ENC 1101: INTRODUCTION TO COLLEGE WRITING

Writing and Culture

MWF Period 3. CBD 210.

Pachamanca. Vicos, Peru. 2010.

Instructor:

Jamie Lee Marks

jamielm@ufl.edu; [727] 773-7081

Phone [office]:
Office:
Office Hours:

[352] 846-1138
302 Tigert
4:00PM 5:00PM and by appointment

COURSE DESCRIPTION
ENC 1101: Introduction to College Writing focuses on the rhetorical and practical elements of writing
effective arguments within the contemporary academic context. Students will learn how to analyze the
types and components of academic arguments, as well as formulate a coherent thesis of their own and
defend it logically with evidence drawn from their own research. Students will also learn how to work
through the stages of planning, researching, organizing, and revising their writing.
This course encourages students to investigate the relationship between writing and knowledge, and to
discover how writing as a practice can create, rather than merely transmit, knowledge. Class discussions

ENC 1101 Syllabus 2

will reveal the complementary relationship between writing and research and demonstrate how
persuasive techniques and genres vary from discipline to discipline depending on audience and purpose.
By the end of ENC1101, students will be able to
plan, draft, revise, edit, and proofread forms of argumentative essays
read, write, and think more critically
adapt writing to different audiences, purposes, and contexts
use evidence to effectively support argumentative claims or theses
write an organized, logical argument
avoid plagiarism
write coherent, cohesive, and clear paragraphs
create direct, grammatically-correct sentences
demonstrate a more graceful and clear writing style
participate in groups with emphasis on listening, critical and reflective thinking, and responding
to group members writing and ideas
Course Theme
To ground the students investigations for the semester, the course will focus on a particular formative
theme. The theme of this section is writing about food. Food, as well as its preparation and distribution
within society, offers a unique vantage point for studying the human experience because in preparing,
distributing, and consuming food, humans incorporate into our very bodies the products of nature
transformed into objects with cultural meaning as food. Each of the readings and assignments will
challenge students to consider the connection between what we eat in our daily lives--in addition to
what we eat only on special occasions and what objects are considered food taboos--and the way we
understand and imagine our personhood. We will additionally discuss food in terms of our access to it,
physically and financially, as well as health disparities that may emerge from differential levels of access.
Finally, some readings and class activities will explore how cultural understandings of gender, ethnicity,
nationality, race, and socioeconomic status have affected the portrayal of food and food preparation in
popular culture and advertising.
Course Structure
The first part of this course (Unit 1) will define argument for an academic audience. To foster our
development as academic writers, we will establish a writing culture in which we learn how to analyze
both our own and our peers writing.
In the second part of the course (Units 2 and 3), we will explore various forms of analysis used in
academic reasoning. In particular, each student will use a classification analysis to define or evaluate a
trend or group that will be his or her focus for the rest of the course. Then, we will work together using a
causal analysis to determine what brings about a problem the particular group in question faces. In
these units, we will apply our knowledge of rhetoric and persuasion to real-world phenomena revolving
around the theme of writing about food and our relationship to it.
In the culminating section of the course (Unit 4), we will apply the skills developed in the first part of the
course in order to write our final proposal arguments. Students will describe a reasonable solution to a
real world problem for a real audience.
As we practice our argumentative skills through the theme of writing about food, we will also improve
our critical thinking through reading, writing, and discussion, and will attend to basic research skills,

