For Tuesday, May 6

Just review your five full length works for Question 3 on exam.

For Wednesday, April 30

For this prompt:  Set your timer for 40 minutes; read; prepare, write.

2011 Poem: “A Story” (Li-Young Lee)
Prompt: The following poem is by the contemporary poet Li-Young Lee. Read the poem
carefully. Then write a well-developed essay in which you analyze how the poet conveys the complex relationship of the father and the son through the use of literary devices such as point of view and structure.

A Story

Sad is the man who is asked for a story
and can't come up with one.

His five-year-old son waits in his lap.
Not the same story, Baba. A new one.
The man rubs his chin, scratches his ear.

In a room full of books in a world
of stories, he can recall
not one, and soon, he thinks, the boy
will give up on his father.

Already the man lives far ahead, he sees
the day this boy will go. Don't go!
Hear the alligator story! The angel story once more!
You love the spider story. You laugh at the spider.
Let me tell it!

But the boy is packing his shirts,
he is looking for his keys. Are you a god,
the man screams, that I sit mute before you?
Am I a god that I should never disappoint?

But the boy is here. Please, Baba, a story?
It is an emotional rather than logical equation,
an earthly rather than heavenly one,
which posits that a boy's supplications
and a father's love add up to silence.

Li-Young Lee

For the following prompt, prepare a thesis statement (INTERPRETIVE!) 

2011B Poem: “An Echo Sonnet” (Robert Pack)
Prompt: Read carefully the following poem by Robert Pack, paying close attention to the
relationship between form and meaning. Then, in a well-written essay, analyze how the literary techniques used in this poem contribute to its meaning.

 

 AN ECHO SONNET

To an Empty Page

Voice: Echo:

How from emptiness can I make a start? Start

And starting, must I master joy or grief? Grief

But is there consolation in the heart? Art

Oh cold reprieve, where’s natural relief? Leaf

5 Leaf blooms, burns red before delighted eyes. Dies

Here beauty makes of dying, ecstasy. See

Yet what’s the end of our life’s long disease? Ease

If death is not, who is my enemy? Me

Then are you glad that I must end in sleep? Leap

10 I’d leap into the dark if dark were true. True

And in that night would you rejoice or weep? Weep

What contradiction makes you take this view? You

I feel your calling leads me where I go. Go

But whether happiness is there, you know. No

 

For Monday, April 28

Write a 40 minute essay, including your read and prep time, over "On the Subway" by Sharon Olds.

Select five (5) full length works to review for the open response question on the exam.  We will finish Antigone, so you will have that in your tool belt as well.

See you Monday.  I promise we will finish Antigone at the beginning of next week:)

For Thursday, April 24

Using the poetry packet I gave you on Earth Day, find the Wordsworth poem "The World is Too Much With Us."  You will annotate this poem as if you are going to write an essay for the AP exam.  Make sure that as you mark literary devices in the text-you write in the margin your interpretation of the ld's meaning to the poem as a whole.  Finally, write a dynamic thesis sentence that will propel a well-written essay over this poem.  Your thesis should be interpretive.  What is Wordsworth's argument~his purpose for changing the mind or actions of his readers?

Finally, read through Lord Byron's "She Walks in Beauty."  Be prepared for a discussion of this poem.

We will pick up with Antigone on Thursday~hopefully we will finish the play.

For Tuesday, April 15

BTW-Tuesday the 15th is Earth Day.  So, be prepared to "hug a tree" by writing a beautiful, lyric poem about the metaphors you see in nature:)  Bringing your teacher a flower is also a great way to celebrate!

Rather than reading in Antigone (I decided that is best done by reading aloud in class), you are responsible for reading The Ring of Time by E.B. White.  You are familiar with many of Mr. White's writings:  Charlotte's Web, Stuart Little, and maybe even Trumpet of the Swans.  This is an example of one of his most beautiful (I think) essays.

Here is a link to the essay:  http://www.mrrena.com/misc/rotime.php

Print the essay out
Annotate the essay as to White's use of literary device
Decide what literary devices you would discuss in a well-written essay.
     (a minimum of 2 ld's; 3 for an A)
Find two quotes per literary device that you will then interpret as to White's purpose

For turn in:  annotated essay; a list of literary devices you might use; four to six quotes plus interpretations

If you would rather write an essay over the reading for the practice (never a bad idea), I will reward your efforts.

