by
Jack Farrell
Thousand Oaks H.S.
I have been using the quick-write in
my English classes for the past several years, ever since I attended the SCWriP Summer Institute in 1989. I have also utilized
certain writing project techniques with the quick-write, such as the partner
share, an oral exchange of readings between writing partners, followed by the
class share, where certain members of the class volunteer to read their pieces
to the entire class. We try very hard to support each other's discourse and so
the class responds to these oral readings with a round of applause and I enter
some extra credit points in the grade book, a reward for reading first-draft
writing aloud to an audience. I think the quick-write is the most effective
writing technique I use in class. First of all, it teaches the student to write
on demand and under pressure, an indispensable life skill and certainly an
academic talent highly prized in college. It builds confidence in the writer and
it also teaches writing as a tool of thinking. There are ideas you can
formulate with pen and paper that could never be conjured by brainstorming
alone.
The quick-write, approximately
10 minutes in length and collected in a composition book, occurs two to three
times a week all year long and generally explores the reading from the previous
night. On Wednesdays, during the Fall semester, the
students quick-write to quotes on a topic for the week.
Class almost always begins
with a brief period of sustained silent reading, generally self-chosen books
from lists I have collected over the years, some from recommendations made by
former students and others from Advanced Placement reading lists. The
quick-write generally follows. I am pleased if I can get three students to read
out for the entire class and I ask that each student read out at least once per
quarter. Quote days generally produce the most readings. The reading for the
night of Nov. 3rd was the short story "Rape Fantasies" by Margaret Atwood.
Students are assigned an author to profile for the class and a student named
Tom introduced Margaret Atwood on the 3rd to prepare the class for the night's
reading. Tom read from a chronicle he had photocopied out of a library
reference book, highlighting significant milestones in her life and career. For
instance, she was born in
On the following day, Nov.
4th, after our period of SSR, I prompted the students to quick-write in the
following way: "A number of my students from previous years have disliked
this story and I think part of the reason may be an inability to connect to the
author's tone. How would you describe Atwood's attitude toward her subject?
Given that, what kind of point was she trying to make? Or anything else you
would like to share about this story."
I always write right along
with my students and read my own piece at the end of the class share. I think
it's important for the writing teacher to model the writing process. I've long
ago given up on the notion that mine must be the best piece, full of wondrous
insight and cleverly phrased. Like any writer, my output is not consistent and
some days I write pieces I am proud of and other days quite the opposite. It is
healthy to share all these pieces with the class. To do so encourages them to
be more open with their writing. It lets them see you as a human being involved
in the same struggle as they, and not just as an authority figure organizing
tasks for them to carry out. I truly relish the writing of the students which
surpasses my own understanding of the story. As a teacher of Advanced Placement
English I have been blessed over the years by the considerable presence of
quite a few brilliant thinkers and earnest writers.
When the quick-write was
finished I had the class do their partner share where they read their pieces
orally to each other. My room has two-person tables and this greatly
facilitates the forming of writing partnerships and writing groups. It is
relatively easy to move the tables together and form small and medium-sized
groups. If anyone is absent, or if we have an odd number in the class, I
usually fill in and share with the student sitting alone. On this particular
day, as I recall, everyone was there.
Before I introduce the student
writing it might be helpful to summarize Atwood's story which is told by a
female narrator named Estelle. It covers 7 pages in our textbook, Literature
an Introduction to Reading and Writing, edited by Edgar v. Roberts. Her
tone emerges in the opening paragraph:
The way they're going on about it in
the magazines you'd think it was just invented, and not only that but it's
something terrific, like a vaccine for cancer. They put it in capital letters
on the front cover, and inside they have these questionnaires like the ones
they used to have about whether you were a good enough wife
or an endomorph or an ectomorph, remember that? with the scoring upside down on page 73, and then these
numbered do-it-yourself dealies, you know? RAPE, TEN THINGS TO DO ABOUT IT, like it was ten new hairdos or
something. I mean, what's so new about it?
