arak anthology - · pdf file the jtheon&nfridnfa3aksklc 3 contents arak anthology 21st...

Arak AnthologyThe John & Frieda

21st Edition2014-2015

A Student’s Guide to Writing atthe University of DelawareDepartment of English

32013-2014 • Arak Anthologywww.english.udel.edu

Contents

Arak Anthology2 1 s t E d i t i o n • 2 0 1 4 - 2 0 1 5

The John & Frieda

CreditsArak Selection Committee

Janel AtlasClay ColmonLisa DillNora FulmerFrank HillsonKyle Meikle

Publication Coordinator

Michael McCamley

Research Editor

Joseph Turner

Creative Direction

Ashley John Pigford

Layout and Design

Emily Skaar

Contributing Illustrators

Rhiannon Hare Mackenzie JanusChip KeeverElizabeth Zenz

AcknowledgementsMichael McCamley, Associate Director of the Writing Program

Department of English

Part One: This Year’s Winners

Babies: Thinking Outside the Box • Caroline Toth

When Belief Becomes Reality: Popular Childhood Imaginary Figures in Film • Danielle Wegrzyn

Alzheimer’s: The Forgotten Issue • Tiana Peele

Your Child Left Behind: Why America’s “Race to the Top” is Destroying its Educational System • Daniel Mason

Ready, Aim, Paint: How British War Artists Supported Troops and Preserved the National Identity of Britain • Ana Jackson Chaves

A Student’s Guide to Writing Writing Program Policies and Procedures

In honor of John and Frieda Arakfrom their children

Sydney F. Arak and Ruth Toor

© 2014 University of DelawareDepartment of English

5

8

14

20

26

32

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38

2014-2015 • Arak Anthology

mccamley

Sticky Note

We can delete this, right? It seems a little weird and unnecessary if there are only winners for one year.


Acknowledgements

This publication could not happen without the support of Sydney F. Arak and Ruth Toor in honor of their parents, John and Frieda Arak. The original bequest came with the general requirement that the funds were to be used to encourage student writing. We hope that this anthology continues to honor the Arak family¹s support of writing at the University of Delaware.

This anthology also depends on the time and enthusiasm of volunteers in the Department of English. For instance, a team of sea-soned teachers, Janel Atlas, Clay Colmon, Lisa Dill, Nora Fulmer, Frank Hillson, and Kyle Meikle devoted their time and expertise to choosing the essays for this year¹s awards. In addition, Joe Turner devoted a great deal of time to source-check all of the essays in this collection.

Finally, many thanks must go to the design team of Emily Skaar and Ashley Pigford for their talent and enthusiasm for the Arak Anthology, and to John Ernest and Melissa Ianetta for all their support for this project.

Michael McCamleyAssociate Director of the Writing ProgramDepartment of English



Part One: This Year’s Winners

Ana Jackson Chaves

Daniel Mason

Tiana Peele

Caroline Toth

Danielle Wegrzyn

“Words, once they are printed, have a life of their own.” – Carol Burnett


mccamley

Sticky Note

Do we need this page?


We have all heard horror stories about mothers discarding their newborns. Take, for example, the case of Amy Grossberg, an 18-year old freshman at the University of Delaware in 1996. Quite aware of her pregnancy from the beginning, she called her boyfriend, Brian C. Peterson, when her water broke that November. He drove three hours to her college, picked her up, and checked them in at the Comfort Inn in Newark. After giving birth, the couple wrapped the newborn in a trash bag and tossed her into the dumpster (Flavin 85).

Such heart-wrenching stories shock the public and provoke us to search for answers for a better way to handle unwanted pregnancy. Enter the baby box. Its name may sound crude, but in reality, it has the potential to save countless lives. Predominant in Europe, the baby box concept and structure are simple: A hatch attached to a hospital offers a small heated bed, lined with blankets, in which to place the newborn. Typically, there is a letter for the mother offering counseling, and often another which gives the mother instructions on how to reclaim her child, should she so desire. Once the stainless steel door is closed, it cannot be reopened until the child is taken by one of the nurses to a proper care unit. Since the beds are rigged to a motion sensor, the nurses know right away when a baby has been placed in the hatch. The baby is then brought to a neonatal unit where it is carefully cared for by nurses and is eventually put up for adoption (“The ‘Baby Box’”).

The issue of anonymously abandoning babies is particularly controversial today, as more and more options for family planning – along with strongly opinionated supporters and protestors – are becoming available to the public. Disappointingly, the baby box is illegal in most European countries. However, the baby box should be legalized abroad and here, as it would provide distraught mothers with a chance to reclaim their lives and newborns with the chance at finding a loving family.

There is a great debate concerning the practicality of such a box. Although many babies have been placed in such boxes since their installment – for example, 70 babies in the Czech Republic over the course of seven years (Meyer) and hundreds in Germany over the course of twelve years (Fernandes) – opponents claim that the intended effect of reducing rates of infanticide has been proven false. Christiane Woopen of the German Ethics Council states: “The number of killed babies [in Germany, following the installment of baby boxes] did not diminish. The number of abandoned children did not diminish. It is not a right to life that is at stake here, but only probably a small, higher probability of saving a life perhaps” (“Spread”). Nevertheless, some statistics show small improvement. Edite Kanepaja-Vanaga,

Unwanted pregnancies are a taboo

subject at best – and, at worst, they

contribute to a huge underlying

problem in our society that is often

ignored.

I was unaware of the existence

of “baby boxes” until my professor,

Dr. Hillson, mentioned it one day in

class. The topic caught my attention

because it seemed to play a role in

the development of how different

cultures set rules and regulations for

child care and parent responsibility.

The dichotomy that exists between

the United States and other European

countries regarding this matter is

particularly interesting to me, as I

believe the policy set forth by the

government often highlights that

country’s particular values.

It seemed to me that the way a

country creates policy in regards to

unintended pregnancies says quite

a bit about the country’s ability and

willingness to face a problem that

many prefer would simply “go away,”

and, for this reason, I decided to dig

deeper into the world of baby boxes.

It wasn’t easy. Due to the varying

legality of the practice, in-depth

data was hard to come across.

However, sometimes the absence of

information can speak volumes. With

idea I set forth to write my paper.

Perhaps the most challenging part

of writing the essay was the revision.

I initially thought that writing ten

pages on a subject would make the

author something of a connoisseur;

instead, I was more perplexed

than ever. It wasn’t until later that I

realized a good research topic is not

always defined by the answers found,

but rather the questions it raises.

Caroline Toth

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Babies:

Thinking Outside the Boxby Caroline Toth


10 11Arak Anthology • 20th Edition 2013-2014 • Arak AnthologyUniversity of Delaware Department of English www.english.udel.edu

co-manager of Latvia’s baby box program, notes that while nine babies were found killed in 2006, before the country had any official baby boxes, the number of reported neonatacides in 2009 had decreased to four (Meyer). However, the numbers reported in Latvia’s study are too small to draw significant conclusions. Thus, it would seem that although the baby boxes are indeed receiving babies, they are not being utilized by the intended clientele – that is to say, they are not being used by mothers prone to neonaticide.

However, the statistics must be re-examined. A recent study by Joy Shulton, Yvonne Myuirhead, and Kathleen Canning delved into the details of 45 cases of documented infanticides in the United States. Shulton

– a correspondent for the FBI as well as the National Center for the Analysis of Violent Crime – noted that it sometimes took up to 3.6 years to recover the body of an infant (821). It is necessary to realize that the methods of disposing of a dead infant – often bagged and put into a trash bin – are, sadly, logistically easy and often go unnoticed and unreported. Thus, although the reported rates of infanticide in some European countries may seem relatively low, it is likely that far more cases have occurred and gone unnoticed. Such an example can be found in the case of one particularly licentious mother

who had given birth to ten children and killed six. She disposed of their remains in the flowerpots outside her house. The crime had gone unnoticed for years, until she had moved and the new owner knocked over one of the pots (Fernandes). So, to say that the rate of infanticide has not decreased is a statement that cannot necessarily be proven, given the circumstances.

If these statistics are correct, however, it would

seem that new dilemmas arise. Barbara Willenbacher, from the Law Department at the University of Hanover, explains that the baby box may create new pressure for mothers who are unexpectedly pregnant (346). For example, would relatives, boyfriends, or even pimps pressure an unwilling mother to anonymously leave her baby in such a hatch? If this is the case, is the baby box doing society more harm than good?

The United Nations also has qualms about the existence of such baby-depositing devices (“Spread”). They do, in fact, violate a child’s legal right to know who his or her biological parents may be: Article 8 of the United Nations’ Committee on the Rights of the Child reads, “States parties undertake to respect the right of the child to preserve his or her identity, including nationality, name and family relations” (qtd. in Witt). The idea behind this legislation is not only to provide medically important health records for the child, but to also provide the “knowledge [that is] central to the healthy formation of their identity” (Witt). However, Charlotte Witt, a professor of philosophy at the University of New Hampshire, creates a compelling argument against the assumptions of Article 8:

There is no evidence of serious harm to children who don’t know their biological or genetic origins. But the concept of identity that allegedly grounds the right to know is a fuzzy one at best. The relevant notion of identity is the psychological sense of self that normally develops in childhood. . . .One might think that a child’s identity is determined to a substantial degree by her biological inheritance, so to know herself she must know what that biogenetic heritage is. This claim might even seem self-evident in our era of the human genome and genetic medicine, but, in fact, this knowledge cannot be necessary for a child to develop an adequate sense of self. For most of human history (and in many cultures today), children have developed adequate identities or selves without access to biogenetic information.

Some believe the argument can be as simple as the choice between life and death: Gabriel Stangl, the operator of a combined baby box and church in Berlin, bluntly opines: “Which is more important, protecting life or protecting roots? You need to be alive to have an identity” (qtd. in Fernandes).

Witt also points out that full realization of Article 8 would require closed adoptions and gamete donations

Part 1 • This Year’s Winners

There is no evidence of serious

harm to children who don’t know

their biological or genetic origins. But

the concept of identity that allegedly

grounds the right to know is a fuzzy

one at best.

to be outlawed as well; however, we do not see many people rooting for that cause – why is that? It could be due to the stigma of unwanted pregnancy. Planned Parenthood spokeswoman Adrienne Verilli believes that “[The people behind these bills] don’t care about the woman. In their eyes, she’s a bad person who didn’t practice abstinence and probably isn’t a fit parent anyway” (qtd. in Scott-Jones). As Verilli states, society does tend to look down upon the women who are pregnant out of wedlock. This prompts the question: Although Article 8 is designed to protect the child, is it possible that it may be unfairly biased towards mothers? Kevin Browne, director of the Center of Forensic and Family Psychology at Britain’s Nottingham University, elaborates: “Recent times, the main drive, we think, for the use of baby boxes is where a mother is an illegal immigrant or an illegal worker, and therefore is frightened to go to a maternity unit or hospital” (qtd. in “Spread”). Thus, it would seem that the designated authorities are reluctant to acknowledge that baby boxes are, in fact, extremely helpful for some.

Which brings up yet another question: are lawmakers turning a blind eye to the abandonment dilemma? From a political standpoint, some might argue that addressing the problem would only mar their society’s reputation. If this is the case, legislators benefit from ignoring the problem: They can uphold their nation’s reputation. After all, admitting a nation’s problems with neonaticide and abandonment may cause some to perceive their society as unstable. So by ignoring the plight of these women, a nation (and its lawmakers) can continue to broadcast their idealized version of themselves into the world. Additionally, the victims of this epidemic are largely voiceless. Whether they are illegal, poor, or simply ashamed, the truth is that most do not want to come forward for fear of consequences – personal, legal, or otherwise.

However, some who militate against the concept of the baby box have different concerns in mind. Browne says, “They [the baby boxes] promote the unsafe birth of children in the community rather than with medical and health support in hospital environments” (“Spread”). The United Nations’ standpoint is that “[the] answer lies in better family planning and contraceptive advice, plus access to proper counseling and healthcare” (Fernandes). Of course, most people

would agree that prevention is key - but abandonment and infanticide is a societal problem that does not have a simple and speedy “answer.” Too many factors are at play – personal morals and socioeconomic status, to name a few. Additionally, such solutions are useless for a mother who is already pregnant – for constructing this kind of serious legislation is a long-term endeavor that

takes years. In the meantime, many say, baby boxes can be used as a well-intentioned “last resort.” Christina Tango, Children’s Rights Assistant for the International Reference Center (IRC) for the Rights of Children Deprived of their Family, agrees:

The issue is very delicate and controversial; different economic and social grounds may lead mothers to abandon their baby... These women are, in general, victims of a lack of adequate social networks and state public services. In the absence of such services, these boxes are a plausible solution to ensure the child’s survival and guarantee women’s rights. (qtd. in Meyer)

Nonetheless, based on data that show no decrease in the rate of neonaticide but an increase of babies being left in baby boxes (Willenbacher), some claim that the boxes are only promoting maternal irresponsibility. That is to say, some critics believe that the presence of such boxes are not saving lives, but only encouraging women to discard their babies without retribution. However, supporters argue otherwise. Dr. Catherine Bonnet, a leading French author, child psychiatrist, and psychoanalyst, performed a study in 1999 on mothers who were unwillingly pregnant. Dubbed the “Bonnet Study,” it became a breakthrough in the field of understanding the sometimes unfathomable actions of mothers. Her study is particularly pertinent because she incorporates France’s Safe Haven laws as part of her

Babies• Toth

Additionally, the victims of this epidemic

are largely voiceless. Whether they are illegal,

poor, or simply ashamed, the truth is that

most do not want to come forward for fear of

consequences – personal, legal, or otherwise.

