My video! So far...

My progress!

I am making a scrapbook for my graduation in a slideshow format so I could add music to it. So far I have an 8 minute show with a few songs on it. I am using 100 years from Five for Fighting and The graduation Song by Vitamin C. My graduation party is for myself, Briana Derr, Rylee Birdsall, and Desiree Coles. We have been best friends since we were young so I wanted to put all of our pictures together (old and new) and create a memory that we will always have with us! I love this project.

"A Reflection on Unstructured Learning"

This article made me think about subliminal messages and reading between the lines. This guy was so wrapped up in his everyday life that he was ignoring what was right in front of his nose. It also made me think that everything happens for a reason. When he earned the name Night Owl it clicked and helped him with what he was intending to do all along. This relates to us as students because we are so tuned in to studying and getting good grades that we miss out on the things that really matter.

MY PLAN

This whole year, and actually all my life, has been preparing me for this moment and this time in my life. From this point forward I plan on studying the AP tests for this class as well as the other AP tests I am taking. I have looked at the test that has the answers along with it so I can track how I'm doing as I go. I have also been working on scholarships because I need to get those done. This week I plan on putting 75% of my time towards studying for the AP tests and the other 25% of the time to other schoolwork, homework, etc.

Soliloquy Video!

Macbeth Test Corrected

1. Macbeth won the respect of King Duncan by

A. slaying the traitor Macdonwald.

B. serving as a gracious host for his king.

C. not pleading for advancement.

2. King Duncan rewarded Macbeth by dubbing him

A. the Earl of Sinel.

B. the Thane of Cawdor him.

C. Bellona's bridegroom.

3. In addressing Banquo, the witches called him which of these?

"Lesser than Macbeth, and greater." (I)

"Not so happy as Macbeth, yet much happier." (II)

"A future father of kings." (III)

A. I and II

B. I and III

C. I, II, and III

4. When Macbeth said, "Two truths are told / As happy prologues" he was referring to

A. his titles of Glamis and Cawdor.

B. the victories against the kerns and gallowglasses.

C. the predictions made to Banquo and to himself.

5. "Nothing in his life / Became him like the leaving it" is a reference to

A. the traitorous Thane of Cawdor.

B. Banquo's son, Fleance.

C. Duncan's son, Donalbain.

6. Duncan's statement, "I have begun to plant thee and will labour / To make thee full of growing" is an example of

A. a simile.

B. a metaphor.

C. personification.

7. Lady Macbeth characterizes her husband as being

A. "the glass of fashion and the mould of form."

B. "too full of the milk of human kindness."

C. "a cannon overcharg'd with a double crack."

8. When Macbeth agonizes over the possible killing of the king, which of these does he say?

"He is my house guest; I should protect him." (I)

"Duncan's virtues will "plead like angels" " (II)

"I am his kinsman and his subject" (III)

A. I and III

B. II and III

C. I, II, and III

9. Macbeth's statement to his wife, "Bring forth men-children only" signifies that he

A. is proud of his wife's transformation.

B. is concerned over the succession to the throne.

C. has accepted the challenge to slay the king.

10. As part of the plan to kill the king, Lady Macbeth would

A. get the chamberlains drunk.

B. smear Duncan's face with blood.

C. arrange an alibi for Macbeth.

11. Trace Macbeth's transformation from a good man to an evil man.

Other people saw MAcbeth in the highest regards in the beginning of the play.  His power slowly corrupts him and turns his admirable character into a hated one.

12. What motivates Macbeth to take the evil path he chooses?

Macbeth wanted to be KING! His thoughts are to kill the current king because he knows he is next in line.

13. What influence do the witches have on Macbeth?

The question his manhood and are the underlying reason Macbeth turns evil.. they put the evil thoughts in his head and let them brew. 

14. Contrast Macbeth's response to the witches' predictions with Banquo's.

Macbeth is fearful and we learn that from Banquo. Banquo becomes skeptical when the idea of becoming king is bestowed in Macbeth.

15. Describe the relationship between Macbeth and Lady Macbeth. Trace how it changes over the course of the play.

The first treat each other as equals. The respect each other and love each other. Once Duncan is killed, Lady M is no longer needed and this causes her to go crazy.