Estelle proceeds to the lunch room
where the women are playing bridge. She says you can't even get any rest
because Chrissie closes up her magazine and says, "'How about it girls, do
you have rape fantasies?' Darlene passed but the damage was done. Sondra's head
went round like it was on ball bearings and she said,'What
fantasies?'
"'Rape fantasies,'
Chrissie said. 'It says here all women have rape
fantasies,'" to which the narrator responds, "'For Chrissakes, I'm eating an egg sandwich,' I said, and I bid
one club and Darlene passed.'"
A conversation about rape
scenarios and caveats about traveling out alone at night precede a discussion
of fantasies involving rape.
Greta describes a fantasy
where a man drops onto her balcony from a rope and hook and describes how he
travels all over the outside of the building that way, committing rapes.
"Just like Tarzan," Estelle dead pans.
Chrissie follows with a
description of a bathtub scene and by the time she's finished the narrator
says, "Those aren't rape fantasies. I mean you aren't getting raped. It's
just some guy you haven't met formally and you have a good time. Rape is when
they've got a knife or something and you don't want to."
But the fantasies the narrator
proceeds to share are just as absurd. One attacker she wishes to fend off with
a plastic lemon in her purse actually assists her by twisting off the top of
her lemon and handing it back to her. She squirts him in the eye. Chrissie and
Darlene are incredulous.
Estelle confesses: "Look.
I always feel so sorry for him. In my rape fantasies, I always end up feeling
sorry for the guy. I was the kind of girl who buried dead robins, know what I
mean."
She shared a few more of her
ludicrous fantasies. In one she and her rapist both have a bad cold. In another
she's a Kung Fu expert. The narrator concludes, "The funny thing about
these fantasies is that the man is always someone I don't know and the
statistics in the magazines, well, most of them anyway, they say it's often
someone you do know, at least a little bit, like your boss or something."
Here's the final paragraph of
the story:
Anyway, another thing about it is
that there's a lot of conversation, in fact I spend most of my time, in the
fantasy that is, wondering what I'm going to say and what he's going to say. I
think it would be better if you could get a conversation going. Like, how could
a fellow do that to a person he's just had a long conversation with, once you
let them know you're human, you have a life too, I don't see how they could go
ahead with it, right? I mean, I know it happens but I just don't understand it,
that's the part I really don't understand.
The students had approximately ten
minutes to write on this story without benefit of the text in front of them as
I have them leave the book at home during the 1st quarter while they're reading
short stories nightly from it.
Then we did the partner share,
which is something to observe. Approximately 16 students are reading aloud
simultaneously, but their partners seem able to screen out the competing
readings and easily focus in on their partner's.
I then asked for the class
share and numerous hands went up. I always enjoy the day when there is a high
participation in readings. The first student I called on was Jon. This was his
response:
I enjoyed the odd humor in the
reading: it made light of a vicious crime. The group of ladies surprised me,
sitting around the bridge table talking about their 'rape fantasies.' I found
this situation unrealistic in a number of ways. First off, the act of being
raped would be a traumatic ordeal, just like any other situation where one's
life was in danger. I realized that these ladies' fantasies did not include the
thought of a knife in the side, or a gunshot to the head. In fact, they were
nothing more than a bunch of weird sexual fantasies, coupled with wishful
thinking. One of the scenes that I remembered to be especially implausible, was
the rope climbing rapist that descended from the roof to a balcony where he
proceeded to 'make an entrance,' do his business and rappel down to the next balcony.
Or, perhaps the scene where the rapist with the flu came in the window, and
ended up being too winded to do the deed, so he ended up watching Letterman
with his sick new friend.
I believe that the author
intended the reader to get a little flustered with the way these characters
handled this controversial subject. She might have been trying to show that
there are many false precepts about rape.
