Wednesday, May 23, 2007
Agincourt
Tuesday, May 15, 2007
Henry V Act I - II
We see a rough side of Henry's character with the way he plays the traitors. We also see his strength and leadership in his decision to destroy the traitors even though they were his friends.
Finally, remember the roles the Bardolph, Nym, Pistol and Falstaff play as symbols of Henry's youth.
Thursday, May 10, 2007
While I'm away...
Thank you!
May 11th
Students will read Act II, Scenes 2 & 4 * and create a:
1. Character list for the acts and identify character type for the character (see below for example)
2. summary of the act and scene
3. Identify themes in the act and support with reference to text
(we are skipping scenes that I will review in class. They are not needed for your understanding of the scenes you will review)
Make a chart like below for the assignment:
Characters Type Theme(s) with line numbers (Act, scene, line(s))
Summary of action
Students may view the movie after they read the text, but only after they’ve read
May 14th
Lesson: Writing workshop
Student will select a college essay prompt from the Common Application (copies included) and write a draft essay
The draft is due tomorrow.
Students will work quietly
Monday, May 07, 2007
Sonnets
Both have 14 lines, but the Italian consists of an octave and a sestet. The English has 3 quatrains and ends with a rhyming couplet. Keep this in mind as you craft your own sonnets and prepare for tomorrow's quiz.
English sonnet
14 lines in iambic pentameter
10 syllables –accent on second syllable
3 stanzas of four lines (quatrains) each and a final unit of two lines (couplet)
ABAB CDCD EFEF GG
Italian Sonnet
•Consists of an octave (an eight-line stanza)
•Rhyme is abbaabba
• a sestet (a six-line stanza)
•Rhyme is cdcdcd, or cdecde--or using some other variation of the cd or cde patterns
•No final rhymed couplet as in English sonnet
Volta = turning point
Sunday, April 29, 2007
Unit Test
Your essay is due on Monday. We will finish the Inferno and begin to review for Wednesday's unit test. Begin by looking at the previous posts on this site; you'll find what I've stressed in class and will probably ask on the unit test. There will be many questions from the first six cantos. I tend to ask about mythical characters and sinners and the punishments that seem well connected. The cantos to review are 11,12,13,17,19,20,23,24,25,27, 32,33,34. Review your presentation notes and the summary for each canto. Make sure you review the material covered in the beginning of the unit on Dante's life, the use of numbers, the literary concepts from the text, and the theological connections. Even if you missed a canto presentation, or we did not read it in class, I expect that you will take the time to read it yourself and understand the basics. Use the format of the canto organizer as a tool to help you.
Some more thoughts:
Review notes from the beginning of the unit. Look on Student Public for the Dante PowerPoint presentations for fun facts that might appear on tests. Look at definitions for free will, allegory, parody, satire, imagery, King of Time. Review facts such as:
Dante goes to the Inferno to recognize sin
He goes to Purgatorio to renounce sin
This journey is a quest and his 'neukia'
The long list of mythical creatures (Centaurs, Minos, Minotaur, Charon, Styx)
Minos condemns sinner to their circle by wrapping his tail
Why the number 3 is important (Trinity)
That Dis is Lucifer and a parody of the Trinity
Dante starts his journey in the 'Dark Wood of Error'
His journey is an allegory
Tuesday, April 24, 2007
No voice today
Start with the SAT schema. You will have 10 minutes to complete the reading and questions.
After, you will have the rest of class to complete the outlines due tomorrow and begin the draft essay due on Friday. These dates are firm and no late work will be accepted.
The outlines will look something like this (which we discussed before)
I. Thesis Statement (I'd also suggest you develop your opening sentence)
II. Topic Sentence
A. Supporting quote - (canto. lines) example - X.23-24 (I'd suggest you write out the quote)
III. Topic sentence
A. Supporting quote
IV. Topic sentence
A. Supporting quote
V. Conclusion
Again, a good outline will also have more detail such as introductions to the quotes and followup sentences. Also, because of the blog format, the outline is not exactly as we discussed. Use the format with which you are most comfortable -just make sure you have the information necessary to complete the draft.
Your outline is easily expanded into your essay.
Monday, April 23, 2007
Welcome back!
Wednesday, April 11, 2007
Canto projects
Make sure you read the Canti before and after the canto you are going to teach. Many of the canti merge and mesh into each other. Make sure you follow the rubric, provide all the information and address all the issues. Connect the text to the ideas we discussed . Finally, create a PowerPoint that is clear and effective.
