opportunities were made available in the US, compared to the expected 200,000.

Earlier this week we received other news about unemployment when surprisingly the republicans voted with the Democratic Party’s movement to extend long-term unemployment benefits. Obama recently commented that “nobody wants unemployment checks more than a job,” referring to the fact that congress’ efforts, while well-intentioned, are not a permanent fix to the unemployment situation in the US. Congress’ decision is a step in the right direction, but by no means is this the end. America still needs to find a serious solution to the economic trouble being faced presently. 

Beginning with the economic downturn in 2001, skilled white collar workers have had faced increasingly high levels of unemployment. White collar workers are classified as ‘educated individuals who have qualifications for professional or managerial jobs.’ White collar workers are additionally defined by an average income of 50,000 dollars or more every year. Today, over 20 percent of unemployed Americans are white collar workers. White collar workers who are not employed still face 10 to 12 hour work days, usually including weekends and holidays. The search for a job never stops- those who are unemployed must search for a job continually.

In many cases, unemployed white collar workers have faced age discrimination- being passed over for jobs that go to younger, more able people. Unemployed workers face more than economic problems- the stress of unemployment can often lead to lower self-esteem and feelings of anxiety. Several studies have shown that unemployment has led to higher risk of heart complications. College educated white collar workers often resort to taking retail jobs paying what barely counts as minimum wage. We can only hope the situation improves sometime in the near future. Back to you, Norman.

Anchor: Wow. It’s really sad how many people have to struggle with unemployment. Now we will hear from someone who has been personally affected by these issues. Here’s Nelly with the feature report!

Feature: Thanks Joe. I am currently outside the residence of Miriam Johnson, a young woman who graduated from the University of Wisconsin in 2011. Like many young college students, she was eager to enter the job market and begin her life as a young professional. Unfortunately, Miriam’s expectations were unfulfilled, and she spent a year and a half jobless going to job camps and searching for leads. Finally, in January of 2013 she found a low-paying job in retail, but it was another 6 months before she found the “real job” she was looking for. Three months later, she was laid off. Now back in retail, she feels as though she's returned to square one. Her story mirrors that of thousands of other Americans who have found themselves unemployed and hopeless after years in the job market. Let’s see what she has to say.

Many unemployed people utilize resources such as job coaching, networking, and organizing their days as if they were employed. So, Miriam, what resources did you use during your job search? (Insert Answer).

As a result of being unemployed, many people experience depression and feelings of helplessness and/or worthlessness. How did being jobless affect you emotionally? (Insert Answer).

What do you believe is the cause of white collar unemployment? What do you believe could be done to decrease it? (Insert Answer).

Well, that was hard to hear, but it is the truth that is facing thousands of Americans today. Until next time, this has been Nelly with the Feature report.

Anchor: Thank you, Nelly. Well, this has been one of our sadder broadcasts, but unemployment is a serious problem and it needs to be addressed. To all of our viewers out there that are searching for a job, remember that you aren’t alone. And for all of us that are employed, let’s be thankful for what we have, because there are people who have it so much worse. Until next time, this is Norman signing off.

The Hidden Realms of the Economy

To view video without blog background noise, click to watch on YouTube.

The “Hidden Realms of the Economy” broadcast focuses on white-collar unemployment for middle-class workers in the United States. Trey introduces us to the issue with a short piece about the number of people currently unemployed. The news report by Molly provides statistics about the rate of unemployment and current political debate about the issue. Finally, Neilah goes in-depth with a human interest story about Miriam Johnson, who has personally experienced white-collar unemployment. Trey closes the program by reflecting on the issue and reminding those who are employed to be thankful for what they have.

Chapters 23-27: Family Discussion Reflection

Part I: Research

Topic: Mental health during the Great Depression

Summary: During the Great Depression, some of the people who struggled the most with feelings of depression were those who had to police other desperate farmers in order to make money for their families. This text, written in the modern day, describes the memories of a man who worked as a security guard at the railroad during the Depression and was forced to beat trespassers with a wooden club. The people he saw were broken and disheartened, willing to do anything to get a few more dollars. Such conditions too often made law enforcers into sadistic, heartless givers of punishment, though the subject of the text tried to pass along helpful information to those he saw riding the rails instead of beating them up.