ENC 1101 Syllabus 3

including documentation and avoiding plagiarism. Additionally, we will examine and practice academic
conventions of word choice, sentence structure and variation, and paragraph formation.
Texts will include traditional sources such as a writing handbook, textbook, and online readings drawn
from academic readers, but we will also examine the arguments in other textsin popular culture,
advertisements, and websites during class exercises. While the course does emphasize academic
research and writing skills, assignments and discussions in ENC 1101 are designed to demonstrate that
writing classes do not exist in a vacuum and that writing is not solely an academic enterprise. Writing is,
after all, discovering, thinking, and communicating in print. Developing critical thinking skills and
efficient writing habits is key not only to success at college and in future careers, but will also help
students discover, cultivate, and communicate their feelings and ideas about our world more broadly.
Required Texts
[WA] John D. Ramage, John C. Bean, and June Johnson. Writing Arguments [with readings]. 9th brief
edition. New York: Longman, 2012.
[WH] Hacker, Diane, Stephen Bernhardt, and Nancy Sommers. Writers Help. 1st ed. Boston, Bedford/St.
Martins, 2013. (Online Text).
[OR] Online Readings. These will be available to you on Sakai>Resources>Readings. Please come to class
with the readings, your annotations, and assigned activities in order to ensure a lively discussion.
Other [free!] Writing Resources
Reading and Writing Center
http://www.at.ufl.edu/rwcenter/students/writing_assist.html
UF Library Home Page Guide for First-Year Writing
http://guides.uflib.ufl.edu/enc
The Purdue Online Writing Lab (OWL)
http://owl.english.purdue.edu/
Zotero
A browser plug-in or stand-alone reference manager. We will be discussing in class, but try to suss it out
before we get there. It could help you organize material in multiple classes.
[tip- if you have a question related to APA, try WH and WA first, OWL Purdue next, and shoot your
instructor an email if you are still in need of an answer]

GRADING AND ASSIGNMENTS

Argument Analysis (600-900 words; 50 total points)
In this paper, students will analyze how a particular essay tries to persuade its

ENC 1101 Syllabus 4

readers through the use of argumentative claims and evidence.
Evaluation (900-1200 words; 100 points total)
In this assignment, students will choose an item, problem, text, or trend to investigate and will
describe classification as a descriptive strategy. Attention to essay structure, the use of evidence, and
logic will be especially important for this paper.
Causal Analysis (1200-1500 words; 200 points total)
In the third paper, students will devise an argument that either traces what caused the problem or
projects what potential impact/effect(s) the problem could have on society as a whole. If done
successfully, students will have established a convincing line of logical reasoning that also attends to
rhetorical subtleties.
Writing Self-Assessment (600-900 words, not including references; 100 points total)
Looking back at the first three papers, students will analyze their progress in the course thus far.
Specifically, students will identify areas of their writing that need work and describe a plan for
improvement.
Proposal (1800-2100 words; 400 points total)
For the final paper, students will consider a contemporary problem and argue (1) that the problem
exits, (2) how to solve the problem, (3) that the solution is feasible, and (4) that particular benefits
accrue to relevant stakeholderspaying particular attention to rhetorical scope, audience, and logical
organization. Students are encouraged to begin considering their own
positions on course topics early in the semester and to discuss their work both privately during
instructor office hours and with the class as a whole.

In-Class Work and Homework (150 total points)

Throughout the term, students will work in class and at home on activities that strengthen
specific writing skills. These activities include quizzes, drafts, workshops, grammar/style
activities and reading responses. You will also be assigned activities out of Writers Help. 50
points of this category will be determined by a Food Challenge each student must choose
from a set of options and complete during the semester. The reading responses, assigned
during class, will be due the day we discuss the readings in class.
Grading Scale
A
4.0
A- 3.67
B+ 3.33
B
3.0
B- 2.67
C+ 2.33

93-100
90-92
87-89
83-86
80-82
77-79

930-1000
900-929
870-899
830-869
800-829
770-799

C
CD+
D
DE

2.0
1.67
1.33
1.0
0.67
0.00

73-76
70-72
67-69
63-66
60-62
0-59

730-769
700-729
670-699
630-669
600-629
0-599

ENC 1101 Syllabus 5

GENERAL EDUCATION LEARNING OUTCOMES
Students must pass this course with a C or better to satisfy the CLAS requirement for Composition
(C). A grade of C- confers no credit. Earning general education composition credit, students will

Demonstrate forms of effective writing (focusing on analyses, arguments, and proposals)

Learn different writing styles, approaches, and formats and successfully adapt writing to different
audiences, purposes, and contexts; effectively revise and edit their own writing and the writing
of others
Organize complex arguments in writing, using thesis statements, claims, and evidence
Employ logic in arguments and analyze their own writing and the writing of others for errors in
logic
Write clearly and concisely consistent with the conventions of standard written English
Use thesis sentences, claims, evidence, and logic in arguments

The University Writing Requirement (WR) ensures students both maintain their fluency in writing and
use writing as a tool to facilitate learning. Course grades now have two components. To receive writing
credit, a student must receive a grade of C or higher and a satisfactory completion of the writing
component of the course. To receive the 6,000-word University Writing Requirement credit (E6), papers
must meet minimum word requirements totaling 6000 words. Any assignment not reaching minimum
word count will be returned or failed.
The instructor will evaluate and provide feedback on the student's written assignments with respect to
content, organization and coherence, argument and support, style, clarity, grammar, punctuation, and
mechanics. Conferring credit for the University Writing Requirement, this course requires that papers
conform to the following assessment rubric. More specific rubrics and guidelines applicable to individual
assignments may be delivered during the course of the semester.

