Today we talked very briefly about Native Son but we'll be working more with it tomorrow. The one thing I would keep in mind is to look at the novel from the perspective of satire. As you finish up Fate keep returning to the idea of what is Wright trying to accomplish with this novel.
The rest of the hour was spent picking out your personal poets. If you lose your assignment sheet just click on the blog title for a new one.
Upcoming: Finish Native Son for Wednesday
Thursday, February 24, 2011
Wednesday, February 23, 2011
Flight Discussion
I'm going to save my commentary until next week so here are my notes from "Flight." The discussions went well today but they were a little heavy on plot. I was surprised that the media didn't really get mentioned and it's so over-the-top in this section.
Upcoming: Trumbo essay due tomorrow and make sure you are doing your Native Son journals as you go rather than waiting until the end.
Flight Notes
Issue of power—what gives Bigger strength?
Bigger’s willingness to kill again?
Treatment of Bigger—think he’s unintelligent, called boy
Stereotypes of communism
Newspapers—256-57, 280-83
Dehumanizing—it 272
Society—fairness 288-89
Is Bigger insane?
How do physical surroundings reflect Bigger’s situation—snow, storm,
Bigger’s Dream p. 189
Class vs. Race—which is more of a hindrance?
Stereotypes: Bigger as ignorant, violent, poor home life, whites, women, men, communists
Contrasts: different settings—Bigger’s apartment vs. the Dalton’s home. In addition to the spacial issues you also have the contrasting animals. (Watch for a parallel rat scene at the end of “Flight”)
Media: how the media is portrayed and how does the media portrays various groups—whites, blacks, communists. Newspapers—256-57, 280-83
Issue of power—what gives Bigger strength? Bigger’s willingness to kill again?
Blindness—more than just literal. Aside from her blindness what else is unique about Mrs. Dalton.
One of the ways to really understand what Wright is trying to do is to look at this novel as satire. He inflates all the stereotypes in order to make it more obvious for social commentary. T
Questions:
Be honest, were you secretly hoping Bigger would escape?
Did Bigger subconsciously want to get caught? Is that why he never cleaned the furnace?
Several instances are made about the communists in a negative light. Where is this information coming from? Bigger is fairly uneducated, yet even he has a low opinion of them.
How are stereotypes being played on, embellished, corrupted? Does it seem strange that a black author would make such an unlikeable black protagonist? What would be the possible reasons behind this? Along with this, what is the purpose behind the graphic violence. Wright isn’t just disturbed so why is it such a main focus? Hint: What is your reaction to it?
Is Bigger justified? I am in no way trying to say brutal violence is acceptable but try to get inside Bigger’s head. Is he medically insane? If so, was he born crazy or was he created? (This might also tie in with the title). Is he smart?
Upcoming: Trumbo essay due tomorrow and make sure you are doing your Native Son journals as you go rather than waiting until the end.
Flight Notes
Issue of power—what gives Bigger strength?
Bigger’s willingness to kill again?
Treatment of Bigger—think he’s unintelligent, called boy
Stereotypes of communism
Newspapers—256-57, 280-83
Dehumanizing—it 272
Society—fairness 288-89
Is Bigger insane?
How do physical surroundings reflect Bigger’s situation—snow, storm,
Bigger’s Dream p. 189
Class vs. Race—which is more of a hindrance?
Stereotypes: Bigger as ignorant, violent, poor home life, whites, women, men, communists
Contrasts: different settings—Bigger’s apartment vs. the Dalton’s home. In addition to the spacial issues you also have the contrasting animals. (Watch for a parallel rat scene at the end of “Flight”)
Media: how the media is portrayed and how does the media portrays various groups—whites, blacks, communists. Newspapers—256-57, 280-83
Issue of power—what gives Bigger strength? Bigger’s willingness to kill again?
Blindness—more than just literal. Aside from her blindness what else is unique about Mrs. Dalton.
One of the ways to really understand what Wright is trying to do is to look at this novel as satire. He inflates all the stereotypes in order to make it more obvious for social commentary. T
Questions:
Be honest, were you secretly hoping Bigger would escape?