Think about:
White's discussion on time~when do we transcend time?  how do we transcend time? Ultimately, can we transcend time?  Anything about aging?  EVEN EARLIER IN THE ESSAY:  What is the best part of the circus?  of life?

For Wednesday, April 16

On your own paper, answer the following questions from "The Moths" by Helena Maria Viramontes.

Antigone and Polynices

1.  As the narrator cares for her dying grandmother, she begins to ask herself, "when do you stop giving when do you start giving" (para. 12), continuing the repetition of the word "when" throughout the following paragraph.  What is the significance of this repetition for the fourteen-year-old narrator?  What might she be questioning in her own life?
2.  Trace the references to hands in this story.  How do you interpret the poultice balm of moth wings that Abuelita uses to shape the narrator's hands back into shape?  What is the significance of this act?
3.  What do the moths represent in the story? (make sure you use embedded quotations in your answer)

"the Cambridge ladies who live in furnished souls"
by e.e. Cummings
      

the Cambridge ladies who live in furnished souls

are unbeautiful and have comfortable minds

(also, with the church's protestant blessings

daughters, unscented shapeless spirited)

they believe in Christ and Longfellow, both dead,

are invariably interested in so many things—

at the present writing one still finds

delighted fingers knitting for the is it Poles?

perhaps. While permanent faces coyly bandy

scandal of Mrs. N and Professor D

.... the Cambridge ladies do not care, above

Cambridge if sometimes in its box of

sky lavender and cornerless, the
 moon rattles like a fragment of angry candy

 

Read and Think  About All 5 of the following questions.  Select two of the questions to answer on your own paper.

 

1.  What do you envision about the Cambridge ladies when you read that they "live in furnished souls" and have "comfortable minds"?  How is calling them "unbeautiful" different from calling them "ugly"

2.What does the allusion to Christ and Longfellow in the same breath suggest about the speaker's attitude toward the Cambridge ladies' beliefs?  What does the qualifying phrase "both dead" tell you about the speaker's own beliefs?

3. How does Cummings's playful use of syntax in "delighted fingers knitting for the is it Poles? / perhaps" contribute to his commentary on the Cambridge ladies?  What effect does the inserted "is it" have on your sense of their commitment to political causes and philanthropy?

4.  How do you interpret the ellipsis dots in line 11?

5.  Why do you think the speaker compares the moon over Cambridge with "a fragment of angry candy"?  How can candy be angry?  What does the simile have to do with the Cambridge ladies?

For Fun:

 

Buffalo Bill 's

defunct

                     who used to

                     ride a watersmooth-silver

                                                            stallion

and break onetwothreefourfive pigeonsjustlikethat

                                                                                                                        Jesus

he was a handsome man

                                                            and what i want to know is

how do you like your blueeyed boy

Mister Death

 

candy

For Monday, April 14

Read the short story "The Moths" by Helen Verimontes.  Be prepared to take a deep reading quiz!

Find three (3) e e cummings poems online.  Print them out.  Read them.  Come ready to discuss.
Get ready to look at syntax.

For Thursday, April 10

Read the following prompt:

Reread the final act of The Importance of Being Earnest.  Then, focusing particularly on the play's conclusion, write an essay (DON'T PANIC UNTIL YOU READ ALL THE INSTRUCTIONS) in which you explain how Wilde uses three literary devices--overstatement (hyperbole), understatement, and irony, for example--to critique the values of Victorian Society.

For homework:  you will not write an actual essay but, instead, will create a chart in which you label 2 to 3 examples of hyperbole, 2 to 3 examples of understatement, and 2 to 3 examples of irony.  You can substitute a difference literary device for any of the three if you would like.

Think about for Thursday: 

(If you want to call up a "partner" and talk ahead of time, that will be great.  I know Bekah will be absent, so we might have to have a group of 3 or get creative somehow-maybe a Mean Girls' scene where all three find they are "dating" the same guy.)

You will rewrite (with a partner) a contemporary version of Act II's scene between Cecily and Gwendolen in which they first meet ((467 - 598).  Consider your setting for this meeting.  Carefully rename your characters.  What might they chat about?  Pay particular attention to your characters' speech patterns.  What do these suggest about your characters' beliefs and values, as well as those of the society they represent?