I awarded Jon 5 extra credit points
(the maximum) for his oral reading and moved on to Kristin who read:
I thought Rape Fantasies was a funny
story. The title caught my attention immediately, and I was surprised to find
out that the title meant exactly what the story revolved around. It's funny how
Atwood describes a small circle of women on their lunch break, gossiping about
a rare subject for lunch discussion . . . rape. To me, most of the women seemed
to want a cloaked, masked man to drop in their window, sweep them off their
feet, so to speak, and then leave, never to be dealt with again. Part of me thinks, why would that have to do with rape in the negative sense
of the word if the women are enjoying it so much? The narrator's rape
fantasies, however, were more like the desire for power against men. In each
scenario the narrator presented, the rapist was depicted as flawed or weak, and
she presented herself as quick-thinking and dominant. In fact, the rape part
was just part of the substructure of the fantasy. Why didn't she just call them
power-trip fantasies? I see how males probably wouldn't enjoy this story and
how women would like and relate to it. The narrator seems more powerful than
the other women, who read fashion magazines and take the quizzes for fun. These
women probably are lacking excitement in their lives and by gossiping around a
table about their fantasies, it gives them something to do. This I found very
funny. The narrator seemed more down to earth and was presented differently
from the other women. If you took this story seriously, I think you missed the
point. The tone is humorous and feministic, and revolves around power and
weakness more than rape itself.
Kristin also got 5 points and then I
called on Michael, who read:
First of all, I think these women
need to get boyfriends, get married, or, if one of those is already true, find some
way to freshen their relationships. I think it's sad that women that age would
sit around and have fantasies about big buff men coming in their windows. I
think the narrator was right that it's not really rape if the woman wants the
man to do it. I actually liked the narrator's fantasies better. They seemed
more realistic in a way, threatened, scared out of their wits. I also like that
she did not end up getting with the man in the fantasies, so to speak. I
thought the last comment was interesting. It seemed to say that if the people
got to know each other as humans with minds and emotions, rather than as simply
objects for sex, rape would seem unthinkable. I still feel the story was rather
bizarre and that these women need to seriously get a life. Maybe getting just a
little real love in their life would make these kinky fantasies go away.
Mike got 4 points and then Lyndsey read hers:
The tone of this story is sarcastic
from the beginning. The title is an oxymoron, for how can the horrors of rape
be part of a fantasy? The narrator then introduces us to a group of fatuous and
gossipy female office workers, who fill their free time with discussions of
their rape fantasies. The narrator jokes about their fantasies; however, no one
found her comments funny. She later contemplates her own rape fantasies, none
of which actually involve rape, but merely its threat. She scoffs at men by
talking them out of the violence they attempt to impose. In all of her
fantasies, she is never submissive to the man, exposing her feminist point of
view.
Many readers take the passage
literally, and do not realize that she is often sarcastic about the subject
matter, even if it is rape. Most of her situations that she fantasizes about
are humorous. For example, she plans a situation where she pokes the eyes out
of a man, causing permanent damage. She concludes that she could not do that,
for she would feel responsible for someone's blindness and misery, not
recalling that he was going to attempt to rape her.
She also fantasizes about
telling the rapist that she has leukemia, only to find that the rapist does
too, and they end up spending the rest of their days together. That is her
romantic scenario.
Once readers recognize the
tone of the story, then they can come to enjoy its humor. It scoffs at feeble
men and the nonsensical chatter of women.
I was very impressed with Lyndsey's insight into the story and her over-all
production in just ten minutes of writing. She was awarded the 5 extra-credit
points. Next, Elise shared hers:
Rape is the ultimate loss of control
for women. I felt it difficult to relate to the narrator, presumably Atwood, of
"Rape Fantasies." She takes a nonchalant approach that, even if
joking is her defense mechanism against such a fear, is unforgivable in light
of such a serious matter. Rape is a crime and should not happen. Instead of
coming up with ways to deal when the event actually should take place, she
should be devising ways to not let it happen and how to stop it if it does. Her
fantasies do not include much in the way of dread, almost as if she has
accepted that it will , if fact, happen to her, which I believe is dangerous in
terms of her future. Another aspect of this same concept is that she is either
unaware, or ignoring the fact, that rape has nothing in common with a sexual
fantasy one might have. It is a violent act.
Why anyone would have
fantasies about such a crime and have them be comical and not come out filled
with anger is beyond me. Though Atwood is portraying sarcasm and a feeling of
power through her fantasies, the situation is actually the ultimate loss of
power and control.