Evaluation: In The Grapes of Wrath, many of the characters struggle with feelings of depression and worthlessness; Ma specifically feels as though the family is falling apart and there is no way to fix it. Characters such as the man at the store in the peach farm closely resemble the text's security guard, who needs to get money but identifies strongly with those he is forced to hurt. 

Citation: 

Richter, Don. "People Broken in Body, Spirit During Depression." Commercial News [Danville] 5 Jan. 2014, Local sec.: n. page. Commercial-News. Commercial News, 5 Jan. 2014. Web. 11 Jan. 2014. <http://www.commercial-news.com/local/x1186904270/People-broken-in-body-spirit-during-Depression>.

Part II: Philosophical Questioning

If you lived during the Great Depression, would you take a job if it meant you would have to hurt others?

How "far" is it ethical to go to take care of your family?

Do you think that being put in a position of power of disadvantage changes the way that a person thinks and behaves? Have you ever been in a situation like this?

Part III: Reflection

The most memorable moment of my discussion with my dad was his answer to the last question I asked. He gave an example of when he was working with his uncle Jack, wh had always be friendly and nice to him-- but when he became his boss, their relationship completely transformed. Jack was much more critical and not as friendly in many ways. I think that this is an important warning of how being in a position of power even for just a short period of time can really change a person's character, and I am not likely to forget it. The most surprising part of the discussion was probably when we talked abut what was ethical to do to take care of your family. My dad brought up the point that form a purely ethical standpoint, you really shouldn't do something for your family that you wouldn't do for other people, because there's no way to know where to draw the line-- it just becomes a complex game of otherization where ultimately those who are different from you are the ones that you don't treat as symapthetically. I had really never thought of this before, and before this conversation I would have said that the most ethical thing to do is to put your family first without thinking twice about it. My dad made me think about what is ethical in terms of relationships with others in a completely different way. However, he also pointed out that family is an important-- some might say crucial-- institution, and part of what holds it together is that family members will treat each other differently from a random stranger. This adds another layer of complexity onto the issue, as ethics is balanced with how to keep civil society as we know it from falling apart. I personally don't think that I have come up with a good answer to this question yet, but I will certainly continue tot try to do so. I though that my questions during this discussion were some of the most thought-provoking that I have had during this assignment. However, the first question was kind of a dead end because it ended up being more of a yes-or-no question than I had envisioned it as. In the future I would make sure to formulate more open-ended questions that I could have a longer and more in-depth discussion about. 

Socratic Seminar Final Reflection (PIA)

The Socratic seminar on the PIA really changed the way I thought about taking tests. I had never considered writing the textual evidence that I used to select my answer choice next to the question in the actual test booklet. Doing this for the seminar preparation helped me think about the justifications for why my answer was right, and overall made me feel more confident about my choices than I had before. I am definitely going to utilize this technique on future PIAs. One specific thing that was said that changed my thinking about the text of Jane Eyre was when Sasha supported her answer for the question about poor parenting with an example of how John Reed's mother pretended not to see her child's bullying. Previously I had only really skimmed through the passage and hadn't completely read this paragraph, so my view of Mrs. Reed was that she was a well-meaning but misguided mother. However, listening to Sasha's explanation made me realize that she was making deliberate choices to overlook her son's bad behavior and her own fault as a mother. This ultimately changed my view of her as a character and of the level of her poor parenting.

