English Studies 12 – 2024

January 22nd, 2024

This is the last day for everything, including late assignments.

Focus on the good draft of your narrative non-fiction if you would like to resubmit. I didn’t complete all the rough draft grades, as I was working on other material for other classes. So if you feel like the piece is good enough for a final grade, then that’s good. I’ll grade it as is. If you feel like you’d like another draft to turn it in, then I’d like for you to spend this time refining the piece for final submission. Make sure to not on the draft that it is a final draft.

Have a great second semester – thanks for the hard work.

January 19th, 2024

Looks like you’ll probably need a push to get this done. so this is what today is going to look like:

Today – in class turn in of rough drafts. You write it, I’ll grade it. You don’t like your grade (on Monday) then I have a review sheet that you can look at.  In class corrections on Monday and then that’s it! Your grade can improve.

It’s been an interesting semester – I hope you took away a few good things. I know I did.

January 16th, 2024

So if you’ve talked to me about the focus of your narrative, you can start on the outline and the first draft that is due on Wednesday. Please do talk to me through this step so that I can really help you through this process.

Some of you have talked about the previous week’s assignment and if this week can be applicable. That was a warm up to this style of writing, so you do not have to use the prompt assignment from last week in your final autobiographical piece. You can if you want.

Good luck today. Also, you can use your time wisely to get in other assignments that you need to have turned in. See me if you’re confused in what you need.

Your close reading is due in teams by tomorrow night at midnight. (Wednesday, January 17th)

January 15th, 2024

This is a basic overview of what we will do for the last week:

Narrative Essay Outline_Student

Here is a worksheet for the timeline. I will give you big paper to take home as well. All you need to do is look for 10 memories of your past in a linear way. Ask family / friends for ideas.

A Timeline of Your Life

Don’t worry about trying to understand everything right away.  Just come up with 10 memories based on a linear method. Think about what highlights your life has been shaped by. Doesn’t have to be big.

January 12th, 2024

Today, I would like for you to finish your close reading for the second chapter. I will give you about 45 minutes to do so. Then we can read the last chapter for this unit before we get to the autobiographical section – This is called Relatives, and in it we have one of my favorite characters in literature (I actually wanted to call my son this name, but my wife turned it down) Hugo Lamb.

Black Swan Green – David Mitchell

The book posted again for your reference.

January 11th, 2024

Let’s finish Hangman (Chapter 2) – Black Swan Green – David Mitchell

Now I would like to take a break from the close reading passages and focus more on your autobiographical work.

Personal Ad:

It is time to try your hand at writing a personal advertisement for yourself—but yourself reimagined as a character. You can use any voice that you like. Just remember, character is identity that implies action. Make this an advertisement for a fabulous character—the kind of person someone else wants to be in a story with.

January 10th, 2024

We will continue with the book – chapter 2, Hangman, today after I’ve given you time to complete the first close reading passage. Here is the book again for your reference.

Black Swan Green – David Mitchell

Here is the close reading information for chapter 1 – only answer what is pertinent to this unit (autobiographical style and substance):

1. First Impressions:
2. What is the first thing you notice about the passage?
3. What is the second thing?
4. Do the two things you noticed complement each other? Or contradict each other?
5. What mood does the passage create in you as a reader? Why?

 

1. Vocabulary and Diction:
2. Which words do you notice first? Why did they stand out from the others?
3. How do the important words relate to one another?
4. Does a phrase here appear elsewhere in the story or poem?
5. Do any words seem oddly used to you? Why? Is that a result of archaic language? Or deliberate weirdness?
6. Do any words have double meanings? Triple meanings? What are all the possible ways to read it?
7. Look up any unfamiliar words. For a pre-20th century text, look in the Oxford English Dictionary for possible outdated meanings. Look up very common words as well since they often have several possible meanings.

 

1. III. Discerning Patterns:
2. Does an image here remind you of an image elsewhere in the book?
3. How does this pattern fit into the pattern of the book as a whole?
4. How could this passage symbolize something in the entire work? Could this passage serve as a microcosm, a little picture, of what’s taking place in the whole narrative or poem?
5. What is the sentence rhythm like? Short and choppy? Long and flowing? Does it build on itself or stay at an even pace? How does that structure relate to the content?
6. Look at the punctuation. Is there anything unusual about it? What about capitalization?
7. Is there any repetition within the passage? What words are repeated? Why are they repeated?
8. How many types of writing are in the passage? (e.g., narration, description, argument, dialogue, rhymed or alliterative poetry inserted into the prose passage, etc.)
9. Can you identify paradoxes in the author’s thought or subject?
10. What is left out or silenced? What would you expect the author to say that the author seems to have avoided or ignored? What could the author have done differently—and what’s the effect of the current choice?

 

1. Point of View and Characterization:
2. How does the passage make us react or think about any characters or events within the narrative?
3. Are there colors, sounds, physical description that appeals to the senses? Does this imagery form a pattern? Why might the author have chosen that color, sound or physical description? Is it symbolic? Foreshadowing?
4. Who speaks in the passage? To whom does he or she speak? Does the narrator have partial or omniscient viewpoint? How does that viewpoint help or hinder the reader’s comprehension?

 

1. Symbolism, Schemes, Tropes:
2. Are there metaphors, similes, figures of speech? What kinds? Why might the author have chosen them?
3. Is there one controlling metaphor? If not, how many different metaphors are there, and in what order do they occur? How might that be significant? Consult the “Schemes and Tropes” section of the Course Packet or on the class website under “Rhetoric” and see if any of these rhetorical tools appear in the writing.

 

1. Importance (the most vital part of the exercise):
2. Why is it important for the reader to know what you have just analyzed and explained? How does the passage you have chosen help us understand the story, poem, or play more completely?

January 9th, 2024

We will read a little more in a circle – I’m thinking the end of January Man. This will take about 40 minutes.

Then I would like for you to look at a quick worksheet on dialogue rules. Then I would like for you to find a place in the piece you worked on yesterday and work in dialogue if you haven’t already.

dialogue_rules

Finally, I would like for you to pick a passage you like from the first chapter of the novel and then do a close reading.

Lots to do today but if you have time, then we can work this through tomorrow.

January 8th, 2024

Welcome back. I have your updated grades I’d like to talk about (30 minutes per class while you work on close reading passages) – as many as I can get through throughout the week)

Welcome to the final unit – Autobiographical Non Fiction

Pre-Assessment:

Pick one of these topics and write about them for 15 minutes:

Prompts to Begin a Narrative Idea

The Novel is Black Swan Green by David Mitchell.

Here is the PDF of the entire book:

Black Swan Green – David Mitchell

Here is a write up on his work:

Countless novels address the dynamic time between childhood and adulthood. Whether readers encounter the young heroes of classic mythology, the quirky protagonists in the work of Judy Blume or J. D. Salinger’s unforgettable Holden Caulfield, the experiences of adolescence are always distinctly familiar and, therefore, thoroughly relatable. Adolescence is a universal subject: a time bursting with “firsts”, an age of sexual and political awakening, and therefore, it is the beginning of the realization of our complete selves. Subsequently, it is a subject brimming with possibilities for writers — a seedbed for tales that reflect the full range of human experience and emotion, yielding stories that are painful, joyful, awkward, and almost always humorous.

But what is it that makes a story structured around this subject successful? We should enjoy being taken along for the ride, witnessing the challenges a character is faced with. If the author has done his or her job, we root for the young character’s ultimate, yet uncertain — and sometimes unrealized — triumph. Undoubtedly, a sense of authenticity is necessary. This authenticity can be evidenced in characters who we swear we have met before (or wish we would); in carefully laid out language that situates us firmly with regard to place and time; and perhaps most importantly, in the revelation of character flaws so familiar and particular that they erase any evidence of the line between reality and fiction. More precisely, the creation of an authentic voice is required— not only for each character, but for the novel as a whole.

This kind of authentic voice is one of the highlights of David Mitchell’s award-winning novel Black Swan Green. Jason Taylor, the protagonist of the novel, is a stuttering young poet, trapped somewhere between boyhood and manhood. Around him, Mitchell creates a careful architecture of pop culture references, political dialogue, and slang which is indicative not only of Jason’s origins, but also of his age. Accordingly, much of this guide focuses on the utility of language and on demonstrating how voice may function as the foundation for a novel.

But beyond Mitchell’s narrative voice, one of the most interesting characteristics of Black Swan Green is its versatility–it provides many teachable vantage points that can serve as catalysts to the study of literary genre. The novel straddles the line between young adult literature and literary fiction. It can be studied on its own, examined within the tradition of young adult literature, discussed from the perspective of the British novel, or viewed as a counterpoint to post-modern literature

We will only be reading five chapters of this book together. Then you will, for your final project, becoming up with a chapter of your life in the same vein as the narrator of the novel.

So, to boil it all down, you will be doing these three final  things:

1. Informal discussions while reading together
2. 3 close reading passages on the book
3. Original ‘chapter’ of your own story, or ‘coming of age’ / ‘rite of passage’ piece.

Next week, you’ll have ideas you can come up with and write rough / final. This week will be working on the chapters and the close reading.

The chapters are as follow:

1. January Man
2. Hangman
3. Relatives

We’ll start with January Man today.

December 21st, 2023

In class write – you know what to do.

December 20th, 2023

Prep that paper! I have the outline as a paper copy if anyone needs. Don’t go into this in class essay blind – it is a major letter grade.

December 19th, 2023

We will finish The Others today –

So here is your task – you should remember all of your assignments created – this is all work you can use for your final paper on Thursday. The Dryden piece is your major source of information.

THE QUESTION:

How does modern media show elements of the Gothic movement? Which elements are the most prevalent to the movement in contemporary society? What do these Gothic elements that are used say about the state of the world today?

The sources to prove this:

-Linda Dryden “The Modern Gothic”

-Your Gothic elements chosen film / TV show

-The assigned Podcast piece (Jane Eyre, Frankenstein, Dracula, The Raven, Wuthering Heights, Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde)

-A Stephen King short story (Word Processor of the Gods, I am the Doorway, The Man who would not Shake Hands, The Reaper’s Image, Uncle Otto’s Truck)

–The Others movie

The Structure of the essay:

How-to-Write-Essay-BasicsDownload

Literary-3-Paragraph-Specific-OutlineDownload

You all have done to of these already – so you know what to do. On Thursday you will complete an in class 3-5 paragraph essay on pen and paper (that I will provide). You can bring an outline I printed out today and that is all.

