MLA information

According to Instructor Knapp's Blog,
In MLA style, an in-text citation generally consists of the author's last name and the page number of the reference. When multiple elements are used in a parenthetical citation, they are separated by a space. In all cases except for block quotations, parenthetical citations are placed immediately before the final punctuation of the sentence that cites the work.

For Exact Quotes:

Rule: When a quotation runs no more than four lines, put it in quotes, incorporate the author into the text, and provide the page number in a parenthetical citation.

Example:

"He was obeyed," writes Joseph Conrad of the company manager in Heart of Darkness, "yet he inspired neither love nor fear, nor even respect" (87).

Rule: When the author's name does not appear in the signal phrase, place the author's name and the page number(s) in the parenthetical citation.

Example:

"If the existence of a signing ape was unsettling for linguists, it was also startling news for animal behaviorists" (Davis 26).

Rule: When a quotation runs more than four lines, do not use quotation marks, but indent it one inch from the main body of your text. Double space the block quote. Incorporate the author's name or the title of the piece into a signal phrase preceding the quote. Finally, provide the page number(s) of the excerpt, in parentheses, immediately following the final punctuation of the quotation.

Example:

At the conclusion of Lord of the Flies, Ralph and the other boys realize the horror of their actions:

The tears began to flow and sobs shook him. He gave himself up to them now for the first time on the island; great, shuddering spasms of grief that seemed to wrench his whole body. His voice rose under the black smoke before the burning wreckage of the island; and infected by that emotion, the other little boys began to shake and sob too. (186)

For Paraphrased Ideas:

Rule: When paraphrasing where the author(s) is clearly identified in your text, provide only the page number in the parenthetical citation.

Example:

Others, like Jakobson and Smith, hold the opinion that children who attend pre-school are better socially adjusted than those who do not (156).

Rule: When paraphrasing where author(s) is not clearly identified in your text, provide author(s) and page number in the citation.

Example:

Between 1968 and 1988, television coverage of presidential elections changed dramatically (Hallin 5).

Citing from Indirect Sources:

Rule: When quoting a reference that is not originally from the source you have, after the reference use the phrase "qtd. in" (quoted in) and the author(s) of the source you have, the volume of the source (if more than one), and the page number. An indirect source may be documented in the Works Cited page.

Example:

Samuel Johnson admitted that Edmund Burke was an "extraordinary man" (qtd. in Boswell 2: 450).
   
        For My Personal Iran Topic Report I used resources such as the "American Historical Review: Iran" by Shaul Bakhash and also Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi.    Knowing where the information comes from is essential because otherwise someone could be writing complete fiction and there's no way for the reader to know whether it is valid or not. I used to skim right past bibliographies but now that I understand the importance of citing sources I pay  closer attention to where all the information is derived from...That way I can look into those sources to fin out their credibility and ultimately decide whether or not to trust whatever it is I am reading. The Lab has been very helpful to me but i wanted to say i really do appreciate the extra effort you have put in to be sure that we all understand why properly citing your sources is such a crucial aspect of effective writing. Thanks so much for your time!

I just noticed this post was saved as a draft but never published...If you are able to give partial credit I would be oh so grateful!

Roots of the Revolution (Keddie Vs. Issawi) Formal Paper #1

Jake Peoples

English 1A

Stacey Knapp

*Revised after
3/14/2013

Roots of the Revolution 

             When a Country is in political crisis, it's religous leaders and community of believers to the state's conscious attitudes are vulnerable and likely to either revolutionize or resort to traditional ideas. Iranians have endured two-thousand, five-hundred years of tyranny and submission, therefore the majority of peoples haven't had much input in establishing government. First, the Iranians were suppressed by their own emperors, then came the Arab invasion from the West. After that, the Mongolian invasion from the East, and to this day they're being immensely effected by Modern Imperialism.Influenced by Western Ideas, clerics have emerged as champions of the common people and popular causes in Iran's recent history. Besides the clerics, there's also the Ulama, who represent the traditional Iranian power-elite and support existing social order.

