(rolling due date)

Your task is at once simple and difficult: It is to "present" the readings assigned for a given class.

Choose one of the class sessions from no. 12 through no. 24 (21 Oct. through 9 December—11November [Reuchlin] excepted).

In essence, you are doing what teachers do every day: Do all the readings, and take notes on them. From these, you should then generate a paper of about 2-3 pages. Obviously, the task is one of great compression. Fortunately, the other students will also have read the texts under consideration, but in any case, you would not wish to rehash the entire content. Instead, present a critical analysis: Offer your general evaluation of the readings, along with some specific ideas and questions that can serve to stimulate discussion. What is the common theme, and how does it relate to the larger concerns of the course? Was there anything in the texts that was particularly memorable or surprising? Do the texts raise questions as well as answer them? (etc.)

The week before the presentation is due, do all the necessary reading and arrange a meeting with the instructor in order to go over your ideas and resolve any questions you may have.

Bring two copies of your paper to class. Keep one for yourself, and give the other one to the instructor at the beginning of the hour.

Note: In making your presentation, you should not read mechanically from your paper (indeed, your audience will thank you if you do not). You should by now know your paper so well that you can present the report from memory. Just in case, though, you will have your text as a guide to which you can refer. (It should take you a maximum of 10-15 minutes to get through your paper. You will be strictly held to that time limit; nothing is more deadly than a report that drones on and on.)

Above all, have fun! This is your chance to play teacher and shape the course of discussion.

Be lively, be interesting—and stick to the page/time limit.