Monday, April 09, 2007
Dante's Inferno
Thursday, March 22, 2007
Set-up
Tuesday, March 20, 2007
Background
Monday, March 19, 2007
Reading
While reading, see if the story elements connect to past events or foreshadow future events. Try to predict what is going to happen.
I encourage the use of quotes - sometimes the author's words are the best. However, do not overuse this technique.
Sunday, March 18, 2007
Odyssey XV - XXI
Individual groups will then form to create a PowerPoint to teach the book. Compare notes as to your observations and come to a consensus as to how to present. I expect an easy to read,visually appealing presentation. Images that relate to your Book are expected.
Summaries will be handed in before the groups meet and will be graded for content and grammar. PowerPoint can be presented by one person or all. PowerPoint will be graded for content and presentation.
Saturday, March 17, 2007
Books XII -XIV Going to Ithaka
Book XIII is a transition from the journey to the homecoming. Odysseus gets lots and lots of gifts and a ship home. It also features a reversal of the xenia idea because the Phaiakians are punished for being good xenos. However, this might simply be an extension of the idea that the gods are capricious - even when you do what is asked they get you. Please note the familiar lines about the nature of the islands natives: " Alas, 'he exclaimed, ' among what manner of people am I fallen? Are they savage and uncivilized or hospitable and humane?" He does not even know that he is home. Also note that Minerva/Athena helps by changing his appearance to that of an old man. She does this because he is in danger as a result of the suitors.
Monday, March 12, 2007
Out Sick
Circe - Kirke Book X
Thursday, March 08, 2007
Go to Hades
Wednesday, March 07, 2007
Polyphemus
Monday, March 05, 2007
Books 1-8, xenia, nostos, kleos
Schema: several of the SAT questions of the day had to do with tense agreement. One technique you need to think about developing is a plan for attacking questions. Look for obvious and typical: subject-verb agreement and pronoun antecedent agreement.
A lot of ground has been covered. We are looking at the concept of xenia as a theme in the Odyssey. Xenia is the Greek ideal of hospitality, the guest-host relationship. There are five persons, types, or xenos: guest, host, stranger, foreigner, friend. Every situation features a guest and host and they are either one or two the other xenos, as well.
Remember that the Odyssey is an epic of nostos (homecoming, peace) while the Iliad is an epic of kleos (name, reputation, war). Achilles is a hero of violence and body, a hero of kleos. Odysseus (Ulysses) is a hero of both nostos and kleos. Homer makes this clear when Odysseus announces himself to Alkinoos and his court.
Some notes on the text: Books 1-4 are the Telemachy, about Telemachus and his mother, Penelope. He goes on a quest to find his father and experiences the archetypes of loss of innocence, initiation and water. We see Penelope as similar to Ulysses in her cunning ploy with the tapestry. We meet our hero, Odysseus, in Book V. He is a captive of Kalypso but is set free at the request of Zeus (via Mercury/Hermes). Neptune sees him on the open ocean and makes trouble for him (he hates Odysseus) He washes up on the land of the Phaiakians, meets Nausikaa in Book VI, King Alkinoos and Queen Arête in Book VII, and they have games and a banquet in book VIII (where we see Homer as Demodokos, the blind poet).
Wednesday, February 28, 2007
Xenia
Tuesday, February 27, 2007
Greek to Roman Book 1
We covered a lot of preliminary ground today. Our current text is the Odyssey, by Homer. Homer also wrote the epic poem, the Iliad, which is about the Trojan War. Homer is generally described as a blind poet. One difficulty, but also a learning opportunity, is that we will read two translations of the text. One translation is from Latin (the Internet version), while the other is from the Greek. Remember that the Romans simply took the Greek gods as their own and renamed them. Here is a chart for your use:
Greek Roman
Zeus Jove/Jupiter
Athena Minerva
Poseidon Neptune
Hades Pluto
Names spelled with a ‘C’, Calypso, are from a Latin translation, while names spelled with a ‘K’, Kalypso, and are Greek translations.
Book 1 starts with the classic call to the “muse’ for inspiration and a brief on Ulysses’ position and troubles. We find Minerva working Jove to help Ulysses escape from his kidnapper, Calypso. She is doing so because Neptune is off at a festival in Ethiopia (the end of the world). Neptune is Ulysses’ nemesis because Ulysses blinded Neptune's son, Polyphemus. Also, note that Neptune won't kill Ulysses, only torment him. Jove speaks of Agamemnon and his death and his son’s revenge. The importance of Agamemnon is to remind the audience of his poor homecoming (nostos) and the problems resulting from Helen’s kidnapping and the Trojan War. Minerva is off to help Telemachus, Ulysses’ son with the nasty suitors besieging his home (note what bad guests, xenos, they are). Please note how good a host, xenos, Telemachus is to the disguised Minerva. We also meet Ulysses’ wife, Penelope, model of the Greek faithful wife. The book ends with Telemachus calling an assembly a thinking about finding his father.
