2 Rules for Giving Feedback

1) Paying attention to details is quite alright, but make sure that as you are reading and writing comments, do not lose focus of the main purpose of the paper.

2) Good ideas deserve praise, but give constructive and positive feedback

-Margaret Neville, Khayla Deans, Nicole James

Group Rules: Camille, Charles, Laura, Kailey

1) Always address grammar and sentence structure.

2) Offer suggestions and explanations for your markings/corrections.

2 Rules for Giving Feedback

1. Try to avoid general flattery and make actual suggestions.

2. Pay close attention to both large and small changes (grammatical changes to overall structural changes, organization, etc.)

-Arlie, Claudia, Cheyenne, Daniel

Feedback Rules!

1)Own up to feedback. BE able to explain your comments and suggestions
2)If you do not understand a comment, ask.

Rules for Feedback - Sterling, Zach, Sarah, Kelsey

Rule #1: Focus on more than what is listed on the draft workshop sheet. Look for grammar/sentence structure/wording problems that could be fixed.

Rule #2: Instead of focusing on topic sentences that are already there, look for where they are lacking.

Rule #3: General flattery is nice, but not helpful. Make specific references.

Unit 1 Thoughts

I felt that the draft workshops were very helpful and insightful. They certainly helped our group connect our papers by seeing what the other members were writing about and what direction we are each headed in. I realized that some of the information in my paper was not relevant to the overall subject of Harper's Weekly.

Jackies feedback definitely helped my reevaluate my work and her comments were very helpful. After reading Kenans paper, the three of us agreed on what our intro to our introduction was going to be. I have enjoyed getting to know my group better and I think all of us are developing our research skills and learning how to connect our research to the intent of our paper.

Unit 1 thoughts

At first, I thought that this project was going to be horrible. I am not used to group projects, and especially not group essays. I was terribly afraid of how this would come together. Actually I'm still apprehensive that it may not. I did like that we had deadlines for each part of this, so that we were not feeling around in the dark to compile 10 pages of three or more peoples' thoughts the night before it was due.

I liked the draft workshop period in class and being able to revise it in class. I have a class right after English, so my brain would shift gears and I would lose focus on my peer's suggestions for my draft. I thought that sometimes we did not have enough time to finish some of the requirements by the set deadlines. I liked having class time to discuss problems, and I liked having a conference to go over problem spots in our group outlines.

UNIT 1

In unit 1 I uncovered my strengths of reading and analyzing. When asked to read a certain amount of submissions I found it very difficult to retain a lot of the information. Due to some of the submission that were written in some older English it was also hard to comprehend. I did though find the topics I read interesting though some of them were difficult to understand.

What I disliked about the project initially was the assignment itself. I am still finding it difficult to piece everything together. Im hoping this weekend I can meet with my group members and figure everything out. Im hoping to succeed in this unit because I do think there are many interesting topics however Im not sure if that will happen.

Harper's Introduction Project

I believe my group and myself are progressing very well at this point. We suffered from confusion at the beginning of the project, we were not sure what exactly an introduction was, and we did not know what was supposed to go in ours. But, with Kelly's help, we have progressed very well!

I did not really like the idea of this project to begin with, but after getting into the project I realized that it is really helping my research skills, and it is helping me familiarize myself with different genres and different writing periods. I am very proud of my work thus far, and my groups, and I feel like we have all learned a lot!

thoughts so far

I went into this project very apprehensive of how it was going to work out. I've never written a group paper like this before and it seemed like it was an impossible task that was going to take over my life for a few weeks. But it has actually been nothing like what i anticipated. For one I feel like my group gets along and works really well together; there are no personality, power, or work conflicts and I really like everybody. Also, I thought the issue of Harper's that we read was really interesting and the research that it lead me to was more like exploring my curiosity than doing work for class.
I guess we haven't finished the project so things still could go drastically wrong. But so far the unit has gone really well and has been interesting as well as work. It has been manageable with all my other class work. Pulling the whole thing together may be a little difficult in making sure that it flows well, but hopefully that will surprise me in going really well just like the rest of the project so far.

Reflection on Unit Project

Thus far, I am enjoying the unit 1 project particuarly because of my groupmates. I believe I have a good group who knows how to work together and express to each other effectively. I was a bit nervous when I learned that we must write a ten page criticial introduction together as a group. My first thought was, "wow, ten pages on Harper's? Will we have enough to say to stretch the paper out into ten pages?" Secondly, I was hesitant in working in a group setting where we all have different ideas and styles of writing. However, I am now confident that our unit project will be a success.

By reading an 1850 issue from Harper's Magazine, I learned more about the culture and current news of America and the world in the mid 19th century. It is interesting to read magazines as a form of entertainment in the 1850s and compare them to our magazines today. I am also learning how to write a critical introduction which is a very important skill when writing in the humanities as well as other academic fields.

Unit 1 Project

While I was definitely skeptical of group work in a college level course, I have been surprised at how well it has gone so far. My group has worked extremely well together, with each person doing what they were supposed to do and being open to change based on what suits the group most. However, I have still found difficulties in writing a 10 page paper collectively. While I think my group has done a very good job of smoothing out as many of the common problems as we could, there is no escaping the fact that four different writing styles are going into one paper. And no cooperative group member wants their section of the paper to outweight, or underweigh, the parts of other group members.

I have enjoyed working in the same group, and am very pleased with the fact that we will keep the same group for the remainder of the semester. I think by the end of the semester doing group work, group projects, group papers, etc. will be much easier as we will have had several months to adjust to one another and become comfortable offering advice and criticism. I was not looking forward to completing this project after reading my section of the Harper's issue we were assigned, but I have actually enjoyed the project, especially the research and the writing, aside from the initial reading assignment. I feel that the project adequately appeals to several types of people and learners. Overall, I have no major complaints about this project.

Critical Introduction: Reaction

In learning about the literature of the mid-nineteenth century America, this critical introduction has made me really knowledgeable about the nineteenth century in general. Almost like going through an American history course, this assignment has made me research the time, the people, and the style of writing. In my critical introduction I am looking into the different and most important publishing companies in America of the mid-nineteenth century. . A particular article, “Literary Notices,” describes the famous literary pieces of the time and their publishers. Ticknor and Fields, W.A. Townsend and Company, and Harper and Brothers, were all prominent publishing companies of the mid-nineteenth century that played a significant role in keeping the literate American population informed by publishing literature by the most famous authors of the time. Many times, the novels published would foreshadow the eminent Civil War that was to come two years later.
I think I have enjoyed this assignment because it has refreshed my memory regarding the Civil War of 1861 from a different perspective. One is usually taught about the Civil War through the facts provided by history textbooks. This assignment, however, has given me a more personal perspective on the war. By reading excerpts from the novels listed under the "Literary Notices" article in the March, 1859 issue of Harper's New Monthly Magazine, I can tell that most of the major novels of the time were mainly about the main concerns of the time. The main concerns revolved around discrimination and the inequality faced by the different ethnic groups. This assignment has been very informative.

