What is a commonplace book?
Throughout this semester, you will keep what is known as a commonplace book, which is basically a quote book. Traditionally, it is a notebook in which a reader records quotations from works they have read. The act of commonplacing—selecting important and interesting phrases, lines, and/or passages from texts and writing them down—dates back to the Middle Ages, and was particularly popular in the nineteenth century. Many people who kept commonplace books used them to record meaningful passages from favorite books, periodicals, even recipes, as well as their thoughts and reactions to those passages.
How will this work?
Your commonplace book entries will be posted in a Blog on Blackboard. The posts will be visible only to you and me (later in the semester we might share select entries with the whole class. You will know ahead of time which entries will be shared).
You can place a post in the Commonplace Book Blog each week; 10 posts are required but you can post maximum 15 entries if you choose to. It is a good idea to draft in a Word or GoogleDoc and copy and paste into the blog.
What should my posts include?
Each week, you must write a short entry that is composed of two parts.
- A quote from the reading
- Your paragraph-long commentary on that quote (aim for approx. 250 words).
Choosing a quote: A quotation may be as short as a phrase or sentence, or as long as a paragraph.
What kind of quotation should you choose? A good reader notices a passage in the text that is puzzling/troubling them, reveals a pattern, or is particularly powerful.
Writing Commentary: This is the most important part of your entry. Do your best to analyze the passage, offering an interpretation of the quotation. Keep in mind that a really good commonplace book doesn’t just mention how you feel about a text but instead comments on the possible meaningsof texts. Instead of paraphrasing what the quotation says, a good commentary analyzes how particular words, phrases, for patterns in that quotation might lead us to a deeper understanding of the text’s meanings.
In what form should I write and can I add visuals or other media?
You can write your entries in the form of an informal letter or essay. Feel free to experiment with how you format your entries (they don’t all have to be the same), as long as you stick to the basic requirements of the assignment. You may include graphics, links, sound bites, audio commentary, video or other material in addition to (not in place of) the quotes and analysis. Consider including historical information or passages other texts that seem to relate to your quote. Just make sure that everything apart from the quotation is written in your own words, and if you use sources (including websites) for additional information, make sure to credit your sources.
Should this be written like an essay?
A commonplace book is a form of a journal: a work in progress rather than a finished product. It does not have to conform to the standards of a formal essay, but you should write in a way that communicates your ideas effectively. Do your best to avoid spelling and grammatical errors, but focus on more communicating clearly and effectively instead of worrying about making mistakes.
Do you need urgent help with this or a similar assignment? We got you. Simply place your order and leave the rest to our experts.