Almost done!

December 18th, 2023

We will watch the first part of “The Others” today. I have a worksheet for you – I’ll print it out as well.

Movie_Questions

Also keep in mind the question you will be asked on Wednesday (In class write Thursday):

How does modern media show elements of the Gothic movement? Which elements are the most prevalent to the movement in contemporary society? What do these Gothic elements that are used say about the state of the world today?

December 15th, 2023

Today, we will shift things a little bit before the movie on Monday –

You’ll have thematic questions for the movie “The others” and also questions regarding film terminology. In order for you to successfully complete the questions, I will need to teach you film terminology today.

Here is a document explaining an overview of what I expect:

cinematic-techniques-intro

And here is a video I’d like to show you – Grade 10 students this will be rather familiar.

We will go over shots. Here is a video we will watch:

Your exercise for this little lesson will be to find a clip from your favorite movie and show me some of these vocabulary words explained. Any way you’d like to show me would be okay. (PPT / edited film / oral presentation etc.)

December 14th, 2023

Please see the previous day’s blog – have discussion questions for two stories ready. We will start a discussion at 1PM and you can turn in the worksheet by the end of class today.

I hope you enjoyed the stories.

December 13th, 2023

The horror genre is a very large genre – and without getting into it in large detail, Stephen King, author of over 60 novels and over 100 short stories, has rewritten horror for today’s contemporary audience. The reason we’re reading a few of his short stories is for the Gothic elements that are unavoidable in most horror stories and how the framework of the movement is still apparent today.

Your task for this two-day assignment is to read two of his short stories. (There are five to choose from) and complete the worksheet. We will discuss the questions on Thursday.

Here they are:

stephen_king_questionsV2

What we will do as a class is come up with similarities differences from the horror genre and the Gothic Movement with a Venn diagram for the class. You can use these elements as help for your final thesis.

These are the stories – they’re all good, but some are better than others. I will assign you one and you can choose another one by yourself.

I Am the Doorway

(From Night Shift Collection – a Space Gothic, horror mashup with Event Horizon vibes)

The Man Who Would not Shake Hands

(From Skeleton Crew – Curse story within story or “epistolary format” – very Gothic)

The-Reapers-Image-Stephen-King

(From Skeleton Crew – uses Gothic symbols / mirrors, dualism, haunted house etc. Short)

Word Processor of the Gods

(From Skeleton Crew – not as gothic but just a great story – my personal favorite of the bunch)

Uncle Otto’s Truck

(From Skeleton Crew – supernatural, great characterization that King is well known for.)

 

FYI – Moving forward

This is the modified question for this entire unit:

How does modern media show elements of the Gothic movement? Which elements are the most prevalent to the movement in contemporary society? What do these Gothic elements that are used say about the state of the world today?

You will use multiple sources, but keep in mind the academic paper The Modern Gothic” by Dryden as your framework. I will list other sources below (Some of which we haven’t explored yet.)

-Linda Dryden “The Modern Gothic”

-Your Gothic elements chosen film / TV show

-The assigned Podcast piece (Jane Eyre, Frankenstein, Dracula, The Raven, Wuthering Heights, Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde)

-A Stephen King short story (Word Processor of the Gods, I am the Doorway, The Man who would not Shake Hands, The Reaper’s Image, Uncle Otto’s Truck)

–The Others movie

December 12th, 2023

Please finish your podcasts today. Tomorrow, we will start on a Stephen King small group book club / lit kit. This will take us through Friday.

December 11th, 2023

So today is a day for getting your podcasts in order. I changed the groups a little bit. See below. Remember – try and research the book and have a few fun facts ready. The one we listened to was basically what not to do…

Your background knowledge of Gothic Lit both academic and pop should get you through this more than you think!

Get it done. It’s due tomorrow. Only one needs to be turned in.

Groups:

1. Jekyll and Hyde: Brooke, Elena, Milan, Rodi, Julie W Lakin
2. Frankenstein: Tyson Sahil, nicole, Lara Johanna
3. Dracula Samara Anna Maryam Olivia
4. The RavenPride Owen Liam Pedram
5. Wuthering HeightsKai josh locklanowen NReid Marco
6. Jane EyreNour Savannah connor leonlia Davis

December 8th, 2023

The first part of this Gothic Elements immersion is done, and I am happy with the presentations. We still have a few more to go, and we’ll complete those at the beginning of class.

The next section is a podcast.

There is a cheeky skill I would like to teach you for this lesson. It’s researching “around” a book to make conversation. The skill here is to ask the right questions and focus on the general in order to gain what looks like full comprehension.

We will look at a website called “Sublimely Gothic” and listen to a great podcast on gothic elements in contemporary (and vintage) literature.

https://sublimely-gothic.castos.com/episodes/sublimely-gothic-the-gothic-in-harry-potter

While this podcast is playing, you can answer these questions:

1. What makes the Podcast interesting?
2. What makes the podcast drag a little?
3. How to the presenters make the information engaging to the listener?
4. What are some other podcasts / audiobooks you’ve listened to that are engaging?
5. What are elements of the gothic in Harry Potter? (comprehension)

Here’s the big project –

You are to complete the following:

There will be five groups – each will create a podcast (using phones or other small media) and familiarize yourself with Anchor (Spotify program – I have the instructions below)

1. Jekyll and Hyde
2. Frankenstein
3. Dracula
4. The Raven
5. Wuthering Heights

Now I know you haven’t read these books/ poem – that’s the whole point of this podcast. I’m not teaching you these books, but teaching you how to not read these books! So the focus is on the ‘book’, but you are to have a fun podcast that values entertainment over education – while making us (the listener) believe that we are  smarter for having listened to you.

Here are some prompt ‘book discussion’ questions to get you going.

Podcast Generic Questions

TIP: I suggest that you research the assigned book a little bit online. These books are so well known that some poor sucker has had to have done a prezi on it at some point in their high school career. Find something like that and get the info out of it. Now that you know the elements of Gothicism pretty well, you already have enough to go off. Voila, you’re experts!

Rules:

1. Should be no more than 10 minutes edited.

2. Everyone’s voice should be heard at least once.

3.  Due Tuesday, December 12th at the end of class.

Instructions for anchor (Podcast editor):

Quickstart-Guide-Anchor

December 7th, 2023

Time to do those presentations and then I will tell you about the next project – I think you’ll enjoy this one – they all connect together.

These are the goth kids from South Park.

December 6th, 2023

Modernizing the Gothic World:

Your task today – One of 5 (To substitute the close reading passages and discussion) is to find a contemporary media piece that encapsulates at least three elements of the gothic and get prepared to make a presentation in front of the class on Thursday, proving your claims.

1. Explain the elements of Gothic you’ll be talking about
2. Show the clip (Cannot be classic Gothic – you have to use a modern movie / TV show / Song etc.)
3. Answer the following thematically in 100 words:

How does my clip represent the Modern Gothic? Which elements of the clip are the most prevalent to the movement?

The following is an infographic to help you:

December 5th, 2023

I will choose a few of you to share the close reading.

Then I will ask for a summary – after I read the introduction again. Then we will continue from page 86 in the PDF.

Always keep in mind your focus for the essay:

How does Carlos Ruiz Zafon’s novel The Shadow of the Wind represent the Modern Gothic? Which elements of the novel are the most prevalent to the movement?

December 4th, 2023

I am not here today, as I have a nasty stomach flu, so in this case I would like for you to complete the first close reading by yourself. This is a disappointment to me, because I wanted to explore the cemetery of forgotten books with you.

Please have your close readings completed for the end of the day and then work on reading through page 86 of the PDF document for the book.

Here is the PDF again:

The shadow of the wind – Carlos Ruiz Zafon

Here is an EPUB version of the text as well for Lakin and others that want to read it on iBooks / Kobo etc.

Zafón, Carlos Ruiz_ Graves, Lucía – The shadow of the wind

Here, for your convenience is the close reading structure. We’ll look at it together tomorrow.

1. First Impressions:
2. What is the first thing you notice about the passage?
3. What is the second thing?
4. Do the two things you noticed complement each other? Or contradict each other?
5. What mood does the passage create in you as a reader? Why?
6. Vocabulary and Diction:
7. Which words do you notice first? Why did they stand out from the others?
8. How do the important words relate to one another?
9. Does a phrase here appear elsewhere in the story or poem?
10. Do any words seem oddly used to you? Why? Is that a result of archaic language? Or deliberate weirdness?
11. Do any words have double meanings? Triple meanings? What are all the possible ways to read it?
12. Look up any unfamiliar words. For a pre-20th century text, look in the Oxford English Dictionary for possible outdated meanings. Look up very common words as well since they often have several possible meanings.
13. III. Discerning Patterns:
14. Does an image here remind you of an image elsewhere in the book?
15. How does this pattern fit into the pattern of the book as a whole?
16. How could this passage symbolize something in the entire work? Could this passage serve as a microcosm, a little picture, of what’s taking place in the whole narrative or poem?
17. What is the sentence rhythm like? Short and choppy? Long and flowing? Does it build on itself or stay at an even pace? How does that structure relate to the content?
18. Look at the punctuation. Is there anything unusual about it? What about capitalization?
19. Is there any repetition within the passage? What words are repeated? Why are they repeated?
20. How many types of writing are in the passage? (e.g., narration, description, argument, dialogue, rhymed or alliterative poetry inserted into the prose passage, etc.)
21. Can you identify paradoxes in the author’s thought or subject?
22. What is left out or silenced? What would you expect the author to say that the author seems to have avoided or ignored? What could the author have done differently—and what’s the effect of the current choice?
23. Point of View and Characterization:
24. How does the passage make us react or think about any characters or events within the narrative?
25. Are there colors, sounds, physical description that appeals to the senses? Does this imagery form a pattern? Why might the author have chosen that color, sound or physical description? Is it symbolic? Foreshadowing?
26. Who speaks in the passage? To whom does he or she speak? Does the narrator have partial or omniscient viewpoint? How does that viewpoint help or hinder the reader’s comprehension?
27. Symbolism, Schemes, Tropes:
28. Are there metaphors, similes, figures of speech? What kinds? Why might the author have chosen them?
29. Is there one controlling metaphor? If not, how many different metaphors are there, and in what order do they occur? How might that be significant? Consult the “Schemes and Tropes” section of the Course Packet or on the class website under “Rhetoric” and see if any of these rhetorical tools appear in the writing.
30. Importance (the most vital part of the exercise):
31. Why is it important for the reader to know what you have just analyzed and explained? How does the passage you have chosen help us understand the story, poem, or play more completely?