Interestingly, the first four books of the Odyssey are not about Ulysses, but his son Telemachus, Penelope, and the suitors. We will not meet our hero until Book V.
Thursday, February 22, 2007
Odyssey - Book 1
Wednesday, February 14, 2007
The Odyssey
Tuesday, February 13, 2007
Monday, February 12, 2007
The Test and essay
Today was a review for tomorrow’s unit test. The test will cover all that we’ve done in the past three weeks. Please review previous blogs and compare to the notes you took today. The test will cover Gilgamesh and the concepts we discussed in class. These include but are not limited to: Parts of Speech and the ability to identify them in a sentence; genres (poetry, prose, drama) and subgenres; the four myth types and their focus; archetypes and the ability to identify and apply them to the text; the stages of grief and Dr. Kubler-Ross; and important element in the Gilgamesh epic. There will a little about Genesis and the flood narrative.
The short answers will be have to do with the image of god(s) in the Gilgamesh and Genesis flood narratives and how this reflects the different cultures; the role of the harlot and Ninsun in Gilgamesh; and the genres and subgenres for Gilgamesh – poetry, epic and Mesopotamian. Even though our text is in prose form, the original was a poem.
While you are studying, look for ideas and support for your essays. Here is a link to one on-line version of the text. You’ll have time this week to work on the essay in class.
Wednesday, February 07, 2007
I really enjoyed the work many of you did on your ark drawings. Many showed that they understood the text and were able to creatively demonstrate their understanding.
We finished our reading, comparing and contrasting of the flood narratives in Gilgamesh and Genesis. One can see why there was such a uproar in the Biblical world when the Mesopotamian narrative was discovered. The similarities are startling: both have detailed descriptions of how to build the ark (Noah’s is a rectangle, Utnapishtim’s a square); both save their immediate families and the animals of the world (Utnapishtim includes craftsmen as well, very practical); both use birds to confirm dry land (raven and doves); and both finally end up on a mountaintop.
There are also differences, the days it rained, the names of the mountain, etc. The most telling differences reflect the cultures that eventually wrote down the stories. Gilgamesh comes from a polytheistic culture where the gods are more feared than loved and represent natural phenomenon. The gods of Gilgamesh are not attractive at all – they are compared to ‘curs’ and ‘flies’ and even become afraid of the flood they created. They decide to destroy humanity because they are too loud and interrupt Enlil's sleep. Ea does not tell Utnapishtim directly to prepare for the disaster (some say he was scared of Enlil) but through a dream. In the end, they all regret the decision to kill everyone and make Utnapishtim immortal.
Tuesday, February 06, 2007
Noah and Utnapishtim
Monday, February 05, 2007
Stages of Grief
Nice work of the skits.
We reviewed Dr. Elizabeth Kubler-Ross' Stages of Grief. It is interesting how we can see her theory and research in action in Gilgmesh. Gilgamesh experiences all the stages: anger at Enkidu's death, denial of his own mortality, bargaining to avoid the inevitable, depression, and then acceptance (we know this since we read he turned out to be a great king). Please note that not everyone reaches all the stages - many do not reach acceptance. As you experience life, you will meet and see people who never leave the denial, anger or depression stage. One reason to be aware of the research is to learn to accept the process and hopefully reach the final stage.
Friday, February 02, 2007
Enkidu must die
Thursday, February 01, 2007
Humbaba
Gilgamesh
It is interesting to note the similar images of Enkidu being made from clay while Adam is made of dust. Both are innocent and are given or lured into knowledge by women. Also note the role of dreams and that of Gilgamesh's mother, Ninsun, in interpreting the dreams.
Tuesday, January 30, 2007
Archetypes
Monday, January 29, 2007
Myth, Genre
Friday, January 26, 2007
Langston and the Lady with an Ermine
Your task over the weekend is to write the draft of your personal narrative. I want you to focus on one or two events that influenced who you are today. In the biography of Hughes, the writer focused on several events that seemed to define the writer. I’m asking you to do the same thing with your narrative.
The narrative is to be at least two pages, double space, 12 font, Arial or Times.
We will edit on Monday and begin preparing for our first text, Gilgamesh.
Homework: Draft of personal narrative.