For Tuesday, April 8

Answer the following questions (from the film) as well as from the online text of The Importance of Being Earnest.  http://www.gutenberg.org/files/844/844-h/844-h.htm

1.  In Oscar Wilde's time, "earnestness"--sober behavior, a serious turn of mind--was valued as an important character trait.  how does Wilde undermine this value?  Consider when the characters are earnest and when they are not.  How does the pun on earnest and Ernest seen throughout the play, as well as Gwendolen's and Cecily's fascination with the name Ernest, further this satirization?
2.  At the very beginning of the ACT I, Algernon states, "I don't play accurately -- anyone can play accurately--but I play with wonderful expression".  How does this comment establish a theme for the play?  In what other ways through the play is Algernon not accurate but expressive?  Are other characters also not accurate but expressive?  Who and How?
3.  How do the scenes of Algernon and Jack jostling over cucumber sandwiches (ACT I) and muffins (ACT II) suggest about their characters and their priorities?  Explain how Wilde uses these props to produce a comic effect.
4.  Consider the invented word Bunburyist.  Why is the term used so many times in quick succession and with such relish in act I.  (Lines 146-179 and even further...)  How many variations (different parts of speech, different definitions does the word undergo?  Why does a made up term play such an important role in this play?
5.  How does Wilde make The Importance of Being Earnest funny?  Identify what you consider (so far) to be the most humorous part of the play, and explain your choice.  (For this, think about language not the film's additions to Cecily's fantasy diary, etc.)  Now think about the purpose of humor in this play.  Find instances where Wilde uses humor to satirize some of the more ridiculous aspects of society.

For Monday, March 31

Research the texts of Heart of Darkness and "The Hollow Men" for your upcoming essay. 

New Due Date:  Friday, April 4.  Since we spent time today discussing what I wanted to discuss rather than your papers, I decided to move the paper to Friday.  This will not hurt our schedule in that we are a little ahead (because you are so AWESOME.) On Wednesday, we will have a practice exam essay and practice multiple choice, but this still gives you a couple of extra days.

Possible Prompts:
T.S. Eliot's The Hollow Men and Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness Chapter 3 both address hollowness or emptiness.  Write a well-organized essay in which compare how the authors explore the hollow/vacant existence of man.
OR
Write a well-organized essay in which you compare how the authors illustrate the depravity of man.

Another interesting essay would be to examine the theme of self-reflection in Heart of Darkness.  I am not sure if you could pull  "The Hollow Men" into that or not.  See what you think.  If this prompt interests you, go for it!

Possible Theses:
"The Hollow Men" and Heart of Darkness explore the theme of "hollowness" or "vacantness" of humanity through the authors' use of character, setting, and figurative language.

through the authors' similar use of setting and perspective.  (Marlow and Speaker)  Either setting or perspective could include multiple paragraphs.

TSE and JC contend that man's depravity leads to a lack of hope for a fulfilled life through their works "THM" and HOD.  You might look up existential philosophy or "entropy" to help you define this a little bit deeper.

TSE and JC observe man's need for (or journey of ) self-reflection in their works through the use of character and perspective.    (I would take each work and demonstrate the steps taken toward self-reflection.)  So..your paper is organized chronologically through each work.  If you wanted to add imagery/figurative language to the list of discussion topics, you would have more than enough to evidence.

Ross...maybe
In HOD, Joseph Conrad explores man's tendency to give in to fleshly desires when no cultural, spiritual, or community boundaries are not in place.  ???This could work.

For Thursday/Monday, March 28/31

Obviously, we did not create a character map today because we chose to bask in the sunlight/sonlight:)  We will complete this project together on Thursday.  We will also take a look at AP Exam questions that would be excellent prompts for The Heart of Darkness.

COME TO CLASS THURSDAY WITH YOUR RESEARCH DONE...MARKING TEXTS...AND I CAN HELP YOU STRUCTURE YOUR PAPER.

For homework due Monday, March 31.

Compare the poem "The Hollow Men" to Chapter 3 of Heart of Darkness.  I know I said that I would give you just one passage to work with, but as I review Chapter 3, I am seeing that you could incorporate so many sections of this excerpt.  I will leave that to you.  If you are reading on an electronic device, you can easily search for the words "hollow" and "shadow." 