2014-2015 • Arak Anthology10 Arak Anthology • 21st Edition


study. These are laws that allow a woman to give birth in a hospital and hand the child over to the medical personnel anonymously (Dreyer).

Bonnet divided the abandonment process into four stages. The first, she claimed, consisted primarily of denial. Whether the potential mothers were driven by shame or guilt, the majority were able to convince themselves that they were, in fact, not pregnant, despite the physical evidence. This type of denial may be a way of coping, Bonnet notes, for most of the mothers had discovered their pregnancy after the first trimester, when an abortion was no longer an option (Dreyer). The second stage, “Discovery of and Violent Impulses Toward the Fetus,” was more dangerous. Many women began to have violent fantasies geared towards their unborn child. A fear of the inability to control these thoughts often led to extreme guilt; the combination often rendered the mothers “mute, paralyzed by the [emotional] pain” (qtd in Dreyer). The next stage concerns the actual birth of the child. Bonnet notes that most of the women in her study, who were aware of France’s Safe Haven legislation, decided ahead of time to take advantage of anonymous birthing in order

to protect themselves and their fetus from their violent impulses (Dreyer). The fourth stage only involved less than 20% of her subjects. Ten percent were those who gave birth, and in a moment of “extremely brief but unbearable panic,” killed the child. The other 10% were successful in denying their pregnancy to the point that they did not recognize their child as what it was; rather, they perceived it only to be “a shapeless mass,” and rationalized the pains as mere intestinal problems (Dreyer).

The important part of this study is that roughly 80% of the women who were unwillingly pregnant saved their child from their violent impulses. Contrary

to what critics say, this shows that anonymous abandonment can be accomplished responsibly. Bonnet’s study demonstrates that given the option, many mothers would take the initiative and plan ahead of time to handle their unfortunate situation. It is true that some still carried out their fantasies – but perhaps, if more countries allowed for baby boxes, the mothers’ moment of panic and subsequent spontaneity could be directed towards a baby box. Both actions are quick, anonymous, and relieve the mother of her perceived burden.

Furthermore, it is crucial to understand that whether abandonment is due to economic necessity, fear of consequences, unpreparedness, or even a fear of violence, depositing a child in a baby box is characterized by extreme emotions – deep sorrow for some, panic for others. That is to say, abandoning a newborn is almost never care-free, as many opponents believe it is. Rarely will a mother be unemotional; if she is, her child is certainly better off in the baby box, with the chance to find a family that loves him or her.

The United States has similar anonymous abandonment laws. The Safe Haven movement began in Texas in 1999, and has since spread to all fifty states. Texas House Bill 3423 allowed for the anonymous handing-over of newborn from mother to medical personnel. The law was met with much criticism and has been tweaked many times; as a result, Texas House Bill 706 was created. It states that a child must be handed over to an emergency infant care provider,

“which includes an emergency medical care provider, hospital, or licensed child-placing agency” (qtd. in Dreyer). Additionally, in order to prevent kidnappings or forced abandonment without a parent’s consent, it is required for the state to put out a missing child report that will be evaluated by the Department of Protective and Regulatory Services. This way, should a mother find herself unwillingly stripped of her baby, she can take steps to recover it; by that same token, a father can take the same steps and even take certain steps to establish paternity and acquire custody of the child.

Although the United States’ Safe Haven legislature is not equivalent to a baby box, the idea behind the two is the same: To provide a distraught mother with a way out and a baby with the opportunity to find loving parents. The problem, however, is that Safe Haven legislation requires involvement with “the system,”


The important part of this study is

that roughly 80% of the women who were

unwillingly pregnant saved their child from

their violent impulses.

“The ‘Baby Box’ Returns to Europe.” Korea Times 26 June 2012. Lexis-Nexis Academic. Web. 20 April 2013.

Dreyer, Stephanie E. “Texas’ Safe Haven Legislation: Is Anonymous, Le-galized Abandonment a Viable Solution to Newborn Discardment and Death?” Texas Journal of Women and the Law 12.1 (2002). GenderWatch. Web. 2 May 2013.

Fernandes, Edna. “Abandoned in a Postbox for Babies.” Mail On Sunday [London] 8 July 2012. LexisNexis Academic. Web. 25 Apr. 2013.

Flavin, Jeanne. Our Bodies, Our Crimes: The Policing of Women’s Reproduction in America. New York: New York UP, 2009. Print.

Meyer, Jacy. “UN Condemns ‘Baby Boxes’ Across Europe.” The Chris-tian Science Monitor 6 July 2012. Academic OneFile. Web. 29 Apr. 2013.

Scott-Jones, Diane. “Adolescent Childbearing: Whose Problem? What Can We Do?” Phi Delta Kappan 75.3 (1993). Academic OneFile. Web. 3 May 2013.

Shulton, Joy Lynn E., Yvonne Muirhead, and Kathleen E. Canning. “Ambivalence Towards Mothers Who Kill: An Examination of 45 U.S. Cases of Maternal Homicide.” Behavioral Sciences and the Law 28 (2010): 812-831. LexisNexis Academic. Web. 20 Apr. 2013.

“Spread of ‘Baby Boxes’ Alarms Europeans.” All Things Considered. Perf. Phillip Reeves, Melissa Block, Nine Greve, Kevin Browne, Lutz Eidam, and Christiane Woopen. National Public Radio. 18 Feb. 2013. Radio program.

Willenbacher, Barbara. “Legal Transfer of French Traditions? German and Austrian Initiatives to Introduce Anonymous Birth.” Interna-tional Journal of Law, Policy, and the Family 18 (2004).

Witt, Charlotte. “The Good of the Child: Baby Boxes and the Right to Know Our Origins.” Boston Review. Boston Review, 7 February 2013. Web. 3 May 2013.

Works Cited

Babies• Toth

something many potential mothers fear. Additionally, baby boxes are legal in only 11 of the 27 countries in the European Union as of 2012 (Fernandes).

True, the baby box does not work perfectly. It is only a last resort, a means to save the life of a child who might otherwise be killed. As the Bonnet Study has shown, despite Safe Haven legislature being made available, some mothers are unwilling to admit to their pregnancy and/or seek out medical professionals. Should the baby box be made available, however, it seems that children could be saved from a childhood with a mother who is simply not ready for parenthood. In the meantime, we can begin to work to prevent undesired pregnancies, as the United Nations prefers. In the long term, that is the best way to begin to solve the problem – proactively, rather than retroactively. But until these improvements can be fully put into place, it would be beneficial for society to have legal baby boxes. Perhaps, if legalized, they could be properly advertised and appear more frequently – and be utilized by the women who need them the most.

Baby boxes may be an eyesore for some, an ugly reminder of a major problem in society. But whether or not we want to acknowledge it, baby abandonment is a serious problem – especially because the victims of abandonment have no voice in the matter. True, thinking about abandoned infants is deeply lugubrious, but wishing away these thoughts will not resolve the problem. Legalization and installment of baby boxes are crucial to provide women and children with the right to life.



This essay was written for

an English class themed around

imaginary friends. I was interested

in movies like Rise of the Guardians

and how these figures related to

the imagination but achieved wider

cultural acceptance. I benefited from

choosing a topic that I enjoyed, and

I found that narrowing my analysis

to a few specific films helped

me focus my research while still

drawing broader conclusions about

the presence of popular cultural

imaginary figures in film. At first, I

was concerned that four films was

too many and would not allow me to

go in depth, but I found that each film

provided an important dimension of

the influence of imaginary figures,

especially those that incorporated

adults.

During research, I had trouble

accessing copies of appropriate

sources, but I was eventually able to

find them through the interlibrary

loan system. I also found additional

sources by searching though the

references listed in other studies

about imaginary companions. I also

had difficulty incorporating specific

references in my essay, rather

than simply using my sources as

background information for my

analysis. After meeting with my

Writing Fellow, I was able to identify

my weaker points and create a better

balance between supporting research,

analysis, and summarization.

Danielle Wegrzyn

While imaginary companions are unique to their individual creators, several common imaginary figures exist in the American cultural world of childhood. Such figures include Santa Claus, the Sandman, the Tooth Fairy, and Jack Frost. Belief in these figures occurs and is encouraged through early and sometimes late childhood, as they represent a socially acceptable form of imaginative experience. Cindy Clark defines belief in these figures as a widespread cultural “imaginal experience … which is not physically present, but which is actually experienced nevertheless” (3). Parents may accept and promote belief in such characters for a variety of reasons, including familiarity, the desire to exercise control in the experience, or nostalgia for their own childhood innocence. Moreover, adults use these figures to influence children’s behavior, not only to teach them lessons and cultural values, but also to help children reinterpret frightening or confusing events in a positive light. Family and children’s films support and encourage this practice. Movies such as Rise of the Guardians, The Year Without A Santa Claus, The Tooth Fairy, and The Santa Clause perpetuate the familiarity of imaginary figures and present common themes about the purpose of fantasy figures, the importance and power of belief, and how persistent belief in imaginary figures can convert others.

Like the myths and spiritual tales from which they originate, these well-known imaginary characters provide supernatural explanations and comfort for events in the natural world that cannot be easily explained. Imaginary figures such as the Tooth Fairy, the Sandman, and Jack Frost can help children understand and cope with such difficult events, which may be especially hard for them to understand if they have not developed certain cognitive abilities. For example, a child must understand that objects can exist in multiple states in order to comprehend the process of precipitation, but those who do not understand will be content with Jack Frost’s magic as a temporary explanation. Marjorie Taylor compares such beliefs to adults who identify “magic” as a cause of the Northern Lights when they could not come up with a natural explanation (Imaginary Companions 102). Similarly, in Rise of the Guardians and The Year Without A Santa Claus, Jack Frost and the Miser brothers provide an explanation for natural seasonal changes and weather processes that children may be too young to understand. Especially in winter, a season that can be harsh, cold, and uncomfortable, the characters of a young boy (Jack) and a caricatured icicle-man (Snow Miser) give the unpleasant weather an air of playfulness, enchantment, and humor. In both Rise of the Guardians and The Tooth Fairy, the character of the Tooth Fairy is presented as figure who can help children cope with the frightening or painful experience of losing one’s teeth. These films offer a comforting explanation Il

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When Belief Becomes Reality:

Popular Childhood Imaginary Figures in Filmby Danielle Wegrzyn




for tooth loss, whether it be popular the reward of money or the specific explanation given by Rise of the Guardians, in which teeth contain precious childhood memories that are collected and guarded by the Tooth Fairy. Clark notes that the Tooth Fairy rituals also mark a child’s growing maturity in that the child receives adult teeth and a form of miniature financial independence (19). The Guardians’ Sandman is also a comfort and acts as a direct contrast to Pitch, who is the embodiment of children’s fears. Pitch himself provides a concrete, combatable explanation for nightmares, and belief in the Sandman gives children the comfort of sweet dreams. In

fact, the name “Guardians” implies that all of these characters exist to protect children from the fear that Pitch represents. These films

present fantasy figures as explanations for the weather, the process of losing teeth, variance in dream content, and fear. In addition to their explanatory aspect, the films use imaginary figures as a source of comfort and positivity what could otherwise be seen as negative events.

The films also perpetuate another function of fantasy figures similar to that of myths: the ability to teach a lesson or otherwise influence behavior. Santa, as depicted in The Santa Clause, The Year Without A Santa Claus, and Rise of the Guardians, most clearly demonstrates this propensity for education. Each movie retains the classic elements of Santa creating “Naughty” and “Nice” lists to judge children’s behavior and reward them with coal or toys accordingly. Despite obvious physical limitations on Santa’s abilities to observe the behavior of the world, children believe in his story. This belief may be due to Santa’s categorization as a fantasy figure. Wigger, Paxson, and Ryan studied the way that children perceived the knowledge of imaginary companions, and they discuss imaginary figures as an undefined middle area between real beings and God. They identify the “known [but] not seen” happenings of imaginary figures as something that removes these

figures from the constraints of normal human physical and mental capabilities (12). Thus, Santa’s ability to see and judge presents children with a clear lesson: good behavior elicits a reward, so behave as if someone is always watching. Santa also acts as an effective role model for generosity. In a study by David Dixon and Harry Hom, first-graders who were prompted to tell stories about Santa were 37% more likely to donate gum to children with disabilities than those who were prompted to tell stories about pets. Kindergarteners who believed in Santa did not show the same increase, which may mean that the Santa story teaches a lesson that can be better understood as a child gets older (16-17). Belief in the Tooth Fairy also provides more subtle nudges to children’s behavior. Rise of the Guardians presents the Tooth Fairy as having a fascination with how white Jack’s teeth are, and teeth are given high importance because they contain memories. This presentation would encourage children to take care of their teeth and practice good dental hygiene. According to Bates’ logic, it can be assumed that “the psychological reality of the symbolic meaning will remain” long after children have stopped believing in fantasy figures (Gill and Papatheodorou 200). These films endow well-known imaginary figures with this symbolic meaning in order to promote the same values that parents or religious stories teach children.

Children’s films also present strong ideas about the necessity of belief. In The Year Without A Santa Claus, Santa has no motivation to make his Christmas journey when there no one believes in him. It is only when he sees that the children of the world still have faith in him that he regains his spirit. In Rise of the Guardians, children’s belief has the power to give the Guardians form and magic, and without it, there is despair. Taylor notes that culturally, “there is … a strong negative message communicated about nonbelievers … and the possibility of undesirable consequences if one fails to believe” (“The Role of Creative Control” 1016). Rise of the Guardians illustrates such “undesirable consequences” in a several ways. Whenever belief declines, the lights go out on the Guardians’ globe, representing the loss of hope and good in the world. This is paralleled by the takeover of Pitch, the embodiment of nightmares and darkness. Additionally, when children stop believing in a fantasy

Additionally, when children

stop believing in a fantasy

character, they lose their

powers.