Unit 1

So far, the unit one project has been a good experience. I really enjoyed being exposed to Harper's New Monthly Magazine. I learned that the styles of writing have changed a lot since the mid 1800s and also that as technology has evolved, the purpose of the magazine in society has also changed. Harper's New Monthly Magazine was largely a source of entertainment for people. Today we have television and ipods but in the 1800s literature was one of the few forms of entertainment.
I also enjoyed being able the connect some of the current events to the articles in the newspaper. This involved research which was oftentimes a time consuming a frustrating process, but nonetheless it was valuable experience that I'll use in all my other classes in the coming years. Group work, so far, has been a very rewarding experience. My group has worked very well with each other and I believe we've all benefited from eachother in this short period of time, so I have a good feeling about our future projects together.

Reaction to Unit Project

So far I think the first Unit Project has gone well. My group was assigned the September edition of Harper's New Monthly Magazine from 1861. Learning about the magazines of that time has been interesting and beneficial because it shows how journalism has changed from that era to that of today. However, some of the articles that I had to read for the assignment were not particularly stimulating. Some articles were very lengthy and dry, therefore it was a struggle to read them and then summarize them.

The actual writing of the critical introduction has been an interesting experience. Initially, when the project was introduced, I was puzzled as to how four people could collectively write a 10 page paper. But the process has been a lot easier than expected. The division of work and discussion of possible topics was smooth. I found the draft workshop helpful. However, I felt I wasn't as helpful in critiquing other peoples papers as they were to mine. I'm interested to see how the final product turns out.

Unit 1

In this class so far we have split into groups and each group has done a few different things with their assigned issue of Harper's Monthly Magazine. Initially, we had to split up the articles between the members and each summarize the ones that we read. Now we're working on writing a 10 page critical introduction of our issue within the group. Each member has to contribute 2 or 3 pages that addresses certain themes or concepts that they were decided on in the group.
I've really enjoyed working in a group so far and I found the workshop to be extremely useful. The only part I didn't really care for was reading the articles and writing the summaries just because it was a lot of reading to do in a little time so my summaries may not have been that great. I've also learned how to write a memo which I know will come in handy so that was interesting and I liked it.

Unit 1

My group was assigned the June 1855 issue of Harper's New Monthly Magazine for the Unit 1 Project. I have enjoyed this project because it has enabled me to have a look into what life was like in America in the 1850s. The history aspect of the project has definitely been interesting as well as just being able to see the laws and regulations being created in 1855 that are still around or have been nullified today. Our group has also done well splitting up the work and working together despite the difficulties of writing a ten-page paper together.

The only negative aspect of the project so far has been the uncertainty of what exactly everyone in the group is supposed to do to make the paper mesh as it should. Everyone has done a good job writing their own respective sections, but we all seem to have different writing styles. It will be interesting to see how the finalized paper will look to see if our styles do indeed match up well together.

Unit 1 Project Thus Far

So far in class, we have worked on a Unit Project focusing on articles in Harper's magazine. Each group was assigned certain dates that the articles were published. My group was assigned a July 1850 issue. I really have enjoyed reading the articles in Harper's magazine. I really liked it because the articles covered a wide variety of topics. Another thing that I have really enjoyed while working on this project is working with my groupmates.
While working on this project I have learned to write a memo. I did not know how to write a memo before taking this class. Memos are a very useful thing to learn. Another thing that I have learned is about Harper's Magazine. During the Unit 1 project, my groupmates and I were researching about the 1850s and what was occurring in America during this time. I have really enjoyed learning these new things.

-Margaret Neville

Doing this group project with Harper's Monthly Magazine has been challenging but a good learning experience as well. Having the group work on together broke up the amount of work and allowed for us to critique each other in order to improve each individual's work. It has also been a good experience learning how to incorporate different writing styles and different subjects into one piece of work. The strict deadlines for each aspect of the project have been very helpful and beneficial in keeping the group on schedule, something that may be very difficult to do with out guidelines. I've also learned how to take something like this magazine that may not be particularly interesting or relevant to my life today and find bits and pieces to expand on in order to bring meaning and some excitement to what we are studying.

The challenge of working in a group is finding time outside of class to get together and work on our project. People's schedules clash, and you have to work around others, rather than just yourself. Working in groups also requires you to be much more open minded, and sometimes forces you to make decisions and changes in your writing that you may not have made on your own. Overall, I think the biggest challenge of this project is finding a way to create a sense of unity between the different pieces of work in order to create a final product that is logical and easily flows from one subject to another.

Unit Project Reflection - Sterling

The group project on Harper's New Monthly Magazine so far has been a good way for our group to get to know each other and to see everyone's work methods. One positive thing about how the project is set up in general is that the particular deadlines keep the group on pace to ensure that it is not put off until last minute. The editing process including the Draft Workshop that we did in class on Tuesday has been helpful. In my first rough draft, my thesis did not completely reflect the body of the paper because while I was writing and finding new research I just included those points in the paper without going back and inserting them in my thesis. After having it reviewed by a couple of people in my group and receiving their feedback, I was able to revise my thesis to make it more focused on my paper.

Reading Harper's I was not particularly interested in the articles, and wouldn't see myself reading leisurely. However, after doing outside research on the historical background and the purpose behind Harper's, I have acquired a new appreciation for the magazine. I knew that this was a general-interest magazine that aimed to educate the intellectual reader. However, after reading a few articles on Harper's, I have learned that women were the main target audience. This is because women have the social responsibility for nurturing the future of America. Harper's wanted a foundation for these women to become educated, in a time where opportunities for education were unequal. Every article in the magazine had a distinct purpose to expose its readers to a diverse range of topics from politics, pop culture, fashion, fiction literature, etc. Also, our group's particular issue, September 1861, has a strong connection to the time. This was the beginning of the Civil War, when the social and political atmosphere was as tense as ever. Our group is focusing on this connection to the war, which is seen in the inclusion of articles that allude to war. Overall, the project has been educational and a good way for the group to collaborate. Since we have been keeping up with deadlines and discussing our project as a group, I do not think that it will be too stressful once the due date rolls around.