For your viewing pleasure, I’ve included “Lady with an Ermine.” I was pleased to find new information about one of da Vinci’s work. You will find that I always show and discuss painting and sculpture in my class. I do so because art is an important part of my life and because it is simply another expression of the art that we are reading. Feel free to introduce new artists you love to me and I will give you the opportunity to discuss their work in class.
Week one
By now, you should understand the purpose and expectations of the course. You have read and signed the Procedures and have a copy of the syllabus.
We discussed the purpose of literature and how some define literature. Literature is written art. It is any piece of writing that can claim that is has “artistic beauty.” The big issue, as we discussed, is who defines what is artistic and what is beauty. That is where you come in – you need to be able to apply standard concepts to define what is artistic and beautiful.
We also read a brief history of writing. Early works were not written but part of the ‘oral’ tradition – they were composed and presented orally. Then the best works were stamped in clay tablets. Cultures evolved and Papyrus became common, them paper arrived, and then Gutenberg perfected movable type and the world was off and running with reading, writing and democracy. We discussed if television was the next great frontier, and what effect will the Internet have on literature. It’s all very exciting and unfolding before us.
Monday, January 22, 2007
The purpose of this course is to explore the great literature of our world. We will read major works from different eras and cultures - texts that provide a basis of much of the world’s literature. While we are reading the texts, we will also look at literary terms, ideas, and concepts and then apply them to the texts. Every week, we will work on SAT questions, grammar, and writing. We will read poetry, short stories, and novel(s). You will write a resume, an autobiography, sonnets, haiku, essays, and create and present PowerPoint presentations on myths and Dante’s Inferno.
We begin by reviewing class procedures. The basis of the procedures is to treat others as you would wish to be treated. ‘Others’ include your classmates and me. Please be on time and prepared to learn. Please act respectfully in class. Please open your mind to the wonderful words that will rush out of our readings and wash over you. If you allow them, the words will change you and help you in the pursuit of your future dreams.
We will begin to build an understanding of each other. You will learn about me by looking around the classroom. I will learn about you via your writing assignments this week and next.
Today, you will begin to build a resume (when you see a word highlighted, click on it), and this resume will be the outline for your autobiography. The activity includes interviewing each other and developing an organizer that will build your resume. Think about the way you think and use that in your writing.
Welcome and good luck…
Homework: Parent/guardian sign Procedure form (5); complete resume for publication (10); make up a short name for yourself and leave a one line comment with the name of your favorite book (3). Do not use your real name. The comment name must be less than 6 letters.
Monday, January 15, 2007
Tests and tasks
Mr. Little and his students, oops...I mean Charon, boatman of the Acheron
We will review the texts we’ve read and concepts studied today via PowerPoint reviews. Please take notes on those items you do not know. The final covers a lot: genre, characterization, plot, archetypes, grammar, point of view, setting, Gilgamesh, Genesis, Odyssey, Inferno, Henry V and the poems and short stories we read. Keep special note of the vocabulary and special terms associated with each text such as nostos, kleos, xenia, etc.
Review your electronic portfolio. We’ll sit down and look at it together. It should have your: autobiography, resume, sonnets, haiku, essays and, if desired, the Myth and Dante PowerPoint presentations. I will grade the portfolio based on its completeness.
Tuesday, January 09, 2007
Short Story
I fixed the link for Classic Short Stories. Go to the previous post and select one of the stories, or see me if you want to select another story. The purpose of this assessment is to read the story, identify point of view, complication, climax and characterization, and write an organized, interesting response concerning the concepts. I want you to take your time and be careful with your writing - my interest is quality vs. quantity. I would like you to create a one page gem, as opposed to several pages of mush.
The answer should be one page, single space. Please use quotes and references to the text to support your answers.
Monday, January 08, 2007
Direct and Indirect characterization
Paragraph and Short Story
While I am out today...
E-mail or print the weekend’s homework.
Read pages 346-369 in Elements of Language. Complete exercises 1, 3 and 4 and hand in today.
Review the Opening paragraph and the first body paragraph of your Dante essay and edit and revise based on the Elements of Language chapter’s information (i.e. what you read today). See if you can improve the essay’s opening. Please don’t e-mail - make a copy and hand it in. If you prefer, you may use your Shakespeare essay instead. The idea is to apply the ideas of the chapter to your own writing.
You may work in pairs for the purpose of reviewing answers or peer editing.
You must work in silence - do not distrupt others who are trying to work.
Go to the link for Classic Short Stories, select one of the following: “The Cask of Amontillado,” “Death Makes a Comeback,” or “The Sniper.” Read the story and, in paragraph form, identify the point of view, the complication and climax of the story, and one example of characterization.
