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\centerline{MONT 106Q -- Mathematical Thinking}
\centerline{First Essay Assignment}
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The first of the larger paper assignments this semester will deal with 
{\it the curious incident of the dog in the night-time}.  This essay (unlike some of
the others we will do later) will deal primarily with your own personal responses 
to this unusual story.  Your essay should show that you have 
done some careful reading--and some serious thinking--about the subject.  You may, of 
course, disagree with ideas presented in class if you want.  The point is for
you to develop your own thinking, and then clearly express it in writing.

Your essay should be 2-3 pages in length (double-spaced, single-sided).
Please submit as a MS Word .doc or .docx file to {\tt jlittle@holycross.edu} by 
5:00pm on Monday, September 12.

The topic and question(s) you should address:  
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The author of the novel, Mark Haddon, has said about his own experience writing the 
book that ``it's not just a book about disability ... [Christopher is] a character [who] 
if you met him in real life you'd never, never get inside his head.  Yet something
magical happens when you write a novel about him.  You slip inside his head and it seems 
like the most natural thing in the world.''  On the other hand the author Jay McInerney, 
in a review of {\it the curious incident of the dog in the night-time}, wrote that from 
his point of view as a reader of the novel, `` ... the gulf between Christopher and his 
parents, between Christopher and the rest of us, remains immense and mysterious ... Christopher 
Boone is an unsolved mystery.''  Do you feel you have shared Haddon's experience 
of coming to understand a truly different sort of mind?  How? Are there specific incidents
that helped you ``get'' Christopher?  Or does McInerney's sense 
of unsolved mystery do a better job of describing your own reactions?   
Is it even possible for psychologically ``normal'' people to understand and 
empathize with the experience of someone whose mind works so differently?  
And does this relate to our CHQ theme:  {\it If borders define us but we want 
to transcend them, how then shall we live?}
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{\it Guidelines for this assignment}
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Follow these specifications:
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\item{1.} It is OK to discuss preliminary ideas for what you want to say with
your classmates if you want.  I will also be happy to talk over things and/or read
a preliminary draft to give feedback if you like.
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\item{2.} To help you structure your essay, you may want to think about 
developing and stating a {\it thesis} in your opening paragraph -- your answer(s) 
to the main questions above:
{\it  Do you feel you have shared Haddon's experience 
of coming to understand a truly different sort of mind?  Or does McInerney's sense 
of unsolved mystery do a better job of describing your own reactions?}
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\item{3.}  Then, in the following paragraphs, explain in as much detail as
you can why you have come to the conclusion you stated in your opening paragraph.
If there are specific incidents in the novel that especially helped you 
understand Christopher, describe them and explain what it was that you 
took from them.  If, on the other hand, you still feel that Christopher
is totally mysterious, give some examples of his attitude or behavior
that you don't understand and explain what makes them so strange.   
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\item{4.}  You can use quotations from the text of {\it the curious
incident of the dog in the night-time} to explain and illustrate your points.
Don't just quote them, though.  Provide interpretations of those 
passages that come from your own thinking about them.  
Your evidence should be as specific, detailed, correct, and as varied
as possible (focus on small passages and mention
the little things that support your points). 
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\item{5.}  When you use direct quotations, 
at the end place the page number(s) to identify the source.  Here's an 
example of what I'm looking for:
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\item{} Even Christopher's flights of imagination are curiously literal.
For instance when he describes how the shape of a cloud reminds him of 
a spaceship, he says ``... it was like an alien spaceship hundreds of 
kilometers long, like in {\it Dune} or {\it Blake's 7} or {\it Close
Encounters of the Third Kind}, except that it wasn't made of solid
material, it was made of droplets of condensed water vapor, which is what
clouds are made of'' ({\it curious incident}, pp. 68-69). 
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\item{6.}  {\it You should not need to consult any other sources -- this means other books, reviews
of the novel, web sites, etc.}  This essay should present {\it your own} reactions
to the novel and the main questions posed above.
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\item{7.}  The paper as a whole should be well-organized and ``flow'' 
from one point to the next.  Do not repeat pieces of evidence unless
there is a very good reason for doing so.  Do not get ahead of yourself.
Say one thing at a time.  If you decide you want to add something, 
do not just tack it on somewhere.  Instead, figure out where it fits in the overall
scheme of your argument and put it where it belongs.
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\item{8.}  Your sentences should be clear, readable, and
not overly wordy.  You should aim for a lively style and the 
writing should be in your own voice.  But please
think twice before using very colloquial ways of saying things.
If they contribute to the point you are trying to make, that is fine.  
But do it for a reason.   
Also, {\it please do not use a thesaurus to find impressive-sounding words} 
when simpler alternatives are available. 
An important lesson to learn for writing in college is that thesauri 
do not capture the {\it nuances in meanings} that underlie good writing.  
If you must use a thesaurus, also look up any words you select in a 
dictionary to make sure they mean exactly what you think they do!
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\item{9.} Errors in mechanics (spelling, punctuation, grammar) and usage should 
not annoy the reader.  (A word of warning: I tend to be {\it easily annoyed by this 
sort of thing!}) Try as much as possible to avoid those mistakes.
\bye