Draft Workshop & Unit 1 Project - Kailey

I really enjoyed our draft workshop today. While I have done peer editing before I've never done a structured draft workshop like we did today. I felt that it was very effective and helpful, especially since the paper we edited was part of a group assignment. I know for my group, the draft workshop really helped to clear up some fogginess we had concerning the tone and styles of our individual papers. It also gave us an idea of how we can connect each of our individual papers so that the entire introduction meshes and flows in a logical order.

For me personally, the workshop helped to better organize my paper and kept me focused. I had a clear thesis statement and made logical points but they were a bit out of order and one needed more supporting details. These are things that I know need to be in the paper, and that I thought I had included, however, after talking with my group it was clear that there was some ambiguity that made sense in my head but not to the readers.

My favorite part of the draft workshop was having the opportunity to correct my errors right then. By the time I've gone to my next class, hit the gym, and had dinner I usually forget all the little things my editor has said, especially the small tweaks that I forget to write down because I think I'll remember them later.

Overall I felt that the draft workshop was very effective and extremely helpful. I can't think of anything that I didn't particularly like :)

As far as the Unit 1 Project goes I'm surprisingly enjoying it (as much as one can enjoy homework). At first I was nervous about doing group work but it has gone really well in my group. I feel that we all get along really well and so far that everyone has equally contributed to our project. Content wise, I really found Harper's New Monthly Magazine interesting. I am one of those "math and science" kind of people so at the beginning I didn't think I'd like reading historical documents and journals. Harper's has surprised me in that I can read it similarly to the way I's read magazine articles from today. So far I have enjoyed this unit project and working with my group mates!

FD vs HW

From this critical introduction, I gathered information of the life of Federick Douglass from the perspective from himself from his own autobiography, and other authors who have wrote their own biography on him. The critical introduction is written like a biography, explaining the pivotal events in Douglass’s life living as a slave. The man difference between Harper’s and this authors critical introduction is detail.

FD vs. HW- Taylor Bridgers

The summary of the autobiography, the Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave has many different elements compared to the introduction for Harper’s Weekly. Frederick Douglas’ introduction specifically outlines the book from day one of his enslavement, to his escape, and even alludes to the aftermath of his freedom. This summary contains specific quotes and examples from the book and provides a reader with explicit information from the book itself. Harper’s Weekly obviously contains a lot more information and many different types and genres of work, so therefore it would be nearly impossible to summarize an entire magazine that is not completely related within itself. The Harper's Weekly introduction is a lot more vague and goes on to describe the effects that the magazine has specifically on its readers. The purpose for Frederick Douglas' autobiography is somewhat more obvious than the intentions and audience for Harper's Weekly Magazine. The tone of Frederick Douglass' book is very serious, yet inspirational and endearing all at the same time. Although it is not intended to be a solely informational piece of writing, it does present readers with an array of information about the life and times of a slave.

FD post

The introductions to Harper's New Monthly and Frederick Douglas's Narrative differed greatly. I felt that the information presented in the latter was more of a summary of the work rather than a true introduction. The introduction we read last class was much more a "critical" introduction in that it explained the motives of the magazine, as well as gave background information on why and how the magazine was started.

The tone of the Frederick Douglas introduction is explanatory and informal. The introduction is mainly a summary of the work so that creates an explanatory tone, telling the reader what the work was about. The writing was also fairly informal. The writing style was not exceedingly academic and straight to the point. "Fluffy" language was not used.

Narrative of Frederick Douglass: An American Slave

This critical introduction to Frederick Douglass' narrative summarizes the book's content and what the reader expects to encounter throughout it. "Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, An American Slave was published in 1845, less than seven years after Douglass escaped from slavery." The summary describes the autobiography, its success, and cites quotes directly from the book to give the reader a more precise feel of what is to be expected. Frederick Douglass, one of the few slaves that was fortunate enough to learn how to read and write, writes about his struggles as a slave. While telling his story, Douglass frequently mentions that the struggles he encountered were very common among the other slaves as well. In doing so, Douglass' autobiography helps the audience understand what the world of slaves as a whole was like. The narrative also highlights events in American history, which makes it a primary source of information regarding the time of slaves in America.

I believe that part of the reason why this autobiography was so successful was because it targets a wide demographic. Anyone who can read, who is interested in history and who is interested in learning about the struggles of slaves in America, would enjoy this narrative. Furthermore, unlike history textbooks, which provide the facts about the time, this autobiography would offer a more personal, more detailed, in depth, view of this time in history.

Frederick Douglass Intro

The introduction to the autobiography of Frederick Douglass was similar to the introduction the Harper's Weekly magazine in its background information. Both articles gave basic information on why the authors decided to create their respective works and gave the life stories of the authors. However, the Douglass introduction spent more time discussing Douglass' life than the magazine introduction spent on the stories of the Harpers due to the fact that Douglass' narrative was about his life.

The tone of Frederick Douglass' introduction was more formal than the tone of the Harper's Weekly introduction as it discussed the life of Douglass in a serious manner. The Harper's introduction was much more conversational and dealt with feelings more than facts.

Critical Introduction: Harper's vs. Douglass' Narrative.

The introduction to the Frederick Douglass's narrative was a lot different from the critical introduction that was offered for Harper's magazine. The introduction for this narrative was basically a summary of what was about to be read. It also filled in some things that may not have been included in the narrative regarding Douglass and his life. The paragraphs were clusters of quotations that gave the reader a preview of the main ideas and events that were going to be in the narrative.In the critical introduction to Harper's, it was a lot different from a summary. Since Harpers was a group of many articles that differed greatly it would have been difficult to summarize everything that was going to be presented to the reader. Instead the critical introduction focuses on why the information that is about to be read is important and hints about a few of the recurring themes that will be seen throughout the magazine. It never goes into specifics as the narrative does, though.
The tone of the introduction to the narrative is almost story-like. It is not very formal or insightful. Although, it does offer some conclusions that are drawn from the excerpts of the narrative that are presented.

Sarah Sawyer

Narrative-Douglas

The purpose of this summary is to inform the reader about the contents of "The Narrative". The summary tells how Douglas came to write the autobiography and gives a brief description of his life. This summary is different from other intros that we have read because it is not trying to sell the book to the reader. "The Narrative" is a classic and the summary is used to inform the reader of what he/she can get from the book, as opposed to what the book can give to the reader.