Format for analysis:
Introduction and thesis; a minimum of three body paragraphs; a conclusion (think of the doctrine of existentialism in our conclusion).

Spend approximately an hour doing your research (within the texts) and gathering quotes/examples. 

Spend approximately an hour writing your essay (typed or handwritten).

You may focus on literary device or thematic elements.

Possible Prompts for this essay:

T.S. Eliot's The Hollow Men and Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness Chapter 3 both address hollowness or emptiness.  Write a well-organized essay in which compare how the authors explore the hollow/vacant existence of man. 

OR

Write a well-organized essay in which you compare how the authors illustrate the depravity of man.

Another interesting essay would be to examine the theme of self-reflection in Heart of Darkness.  I am not sure if you could pull  "The Hollow Men" into that or not.  See what you think.  If this prompt interests you, go for it!

                                                                           

For Tuesday, March 25

Finish the novel Heart of Darkness.

Continue to annotate as we have been.  Look specifically:  continue to find new information about Kurts; the role of the Harlequin; the details you find out about The Intended; the details about the savage woman; Marlow's journey into his personal heart of darkness.

We will work together to create a map of the characters and their purposes.  Fact:  Marlow and Kurtz are the only characters to have names.  Why is this significant?

How is Marlow truthful?  What does he hide?

For Wednesday, March 19

Review Chapter 2.

You will have a timed writing on Wednesday.

Also, re-examine the illustrations on the previous post.

For Monday, September 17

Read Chapter 2 in Heart of Darkness.  Continue annotating for irony, satire, and imagery.  Chapter 2 is the hardest...so press on.

DON'T FORGET TO WEAR GREEN ON MONDAY!  

WE WILL HAVE A GREEN CELEBRATION!

Let me know if you want to come over to my place and watch A Serpent's Kiss or Hamlet when you return from New York.

The last few images are from the website posted below.  I have ordered the book.  This would be a great article to read and some excellent artwork to ponder.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/matt-kish/on-my-illustrated-edition_b_4273

506.html

For Thursday, March 6

MEET AT THE TOASTED YOLK ON THURSDAY AT 8:15 A.M.  I will probably be a little late because I will come to school in case someone needs a ride.

HOMEWORK:
Read Chapter 2 of Heart of Darkness through the paragraph that begins:  "The current was more rapid now."  As you read, think about the discussion we had today concerning Conrad's use of irony, satire, juxtaposition, and imagery.  Look through Chapter 1.  Can you find another excerpt that you believe Exam Preparers might choose because of its richness in writing style?  Mark it and bring it to breakfast on Thursday.  Make sure to write a quick annotation as to why you chose the excerpt.

EXTRA CREDIT NEWS AND APOLOGY:

Forgive me:

Last time I posted, I forgot to include the alternative extra credit assignment.  You may watch Mel Gibson's version of Hamlet and meet with me during a lunch period to discuss elements of the play that may come up on the AP exam.  As we have seen in poetry ("Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock"), Hamlet is, probably along with Macbeth, one of the most quoted works of Shakespeare.  This shows up through literary allusion over and over again, so a review is a great idea.  Mrs. Dudley has a copy of this film that we share; she said you could borrow it from her.

I also received my copy of The Serpent's Kiss in the mail.  If you would like to watch that together when you return from New York, let me know.  We could also watch it after school the Monday we get back from Spring Break if that helps.

In either case, we will need to discuss by March 18, or Tuesday of that week.

For Tuesday, March 4

Read all of Chapter 1 (or section 1) of Heart of Darkness.  Use your study guide as a guide~peruse the questions before you read~probably just a few questions at a time.  If it helps you to write stuff down, I would recommend you do it.  This novel is one of your best bets for question 3 of the exam.  It is also an exercise in the study of prose, as well as, poetry since it is so dense.  I encourage you to find the beauty and richness in the language of this read even though it is difficult.

Remember:  You may watch The Serpent's Kiss for extra credit.  If you have netflix, go for it.  If you do not have netflix, phone a friend.  As an alternative, as soon as my copy comes in, we can watch together (not during class, but maybe during our off period or something)

.  After you view the film, set an appointment with me to discuss it.  If you watch with a friend, we can all meet together.