I gave Elise 4 points and then
called on Remy:
I did not enjoy "Rape
Fantasies." I found the subject rather bizarre, actually. It was no doubt
written by a feminist writer. Her tone was confident and often times sarcastic.
But I don't believe women need to find strength in their sexuality by
fantasizing about rape.
In the story the narrator
reflected back on a girl who had leukemia in the fourth grade and received lots
of flowers from her classmates. As a child, the narrator had wished she had
leukemia too so she could get lots of flowers as well. Now looking back, the
narrator felt so silly for thinking that. Often times
children wish for things because of their ignorant interpretation of
situations.
I think the women are being
foolish in this case, too. They want to be raped? Are they crazy? Okay, maybe a
fantasy about being whisked off their feet by some mystery man, but a rapist?
Do they realize that rape often ends in death? Do they think that they will be
heroes if they survive the rape? I can think of so many other things that can
bring heroic satisfaction. But rape? And what about diseases
and pregnancy? I think these women are getting a little carried away.
Maybe they are so desperate for sex, they feel so
undesirable that they think the only man that would possibly have sex with them
is some crazed lunatic sex offender. So let me get this straight. For women to
be powerful, we need to be victimized and taken advantage of? Why don't they
fantasize about going out and raping some weak guy? Now that would show
domination and power. The women is this story are so
pathetic it's demeaning to our gender.
I awarded Remy 5 points for that
spirited response. Another female student wanted to read next:
Rape
is an issue about which I feel very strongly. Sexual crimes are extremely
destructive to the mental state of the victim. The destructiveness of these
offenses is apparent in the symptoms; self-hatred, shame, denial. Because of
denial these symptoms often take form in odd ways. Until the terrible truth is
accounted for a warped sense of self and interaction with others continues.
The mere title, "Rape
Fantasies" gives me a shiver down my spine. I cannot comprehend
fantasizing about something so detrimental to a healthy self-image. That is why
I was uncomfortable and oddly intrigued by the light manner in which such a
heavy subject was dealt. I was angry at the narrator's quirky fantasies
involving lemon juice and pimples. It was shocking and ironically refreshing
the way she flipped an issue like rape into a light conversation piece over
bridge and coffee. However, experience with actual rape does not, I am certain,
lead to fantasies about it. I can only wonder why anyone would fantasize about
being violated in the worst way.
I awarded this
student 5 points and then called on Kami,
whose response could not have differed more in tone:
I hope I don't come across as a
total weirdo when I say that "Rape Fantasies" is my favorite story
thus far. I particularly enjoyed the writer's style. She was a very funny lady
who found humor in everything. She had an almost "dry" sense of
humor, and continually made comments to the reader in that manner.
The way she made a terrible
topic like rape into such a light and comical subject amazes me. This woman
definitely sees the world in a different light than most. I think it very cool
that she wrote a story about a circle of women at lunch hour, fantasizing about
rape. I found it funny when Estelle made the comment about the downfall of
being raped in a bathtub is you would get bubbles up your nose. She was
obviously kidding, yet the women were shocked. As if their talking about being
raped in a bathtub was O.K., but the bubble comment was not.
I also enjoyed her
manifestations of other rape incidents. Atwood has quite an imagination and
style. I admire her for her uniqueness.
I also gave Kami
5 points and moved finally to Tom, who was the student who had researched
Margaret Atwood and presented her biography to the class the day before. Tom
wrote:
I most definitely feel that this
story is worthless. I'm very surprised that she wasn't abused or something as a
child. First of all, how could anybody write a piece called "Rape Fantasies,"
and secondly how could it come from her, a feminist writer? I felt she dealt
with the subject in a very poor manner, not taking it for what it is. If you
want to have sex with a stranger, then it isn't rape. Rape is forced sex
against the person's will. They never screamed or said no in the story. But
instead they tried to reason with the supposed rapist. I forget exactly what
Estelle said at the end, but it was something to the fact that if you could
reason with the person and they still raped you they would have to be pretty
messed up. No s--t!! Does she think that normal people just go around raping
innocent victims? Rape is a very vile and selfish act. I can't comprehend how
Margaret Atwood, a feminist writer, could be so stupid in writing this story.