The author of the introduction to the Narrative of Frederick Douglass focuses much more closely on specific events and details throughout the book, and essentially provides the reader with a timeline of Douglass' life. On the other hand, the introduction to Harper's was much more broad and did not include the amount of detail as this one, most likely because of the immense size difference between the two. The tone of the author of the Frederick Douglass introduction was very casual and easy to understand, considering he or she was essentially summarizing the important events of Douglass' life. The subject matter of the two pieces of literature should be taken into account while considering the different writing styles of the two introductions, because it would be impossible for an author to summarize Harper's as closely and specifically as Frederick Douglass' Narrative. Personally, I found the introduction to Frederick Douglass to much easier to understand, and thus a more affective introduction for a reader to understand clearly what the book contained. The introduction to Harper's on the other hand left the reader with a more open ended and less clear cut idea of what the piece of literature would be about.

Narrative of the Life of Fredrick Douglass - Kailey

The introduction to the

Narrative of the Life of Fredrick Douglass

was very conversational and informative as should be. It gives information regarding the author's background, events of the time, and outside views and opinions on the narrative however, it is mostly a summary. It's progression is much like that of the introduction to

Harper's New Monthly Magazine.

The introduction starts by explaining what the piece is about, why it came about, and a little about what is going in society at the time. Harper's introduction gave more information on other author's, writers of the time, etc. but this was expected due to the nature of the magazine. The Fredrick Douglass introduction was quite a bit more casual and the vast majority of it consisted of a summary. In our introduction I think that a combination of the Douglass introduction and the Harper's introduction would best fit our needs based on the piece that we're introducing. Our introduction needs to be conversational enough to reach today's audience and keep them interested and engaged but still needs to be informative so that the audience can understand the importance of American history and the society at the time.

Critical Introductions

In the critical introduction to Frederick Douglass's Autobiography, the author provides a long summary of events that occur within the story and provides a couple of connections to historical events. This is much different from the critical introduction to Harper's New Monthly Magazine we read last class. The critical introduction to Harper's went into amazing detail describing the history of the magazine and the four brothers who made it as well as providing a list of topics one might find to read about. The author, while presenting facts also gave his opinions on certain topics such as the intended readership of this magazine. The critical introduction to Frederick Douglass had no opinions, just a summary of the narrative, perhaps in order to appeal to a less scholarly audience.
In the critical introduction to Frederick Douglass's Autobiography, the tone of the writing is very neutral. The author was not trying to entice readers into reading the story based on his own interpretations of the narrative, but rather wanted the readers to read the narrative based on what the story was about.

Frederick Douglass Narrative blog - Sterling

The Summary of the Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass gives a brief description of his life in connection to American History. Although his story, as he claims, is not unique compared to the lives of other slaves, this narrative provides insight to today's generation of the hardships of African Americans at that time. In comparison to the introduction to Harper's, this narrative by Frederick Douglass strikes emotion within the reader; sympathy for what he went through as a slave, and pride for how he overcame such oppression. The tone of Frederick Douglass' narrative does not make him sound like he was the only one who experienced such hardships. He uses his story to speak for all of those who did not have the opportunity to learn and share their experiences themselves. This contributes greatly to the understanding of American history.

The Harper's introduction covers a wide range of topics which outline the main purpose of the magazine, which is to educate intellectual readers on a breadth of many diverse topics. Douglass' narrative focuses on one main theme - how a man was made into a slave, and then how a slave was made a man. This personal narrative is inspirational and might typically attract more modern readers. I was more interested and entertained while reading this narrative than I was while reading Harper's.

Frederick Douglass' Narrative

Well, to begin with, the introduction to Douglass' piece is much shorter and to the point than the introduction to Harper's. The introduction to Douglass' piece includes a broad outline or summary of what is going to occur in the piece and includes background information not included in the piece in order for the reader to understand Douglass' story better. In the part of the introduction we read to Harper's, the part only includes background information and a bit of history, it does not yet include a summary of what is to come. This, is most likely due to the length of the compilation of Harper's Magazine compared to that of Douglass' biography.

In the introduction to Douglass' narrative the author very apparently supports Douglass' position and his feeling. The author uses language that praises Douglass, and condemns his captors.

Critical Introduction on Frederick Douglass' Narrative

Patrick Horn's critical introduction for The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass discusses the significance of the escaped slave's autobiography and the impact it has on American history. This critical introduction is a detailed yet brief summary of Frederick Douglass and his journey to freedom. Surprisingly, the writer focuses primarily on the plot of the narrative rather than the literary elements and rhetorical strategies that Douglass is famous for using. The critical introduction for Harper's Magazine did not summarize as much. This may be a result of having an array of subjects to write about, as opposed to the single subject of Douglass' life. The tone for both critical introductions are informational because they tell the reader what to expect in each writing. There is also a sense of excitement as the writers discuss the each work.

Frederick Douglass Critical Intro

It is interesting to me that the critical introduction to Frederick Douglass' autobiography is pretty much just a summary of the book and therefore a summary of his life. It doesn't provide any kind of analysis of the subject matter, only a re-counting of it. There is no talk of Douglass' language or rhetorical strategies and almost no discussion of how he interacts with the reader. For an autobiography it makes sense that most of the information in the intro is historical background, but I feel like the writer could have included some other information. In the intro to Harper's, which I have to admit I haven't finished reading yet, they also provide a good amount of historical context, but they also include other information about the magazine itself and the articles within it.

The tone of the writing in the intro to this autobiography is sympathetic and praising, but not overly. It seemed that in the Harper's intro the writers were really pushing the founders of the magazine up on a kind of pedestal. Well, it wasn't that severe, but they were praised a lot. The writer of the Douglass intro is appreciative and respecting of everything that Douglass accomplished and seems to have a lot of respect for him and is trying to convince the reader that they should too.

Frederick Douglass - Introduction

The inclusion of quotes from the actual text were the first thing that stuck out to me in the introduction to Frederick Douglass' Narrative. The introduction we read last week about Harper's New Monthly Magazine did not include direct quotes from the text. In my opinion, the inclusion of quotes made this introduction much more interesting than the Harper's introduction. However, I think that the quotes also resulted in the introduction closely resembling a summary as the quotes work to tell the short version of the story from beginning to end. The Harper's introduction focused on the history of the magazine largely and why the magazine was so successful (reputation), with ultimate hopes of creating readership. The introduction to Frederick Douglass' Narrative focused on the story and the content iteslf hoping that the plot would lure the reader to continue.

The Harper's introduction had a much more formal tone than the Frederick Douglass introduction, due partially to the differences in information included in the two introductions. The Frederick Douglass introduction feels largely like a short story, which typically are easy to read and fairly entertaining. The Harper's introduction was more informative and used more formal language to reflect the reputation of the magazine, which is publishing pieces with literary merit. Also, the tone of the writing of Frederick Douglass' introduction can also be described as colloquial because it is so easy to understand, which in the case of telling a story is a positive. The tone is also inviting to the reader because it tells the main points but leaves out enough details to make the reader want to know the rest of the story, accomplishing the typical goal of an introduction.

