Then it was as if suddenly I saw the secret beauty of their hearts where neither sin nor desire nor self-knowledge can reach, the core of their reality, the person that each one is in the eyes of the Divine. If only they could all see themselves as they really are. If only we could see each other that way all the time. There would be no more war, no more hatred, no more cruelty, no more greed. . . . I suppose the big problem would be that we would fall down and worship each other.
–Thomas Merton
Welcome to class. As you know, the final exam, a 350- word, three-paragraph essay is scheduled for this week. Any students who miss class this week must make certain to come next week to make up the essay exam, or contact me to discuss some other accommodation. Next week also offers all who take the exam today a chance to retake it, if necessary.
I'm confident all of you can pass this exam. If you have been applying yourself throughout the quarter, you have done by now at least half a dozen formal assignments, and numerous practice and free-write exercises. We have practiced the form of the paragraph and multi-paragraph essay each week, along with basic sentence structures–the simple, compound, complex, and compound-complex sentence types. We have reviewed the use of standard punctuation and grammar. We have modeled the primary modes of presenting information and organizing a paragraph or an essay–description, narration, illustration, and argument. We have discussed and practiced the necessity of having a thesis idea–the point that unifies and gives direction to the essay, the one central thing you want your essay to express. And we have practiced building paragraphs organized around a single clear topic idea, each paragraph serving, if part of a larger essay, to advance the thesis idea in one or another supporting way.
We can spend the first hour of class on review, and in preparing a checklist for the editing process to follow as you review your final draft. Thus will you have time to compose and a format to edit for the major errors that occur in grammar and punctuation.
The essay topics will be given in handout before the exam begins.
Note: Use of the Internet is not allowed during the exam.
See you in class, then.