It almost seems that she has no concept of what rape really is.
Whew! Tom got 4 points. And then I
read mine, as I always do:
I find this story comical and
intentionally so and conjecture that Atwood was trying for two results when she
conceived the story. First and foremost, she was satirizing women's magazines
and their sensational rounds of stories, the disease of the week, crisis of the
month approach of tabloid journalism. What's hot now and what will sell
magazines. In our time it's the number story: "The
This question divides the
world into two distinct groups. Group 1 possesses a conscience and emotions
like empathy and a sense of right and wrong. Group 2, albeit a small one, is sociopathic and
narcissistic and can only mimic emotions like pity. They can kill without
remorse, and right and wrong is nothing more than an arcane theory--it's not a
way of life. Group 1, the victims, will never understand Group 2, the rapists.
I had the distinct advantage of
having the text right in front of me and so took the liberty of quoting
directly from the last paragraph of the story. I was amazed at how much story
detail the class retained from a single reading of a story for homework the
night before. I was genuinely impressed with the level of discourse of the
students who shared in open class that day. From start to finish this exercise
normally takes 20 minutes or less of class time. On a hot-topic day, which may
produce more than a half-dozen readings, this could stretch to 25 minutes or
so. It seems still a manageable portion of a 55 minute period when you examine
the academic benefits. In a language arts class we have the opportunity to
include writing as a critical thinking skill and can require students to write
before discussion. Often classroom discussion begins prematurely and goes
nowhere. The teacher, more often than not, ends up asking and answering his own
questions. Students who examine the subject first in a quick-write are seldom
at a loss for words to discuss the subject. The added benefit is the student
gaining self-confidence as a writer, the abnegation of anything resembling a
writer's block and a newfound fluency. If the ideas expressed in the class
share do not conform to the interpretation in the teacher's guide, or to the
teacher's own sense of what the author intended, then so much the better. The
diversity of opinion, even one's emanating from left field, makes the classroom
come alive.
Within a day or so I decided
to collect copies of the quick-writes for a possible article. It took a few
days for all the students to get around to doing this. When I examined the
quick-write from the one unnamed female student above, it was decidedly
different. What she wrote did disturb me and raised the specter in my mind of
the efficacy of this particular assignment. I reproduce it here:
Rape is an issue about which I feel
very strongly. My family has had to deal with several issues concerning sexual
abuse. My great-grandfather is a pedaphile and has
abused many of my family members for prolonged periods of time. I was raped
when I was 14, not by him, but by someone else. I am just about to go for
counseling. My mother had to be in therapy for 10 years to deal with her 11
years of abuse.
"Rape Fantasies" is
appalling. I would rather not be reminded how idiotic and insensitive society
is. Obviously Atwood is not experienced at all with this issue and should not
address it. Rape is something that I could never fantasize about. I cry about
rape. Rape has caused so many problems in my own life and my family. Please do
not attempt to understand the feelings involved if you have never been abused
sexually. The pain inflicted and the feelings of self-hatred to be dealt with
are impossible to describe. In certain ways I hate myself. I realize this is unjustified,
and through therapy and God's help this will be overcome. Please don't analyze
or judge.
Mr. Farrell. I suggest you
omit this reading in future years. As you sit there and assign a reading like
"Rape Fantasies" you don't know how many people are cringing at the
mention of the word. Sexual abuse is like a plague in my family affecting all
of us. Please do not be so insensitive. No matter what Atwood was attempting in
this short story I still see it as offensive and disturbing.
It would be possible to dismiss this
comment using the line of reasoning that virtually any thought-provoking story
on a controversial subject has the potential of offending a minority segment of
any large group. To omit all such stories on the oft-chance that some student
night find it disturbing would be to gut the curriculum altogether and to
deprive great numbers of students access to the world's great literature. But
that seems too glib a response. There is something about this subject, not
necessarily this story, which makes it particularly risky in an era when child
abuse, especially of a sexual nature, weighs heavily on the collective
consciousness. I'm going to have to think long and hard before assigning this
story again to high school students.
© Jack Farrell, Conejo Valley Unified School District, 2005