When Belief Becomes Reality • Wegzryn

character, they lose their powers. The Easter Bunny, for example, shrinks down to a much less intimidating size. Rise of the Guardians acknowledges fantasy figures as dependent on children’s belief and uses this dependency to further encourage that belief. In the end, belief saves the day. By believing in one another, the children and the Guardians triumph over Pitch. By presenting the negative effects of disbelief and their resolution as a result of faith, films portray belief as personally beneficial and collectively unifying.

In these films, belief is not just for children, however. The films The Tooth Fairy and The Santa Clause depict the power of belief as a redemptive factor in the lives of adults who are detached from their children and have to take on the role of a fantasy figure. While most of films appeal to what Papatheodorou and Gill recognize as the adult nostalgia that occurs when seeing children’s belief in fantasy figures, these two films appeal to a present connection with one’s children, as mediated through fantasy figures (202). Both films present a father figure who is disconnected from a child, and consequently the child’s mother, due to his preoccupation with himself. Each father takes on the role of a fantasy figure as a form of penance. Specifically, Derek takes on the role of Tooth Fairy as penance for

“killing children’s dreams,” and Scott becomes Santa as penance for indirectly and accidentally killing the previous Santa as a result of his disbelief of the man on his roof. While both Derek and Scott resist their new roles at first, they come to embrace them after exposure to the belief and innocence of children, especially their own. Their feelings reflect those of the real life adults who “take on” the roles of fantasy figures by keeping up their children’s beliefs through stories and traditions such as leaving presents. Andrew Shtulman and Susan Carey note that, although children will identify events as “impossible,” they have trouble explaining why these events could not occur, and they could easily be swayed by adult-provided, physical or verbal evidence (1030-1031). By providing the evidence and taking on the role of fantasy figures, both the film characters and real parents become responsible for the beliefs and values that these figures represent to their children. This then allows them to reconnect with their children and families. The parents who view these films are also able to revive their own awareness of belief, reflecting Clark’s idea

that “When adults want to reach out spiritually, some find themselves wishing for childlike trust to replace their cynicism and skepticism” (3). In Rise of the Guardians, Jack has a similar situation in that he must take on the role of Guardian in order to protect the beliefs of the children. Taking on this responsibility gives Jack the concrete identity that he was lacking and eventually allows children to see and believe in him. These movies idealize children’s faith in imaginary figures as a factor that can be protected by and redemptive to distant parents by allowing them to reconnect with their children and their own capacity for faith.

In addition, each of these films acknowledges some form of opposition to the child’s belief in imaginary figures. Children’s belief in Santa and other imaginary figures decreases with age as a result of logic development and other factors such as peer pressure. Sometimes, parents believe a child is “too old” and discourage further belief in imaginary figures. In films, parents are often portrayed as cynical if not outright discouraging; however, this may not be the case in reality if parents are taking their children to see the films mentioned. At the end of each film, the belief of a child triggers some form of conversion for an opposing force. In Year Without a Santa Claus, a letter from a young girl begins to express the belief of children in Santa, which encourages him to overcome sickness and return. In The Santa Clause, Charlie’s belief prompts Scott to accept his role as Santa and believe in himself, which later prompts Neal and Scott’s ex-wife to believe and accept him back into the family. Similarly, Jamie encourages his friends to believe in Jack Frost and the other Guardians in Rise of the Guardians, and it is Jamie’s belief that cements Jack’s acceptance of his role as Guardian. Even in The Tooth Fairy, the perseverance of the faith of children like Tess convert Derek to take his role seriously and believe in and support children’s dreams as well. The films show that the opposition of parental figures, among other things, can be overcome by the power of a child’s persistent faith in fantasy figures and the parental figure behind them.

These films present imaginary figures in a way that encourages children to keep believing. They emphasize the power of belief to impart values, bring joy, and increase self-confidence in children. These films allow adults to relive the magic and innocence of




childhood, to feel that it is alright to take comfort in one’s imagination, and to encourage them to support children’s belief in imaginary figures by highlighting the positive influence of these figures in children’s lives and presenting their power to redeem the detached parent. By watching these films and renewing their own childhood nostalgia, parents are able to follow suit and reconnect with their own children. This encouragement is then reflected in wider society. For instance, Taylor notes the community efforts required to coordinate appearances of Santa in shopping malls and on television (Imaginary Companions 93), and belief is also promoted institutionally through dentists’ Tooth Fairy displays and school-organized Easter egg hunts. What is most important is the necessity of belief as a part of the imaginative experience with these figures. These films present children’s relationships with popular imaginary figures as a part of community and culture that provides educational and moral lessons, creates magic, and redeems parents. None of these things, however, would be possible without children’s belief as a basis. The symbolic meaning of these characters is only realized in accordance with the child’s belief in their existence. In that sense, the film industry’s message about the power of faith is true. Children’s belief has the ability to give unreal fantasy figures a real meaning that has a tangible effect on society.

Clark, Cindy Dell. Flights of Fancy, Leaps of Faith: Children’s Myths in Contemporary America. Chicago: University of Chicago, 1995. Print.

Dixon, David J. and Harry L. Hom, Jr. “The Role of Fantasy Figures in the Regulation of Young Children’s Behavior: Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny, and Donations.” Contemporary Educational Psychology 9.1 (1984) : 14-18. Science Direct. Web. 7 May 2013.

Gill, Janet and Theodora Papatheodorou. “Perpetuating the Father Christmas Story: A Justifiable Lie?” International Journal of Children’s Spirituality 4.2 (1999): 195-205. Taylor and Francis Online. Web. 7 May 2013.

Rise of the Guardians. Dir. Peter Ramsey. Dreamworks Animation, 2012. Film. The Santa Clause. Dir. John Pasquin. Outlaw Productions, 1994. Film.

Shtulman, Andrew and Susan Carey. “Improbable or Impossible? How Children Reason about the Possibility of Extraordinary Events.” Child Development 78.3 (2007) : 1015-1032. Wiley Online Library. Web. 7 May 2013.

Taylor, Marjorie. Imaginary Companions and the Children Who Create Them. New York: Oxford, 1999. Print.---. “The Role of Creative Control and Culture in Children’s Fantasy/Reality Judgments.” Child Development 68.6 (1997): 1015-1017. Wiley Online Library. Web. 7 May 2013.

The Tooth Fairy. Dir. Michael Lembeck. Walden Media, 2010.

Wigger, J. Bradley, Katrina Paxson, and Lacey Ryan. “What Do Invisible Friends Know? Imaginary Companions, God, and Theory of Mind.” International Journal For the Psychology of Religion 23.1 (2013) : 2-14. Taylor and Francis Online. Web. 7 May 2013.

The Year Without A Santa Claus. Dir. Jules Bass and Arthur Rankin, Jr. Rankin-Bass Productions, 1974. Film.

Works Cited

When Belief Becomes Reality • Wegzryn


www.english.udel.edu 212013-2014 • Arak Anthology

One in nine. That’s how many American seniors age 65 and over are affected by Alzheimer’s disease, according to Joseph Gaugler, Bryan James, Tricia Johnson, Ken Scholz, and Jennifer Weuve’s article, “2013 Alzheimer’s Disease Facts and Figures,” featured in Alzheimer’s and Dementia. Besides this fact, Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia are the “sixth-leading cause of death in the United States and the fifth-leading cause of death for individuals age 65 and older” (Gaugler et al. 25). Today, about 5.2 million Americans are affected by this disease. This figure is expected to grow age exponentially, as the baby boomer generation is beginning to grow old. Alzheimer’s and dementia, degenerative diseases of the brain, are becoming a growing issue in today’s society. With currently no known cause or cure for the disease, raising awareness and research funds is especially important. However, there seems to be an ongoing issue in the way that the elderly, as well as mental diseases and defects, are portrayed in today’s mass media. These media depictions of the elderly and Alzheimer’s, and the perceptions of today’s society, prove detrimental to the critical awareness needed for the research and funding of this disease. Various forms of mass media have a tendency of portraying the elderly in a less than accurate light. The elderly are very underrepresented in the media. In today’s television programming, “only 1.9% of prime-time television characters are 65 years old or older, whereas the group comprises 12.7% of the population” (Donlon, Ashman and Levy 308). From the Journal of Social Issues, Margie M. Donlon, Ori Ashman and Becca Levy’s article, “Re-Vision of Older Television Characters: A Stereotype-Awareness Intervention,” examined the way in which the elderly are portrayed and brought attention to the underrepresentation of the elderly in prime-time television. In the awareness portion of their experiment, 76 senior citizens were gathered to watch portions of television shows and to analyze the portrayal of the elderly, or the lack thereof. One participant was quoted as saying, “Older characters rarely show up on network shows—we’re used to not seeing them, so it seems ‘natural’. But it probably contributes to the feeling of invisibility older people have in the world. It teaches us that older people don’t count” (Donlon, Ashman and Levy 315). Another was quoted as stating, “I feel like we’ve been ignored. I feel like we’re non-existent” (Donlon, Ashman and Levy 315). This underrepresentation of the elderly has contributed to a lower self-esteem in the elderly. However, since television is such an important part of today’s mass media, it has also created a negative perception of the elderly in the minds of today’s youth. Therefore, the rest of society tends to overlook the elderly and other topics

This paper started out as a research

paper for Dr. Cucciarre’s English 110

class. We were given the option to

select our own topics. Immediately,

a plethora of topics floated through

my mind. I decided that it had to be

something that I was very interested

in, perhaps something close to my

heart. That’s when it came to me;

Alzheimer’s disease. My grandfather

was diagnosed with this devastating

disease around my sophomore year in

high school. I knew I wanted to take

the time to explore the topic a little

further, as well as avoid a scientific,

strictly facts paper. So I began doing

some digging. I stumbled upon an

article that addressed the way in

which the media portrays the elderly.

After reading this article, I began to

wonder just how this affects not only

the elderly population, but those

affected by Alzheimer’s disease. From

there, I came up with the research

question of, “How does the media’s

portrayal of Alzheimer’s disease and

dementia affect others’ perspective

on the diseases?” And the rest, as they

say, is history.

Tiana Peele

Illu

stra

tio

n b

y M

acke

nzi

e Ja

nu

s

Alzheimer’s:

The Forgotten Issueby Tiana Peele



surrounding them. In addition to this lacking portrayal of the elderly, those that are portrayed tend to be depicted negatively. Oftentimes, the elderly are shown feeble and are often used comically, having some sort of “physical or mental incompetence” (Donlon, Ashman and Levy 308). In conjunction with the argument of Donlon and her colleagues, Eva-Marie Kessler, Katrin Rakoczy, and Ursula M. Staudinger’s article, “The Portrayal of Older People in Prime Time Television Series: The Match with Gerontological Evidence,” published in Ageing and Society, further discusses the television portrayal of the elderly. Kessler and her

colleagues argue that “in news and magazine programmes old people are depicted as passive, e.g. as victims, ill and dying people” (532) and “images of old age and ageing may be considered depressing

rather than entertaining” (544). Donlon and her colleagues, as well as Kessler and her collaborators, would concur that such tragic representations of the elderly population further contributes to their overall invisibility. Beyond the media’s portrayal of the elderly, there is also a negative way of portraying the mentally ill. Appearing in the Australian and New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry Claire Wilson, Raymond Nairn, John Coverdale and Aroha Panapa’s article, “Mental Illness Depictions in Prime-Time Drama: Identifying the Discursive Resources,” conveys their findings of a television study of mental disease depictions. Their overall findings conclude that depictions of the mentally ill are highly negative. The samples used within their experiment suggest that “unpleasant, aggressive and antisocial actions are sourced in the character’s mental illness” (Wilson et al. 236). Such depictions, again,

prove detrimental to the interpretations of society at large. Horrible depictions of the cognitively impaired creates a distance between them and “normal” society. The cognitively impaired is said to be a threat to society and society’s norms (Wilson et al. 236), therefore leading to an unfair isolation. As Wilson and her teammates state, these depictions generate “fear and mistrust” (236) in the minds of other members of society, which further extends the cognitively impaired subjects’ isolation. Consequently, society as a whole will shy away from something fearful to them, leaving mental diseases, including the crucial ones like Alzheimer’s and dementia, an ongoing mystery. Mass media, most importantly, fabricates a grave portrayal of Alzheimer’s disease and dementia. Printed media forms especially present this grim side of the disease through tone and word choice. Juanne N. Clarke’s article, “The Case of the Missing Person: Alzheimer’s Disease in Mass Print Magazines 1991 – 2001,” featured in Health Communication, touches on this subject. As this Wilfrid Laurier University sociologist states, “minimal attention is paid to prevention, early stages of the disease, social support, options for care, or other alternative understandings of issues related to Alzheimer’s” (Clarke 269). The brunt of media’s attention is focused directly on portraying the negative side of Alzheimer’s disease and dementia—the side that not every patient and those surrounding them are going through. In doing this, the prime focus is on the latter stages of Alzheimer’s. These stages are all about the major deterioration, loss of one’s self, and so on. Some descriptors used to describe this harsh state of being are “a crumbling self,” “the brain is like a time bomb gone awry,” and “it involves a relentless deterioration that robs these patients of their minds, identities and physical selves” (Clarke 272). Such devastating descriptions “exacerbate fear” (Clarke 274) in the minds of society, creating an aversion to Alzheimer’s and dementia. Clarke’s views agree with New Zealand sociologist, Allison M. Kirkman. Kirkman’s article, “Dementia in the News: The Media Coverage of Alzheimer’s Disease,” featured in the Australian Journal of Ageing, analyzes the way in which Alzheimer’s disease and dementia is portrayed in New Zealand print sources. Kirkman points out in her article that “negative media coverage is frequently


