In part one (300-500 words), we want you to consider one of the following places from the novel as a symbol or metaphor for the "postmodern" condition of Americans today: the supermarket, the mall, the College-on-the-Hill, the SIMUVAC evacuation center, the family's home, "the most photographed barn in America," etc. You should explain exactly what the symbol or metaphor refers to, using evidence from the text as support for your claims (We expect a detailed discussion of at least one relevant passage in the novel). You should consider events, characters, and objects as symptomatic of the space that you are attempting to analyze and discuss them as such. For example, if you discuss the SIMUVAC evacuation center, you will want to include a discussion of the Airborne Toxic Event; if you choose Iron City as a setting, you should analyze Willie Mink's character, and so on.

Produce a short set of discursive fragments organized associatively with links, applying DeLillo's form and procedure to the discourse of American consumerism. You are to write about a place that embodies the conventions and stereotypes of the consumer experience, identifying the figures and poses, myths and expectations of this aspect of American life. Link your description of this place to the scenes of consumption and commentary from White Noise and the other readings so that they reflect on the space you are writing about.