December 1st, 2023

Please complete the annotated bibliographies. I will give you some time in class (about half) then we will start the book. Here is a copy of the book PDF:

The shadow of the wind – Carlos Ruiz Zafon

Here are the lit charts for a safety net:

The-Shadow-of-the-Wind-LitChart

Here is a schedule of the next 14 days (tentative)

READING DUE DATE:	Page Numbers (through PDF)	Close reading
1.Dec 4th	1-58	Close reading #1
2.Dec 5th	59-86	In class reading
3.Dec. 6th	87-111	In class reading
4.Dec. 7th	111-148	Close Reading #2
5.Dec. 8th	149-182	Group 1 Socratic Seminar
6.Dec. 11th	182-210	In class reading
7.Dec. 12th	210-258	In class reading
8.Dec. 13th	259-298	Close Reading #3
9.Dec. 14th	298-336	Group 2 Socratic Seminar
10.Dec. 15th	337-366	In class reading
11.Dec. 18th	367-398	Close Reading #4
12.Dec. 19th	399-454	Group 3 Socratic Seminar
13.Dec. 20th	455-474	Group 4 Socratic Seminar
14 Dec. 21st	474-495	Close Reading #5

November 30th, 2023

This is our focus today – try and combine your knowledge of the lecture into this paper. I will tell you all the important places to highlight.

Linda Dryden – The Modern Gothic and Literary Doubles_ Stevenson, Wilde and Wells (2003)

You will complete an annotated bibliography on this. These are the elements of the annotated bibliography:

Part 1 (Summary)

1.The main idea of this article is…….

2.The topics covered in this article are…….

3.The author’s point of view in this article is……

Part 2 (Rhetoric)

1.The author of this piece is/is not credible because……

2.The author knows a lot about this topic because….

3.From this piece, the author wants you to………….

Part 3 (Reflection)

1.This article supports my ideas because…..

2.This article was helpful to me because….

3.This article added to my knowledge about this topic because….

November 29th, 2023

Welcome to the New Gothic unit.

This unit will be guided, yet there is time where you will be able to get everything done in class, yet since we have such a strict schedule, the unit has been designed to discourage ‘slacking off’.

Here is the introduction – this has the 14 day guide that you will use:

Purdy_GothicL_V2.5

Here is the PowerPoint that will help you understand what Gothic Literature is all about – take notes:

elements_of_gothic_literature_ppt

Before we get into the novel, I would like to read an academic paper with you that will help supplement the PPT. It is this PDF:

Linda Dryden – The Modern Gothic and Literary Doubles_ Stevenson, Wilde and Wells (2003)

You will complete an annotated bibliography on this. These are the elements of the annotated bibliography:

Part 1 (Summary)

1.The main idea of this article is…….

2.The topics covered in this article are…….

3.The author’s point of view in this article is……

Part 2 (Rhetoric)

1.The author of this piece is/is not credible because……

2.The author knows a lot about this topic because….

3.From this piece, the author wants you to………….

Part 3 (Reflection)

1.This article supports my ideas because…..

2.This article was helpful to me because….

3.This article added to my knowledge about this topic because….

November 28th, 2023

In class writing today. Here are the questions:

Hills Like White Elephants Easiest

1. How does the symbolism in “Hills Like White Elephants” relate to the modernistic perspective? Explain using examples from the text.

A Garden Party Easier

2. How do the different classes that are discussed in the short story “A Garden Party” relate to the modernistic perspective? Explain both classes and how they differ yet also how they are similar.

A Mark on the Wall (NEW) Not as easy

3. Through her stream of conscious writing, what worries do Virginia Woolf’s unnamed character reveal were happening in the Modernist period through her symbolic musing about a mark on the Wall?

November 27th, 2023

So today, I think I will go home early, so this is your time to prepare for the test tomorrow (In class writing)

Turn in the “Mark on the Wall” questions. I will open up a teams file.

Choose one of these questions:

So the LITERARY ELEMENT shows ONE FACET OF MODERNISM.

You will need some time to get the basics of a three paragraph essay down – this is just a review of the literary essays you’ve done all throughout high school.

Hills Like White Elephants Easiest

1. How does the symbolism in “Hills Like White Elephants” relate to the modernistic perspective? Explain using examples from the text.

A Garden Party Easier

2. How do the different classes that are discussed in the short story “A Garden Party” relate to the modernistic perspective? Explain both classes and how they differ yet also how they are similar.

A Mark on the Wall (NEW) Not as easy

3. Through her stream of conscious writing, what worries do Virginia Woolf’s unnamed character reveal were happening in the Modernist period through her symbolic musing about a mark on the Wall?

November 24th, 2023

Both the story and the questions are in this one document:

The Mark on the Wall Virginia Woolf

NOW as a final:

Think about this question for a paragraph intro response:

How are elements of Modernism highlighted in either the Hemingway, Woolf or Mansfield text?

Example Thesis: Throughout Hemingway’s short story HLWI, the dialogue/allusion/metaphor shows individualism and fragmentation of the modernist philosophy / society.

So the LITERARY ELEMENT shows ONE FACET OF MODERNISM. (Check PPT).

You will need some time to get the basics of a three paragraph essay down – this is just a review of the literary essays you’ve done all throughout high school. But just in case, I have a PPT so that you understand the structure. I’ll go over it as a formality.

How-to-Write-Essay-BasicsDownload

Literary-3-Paragraph-Specific-OutlineDownload

This is for specific areas in which you need help for your writing. This resource is fantastic for brushing up on grammar, punctuation and writing skills. We will look at this during the week.

https://media.openschool.bc.ca/osbcmedia/english_10v5/wotr/

November 23rd, 2023

Completion of the questions and discussion today:

Think about this question for a paragraph intro response:

How do elements of Modernism show in either the Hemingway or Mansfield text?

Example Thesis: Throughout Hemingway’s short story HLWI, the dialogue/allusion/metaphor shows individualism and fragmentation of the modernist philosophy / society.

So the LITERARY ELEMENT shows ONE FACET OF MODERNISM. (Check PPT) – we’ll talk about this as well for each story.

FYI:

Hills Like White Elephants Easiest

1. How does the symbolism in “Hills Like White Elephants” relate to the modernistic perspective? Explain using examples from the text.

A Garden Party Easier

2. How do the different classes that are discussed in the short story “A Garden Party” relate to the modernistic perspective? Explain both classes and how they differ yet also how they are similar.

A Mark on the Wall (NEW) Not as easy

3. Through her stream of conscious writing, what worries do Virginia Woolf’s unnamed character reveal were happening in the Modernist period through her symbolic musing about a mark on the Wall?

November 22nd, 2023

Think about this question for a paragraph intro response:

How do elements of Modernism show in either the Hemingway or Mansfield text?

Example Thesis: Throughout Hemingway’s short story HLWI, the dialogue/allusion/metaphor shows individualism and fragmentation of the modernist philosophy / society.

So the LITERARY ELEMENT shows ONE FACET OF MODERNISM. (Check PPT) – we’ll talk about this as well for each story.

November 21st, 2023

1. Finish Hills Like White Elephants story questions
2. Get into a discussion circle to talk about the questions.
3. Submit the questions by 1159PM today in Teams.

If we have time:

Think about this question for a paragraph intro response:

How do elements of Modernism show in either the Hemingway or Mansfield text?

Example Thesis: Throughout Hemingway’s short story HLWI, the dialogue/allusion/metaphor shows individualism and fragmentation of the modernist philosophy / society.

So the LITERARY ELEMENT shows ONE FACET OF MODERNISM. (Check PPT).

November 20th, 2023

I have had some setbacks with the new gothic unit, so I will teach you Modernism. This was a unit from a while ago (2 years), and I got tired of the stories, but still holds strong in this class as I think that it is a good companion to Postmodernism. So…

Welcome to the Modernism unit.

Here is the power-point. I would like you to take notes as I will be going into detail about them:

modernism-modernist-literature FINAL

modernism-modernist-literature FINAL Modernism_Notes

I have questions for discussion that will come right after this lecture (some during)

I have a story that you will be reading next with the questions that go with it:

HillsPDFText

The following are due tomorrow – be prepared to discuss these questions as we will be doing a round table discussion with these questions as a base to springboard.

hills like white questions

The following is an interesting take on the piece. An academic paper I found online – you don not need to read it. Just for extra comprehension :

Hills like WE Conversation Analysis

November 17th, 2023

It’s all due tonight!!!!

Talk to a partner about a childhood memory of theirs. Now make it yours in a story.

I will give you thirty minutes at the beginning of the class to work on this story.

It’s hard to really give you a structure to how the formation of a short story should be written. So I have  interesting piece for you to read:

Raymond Carver:

viewfinderbyraymondcarver

 

This is also optional:

Short Story Peer Editing Checklist

Work block for getting everything in order. Same tomorrow, promised. Please talk to either Weeks / Sun or myself if you’d like some direction moving forward with your story. Make sure to ask a peer as well (or a family member).

November 16th, 2023

Prompts to help you with a free write that we will use throughout the week:

Connect three memories together to a common theme. Vehicles drive a narrative. This theme can act like analogy. For example Loss – Connect to three memories. Unity – Three memories etc. They can all be linear or sporadic. 

Describe a regret / mistake and then change the reality to the ideal

Research a mundane object and find a deeper analogy to life through it. – This exercise works better if it’s something you’re familiar with. Ex: Lego, Curling, Matchbox Cars, The time streetlights come on etc.

A mistake you tried to cover up, yet were unsuccessful. A moment of shame.

Explain the same memory from three different perspectives.

Talk to a partner about a childhood memory of theirs. Now make it yours in a story.

Write about how someone has influenced your life in the most subtle of ways.

A mistake you tried to cover up, yet were unsuccessful. A moment of shame.

 

November 15th, 2023

This is the second activity:

The Second Bakery Attack

The first bakery attack was never published in English, but there was a short film made about the story in Japan. It is here (Very 70’s art film vibe):

Question:

What are the postmodern elements in this short story? How do they add to the narrative?