The brunt of media’s attention

is focused directly on

portraying the negative side

of Alzheimer’s disease and

dementia—the side that

not every patient and those

surrounding them are going

through.

associated with representations that stereotype people with dementia” (74). It is a well-known fact that the greater part of society is extremely impressionable when it comes to stereotypes cooked up by the media. Perpetuating negative stereotypes often leads to a negative perception in the minds of society, which then leads to an abrupt aversion. This sort of aversion becomes crucial when attention is not being paid to those who really need it. Furthermore, Kirkman, like Clarke, also suggests that the way in which journalists describe Alzheimer’s and dementia constitutes fear. Kirkman mentions such phrases as ‘disease of the century,’ the ‘mind robber,’ the ‘never-ending funeral,’ and a ‘slow death of the mind’ (75). It becomes clear here that the goal of journalists and authors is to ignite some uneasiness and anxiety in society. Could it be to light some sort of metaphorical fire under the feet of society? Possibly, but it could also deter the general public from a subject that desperately needs attention. Expanding on Clarke’s and Kirkman’s idea, London School of Economics and Political Science lecturer, Sadie Wearing gives her insight on the subject in her article, “Dementia and the Biopolitics of the Biopic: From Iris to The Iron Lady.” This article, making its appearance in Dementia, discusses the emotions created in society surrounding the depiction of Alzheimer’s and dementia. Wearing analyzes the film, Iris, which presents the life of British novelist, Iris Murdoch, and her husband, John Bayley, and the pain and frustration they encounter with her later battle with dementia. Wearing claims that “Iris appears to conform to all of the most damaging tropes of Alzheimer’s narratives and their tendency to dehumanise the sufferer, casting them as abject or ‘bare life’” (3). Such a corrupted issue is precisely why people have such a twisted perception of Alzheimer’s disease and dementia in its entirety. She also analyzes The Iron Lady, which depicts the life of former British prime minister, Margaret Thatcher, and her fight with dementia. For the analysis of this biopic, Wearing cited The Daily Telegraph journalist, Max Pemberton, as stating that he himself “condemns the callousness of a film that repeats this erasure citing the ‘social death’ that too often accompanies the disease” and suggests that The Iron Lady is “lamentable, vile and shameful – and it should anger every one of us’ (qtd. in Wearing 8). The fact

that Pemberton felt this way about The Iron Lady not only shows that the media gives a distorted perspective of dementia, but it also sheds light on society’s overall sentiment in regards to the disease. Wearing proclaims that such disturbing portrayals of the disease as these two biopics “can and have created ‘a paralyzing feeling of dread’ which results in an ‘atrophy of public will’” (2) and that “rather than galvanising support for those affected, this [has] induce[d] despair and withdrawal” (2). Therefore, instead of stirring a response from the nation, devastating media images have generated terror and deterrence. The previous form of awareness has been said to produce a sense of unease in society, but what if awareness is not a factor at all? Some feel that raising awareness and research funds has no effect on reducing the number of individuals affected by the specific disease. One such doubter is journalist Bill Gifford. Gifford’s article, “It’s Not about the Lab Rats” in Outside magazine, places doubt on one such organization, Livestrong. In fact, Gifford questions whether or not raising research funds for diseases is actually a method of exploitation. It has been speculated that the Livestrong foundation is used to gain Lance Armstrong, its founder, extra spotlight and personal income. In fact, according to Gifford, Lance Armstrong “actually pocketed appearance fees in the high six figures from the organizers of both the Tour Down Under and the Giro d’Italia” (Gifford). He also admitted that he took the money raised during both events, and used it as personal income. Furthermore, Livestrong donates much less money than your typical disease fund organization, giving out a mere “total of $20 million in research grants between 1998 and 2005” (Gifford). This fact raises the question of why only $20 million was donated over a span of seven years, and more importantly, where were the leftover funds? Surely a company like Livestrong, powered by such an influential figure, should have generated a much larger amount for donation over those seven years. The fact that the answers to these questions remain a mystery is the reason why people cast doubt on the motives of research fund organizations. But despite the speculations placed on Armstrong and Livestrong, many disease-related organizations have made a significant impact on the prevalence of other illnesses.

Alzheimer’s • Peele



Many organizations have made great strides in raising awareness of disease through informing the public of tests, free screenings and health fairs, and so on. In doing so, these organizations’ awareness has led to increased levels of disease prevention and early detection. One such organization is the American Cancer Society. The “Cancer Prevention and Early Detection Facts and Figures 2013,” done

by Vilma Cokkinides and Leah Bryan and presented in American Cancer Society, offers some statistical support of the advantages of raising awareness. For example, raising awareness of the consequences of tobacco usage and contributing to tobacco control has caused a significantly “lower youth and adult smoking prevalence” (Cokkinides and Bryan 17). Another example is breast cancer. According to Cokkinides and Bryan, “death rates from breast cancer in women have been declining since 1990, due in part to early detection by mammography screening” (36). Finally, Cokkinides and Bryan state “cervical cancer incidence and mortality rates have decreased by more than 50% over the past three decades, with most of the reduction attributed to the Pap test, which detects cervical cancer and precancerous lesions” (40). What these statistics indicate is that positive disease awareness increases the chances of certain cancer’s prevention and early detection, which in turn leads to lower mortality rates. C. Sinclair and P. Foley would agree with Cokkinides and Bryan’s statistical data, as they too have explored the effects of positive awareness methods. In their article, “Skin Cancer Prevention in Australia,” in the British Journal of Dermatology, the effect of skin cancer awareness methods in Australia are analyzed. A program known as SunSmart was put in place to help raise awareness of

sun cancer and offer prevention techniques. SunSmart’s main way of reaching the public was through none other than television advertising. As Sinclair and Foley indicated, there seems to be a clear correlation between

“investment in social marketing and in particular television advertising relating to skin cancer prevention” (118) for SunSmart and the behavior of the Australian population. More specifically, the data showed there was an increase in the preference for no tan, hat and sunscreen use and the proportion of body surface protected from the sun when there was higher levels of adverting on television. When funding decreased for the SunSmart program and hence the program’s ability to advertise on TV, there was a corresponding decrease in sun protective behavior. (Sinclair and Foley 117). This trend is indicative of the fact that correct disease awareness holds a significant impact on the actions of society as a whole. More specifically, the greater the amount of positive awareness raised, the greater the societal response, and therefore, the lower the percentages of individuals affected. So, if this is indeed the case for such diseases as cancer, why can’t the same methods be applied to Alzheimer’s and dementia awareness?The media is a very powerful method of persuasion in individuals worldwide, therefore what is displayed through these various media needs to be carefully considered. Today’s television has a disgusting habit of portraying the elderly in such a way that has made them almost invisible to the remainder of society. Likewise, the depictions of the mentally ill on prime-time television and Alzheimer’s and dementia in printed media has created an aversion in the minds of many. It has been declared that such imagery has sustained a fear in the hearts of people, and therefore caused Alzheimer’s and dementia to somewhat fall by the wayside. In the U.S. today, someone develops Alzheimer’s every 68 seconds (Gaugler et al. 19). This number is expected to change rapidly as the baby boomer generation is reaching the critical Alzheimer’s and dementia age. Knowing this, society cannot afford to continue dealing with these diseases the way it has. More positive awareness needs to be made about Alzheimer’s, using less of the fear generating tactics that are currently being utilized. It is crucial


Today’s television has a disgusting

habit of portraying the elderly in such

a way that has made them almost

invisible to the remainder of society.

that this awareness be made in order to contribute more to finding the causes, and potentially a cure as well. Changing up the media portrayals of the elderly, Alzheimer’s disease and dementia is ultimately what needs to be done to support the fight against such a devastating disease.

Works CitedClarke, Juanne N. “The Case of the Missing Person: Alzheimer’s Dis-

ease in Mass Print Magazines 1991-2001.” Health Communication, Vol. 19, No. 3. 2006: 269-276. Taylor & Francis Online. PDF. 12 Apr. 2013.

Cokkinides, Vilma and Leah Bryan. “Cancer Prevention and Early Detection Facts and Figures 2013.” American Cancer Society. American Cancer Society, Inc. 2013. PDF. 19 Apr. 2013.

Donlon, Margie M. and Ori Ashman, Becca R. Levy. “Re-vision of Older Television Characters: A Stereotype-Awareness Intervention.” Journal of Social Issues, Vol. 61, No. 2 Jun. 2005: 307-319. Wiley Online Library. PDF. 13 Apr. 2013.

Gaugler, Ph.D., Joseph and Bryan James, Ph.D., Tricia Johnson, Ph.D., Ken Scholz, Ph.D., Jennifer Weuve, M.P.H., Sc.D. “2013 Alzheim-er’s Disease Facts and Figures.” Alzheimer’s & Dementia, Vol. 9, No. 2. 2013: 1-59. Alzheimer’s Association. PDF. 17 Apr. 2013.

Gifford, Bill. “It’s Not about the Lab Rats.” Outside. Mariah Media Network, LLC. 5 Jan. 2012. Web. 19 Apr. 2013.

Kessler, Eva-Marie. and Katrin Rakoczy, Ursula M. Staudinger. “The Portrayal of Older People in Prime Time Television Series: The Match with Gerontological Evidence.” Ageing & Society, Vol. 24, No. 4. Jul. 2004: 531-552. Cambridge Journals. PDF. 13 Apr. 2013.

Kirkman, Allison M. “Dementia in the News: The Media Coverage of Alzheimer’s Disease.” Australasian Journal on Ageing, Vol. 25, No. 2. Jun. 2006: 74-79. Wiley Online Library. PDF. 13 Apr. 2013.

Sinclair, C. and P. Foley. “Skin Cancer Prevention in Australia.” British Journal of Dermatology, Vol. 161, No. 3. 22 Sep. 2009: 116-123. Wiley Online Library. PDF. 20 Apr. 2013.

Wearing, Sadie. “Dementia and the Biopolitics of the Biopic: From Iris to The Iron Lady.” Dementia, Vol. 12, No. 2. Mar. 2013: 1-11. Sage Journals. PDF. 13 Apr. 2013.

Wilson, Claire and Raymond Nairn, John Coverdale, Aroha Panapa. “Mental Illness Depictions in Prime-Time Drama: Identifying the Discursive Resources.” Australian and New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry, Vol. 33, No. 2. Apr. 1999: 232-239. Sage Journals. PDF. 12 Apr. 2013.

Alzheimer’s • Peele


www.english.udel.edu 272013-2014 • Arak Anthology

Illu

stra

tio

n b

y C

hip

Kee

ver

The inspiration for this essay came

from the personal experiences of

myself as a student and many friends

and relatives as teachers in the

state of Delaware. I had experienced

personally the frustrating diversions

from valuable class time and content

required for test prep, and those

around me who taught in Delaware

schools often expressed sentiments

ranging from annoyance to outrage

at the unwelcome intrusions into

their work caused by the testing

system. In doing research for this

paper, I found that insufficient data

and studies exist for the state of

Delaware alone, so I had to rely more

heavy on national data or studies

from other states with the intention

of applying the same principles here.

The process of writing this essay

was extremely eye-opening for me,

as a began to see the statistics and

firsthand accounts of others that

supported the beliefs I had heard

and experienced going in. Through

revision, the paper became slightly

more narrow in scope and focused

on Delaware parents than previous

drafts with the intention of drawing

in a more local audience. By the end

of revision, I felt that I had crafted a

compelling national argument that

still had state-centered application

and appeal.