For Friday, February 28

 

T. S. Eliot-Fragmentation

Andrew Marvell-Metaphysical-Neo-Classical

Joseph Conrad-Impressionist Literature

The paintings above are examples of impressionism.  Impressionism was also a trend in literature during the early 1900s.  Here is a description below.

Impressionist Literature-Modern

Why the blurriness?

*For modern novelists, the messiness and confusion and darkness of experience is interesting.

•Rather than trying to simplify and abstract a particular meaning from experience, novelists tend to wallow in the multiplicity of ideas and meanings and sensations that experience can provide.

•Novelists are in the business of recreating and communicating the rich complexities of the experience itself.

•Their purpose is to get the reader to re-live an experience, with all its complexity and messiness, all its darkness and ambiguity.

Read Heart of Darkness, by Joseph Conrad.  If you are reading in your textbook, you will read through the first paragraph of page 373.  If you are reading in another text, you will read about 14 paragraphs.  The last sentence you will read is:  "'I suppose you fellows remember I did once turn fresh-water sailor for a bit,' that we knew we were fated, before the ebb began to run, to hear about one of Marlow's inconclusive experiences."

Now create a picture (with crayolas or colored pencils) that captures the setting of these first paragraphs in Heart of Darkness.

For Wednesday, February 26

Answer six (6) of the  following questions regarding "Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock."  (That equals one question a night until I see you next.)  Write in paragraph form/complete sentences.  Try to think of your answers as quotation sandwiches:  set up context, cite the poem, interpret your citation.  Dig deep and this will be an excellent exercise in analytical thinking and writing.

SKILL FOCUS:  DETAIL
1.  How does Eliot set the tone in the poem's first stanza?  Look carefully at both the figurative language and the concrete details.
SKILL FOCUS:  IMAGERY


2.  Eliot depends on the emotional associations of his images, what he called the "objective correlative," to reveal aspects of Prufrock's personality.  In the first stanza, what emotions do you associate with images such as "patient etherized on a table" or "one-night cheap hotels"?
SKILL FOCUS:  DETAIL/IMAGERY/FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE
3.  Prufrock is a deeply self-conscious character.  Explain the various ways that characteristic is developed in lines 37-72.  Consider especially lines 55-58, in which Prufrock imagines himself pinned like a specimen to a wall.  (You could probably write an entire essay on the associations made between Prufrock's physical descriptions and their connection to his emotional state.)
SKILL FOCUS:  REPETITION
4.  From line 37-87, twelve lines begin with "And."  What does the repetition of this conjunction suggest about Prufrock's mental state?  Consider in your study of repetition the word "known" in lines 49-49.
SKILL FOCUS:  SYNTAX
5.  What is the effect of the semi-colons and ellipses in lines 111-121?  What do they tell you about Prufrock's state of mind?
SKILL FOCUS:  SYNTAX
6.  Eliot uses the technique of enjambment, or run on lines.  An example is in the lines 5-9:  "The muttering retreats / Of restless nights in one-night cheap hotels / And sawdust restaurants with oyster-shells: / Streets that follow like a tedious argument / Of insidious intent."  How does this technique help create the alienating quality of the city scene that's set in the first 22 lines.
SKILL FOCUS:  ALLUSION
7.  In line 111, Prufrock readily admits he is no Hamlet.  What might have led the reader to believe that Prufrock and Hamlet share characteristics?  (Be specific)  What characteristics of Hamlet does Prufrock claim not to have?
SKILL FOCUS:  DETAIL
8.  Details such as Prufrock's assertion that he will "wear the bottom of his trousers rolled" or his question about whether he should "dare to eat a peach" have been interpreted in many ways.  Some say it's about his age or "oldness"; others say it is about his nervousness around women.  Consider several possibilities.  How does each add to the portrait of Prufrock and the multiple meanings of Eliot's poem?
SKILL FOCUS:  ALLUSION
9.  In the last six lines of this poem for a sestet (6 lines), the form that both ends the traditional Petrarchan sonnet and offers a solution for the problem or conflict set out in the first eight liens (the octave).  The poet Petrarch wrote about his unrequited love for Laura, but Prufrock doesn't even have an unrequited love.  Do these last six lines offer any solutions?  How does the image of mermaids continue some of the poem's motifs?  What does it mean that Prufrock invites the reader to drown with him at the end of the poem?
SKILL FOCUS:  REPETITION
10.  In what ways is "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock" a poem about time?  Read through the poem and look for references to time, including aging, the meaning of time, and the word time itself.  What conclusions can you draw about the way Eliot thinks about time?
SKILL FOCUS:  REPETITION
11.  Highlight every reference to question/questions, as well as, every question asked.  Do you see any connections?  What conclusions do you deduce from this analysis of "the questions"?