           The Ulama opposed Mohammad Mossadegh (Nationalist Prime-Minister) and his promises for fundamental changes in Iranian Society. Ulama involvement in politics throughout the 1960s-70s was motivated by by maintaining material interests and existing power-structure or hierarchy. They supported the Shah during the Oil Nationalization Crisis and even extended woman's suffrage in effort to limit the lower-class' input in politics. Merchants typically supported constitutional movement, although the existing government worked to their advantage in expanding trade as well as agricultural activities, so they opposed foreign involvement. The Revolution ultimately occurred due to an expanding economy, not because it was declining! Artisans as well as merchants were tired of competing with foreign competition, as a result they demanded a greater say when establishing National Policy.

           In the book Persepolis, by Marjane Satrapi, there's a short statement that might have caught the reader's attention by demonstrating how a revolution functions in a very simple way. Marjane reveals how "The Revolution is like a bicycle. When the wheels don't turn, it falls"(10). At that point the reader should take a moment to ponder what the author meant by that. Everyone can relate to how a bicycle works, so I appreciate the way this statement illustrates an activity that we're all familiar with. Such a basic sentence explains the persistence and focus required in the action of riding a bike, as well as participating in a Revolution.

           Nikki Keddie's overall view is that the economy as a whole and the majority of the population suffered as a result of the changes brought about by Iran's involvement in international trade. She explains how Iranian villagers became much more vulnerable famine and scarcity because of the changes in crop patterns in favor of cash crops. Nikki emphasizes that while some merchants benefited and in some cases thrived because of trade relations with the West, most did not(Iran,1486). For a small prtion of Iranians, the standard of living progressed and excelled during this time. Her main point that is repeated throughout her work is that Iranian entry into the world market was much more harmful than helpful to Iranian Society. Keddie reinforces  the fact that Western Influence has dominated the Middle East and elsewhere in the third-world since World War II. She disagrees with imperialism in general and consequently opposes the United States' involvement in distant culture's governments(Iran, 1487).

           Charles Issawi had a different outlook, and expresses the fact that by the mid-1970s, Iranians enjoyed a much better standard of living than when compared to twenty years earlier. Issawi states how after 1960, Iran's industrial growth was almost unmatched in history! Iranians were able to develop roads, railways, and airports at a surprisingly efficient pace(Iran,1489). Charles had a much more positive perspective when compared to Nikkii's Analysis. He shows how while the standard of living increased for the majority of Iranians, income-gaps steadily grew as well, proving how dysfunctional the "Trickle-Down Theory" is in reality.

           In 1953, a Pro-American dictator attempted to modernize Iran ans forcibly remove Islamic Religion when ninety-percent of Iran's population was Muslim! One can imagine how ineffective that was trying to enforce laws upon a society that most disagreed with. The U.S. payed one-billion dollars to influence Iranians and arm them against opposing forces. Some say the Revolution was instigated by the U.S. who illegally intervened with Iran's government. Mohammad Reza Shah (1941-1979) invested in infrastructure and manufacturing of consumer goods to take advantage of Iran's rich resources. Since most Iranians were unaware of exactly how valuable their land was, the dictators have always been able to taken advantage of it without distributing the wealth among the populace. Shah consistently promoted large-scale agricultural and educational opportunities with hopes of progressing as an entire culture!

                                                                                                                                                   

Works Cited    

 Satrapi, Marjane. Persepolis.  New York, NY: Patheon, 2003. Print.

 

 Bakhash, Shaul. "Iran." 1991. Iran. N.p.:n.p., 1991. 1479-496. Print.                                   