Daniel Mason

Your Child Left Behind:

Why America’s “Race to the Top” is Destroying its Educational Systemby Daniel Mason

Paul L. Parets is worried. As an educator in the Delaware public school system for the past 37 years, he has seen almost immeasurable change during his tenure at Alexis I. DuPont High School in Greenville. He has taught through the terms of seven presidents, the fall of the Soviet Union, and the entire Beanie Baby fad. He has also seen the rise of charter schools, magnet schools, and, most importantly, standardized testing. Although he is now retired, Parets is still a strong advocate for ending the practice of standardized testing in Delaware and around the country, a change that he sees as long overdue. He believes that standardized testing will be the downfall of public education as we know it. According to Parets, “Standardized testing has - in the main - only succeeded in casting doubt in a gullible public’s mind regarding the efficacy of Delaware public education.” He is on a mission to redeem the teachers, the classrooms, and the entire American education system from completely collapsing under the pressure put on it by these standardized testing programs. Despite being touted as an objective way to measure schools’ and teachers’ progress and ability, the standardized testing system serves only to prevent the entire American secondary education system from reaching its full academic potential and must be ended in order for students to be fully prepared for higher education and beyond.Standardized testing is not a new phenomenon in the United States’ educational system. As early as 1909, standardized tests were being used to assess students in American classrooms. Popularity of these tests grew in the 1950s as a way to empirically evaluate students’ skills and knowledge (Klein, Zevenbergen, and Brown 147). The biggest push for their use came in 1983 after the National Commission on Excellence in Education issued A Nation at Risk, a publication that shocked the nation with reports of how poorly the United States was performing academically, especially in comparison to other industrialized countries in the world. Due to the backlash from that report, education authorizes demanded “school accountability,” which would require each school to make AYP, or adequate yearly progress, as measured by standardized testing of a school’s student population (Klein, Zevenbergen, and Brown 147). The proponents of this system hoped that making school progress transparent would be an incentive to increase school productivity and teaching effectiveness. This emergence of the standardized testing system as a national entity started under President George W. Bush’s “No Child Left Behind” campaign, enacted in January 2001. This initial movement, catalyzed by President Barack Obama’s

“Race to the Top” campaign of July 2009, led many states to clamor for federal


28 29Arak Anthology • 20th Edition 2013-2014 • Arak Anthologywww.english.udel.eduUniversity of Delaware Department of English

funding to supplement their Departments of Education (DOE), which created added pressure on the teachers to “perform” so that states could acquire increased funding. Federal money was distributed based on the state’s performance on standardized testing, meaning that the DOE of each state pressured each district, who pressured each school, who then pressured each teacher to make sure that each student was performing up to par to get the federal funds. The intent of these programs was to boost the United States’ international educational ranking based on performance on equivalent standardized tests administered across the world. According to a USA Today article published in February 2012, the United States is currently ranked 11 in the world in mathematics. Additionally, an article published in September 2012 by Huffington Post reported that

“the U.S. ranks 14th among 37 OECD (Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development) and G20 (Group of 20 Major Economies) countries in the percentage of 25-34 year-olds boasting higher education attainment.” While that might not seem awful, the article also mentions that “between 2000 and 2010, attainment levels in the U.S. increased by an average of 1.3 percentage points annually, while its OECD counterparts boasted a 3.7 percentage-point increase per year overall.” Additionally, since 1995, the United States has fallen from 2nd in the world in graduation rates to 13th among 25 comparable countries (Kuczynski). It is now clear that these federal programs did not even improve the impression of the American education system, let alone the actual system itself. In fact, they seem to have created more problems than they set out to solve. The connection between standardized testing and national academic performance may not be completely obvious at first glance, but the strong ties become much more evident when they are forming a tight noose around the necks of American teachers. In 2006, researchers Ana Maria Klein, Andrea A. Zevenbergen, and Nicole Brown distributed questionnaires to public school teachers in western New York asking them to answer a few questions regarding standardized testing and how it affects their teaching. The responses to their questionnaire were far from complimentary, with 77% of the statements made regarding standardized testing having negative views on the subject. The

anonymous statements made by twenty elementary, middle, and high school teachers in a New York state school district reflected unhappiness at the necessary curricular adjustments necessary to ensure that their students would pass the tests. One teacher lamented the fact that test preparation “becomes ingrained in the curriculum, so that all activities can promote testable writing/reading and listening sections of the test” (Klein, Zevenbergen, and Brown 151). This sentiment is echoed by Parets, who claims that even in Delaware,

“public school education has been reduced to a frantic effort to ‘teach to the test’ in the hopes of securing the elusive ‘Superior’ rating bestowed by our Department of Education.” This limitation in freedom of curriculum puts immense pressure on teachers not to teach their kids specific subjects, but to teach them whatever is necessary to pass the tests.The pressure put on teachers by the implementation of these testing programs is so immense that it has caused many disputes between teachers and the departments of education for which they work. For example, the large Chicago city teachers’ strike that recently ended in mid-September was partially driven by the teachers’ discontentment at the constraints put upon them by standardized testing. Peter S. Goodman, reporting for The Huffington Post, interviewed Monique Redeaux, a protesting teacher in the Chicago Teachers Union who clearly stated that the standardized testing system imposed upon the teachers is “one of the most contentious issues dividing the administration from the union,” resulting in a strike on “about how to assess the fundamental worth of teachers, and how to address disappointing educational results.” These teachers represent a large majority of educators around the country who believe that the standardized testing system is not the best or even a good way to assess their performance in the classroom. Goodman asserts that the fundamental flaw of the situation is that “the evaluation system school district authorities want to put in place here is premised on the assumption that progress on standardized tests reflects quality instruction, while poor test scores reflect unsatisfactory work by teachers” when that is an unrealistic, almost utopian view of how the educational process works. Parets presents a very vivid example of this discrepancy, saying: Standardized testing is based on the assumption that

Part 1 • This Year’s Winners Race to the Top • Mason

every student (regardless of their internal skill-level, prior learning, personal physical and intellectual capabilities and family environment) can successfully achieve at a pre-determined level, if only the classroom teacher is competent and can find the means to reach all of his or her 120 (on average) students. If the same assumption were applied to a Physical Education teacher, he/she would be expected to prepare every student to run a 4 minute mile.This unfair measuring stick for teachers is the source from where a great deal of their frustration springs. The same sentiment is echoed in this cartoon, which stresses that the system requires all students to perform up to a certain standard in an area where they may have no skill at all. This does not, however, mean that the student is any less intelligent or educated than other students taking the test. This system fails to take into account the findings of renowned Psychologist Dr. Howard Gardner, a distinguished professor at Harvard University who has spent years studying intelligence and cognitive development. In 1983, Dr. Gardner introduced an idea called the “Theory of Multiple Intelligences,” in which he defined intelligence as “the ability to solve problems, or to create products, that are valued within one or more cultural setting--a definition that says nothing about either the sources of these abilities or the proper means of ‘testing’ them”(Gardner x). He goes on to explain that we as humans manifest intelligence in seven different ways: “the linguistic and logical-mathematical intelligences that are at such a premium in schools today; musical intelligence; spatial intelligence; bodily- kinesthetic intelligence; and two forms of personal intelligence, one directed toward other persons, one directed toward oneself ”(Gardner xi). As Gardner said himself, English and Math are stressed highly in today’s schools, while the other five intelligences are neglected. While reading, writing, and reasoning are all valuable skills, inter-personal intelligence will get one just as far in the business world by allowing one to establish strong relationships and build friendships. Spatial intelligence is critical in fields like architecture and graphic design. Music expands the mind like no classroom curriculum can and, along with bodily-kinesthetic intelligence manifesting itself in sports and other physical activities, certainly produce a well-rounded individual, which is exactly what many colleges

say they look for in a prospective student. Put simply, the standardized testing system is limiting students to work at a narrow part of a much grander scope of intelligence, a practice that will severely limit their potential growth and success down the road. As parents, you are just as worried about your kids’ success as they are, probably even more so. How can we sit by and let the future of this generation of Americans hang in the balance?The problems not only lie in the future, however. Students experience immediate negative effects from these tests as well. According to the responses from Klein, Zevenbergen, and Brown’s study, students

“probably have lowered self-esteem,” “feel hopeless,” and have “fear of tests and passing them as well as fear of not graduating” (151). Research conducted a year earlier by Cheri Foster Triplett and Mary Alice Barksdale specifically on the effects of standardized testing on third through sixth graders takes the idea even further. They asked a group of 225 students to draw a picture about and then describe their feelings about the standardized tests that they had taken the day before. According to the researchers, “The recurring words that expressed emotions included ‘nervous,’ ‘mad,’ ‘sad,’ ‘frustrated,’ ‘hate,’ ‘confused,’ ‘bored,’ ‘tired,’ ‘sweating,’ and ‘sleepy’” (244). Clearly these are not positive reflections on the overall opinion of the tests from the students. While there were some positive words used in the students’ descriptions, they were found in examples such as “I’m glad the HST’s are almost over!” and “I liked the ice cream party after the test!” One particularly vivid description really delves deep into the emotional strain put on kids by this standardized testing:I felt mad and frustrated about the HST and was feeling so mad that I felt like I wanted to yell. But I did not and I felt like I was in a crazy house and I got even more mad when it got harder, then we took a break, then I felt a little good. But the second half I felt like I wanted to cry and I started feeling like I wanted to spit on the test. (Triplett and Barksdale 245)While this may be an extreme example of a child’s strong emotion, it still captures how much anxiety the testing process puts on the actual students. This level of stress is not healthy for any students and only compounds the inevitable stress that comes with the regular course load of an American student. At this point, it may seem as though all of these


30 31Arak Anthology • 20th Edition 2013-2014 • Arak AnthologyUniversity of Delaware Department of English


arguments are wide in scope and that, while the country as a whole may be in trouble, it will not affect students in Delaware. Unfortunately, that is not the case at all. The Delaware public school system has unquestionably had a large role in the national plan set forth by Race to the Top. Delaware was the first state to receive federal funding, totaling $119 million, from Race to the Top in 2009 and “was selected as having the best application among 40 states and the District of Columbia” (Race). This success was only achieved through high scores on standardized tests like the DSTP (Delaware State Testing Program) or its successor, the DCAS (Delaware Comprehensive Assessment System). Parets claims,

however, that the large monetary incentive won from this testing success has done more damage than assistance to the Delaware educational system. He argues,

“Standardized testing has…only

succeeded in casting doubt in a gullible public’s mind regarding… the schools their own child might attend, resulting in the resurgence of private/parochial schools and the mushrooming of charter schools - particularly those who attract and admit only highly qualified students.” This is the very opposite of what the program should be doing, which is improving public schools in the hopes that more students and parents see them as a viable option for their education.Parets is not the only Delaware teacher who has less than enthusiastic reviews of the Delaware education system. In 2010, the Bill and Melinda Gates foundation sponsored a Scholastic company project, entitled Primary Sources: America’s Teachers on America’s Schools, in which they asked anonymous teachers their real opinions on the state of education within their own states. The 40,000 Delaware respondents had a much lower view on the importance of standardized testing compared to the rest of the country. Thirty-nine percent of Delaware teachers, who represented 118 different public schools throughout the state, viewed standardized

tests as “not at all important,” which is twenty-three percent higher than the national average (Primary Sources 1). In fact, the amount that rated the tests

“absolutely essential” and “very important” together was still twenty percentage points behind the total for those who answered “not at all important” (Primary Sources 5). Consequently, the fact that standardized testing gained substantial funds for the Delaware DOE had little effect on the view of Delaware teachers regarding its importance in the classroom.There are still a significant number of supporters of standardized testing in American schools, however. In 2002, Dr. Richard Phelps, author of multiple books written in defense of standardized testing, studied the possible benefits of the standardized testing program in America. He reported that proponents of the standardized testing system advocate it as an unbiased, objective way to analyze and track academic performance for students, teachers, schools, districts, or even states. Phelps emphasizes the idea that it enforces school transparency, since “without external standardized testing, the public schools are local monopolies accountable only to themselves” who can publish reports of soaring student achievement based on whatever standards they want, since no uniform standards would be in place. Additionally, a report released by the public policy research organization Public Agenda in 2002 touted the future benefits of standardized testing. This release reported that, “since 1998, those who say public schools expect students to learn too little has dropped from 66 percent to 47 percent among professors, and from 55 percent to 48 percent among employers. Only 31 percent of both employers and professors in 1998 said schools were doing an excellent or good job; in 2002, the percentages grew to 42 percent of employers and 39 percent of professors” (“Where’s the Backlash?”). While these numbers seem promising, there is overwhelming evidence that the colleges must do all the work to prepare students for the real world. Coming in to college, however, students are in for a rude awakening.The simple fact, according to the College Board, is that students are just becoming less and less prepared for college. In a recent USA Today article, author Mary Beth Marklein described the results of recent reports released by the organizations behind the top

The simple fact, according

to the College Board, is that

students are just becoming

less and less prepared for

college.

www.english.udel.edu

“Cartoons On Testing.” Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice. N.p., 29 Sept. 2011. Web. 04 Nov. 2012. <http://larrycu-ban.wordpress.com/2011/09/29/cartoons-on-testing/>.

Gardner, Howard. Frames of Mind: The Theory of Multiple Intelli-gences. New York: Basic, 1983. Print.

Goodman, Peter S. “Chicago Teachers Strike A Push-Back To Educa-tion Reform.” The Huffington Post. TheHuffingtonPost.com, 15 Sept. 2012. Web. 29 Sept. 2012. <http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/09/15/chicago-teachers-strike_n_1886142.html>.

Klein, Ana M., Andrea A. Zevenbergen, and Nicole Brown. “Managing Standardized Testing in Today’s Schools.” Journal of Educational Thought 40.2 (2006): 145-57. Web. 30 Sept. 2012.

Kuczynski-Brown, Alex. “Education At A Glance 2012: OECD Report Finds U.S. Lags Behind Other Countries In Higher Education At-tainment Rate.” The Huffington Post. N.p., 11 Sept. 2012. Web. 04 Nov. 2012. <http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/09/11/oecd-education-at-a-glanc_n_1874190.html>.

Marklein, Mary Beth. “SAT, ACT: Most High School Kids Lack Skills for College.” USA Today. Gannett, 25 Sept. 2012. Web. 29 Sept. 2012. <http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/story/2012/09/24/sat-act-most-high-school-kids-lack-skills-for-college/57836602/1>.

Parets, Paul L. E-mail Interview. 30 Sep 2012.

Phelps, Richard, Ph.D. “Estimating the Costs and Benefits of Educa-tional Testing Programs.” February 2002 Education Briefing. From a Consumer Perspective, n.d. Web. 30 Sept. 2012. <http://www.education-consumers.com/briefs/feb2002.shtm>.

“Primary Sources: America’s Teachers on America’s Schools.” scholastic.com. Bill and Melinda Gates foundation, n.d. Web. 12 Dec 2012. <http://www.scholastic.com/primarysources/pdfs/Gates_Founda-tion_DE.pdf>.

“Race to the Top FAQ”. Race to the Top Information. Delaware DOE, n.d. Web. 9 Oct. 2012. <http://www.doe.k12.de.us/rttt/RTTT-FAQFinal.pdf>.