ENC 1101 Syllabus 6

Assessment Rubric

CONTENT

SATISFACTORY (Y)

UNSATISFACTORY (N)

Papers exhibit evidence of ideas that respond

to the topic with complexity, critically
evaluating and synthesizing sources, and
provide an adequate discussion with basic
understanding of sources.

Papers either include a central

idea(s) that is unclear or off- topic or
provide only minimal or inadequate
discussion of ideas. Papers may also
lack sufficient or appropriate
sources.

Documents and paragraphs lack

clearly identifiable organization, may
Documents and paragraphs exhibit identifiable
ORGANIZATION
lack any coherent sense of logic in
structure for topics, including a clear thesis
AND COHERENCE
associating and organizing ideas, and
statement and topic sentences.
may also lack transitions and
coherence to guide the reader.
Documents use persuasive and confident
presentation of ideas, strongly supported with
evidence. At the weak end of the satisfactory
ARGUMENT AND
range, documents may provide only
SUPPORT
generalized discussion of ideas or may provide
adequate discussion but rely on weak support
for arguments.

Documents make only weak

generalizations, providing little or no
support, as in summaries or
narratives that fail to provide critical
analysis.

STYLE

Documents rely on word usage that

Documents use a writing style with word
is inappropriate for the context,
choice appropriate to the context, genre, and genre, or discipline. Sentences may
discipline. Sentences should display complexity be overly long or short with awkward
and logical structure.
construction. Documents may also
use words incorrectly.

MECHANICS

Papers will feature correct or error-free

presentation of ideas. At the weak end of the
satisfactory range, papers may contain a few
spelling, punctuation, or grammatical errors
that remain unobtrusive and do not obscure
the papers argument or points.

Papers contain so many mechanical

or grammatical errors that they
impede the readers understanding
or severely undermine the writers
credibility.

ENC 1101 Syllabus 7

COURSE SCHEDULE (Tentative- this schedule is a guide and subject to change according to class need as
the semester unfolds)
Writing Arguments (WA); Online Reading (OR)
[students should bring a copy of the reading or notes on the reading to class]
UNIT 1: Argument, Rhetoric, and Academic Writing
Week 1: The Course and Syllabus
August 21-23
W Review syllabus, expectations, and assignments.
HW- Read Eating Christmas in the Kalahari and Ode to an Orange
F Introductions; Discuss readings and diagnostic assignment.
HW- Read WA Chapter 3 The Core of an Argument for Monday. Diagnostic Writing Assignment
on a food memory due next Wednesday
Week 2: Analyzing Arguments
August 26-30
M The Core of an Argument. Introduce first assignment. Discuss Ch. 3.
HW- read WA Chapter 4 The Logical Structure of an Argument
W Diagnostic Essay due. Discuss the structure of an argument.
HW- Read Campbells Soup and the Long Shelf Life of Traditional Gender Roles by Katherine
Parkin. Review Writers Help Writing About Texts Section.
F Argument and Visual Analysis (in class)
HW- Closely read WA Chapter 8- Analyzing Arguments Rhetorically and Tailgate Warriors
Week 3
September 2-6
M NO CLASS (holiday)
HW- make sure to have the readings done by Wednesday.
W Rhetorical Analyses. Style Review.
HW TBA and read Shitty First Drafts
F Discovery Draft of Argument Analysis Due; peer review.
HW
UNIT 2: ClassificationUsing Evaluation and Ethics Arguments
Week 4
September 9-13
M Argument Analysis Professional Draft DUE. Introduce Evaluation Assignment.
HW - Read WA Chapter 13- Evaluation and Ethical Arguments; OR TBA
W Evaluation and Ethical Arguments continued. Making a list of Criteria.

