Summer Reading: One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest

A colleague of mine has long praised Ken Kesey's classic novel One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest as one that her student's annually count as their favorite read of the school year. It has been many years since I have sat down with the book, so I began my personal summer reading early this year, digging out a copy just prior to the end of the school year. Immediately engaged, it took me only three days to devour the adventures of "Chief" Bromden and Randle Patrick McMurphy. The now familiar story set in an Oregon psychiatric ward, pits the inmates (some of whom are there voluntarily) and others, like Randle, who are committed due to criminal activity, against uber-authoritarian Nurse Ratched.

As I read, my teacher-brain saw numerous thematic similarities with other novels traditionally taught in eleventh grade, most obviously The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne and The Catcher In the Rye by J.D. Salinger. The overt rebellious nature of the three protagonists, Hester Prynne, Holden Caufield and Randle Patrick McMurphy, would appear to make Cuckoo's Nest an accessible companion read, though given limited instructional time, I am unsure what text I woudl be willing to drop in favor of it. There are some elements that are clearly appealing to high school readers (though given this novel's cultural influence run the risk of seeming overdone), such as the anti-authoritarian stance of the inmates, as punctuated by the liberal use of expletives and their engagement in, and discussion of, "adult activities."

One of the more interesting elements of Cuckoo's Nest, and one not necessarily shared with the other two books, was Chief's numerous references to a "machine" that manipulates and coerces individuals to respond to the world in a defined way. (While the cultural confines faced by teh main characetrs in Catcher and Letter are key to each novel, neither characterizes this facet of tehir story as a conscious "actor" like Cuckoo's Nest does.) This approach successfully establishes two antagonists, one very figurative and dubbed "The Combine" by Chief, and the other the very literal agent of the Combine, the aforementioned Nurse Ratched, more commonly referred to by Chief as "Big Nurse". Big Nurse's powers, and by extension the coercive reach of the Combine, extend so far as to "turn[ing] up the speed [of time]... this way on days when you... got somebody to visit you." (77) The pervasive "fog machine" also serves to oppress the inmates and obfuscate the truth from everyone but Chief. Chapter 7 (the section's are not numbered but I annotated them numerically in my copy for ease of review) in particular might offer a suitable challenge for student readers given its emphasis on an unmedicated Chief's responses to the environmental stimuli of the psychiatric ward and observations of the machines at work.

This "machine" aspect of One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest could be massaged so as to dovetail nicely into a discussion of how one might assert control over others, especially as used by a relatable modern incarnation of the Combine, the media. Givent hisd line of thinking, it also occurred to em that this migth offer a good transition to working with excerpts from a non-fiction graphic novel I read two summers ago. The history of the use of rhetoric by the powerful (authority) was very well laid out in The Influencing Machine by Brooke Gladstone and Josh Neufeld. The more I noodle it through, the more useful Cuckoo's Nest, or maybe select excerpts when considered through a lens of a few key -isms, might be...

In addition to being a flat-out entertaining read, Kesey's Cuckoo's Nest also provided this teacher with a most valuable intellectual nutrient: food for thought.

Comic Bookshelf: The Influencing Machine (2012)

 From "The Golden Age of Objectivity,"
page 115.

Too many books, too little time. Despite having a number of literary irons in the fire (The Lone Ranger Goes North, Short Nights of the Shadow Catcher, to name a few), the final book I read as my summer break drew to a close over a month ago was one which was recommended to me by a former star student, Tom. The Influencing Machine (2012), written by Brooke Gladstone and illustrated by Josh Neufeld, was assigned as his freshman read prior to arriving at American University in September. His suggestion was based in equal parts on both my prior role as his AP Composition and Language teacher and appreciation of comic books graphic novels.

Illustrated in clean black-and-white (with baby blue accents) panels drawn by Josh Neufeld, The Influencing Machine is an engaging graphic novel detailing the ever-evolving ways in which information flows. The emphasis here is on information as "news," though concepts are applicable to broader arenas. Using balanced evidence, and an impartial voice, author (and NPR journalist) Gladstone deftly moves chronologically from ancient Guatemala to award-winning journalist Robert Wright, filling in gaps with a who's who of journalism including Dan Rather, Edward R. Murrow and Albert Camus.