I agreed most strongly with Laura's idea that the theme of the Jane Eyre passage was "life isn't fair." I thought that the fact that the summary in the question directly above relates to the idea of life's unfairness was a good indicator that this was the correct answer, although I understand the concerns of my peers about the option "justice is blind." I probably disagreed most with Lina's characterization of Jane Eyre as a "small, meek girl who hides behind the curtains." I think that the text does show that Jane has reason to fear John Reed, but I would not describe her as meek, and I think that doing so belittles her as a character. Just because she is a girl who likes to read does not immediately characterize her as small and meek, and in fact the way she talks about John Reed in the text make it clear that she is a very opinionated and intelligent young woman. This also ties into the question of one thing I would have said that I never got to-- I would have liked to have a discussion about why Jane isn't just a helpless, innocent girl, but an independent young woman, regardless of which summary choice is right. Many pieces of classic literature do degrade women, but that isn't a reason to do it to ourselves even when faced with a character who is more than a cookie-cutter damsel in distress.

Again, I thought that one thing that worked well in the Socratic seminar was the depth of conversation. I thought that we did a good job, especially on the section on Jane Eyre, explaining the rationale behind the answer choices that we gave as opposed to just listing off our different answers. On many of the questions, people shared examples from the text that were not directly related but still helped support their ideas, which is an important piece of analytic thinking that too often goes uncovered on standardized tests. This might have been due to the fact that the text itself (the PIA) was not as heavy as the other texts we have had Socratic seminars on, which allowed students to think more deeply about it and give more informed responses.

Unfortunately, I felt that the "floor" was not shared as evenly between all of the Socratic seminar participants as it was in the last Socratic seminar I was a part of in English. At some points it felt as though the conversation was just going back and forth between two or three people, even though there were plenty more people who seemed as though they wanted to get a word in. In the future, I think that the role of the moderator should be not just to guide the discussion, but to ensure that every single person gets a chance to speak and that one or two people do not dominate the discussion. This might also be a reason to bring back the "halftime" where students get a chance to discuss with the people observing them, which might give them an opportunity to receive valuable feedback about holding back until other people get the chance to share their views.

Excerpts from the Diary of Faye Eggert

Faye Eggert is my great grandmother. She lived in Casper, Wyoming during the time of the Great Depression and maintained a beautifully written diary about her experiences and daily life. Because there is no way to provide a link to her writing in my MLA citation, I am posting some of it on this blog for reference.

The heat flows around me thick and sticky and it is like trying to live in a world with warm clear Karo syrup pouring over your head. Inside an old woman is talking to Aunt Del. They were girls together in Virginia. They mention so many things and so many people. She tells about a visit to California, the best time in her life, when the winter was full of flowers and for two months there was not a day she was not in the car going someplace to see something. I have to smile, California has a sound of its own that I recognize perfectly. It must be a blessed place to have given so many people the time of their lives. She commiserates with Aunt Del on having only one child and that a boy, “I always tell my daughter, who has the two boys, how she missed it- not having a girl. I always say there’s nothing more satisfyin’ than havin’ a daughter.” The maple tree hangs down its branches of leaves in black quietude in the summer night. They are talking of Sally Inglesby, dead many years. Aunt Del says with a shy laugh like a young girl who has been honored beyond her deserts, “I never thought to be here this long.” I can barely see the trumpet-vine now that climbs in the tree of Mr. Feggler’s orchard; perhaps I wouldn’t see it if I didn’t know it was there. The heat is almost suffocating. Aunt Del says “We’ve seen many things, had many times.” There is a wistful remembrance of a lifetime in her voice. The other woman speaks up more firmly, “Yes, we have lived a long time. I know one thing, I’ve had a life of hard work. But I don’t regret it; I was able to do it.” A toad is hopping stealthily across the brick walk back to the garden where March is watering.

They are talking now how the old times have passed. The grand rich crops, the favor of heaven’s rains. So many terrible things are happening. They do not realize perhaps that it is only their strength to contend with the reverses of life that is passing. They are talking how godless people have grown-- how they look for a great change, a terrible “reckoning.” I think they only figure it to themselves so that leaving the world will not be such a hard thing, and life fraught with omen of the wrath of God is not so good a thing that they need hold to it much longer. And I sit here young and somehow filled with the certitude that change is the only thing to be expected and so I feel the foundations of life as sure as they ever were or ever can be. If drought is the succession to fruitfullness then it must be so and God has no special rancor against us.