“Standardized Testing: The Negative Impact on the Education System.” Dhayeseng100fall2011. Wordpress, 11 Dec. 2011. Web. 04 Nov. 2012. <http://dhayeseng100fall2011.wordpress.com/2011/12/11/standardized-testing-the-negative-impact-on-the-education-sys-tem/>.

Toppo, Greg. “New Analysis Makes Case for Higher Ranking for U.S. Schools.” USA Today. 2 Feb. 2012. Web. 29 Sept. 2012. <http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/education/story/2012-02-16/us-schools-global-ranking/53110494/1>.

Triplett, Cheri F., and Mary A. Barksdale. “Third through Sixth Graders’ Perceptions of High-Stakes Testing.” Journal of Literary Research 37.2 (2005): 237-60. Sage Journals, 1 June 2005. Web. 09 Oct. 2012. <http://jlr.sagepub.com/content/37/2/237.full.pdf html>.

“Where’s the Backlash? Students Say They Don’t Fret Standardized Tests.” Public Agenda. 5 Mar. 2002. Web. 30 Sept. 2012. <http://www.publicagenda.org/press-releases/wheres-backlash-students-say-they-dont-fret-standardized-tests>.

college-entrance standardized exams in the country, the College Board and the ACT. Both testing organizations found that over 50% of the students who took their respective tests in the past year scored below what can be projected as able to earn a B+ in their first semester of college. Much of this can be attributed to the mandatory standardized testing to which students are subjected in at the secondary level. Marklein reports, “Bob Schaeffer, spokesman for FairTest, the National Center for Fair & Open Testing, said Monday that the dip in SAT scores show that high-stakes testing programs such as the federal No Child Left Behind law ‘have been a colossal failure.’” The idea of students being unprepared for college has always been disconcerting, but with the economic crisis that the US is facing right now, theprospect of having fewer qualified applicants in the white collar work force is scarier than ever. The issue of standardized testing, though only becoming a hot button issue within the past ten years or so, is probably one that will be pertinent for years to come. The government needs an objective way to measure schools, but the schools need a system that allows teachers the freedom to actually teach subjects, not just

test preparation. Colleges need disinterested means for measuring prospective students’ abilities but must suffer the consequences of having incoming students that, regardless of standardized test scores, are woefully unprepared for the world of higher education. The system is flawed, and there seems to be no immediate answer that can magically solve the problem. As Americans, you have the civic right and responsibility to let your voice be heard by those who can do something about this. Speak up to your representatives, both on the state and national levels. If they still do not fix anything, vote to replace them. Only by taking an active stand against this system is there hope to change it. The immediate danger is only small, but the question remains: with standardized testing, who really is the one left behind?

Works Cited

Race to the Top • Mason



One cannot stop bullets with an idea, no matter how powerful the idea. Nor can something more tangible, like an image, make the steps of an oncoming army falter. However, an image can inspire hope, which often provides people with an invisible armor. This task cannot fall upon just any image. Rather, a collection of images must muster together to create an overwhelming sensation of nationalism and defiance. When invading forces threaten the future of an entire nation, the citizens need to hold on to the things that unify them. Art captures the essence of what makes a country worth fighting for. The efforts of visual artists in World War II spurred a sense of nationalistic pride and contributed to a rich history of narrative art, which the government ought to continue and encourage. Like most people, artists struggled to support themselves during the war. Moved by the dreadful destruction that prevailed in the streets, artists began painting images of the wreckage and of the people fighting to save others. Soon the British government saw potential in war art and decided to form the War Artists Advisory Committee (WAAC) to aid artists. Subsequent exhibitions in museums helped promote war art and create cultural experiences for the public. War artists, like Henry Moore and Paul Nash, captured people’s attention with their honest portrayal of the effects of war. In fact, the traveling exhibitions of Moore’s artwork drew large crowds and spread a sense of nationalistic pride to its audiences. Art enabled the artists to spread a unifying spirit upon the disillusioned citizens of England. Unhindered by the analytical defenses of the mind, art speaks in tongues that strike the heart directly.

The sound of thousands of marching feet filled the air, created a cacophony that haunted the dreams of all the people who heard it. Not only did this sound signal that the Germans had invaded Poland but also it signaled the commencement of Britain’s involvement in the war. In this period of ration cards, petrol shortages, and air raids, daily life on the home front transformed into a struggle for survival. As a result of the war, “Moore was forced to resign his teaching post . . . In 1940, Moore’s own home was bombed” (“Henry Moore”). Many artists struggled to earn money during the war and to find enough materials with which to make art. Poverty-stricken, some artists even had to paint on their bed sheets because they could not afford to buy canvases. Matilda Simon elaborates, “Many artists, to forget the world around them, drew and painted landscapes, figures, and scenes of the world that had been. Many more, haunted by the miseries of war, painted a decomposing world or an exaggeratedly hungry one” (103). As a result of these pitiful experiences, artists spoke for the common man, exposing the squalor and tribulations of life during war.

On September 7, 1940, London awoke to the sound of alarms and cries

My love of art inspired me to

research something about the lives

of artists. However, I wanted to study

a time period that I hadn’t learned

much about in my art history class. I

didn’t know a lot about either world

wars, so I decided to start researching

the artists who worked during World

War II. At first, I thought the only art

I would find would be war posters.

Unexpectedly, I managed to find a

lot of interesting information about

painters such as Henry Moore and

Paul Nash. This information led me

to narrow down my subject to the

role that British war artists played

in raising morale and portraying the

events of ordinary life. The more I

read about the subject, the more I got

inspired by the efforts of these artists!

Ana Jackson Chaves

Illu

stra

tio

n b

y R

hia

nn

on

Har

e

Ready, Aim, Paint:

How British War Artists Supported the Troops and Preserved the National Identity of Britainby Ana Jackson Chaves



for help. This air raid occurred first in a long line of German attacks on the country’s capital. Leaving a trail of destruction, the Blitz exposed those people on the home front to the horrors of war. As a result, artists were faced with a plethora of opportunities to capture the essence of the war. According to Meirion Harries and Susie Harries, “Now every artist in the cities of Britain was exposed daily to scenes of violent death and the devastation of property, experiences which could be equally a menace or a stimulus to his art” (180). Taking refuge in the Underground, many people, whose houses had been destroyed, formed large communities between the subway rails. Amidst all the devastation, artists found a fecund source of inspiration. Artists such as Henry Moore and Graham Sutherland drew the huddled masses which populated the Underground at night

and delineated the rubble that clogged London’s streets. Stuart Sillars explains that “because the images are born of common experience, they are genuinely popular because all

of those who lived through similar moments can share them” (British 55). Because many artists participated directly in the events of the war, their artwork portrayed the shared experience of their contemporaries.

Working as firemen, medical assistants, and civil defense workers, many artists drew upon their experiences to inspire their artwork, thus creating vivid pictorial records of the effects of the war. The portraits of these firemen and civil defense workers helped boost morale and commemorate the efforts of these brave workers. Additionally, these portraits provide a record of the civilian heroes of the time. Harries and Harries say that “a large number of painters were actively involved in combatting the consequences of the bombing . . . as stretcher-bearers, or in other branches of civil defense. Wherever possible they recorded their first-hand experiences” (180). Leonard Rosoman’s A House Collapsing on Two Firemen depicts just one of the many horrors that people witnessed. The painting

shows a smoky, indistinct street where two dark figures rush desperately to get out from under a collapsing wall. The action is suspended, as if the painting itself were holding its breath and praying for the survival of the two firemen. Alas, the viewer knows that those two heroes will not escape the falling wall and will remain as a memory etched upon the canvas. Sillars remarks, “The popularity of the painting suggests that it perhaps went further than representing shared experience, to give dignity and heroic stature to the ordinary fighting men of the time” (British 85). A House Collapsing on Two Firemen shows the scene in a way no photograph could by rejecting extraneous detail and focusing instead, on the two figures rushing through the night.

Of course, artists could not have produced these paintings if the government had not aided the impoverished artists living in Britain. Recognizing the value of art during war time, the British government decided to create the War Artists Advisory Committee, which employed artists to create paintings about various war subjects. The director of the National Gallery, Kenneth Clark, led the WAAC. In the opinion of Peter Stansky and William Abrahams, “There appears to have been, from the first, a determination . . . That ‘culture’ should not be put aside for the duration: in the act of fighting to save England, English culture must not be sacrificed” (2). From the start, Clark strove to keep artists out of the fighting. Foot believes that sending the artists into war wasted their talents and deprived the nation of much-needed cultural experiences:

The first duty of an artist in wartime is the same as his duty in peace: to produce good works of art . . . He will help to create that body of images through which a country exists for the rest of the world . . . [The artists of the First World War] did leave a record of the war which the camera could not have given. There are certain things in life so serious that only a poet can tell the truth about them. (29)

Consequently, Clark distributed the works of art created by the war artists to as many galleries and museums as possible. Utilizing war art as both propaganda and as fine art, the British government made sure the artists received plenty of publicity.

Various organizations like the War Artists’ Scheme (WAS), which the WAAC directed, commissioned artists and established exhibitions of the war art. Harries and


The first duty of an artist

in wartime is the same

as his duty in peace: to

produce good works of art.

Harries acknowledge that “The Committee was anxious also to record the more positive side of life on the Home Front—the endeavor to carry on some semblance of the peacetime routine and, more constructively, the invaluable contributions made by civilians to the war effort” (194). The WAS distributed the artwork to various museums and galleries around the country. As Stansky and Abrahams claim, “Perhaps the most extensive patronage scheme for British artists that has ever existed, the War Artists’ Scheme resulted in nearly six thousand works of art, most of them eventually distributed to museums, with the Tate Gallery and the Imperial War Museum having the first pick” (29). Attracting huge crowds, these exhibitions launched many artists onto a profitable career. Additionally, the war art inspired a nationalistic spirit in all the people who saw the art works.

Several museums, including the Imperial War Museum (IWM) and the National Gallery, played especially important roles in promoting war art and instilling culture back into society. The National Gallery continued to host exhibitions, even during the Blitz. As a result, people could find an escape from the harsh reality of the war. With regard to the National Gallery, Stansky and Abrahams observe that:

It was practically the only museum open in London during the war, and contained works by Sutherland, Moore and other war artists. This concentration of cultural activities in one place, including the extremely popular lunch-time concerts performed by Myra Hess and others, put a new and special emphasis upon culture, a valuation of its greater importance while war was being fought and also an ever-growing interest in British cultural achievements, a cultural nationalism of war. (57)

Meanwhile, the Imperial War Museum collected war art for its records. Harries and Harries note that the IWM remained “an obvious focus for patriotism, and the IWM was to organize touring exhibitions of trophies, pictures and photographs” (118). Although the IWM closed after the Blitz began, the artistic records the museum collected remain an important part of Britain’s history. The WAS provided many of the works of art for these exhibitions, which many people attended because the works of art reflected much of the turmoil of everyday life in Britain.

Bodies lay sprawled across the platform.

Coughs and cries echoed through the tunnels. As trains rattled past, carrying their human cargo, homeless families tried to get some much-needed sleep. In this environment, the British artist Henry Moore found inspiration to join the WAS. Harries and Harries declare that Moore “was struck by the nightmarish quality of the scene—the sprawled figures arranged in a confined space ‘like so many slaves chained in the hold of a ship’—and its essential humanity” (192). His humanizing drawings of the people taking shelter in the Underground illustrated the secret sufferings of many people. Charcoal, wax crayons, and watercolor—with these simple materials, Moore captured the desperation of the people of London. These images resonated with his audience because, as Stansky and Abrahams proclaim, the artworks reflected scenes many people saw on their daily commutes:

The English, starved for art—the National Gallery, had for safety reasons, removed its collections of paintings and stored them in a slate quarry in Wales—flocked to the Moore exhibition, and its impact was considerable. Ordinary Londoners had no difficulty in recognizing experiences that many of them had known intimately. Moore’s art was no longer accessible only to the few . . . (50)

Not only did Moore’s art record the lives of many Londoners but also, his art gives subsequent generations insight into the more hidden effects of the war.

Paul Nash, another British war artist, contributed greatly to the art of World War II. He served in the Artists’ rifles and later was recruited into the WAS to paint images of the Royal Air Force. His surrealist paintings, especially the paintings of airplanes, quickly brought him fame. Nash painted images of crashed German airplanes, depicting the planes as

Ready, Aim, Paint • Chaves

Several museums,

including the Imperial War

Museum (IWM) and the

National Gallery, played

especially important roles

in promoting war art and

instilling culture back into

society.


36 37Arak Anthology • 20th Edition 2013-2014 • Arak AnthologyUniversity of Delaware Department of English


defeated animals. Totes Meer shows a crashed German plane in a dump. Harries and Harries explain, “Totes Meer was also a ‘sea of death’, [sic] death of both the aerial creatures and their pilots, and Nash urged that its message of victory over the invader be broadcast as widely as possible” (178). Like a crustacean’s discarded shell, the steel beast lays in a sea of cold grey waves, almost blending in with its surroundings. The focus on the landscape, rather than the plane, shows how the Germans’ power is waning like the moon in the dull sky.