Through examples from a variety of historic touchstones in which communication, or lack thereof, plays a role in impacting the American perception of events, Gladstone demonstrates how those in control of information's flow are capable of shaping the message in an effort to have it reflect there own best interests. The majority of scenarios shared by Gladstone are large scale efforts that are fairly common to anyone with even a superficial understanding of history, most notably (and perhaps obviously) the Vietnam and Iraq Wars. Gladstone reinforces the familiar with anecdotes from scientists (like those at the Max Planck Institute), journalists (George Seldes) and others that offer a variety of perspectives on the "machine."

From "The Goldilocks Number," page 51.

Along the way, Gladstone and Neufeld lay out concepts, such as the Goldilocks Number (left), that aid the reader's comprehension of numerous abstract theories in concrete use. As I read, I found myself post-it noting numerous pages worthy of further review. I also found myself wishing that the authors had taken some of these impressive ideas regarding communication and reduced the scale of consideration to a more personal level. It occurred to me that many of the fascinating concepts regarding the modern transmission of news are also worthy of consideration as they relate to interpersonal communication. It was these ideas that I set aside for later cherry-picking in future classes.

A thought came to me as I read: each year, educators at our school will suggest the offering of a media literacy course. Whether due to a lack of awareness of potential resources such as The Influencing Machine, or because there are secondary agendas at play, in application, these "courses" often become opportunities to inform on the evils of social networking. One of the things Gladstone and Neufeld do very well with their tome is illustrate (ugh!) the roles we has senders and receivers of information have in either objectively pursuing our own answers to questions or in questioning the answer we are given. If this doesn't get to the heart of media literacy, or rhetoric, than I'm unsure what does.

In an educational climate that promises to seek making high school students "college and career ready," you need look no further than the author's own reasoning as to why The Influencing Machine as suggested in an interview with NPR: "I wrote a 2,000-year history of the media and a manifesto as to why it is the way it is and what one needs to do to make it be the way we want it to be — all in panels, about 160 pages, 2,000 years and tons and tons and tons of end notes. And I think it's because it's so compressed. It's a useful book, because every chapter, rather than completing the discussion, is kind of a launch for discussion, because you really have to say things in very, very few words."

An accessible read recommended for news junkies, educators and those hoping to see the message both shaped and authentic.

Why Flash Rhetoric Cards?

As a teacher, I realize each June that there is always something I can do to improve upon the quality of my instruction. Often these epiphanies do not result from personal reflection, but from the responses students give me on the blind surveys I periodically ask them to complete. The purpose of these surveys is to help me do a better job helping them, and this often has to do with tweaking existing processes or procedures so that they are more effective.

For many years now, I have required my Advanced Placement Language and Composition students to maintain a deck of flashcards which I call "Rhetoric Cards." This is by no means an original idea of mine, except that (at least initially) some students resist the task as they deem it elementary--at least in the context of a high school English class (his practice is very familiar to them in their foreign language studies). Once they poo-poo this strategy, I remind them that the purpose of the cards is not to promote the rote memorization of every vocabulary word but to have a tactile resource for relevant Tier 3 terminology at their disposal when reading or analysing text that they can go through. Given the thousand possible rhetoric terms that may turn up on the exam, I have chosen to focus on 100-120 that are most likely to occur or that (minimally) provide them the best opportunity to eliminate possible answer on multiple choice questions.

In my classes, we use the Rhetoric Deck as a tool for learning important Tier 3 terms. Tier 3 vocabulary consists of low-frequency words that occur in specific domains. Domains include subjects in school, hobbies, occupations, geographic regions, technology, weather, etc. Generally these terms and concepts are introduced when a specific need arises, such as learning "amino acid" during a chemistry lesson, or "litotes" in the study of rhetoric. Some common examples of the terms I required students to define and "card" during summer (in concert with reading Thank You for Arguing by Jay Heinrichs) include antithesis, tautology and decorum.

My epiphany around Rhetoric Card usage came when, last June, a few students suggested that the cards had a diminished value as the year progressed. While this can be seen as a positive (as students internalize the definition and application of the term/concept, they need the cards as a resource less), I was reminded that there are some students who never caught on to the task meaningfully in the first place. That is to say, some students failed in September to begin a deck and consequently never kept adding concepts and ideas as the class (and better students) progressed. In effort to maximize the potential value of this activity, I am committing this coming school year to insuring that I check them more frequently early on, and that as we move through the curriculum students and I physically interact with the cards more regularly through some term chunking and kinesthetic organizing.