November 14th, 2023

There are two parts to this week – every day:

1- a minor letter grade assignment per day. I will have an activity that you will do and we can talk about right after (approx 45 minutes)

2- Work on your drafts for the postmodern short story using the ideas that the activity presented. I will refuse to give a structure for this. Don’t worry about content yet – you should all have a draft of some sort – keep building on it.

Activity 1:

Discuss the meanings of these phrases with a partner. (The story will be tomorrow’s assignment – where these quotes come from)

• Potentiality knocks on the door of my heart.

 

• The cold, indifferent waves of fate proceeded to toss them unmercifully.

 

 

Here is the piece from the New Yorker:

The Running Novelist

Let’s talk about it after if we have time and some of you find interest in it.

1. Talk about the notion of Risk vs. Reward
2. What is an epiphany moment? Have you had any? Explain.
3. What other analogies can you think about when it comes to writing?

November 9th, 2023

So let’s start with looking at an editing process – since this is a graded assignment, there is a rubric at the bottom so that you can focus on when doing your own editing.

I have one more assignment for you today before you get to the editing process – and that is “sharing a memory”

Here is the document I will be using:

freewrite postmodernism

(The following is an example of anther good story that a student wrote for this assignment)

Burning Bridges 1

ASSIGNMENT:

Talk to a partner about a childhood memory of theirs. Now make it yours in a story.

I will give you thirty minutes  to work on this story.

 

Since we have finished the novel, I would like to read you another Murakami short story I have used in another unit. This, of course, is extra.

It is called “The Second Bakery Attack”.

The Second Bakery Attack

The first bakery attack was never published in English, but there was a short film made about the story in Japan. It is here (Very 70’s art film vibe):

If we have time left, we can watch it.

November 8th, 2023

LAST PROMPT:

You arrive home after walking from the restaurant. The phone rings. The person who calls you is someone you haven’t talked to in years. They have a request. You can either accept or refuse the request. The final question is – do you go out again or do you stay home and go to bed? How did the phone call make you feel?

First, some of you are down on yourselves for writing a “steaming” pile of garbage for a first draft. You’re not alone. Look at this piece:

First Drafts

Take a look at the piece again. You’ll be turning it in tonight/tomorrow for a completion mark. Depending on the climate of class, I’ll give you a little or a lot of time. (DUE TONIGHT AT MIDNIGHT)

If the climate of the class is a little louder, then I’ll switch it up a little bit.

Here are the three prompts again:

1. You’re writing two people sitting down at a restaurant. They are having a conversation about something you (the author) feel passionate about. Minimal description of restaurant – maximum dialogue.
2. The character walks home. They think of a story they’ve just heard at a restaurant and make associations as they walk. Where are they walking and how is this imagery tied together with the story they just heard (or told?) 
3. You arrive home after walking from the restaurant. The phone rings. The person who calls you is someone you haven’t talked to in years. They have a request. You can either accept or refuse the request. The final question is – do you go out again or do you stay home and go to bed? How did the phone call make you feel?

November 7th, 2023

Part 2 of the write today:

The character walks home. They think of a story they’ve just heard at a restaurant and make associations as they walk. Where are they walking and how is this imagery tied together with the story they just heard (or told?) 

We will have a 40 minute discussion on these 10 questions today. This is a formal, graded discussion.

1. Pinball, 1973 feature moments of extreme malaise from its protagonists. How do the narrator and the Rat abate their sadness? What comforts—if only temporary solutions—do they afford themselves in their despair?
2. How does his doctor’s dictum, “Civilization is communication,” echo throughout Pinball?
3. J the bartender maintains a significant presence in Pinball. What is his role in the novel? How does he act as a soundboard for both the protagonist and the Rat?
4. Examine the protagonist’s relationship with women as discussed in Pinball. How do his early experiences with women affect his outlook on life?
5. The section “On the Birth of Pinball” discusses the innovation and creation of the pinball machine. Why do you think the protagonist is invested in pinball as both a practice and an invention?
6. On pages 124–7, the protagonist discusses his career as a translator. How does he react to his financial success? What—if anything—does he values about his career?
7. Discuss the role of the twins in Pinball, 1973. What do we learn about them over the course of the novel?
8. Analyze the journey that the protagonist takes in Pinball, 1973 wherein the protagonist seeks out the elusive pinball machine from J’s bar. Discuss the scene in which he is brought to the warehouse. What significance does the machine hold in his life?
9. Murakami seamlessly blends moments of surrealism among scenes of day-to-day trivialities. What moments bent reality for you during your reading experience? How did you interpret them?
10. There is striking visual imagery in Pinball, 1973. What scenes resonated most with you?

November 6th, 2023

Report cards are posted on MyEd – They’ll be published schoolwide on Thursday.

Part 1 of the day:

Quick Write – 30 minutes:

So – You’re writing two people sitting down at a restaurant, and one of them is you [I – first person format]. You are having a conversation about something you (the author) feel passionate about. Minimal description of restaurant – maximum dialogue. Go!

Part 2 of the day:

Answer these questions for a formal in class discussion tomorrow (Tuesday):

1. Pinball, 1973 feature moments of extreme malaise from its protagonists. How do the narrator and the Rat abate their sadness? What comforts—if only temporary solutions—do they afford themselves in their despair?
2. How does his doctor’s dictum, “Civilization is communication,” echo throughout Pinball?
3. J the bartender maintains a significant presence in Pinball. What is his role in the novel? How does he act as a soundboard for both the protagonist and the Rat?
4. Examine the protagonist’s relationship with women as discussed in Pinball. How do his early experiences with women affect his outlook on life?
5. The section “On the Birth of Pinball” discusses the innovation and creation of the pinball machine. Why do you think the protagonist is invested in pinball as both a practice and an invention?
6. On pages 124–7, the protagonist discusses his career as a translator. How does he react to his financial success? What—if anything—does he values about his career?
7. Discuss the role of the twins in Pinball, 1973. What do we learn about them over the course of the novel?
8. Analyze the journey that the protagonist takes in Pinball, 1973 wherein the protagonist seeks out the elusive pinball machine from J’s bar. Discuss the scene in which he is brought to the warehouse. What significance does the machine hold in his life?
9. Murakami seamlessly blends moments of surrealism among scenes of day-to-day trivialities. What moments bent reality for you during your reading experience? How did you interpret them?
10. There is striking visual imagery in Pinball, 1973. What scenes resonated most with you?

November 3rd, 2023

Whomever has shown up today after the brain fry, you can work on your final five chapters of the Pinball Novella and we can (depending on the count of students) share a couple of close readings.

On Monday, all of these elements are due. I will explain everything, as we will be starting the guided creative writing portion of the unit.

November 2nd, 2023

Good afternoon, Everyone –

I will not be here today – another emergency. I have attached a student’s close reading for chapters 15-20 – please take a look at it on your own and continue what we have been doing this week.

Upon the first reading the most glaring observation is that the Rat is sharing their opinions and thoughts verbally. Generally, whenever we are shown the Rats perspective it is very philosophical but rarely is it the Rats own inner philosophy and instead the outward philosophy that he shows to the world and lives. Second, is that the Rat is finally making a worthwhile decision. Something that he has mulled over and contemplated, but this pseudo goodbye with J acts as a eulogy to the “life” the Rat has lived until now. Fittingly with a eulogy, this entire sequence is very morose, having the Rat explain himself finally while J joins in occasionally to give his own form of encouragement. With long, drawn out explanations from the rat and short affirmations from J it also shows how while J is listening, he has yet to share his own thoughts.

There weren’t any words specifically that stuck out but instead a couple of phrases, the first of which “each individual’s choices are really limited.”, and the second, “One way or the other, we’re all going to rot.” The first is an insight into how the Rat views the world, where many would say that anyone can be anything if they set their mind to it, the Rat would argue that there is a set path that one must walk, and any deviations are in fact separate paths with that will converge eventually. The second sentence gives further depth to this with the answer that all paths lead to death eventually. This thought process is finally finished with the Rat concluding that no matter what happens, it’s all merely “a step on the road to decay.” This idea that everything ends in death and so live life how you want is an extremely postmodern idea, aligning with the view that there is no objective reality, or truth and so instead one must find their own aesthetic truth.

This over arching theme seems to also be prevalent throughout the rest of the novella with the main narrator, and the translation clerk both having vaguely similar realizations in their lives where they attempt to find their own way of living life unique to them. While living their lives differently, all three came to the conclusion that their life was finite and would all end the same, so, they live in the ways that they have found suit them, the narrator lives with the flow, allowing the world to control where their path, the clerk seeks her interests and wants, not being satisfied with her current life, and the Rat ventures into the unknown, figuring that whatever’s out there is more interesting then wasting away in stationary obscurity.

These characters become a way for Murakami to speak to his readers and invite them to think on what their own path will be. Will one be the narrator and go with whatever life throws at them no matter how absurd? Or will you choose to take everything head on and explore what life gives through your own grit and curiosity. Either way the destination is the same thus making the journey much more important, because in the end we are all buried beneath the rot.

Next week, all of this close reading will make sense for what I want you to do creatively.

The Close readings are due Monday November 6th at Midnight.

November 1st, 2023

This is the last day to hand in work for your quarter 1 grade.

I will be accepting the work until this evening, then it’s cut off time.

Today, you should be up to date through chapter 15.

I will show you another example of a quotation / close reading passage before you get to work. Please let me know how you’re doing. I will circle the class for any questions you might have.

October 31st, 2023

I promised that we would go over the literacy 12 exam. This will still happen. You will just complete the exam today as a practice and we will go over everything tomorrow in class for our final day of the semester.

Here are the instructions:

1. On your device, click this link: https://bced.vretta.com/#/en/bced-landing/grad/sample/literacy12
2. Select “Form A”
3. Start the test. Get used to the formatting – how the test is structured, the buttons etc.  The next button is on the right bottom corner.
4. Do the multiple choice
5. Do the graphic organizer / written response, but save your written work on a separate document
6. PART B – you made it!
7. Do the multiple choice questions
8. Make a choice for the written theme response that fits your ideas.
9. When you get to the written response, save your work to a separate document.
10. Finish self reflection if you want
11. Check your answers.

After you finish the test, make sure to ask three questions about the process for me to answer tomorrow. We will also go over your written responses in class.

We will continue with Pinball 1973 – I’ve already chosen a couple of contenders for the analysis.

October 30th, 2023

So let’s take a look at your close readings so far for chapters 1-5.

