The Sentence with Peter Wayne Moe

Language U

Peter Wayne Moe is an Associate Professor of English and Writing at Seattle Pacific University and author of the book Touching This Leviathan, a book about whales (and language, and writing, and much more)*. In this interview, we discuss Peter's article "A Sequence for Teaching the Sentence," published in Teaching English in the Two-Year College in 2018 and what teaching sentences can do in the composition classroom.

(*We also, incredibly, played together in the rhythm section of a jazz band in high school.)

Here is the list of sentences we discuss at the end of the episode:

As he read, I fell in love the way you fall asleep: slowly, and then all at once. (John Green, The Fault in Our Stars)

If the use of a computer is a new idea, then a newer idea is not to use one. (Wendell Berry, “Why I Am Not Going to Buy a Computer”)

You believe that I believe what I believe because of the way I was brought up because of the way you were brought up. (Fredrick Temple, quoted in Beliefs and Values in Science Education by Michael Poole)

Jesus wept. (John 11:35, King James Version of the Bible)