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Follow-up and moving forward memo 9.11

jccohen's picture

Dear 360 folks,

First, thanks for such thoughtful work in our classes yesterday afternoon!

Thurs. group, we look forward to hearing about your first session at Riverside.  Fri. group, we’ll see you soon for our first session!

We’re writing with some updates about our initial conversation yesterday with Sheila, your Sunday night post, and your research proposal, which is due this Wednesday.


As Sheila suggested please start keeping a word file about your responses to our sessions at the jail, discussions in class and with Sheila, dreams, ideas, concerns, etc.  Let yourself be intuitive, free associate ideas, write down words and play with words. Make this your “incubator page,” an uncentered space for ideas and feelings.

We see this as a potential resource for your Sunday postings, and also perhaps as a way forward to whatever kinds of “arts of resistance” we might develop.

Here’s a recap of the Sunday posting prompt:  Take some time to reflect on time in the prison in light of the readings and conversations from all of our courses. Bring at least two strands of this web together.

Although we are very much in process in terms of where we might go with producing our own “arts of resistance” this semester, we want to move forward with doing some outside research; that is, research that does not involve our experiences inside the jail.  We suggest that you use your initial responses to Sheila’s questions and Sheila’s individual responses to each of you as a guide toward developing a direction for pursuing this research.

 Toward this end, please spend an hour following up on –- or re-directing -- your initial areas of interest, using Sheila’s suggestions if helpful. By 5 p.m. on Wednesday, write up and post a brief proposal for how you plan to continue your investigation. This should include the questions you have at this point; at least three sources you will consult, each with some annotation about why you think it might be useful to you; and anything else you’d like to add about your intentions.  Feel free to do this alone or with a partner.

 Thanks again for your wonderful spirit and intelligence in this endeavor!

 Jody, Joel, and Anne