The Life of Frederick Douglass and Harper's Magazine Introduction

Both the "Summary of Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass" and the Introduction to Harper's Magazine called "Hazards of New Fortune" provide the reader with information regarding the reading material. But in the summary of the Life of Frederick Douglass, the information that is included is used to make the reader become more aware of what Douglass went through in his life time. The tone of this summary shows determination and a sense of reality and hardship. It is used to appeal to the readers and inform them of the experiences that many people had to endure during a time of slavery.
The introduction of the Harper's Magazine by Lewis H. Lapham, is also informative, but it provides information about the makers of Harper's magazine and what sorts of stories and writings that Harper's Magazine may include. The tone was amuzing, and not as deep as the Douglass introduction.

-Margaret Neville

Outline from Khayla, Margaret, and Nicole

· Leigh Hunt

-(who was this person?.....) author’s biography

-what did he write? (themes)

-why was he famous (why was he picked for Harper’s?)

· Events occurring in 1850s

-America’s relation to the world (international relations)

-“A Paris Newspaper”

-“Ignorance of the English”

-education

-tensions leading up towards the Civil War

· The atmosphere, did it affect the tone and writing of the authors

-“Peace”

-“The Uses of Sorrow”

· Family

· The Miner’s Daughters

· Death of an Infant

-role of women in the family in 1850s

-typical family

· Traveling

· Scenery of the Erie Railroad

-feeling of movement (railroads, canals, steamboats, etc…)

outline

I. History/ world affairs
A. Global Expansion
1. Cuba
2. Vasco de Nunez
B. Imperialism
C. Confederate Army
1. George Washington’s grave?
II. Entertainment (possibly no major world affairs, maybe that’s why the main focus of this issue was entertainment??)
A. Mysteries
B. Jokes
C. Romances
D. Poetry
E. Fashion (was the fashion discussed practical or couture, who was the intended audience, upper class, lower class, etc. )
III. Language
A. Formal vs. Informal
Today, language in magazines is very informal, while language in Harper’s was more formal and seemingly more educated.
IV. Literature
A. Book reviews

June 1855 - Critical Introduction Outline

Travel

- American/Chinese Relations & Other International Relations

- California --- gold

- Brazil

"Average" American Family in 1855

- Women's role in society at the time

- Values presented by the articles (literary stories)

- Women's Fashion

Trends in US (Health)

- Cigarettes --- "necessary"

- Restrictions on Alcohol (States implementing restrictions)

Society

- Intended audience for these magazines

- Social Class Relations --- Separation between the classes

Critical Introduction- Jackie, Taylor, Kenan

Critical Introduction Outline

1. Harper’s Weekly (print media) vs. Fall of Print media today (Main Introduction)
   The appetite for news
2. Research/Findings compared to today’s scientific research (Taylor)
   o Astronomy
   o Scientific Discoveries
   o Weather
   o Corals
3. American Culture vs. the World (Kenan)
   o Rapid Growth of America
   o Young Russia
   o American Vanity (how the world views america)
4. Popular Culture (Jackie)
   o Fashion for July in 1850’s
   o Multiple fashion articles from July issues of different years
   o Entertainment

Critical Intro Outline- Sterling, Sarah, Zach, Kelsey

I. Author’s Biographies/Information about magazine and readership
a. Audiences at this time
b. Interest in topic of war
c. Any other seen more than once? Or popular authors?
II. Historical context
a. Public Opinion
b. Civil War
III. Escapist Articles (not alluding to the war)
a. Fiction
b. Fashion
c. Love Stories
IV. Articles not directly related to war but alluding to it
a. Pen vs. Sword
b. Previous wars

Thoughts on Harper's

In the 1850 edition of Harper’s New Monthly Magazine, there were many different types of articles. Many of the articles I read were centered on the Industrial Age and the politics of that era. There were many female authors who wrote of the faults of men in society. This surprised me because, in that time, women were not seen as equals on a day to day basis, not to mention intellectually. A few of the articles, including an article about globe making in England, seemed quite drab and not as attention grabbing as I would have preferred. Most of the articles I read were about family, love, and politics – which are important aspects of our lives today.

The writing style in most of the short stories and essays seemed drawn out. Save for one story, none of my nine articles had a climactic plot or storyline. Ironically, most magazines in present day do not have articles with heavy storylines or plots. This crossover in writing and editing styles intrigued me. Because the 19th and 21st centuries have very few things in common, to see the similarities in the content and style of writing, then and now, was very interesting and eye-opening.

Harpers Weekly- July 1850

My portion of the Harper's Weekly magazine was very intriguing and there were various types of articles in the July 1850 edition. Most of my articles seemed to serve as forms of entertainment, rather than for scholarly use. There was a poem called the Orphan’s Journey home that was touching and inspirational. The majority of the articles were written from a person’s or the author’s own personal experiences. The article entitled Greenwich Weather Wisdom was a very informational piece that discussed the qualms of the dreary weather in England, but also went into great detail about the instruments that had been developed to study weather patterns and measure amounts of electricity in the air. There was interestingly an article about fashion, which was much different from the types of fashion magazines we read in today’s society. The article, “Fashions for July”, gave three examples of proper attire for the summer months and explicitly detailed each clothing item and accessory. From my readings, I felt the works selected were more entertaining and thought provoking rather than informational. They all had very different writing styles and addressed different audiences which I found very fascinating.

Harper Magazine: A breadth of Diverse Ideas

There are diverse genres throughout the Harper magazine such as essays, poems, narratives, and fiction stories. As I read the articles, I noticed that the topics were worldly. Often times, the writers do not limit their writing to topics pertaining to America. There are pieces of writing that compares events in America to other parts of the world as well. For instance, the first article that I read “A Paris Newspaper,” is about the inner workings and process of the creation of a French newspaper. In the article, the writer describes the office setting of the Parisian newspaper and compare with other newspaper offices in England and America. In the subsequent paragraphs, the author explains how the styles for publications and newspaper reflect the cultural differences between the countries.
The overall theme for the section of the Harper issue that I read seems to focus more on literature and entertainment rather than science. There are about four poems which range in themes from death and sorrow to peace and happiness. One particular poem that I enjoyed is “An Ode to the Sun,” by Leigh Hunt. The tone of the poem is very bright and optimistic as the writer honors the sun and show gratitude for all that the sun provides. I thought the poem was lighthearted and lyrical. Overall, the articles from Harper magazine give interesting viewpoints of what was being said during the nineteenth century.