ENC 1101 Syllabus 8

HWF DUE: Topic and list of criteria. Evaluation exercise.
HW- OR TBA
Week 5
All Homework TBA
September 16-20
M Reading discussion. How to Write a Sentence Outline
HWW- Topic Sentences, Paragraphs, Essay Structure
HWF Due: Sentence Outline
HW-read WA Ch. 5- Using Evidence Effectively for Monday discussion and OR TBA
Week 6
September 23-27
M- Due: Claim/Thesis. Using Evidence Effectively.
HW
W Due: Revised Outline. Workshop: Essay Logic and Organization
HWF- Peer Review of Evaluation Analysis
HW- finish Evaluation analysis.
UNIT 3- Discerning Causes and Effects
Week 7:
All Homework TBA
September 30-October 4
M Evaluation Analysis Due. Introduce the concept of Cause/Effect.
HW WA Chapter 12: Causal Arguments
W Discuss Causal Argumentation. Discuss topics.
HW OR TBA.
F- Topic Due. Discuss reading. Topic Development Workshop
HW
Week 8: Gathering and Using Evidence
All Homework TBA
October 7-11
M Form Research Groups. Workshop topics. Discuss research strategies.
HW- OR TBA
W - Discuss examples and types of evidence used in different types of argumentation.

ENC 1101 Syllabus 9

F Discuss research strategies.

Week 9
October 14-18
M- Scavenger Hunt- Meet in Library
HW
W- Workshop on Causal Argument Organization
F- Peer Review Causal Argument
HW- WA Chapter 14- Proposal Arguments to discuss Monday.
UNIT 4: Proposing Persuasive Solutions
Week 10:
October 21-25
M- DUE: Causal Argument. Introduce Proposal Argument
HW
W- Discuss Proposal Examples.
F- Proposal Topic Due.
Week 11: Sources and Resources
October 28- Nov 1
MReturn Papers and Assign Writing Self-Assessment
HW- Read WA Ch.6- Moving Your Audience
W Workshop, Audience Analysis and Drafting Outline
HW- WA Ch. 15 and 16. Using Sources, Manuscript Form.
F Conferences. Bring Audience Analysis.
Week 12
November 4-8
M Writing Self-Assessment due. Finding Sources for Academic Writing.
W Discuss the Problem Statement and Evaluate Examples.
F NO CLASS (homecoming)

ENC 1101 Syllabus 10

Week 13
November 11-15
M NO CLASS (Holiday)
W Problem Statement Due (600 Words). Discuss the Solution Section and Evaluate Examples.
F Presenting Arguments Proposal Presentations.
Week 14
November 18-22
M Due: Description and Explanation of the Solution
HW- read WA Ch. 7- Responding to Objections and Alternative Views.
W Discuss Feasibility and Counter-Arguments
F Conferences
Week 15
November 25-29
HW: TBA
M Conferences (really.)
W HOLIDAY
F HOLIDAY
Week 16: Revising
December 2-4
M Proposal Peer Review
W Final class. Proposal Due. Something fun to celebrate the end of a productive semester.
Course Policies
University Writing Program Attendance Policy
Attendance is required. The policy of the University Writing Program is that if you miss more than six
periods during the term, you will fail the entire course. The UWP exempts from this policy only those
absences involving university-sponsored events, such as athletics and band, and religious holidays. In
these cases, proper documentation must be provided.
Absences and Tardiness
Attending class means arriving punctually and remaining until the end of each class period. An
attendance signup sheet will be circulated at the beginning of each session after the first few weeks of
class. If you are more than 15 minutes late, it will count as an absence for the entire class session. In
such a case, however, you may enter the class and receive credit for in-class work that you complete
during the remaining class time.