Some interesting related articles:

• Are Flashcards an Effective Learning Tool? [Infographic]
• Highlighting Is a Waste of Time: The Best and Worst Learning Techniques by Annie Murphy Paul, TIME, January 9, 2013.

The Not-So-Secret Meaning of Typography

Last Wednesday during lunch, I went to the local town hall to apply for a passport. As I was checking the nameplates outside each office for the correct room I couldn't help but notice a very large tarpelin sign proclaiming that one group of offices was clearly under the auspices of "Cheryl Dinolfo, Monroe County Clerk."

What struck me most about the sign, other than the shear size of it, maybe 12' x 5', was the comparative fonts and type sizes used to communicate each piece of information. The typography (size and font of the type) of the lettering used to trumpet Ms. Dinolfo's involvement, as well as her title, was of a significantly larger point size than that of the other relevant information. In fact, Only the county seal was a hair larger than her name, and the information present on the seal was indecipherable from a distance.

One is about as likely to find visual evidence of this phenomena online as you are to find a real picture of a Sasquatch... eventually, after first googling a myriad of possible word chains with the intent of finding an image online, it became clear that without a photographic recon mission would  proving this the existence of this phenomena would be difficult.

Looking forward to The Amazing Spider-man 2 starring.... Maggie Brooks?!

Fortunately, in my community, this is "elephantitits-of-type" only employed by Ms. Dinolfo. I have also noted on a number of occasions that our Monroe County Executive, Maggie Brooks, also has a penchant for having her name and title presented in juxtaposition to the County Logo on signs in such away that the information to be quickly processed by passersby is her name first. The County's seal taking a subordinate role to all else. Surprisingly, as seen in the photo below, somehow her name was not larger than that of the companies being represented below.

Drivers are hard pressed to figure out just for whom Brooks work for.

Both Dinolfo and Brooks are seasoned local politicos, with even more veteran operatives, so this is most surely not a printing error that was made once and never corrected. As students' of rhetoric, my high school Advanced Language and Composition classes quickly realize the implications and message of this choice on the part of the messenger. Visual rhetoric consists in part of text so obviously visual that its visual nature and power is often invisible. This type size conundrum is also a great example of one of those things that consciously goes unnoticed by some, but is subconsciously meant to "say" or communicate a message.

So, is this intended to suggest that when looking for service such as passport applications that the key piece of information one should look for is Ms. DiNolfo's name and title? The use of a rhetorical question here is intended by yours truly to suggest strongly that you know perfectly well what is being implied, as well as which politician's ego is being stroked by seeing there name (and office) in "lights."

Maybe the meaning is not so secret (or subtle) after all...



The message from a Monroe County banner: I love New York, Maggie Brooks,
and Sports--in no specific order.

Sources: Purdue Online Writing Lab

Shopping Bag Comics: Young Love (1970)

Sometime around mid-March I inadvertently outed myself to my colleagues as a comic book fan, and of course, as a "comic book guy" I must love old comics and collect them because they are worth all kinds of crazy dollars... while there definitely are speculative collectors out there, I purchase comic books now as a 43 year-old for pretty much the same reason I did as a ten year old: their fun, fantastic, escapism.

The pile.

Following this, in early April a friend/colleague of mine gave me a shopping bags worth of older comics. Observationally I could tell immediately that they were "old," browned pages, distinctive "old comic smell," worn covers) but I offered to give him ten bucks just for his trouble and for thinking of me. He instead said I could just have them and if any are worth money to split it with him.

That's not to say that I don't have some books that have a dollar value (though nothing like a colleague--who is a Spider-man fan--who has a valuable and expensive issue of Amazing Fantasy). Most comic books, like baseball cards I suspect, have little value beyond how much each collector treasures them. If the the title is not one I've collected since childhood, like for example Marvel Comics Fantastic Four series, then the "value" I draw from them is in the insight to the times they were produced in offered by the art language and advertisements therein.

As I come across interesting titles, I will periodically share them, along with scans and comment, of your perusal. Up first? Why Young Love of course!

Young Love, #86, May-June 1971.