I will pick up to three volunteers and we’ll talk about what has happened so far.

It’s easy to get behind on this schedule, so please try and be diligent with reading.

ALSO:

Any late work you need to hand in is due this Wednesday, November 1st without exception.

October 27th, 2023

Text: Pinball 1973_Goosen

So yesterday didn’t work as well as I’d hoped, but I have a plan – a study plan.

This will be broken into five parts – and the end result will be you taking away a skill that you will hopefully use for life.

I’ll print this out:

What is a close reading

My expectations are as follows:

Read Chapter 1-5 for the end of the day today.

Read Chapter 6-10 for Monday the 30th

Read Chapters 11-15 for Tuesday the 31st

Read Chapters 16-20 for Wednesday the 1st

Read chapters 21-25 for Thursday  the 2nd

Have a discussion ready (Questions below) for Friday the 3rd.

While you are reading, you will choose one passage per section for a close reading. I will do the first one for you today so I can model the skills you will need.

Ask questions if you need assistance with this next week.

October 26th, 2023

Let’s talk about the Postmodern elements in Superfrog. We didn’t get a chance to do that yesterday.

Now you will be doing this throughout the book when we start reading together. Keep these elements in mind. For your reading annotations, I have printed paper copies.

We are starting the book today.

Here is a digital copy again:

Pinball 1973_Goosen

Keep in mind these questions for when we finish the novella:

1. Pinball, 1973 feature moments of extreme malaise from its protagonists. How do the narrator and the Rat abate their sadness? What comforts—if only temporary solutions—do they afford themselves in their despair?
2. How does his doctor’s dictum, “Civilization is communication,” echo throughout Pinball?
3. J the bartender maintains a significant presence in Pinball. What is his role in the novel? How does he act as a soundboard for both the protagonist and the Rat?
4. Examine the protagonist’s relationship with women as discussed in Pinball. How do his early experiences with women affect his outlook on life?
5. The section “On the Birth of Pinball” discusses the innovation and creation of the pinball machine. Why do you think the protagonist is invested in pinball as both a practice and an invention?
6. On pages 124–7, the protagonist discusses his career as a translator. How does he react to his financial success? What—if anything—does he values about his career?
7. Discuss the role of the twins in Pinball, 1973. What do we learn about them over the course of the novel?
8. Analyze the journey that the protagonist takes in Pinball, 1973 wherein the protagonist seeks out the elusive pinball machine from J’s bar. Discuss the scene in which he is brought to the warehouse. What significance does the machine hold in his life?
9. Murakami seamlessly blends moments of surrealism among scenes of day-to-day trivialities. What moments bent reality for you during your reading experience? How did you interpret them?
10. There is striking visual imagery in Pinball, 1973. What scenes resonated most with you?

 October 25th, 2023

Today should be entertaining for you – seeing those connections to the Literary Theory of Postmodernism and a short story by Haruki Murakami.

Here is the short story:

Superfrog saves tokyo

(I have paper copies as well)

And what we can do together is this worksheet that explains all the elements of Postmodernism.

Elements of Postmodernism

Your task is to find some parts of the story and give concrete examples to which quote fits which element and why – kind of like an ‘idea’ search.

Tomorrow, we start Pinball 1973 together. I will have paper copies but also here it is online if you need bigger font:

Pinball 1973_Goosen

October 24th, 2023

Yesterday wasn’t the best – but today, we can read the article together and periodically talk about it. Then you will finish an annotated bibliography on the piece keeping in mind that you will be writing a short story with Postmodern elements. Tomorrow I have a worksheet while we read a short story called “Super-frog Saves Tokyo”.

What can I take from Murakami’s study on how he builds characters to make my own story?

I understand this will be a difficult question for you right now, but try and answer it generally in the reflection part of your annotated bibliography.

Due at the end of class.

Remember:

Part 1 (Summary)

1.The main idea of this article is…….

2.The topics covered in this article are…….

3.The author’s point of view in this article is……

Part 2 (Rhetoric)

1.The author of this piece is/is not credible because……

2.The author knows a lot about this topic because….

3.From this piece, the author wants you to………….

Part 3 (Reflection)

1.This article supports my ideas because…..

2.This article was helpful to me because….

3.This article added to my knowledge about this topic because….

October 23rd, 2023

I love new units: Postmodernism and the fragmentation of  fictional narrative.

We are all Post/modern – but what the hell does this mean?

Here is the overview of the unit:

Pinball Introduction

Then here is the PPT – there are two – one as a theoretical piece and the other as a kind of ‘questionnaire’.

I will go over this:

PostModernism

Now we will discuss this:

Quiz Are you post Modern

Here’s how Murakami sees writing – I want to read excerpts before we get into a short story, then the novella.

Novelist as a Vocation – Haruki Murakami

What are the elements of Postmodernism in today’s society? What is worth writing about?

October 19th, 2023

Today is the in class write. I will break it down in simple terms so that you can follow along.

1. Choose five quotes from the ‘quote pool’
2. Make a 500-750 word response – using the writing style of your choice that answers this question:

Which of the following themes run through five or more of these quotes? Use reasons and examples to support your answer

Turn in your response at the end of class.

3. Make sure to turn in the quote journals for Friday night (midnight).

October 18th, 2023

The following is a document for your quote journals assignment – I’s a mid term of sorts but don’t stress about it too much – I thought it would be a nice culmination to the quotes and your takeaway.

Here is the document for today and tomorrow:

Quote Journals_Final V2.5

Today: Look at themes – commit to quotes – get a plan ready for discussion.

Tomorrow: In Class write – prepare for this as much as you can.

October 17th, 2023

Mr. Ipe is here!

Enjoy the movie – you can also plug in and get that good draft all taken care of. I will have opened a Teams page for you to submit your work.

Double space!

Times New Roman!

Grammarly check for spelling!

See you tomorrow.

October 16th, 2023

This is a block dedicated to you really understanding the literary 3 paragraph essay. All of those who have turned in a rough draft, I will talk to in alphabetical order. If I have time after that, anyone else can talk to me about their essays – so treat this as a 1 on 1 session to help you get that A.

I also have grades that are updated (ish) that you can look at as a breakdown if you’d like.

Tomorrow, there are two things you can be doing.

1. I have 3 versions of IOBE – let’s choose one.
2. Finish that final draft based on the (potential) feedback I have given you today.

Final draft is due tomorrow night at Midnight.

Wednesday, we will do something with those quotes. I think we’ve done enough. Journal will be due on Friday along with an in class write. Thursday, we will talk about the quotes in a discussion format to figure out what they mean – this is a culmination of everything we’ve learned so far. Treat it as a ‘midterm’ of sorts.

October 13th, 2023

Today will be the final day for the rough drafts. Once again, I will post the structure and you can see me any time you’d like for help and ideas. The rough draft is due at the end of class today. You should be on your conclusions.

Purdy-Literary-Analysis-Detailed-V4

 

October 12th, 2023

I will not be here as family is sick. Please complete your annotated bibliography for tonight. Have a good work block!

For tomorrow, I would like for you to have completed the introduction and try the body paragraph. I will reiterate what I said yesterday if you’re feeling overwhelmed. This is the bare bones basic key of the whole paper:

1. What is aestheticism?
2. How is aestheticism shown in Oscar Wilde’s play?
3. Show proof of that through
   1. The Deornellis piece When Life Imitates Art_ Aestheticism in The Importance of Being Earnest
   2. The play: Wilde IOBE Annotated
4. Keep the essay structured to these rules: Purdy-Literary-Analysis-Detailed-V4

October 11th, 2023

Model Example: Annotated Bibliography DeOrnellis Earnest – Presentation Version

FIRST: Let’s go over pre assessments – I’ll open a teams file, you take a picture of the paper and upload it.

We will go over the 1st step of a literary analysis together today. You have everything already in your head, so this process should be easier than you think. I’ll repost what we couldn’t get to yesterday.

How does Wilde honor the Aesthetic movement through his play The Importance of Being Earnest?

This is your question! Now how can you answer in a way that is academic?

To make a literary analysis essay really work, you need another academic paper to connect your ideas. Here is the first part of constructing such an essay. Do you remember the DeOrnellis piece?

When Life Imitates Art_ Aestheticism in The Importance of Being Earnest

Here are some reflections on the piece from previous classes called “points”.

GORDON_S Literary Analysis – Aestheticism

MaccormackM_LiteraryAnalysis

Sunderji_A Aestheticism Paper

Then you’re ready for the worksheet. I’ve provided examples – ignore the due date!:

Purdy-Literary-Analysis-Detailed-V3 (FINAL)

Here are some examples of what a final should look like:

Sunderji_A Aestheticism Paper

So today: Try on your own – figure out what the structure is, and find source material from the DeOrnellis piece. Then STOP.

October 10th, 2023

Let’s go over this Piece before you do annotated bibliographies. We’ll get into somewhat of a semi circle.

When Life Imitates Art_ Aestheticism in The Importance of Being Earnest

Remember annotated bibliographies? They’re back!! But how to annotate?

Let’s take a look in depth at this piece using annotation strategies. Not all will be applied to this particular piece, but some can be. Let’s look at the document:

This is from Patricia Kain (Harvard University)

The process of writing an essay usually begins with the close reading of a text. Of course, the writer’s personal experience may occasionally come into the essay, and all essays depend on the writer’s own observations and knowledge. But most essays, especially academic essays, begin with a close reading of some kind of text—a painting, a movie, an event—and usually with that of a written text. When you close read, you observe facts and details about the text. You may focus on a particular passage, or on the text as a whole. Your aim may be to notice all striking features of the text, including rhetorical features, structural elements, cultural references; or, your aim may be to notice only selected features of the text—for instance, oppositions and correspondences, or particular historical references. Either way, making these observations constitutes the first step in the process of close reading.

The second step is interpreting your observations. What we’re basically talking about here is inductive reasoning: moving from the observation of particular facts and details to a conclusion, or interpretation, based on those observations. And, as with inductive reasoning, close reading requires careful gathering of data (your observations) and careful thinking about what these data add up to.

How to Begin:

1. Read with a pencil in hand, and annotate the text.

“Annotating” means underlining or highlighting key words and phrases—anything that strikes you as surprising or significant, or that raises questions—as well as making notes in the margins. When we respond to a text in this way, we not only force ourselves to pay close attention, but we also begin to think with the author about the evidence—the first step in moving from reader to writer.