While reading the selected articles from this magazine, no specific themes jumped out at me. Also, the combination of both formal, essay writing as well as the incorporation of picture and images diversified the way in which the information was presented. My articles ranged from topics dealing with possible American expansion into Cuba to the fashion trends at the time to five pages of run on jokes. Each article was thought provoking but some were more captivating than others, and therefore stuck out to me more.

It is hard for me to say that this magazine is not interesting because it is completely out of social context for my life today. Relating to the issues and ideas put forth in the various articles is different because so many of them are alien or inapplicable to modern day life. When comparing this magazine to a modern day one, there seems to be an overall lack of organization by subject matter, something that makes it much easier for the reader to pick and chose where they want to center their focus within the magazine itself.

random articles.

There were no apparent themes in the articles that I read, they all seemed to be random stories and poems put together. There was an article about single life in America, a mystery, a romance tale, and two poems; one about death and ill fortune and one about St. Valentine’s Day. Although the articles I read were random, I did notice, after talking to my peers, that there was also a poem about St. Patrick. The issue from the month of March, so perhaps St. Patrick and St. Valentine correlate, St. Valentine’s Day being the month before. But that is just a comment to try and find some sort of theme.
I really enjoyed the romance tale, about a girl named Regina who falls in love with a minister. Her rival cousin, who is prettier, in Regina’s words, convinces Regina the minister loves her instead, which makes the ending of the story that much more enjoyable when the minster proclaims his love for Regina. The article about single life in America, however, bored me to tears. The language was super hard to understand, and I struggled with it greatly. Especially since the article called out ugly people who were unmarried during most of the article, and then tried to make it better by saying that a certain number of unmarried people were an asset to the community.
I probably would not have liked Harper’s just because it is so random and seemingly thrown together.

Harper's articles

“Harper’s Magazine” seems to be a general interest magazine which appeals to a wide variety of readers. The only theme that struck me was that every piece in the magazine was well written. This seems to be a valuable magazine for the individual who holds puts no boundaries on his/her knowledge. In a world that becomes more diverse every day this magazine seems to keep pace by staying just as broad as the audience it publishes for.
One particularly interesting poem I read was entitled “Wanted-St. Patrick”. This poem told the story of how St. Patrick drove out all the unwanted snakes in Ireland. The poem then goes on to ask where all the St. Patrick’s have gone. The poem was referring to individuals who protect the land and who watch for the “snakes” that terrorize communities, such as criminals. The poem used St. Patrick as a lovely metaphor for citizenship and I thought it was very clever. I would subscribe to this magazine based upon its variability in article selection. This feature of the magaizine seperates it from more traditional magazines which usually concentrate their writing efforts on one subject matter.

Harper's New Monthly Magazine

Based on a few of Harper's New Monthly Magazine articles, I must say that the magazine is quite different from the ones offered today. As opposed to magazines today such as Seventeen or Psychology Today, Harper's New Monthly Magazine does not stick to a single theme. This nineteenth century journal has all sorts of articles, poems, illustrations, essays, tales, and short stories. By making this magazine contain such a broad compilation of items, it is safe to say that anyone who can read, or perhaps even those who cannot, can enjoy this editorial.
One of the pieces that stuck out to me the most was "Jot to the Bride.". Throughout the poem, the speaker is scornful and expresses disdain, thus giving the poem a contemptuous and cynical tone. The speaker mentions that Mr. Simon Gray is wealthy and suggests that Lillian is with him for his wealth rather than true love. The speaker also scorns those who attended the wedding and claims that the whole ordeal is an “enameled falsehood.” The speaker talks of the sad consequences that await Lillian for her decision. The speaker seems to be mainly concerned with the wounds to the heart, the loneliness, and the emptiness awaiting her newly wedded cousin. The poem offers the frequently found moral of material things not being able to provide an individual with true happiness.

Harper's Impressions

The vast majority of my readings were in the editor's section of the magazine. This section was very open and varied and included just about everything a person could be looking for in a magazine: News, entertainment, opinions, advice, reviews on new books, new fashions, and even a couple eulogies. The sections based more on domestic news and opinion were very concentrated on the developing war. The Editor's Table section spanned five full pages talking about the age old comparison between the sword and the pen and how they both tied in to the war.
Sections like the editor's drawer and even the story, Adventures of Philip, were mainly for entertainment, but I realized throughout the majority of my readings that the civil war is the main topic of discussion. Not only were the editors discussing the war but were promoting it. The editors saw the war as a chance for the nation to rebuild and unite itself morally and patriotically. In a way, these editorials were propaganda for the war but appealed to people in a more logical and intelligable way.

Most of what I read in the September 1861 edition of Harper's New Monthly magazine was fiction or aimed at entertainment. "Pets" was an essay written sharing anecdotes about the various animals that a woman had come across in her life. It was entertaining as well as humorous however it's light, almost playful subject matter contrasted with some of the more serious works that followed. One of these was a short story by Dickens about a young British man being conned into working aboard a ship. He was betrayed, drugged, and then finally enslaved. Although this story was a bit darker the the motivation for the writing was the same, to entertain. Additionally, there was a biography of a man named Richard Porson. Porson was a famed and noted Greek scholar of his time. This piece of writing was styled to be both educational and entertaining.

All of the aforementioned pieces were unique to this issue of Harper's New Monthly Magazine, while the other piece I read, "Orley Farm" was a part of a series. The September addition included chapters 17-19 of the novel. Coming in in the middle of the story made it difficult to follow and therefore difficult to enjoy. I feel like including novels in increments is a great moneymaking tactic because readers become committed to the story/novel and have to keep purchasing Harper's New Monthly to continue their reading.

Harper's Articles- Sarah

The articles that I read in Harper's magazine were all very different. In a way they all complimented each other. There was one that was a purely entertaining story called "Vallandigham." This was a narrative that was not informative nor intellectual, simply romantic. In contrast, the "Monthly Current Events" was very politically informative and factual. It contained no story and simply and description of any recent activity that fell under the political spectrum in a manner so that anyone could read it. There were articles that I felt were not for everyone, though. Shakespeare and Hollingshed was analytical of Shakespeare's writing in comparison to a past writer; which would have required some background knowledge of Shakespeare. To round it all off, there were two poems included. "The Three Tells" was a tall tale, probably an old legend. It was mainly entertaining to read, but was somewhat intellectual. The Havelock was a poem that had to be read closely in order to see that it was political and about the Revolutionary War.