I am uncertain how my friend came across these books, but the pile represents is a fairly diverse set of titles primarily from DC Comics publishing, with some with characters I have followed (Superman and Batman) and others I have never read (Teen-age Love). The title pictured above, Young Love, is fairly indicative of a number of the romance anthologies of the 1960s and 70s. I can't imagine there was much of a market for this among young female readers, but somebody was buying them... maybe those folks who buy collectible Barbie dolls?

The story  depicted on the cover is the first of three in this issue.

The fact that this was issue #86, suggests that there were at least 85 previous issue in this series. It must have been incredibly challenging to write relatively fresh storylines, especially as this one seems to include all the common romance tropes, such as "the dangerous secret" and "the naive suitor." Including the two additional stories, "Never Bet on Love" and "My Sister's Lover," there would seem to be few other potential storytline's to keep a reader's interest.

You just knew an evil hippie would throw a wrench in the works!

The introduction of the hippie, and his secret past with Angel (the blond ingenue who is our story's protagonist), subtly handled as he recalls when they used to "freak out at the Dirty Dump." Using typography such as emboldening "Dirty Dump" gives us further evidence that she was into some wi-i-i-ild stuff, man! Of course, Greg, the blond boy friend, is none too happy with this newsflash. In fairness there is an earlier scene where Greg, referring to himself in third person as "Papa Greg," invites Angel to confess her iniquities, an opportunity she passes while aware that "the pedestal she's been placed on will crumble"...

As you can see, the selling of a hippie-aesthetic pre-dates the Dave Matthews Band.

Interestingly enough, the page immediately following the introduction of our vilified hippie stud, the reader is greeted with promotional material for "being a part of the great happening... Woodstock." I guess nobody told the money-grabbing capitalists at MTV that this was to be a "never-to-be-repeated -event"--further evidence of the Man's terrible lies!

First she was "impure" and then love made her "pure" again... isn't love grand?

So as fate would have it, Papa Greg shockingly turns out to be somehting of a turd who dumps Angel because of her hard partying days at the Dirty Dumpster. Read through a more modern lens I suspected this story might be about Papa Greg being a stalker type as he is characterized as being very controlling and rea-a-a-lly obsessed with not just Angel's own "purity" but the impurity of all other women, mostly because they kiss in public, and as we learn from Papa Greg, "all those other chicks come on too strong... not like you, Angel!"

Note to all fans of literary elements, Greg also uses a bit of allusion in this dandy of a line: "Angel... you're my Earth angel!" (Of course, Earth Angel (Will You Be Mine) is a doo-wop classic originally released by The Penguins in 1954.)

Fear not, romance fans, Angel does find love in the form of a jet black maned professional (not the same as the scarf wearing meany-head on the cover) who ultimately finds her pure enough to love "forever."

As teased on the cover: "Analyze His Handwriting!'... uh-oh, secrets out!

In superhero comic books of the time, filler pages were often used for pin-ups and cutaway schematics of secret hideaways, but in romance mags dating tips were used. The odd thing is that the tie and energy someone put into the throwaway handwriting analysis seen above could have been used to write some unique romance stories--that thing clearly took some energy and effort!

If you find that you've been bitten by the Young Love bug, just let me know via e-mail and I'll be happy to lend it to you. I you do find out it's worth a gazillion dollars, we'll need to split the profits three ways.

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The comic opens with not just action, but also literary terminology!

While beginning to read a comic book miniseries I picked up on a lark this past Wednesday, I was surprised to be greeted by the panel above very early on in the story. A science fiction series, Dark Matter #1, published by Dark Horse, actually hit the stands a few weeks ago, but initially somehow missed my notice. There was a single copy left on the recent releases table as I stopped by the store today to pick up a new long-box and, always looking for quality scenic fiction, I decided to pick it up.

Published 1/11/12.

While the story, authored by two veterans of all three Stargate television series, was a marginally interesting take on the space sleep amnesia trope, I was happy to see the teachable moment provided by series of panels above--even if the teachable moment might be diffused slightly given that those (middle and high school aged students) might be missed as they are rarely the intended audience for comic books... especially these short non-caped offerings. That doesn't mean I can't trumpet its value on the net!

Though one of the more "minor" literary terms, at least as defined by a number of online literary resource guides, an axiom is nonetheless a valuable one to at least be marginally familiar with. In an apparent acknowledgment on the part of the authors that most folks would not be familiar with what an axiom is, they made the decision to overtly provide the answer to the question in the panel itself, "... a fundamental truth that informs their every decision."