ENC 1101 Syllabus 11

Because much of our work depends upon group discussion of the texts and in-class writing activities, you
should plan to attend every class session. However, you may miss up to three classes without penalty
EXCEPT that you will lose credit for whatever in-class work you miss. After the third unexcused absence,
half a letter grade [50 points] will be deducted from your final grade. In the case of all absences, it is
your responsibility to contact a classmate to obtain notes on the materials covered while you were
away.
Please note: As per University of Florida policy, more than 6 absences will result in a failing grade.
Technology in Class
Cell phones are permitted in class to be used only as [silent] clocks. If your phone rings in class, or we
notice that you are texting, someone will ask you to step outside to take care of your business and not
come back that day; the incident will count as one absence. Even in the case that we dont ask you to
step out because we dont feel like dealing with it at the moment, know that we take note of it and
dislike it. Dont run the risk that one of your instructors might find it, and you, disrespectful of the
learning environment.
Laptops and other computing devices will only be used in class on designated writing/revising class
sessions. These will not be frequent. The urge to surf, or work on other things, is simply too great and
we want the writer in us all to get the most out of our time together. Your instructor will announce in
advance which classes near the end of the semester are laptop friendly.
Plagiarism
Plagiarism is a serious violation of the Student Honor Code. The Honor Code prohibits and defines
plagiarism as follows:
Plagiarism. A student shall not represent as the students own work all or any portion of the work
of another. Plagiarism includes (but is not limited to):
a.) Quoting oral or written materials, whether published or unpublished, without proper
attribution.
b.) Submitting a document or assignment which in whole or in part is identical or substantially
identical to a document or assignment not authored by the student. (University of Florida,
Student Honor Code, 15 Aug. 2007 <http://www.dso.ufl.edu/judicial/honorcode.php>)
University of Florida students are responsible for reading, understanding, and abiding by the entire
Student Honor Code.
Important Tip: You should never copy and paste something from the internet without providing the
exact location from which it came.
Classroom Behavior
The best kinds of discussions emerge out of classes where the classroom is thought of as a community of
learners and knowers, in which each participant is assured of a position as both. Thus, it is very
important that everyone feels comfortable expressing his or her opinions in an environment that is free

ENC 1101 Syllabus 12

from hostility, even in moments where we might disagree. Please keep in mind that students come
from diverse cultural, economic, and ethnic backgrounds. Most of the texts we will discuss and write
about engage controversial topics and opinions. Diversified student backgrounds combined with
provocative texts require that you demonstrate respect for ideas that may differ from your own.
Disrespectful behavior will result in dismissal, and accordingly an absence from the class.
Peer Review
As you may have noticed, we will be reviewing the work of our peers in this class. Disrespectful
comments on papers will not be tolerated. Likewise, any reviewer failing to point out areas of growth in
paper that they clearly notice will be docked points for not respecting the importance of their role as an
honest reviewer.
Evaluations and Surveys
UF offers an online system for evaluating us as your instructor. You will be emailed and reminded to take
the evaluation survey. Because we value checking in with you along the way to make sure you get the
most out of it, we may organize online, ANONYMOUS surveys to be taken at certain points in the course.
We ask that you take the time to make thoughtful suggestions for change or let us know if something
worked well for you. This will help us make small adjustments in what we are doing before the semester
is over and those adjustments would, at that time, be relevant to your experience of the course.
Deadlines and Participation
You must submit assigned work on the specified due date even if you are absent and even if you are
taking one of your allowed absences. Work submitted late, if we choose to accept it, will receive a
significant grade deduction. Papers and drafts are due at the beginning of class and/or on-line at the
assigned deadline. Failure of technology is not an excuse.
Participation is a crucial part of success in this class. Students will be expected to work in small groups
and participate in group discussions, writing workshops, peer reviews, and other in-class activities. Be
prepared for unannounced quizzes or activities on the readings or classroom discussion. Students must
be present for all in-class activities to receive credit for them. Many of them will be counted as part of
larger assignments. In-class work cannot be made up. Writing workshops require that students provide
constructive feedback about their peers writing.
In general, students are expected to contribute constructively to each class session. Be brave and be
respectful. Every persons opinion is welcome here.
Paper Maintenance Responsibilities
Students are responsible for maintaining duplicate copies of all work submitted in this course and
retaining all returned, graded work until the semester is over. Should the need arise for a resubmission
of papers or a review of graded papers, it is the students responsibility to have and to make available
this material.
Mode of Submission
All papers will be submitted as MS Word (.doc) or Rich Text Format (.rtf) documents to E-learning/Sakai
and as hard copies. Final drafts should be polished and presented in a professional manner. All papers
must be in 12-point Times New Roman or Calibri font, double-spaced with 1-inch margins and pages
numbered. You must use APA formatting, which we will learn and discuss over the course of the