Undulating waves contrast against the stillness of the plane. Stansky and Abrahams emphasize, “Nash takes man-made forms and connects them with nature and waste. Yet there is the subtext of triumph: the British brought down the planes” (25). Patriotically, Nash wished to

flaunt this victory over the Germans. Battle of Britain, another memorable piece by

Nash, commemorated the Royal Air Force’s victory over the advancing German forces. The artist’s paintings inspired pride in the people who saw them. Upon seeing the painting, Clark proclaimed that “you have discovered a way of making the symbols out of the events themselves” (qtd. in Harries and Harries 178). Creating symbols out of individual events gave the events the power to transcend the confines of time. Wisely, Foot notes that “Nash’s picture is still highly evocative, and it can stand as a memorial for future times as well” (97). Instead of considering each event as a singular occasion, Nash developed the various battles into a visual vocabulary, thus enhancing the impact of each event. As a result, his war art gave the public a positive opinion of the war.

Traveling exhibitions of war art enabled artists to reach a wider audience. Thus, many people developed an appreciation for modern British art and a

heightened sense of nationalistic pride. Organizations such as the Center for the Encouragement of Music and Arts (CEMA) planned many of these exhibitions. Stansky and Abrahams highlight that Henry Moore’s drawings of the people taking refuge in the Underground had a strong impact:

In the National Gallery there were also several rooms of a permanent exhibition of official war artists, and Moore himself regarded his pictures there as his first connection with the general public. His drawings were hardly realistic, yet the thousands who saw them identified with them and felt that they rendered a familiar experience, for the great majority of these viewers had inevitably seen the shelterers in the Underground. (50)

These exhibitions provided a valuable service by continuing cultural activity even when the Germans threatened Britain with invasion. With regard to an exhibition of Moore, Sutherland, and Piper in Leeds, Foot attests, “The exhibition there was further testimony to the conviction that it was essential to continue creating art in wartime, to preserve the civilization put at risk by the war” (58). Without the continuance of such cultural activity, the British people may have felt like they had lost their national identity. Such a period of halted activity would threaten the nation with a period of stagnancy. By connecting government-employed artists directly to the public, these exhibitions indirectly promoted support for the government as well.

Certainly, art not only promotes the development of a cultural activity, but also art remains a vital part of Britain’s historical record. Using images as a malleable tool for communication, artists can convey messages with more prowess than ordinary photographers, who capture pictures at the mercy of the ambient lighting and weather conditions. The British government and other organizations recognized that defending the arts would create a sense of stability in the nation when circumstances elsewhere spiraled into chaos. Consequently, an organization called The Pilgrim Trust established the Center for the Encouragement of Music and Arts (CEMA). In subsequent years, CEMA evolved into the Arts Council, which continues to fund artistic projects throughout Britain. Harries and Harries note, “The Pilgrim Trust was dedicated, more generally, to keeping alive a tradition of cultural activity

Traveling exhibitions

of war art enabled artists

to reach a wider audience.

Thus, many people

developed an appreciation

for modern British art and

a heightened sense of

nationalistic pride.

www.english.udel.edu

Ready, Aim, Paint • Chaves

“Army Art Program: A Brief History.” US Army Center of Military His-tory. US Army, n.d. Web. 25 Jan. 2013.

Foot, M.R.D. Art & War: Twentieth Century Warfare As Depicted By War Artists. London: Headline Book Publishing, 1990. Print.

Gallatin, Albert Eugene. Art and the Great War. New York: E. P. Dutton & Company, 1919. Print.

Harries, Meirion, and Susie Harries. The War Artists. London: Michael Joseph Ltd., 1983. Print.

“Henry Moore.” The Art Story. The Art Story Foundation, n.d. Web. 23 Jan. 2013.

“The History of the Arts Council.” Arts Council England. Arts Council, n.d. Web. 23 Jan. 2013.

“The Imperial War Museum.” Their Past, Your Future. Imperial War Museum, n.d. Web. 25 Jan. 2013.

“The Ministry of Information, INF Series and INF 3.” The National Archives. The Ministry of Justice, n.d. Web. 21 Jan. 2013.

“Paul Nash.” Spartacus Educational. Spartacus Educational Ltd, n.d. Web. 21 Jan. 2013.

Sillars, Stuart. Art and Survival in First World War Britain. London: Macmillan, 1987. Print.

---. British Romantic Art and the Second World War. London: Macmil-lan, 1991. Print.

Simon, Matilda. The Battle of the Louvre: The Struggle to save French Art in World War II. New York: Hawthorn Books Inc, 1971. Print.

Stansky, Peter, and William Abrahams. London’s Burning: Life, Death and Art in the Second World War. Stanford, California: Stanford University Press, 1994. Print.

“They Drew Fire: Combat Artists of World War II.” pbs. Public

Broadcasting Station, n.d. Web. 23 Jan. 2013.

in Britain: its Domesday Book project provided for the recording by artists of Britain’s threatened landscape and architectural heritage” (156). Serving as testaments to the country’s strength, these artworks provide the modern-day viewer with a supplement to our written records of World War II. Indeed, the intention of the IWM was to “collect and display material as a record of everyone’s experiences during that war -- civilian and military -- and to commemorate the sacrifices of all sections of society” (“The Imperial War Museum”). Often, these works of art provide the viewer with a more personal view of life during the war. Offering emotional and captivating images, the art work makes the viewer feel as if he or she were transported back in time.

Through the efforts of many war artists, the British government acquired a comprehensive pictorial record of the Second World War. Overcoming adversity, the war artists utilized their skills to convey their sentiments towards the war and their pride in the efforts of their comrades. Many people who see the paintings of notable artists like Henry Moore and Paul Nash will feel the same rush of patriotism that pulsated through the artists’ contemporaries. Preserving the war art, museums like the National Gallery play a vital role in developing the history of Britain and presenting the reality of life during war to the public. Indeed, war art boosted the morale of the citizens of Britain. The overwhelming number of people who frequented the exhibitions

at various museums serves as a demonstration of the importance of art in such unstable times. Visitors could find solace in the representation of life in England. By viewing images of war, they could come to terms with the harsh reality and the need to continue fighting. Images of shared experiences helped to unify the nation against the common enemy. British war artists not only developed a consummate visual record of World War II but also, they proved the ability of fine art to protect the character of the nation.

Government patronage of the arts enables the continuing development of a nation’s identity. In times of trouble, the public must cling to its distinctive traits, without which the entire foundation of the community would crumble. Culture remains a vital part of any civilization. When a country deteriorates and fades into the folds of history, future generations shall judge the country by the records it leaves behind. Regrettably, many art programs lack proper funds and thus, many aspiring artists fail to fulfill their dreams. By joining individuals and by delineating the connections between one another, art enables people to express the distinctive qualities of a society. Without government patronage of the arts, a hole would form in the integral design of a community thus, abating the sense of patriotism and degrading the sense of identity.

Works Cited


39www.english.udel.edu

Melissa IanettaDirector of Writing

Michael McCamleyAssociate Director of the Writing Program

A Student’s Guide to First-Year Writing at the University of Delaware

Writing ProgramPolicies and Procedures

2014-2015

The Writing Programat the University of Delaware......................................40

Writing Program Mission...........................................................40

English 110

English 110: Critical Reading and Writing.................................................................40

English 110 Mission Statement........................................................................................40

English 110 Student Learning Outcomes..................................................................41

The Course Syllubus................................................................................................................41

Written Assignments.............................................................................................................41

Attendance....................................................................................................................................41

Deadlines.......................................................................................................................................41

Class Behavior and Participation....................................................................................42

Drafts, Revisions, and Editing...........................................................................................42

Preparing Your Paper.............................................................................................................42

Appointments and Office Hours......................................................................................42

Class Cancelations...................................................................................................................42

Course Evaluations.................................................................................................................42

Helpful Resources

Library Web site for English 110 Students................................................................43

The University Writing Center...........................................................................................43

Grading

Mid-Semester Grade Reports.............................................................................................43

Grading System and GPA.....................................................................................................43

Grade Appeals..............................................................................................................................43

Withdrawal...................................................................................................................................43

Incompletes..................................................................................................................................43

Academic Dishonesty

Plagiarism and Academic Dishonesty.........................................................................44

Special Circumstances

English for Non-Native Speakers of English............................................................44

The Honors Program...............................................................................................................44

Credits and Exemptions

Advanced Placement and Exemptions.......................................................................44

Transfer Credits.........................................................................................................................44

Advanced Composition Courses

Advanced Writing Courses..................................................................................................44

The Arak Essay Contest...................................................44

A Brief History of the Arak Award....................................................................................44

Arak Essay Contest Rules and Instructions..............................................................45

Policies and Procedures • Student Guide38 Arak Anthology • 21st Edition

Joseph HarrisDirector of Composition

Christine CucciarreAssociate Director of Composition

40 41

Student Guide

University of Delaware Department of English www.english.udel.eduStudent Guide • Policies and Procedures

The Writing Program at the University of Delaware

The Writing Program of the English Department comprises a sequence of writing courses (English 110, 200, 301, 312, and 410). Approximately 200 sections of writing courses are taught every year by over 80 instructors.

The Writing Program serves UD students and faculty by providing writing instruction in support of writing of all kinds in other courses across the campus.

Writing Program MissionThe University Writing Program supports the aca-

demic mission of the University of Delaware by helping students learn to reason critically and independently yet collaborate productively, to communicate clearly in writing, and to develop into informed citizens and leaders. To these ends, our writing courses emphasize reading and thinking critically; performing research in an increasingly global information market; addressing the expectations of specific audiences; and improving writing across a process that includes critical response to drafts and the opportunity to revise extensively. Students and instructors work together to practice skills of writing and habits of mind that are of vital and lasting impor-tance to today’s scholars and citizens.

For more information, visit the Writing Program Web site at www.english.udel.edu/ and click on

“Writing @ UD”.

English 110: Critical Reading and Writing Before you complete 60 credits at the University of Del-

aware, you will take English 110, a course that will teach you how to research and write in a college environment.

At its core, English 110 is a course about the use of sources. That is, it teaches you how to do library research, assemble sources, evaluate the credibility of sources, and incorporate sources into their own writ-ing. One of the ways in which it accomplishes this goal is through the practice of critical reading. In addition, students are guided through a writing process that includes ample opportunity to receive written and oral responses to multiple drafts from both the instructor and classmates. The overall emphasis is on presenting well-reasoned, well-supported, and well-written arguments to a scholarly college audience.

English 110 Description• English 110 students write thesis-centered (especially

persuasive) essays, mainly in response to texts.• Instructors assign a minimum of 7500 words (about

30 pages), at least 5000 words of which is finished formal assignments, including a research-based essay of at least 2000 words. Most instructors assign 4-5 formal essays as well as a mix of informal writing such as reading journals, brief response papers, and in-class writing.

• Instructors integrate research skills throughout the course, including on-line research strategies, naviga-tion of the library, evaluation of sources, integration of sources into essays, and responsible scholarly cita-tion and documentation.

• Instructors integrate the critical reading of texts throughout the course to facilitate critical thinking and inform student writing. Printed texts may be supplemented where appropriate by electronic texts, visual texts, and video texts.

• The course assumes a process approach to writing. Emphasis is on extensive revision in response to criti-cal evaluations from the instructor and peers. Instruc-tors incorporate process teaching methods such as multiple drafts, portfolios, writing groups, individual conferences, group conferences, and peer evaluation.

• Instructors address language concerns such as style, tone, diction, grammar, and mechanics according to the needs of the students.

• Instructors assess student writing not only for its adherence to conventions of standard language and scholarly discourse, but also for its effectiveness in addressing the expectations of specific audiences and for its persuasive power in specific situations.

English 110 Mission StatementFirst-year writing (English 110) supports the aca-

demic mission of the University of Delaware by helping students to • Read and write with a sensitivity to audience and

purpose,• Think critically in both independent and collabora

tive contexts,• Participate as ethical members in a community of

writers,• Develop into critical producers and consumers of texts.

Student Guide

Policies and Procedures • Student Guide

To these ends, English 110 emphasizes:• Writing as a rhetorical process that includes prewrit

ing, drafting, review, and revision,• Writing in a variety of genres,• Accessing, assessing, and integrating research in an

increasingly global context,• Using appropriate research and writing technologies.

English 110 Student Learning OutcomesBy the end of English 110 at the University of Dela-

ware, students should achieve the following goals:Critical Reading

• Read source texts critically, revealing awareness of purpose, audience, tone, multiple voices, argumenta-tive techniques, and rhetorical devices,

• Demonstrate understanding of a text’s rhetorical contexts,

• Analyze and synthesize varied texts as a means to further their own writing skills.

Writing Process• Demonstrate the ability to write in a variety of

genres such as summary, response, report, argument, and critical analysis,Find and assess sources, synthesizing research with their own ideas,

• Engage in writing as a recursive process that includes idea discovery, structural and developmental revision, and editing “final” copy.

Rhetorical Knowledge• Write with a strong understanding of and focus on

purpose,• Write in ways that respond to the needs of different

audiences,• Adopt voice, tone, and level of formality appropriate

to situation and purpose,• Understand how genres shape reading and writing.

Knowledge of Conventions• Be aware of the rhetorical differences among and

stylistic conventions of common citation formats.

The Course Syllabus Your English 110 instructor will distribute a syllabus

that spells out all important course guidelines, including

due dates, grading methods, attendance policies, and other expectations. There will also be information about the University’s plagiarism policy and services offered by the University Writing Center. Read your English 110 syllabus carefully and refer to it often during the semester.

Written Assignments Your English 110 instructor will give you important

assignments in writing, either on paper, over e-mail, or on a course Web site. Read the written assignments care-fully and refer to them as you write the papers.

Attendance You are expected to attend all of your scheduled

classes and not to be absent without adequate reason. Adequate reasons include serious illness, family emer-gency, or other crises beyond your control. Deficiency in required work resulting from any absence must be made up to the satisfaction of the instructor.