Here’s a sample passage by anthropologist and naturalist Loren Eiseley. It’s from his essay called “The Hidden Teacher.”

. . . I once received an unexpected lesson from a spider. It happened far away on a rainy morning in the West. I had come up a long gulch looking for fossils, and there, just at eye level, lurked a huge yellow-and-black orb spider, whose web was moored to the tall spears of buffalo grass at the edge of the arroyo. It was her universe, and her senses did not extend beyond the lines and spokes of the great wheel she inhabited. Her extended claws could feel every vibration throughout that delicate structure. She knew the tug of wind, the fall of a raindrop, the flutter of a trapped moth’s wing. Down one spoke of the web ran a stout ribbon of gossamer on which she could hurry out to investigate her prey.Curious, I took a pencil from my pocket and touched a strand of the web. Immediately there was a response. The web, plucked by its menacing occupant, began to vibrate until it was a blur. Anything that had brushed claw or wing against that amazing snare would be thoroughly entrapped. As the vibrations slowed, I could see the owner fingering her guidelines for signs of struggle. A pencil point was an intrusion into this universe for which no precedent existed. Spider was circumscribed by spider ideas; its universe was spider universe. All outside was irrational, extraneous, at best raw material for spider. As I proceeded on my way along the gully, like a vast impossible shadow, I realized that in the world of spider I did not exist.

 

2. Look for patterns in the things you’ve noticed about the text—repetitions, contradictions, similarities.

What do we notice in the previous passage? First, Eiseley tells us that the orb spider taught him a lesson, thus inviting us to consider what that lesson might be. But we’ll let that larger question go for now and focus on particulars—we’re working inductively. In Eiseley’s next sentence, we find that this encounter “happened far away on a rainy morning in the West.” This opening locates us in another time, another place, and has echoes of the traditional fairy tale opening: “Once upon a time . . .”. What does this mean? Why would Eiseley want to remind us of tales and myth? We don’t know yet, but it’s curious. We make a note of it.

Details of language convince us of our location “in the West”—gulch, arroyo, and buffalo grass. Beyond that, though, Eiseley calls the spider’s web “her universe” and “the great wheel she inhabited,” as in the great wheel of the heavens, the galaxies. By metaphor, then, the web becomes the universe, “spider universe.” And the spider, “she,” whose “senses did not extend beyond” her universe, knows “the flutter of a trapped moth’s wing” and hurries “to investigate her prey.” Eiseley says he could see her “fingering her guidelines for signs of struggle.” These details of language, and others, characterize the “owner” of the web as thinking, feeling, striving—a creature much like ourselves. But so what?

3. Ask questions about the patterns you’ve noticed—especially how and why.

To answer some of our own questions, we have to look back at the text and see what else is going on. For instance, when Eiseley touches the web with his pencil point—an event “for which no precedent existed”—the spider, naturally, can make no sense of the pencil phenomenon: “Spider was circumscribed by spider ideas.” Of course, spiders don’t have ideas, but we do. And if we start seeing this passage in human terms, seeing the spider’s situation in “her universe” as analogous to our situation in our universe (which we think of as the universe), then we may decide that Eiseley is suggesting that our universe (the universe) is also finite, that our ideas are circumscribed, and that beyond the limits of our universe there might be phenomena as fully beyond our ken as Eiseley himself—that “vast impossible shadow”—was beyond the understanding of the spider.

But why vast and impossible, why a shadow? Does Eiseley mean God, extra-terrestrials? Or something else, something we cannot name or even imagine? Is this the lesson? Now we see that the sense of tale telling or myth at the start of the passage, plus this reference to something vast and unseen, weighs against a simple E.T. sort of interpretation. And though the spider can’t explain, or even apprehend, Eiseley’s pencil point, that pencil point is explainable—rational after all. So maybe not God. We need more evidence, so we go back to the text—the whole essay now, not just this one passage—and look for additional clues. And as we proceed in this way, paying close attention to the evidence, asking questions, formulating interpretations, we engage in a process that is central to essay writing and to the whole academic enterprise: in other words, we reason toward our own ideas.

When you’re ready, you can complete an annotated bibliography of the DeOrnellis piece.

Part 1 (Summary)

1.The main idea of this article is…….

2.The topics covered in this article are…….

3.The author’s point of view in this article is……

Part 2 (Rhetoric) YOU KNOW THIS NOW!

1.The author of this piece is/is not credible because……

2.The author knows a lot about this topic because….

3.From this piece, the author wants you to………….

Part 3 (Reflection)

1.This article supports my ideas because…..

2.This article was helpful to me because….

3.This article added to my knowledge about this topic because….

October 6th, 2023

“Man only likes to count his troubles; he doesn’t calculate his happiness.”

― Fyodor Dostoevsky, Notes from Underground, White Nights, The Dream of a Ridiculous Man, and Selections from The House of the Dead

 

Let’s finish Act III

Let’s do the discussion questions (30 mins to complete)

Let’s finish this thing today!

October 5th, 2023

“The free soul is rare, but you know it when you see it—basically because you feel good, very good, when you are near or with them.”

-Charles Bukowski

Discussion for act 2. If it dies a horrible death then we’ll start act 3 sooner than later.

Act 2 questions due tonight (midnight)

Let’s finish the play by tomorrow latest.

Act 3:

Jack: Samara

Algernon: Julie

Gwendolyn: Pedram

Cecily: Elena

Lane (Merriman): Tyson

Miss Prism: Lochlan

Chausable: Owen

Lady Bracknell: Savannah

October 4th, 2023

“Closure is a greasy little word which, moreover, describes a nonexistent condition.”
― Thomas King

Simple day – We will do the following:

Finish the last few pages of act 2

30 minutes (or so) to finish the act 2 questions

30 minutes to discuss as much as we can.

Let’s get the play and discussions finished this week – next week will be a little heavier academically but you need this base in order to understand what we’re doing.

October 3rd, 2023

“My life amounts to no more than one drop in a limitless ocean. Yet what is any ocean, but a multitude of drops?”
― David Mitchell, Cloud Atlas

I’ve almost finished the rubrics for that first essay. Thanks for your patience.

We’ll finish the discussion and then we will start act 2 – all the discussion questions will be due tonight.

Jack: 

Algernon: 

Gwendolyn: 

Cecily: 

Chausable (the priest): 

Miss Prism: (The priest’s love interest)

Merriman: 

Questions for act 2 are due tomorrow –

ACT-1-3-Q-Earnest

September 29th, 2023

There are only two tragedies in life: one is not getting what one wants, and the other is getting it.

-Oscar Wilde

We’ll finish the discussion and then we will start act 2 – all the discussion questions will be due tonight.

Jack: 

Algernon: 

Gwendolyn: 

Cecily: 

Chausable (the priest): 

Miss Prism: (The priest’s love interest)

Merriman: 

September 28th, 2023

“If you only read the books that everyone else is reading, you can only think what everyone else is thinking.”
― Haruki Murakami

So this class will be split in half:

The first half will be preparing for your discussion – really get questions of worth – use examples from the text. You can’t just say generalized things. Work for that A – respond to others comments. This is a practice for formalized discussion.

Second half: Discussion!

September 27th, 2023

That is why I cannot stop thinking. I exist because I think I cannot keep from thinking.

-Jean Paul Sartre

Finish Act 1 and do questions for discussion tomorrow.

Wilde IOBE Annotated

1. Discussion Questions:

ACT-1-3-Q-Earnest (1)

September 26th, 2023

“I choose my friends for their good looks, my acquaintances for their good characters, and my enemies for their good intellects.”
― Oscar Wilde

Here’s the play:

Wilde IOBE Annotated

What is a parody, satire or farce?

What is comedy?

3 parts to this unit:

1. Discussion Questions:

ACT-1-3-Q-Earnest (1)

2. Annotated bibliography on academic article (after the play is over)

3. Final literary analysis essay.

September 25th, 2023

“It’s one thing to enjoy a story, but it’s quite another to take it for the truth.”

-Patrick Rothfuss

ESSENTIAL QUESTION:

How does Wilde both honor and satirize the Aesthetic movement through his play The Importance of Being Earnest?

Here is the lecture on Aestheticism. Note time.

Aesthetics PPT

We will read this:

happy

Here’s the play:

Wilde IOBE Annotated

What is a parody, satire or farce?

What is comedy?

3 parts to this unit:

1. Discussion Questions:

ACT-1-3-Q-Earnest (1)

2. Annotated bibliography on academic article (after the play is over)

3. Final literary analysis essay.

September 21st, 2023

In class writing today – I hope you’re ready. The draft will be due at 2:00 PM. As soon as you get to class, make sure you are ready to go. Treat this as you would a test.

When you’re finished, do something silently until the bell rings.

September 20th, 2023

“No man chooses evil because it is evil; he only mistakes it for happiness, the good he seeks.”

Mary Shelley

Today, we are going through a page or two of the six page “We Shall Fight on the Beaches” speech – putting the ‘chill’ in Winston Churchill.

Churchill_Beaches_Speech

You will be able to see how rhetorical analysis is used in universities as well. Don’t worry – yours does not need to look like this. In any case: Check out this paper –

Churchill Rhetorical Analysis

Churchill We Shall Fight on the Beaches Annotation SUN

We will do this:

1. Read the first page (only) and annotate it together as a class.
2. Have you finish annotating the other five pages
3. get started on the following:

• Appeals
• Mode of Argument
• Rhetorical Devices
• Logical Fallacies

Tomorrow you can either do a rough draft.  Or you can do an outline. I will not check any of this work, because it is treated as a three day final – the last day being the in class write.

September 19th, 2023

“The opposite of love is not hate, it’s indifference. The opposite of art is not ugliness, it’s indifference. The opposite of faith is not heresy, it’s indifference. And the opposite of life is not death, it’s indifference.”
― Elie Wiesel

This is the final day to work on the Obama introduction and paragraph. It will be due (if you check the teams page) at the end of the class today.

Here is a model example of an outline:

Obama Rhetorical Outline 1

Since we have a short week, this is what we will do:

Wednesday we will look at the Winston Churchill piece. I chose that one because I didn’t have enough time to annotate the Malcom X piece for tomorrow.

Thursday, you will have a timed in class writing on the piece you prepared for on Wednesday. Then it is finally the weekend and on Monday we start something completely different.