I thought some of the stories were interesting and some were pretty tedious to read. "Vallandigham was entertaining, but it dragged on too long for a magazine; which could be a personal bias since I am used to modern magazines. Some of the other articles would only be interesting to people who were interested in the specific subject that they addressed. The one with Shakespeare would only be interesting to someone who had an interest in Shakespeare's writing. I would probably read this magazine, but only certain parts. I thought the political article that gave summary of current events was very interesting and useful.

From Travel to Politics

I read articles from the Harper magazine. The majority of the articles that I read were based on a travel theme. One of the authors of these articles related his experience while traveling in Turkey. Another talked of the grand pyramids of Egypt. Another article illustrated the wonders of the Erie Railroad in America. All of these articles discussed the experience of traveling to a new place and experiencing new surroundings. The other articles that I read talked about politics and education. There was this one article written in the 1800 by T.S. Coleridge who showed his opinion towards the Prime Minister of England William Pitt. He just let his mind flow through his negative opinions towards the PM. It was very interesting how he set up his opinions and it was also interesting because I hardly knew what was going on in England, politically, in 1800. It brought out new ideas.
Other articles discussed education. It was interesting to read about what the author viewed education in America and in Europe during the 1850s. These articles made me want to read the Harper magazine because there was a variety of articles to read from. It was also interesting to read what people's ideas were during the mid 1800s. It is interesting to see what people thought back then and how people view things today.
-Margaret Neville

Sterling's Blog Prompt on Harper's New Monthly Magazine

Based on the articles I read in Harper's New Monthly Magazine, there seems to be a wide range of topics discussed in order to educate the audience on a wide range of topics. From the article Winfield Scott In The War of 1812 was written by Benson J. Lossing to the Fashions of September article, readers receive an in-depth look into history as well as current trends and topics. The September 1861 issue opens with the Stratford-Upon-Avon article that investigates the life of William Shakespeare, revisiting his hometown which heavily influenced his work. From there, the magazine transitions its focus to an entirely different continent to tell the story of the development of Canada in The Capitals of the Canadas. The next topic moves directly into the War of 1812 focusing on Winfield Scott and his admirable military command.

Obviously there is no set theme for the wide range of topics, other than to educate the readers. My favorite article out of the ones that I reviewed was the one that discussed William Shakespeare and his hometown of Stratford. Even to the modern reader today this topic stands out because Shakespeare is included in much of what we learn today. Another interesting thing to see in the magazine was the inclusion of sketches and drawings for the illustrations. This gives the reader an image to put with the words. This was especially helpful with the Fashions article, since clothing and trends have changed greatly since that time. I would use this magazine in the future for research on particular historical topics.

Harp Fer

From what I read, Harper's New MOnthly Magazine was meant to reach as broad an audience as possible. The section of articles I read and "synopzized" ranged from dramatice naaritives to short autobiographies, to scientific journals. Two articles I liked particularly were "A Word on Corals," and "Thomas Moore."
The first article was much like a National Geographic article, just minus the pictures. It was on corals, how and where they live, and also delves into thier biological make-up and grouping. One of the most interesting facets of this article is that the author dedicates about half of his writing to Charles Darwin's research and theories on corals, and where they came from - a subject still taught in schools today.
"Thomas Moore" was autobiographical, and focused on how great a man Mr. Thomas Moore was. The article was from the University of Dublin, so I am guessing Mr. Moore was Irish. Regardless of his nationality I think this biographical article commemorates Thomas Moore, and uses him as an example of a trues intellectually educated gentleman.
The two articles were very different, as were the rest of the others from the 1850 July issue of Harpers Ferry. It seems it is meant to attract as wide an audience as possible.

Blog Prompt

The first article I read, Bathing-it's utility, was based on the different types of bathing. The article opened with a quote, "cold is bracing, heat is relaxing", in which the author disagreed with. I thought it was an interesting technique the author used to start off with. He then went on to talk about the different methods of bathing (some of which I never heard of). The second submission I read was a sonnet titled, "Sonnet on the death of words worth". I found this sonnet to be very confusing. What I retained from it was the poet technique. He used imagery and description of the poet and then related them to each other. The last couple readings covered topics like astronomy, America's rapid growth, and a biography on Sir Edward Coke. The last couple readings I found hard to read. The style the author wrote in was confusing. I was unable to relate to the topics.

Harper's June 1855

My group is reading the June 1855 issue of Harper's and I was responsible for pages 75-112 of the issue, which included 5 articles. The first two were scientific or historical and the last three were stories or essays that could have been non-fiction or fiction. I actually found them all somewhat interesting, though some more than others. Through all of the articles, even the scientific/historical ones, I found the writing to be more creative than what I typically think academic writing to be. In the first article the author was discussing the human body's internal cycle of blood and its interaction with the heart and the brain. This could have been a very boring and matter-of-fact article, but the style with which the author wrote made it much more fascinating. He was so intrigued by all of this subject matter and the life that blood gives living things. He used metaphors and beautiful, awe-inspiring imagery to describe the life that pumps through us.
Another article was about a man's journey to China, which he had written a book about. I was pretty shocked by how ethnocentric and discriminatory the book and the Harper's article were about the Chinese people.
There were escapist stories about men and women torn between loves that seemed like they could be in one of our contemporary escapist magazines or plots for chick flicks.
My favorite essay was about associating people with animals based on their physical appearance and their demeanor. It then went on to hypothesize life stories for random people passing in a city. It was very interesting and creative; its fascinating to try to catch glimpses into the lives of strangers even if they pass through your own life only for a moment.

Harper's Magazine

In the Harper's articles, I was assigned the last chunk of the issue of our magazine, which consisted of a large amount of editor's commentary and several drawings/sketches equivalent to today's comic strips. Overall, the articles were easy to read, making me think that the magazine was targeting a very broad audience, rather than an exclusive, only upper class audience. The current events section that I read seemed the most important to me because most people have an interest in the events occurring in the world around them. The section gave the most attention to the United States, but adequately covered events going on throughout South America, Europe, and Asia. Also, the literary reviews section I was assigned was an additional important aspect of the magazine because it gave a general overview of suggested works to read and praised several authors of different genres and specialties. Although this section could be considered to have a limited audience, the magazine excellently covered a multitude of genres, which would appeal to numerous types of people.

The latter part of the articles I was assigned did not seem as prevalent to the magazine as a whole as the two previously mentioned sections. I think they were designed as commentary from the editor, which to me as a reader, came across as a random, choppy set of unrelated information. One section was fairly entertaining as it consisted of approximately fifteen short anecdotes (all under one page), which were easy to read and typically included comedic elements as well as an underlying message. The illustrations included at the end of the issue all related to an image of the "average family" of the times, which was a theme that stuck out to me.