For Thursday, February 20

I really enjoyed your collages today~I love to watch you thinking!  Great Work!

The Thinking Portion of your homework:
Reread: "To His Coy Mistress," by Andrew Marvell; this poem is in your textbook or you can read it online.

Here is a link:
http://www.poets.org/viewmedia.php/prmMID/16076

Note Marvell's references to time:  If we had all the time in the world, it would not matter if we waited....
Let us roll all our strength and all Our sweetness up into one ball, - This is an image we see again in "Love Song".  


Eliot is certainly alluding to Marvell a couple of times in "Love Song."  Can you see it?  What might this mean for Prufrock?
The Written Portion of your homework: Complete the "'Prufrock' Analysis Worksheet".  Take your time with this assignment.  Show me that you have thought deeply about each question. Remember the key is tie the literary device to meaning.  The guiding questions should help you.



  

For Tuesday, February 18

Task #1:  Finish reading "The Hollow Men".  Annotate what you can...what do you think the speaker communicates about his world?

Task #2:  Print out a copy of "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock."
Task #3:  Read through the poem once.  Slowly.
Task #4:  Look up a You Tube video of Eliot reading his famous poem.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JAO3QTU4PzY

Task #5:  Next:  Read this excerpt from your textbook:

"'The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock' is like a collage, a work of visual art created by materials and objects glued to a flat surface.  In poetry this technique is called fragmentation, a favorite technique of the modernists.  The fragments come together--or don't--in a way that mirrors the fragmented, chaotic modern world.  In the fourth stanza, for example, what is the effect of fragments such as "yellow smoke," "murder and create," "visions and revisions," and "toast and tea" appearing together?  Do they form a new picture, or are their effects fragmentary?  How do the fragments communicate Eliot's vision of a modern man in a modern city?"

Task #6:  This weekend, I want you to create a collage (pencil drawing, magazine pictures, words, internet pictures, a combination of all) using some of the images from "Prufrock."  Use images that connect with you in some way.  (I would say to use a minimum of 5 images although you can use 100.  The more images you use, the more intimate you will be with the poem.)

For me those might be:
"mermaids singing, each to each"
"a patient etherized on a table"
"do I dare disturb the universe"
references to time

You will present your collages on Tuesday.  I cannot wait to see what you come up with.  We will tackle the analysis together, but this is a great way to start!

For Friday, February 14

Great class today.  I love digging deep into the works of literature we are reading.

Finish reading The House on Mango Street.  That should be about 40 pages or so.  We left off at page 66. So start with "Edna's Ruthie".  You could probably read all of these pages in an hour or maybe even less; however, do not discount the fact that the vignettes "tell much more than they say"...this should remind you of a recently read poem.

Select three of the vignettes that affect you emotionally.  Some of my favorites are:  "Four Skinny Trees", "Bums in the Attic", "The Monkey Garden", and "Red Clowns".

Create a chart with the following columns:  Title of the Vignette, the use of a Literary Device within the chapter that you find most effective (write out the example), Meaning Tied to LD, and Why (a very brief explanation as to why you found this chapter moving.

We will discuss your choices in detail on Friday, so bring your book to class for reference.  We want to have a rich and vivid dialogue regarding Cisneros' most famous work.

After HoMS discussion (as time allows), we will read and discuss "The Hollow Men".  Bring your handout.

For Wednesday, February 12

Task #1

Write a 40 minute essay over the poem "All My Pretty Ones" by Anne Sexton.  Before setting your timer, read the poem again looking over your annotations.  You will be writing on the speaker's changing perspective of her father.  Look at each album the speaker goes through.  The first, she discards.  The second, she "throw[s] out.  The next, she ________, and finally, she _________.
Her emotions go from bitterness (maybe) to forgiveness.  How?  Why?

After your careful review, set the timer.

Write a well-developed essay in which you analyze how Sexton conveys the speaker's changing perspective of her father through the use of allusion, imagery/metaphor, and tone.