September 18th, 2023

There’s no such thing as dead languages, only dormant minds. that as long as we are being remembered, we remain alive. One of the pitfalls of childhood is that one doesn’t have to understand something to feel it.

-Carlos Ruiz Zafon

Today is more of a work block of sorts. I will put up the annotated speech on the board.

TIP: To make this long piece successful, only focus on a few things to specify your argument. Checklist:

1 major appeal

1 major mode of argument

3 rhetorical devices

1 theme

1 purpose

How To Booklet Essay Outline Samples for each paragraph and tips (EDITABLE)

Obama Paragraph Final Rubric

Barak Obama Final

You will follow that outline – you have the class to do it and it will be due tomorrow. If everything goes well, then the ‘summative assessment’ will be basically you completing a 3-5 paragraph rhetorical analysis on a political figure’s speech. I think that you all will be ready.

And at the end of the week, we will say goodbye to Rhetoric (until the end of the semester) and hello to Oscar Wilde and Aestheticism.

September 15th, 2023

“No man chooses evil because it is evil; he only mistakes it for happiness, the good he seeks.”

-Mary Shelley

Obama’s “A More Perfect Union”

Obama Paragraph Final Rubric

Barak Obama Final

Watch the 37 Minute video. This will give you time to follow along with the transcript and use the skills you have learned so far for a full rhetorical analysis essay process.

These are Nicholas Sun’s Model Notes for you:

Obama A More Perfect Union Annotation SUN

September 14th, 2023

“Whenever you find yourself on the side of the majority, it is time to reform (or pause and reflect).”
― Mark Twain

How To Booklet Essay Outline Samples for each paragraph and tips (EDITABLE)

This will be the guide for your essay  – we will go over this in detail.

Important: Download this somewhere and save it!

MODEL NOTES:

I Have a Dream Annotated WEEKS

MLK I have a Dream Annotation SUN

Have that introductory paragraph done by tonight. You can do this. We’ll start the Obama speech tomorrow.

September 13th, 2023

“Friendship … is born at the moment when one man says to another “What! You too? I thought that no one but myself . . .”
― C.S. Lewis, The Four Loves

I Have a Dream by Martin Luther King Jr

I will print these out as well so you can write down literary devices, notes, etc.

Remember to see if an argument is valid/ sound:

1. Ethos / Pathos / Logos in speech or article
2. Mode of argument
3. Rhetorical devices used (repetition / parallelism / anecdote etc.)
4. Are there logical fallacies?

I will print these out as well so you can write down literary devices, notes, etc.

We will watch an excerpt and talk about it.

Then we’ll be ready to form an essay.

How To Booklet Essay Outline Samples for each paragraph and tips (EDITABLE)

This will be the guide for your essay  – we will go over this in detail.

Important: Download this somewhere and save it!

MODEL NOTES:

I Have a Dream Annotated WEEKS

MLK I have a Dream Annotation SUN

MODEL EXAMPLE:

Martin Luther King, an avid civil rights activist and preacher, delivered a powerful speech on the societal changing day of august 28^th 1963, stressing the severity of the issue of inequality, in the United States, that we are able to correct but not doing so.  King uses hard hitting facts and evidence to draw attention to this blatant discrimination towards the black community while taking these facts a step up to use as topics for motifs, metaphors, and analogies to further get the point across. His potent use of strong language in the constant use of anaphora following the rule of threes, slowly ramping up in the rigor of each word, bring light to the ever-growing issue of racism in order to motivate people to make a positive change in their behavior and stand with one another. King challenges the people standing by, whether black, White, Asian, Latino, to strive forward and do something while simultaneously sympathizing with the black community affected by racism in daily life, importantly acknowledging the anger that they, and himself included, feel.

How To Booklet Essay Outline Samples for each paragraph and tips (EDITABLE)

Let’s go over what you have done with MLK first. We will have about 10 – 15 minutes in class to get everything sorted out – some more paragraphs looked at etc. We will outline your ideas today using the above ‘Precis’ structure.

MLK Paragraph Rubric

If we have time, I’d like to introduce you to Aristotle’s Rhetoric – an ideal:

Rethoric_-_What_Aristotle_would_say_to_D

September 12th, 2023

“I have the audacity to believe that peoples

everywhere can have three meals a day for their

bodies, education and culture for their minds, and

dignity, equality, and freedom for their spirits.

I believe that what self-centered men have torn down,

other-centered men can build up”

                                                    -Martin Luther King

The big PPT – (We will only doing a select number of slides from this – continue notes from the ELP PPT)

4KtRUtUmVjsKgsh8

First, with rhetoric, there is more than just “Ethos Pathos & logos.” Authors use literary devices to persuade their audiences as well.

These are the major ones but we will go over others together. Take notes!

• Alliteration – the recurrence of initial consonant sounds – rubber baby buggy bumpers
• Allusion – a reference to an event, literary work or person – I can’t do that because I am not Superman.
• Analogy – compares two different things that have some similar characteristics – He is flaky as a snowstorm.
• Anaphora – repeats a word or phrase in successive phrases – “If you prick us, do we not bleed? If you tickle us, do we not laugh?” (Merchant of Venice, Shakespeare)
• Antithesis – makes a connection between two things – “That’s one small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind.” (Neil Armstrong)
• Epithet – using an adjective or adjective phrase to describe – mesmerizing eyes
• Hyperbole – an exaggeration – I have done this a thousand times.
• Metaphor – compares two things by stating one is the other – The eyes are the windows of the soul.
• Metonymy – a metaphor where something being compared is referred to by something closely associated with it – The knights are loyal to the crown.
• Onomatopoeia – words that imitate the sound they describe – plunk, whiz, pop
• Oxymoron – a two word paradox – near miss, seriously funny
• Parallelism – uses words or phrases with a similar structure – I went to the store, parked the car and bought a pizza.
• Simile – compares one object to another – He smokes like a chimney.
• Understatement – makes an idea less important that it really is – The hurricane disrupted traffic.

Let’s read one of the greatest speeches in recent history:

I Have a Dream by Martin Luther King Jr

I will print these out as well so you can write down literary devices, notes, etc.

Remember to see if an argument is valid/ sound:

1. Ethos / Pathos / Logos in speech or article
2. Mode of argument
3. Rhetorical devices used (repetition / parallelism / anecdote etc.)
4. Are there logical fallacies?

I will print these out as well so you can write down literary devices, notes, etc.

We will watch an excerpt and talk about it.

Then we’ll be ready to form an essay.

How To Booklet Essay Outline Samples for each paragraph and tips (EDITABLE)

This will be the guide for your essay  – we will go over this in detail.

Let’s go over what you have done with MLK first. You have about 10 – 15 minutes in class to get everything sorted out. We will outline your ideas today and tomorrow using the above ‘Precis’ structure.

MLK Paragraph Rubric

If we have time, I’d like to introduce you to Aristotle’s Rhetoric – an ideal:

Rethoric_-_What_Aristotle_would_say_to_D

It’s a great read in any case.

The big PPT – (We will only doing a select number of slides from this – continue notes from the ELP PPT)

4KtRUtUmVjsKgsh8

First, with rhetoric, there is more than just “Ethos Pathos & logos.” Authors use literary devices to persuade their audiences as well.

• Alliteration – the recurrence of initial consonant sounds – rubber baby buggy bumpers
• Allusion – a reference to an event, literary work or person – I can’t do that because I am not Superman.
• Amplification – repeats a word or expression for emphasis – Love, real love, takes time.
• Analogy – compares two different things that have some similar characteristics – He is flaky as a snowstorm.
• Anaphora – repeats a word or phrase in successive phrases – “If you prick us, do we not bleed? If you tickle us, do we not laugh?” (Merchant of Venice, Shakespeare)
• Antanagoge – places a criticism and compliment together to lessen the impact – The car is not pretty but it runs great.
• Antimetabole – repeats words or phrases in reverse order – “ask not what your country can do for you — ask what you can do for your country.” (J F Kennedy)
• Antiphrasis – uses a word with an opposite meaning – The Chihuahua was named Goliath.
• Antithesis – makes a connection between two things – “That’s one small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind.” (Neil Armstrong)
• Appositive – places a noun or phrase next to another noun for descriptive purposes – Mary, queen of the land, hosted the ball.
• Enumeration – makes a point with details – Renovation included a spa, tennis court, pool and lounge.
• Epanalepsis – repeats something from the beginning of a sentence at the end – My ears heard what you said but I couldn’t believe my ears.
• Epithet – using an adjective or adjective phrase to describe – mesmerizing eyes
• Epizeuxis – repeats one word for emphasis – The amusement park was fun, fun, fun.
• Hyperbole – an exaggeration – I have done this a thousand times.
• Litotes – makes an understatement by denying the opposite of a word that may have been used – The terms of the contract are not disagreeable to me.
• Metanoia – corrects or qualifies a statement – You are the most beautiful woman in this town, nay the entire world.
• Metaphor – compares two things by stating one is the other – The eyes are the windows of the soul.
• Metonymy – a metaphor where something being compared is referred to by something closely associated with it – The knights are loyal to the crown.
• Onomatopoeia – words that imitate the sound they describe – plunk, whiz, pop
• Oxymoron – a two word paradox – near miss, seriously funny
• Parallelism – uses words or phrases with a similar structure – I went to the store, parked the car and bought a pizza.
• Simile – compares one object to another – He smokes like a chimney.
• Understatement – makes an idea less important that it really is – The hurricane disrupted traffic.

September 11th, 2023

Journal #3

“The truth knocks on the door and you say, “Go away, I’m looking for the truth,” and so it goes away. Puzzling.”

― Robert M. Pirsig, Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance: An Inquiry Into Values

Rhetorical Analysis:

Speeches and Rhetoric

Here’s a PPT that I’d like for you to take notes on:

Pathos_Logos_Ethos

There’s a little assignment here that I’d like for you to do and a sheet we can look at:

ethos-pathos-logos-definitions-and-worksheet

The big PPT – (We will only doing a select number of slides from this – continue notes from the ELP PPT)

4KtRUtUmVjsKgsh8

First, with rhetoric, there is more than just “Ethos Pathos & logos.” Authors use literary devices to persuade their audiences as well.

These are the major ones but we will go over others together. Take notes!