Also, a second theme that seemed to surface several times was in relation to alcohol. In the current events section, many states in the United States had adopted laws either prohibiting the excessive consumption of alcohol or prohibiting the sale of alcohol (usually hard liquor). I observed that politics and history were the two topics that were given the most coverage in the magazine. Overall, from the articles I was assigned I do not think I would be very enticed to read the rest of the magazine. However, I think if I had read actual articles, as opposed to the editor's commentary, I would be more enticed to see what else the magazine had to offer.

Harper's Monthly - June 1855

I feel like this issue of Harper’s New Monthly Magazine was very repetitive and somewhat random. I noticed that a couple group members had articles about family and the ideal family for the time. I read to articles that were narratives about families who had some type of division, an atypical thing for the 1800’s. These articles showed how important the family life was at the time and the importance of a united family. In contrast, another member of my group had an article and artwork that portray the ideal family for the 1800’s. I found these polar views intriguing and very informative in an informal way.
Another theme in this particular issue was traveling. Two different articles were about the author’s travels to other countries. One article looked back on the author’s travels in a more reflective and comparative way while the other article was more of an account of the author’s travels.
The other articles in this issue fit in a wide variety of different genres and themes. There were some dramatic, some informative, and some opinion articles, all of which I surprisingly found entertaining. After reading this issue I was surprised to find the reading enjoyable and not just another forced reading assignment. I am definitely interested in reading more of Harper’s New Monthly Magazine.

http://digital.library.cornell.edu/cgi/t/text/pageviewer-idx?c=harp;cc=harp;rgn=full%20text;idno=harp0001-1;didno=harp0001-1;view=image;seq=0011;node=harp0001-1%3A2

Scholarly Writing vs. Dectective Fiction: Class Discussion

Detective Fiction:

• Stereotype against this specific genre

Irony: people tend to relate better to fiction than fact.

Plot/Storyline
Escapist
Narrative
Interesting
Mystery
Reader involved by "figuring it out"
Dramatic elements
Manipulate Plot
More exciting
No prior knowledge needed

Scholarly Writing:

Facts - stick to the cold hard facts
Structure
Work
Boring
Prior knowledge necessary
Tone/Style
Explain 'why' topic is important
Introduction: attention grabbing

explain point

Detective Story vs. Academic Writing

I believe the major difference is that in order for a person to read, understand, and enjoy an academic writing, they must already have a certain understanding of the subject being written about. An average person can’t read an essay on General Relativity and expect to understand everything that is talked about. On the other hand, anybody can read, understand, and enjoy a detective story without having to know anything beforehand.

Academic Research vs. Detective Stories

Realistically, the idea of a suspense story is much more entertaining than that of a detailed academic report of a case. Many people consume their lives with mystery novels and thriller movies and often prefer these types of fictionalized cases to the hard core facts of academic research. For many reasons, this could be because fictionalized "detective stories" allow the reader to act as a detective themselves and provide them the opportunity to solve the case before they find out what happened rather than being told the facts of the case straightforwardly through academic findings.

academic research vs. detective stories

The difference in interest between academic research and detective stories lays in the excitement. Academic research, although it follows the same basic formula does not have any exciting plot—or any plot, or some dangerous foe to overcome. The language is usually very dry with no descriptive words and it just has no ability to hold a readers interest. Detective stories contain exciting, descriptive language that entices the reader to keep reading, and a plot that is made to get your heart thumping faster as the conclusion draws near. Academic research, however, is just meant to relay information.

Detective Stories vs. Scholarly Findings

Detective stories, as opposed to scholarly findings, are very successful in grabbing readers' attention. Detective stories offer the suspense that an average reader can relate to, thus employing interest in the reader, as where a scholarly finding is more formal and would only be of use to a specialized reader. Furthermore, in a detective story, the author can manipulate the story's plot in a way that would grab the reader's attention. In a scholarly finding, the author cannot manipulate the findings, and must only state the facts. Moreover, the average reader would be more interested in a crime scene than a lab experiment. The series of Sherlock Holmes is of more interest to the public than the recent findings in the world of science.

Speckled Band Reflection

“The Adventure of the Speckled Band” was a short story in the Sherlock Holmes series. The story is written in a first person narrative by a Dr. Watson. Watson acts as the participating narrator throughout the series and is the reader’s sole descriptor of Sherlock Holmes and his investigation.
This story acts as a conventional detective story by foreshadowing facts that seem ordinary at first, but ultimately come back to be invaluable clues to solving the crime in question. The story contains the stereotypical mad doctor and also the deranged victim. For me, Sherlock Holmes stories have set the bar for detective dramas. The story usually builds and builds until the final sequence, where the culprit is caught and all the facts come out. This is how the speckled band story ended, with the identification of the murderer and an explanation of how all the clues pointed to him.
I did not originally expect the story to end the way it did. I thought there would be more twists and turns rather than having the most obvious person commit the crime. Many of the clues that were present seemed unconventional to me. The saucer of milk and a vault are two things which drove me away from concluding that a snake was the murder weapon. I did not realize that snakes drink milk nor did I realize that they could survive in an air tight vault
I haven’t really read too many detective stories. I’ve seen a lot of movies about detectives, which is probably why I expected the twists and turns that were not present in “The Adventure of the Speckled Band”.

The Adventures of the Speckled Band

This story is written in a suspenseful narrative form; which I consider to be standard of a detective story. In a detective story, you would expect to find a mystery that needs to be solved, clues that are used to solve that mystery, and usually a central character or group of characters that deduce answers to the mystery through the use of these clues. A good amount of detective stories involve some action as well as drama. In Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's "The Adventures of the Speckled Band" includes most of the normal conventions that one would expect to find in a detective story. Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson are presented with the unsolved murder of Ms. Julia Stoner by her sister Ms. Helen Stoner, who now appears to be in danger. This adds more suspense because there is still a threat present and a crime to be prevented as opposed to simply a past incident being solved. The main antagonist is clear from the beginning to be Dr. Grimsby Raylott. It strays somewhat from some detective stories since the culprit is basically identified early on. Holmes and Watson can be seen throughout the story to use ever detail as a clue and deduce facts from every aspect of the event. Ultimately they are successful in solving the mystery and preventing any harm to Helen Stoner. It is similar to other detective stories that I have seen/read in this way because usually the main figure will emerge victorious. However, in other detective stories that I have seen the main character is involved in more intense and extensive action.