In simple terms, an axiom can also be defined as "an obvious maxim" though that particular definition is slightly unsatisfactory as it requires a little additional clarification. If a maxim is "a saying drawn from life, which shows concisely either what happens or ought to happen in life, for example: 'Every beginning is difficult.'" (from Rhetorica ad Herennium), then an axiom is such a saying that is obvious in its truth. Axioms may also be defined a principles that are not questioned, or more simply put (care of Dictionary.com), "self-evident truth that requires no proof; a universally accepted principle or rule."

But, while a definition for the term "axiom" is easily found online, the word "kodan"? Not so much, in fact all I could come across was an inference of a kodan being a narrative device used as part of the Japanese oral tradition... a suitable  source for a (likely) manga influenced work of science fiction, especially given that in a previous panel (unseen in the above image) it is attributed to "the Senkarren high priests of Helios..." a science fictiony name if I've ever read one!

What Comics Taught TEACH Me: Characterization

Hrm... from Frankenstein Agent of S.H.A.D.E. #3.

Not surprisingly, consideration of a certain comic book cousin to a famous literary monster offers some great examples of useful literary terms. (some of whcih are underlined herein)...

Once again, my penchant for comic books has shaken loose some unreflected upon learning I received from avid reading as a youth--much of the development of characters in literature is done through the author's use of diction, syntax and other verbal tropes in crafting the dialogue spoken by the character, or stated another way, what characters "say" and how they deliver their dialogue offers the reader can offer additional insight into their character taken as a whole. This is much more obvious in books and short stories presented form the first person perspective as we are reading the character's thoughts in (presumably) their voice, not the author's.

From the first issue.

In the English-teaching business, we call the use of these strategies and tropes, characterization. This point was further brought home to me this weekend as I caught up with a fantastic new book which was recently released as part of DC Comics "The New 52" initiative, Frankenstein Agent of S.H.A.D.E.Though I've just recently jumped on board, I've noticed, after reading the first four issues in rapid succession, an interesting piece of characterization that the writer, (and one of my new favorite comic book creators) Jeff Lemire (Sweet Tooth and Animal Man, too), in collaboration with artist Alberto Ponticelli, has been using with a number of characters, most notably, the books lead protagonist, Frankenstein (yes, a hero based on that "monster"). A more sophisticated way to talk about these facets of writing is to consider the tropes (devices and conventions that a writer can reasonably rely on as being present in the audience members' minds and expectations) employed by the creative crew.

Frankenstein consistently uses guttural "phrases" or sounds such as "Hrrm" seemingly as a vocal cue prior to delivering dialogue (well-read graphic novel fans will recall a similar strategy was employed by Alan Moore in writing Rorschach in Watchmen). The effect is to suggest a contemplative monster who thinks, the noise being a verbal cue of consideration, before speaking--even if what he says seems to show little concern for the feelings of others.

It is also interesting that Frankenstein's word balloons (think "structure" in the context of novels and short stories) are intentionally different than those of the other characters (in fact Lady Frankenstein, too, has a different colored and textured word balloon for her dialogue), a difference which also suggests something about his tone and "sound." "Jagged", rather than rounded, and green instead of white, Frankenstein's voice is much more guttural and raspy than those around him. The "Hrrm..." also helps to reinforce this. (At this point it might be appropriate to acknowledge the great work of the book's letterer, Pat Brosseau.) Together these also produce a cacophonous (loud, noisy, harsh) quality to Frankenstein's voice.

From issue #4, take note boys--even Frank knows girls appreciate manners!

Not to be left out, good ole' diction, or word choice, is also successfully used to lend an air of the "archaic" to Frankenstein's voice. The repeated use of "M'lady" by the lead when speaking to female characters (including both his ex-wife and a possible new romantic interest) suggest (as one other character notes) the more gentlemanly nature of the creature... in certain situations.

As you can read, I could probably go on all day as each idea I have about how this excellent book exemplifies the use of great writing tropes and strategies, but it would be far better for you to pick up the book and check it out fro yourself. If you're curious about a more English-classy type consideration of this and other mediums, a very informative web source for more information is  TV Tropes. It offers some very accessible definitions and examples from the world of broadcast media (and comic books, too) that is applicable across other mediums.