William FitzGerald Spring 2007
English 394 - Song to Cyberspace

Homework for Thursday, January 18:

Readings

Chapter 1 of Walter Ong's Orality and Literacy (1982)

Summary of Plato's Phaedrus available at
http://www.ndsu.nodak.edu/ndsu/kbrooks/teaching/iws/phaedrusoutline.html

Exercise #1:

Brainstorm a list of as many forms/modes/genres of oral (or sound-based) communication as you can think of, e.g, nursery rhymes. See if you would characterize them any further into sub-divisions that rely more or less upon other means of communication as well.

As you examine your list, choosing several items from the list, see if you can identify any specific features of those oral forms/modes/genres that seem particularly rooted in their nature as oral character. Come prepared to talk about your selections and observations with others.