Did Bigger subconsciously want to get caught? Is that why he never cleaned the furnace?
Several instances are made about the communists in a negative light. Where is this information coming from? Bigger is fairly uneducated, yet even he has a low opinion of them.
How are stereotypes being played on, embellished, corrupted? Does it seem strange that a black author would make such an unlikeable black protagonist? What would be the possible reasons behind this? Along with this, what is the purpose behind the graphic violence. Wright isn’t just disturbed so why is it such a main focus? Hint: What is your reaction to it?
Is Bigger justified? I am in no way trying to say brutal violence is acceptable but try to get inside Bigger’s head. Is he medically insane? If so, was he born crazy or was he created? (This might also tie in with the title). Is he smart?
Friday, February 18, 2011
AP Scoring
Happy Friday Everyone!
Today you got a chance to see what it's like to be an AP essay scorer. We went through the rubric for the morally ambiguous open essay question and we looked at some samples.
Remember for your own writing that getting a passing score is not that difficult if you stick to the prompt. The higher range scores you need to focus on two things 1. Voice--make it interesting to read 2. Unique and developed content--have a lot of support and explain what you're talking about clearly.
Upcoming: Make sure you are reading Flight. We will have our discussion on Wednesday. Have your feelings about Bigger changed at all?
Enjoy Monday!
Today you got a chance to see what it's like to be an AP essay scorer. We went through the rubric for the morally ambiguous open essay question and we looked at some samples.
Remember for your own writing that getting a passing score is not that difficult if you stick to the prompt. The higher range scores you need to focus on two things 1. Voice--make it interesting to read 2. Unique and developed content--have a lot of support and explain what you're talking about clearly.
Upcoming: Make sure you are reading Flight. We will have our discussion on Wednesday. Have your feelings about Bigger changed at all?
Enjoy Monday!
Wednesday, February 16, 2011
Three Bears
Today we had a little story time with "Goldilocks and the Three Bears." We looked at the story from two very different writing styles to practice some more with what makes a writer's style unique. Then we did a quick vocab review.
The really exciting part about today was that I found a video game based on The Great Gatsby! You know you want to check it out so click here Gatsby Game The first level is Gatsby's party--totally dorky cool!
Upcoming: Speech analysis and registration forms due Friday.
Make-up discussion for "Fear" tomorrow after school.
Let me know how the game goes!
The really exciting part about today was that I found a video game based on The Great Gatsby! You know you want to check it out so click here Gatsby Game The first level is Gatsby's party--totally dorky cool!
Upcoming: Speech analysis and registration forms due Friday.
Make-up discussion for "Fear" tomorrow after school.
Let me know how the game goes!
Monday, February 14, 2011
Fear
I really hope everyone finished the Fear section so we got the full impact for the discussion. The discussions today went fairly well, but we need to push a little more on some key issues. We will get new vocab tomorrow and then I'll answer any questions you have about the Fear section go over some points.
Here are some things to think about from Fear and things to keep in mind for Flight.
Native Son: Fear Notes
Contrast Bigger’s home p. 1 to Dalton’s home
Treatment of Bigger from his mother—manhood, “why I birthed you”
Living behind a wall p. 9 Bigger is obviously angry does he have any other way to show emotions
Activities of Bigger’s friends—rob blacks, “play white” 18,
Flight imagery—plane 17, pigeon 22
Bigger’s behavior when in presence of whites—54
Irony of Dalton being member of NAACP
Why such graphic violence? Need to be strong to get a reaction
Purpose of media— Portrayal of Communists, whites, blacks
Is it okay for black authors/characters to use the N-word?
Structure—start and end with violence
Use of color and blindness
Nature vs. Nurture—what made Bigger?
Both Mary and Bigger have limited contact with other side—Bigger hand shake, Mary traveled world—zoo type scenario
Timeline: Fear takes place in less than 24 hours
Key Passages:
Mary 23, Bigger 20
Contrast Bigger’s home p. 1 to Dalton’s home
Treatment of Bigger from his mother—manhood, “why I birthed you”
Living behind a wall p. 9
Activities of Bigger’s friends—rob blacks, “play white” 18,
Flight imagery—plane 17, pigeon 22
Bigger’s behavior when in presence of whites—54
What is the “fear” that is so prominent in this chapter? What does he mean when he says “living behind a wall” (9).
