Friday, April 17, 2009

YOUR LAST BLOG!!!

At the end of Catcher in the Rye, Holden watches his sister, begins to cry, and says, "God, I wish you could have been there."

As I've probably said before in class, this is one of those moments in literature where I really do wish I had been there. Now it's your turn: I'd like you to tell me what pieces have really resonated with you this year.

Think about your readings from this year (including the summer works). Think over poems, short stories, novels, and plays. What moments from these works stick with you? What novel, scene, character, or quotation do you sometimes still think about? Why?

Due Friday, April 24th, midnight.

Monday, April 13, 2009

Blog, due Friday April 17th, midnight

Time to start reviewing!

For this week, choose an important quotation from Ralph Ellison's Invisible Man.

Type the quotation in full and be sure to give the page number.

Then comment on the quotation:
Why did you choose this quotation?
How does it relate to the themes of the novel?
Why is it important?

No repeat quotations! You will not receive credit for a quotation already chosen by someone else. In other words, post early, and read the other posts to make sure you are not repeating.

Sunday, March 29, 2009

Blog 2 Required, Due April 10th.

Find one critical essay on Beloved. Your response is not due until Friday, April 10th. (I know that we don't have school that day). Your in-class essay is on Monday, April 13th, and I think it will be very helpful to have read some criticism before that day.

You can use good ole LRC (password: elvis, then scroll down to Literature Resource Center) to find an article. Be careful not to use "overviews" or "reviews." They are not criticism. You may also use any book in our school library (such as Novels for Students). Please do not take articles from the internet. Use only the LRC or our library. Choose an article that you can understand and read well.

Do the following:

1. Cite the article properly (MLA format- use the OWL to help you.)
2. Summarize the article- what does it say about Beloved? This part is simply a summary, not your opinion. Write at least a full paragraph (6-10 sentences, at least).
3. React to the article- what parts do you agree/disagree with? What do you learn about the novel from this article? Again, about another full paragraph (6-10 sentences, at least).

If you accomplish the above three items correctly, you will receive 40 (!!!) points. That's double the usual blog grade! If you fail to do the above correctly, you will not receive full credit. If you post late, it is half credit until the end of Sunday.

Thursday, March 12, 2009

4th Quarter, Blog 1 Required

Find one critical essay on The Sound and the Fury.

If you have the Norton Critical Edition, there are numerous essays in the back under "Criticism." If you do not have the Norton Edition or choose not to use it, use good ole LRC (password: elvis, then scroll down to Literature Resource Center) to find an article. Be careful not to use "overviews" or "reviews." They are not criticism.

In the near future we might have access to JSTOR, an exceptional online database, and if that happens, I will post instructions for accessing it.

You may also use any book in our school library (such as Novels for Students). Please do not take articles from the internet. Use only the Norton, LRC, or our library. Choose an article that you can understand and read well.

Do the following:

1. Cite the article properly (MLA format- use the OWL to help you.)
2. Summarize the article- what does it say about TSATF? This part is simply a summary, not your opinion. Write at least a full paragraph (6-10 sentences, at least).
3. React to the article- what parts do you agree/disagree with? What do you learn about the novel from this article? Again, about another full paragraph (6-10 sentences, at least).

If you accomplish the above three items correctly, you will receive 40 (!!!) points. That's double the usual blog grade! If you fail to do the above correctly, you will not receive full credit. If you post late, it is half credit until the end of Sunday.

Doing a casual search just now on LRC, I found an article pondering whether the man in the red tie is gay, another analyzing Jason's "Mother complex," and many, many more!

Tuesday, March 3, 2009

Helpful!

http://www.usask.ca/english/faulkner/main/index.html

go to Quentin's section, click on the colored box in the right hand frame.

Tuesday, February 24, 2009

Second Semester Blog #7- Required (the last one this nine weeks!)

Comment on some aspect of Faulkner's The Sound and the Fury. You can ask questions, discuss meaningful quotations or symbols, comment on your experiences reading the novel, etc. Note: this is not a forum for your complaints.

I want to encourage you to respond to your classmates and help them understand this very complex novel. Build upon what others have already said.

You must post at least once before Friday, March 6th for credit. You may, of course, continue to post after that date as we continue to discuss this novel. Use this as your sounding board for ideas we didn't cover in class.

Monday, February 9, 2009

Second Semester Required- Week 6

This week we are revising our WH essays.

Comment on any aspect of your revision process. Here are some ideas:

Describe what happened during the in class write (the first time around).
Describe what influenced your revisions.
What are the biggest differences between your in class essay and your revised essay?
How did you revise? How did you decide what changes needed to be made?
How did you decide how to change certain parts?
What part of the essay still could be better? What part do you feel fairly confident with?

On Friday, turn in both the original essay and the revised copy. Your dramatic monologue is also due on Friday. We will read these in class!