We will continue this tomorrow, have a quiz on plot elements and point of view, and start the review of the Dante section of the final exam.
Friday, January 05, 2007
Weekend work
Lesson: We followed up on our recent sentence fragment and run on sentence study by correcting real life sentences found in student papers. I was pleased with how adept most of you were at this task. As Emily stated, the issue is not your ability to edit, it is the fact that most students do not allocate enough time to edit properly. Nice job by many in A Block for good work on this assessment. C Block also did a great job with sentence revision.
We discussed the different characters in “A Jury of Her Peer.” Even though they are not present in the house during the story, we know a lot about Mr. and Mrs. Wright. One could argue that Minnie Wright, nee Foster, is the central character, even though we don’t meet her. Please note the use of direct and indirect characterization to develop the characters. Mrs. Hale and Peters are our primary source of information about Mrs. Wright; this is direct characterization. The state of her house, cloths, and the canary are forms of indirect characterization.
Homework: What is the point of view of “A Jury of Her Peers?” Identify examples of direct and indirect characterization. Explain whether setting is important to the story. Please type your response and email to me on Monday
Be prepared for a quiz on plot elements and story elements.
Thursday, January 04, 2007
Odyssey
SAT
Lesson: Review Odyssey and xenia. Xenia is the ancient Greek idea of hospitality. The concept is different than ours. The five xenos are: guest, host, friend, foreigner and stranger. The god of xenia is Zeus, which tells you how important it was to the Greeks. We examined how understanding xenia helped us understand the characters and what happens to them. The other concepts discussed were the epic ideas of nostos and kleos. Achilles is a hero of kleos, war and reputation, while Odysseus is a hero of kleos and nostos, peace and homecoming. The Iliad is and epic of war, kleos, and the Odyssey is an epic of peace, nostos. Keep in mind some of the famous characters, Kalypso, Kyklopes, Kirke, Telemachos and Penelope. Also, keep in mind that Agamemnon is a mirror of Odysseus, a hero of kleos who returned to a bad homecoming.
Wednesday, January 03, 2007
Archetype
The most common archetypes in the texts we’ve read were hero, quest, task and water. Try to attach these archetypes to plot events.
We also reviewed Kubler-Ross’ 5 Stages of Grief. The must be put in order: Denial, Anger, Bargaining, Depression, Acceptance. The clearest example of these stages is found in Gilgamesh, after Enkidu’s death. Gilgamesh is driven to a quest for immortality, but he fails. The message is that his failure teaches him to accept his fate, and he turns for a selfish brute to the wise king that inspired the epic.
Homework: finish “A Jury of Her Peers” and complete the character and plot event tasks. Also, study for the quiz on genre and archetype.
Tuesday, January 02, 2007
Death on Wright's Farm
Continue to create your character and event lists for "A Jury of Her Peers." Some questions to ponder: Do we ever meet John and Minnie Wright? Do we have a good portrait of them? Why are Mrs. Peters and Mrs. Hale important to the story? What is their relationship? What about the canary - is it important?
Our exam review will be on literary archetypes and stages of grief. We will also look at the Odyssey.
Today we will review the parts of speech and then examine sentence structure. Please go to page 320 of Elements of Language and read to page 329. As always, keep notes on the definitions and we will review the examples as a class.
Monday, January 01, 2007
Final days.
Lesson: There are only 10 days before final exams begin. We will do a number of things in this period. First, we will look at the prose genre, short story. Second, we will review sentence structure and mechanic issues related to sentences. Third, we will review the texts we’ve read this semester and the literary concepts used to examine the texts; this will be for the final exam. While we are doing this, you will complete your electronic portfolio. For some students, it will be necessary that they revise and edit their Dante essays. I will have the Shakespeare essays graded by next Monday, and I suspect there will be a need for some students to revise and edit this essay. I will be available to meet after school this week to work with you on essay edits.
Today, let’s look at the short story. This will be independent work. Go to “What Makes a Good Short Story” and follow the instructions. The site uses a short story to explore five elements of a short story. Your task is to read the story, create a list of characters and plot events, and take notes on the story elements explained in the site. Provide character detail and description when you make your character list. I suggest you begin by reviewing the elements of a short story and then read the story. As you read the story, the site will allow you to link to the elements to reinforce your learning.
I will be available if you wish to discuss your Dante essays during class. This lesson will continue tomorrow.
Homework: Work on character list and plot events. Revise and edit Dante essay. Organize notes and begin final exam review.