Both Jan and Mary attempt to befriend Bigger, yet it only seems to make Bigger more angry. What is Wright trying to say with this?
Upcoming: Speech analysis due Friday and don't forget your registration forms.
Here are some things to think about from Fear and things to keep in mind for Flight.
Native Son: Fear Notes
Contrast Bigger’s home p. 1 to Dalton’s home
Treatment of Bigger from his mother—manhood, “why I birthed you”
Living behind a wall p. 9 Bigger is obviously angry does he have any other way to show emotions
Activities of Bigger’s friends—rob blacks, “play white” 18,
Flight imagery—plane 17, pigeon 22
Bigger’s behavior when in presence of whites—54
Irony of Dalton being member of NAACP
Why such graphic violence? Need to be strong to get a reaction
Purpose of media— Portrayal of Communists, whites, blacks
Is it okay for black authors/characters to use the N-word?
Structure—start and end with violence
Use of color and blindness
Nature vs. Nurture—what made Bigger?
Both Mary and Bigger have limited contact with other side—Bigger hand shake, Mary traveled world—zoo type scenario
Timeline: Fear takes place in less than 24 hours
Key Passages:
Mary 23, Bigger 20
Contrast Bigger’s home p. 1 to Dalton’s home
Treatment of Bigger from his mother—manhood, “why I birthed you”
Living behind a wall p. 9
Activities of Bigger’s friends—rob blacks, “play white” 18,
Flight imagery—plane 17, pigeon 22
Bigger’s behavior when in presence of whites—54
What is the “fear” that is so prominent in this chapter? What does he mean when he says “living behind a wall” (9).
Both Jan and Mary attempt to befriend Bigger, yet it only seems to make Bigger more angry. What is Wright trying to say with this?
Upcoming: Speech analysis due Friday and don't forget your registration forms.
Thursday, February 10, 2011
MC practice
We started the class with a sample passage from the AP test. It was an older text so it was probably a little more difficult. You can expect at least one passage from the 18th century or earlier so don't be frightened off by the more complicated writing. It's usually just a little wordier and some higher vocabulary but just try to pick out the main ideas and use the questions to help guide you on the right track.
The second half was another work day with your partner on the speeches.
Don't forget to use your best friend when analyzing and make sure you do some background research on the context of the speech.
Upcoming: Vocab test tomorrow--STUDY
Finish the Fear section for Monday
The second half was another work day with your partner on the speeches.
Don't forget to use your best friend when analyzing and make sure you do some background research on the context of the speech.
Upcoming: Vocab test tomorrow--STUDY
Finish the Fear section for Monday
Wednesday, February 9, 2011
Synthesis samples
The first half of class we went over two sample essays from the TV and election prompt. Remember the things to keep in mind when writing these essays is to first make sure you can get a passing score. If you are comfortable with that level then you need to try and raise your score through voice and complex ideas.
The second part of the class was work time with your partner on the speeches. You will have some more class time on Thursday and Friday of this week and the analysis is due next Friday.
Upcoming: Vocab Test Friday
Fear due Monday
The second part of the class was work time with your partner on the speeches. You will have some more class time on Thursday and Friday of this week and the analysis is due next Friday.
Upcoming: Vocab Test Friday
Fear due Monday
Thursday, February 3, 2011
Synthesis Timed Write
Today you got back your Awakening papers which was an amazingly fast turn around time. I'm impressed with it even if no one else is.
The rest of the hour was just writing time for you. I know it's your first synthesis one but that's why we spent an hour before going over the sources and doing an outline. I might even still give you a two point bonus even though we're into the third quarter now.
Hope to see a lot of you at Showcase tonight.
The rest of the hour was just writing time for you. I know it's your first synthesis one but that's why we spent an hour before going over the sources and doing an outline. I might even still give you a two point bonus even though we're into the third quarter now.
Hope to see a lot of you at Showcase tonight.
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