ENC 1101 Syllabus 13

semester. Be sure to staple papers before submitting hard copies. Unstapled papers will not be
accepted. Papers without word counts will not be accepted. Papers without page numbers will be
docked points. This is not because we are grading ogres, its because wed like to make comments on
your work, know whether or not it meets the word count requirements, and not lose random sheets of
your printed work while grading.
Students with Disabilities
The University of Florida complies with the Americans with Disabilities Act. Students requesting
accommodation should contact the Students with Disabilities Office, Peabody 202. That office will
provide documentation to the student whom must then provide this documentation to the instructor
when requesting accommodation. Please do let me know as soon as possible as well, and we will make
every attempt we possibly can to make the necessary accommodations.
Contacting Your Instructors
We look forward to learning with and from you in this class. Please do not hesitate to contact us with
any questions or concerns you might have that cannot be easily answered by looking at the syllabus. We
have an open door policy and mean thatreally. It is very important that you feel comfortable meeting
with or e-mailing your instructors when you have questions or feel that you need additional
assistance. We will make every effort to get back to you within 24 hours of your email on weekdays.
Please use the email provided on the syllabus or the email addresses we use to email you (you will see
this address in your inbox over the course of the semester). If you message one of us using Sakai, please
check the box that allows you to send a copy to our email address. Checking Sakai mail is not part of our
daily routine and we cannot guarantee as speedy a response if you choose to contact one of us in that
way without forwarding it to our email addresses.
Other Helpful Resources
UF Library: http://www.uflib.ufl.edu/instruct/neworient.html
UF Grading System: http://www.isis.ufl.edu/minusgrades.html.
UF Disability Services: http://www.ufl.edu/disability
UF Counseling Services: www.council.ufl.edu
UF Student Mental Health Services: www.shcc.ufl/edu/smhs
UF Career Resource Center: Reitz Union, 392-1601
-Offers career development assistance and job counseling.
Pascals Coffee House
112 NW 16th Street
Gainesville, FL 32603
The CSC is a nice place to meet, grab a coffee, write, etc.. Some TAs often hold conferences there, so weve
decided to include an address on the syllabus for your general information. It is across the street from our
classroom building. It also has delicious coffee and treats.

ENC 1101 Syllabus 14

For your use [to fill in as class progresses, as things often shift]
Major Assignment

Draft Due

Peer Review? Final Draft Due

N/A

N/A

Argument Analysis

Evaluation

Causal Analysis

Writing Self-Assessment

Proposal

Food Challenge

Track Your Own Absences:

Week 1:
Week 2:
Week 3:
Week 4:
Week 5:
Week 6:
Week 7:
Week 8:
Week 9:
Week 10:
Week 11:
Week 12:
Week 13:
Week 14:
Week 15:
Week 16:

Total Points

ENC 1101 Syllabus 15

Food Challenges
By the end of the semester, you must choose one food challenge from the list below and complete it.
These exercises urge you to connect what we have discussed in class to your life. Your responses should
be between 1.5-2.5 pages double spaced. You will be evaluated on your engagement with course ideas,
your ability to give a thoughtful, synthetic response to the challenges questions, and on general writing
mechanics. Responses are due on or by November 18th on Sakai. Do not wait until the last minute, you
will not get anything out of the activity, and it will show in your writing.
1. Purchasing Food
Next time youre at the grocery store, whether its an organic friendly chain like Trader Joes,
Citizens Coop, or Wards, or a more standard chain grocery store, take notes on the way the store
presents itself to you. In what ways is the dcor designed to appeal to you, the shopper? What
assumptions about the typical shopper does the stores design make? Visit at least one other market
or store selling food items and compare.
2. Farmers Markets
Visit the City of Gainesvilles weekly farmers market on a Wednesday afternoon. How is the market
set up? What types of goods do vendors sell? How does it present itself to you? Take field notes on
anything of interestwhether its food type/price, politics/political discussions or social encounters.
What sort of a social space is the Farmers Markethow does it compare to where you usually buy
your food?
Extra Challenge: Visit the Farmers Market in Haile Planation on a Saturday. What differences can
you see? Why would these differences exist? How is Haile Plantation a different setting for a
farmers market than the city square?
3. Food Journal
For one week, keep a written account of all of your meals, including what you eat, what time you
ate, where you ate, how healthy you believed your meal was, and how much it cost. Write a 1-2
page reflection on why you think you made the choices you did. Identify and evaluate the different
norms, ideas, values, etc., that may play a part in your eating habits. How many of your choices were
prompted by cravings? Nutritional concerns? How much was determined by non-food related
factorssuch as a feeling of obligation, time schedules, or finances? Do any of your decisions line up
with topics discussed in class. What did you find?
4. Cookbook Analysis
For this challenge, you will select a cookbook of recipes themed around (1) a particular nation or
region (including our own); (2) a particular identity or lifestyle; or (3) a particular diet or health claim.
How does this theme influence the recipes included? The text used to introduce the book and
sections of it? For example, if youre analyzing an Animal Rights cookbook, do the authors try to
make the theme more playful? Or is it serious? How do images factor in? Design? How do the