• Alliteration – the recurrence of initial consonant sounds – rubber baby buggy bumpers
• Allusion – a reference to an event, literary work or person – I can’t do that because I am not Superman.
• Analogy – compares two different things that have some similar characteristics – He is flaky as a snowstorm.
• Anaphora – repeats a word or phrase in successive phrases – “If you prick us, do we not bleed? If you tickle us, do we not laugh?” (Merchant of Venice, Shakespeare)
• Antithesis – makes a connection between two things – “That’s one small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind.” (Neil Armstrong)
• Epithet – using an adjective or adjective phrase to describe – mesmerizing eyes
• Hyperbole – an exaggeration – I have done this a thousand times.
• Metaphor – compares two things by stating one is the other – The eyes are the windows of the soul.
• Metonymy – a metaphor where something being compared is referred to by something closely associated with it – The knights are loyal to the crown.
• Onomatopoeia – words that imitate the sound they describe – plunk, whiz, pop
• Oxymoron – a two word paradox – near miss, seriously funny
• Parallelism – uses words or phrases with a similar structure – I went to the store, parked the car and bought a pizza.
• Simile – compares one object to another – He smokes like a chimney.
• Understatement – makes an idea less important that it really is – The hurricane disrupted traffic.

Let’s read one of the greatest speeches in recent history:

I Have a Dream by Martin Luther King Jr

I will print these out as well so you can write down literary devices, notes, etc.

Remember to see if an argument is valid/ sound:

1. Ethos / Pathos / Logos in speech or article
2. Mode of argument
3. Rhetorical devices used (repetition / parallelism / anecdote etc.)
4. Are there logical fallacies?

I will print these out as well so you can write down literary devices, notes, etc.

We will watch an excerpt and talk about it.

Then we’ll be ready to form an essay.

How To Booklet Essay Outline Samples for each paragraph and tips (EDITABLE)

This will be the guide for your essay  – we will go over this in detail.

Let’s go over what you have done with MLK first. You have about 10 – 15 minutes in class to get everything sorted out. We will outline your ideas today and tomorrow using the above ‘Precis’ structure.

MLK Paragraph Rubric

If we have time, I’d like to introduce you to Aristotle’s Rhetoric – an ideal:

Rethoric_-_What_Aristotle_would_say_to_D

It’s a great read in any case.

The big PPT – (We will only doing a select number of slides from this – continue notes from the ELP PPT)

4KtRUtUmVjsKgsh8

First, with rhetoric, there is more than just “Ethos Pathos & logos.” Authors use literary devices to persuade their audiences as well.

• Alliteration – the recurrence of initial consonant sounds – rubber baby buggy bumpers
• Allusion – a reference to an event, literary work or person – I can’t do that because I am not Superman.
• Amplification – repeats a word or expression for emphasis – Love, real love, takes time.
• Analogy – compares two different things that have some similar characteristics – He is flaky as a snowstorm.
• Anaphora – repeats a word or phrase in successive phrases – “If you prick us, do we not bleed? If you tickle us, do we not laugh?” (Merchant of Venice, Shakespeare)
• Antanagoge – places a criticism and compliment together to lessen the impact – The car is not pretty but it runs great.
• Antimetabole – repeats words or phrases in reverse order – “ask not what your country can do for you — ask what you can do for your country.” (J F Kennedy)
• Antiphrasis – uses a word with an opposite meaning – The Chihuahua was named Goliath.
• Antithesis – makes a connection between two things – “That’s one small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind.” (Neil Armstrong)
• Appositive – places a noun or phrase next to another noun for descriptive purposes – Mary, queen of the land, hosted the ball.
• Enumeration – makes a point with details – Renovation included a spa, tennis court, pool and lounge.
• Epanalepsis – repeats something from the beginning of a sentence at the end – My ears heard what you said but I couldn’t believe my ears.
• Epithet – using an adjective or adjective phrase to describe – mesmerizing eyes
• Epizeuxis – repeats one word for emphasis – The amusement park was fun, fun, fun.
• Hyperbole – an exaggeration – I have done this a thousand times.
• Litotes – makes an understatement by denying the opposite of a word that may have been used – The terms of the contract are not disagreeable to me.
• Metanoia – corrects or qualifies a statement – You are the most beautiful woman in this town, nay the entire world.
• Metaphor – compares two things by stating one is the other – The eyes are the windows of the soul.
• Metonymy – a metaphor where something being compared is referred to by something closely associated with it – The knights are loyal to the crown.
• Onomatopoeia – words that imitate the sound they describe – plunk, whiz, pop
• Oxymoron – a two word paradox – near miss, seriously funny
• Parallelism – uses words or phrases with a similar structure – I went to the store, parked the car and bought a pizza.
• Simile – compares one object to another – He smokes like a chimney.
• Understatement – makes an idea less important that it really is – The hurricane disrupted traffic.

Let’s read one of the greatest speeches in recent history:

I Have a Dream by Martin Luther King Jr

I will print these out as well so you can write down literary devices, notes, etc.

Then on to logical fallacies.

September 8th, 2023

I will not be here today. You might be seeing me run out at the beginning of the block. My boy is not feeling well and I have to take him to the doctors.

You can do this pre-assessment writing with the TOC – Look at the models for guidance. Spend some time with partners and try to figure out the meaning of the text.  I’ll talk to you about it on Monday.

Template for what I want – Due Sunday at midnight. Submit to TEAMS.

AB_ Template

(250-500 words) 

1.The main idea of this article is……. 

2.The topics covered in this article are……. 

3.The author’s point of view in this article is…… 

1.This article supports my ideas because….. 

2.This article was helpful to me because…. 

3.This article added to my knowledge about this topic because…. 

 

Here are a few good examples of annotated bibliographies from other students:

 1.Percy, W., “Loss of the Creature”, Message in the Bottle, Picador, 2000.  (Print)

The main idea of this article is the factor of expectations, one cannot truly experience something to its full extent with prior expectations. It gives examples such as family’s trip to the Grand Canyon, could a tourist’s experience really compare to the explorer’s who discovered it in the first place? When you see something, do you “see it for what it is” (p.47) or are you just looking at it. The author attempts to persuade the reader that perception “may be recovered by leaving the beaten track” (p.48); as well as using visual elements and stories to explain why one’s perception needs to be recovered in the first place. Does an individual only care for an experience if its validated, or if it levels up with “the “it” of their dreams” (p.53). Is it really possible to escape our consciousness, is that the only way we could truly live fulfilling experiences? This is a question I repeatedly asked, this article supports my ideas of how others are desperate for validation and approval. How most “unique” experiences were only lived to tell the tale, but while this article helped me call out others flaws, I did not expect for it to render so relatable to myself as well. One day, the day I finally get to see the attraction that I have been wanting to for so long, how could I properly “see” it? This article is fascinating, it will very often pop into my mind, but I have heavy doubt that it will affect the way I live my life. I will still take photos, tour popular places, brag about my so-called “unique” experiences. Although this article did contain enlightening lessons, it has far too many liberating rules for my way of living life.  

2. Percy, W., “Loss of the Creature”, Message in the Bottle, Picador, 2000.  (Print)

The idea of this article is that we should try to have authentic experiences. If we go to Paris for example, most people will hit all the popular tourist spots. The Eiffel tower, the louvre, etc. But you are not experiencing Paris, you are only experiencing what society wants you to experience. An authentic experience would be exploring the side streets, going to night clubs, stepping off the beaten path so to speak. But the author also says that we should not be conscious of the experience as it’s happening, since that would make it not authentic. At that point you’re conscious of you experiencing the experience rather than the experience itself. So, you should seek out authentic experiences, but you shouldn’t be conscious while within said authentic experiences. This seems contradictory at first, but on further thought I can pull away a simple message from this. You should go off the beaten path to do things that are different and unique and enjoy whatever comes your way. The author also brings up that a lot of people try to validate their experiences as authentic. If they find something unique, they want to know for sure that it’s unique. I think this isn’t the case for most people and if it is, it shouldn’t be. If that experience brought you happiness, who cares if it’s “the real thing”. Your happiness shouldn’t have to be justified by societal norms of what’s truly authentic. There is something to be said about looking for the authentic experience. If you’re in a different country, it’s probably a good idea to try and immerse yourself in their culture, but you shouldn’t obsess over it. Back to my example with Paris: if you’ve managed to go to the outskirts of town into a small bar where everyone’s a local speaking French, and you see something from your home country, that shouldn’t make you think that the experience is in any way less enjoyable. What I’m trying to say is, do everything in moderation; try to have authentic experiences, but don’t obsess over having the perfect experience.  

September 7th, 2023

Journal entry #2

“Is it possible, in the final analysis, for one human being to achieve perfect understanding of another?
We can invest enormous time and energy in serious efforts to know another person, but in the end, how close can we come to that person’s essence? We convince ourselves that we know the other person well, but do we really know anything important about anyone?”

― Haruki Murakami, The Wind Up Bird Chronicle

Today, I would like to introduce you to annotated bibliographies. These are integral for research purposes. I am introducing them earlier on, just because everything we read together will be logged so that you have a bookmark to refer.

Let me introduce what an annotated bibliography is first.

Then we will read a piece by a smart thinker. We will discuss this piece, then you will complete an annotated bibliography on this fella. This will be your first assignment.

Here is the lecture:

Annotated Bibliography 2022

The written piece that we will be discussing is in the following PDF:

Loss of the Creature

You will be answering these questions (written as sentence stems):

Part 1 (Summary)

1.The main idea of this article is…….

2.The topics covered in this article are…….

3.The author’s point of view in this article is……

Part 3 (Reflection)

1.This article supports my ideas because…..

2.This article was helpful to me because….

3.This article added to my knowledge about this topic because….

September 6th, 2023

Journal Entry #1

“A truth once seen by a single mind ends up by imposing itself on the totality of human consciousness.”
― Anonymous, The Arabian Nights

Write about this for about 10 minutes. This is the guide for ‘journal writing’:

Quote Journal Grade 12 V2

Welcome to class.

First, I would like you to write a paragraph in your journal (Same as quote journal) about what it is you would like out of class following these questions:

1. What are my plans for post-secondary? To what end will these plans meet?
2. What are my strengths in English Literature? Be specific.
3. What are my weaknesses in English Literature? Be specific.
4. What do you expect out of this class this semester? – This is an important question because each grade 12 class I’ve designed is tweaked for each dynamic.
5. What is my expected grade? Why?

Here is the syllabus for the class. Spend some time looking over it with a partner and pose any questions to me regarding the class. Each pair should come up with one or two questions.

Syllabus-English-12-2024