Lesson plan

CIOPW

CIOPW is a collection of artwork by E. E. Cummings published in 1931. The title is an acronym made from the initial letters of the five media Cummings used to produce the collection: charcoal, ink, oil, pencil, and watercolours. CIOPW contains 99 works, 27 of which are drawings and 72 of which are paintings. Since it is Cummings' art and not his words that are on display, the title is also to be read as the ancient Greek word σιωπῶ ('I am silent'} with (i) a so-called lunate sigma, (ii) iota, (iii) an omicron, (iv) a pi rather than a "Ρ" (rho) to keep the sound the same, and (v) an accented omega to represent "W" visually. The title should thus be pronounced "see-ô-pô", with the stress on the last syllable. Compare his other Greek titles EIMI = εἰμί ('I am'); and XAIPE = χαῖρε (pronounced "chaire," with a guttural ch), "greetings, be well".

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Article summary

CIOPW is a collection of artwork by E. E. Cummings published in 1931. The title is an acronym made from the initial letters of the five media Cummings used to produce the collection: charcoal, ink, oil, pencil, and watercolours. CIOPW contains 99 works, 27 of which are drawings and 72 of which are paintings. Since it is Cummings' art and not his words that are on display, the title is also to be read as the ancient Greek word σιωπῶ ('I am silent'} with (i) a so-called lunate sigma, (ii) iota, (iii) an omicron, (iv) a pi rather than a "Ρ" (rho) to keep the sound the same, and (v) an accented omega to represent "W" visually. The title should thus be pronounced "see-ô-pô", with the stress on the last syllable. Compare his other Greek titles EIMI = εἰμί ('I am'); and XAIPE = χαῖρε (pronounced "chaire," with a guttural ch), "greetings, be well".

Key claims

  1. publication date: 1931 — source: Wikipedia · confidence 0.95

Discussion questions

  1. Summarise the article in your own words. Which single claim would you verify first, and why?
  2. The record states that the publication date is "1931". What evidence would count against this claim?
  3. Which claim in this article is most likely to be revised as the sources update? How would you check its current status?
  4. If two sources disagreed about one of these facts, what would you need in order to trust one over the other?

Bibliography

  1. Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=1231715920

Key claims and bibliography are generated from the same tracked claims and sources as the article page.