FOR TEAM DISCUSSION ON WEDNESDAY:

Task #2

Read the short story "Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow."  Come to class ready to conduct a detailed discussion with your team.  Consider Vonnegut's use of allusion.  What concerns does Vonnegut's short story address?  What themes?  What motifs?  What symbols?

Task #3

Find the Sylvia Plath poem entitled "Daddy"on the internet.  Read and annotate the poem.  Consider the tone of this poem in comparison to Sexton's poem.  Do the speaker's feeling change throughout the poem?  What is the tone?  Annotate comparison of father to history, images that suggest the speaker lacks value.
Your textbook has this note about this poem:  "Plath has said of 'Daddy':  'The poem is spoken by a girl with an Electra complex.  Her father died while she thought he was God.   Her case is complicated by the fact that her father was also a Nazi and her mother very possibly part-Jewish.  In the daughter the two strains marry and paralyze each other--she has to act out the awful little allegory before she is free of it.'  How does this commentary by the poet influence your reading of the poem?"

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electra_complex

Again,come ready to discuss!

For Thursday, February 6

I decided that we will not have a timed writing on Thursday.  I want to make sure we completely finish up Macbeth this week, so we will save this for another time.

Schedule Thursday:
Warm up--something cool
Tomorrow Speech Pair Performance
Finish Movie
Discuss Director's choices

FOR HOMEWORK:

1.          Re-read "The First Job"
Identify the theme through incidents in the plot.
Activity:  Consider the unwanted kiss incident.  Write a diary entry Esperanza might make regarding the incident; including her feelinsg at the time.  In what way does the incident help define the coming-of-age theme?

So...write the diary entry.  Then write one sentence that ties the incidents to theme.

2.          Read "Papa Who Wakes Up Tired in the Dark"
Understand the use of repetition as a device to emphasize ideas.
Activity:  Repetition is most commonly used in songs; however, one of the most well-known examples of repetition is found in Edgar Allen Poe's poem "The Raven."

"While I nodded, nearly napping, suddenly there came a tapping,
as if someone gently rapping, rapping at my chamber door--"

Create a chart using examples of repetition from this chapter.  Excerpt from the Chapter on the left; Idea or Mood it Helps Define on the right

Example of repetition:  "...crumples like a coat and cries, my brave Papa cries."

3.         Read "Born Bad", "Elenita, Cards, Palm, Water", "Geraldo-No Last Name"  Annotate for meaning.

For Tuesday, February 4

 

 

Macbeth Director's Notebook due


Double check to make sure you are fulfilling each requirement with excellent and superior quality.

Remember this is a double major grade!

We will celebrate Tuesday by sharing our notebooks, watching the rest of the film, and eating popcorn for breakfast.  If you have a snack you would rather share than popcorn, let me know or bring it in on Tuesday.

Do not forget that you will recite "Tomorrow and tomorrow and tomorrow" soon. 

 

For Wednesday, January 29

Find a list of tone words.  Print it out.  I want you to be able to use this for a reference: 100 if you bring it; 0 if you don't.

Look over your lines for your duet acting scene.  If you need to bring props, costumes, or music, make sure you do.

Director's Notebook:  brainstorm or begin working.  On Wednesday, I will check to see that you know what scene you will work with, know what era you will produce your scene in, know what you stage will look like, and have an idea about costuming.  It might be wise to bring in a copy of your scene in case we have time for you to add director's notes.

Read the poem "Out, Out..." Robert Frost    Read the "Tomorrow and tomorrow and tomorrow" soliloquy.  MAKE CONNECTIONS through annotations or a chart.

For Thursday, January 23

Upcoming Events:  Soliloquy Performance due Monday, January 27
                                Macbeth Director's Notebook

Homework:

Read The House on Mango Street through the vignette entitled "A Rice Sandwich".

Written work:

Compose a poem using the vignette entitled "Darius and the Clouds".  For each paragraph within the vignette, you need to write a 3-5 line stanza.  Your poem should mirror the content of "DatC", as well as, demonstrate your skills as a poet.  (hint *use poetic language and literary device to communicate your ideas)

For the vignette entitled "A Rice Sandwich", create a chart wherein you compare/contrast Esperanza, Mango Street's protagonist, and Rachel, the protagonist in your new favorite (:)) short story "Eleven."

I look forward to finishing our movie tomorrow.