Remember: discussions are worth 20 points (10 for your posting, 10 for your responses) each, and you must post your response to the Message Board no later than the due date in order to get credit. After the class has posted to the Message Board, read what everybody has to say about the discussion topic and respond to any or all of them (at least two), and feel free to respond to responses over the next couple of days :)

You can earn a "C" (15 points) with a solid posting and just one substantive response, but to earn a full 20/20, you will need at least two thoughtful, idea-and-example-filled responses in addition to a solid posting.

As stated on the class Discussion page, postings are graded for both form (editing) and content, and they are not simple opinion pieces. Postings are the equivalent to in-class essays in a face-to-face class, so they must show your understanding of the reading, your ability to apply the situations to actual experiences described in precise detail, the depth of your thinking and creativity developing an essay about the topic. A typical posting should be 300+ words long and, when appropriate, incorporate documented quotations from the readings.

Likewise, simple "I agree" or high-five ("Good job") responses will earn no points. Responses need to demonstrate your ability to add examples and ideas to the discussion. Ideally, they will introduce new ways of looking at the topic that will allow others to pick up on your examples and expand on their own discussions. A typical response will be 200+ words.

Also remember (and this is true of all discussions and essays for this class) your are not summarizing what you read, and you are not just giving unsupported opinions; you are trying to show that you understand what you have read. When possible, you must quote and document examples from the readings, and you should be able to apply the situations to actual, specific, detailed (not general) examples you have experienced or studied in the real world.

that's just too much stuff

EXTRA-SPECIAL NOTE: This assignment requires you to actually move your body somewhere and use your eyes. If you are not away from your computer and looking directly at some space; you are not doing this correctly.

Discuss one of the following:

  1. Both articles on "Too Much Stuff" have different ideas about what generates the impulse to acquire "stuff." One suggests there is the guilt attached to getting rid of things associated with personal memories. The other looks back to earlier times when it was a necessary survival mechanism which has continued even though it is not generally necessary (and, in fact, it often makes the quality of life worse, not better).

    This topic is for those of you who can identify with either article (or if you know someone who fits the "too much stuff" profile.

    Look at one place in or around your home--your car's trunk, your junk drawer, your garage, your front yard, your bedroom closet, wherever--that is so crammed with unnecessary "stuff" that, for some reason, you just can't part with. Looking very closely, list exactly what all that stuff is (include type, name, brand, color, size, condition--anything that will make that visible to the reader. Make sure it is excessive (try for about 300-500 words of very specific things) so that your reader will shout, "Enough! That is just too much." Open or close your list with a sentence or two explaining why you just can't seem to let all of that stuff go (is it sentimentality? guilt? hoarding instinct? laziness? something else?); maybe you are just a committed "collector" (I can relate; I collect things too :)

    NOTE: be as exact as you possibly can.

    "Several old sweaters" is just dull (and leaves no real impression). Try, instead, "Thirteen ugly Christmas sweaters, which I gathered over the years for an annual ugly Christmas sweater competition, include my 2015 winner--red, green, purple, and pink lightning bolts zapping Santa on top of a roof; the lightning hits him right in the plumber's crack as he is vanishing, head first, down the chimney."

    "Stacks of my favorite books" is blah (and leaves no real impression). Try, instead, "My Stephanie Meyers collection, including first editions of Twilight, New Moon, Eclipse, Breaking Dawn, alongside my Veronica Roth books: Divergent, Insurgent, Allegiant, and Free Four.

  2. If you are one of those rare people who cannot identify with either of the two articles, how have you managed to de-clutter your life? Are you a re-purposer? someone who follows Chef Alton Brown's passion for only buying things that are "multi-taskers"? a clever individual who has built minimalist furniture that transforms into several useful furnishings? If so, give some concrete examples of things you have repurposed (and how) or re-imagined or managed to do without. Depending on the approach you take, pictures would be nice in addition to the 300+ word narrative detailing how you have managed to remove "stuff" from your life.

SPECIAL NOTES ABOUT REPLIES THIS WEEK: some of you may have already looked ahead to Paper 1 (I hope so, at least), and seen that part of the first project involves repurposing some of this stuff that accumulates around the house. So a really helpful kind of response would be for you to look at someone's list of stuff and describe how one or more of the items could be repurposed; give concrete, specific details. If it is something you have actually done, include a picture as well. If it is not an original idea, you could include a link to the site where you found the information (or if you saw it on HGTV or DIY, then just say so :)

Other ways to respond are by

THE BOTTOM LINE: none of this should just be unsupported opinion; it should all show you are thinking and even learning new ideas about the subject.