It is not your instructor’s responsibility to determine whether your absence is “excused” or “unexcused.” If you must be absent because of an obligation (such as participation in sports), you must provide your instruc-tors with written notification. If you are absent because of an illness or other emergency, you must request that official notification be sent to your instructors from the dean of your college.

While attendance policies in different University classes (and sections of English 110) may vary slightly, all teachers expect you to attend. Attendance is especially important in a class such as English 110, where so much work is done in class. See your instructor’s syllabus for his or her specific policy.

DeadlinesInstructors can set their own policies about missed

deadlines, which may include lowering the grade on the work or even refusing to accept the work. Make every ef-fort to meet deadlines. If you are having trouble meeting a deadline, by all means discuss it with the instructor.

42 43Policies and Procedures • Student Guide

Student Guide

University of Delaware Department of English www.english.udel.edu

Student Guide

Student Guide • Policies and Procedures

Class Behavior and Participation College instructors assume that you are an adult who

has chosen to be where you are, and they will expect you to behave that way. Come to class ready to work, ready to participate, ready to take part in class activities, ready to be a good citizen of the class. Do not distract other students or thwart your instructor’s teaching by, for ex-ample, reading the school newspaper or doing homework for other classes. Many teachers build in “participation grades” and your overall grade for the course may suffer if you are graded down in this area.

Drafts, Revisions, and Editing English 110 instructors use a “process approach” to

the teaching of writing. That is, they ask for rough drafts of papers and they expect you to revise rough drafts substantially. A rough draft due date is a due date like any other; if you skip a draft, your grade for the fin-ished project may suffer. Substantial revision of drafts involves more than mere editing (or correcting errors). Your teacher’s comments may point to the need to refine your thesis, add more supporting detail, or reorganize your paragraphs. Attend to these larger issues before the smaller issues of sentence-level error correction.

Preparing Your Paper Most English 110 classes will require you to use MLA

(Modern Language Association), APA (American Psycho-logical Association), or some other citation style. Citation styles define how you cite quotations, paraphrases, and summaries within your paper and how you cite sources on your bibliography or works cited page. Any ideas, phrases, or long quotations that you borrow and use within your paper must be cited. Citations must also be done correctly using the citation style specified by your teacher. Failure to cite correctly, even due to ignorance of the rules, can result in lowered grades or even disciplin-ary action (see Plagiarism page 48).

Many students find scholarly documentation some-what confusing and difficult. However, there are many avenues that you can explore for help.

• First, consult any handouts or directions that yourinstructor might have given you concerning citations and documenting sources.

• Another possibility is the handbook for your course; see the chapters on MLA and APA documentation styles.

• If you have difficulty understanding the handbook, or you simply want someone to conference with about your work, you might visit the University Writing Center (see University Writing Center next column).

• For a quick reference on citation styles, visit the Purdue OWL web site: http: owl.english.purdue.edu.

Appointments and Office Hours Your instructor will keep regular office hours every

week, at least three hours a week. Take advantage of those hours. Your instructor is there waiting for you to come by to ask questions about readings and writing as-signments, to check ideas for possible paper topics, or to discuss outlines and rough drafts. The instructor’s hours will be posted on the syllabus along with a telephone number and an e-mail address.

Along with office hours, e-mail is a good way to keep in touch with your instructor. Since you are one of many students in your class, your teacher might not be able to answer your e-mail as soon as it is received. You might ask about a teacher’s e-mail policy to see how long it might take to answer e-mail. Knowing this should allow you to plan when to send e-mail so that you can incorporate your instructor’s comments before assignments are due.

Your instructor will almost certainly schedule appoint-ments during the semester to discuss your writing and your progress in the course. Attendance is mandatory; most instructors count a missed appointment as an ab-sence. Come in not just to listen but also to ask your own questions and get the guidance you want for your writing.

Class Cancelations If your instructor cancels a class, he or she either will

notify you well ahead of time (on the syllabus) or, in the case of an emergency, will call the English Department. If you suspect that a class might be canceled (for example, for inclement weather), see the UD Web site, where all such announcements will appear. If you go to class and your instructor does not appear, call the English Depart-ment at 831-2361 to see if the class has been canceled.

Course EvaluationsA final expectation of the course is for you to com-

plete the online student evaluation. This survey will be available for you to complete during the last two weeks of the semester. Apart from being an expectation for the

course, your evaluation provides valuable information to the professor and to the English Department.

Library Web site for English 110 Students The library has a special Web site dedicated to help-

ing English 110 students become acclimated to the Uni-versity of Delaware’s Morris Library. The site includes information on research, including tips on electronic research, government documents, specialized journals, and more. The Web site URL is www2.lib.udel.edu/e110/tutorial2009/homepg/.

The University Writing Center Since 1967, the Writing Center has fostered excel-

lence in writing at the University of Delaware. Ultimately, the Writing Center is a place where all

UD community members can come to write and to talk, think, and learn about writing.

The Writing Center in 016 Memorial provides free one-on-one instruction to students who have writing as-signments in any course. You may make an appointment by visiting the Center’s Web site www.cas.udel.edu/writing-center/. The telephone number is 831-1168.

Mid-Semester Grade Reports In the middle of the semester, your professors,

including your English 110 instructor, will submit a mid-semester grade report for all freshmen students. These mid-semester grade reports are given out to only first year students. The grades are not permanent, so if you are not happy with the mid-semester report, you still have a half of a semester to rebound and improve your grades. If your grade is not what you want it to be, you should definitely visit with your teacher to find out exactly how to improve it.

Grading System and GPA The University of Delaware uses letter grades rang-

ing from A to F. Quality points are assigned per credit, which determines your GPA. For example, an A is 4.0 points; an A- is 3.67; a B+ is 3.33, a B is 3.0; and so on.

Grade Appeals In general, discuss grades that you do not under-

stand with your instructor, clarifying his or her grading standards and the reason the grade was assigned. The

problem, usually based on misunderstanding or confu-sion, is usually resolved at this level. According to the Student Handbook, you can file an official grade appeal if you think that “an inappropriate grade has been assigned because of a faculty member’s bias or failure to follow an established standard for assigning a grade. A grade complaint may not be based solely on a claim that a faculty member exercised allegedly errone-ous academic judgment (i.e., a student may not com-plain that class standards are too high, reading too heavy, the grade curve too low, and so on).”

If you feel that a grade is unfair, you must first meet with your instructor and discuss the issue. If this meeting fails to result in a resolution to the problem, you have the right to grieve the grade. More information on grade appeals can be found in the Student Guide to Univer- sity Policies at www.udel.edu/stuguide at the link for grievances.

Withdrawal According to the Course Catalog: “You may with-

draw, without penalty, from a course during the first ten days of the Fall and Spring semesters; however, after the first ten days (the first four during Winter session) you will receive a W on your transcript or a WF, depending on circumstances. A W indicates that you were passing at the time of withdrawal, and a WF indicates that you were failing at time of withdrawal. Students permitted to withdraw after the announced deadlines who are do-ing failing work will receive a grade of F for the course unless the dean of their college approves their withdraw-al ‘without penalty,’ in which case the student receives a grade of WF.”

Incompletes You may request a grade of I (incomplete) only under

very special circumstances. If you have attended every class and completed nearly every assignment, but find that you do not have time before the end of the semester to complete a small amount of work (typically, the final draft of a paper), you may ask your instructor to give you an I while you complete the work. The instructor may determine that the case does not warrant an I. If you have been absent many times for any reason (includ-ing illness or other emergency), or if you have a substan-tial amount of work left to do, do not request an I. Instead,

44

Student Guide

University of Delaware Department of English 45Policies and Procedures • Student Guidewww.english.udel.edu

Arak Essay ContestRules

• You may submit an entry if you are registered for an English 110 class at the University of Delaware.

• You may submit only one entry.• Submit your entry by the last day of final exams of

the semester you were enrolled in English 110.

Submission Instructions• Remove your name and other identification from the

essay, but leave the title.• Format your essay to include page numbers, and

use the title (or a shortened version of the title) as a header.

• E-mail your essay as a Microsoft Word attachment to [email protected]. In the body of your e-mail, include the following information:

~ Name ~ Title of Essay ~ Semester you took ENGL 110 ~ E110 Instructor ~ Address ~ Telephone

• Submitting your essay indicates your agreement that the essay was written for an English 110 class at the University of Delaware and is entirely your own work. If it receives a prize, you give the Writing Program of the English Department permission to print it in the Arak Anthology. You understand that editors of the anthology may ask you to revise the es-say before publication, that they may do some editing, and that publication is contingent upon revision and satisfactory source checking by Arak editorial staff.

• Preserve or assemble your source packet. A source packet is a set of copies of the sources you used in your essay. Many instructors ask their students to sub-mit these packets with the final drafts of essays. Source packets greatly expedite the source-checking process.

Student Guide

Student Guide • Policies and Procedures

withdraw from the class. If you do receive an I, you should work out in detail with your instructor how and when you will complete the work; some instructors have you sign a contract. If you receive an I, you have only until two weeks into the following semester to complete the work before the grade automatically reverts to an F.

Plagiarism and Academic Dishonesty Plagiarism is a serious academic offense. The Univer-

sity of Delaware treats all cases of plagiarism very seri-ously. For more information on plagiarism, go to www.udel.edu/stuguide/ and click on “Code of Conduct,” then “Academic Honesty.”

English 110 for Non-Native Speakers of English

Non-native speakers of English may choose to be placed into special sections of English 110 that can con-centrate on the challenges that writing academic English presents to them. If you are interested in this option, you should contact the English Department and the Writing Center to ask whether special sections of English 110 for non-native speakers are being offered in any given semester.

The Honors Program Special honors sections of English 110 are offered

through the English Department. They are open to students not enrolled in the Honors Program, with permission of Honors Program administrators. They are typically classes that cover the same areas as other English 110 classes but are focused on a theme, with enhanced reading and special research projects.

Students typically become involved in the Honors Program from the beginning of their first year at the University, but others may apply for admission to the program after starting a career at the University. For in-formation on admission to the Honors Program, please call (302) 831-1195 for more information or visit www.udel.edu/honors/.

Advanced Placement and Exemptions For AP exams in English, scores of 3, 4, or 5 will earn

up to 6 hours of credit for courses such as English 166. Nevertheless, AP English scores do not earn a course equivalent for English 110, and students earning hours of credit for AP English scores must still take English 110.

Transfer Credits If you want to transfer credits from another college,

start with the Admissions Office. Some courses ap-pear on a grid of course equivalents, which lists many colleges and courses and the Admissions Office can determine the transfer credit easily. For other transfer credit requests, you must petition for permission from the E110 Transfer Coordinator, the Director of Writ-ing, or the Director of Undergraduate Studies for the English Department.

Advanced Writing Courses In addition to English 110, the Writing Program of-

fers other advanced writing courses. For more informa-tion, please see www.english.udel.edu and click on

“Writing @ UD”.

The Arak Essay ContestAny student registered for an English 110 class may

submit an essay to the Arak Essay Contest. The essays are judged each year by a panel of seasoned English 110 teachers, and winning authors receive monetary prizes as well as publication of their work in the Arak Anthology.

The Arak Essay Contest and the Arak Anthology are made possible by the generous support of the Arak fam-ily in honor of John and Frieda Arak.

A Brief History of the Arak AwardIn the mid-1990s, University of Delaware alumni

Sydney F. Arak and Ruth Toor provided funding for the Department of English to celebrate outstanding student writing. They established the on-going award fund in honor of their parents, John and Frieda Arak.

Each year, over 3000 students enroll in English 110, the required first-year writing course.. Then a commit-tee of veteran teachers of 110 reads the nominees and selects the winners. Students who win the Arak Award have their essays published in the annual Arak Anthol-ogy and receive a monetary prize. Many people talk about the state of writing among college students. The Arak Family did something positive about it. The Department of English is grateful for the family’s on-going support.

Past Arak Award Winners

2012: Katie Bonanno, Margaret Gammie, Brenda Falk, Sabrina Pampillonia, Jade Russel, Kristin Ryan.

2011: Eman Abdel-Latif, Jennifer Chao, Elizabeth Hetterly, Margot Louthan, Maggie Moore, Melissa Richards, Kimmi Swift.

2010: Allison Brown, Jie Ge, Lori Glass, Dennis McBrearty, A. Benjamin Schantz, Scott Scheinberg, Jonathan Seitzer, Brandon Zimmerman.

2009: Timothy Barranco, Jeffrey Bivin, David Denlinger, Elizabeth Glinka, Christa Kurman, Stephanie Pollock, Megan Ramirez, Zachary Tuthill, Sarah Wells.

2008: David Cavagnino, Jessica Beddis, Sarah LaFave, Cecilia Cole, Brittany Schieler.

2007: Edward Bayley, Danielle Becker, Emily S. Hoffmann, Bailey Kung, Kristen LaPorte, Jillian Staurowsky.

2006: Melody Chandler, Michelle DiMarino, Leah DiMatteo, Leah Eichenbaum, Jonathan Hullmann, Darren Mooney, Carolyn Simmermon, Edwin Wong.

2005: Johanna Darling, Kathleen Hebblewaite, Kristen Lindell, Lauren Ludman, Cory Sanderson, Patrick Wilcox, Elaine Yanderisevits.

mccamley

Sticky Note

Can we delete this year?

mccamley

Sticky Note

Can we add the 2013 winners here? They are Genevieve Bloomer, Jennifer Dabell, Erin Eller, Laura Libassi, Jorge McConnie-Saad, Matthew Pinson.

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