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Lesson 1 (from Introduction)

Objective

Introduction

The first section introduces us to Bataille's style and literary temperament. This lesson discusses the person we meet when we first open Bataille's "Visions of Excess".

Lesson

1. Close Reading: Read the first few paragraphs of a few of the pieces, and pay close attention to the meaning and structure of the language Bataille uses. What kinds of words and images, what kind of metaphors does he use? What effect is he trying to create in the reader?

2. Small Group Discussion: Ask students to work together in small groups to characterize Bataille's style. What combination of words, or what word choices typify Bataille's writing? Make lists, and ask each group to report back to the class after some time for discussion.

3. Class Discussion: Discuss the nature of rhetoric and the occasion for Bataille's pieces. What led him to write? What effect was he trying to have...

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