Not An Essay

So. The English students in a lunch and class period gone by
and the teacher who taught them had intelligence and nerdiness.
We have heard of those APES' mind-blowing discussions.

(Does anyone get that?  Open your books to page 3...)

Anyway, the thesis idea has won over the essay idea--only because it requires you to use all of the discussion that we've had the past two days. 

So here are the questions:

1. Beowulf contains some very detailed and elaborate settings—consider Heorot, Grendel’s and his mother’s underwater abode, and the dragon’s lair.  What are the larger implications found within these settings?  How do they contribute to the meaning of the poem?

2. What are the roles of the three monsters—Gendel, his mother, and the dragon—in Beowulf?  What purpose(s) do they serve and how do they contribute to the meaning of the poem?

3. Why are there so many stories-within-the-story in the poem? What is the relationship between these “digressions” and flashbacks and the main narrative and purpose in Beowulf?

Craft your thesis statements as if you're writing a timed essay: you want to make sure your points and, perhaps, some textual references are worked into it.  Take a look at your past work and see where you need to make improvements.

This is due on Monday, but you can get it done tonight.  Tomorrow you'll have a poem to dissect in class and an essay to begin.  

If you have any questions, please feel free to text me.  I'll be in and out of service on Friday and Saturday, so don't be offended if I don't get back to you right away.

Oh, I'll also be here at lunch tomorrow, so if you need help with these thesis statements, let me know.

9/20 Homework

I think that one thing that we can all agree on is that this is a faith-based novel--Irving's point about faith, though, we may still need to iron out. 

Today we spoke about archetypal connections and--briefly--John's character and how that would affect his narration and the way in which the story is structured. 

Think about what you've read in the critiques, interviews, and the Afterward: Irving finalizes his last thought and then writes from there, expunging detail that doesn't add up to his predestined ending before it can begin.  Now I'd like you to take a look at a secondary character (Merrill, Dan, Tabby, Harriet, Wiggins, Mr. Fish, etc. are good examples) and try to discern his or her purpose. 

I understand that consulting Sparknotes or some other internet source would make this task a lot easier.  Don't give in to the dark side...Give your brain a good workout.

Tomorrow, be prepared to discuss your chosen character's purpose, but be ready to supply specific, detailed textual examples that support your analysis.

If you have any questions, let me know.  I really enjoyed our discussion today!  See you tomorrow!

Look into Johnny as a character:
--a "Joseph"
--a virgin
--he lives in Canada, but he doesn't fit in...consider the reasons
--his namesake (one of the interviews/critiques referenced a Puritan minister...)
--what are his views on faith?  He's "a Christian because of Owen Meany," but consider how he condemns the Meanys for their belief that Owen is a virgin birth, or how he pities and condemns others for their faith (581)...How many times has he switched churches?  What book does he carry around with him?  (check out the first three paragraphs of the book)

Now consider that he's our narrator:
--first person
--writing a memior
--jumps between past and present
--tone shifts?

What does having Johnny as the narrator do for the story?  If we had a narrator who was uninvolved, then we could simply focus on the story being told.  Instead--in order to thoroughly look for meaning in the novel--we have to filter the story through the first person narrator...Hmmm....

Spend some quality time letting this marinate in your brain; make some notes if you'd like.  We'll discuss tomorrow--in addition to taking another look at the first and last pages of the novel.

Oh, speaking of the first and last pages, please read the Afterword tonight as well.

What is the "Meany" of All of This?

This assignment is due on Wednesday.  Here's what I'd like you to do:

1. Read the critiques and interviews that I gave you in class today and make notes as you go--recording what you believe to be strong arguments and insights.  Please feel free to mark any weak or faulty arguments as well.  (You can do this on the photocopies.)

2. You'll need ten notecards for this one.  On the front (or back) of each notecard, place a quote from one of the critiques or interviews; on the opposite side, react to the quote, citing specific passages from the novel (there's no need for quotes from the work, though) as support for your assertions and explaining yourself thoroughly.  (Those of you with ginormous handwriting may have to write smaller than usual.) 

If you have any questions, please ask!

"The Mediterranean" notes...

Read over Tate's "The Mediterranean" again after reading these notes:

The epigraph is extremely important--not necessarily for its context in the Aeneid (but that is important as well), but moreso along the lines of what the question is asking and to whom metaphorically...

Throughout history, the Med. Sea has been known as a big-time route for not only trade between cultures (as far as goods go), but also an exchange and blending of cultural ideas themselves...

Also, in the third stanza, there's a reference to Aeneas eating his plates.  Check out this reference in the epic and why it's such a big deal...

In the seventh stanza, there's a reference to Atlantis--do some research and see what it has to do with the Gates of Hercules (stanza 8), the Straight of Gibraltar and the Med. Sea.  Pull up a map of the globe: what happens if you go "Westward, westward" from there?

Stanza 9: What does "muscadine" mean?

We'll dig into this more tomorrow...

9/10 Homework

Here are your two questions.  Remember, I'd like you to spend about 10 minutes per question; the first one should be 10 minutes of freewriting--don't pick up your pencil or pen to think, just keep writing.  For the second one you need to craft a thesis.  It only has to be one or two sentences, but spend some time (well, 10 minutes) crafting it.  Carefully consider not only your ideas but the sentence(s) that houses them--choose your words and phrasing carefully.

     1.  What does Virgil want us to see in those last two stanzas?  Are they in line with what he's
          shown us so far in the poem? Explain.

2.  One of the many purposes behind crafting an epic poem is to laud the beliefs, customs and morals of a certain group of people.  This is especially true of The Aeneid, which Virgil penned to celebrate the strength and power of the Roman Empire.  Read the passage below from Book IV, Anchises to Aeneas:

"Others, no doubt, will better mould the bronze
To the semblence of soft breathing, draw from marble
The living countenance; and others plead
With greater eloquence; or learn to measure,
Better than we, the pathways of the heavens,
The rising of the stars; remember, Roman,
To rule the people under law, to establish
The way of peace, to battle down the haughty,
To spare the meek. Our fine arts, these, forever."

            What aspects of Roman culture is Virgil praising; are they truly represented

within his poem?  Explain.