The drought Faye speaks of in this passage is the same one that the Joads experience in The Grapes of Wrath, which turns the Midwest into a dust bowl and ruins the crops for poor farmers. Although Faye lived further west, she was similarly affected by the change in climate.

As we searched all the hot day for house-keeping rooms, we began to feel bitter and hopeless. We resented the nice big homes we saw. “They could rent a couple of rooms very easily if they liked. Why do people need so much room?” And we came at last to the smoky dirty edge of town to the row of tourist cabins, ashes strewn in the doorways, and corn cobs to burn in the little monkey stoves, the dark cement rooms-- it seemed good enough, it was a place at least to get in, to put your things about, to be alone. 

Sometimes there swells in me a class hatred like a poisoned fever. Today I saw a man come out of his trim English style house with a little wrought iron lantern over the door and grey venetian blinds at the windows, he had the look of a man that smelled nice and he was dressed in soft tweeds. He carried his bag of golf clubs around to where his sleek car waited in a spic and span garage. It was then the hatred welled up in me, because of Martin who never had an afternoon off, and lay in sweat and oil with the sand blowing into his eyes as he struggled with worn-out machinery. Martin who will probably never smell nice or play any game again. 

Martin was Faye's husband; during the Great Depression, she traveled from town to town with him and their two daughters so that he could find work. She spoke of him lovingly but often with a hint of exasperation, as if he was yet another burden who had no time to help her out with family life. One need look no further for an example of a strong 1930s woman.

Chapters 18-22: Family Discussion Reflection

Part I: Research

Topic: Daily life during the Great Depression
Summary: During the Great Depression, many families in the West were forced to move from town to town in search of jobs. Older generations feared that God had left them as some great punishment, while the younger and more hopeful believed that there would be some sort of reckoning and that change was only to be expected. California was viewed by the Western poor as a paradise to aspire to.
Evaluation: The life of my great grandmother, who wrote the informational text, is similar to the life of the Joads in many ways. She moved many times as her husband looked for work, spoke of how idyllic California seemed, and felt a shame for her poverty many times deeper than the Joad family ever did.
Citation: 
Eggert, Faye. Diary. 1936. MS.

Part II: Philosophical Questioning

Did the Great Depression or its aftermath personally affect you in any way? How?
Do you think that poverty is something to be ashamed of? If not, how should it be dealt with?
In times of hardship, do people turn towards God or away? How would you react religiously in a time of crisis?

Part III: Reflection

The most memorable moment of my discussion with my family was learning about the affects that the Great Depression had on their families. I learned that when my mom's dad was young, his family was so poor that when he went hunting for food to feed them he could only use one bullet because they were so expensive. He grew up in Casper, just like my great grandmother, and when he was the same age as I am now he had to work in an ice factory to make a living. It is amazing to me to think about how far he and my mother have come in what is a relatively short amount of time. I have always heard about my grandpa's childhood in numerous family gatherings, but I never stopped to think about how life actually would have been like for him. The most surprising thing about the discussion was my dad's answer to my third question. He said that he thought in times of hardship, people turned towards God-- something which directly contradicted both the empirical examples I had been thinking of and the excerpt from my great grandmother's diary. However, he had been thinking about the question from a different angle: when a loved one in a person's family dies, they often grow closer to the church rather than turn away from it. I was surprised at first when he said that, but after he explained it I understood why he had thought the way he had, and it made me change the way that I thought about the question as well. I think that one thing that made the third question harder is that no one in my family is deeply religious, so our answers are more speculation than actual fact. I think that I could improve my questions by making them more answerable using personal experience. The best discussions I have with my parents are either when they are telling me about the past or when I'm explaining some sort of kritical theory from debate to them. I think that it would encourage more meaningful discussions if I integrated both of these things into my questions more fluidly.