ENC 1101 Syllabus 16

elements of the book, both the text and other visual elements, relate to the cookbooks content?
What did you find?
5. Wholesale messages
For this exercise, find some examples of the way food and eating are advertised: how restaurants,
food brands, or diet gurus try to sell you on their products and the experiences of consuming them
as positive ones. What elements of these products seem to be the most important in their
advertisement? Taste? Fitness/health? Fun? Family? Do they appeal more to the use and
preparation of the food, or to the experience of consuming it? Are there any appeals to identity (age,
nationality, race, class, ethnicity, gender, language) or to how the audience conceives of her/his
body? Write an essay analyzing either two print, online, or video ads for a restaurant or food item.
6. Food and Personae
Choose a character in a film, novel, television show, comic book, etc., that you feel is described in
terms of her/his relationship to food or food ideologies. How does food factor into his/her/its
characterization? To his/her/its gender identity? Race? Political identity? Are issues like weight,
hunger, or food obsession part of character development? What about eating meat, or not? What
about social class and food choices? Write a 1-2 page analysis of how food and eating are used to sell
or represent the character of your choice.
7. Local Food Movements
Choose from a list of Gainesville area organizations involved in community food reform. Contact the
organization, attend a meeting, or download literature about its program(s). Interview someone
from the organization about the food issues that organization is interested in addressing and how
they wish to and/or are addressing them. Write a 1-2 page profile of an organization or program.
Abundant Edible Landscapes
Alachua County Ag Extension
Alachua County Beekeepers Club
Alachua County Nutrition Alliance
Blue Oven Kitchens
Buy Local
Campus Kitchen Project at U of F
Citizens Co-op
Edible Plant Project
Florida Farm Bureau
Florida Organic Growers
Forage

Gainesville Area Bee Club

Gainesville Blueberry Farm Friends
Gainesville Catholic Worker
Gainseville Farm Fresh
Gainesville Harvest
Grow Gainesville
Hogtown Homegrown
Slow Food Gainesville
St. Francis House
Sustainable Alachua County
Weston Price - Gainesville

8. Restaurant Ethnography
Visit a restaurant that caters to a particular dietary community, such as vegetarians, vegans, low
gluten, local fare, etc.. Additionally, review the restaurants website (if it has one) or advertisements
(if youve seen any) While youre in the space, pay attention and take note of the menus aesthetics

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and content. What kind of food does it offer? How is it organized? Does the restaurant market
itself, and if so, how does it do so? Have you seen online or print advertisements? What does the
website look like? How does it present itself? What information, graphics, etc., does it include? Does
the restaurant seem to be marketed to appeal to everyone, or be marketed to a niche group? Who is
the target audience and how does this affect the experience of the restaurant and the way it
presents itself to potential users? What was your experience of the restaurant?
8. Food on the TV
This challenge involves watching television programs concerning food. This can be any food
preparation show (30 Minute Meals, Barefoot Contessa), reality (Man v. Food, Cake Boss),
competition (Cupcake Wars, Iron Chef), or talk show (The Chew). As you watch, take notes on how
food is presented to the audience and how the idea of food is explored. If you are watching a food
preparation show, what assumptions does the chef make about you as a viewer and your level of
skill in cooking. For a reality show, how do food and people interact? In a competition-based show,
what is the relationship between food and art? What aspects of food or its use or presentation are
the most important in the competition? Why would that be? In a talk show, evaluate what sort of
information the host(s) convey to the audience about food. Finally, analyze how food is used not
only as a means of health, but also as entertainment. What cultural interests or beliefs about food
contribute to food programming as a television genre?