Persepolis (Reading Response)

          I appreciate the way Marjane Satrapi invites us into a young girl's mind during a time of extreme Political Crisis. She is at a stage in her life where she's very curious and desperately wants to gain a better understanding of the world and her country's government. I think it's safe to say that the main character is a bit sheltered and obliviously enjoys certain aspects of the Upper-Class in Iran such as having a maid around the house and also the fact that her father drives a Cadillac. I found myself trying to relate to what it was like to grow up in a place that's so drastically different from what I'm used to.
         I  have never left this Country, so I can only compare my personal experiences to what I've seen in the United States, and I imagine it's extremely biased information. Especially in the Mainstream Media, I feel like most of it is persuading the public to oppose Iranians which can be very easy when we only hear one side of the story. I understand Persepolis takes place in a different time period than my Lifetime but the illustrations make it easy to understand what life was like for Iranians then.
         Learning about the veil really opened my eyes to the purpose of Iranian beliefs. It makes sense for women to gain respect of men mentally, rather than just attracting them physically like we see here in the United States. Our society enforces these ideas of beauty into our heads so that people are treated much differently based solely upon their appearance. I try to imagine going to school where all the students are seemingly identical and in some aspects it doesn't sound very bat at all. I believe respect is derived from admiration of the content of one's character, when one is distracted from getting to know another on the inside, their motivation may be obscured.  From personal experience, I've seen girls who are dressed a little more exposed than most insult and embarress others who appear less attractive on sight. Seems like some girls think they can make themselves seem superior simply because they're spoiled and their parents can afford the most expensive, revealing, and popular clothes. If everyone wore similar clothing there would be no room for demeaning actions that regularly damage the youth's self-esteem making them feel like they don't belong when they did absolutely nothing wrong! I was always curious about why traditional Iranian women dress the way they do and I'm grateful I got the opportunity to gain a better understanding.
          I admire the way Satrapi stands up for herself and says what's on her mind on several occasions. She didn't take crap from no one, not even the principal, she repeatedly stood up for herself and what she believed was right. Although she was persuaded by peer-pressure once or twice, I feel like she followed her heart with every decision. She goes from a naive little girl who is unaware her father's Cadillac is uncommon to a rebel in a jean jacket buying tapes off of the black-market.
           It's sad to follow her life through the years and hear about people she knows dropping like flies on a regular basis. The closest thing I can compare it to is the ghetto in San Francisco or any other Gangland. Even though her father was able to buy a Cadillac and is better off than the average Iranian, he still cannot insure the safety and security of his family. As Progressive peoples in Iran, they're outcasts in some ways. Satrapi's parents endured great risks in order to satisfy their daughter, while it may have been frowned upon in Iran, I support their actions because nobody was harmed so no harm, no foul.
           I became surprisingly attached to the characters throughout the book. I felt like I was there the first time she skipped school and had to explain herself to her mother, I've been in that position before so I can easily relate to the emotions she must have felt at that time.   Now I understand how Iranian Society functions and how restrictions/laws are enforced brutally and not always by the Police. For instance, when her father was drunk he got pulled over but was able to bribe the Police and avoid being arrested!
          Throughout Persepolis, Marjane Satrapi does a great job of explaining each situation as she grew up and it was easy for me to relate to how she felt at each stage of her life. Reading through the eyes of someone that young encourages me to think back on the days when i was her age and what I went through compared to what she went through. It's easy for me to picture kids at recess but a little more difficult to imagine walking into Religion class. It would certainly kill kids sense of individuality, forced to be constantly conforming to traditional ways of life and not welcoming them to express their fresh ideas. It seems to me that they disable themselves from evolving if they are not open to new ideas. It kind of sickens me to see a society so dominated by Religion, they're almost blind to what's right and wrong. For example, when Satrapi's relative had his third heart-attack and requested to leave the country to seek better medical attention, the Iranian man replied "If God wills it." Now i understand there are people just like me in Iran, the only difference is they have been born into much different circumstances. They did not choose to grow up in a War-Zone, but that's what ended up happening. Once I realized the Author was the main character, I was overwhelmed with respect towards Marjane Satrapi, and also towards the entire Middle East.

 Satrapi, Marjane. Persepolis.  New York, NY: Patheon, 2003. Print.