PART 2

1. "Art thou not, fatal vision, sensible / To feeling as to sight?" is a reference to the

A. ghost of Banquo.

B. dagger.

C. bubbling cauldron.

2. Lady Macbeth confessed that she would have killed King Duncan herself except for the fact that

A. she couldn't gain easy access to his bedchamber

B. he looked like her father

C. one of Duncan's guards spied her on the to stairway

3. Shakespeare introduced the Porter in order to

A. allow Macduff to gain admission to the castle.

B. remind the audience of the Witches' prophecies.

C. provide comic relief.

4. Malcolm and Donalbain flee after the murder

A. because they fear the daggers in men's smiles.

B. in order to join Macduff in England.

C. lest they be blamed for it.

5. Macbeth arranges for Banquo's death by telling the hired killers that

A. Banquo had thwarted their careers.

B. if they fail, they will pay with their own lives.

C. he will eradicate all records of their previous crimes.

6. Macbeth startles his dinner guests by

A. conversing with the Ghost of Banquo

B. attempting to wash the blood from his hands

C. saying to Lady Macbeth that, "Murder will out."

7. The Witches threw into the cauldron

"Eye of bat and tongue of frog"(I)

"Wool of bat and tongue of dog" (II)

"Fang of snake and eagle's glare" (III)

A. I and II

B. I and III

C. II and III

8. The three apparitions which appeared to Macbeth were

An armed head. (I)

A child with a crown. (II)

A bloody child (III)

A. I and II

B. II and III

C. I, II, and III

9. In Act IV, Malcolm is at first lukewarm toward Macduff because he

A. wasn't prepared to overthrow Macbeth.

B. suspects a trick.

C. wasn't worthy of becoming king, in his opinion.

10. Birnam Wood comes to Dunsinane when

A. the witches rendezvous with Macbeth.

B. the camouflaged soldiers make their advance.

C. Lady Macbeth convinces her husband to stand and fight.

11. What is the significance of the line "Fair is foul, and foul is fair" (I, i, 10)?

This foreshadows the confusion and complexity of the play. 

12. How does Macbeth function as a morality play?

The battle between good and evil

13. How does Shakespeare use the technique of dramatic irony in Macbeth?

When Duncan walks into the castle he doesn't know he is going to be killed and this is ironic for us because we know.

14. How does Lady Macbeth overcome her husband's resistance to the idea of killing King Duncan?

She questions his manhood and puts him down as a person. 

15. Contrast Macduff's response to the news of his wife's and children's deaths with Macbeth's response to being told Lady Macbeth is dead

Macduff feels pain and shock. Macbeth on the other hand seems not to care and nonchalant about it. 

Macbeth Notes Part 2

Lady Macbeth 

Loses her common sense and goes crazy towards the end.

Macbeth represents a tragic hero because he had to overcome challenges and show his strength

Lady Macbeth represents the pressure that was put on Macbeth and that eventually kills her

Before the banquet Macbeth wants to kill Banquo but fails to tell Lady M.

Macbeth and Lady M. are living two different lifestyles...

Macbeth proceeds to kill Banquo's family

Lady M. represents pure evil, pure desire... she will kill anyone and has a dark heart that she tries to bestow upon Macbeth

The Witches

They represent inevitable fate!

Wants to make sure we never forget the evil intent...

The witches represent prophecies 

"The witches want to torment people."

The witches are a symbol of a story that Macbeth believes in

The witches only show up every now and then and appear to be very mysterious


Macbeth

"Shakespeare's most compelling characters"

Macbeth is a TRAGIC character! (as said above about tragic hero)

Everyone sees Macbeth in the brightest light and he can do no wrong..

In the end Macbeth loses his ambition for how great he can become and ends up all alone

Mindmap

http://www.mindmeister.com/127727492

Macbeth Notes

Macbeth: brutal, cynical


*NOT FOR FAMILY ENTERTAINMENT


Background: 

• Shakespeare's most intense play

• Written in 1605-1606

• Globe Theater, Blackfriars Theater

*Shakespeares fav: Holinshed's Chronicles of the History of England & Scotland



Scotorum Historiae- 1527 by Hector Buece


Discovery of Witchcraft- Reginald Scot


Deamonologie- 1599 - King James 1. 


Important notes
Macbeth is an openly political play


Shakespeare changed history in Macbeth to add suspense


Understanding the background and history helps us understand the characters


"Macbeth was a man of penetrating genius, a high spirit, unbounded ambition. 


Intelligent and ambitious.

Top Blogs

I always can count on these three people when I need help with my blog. They are always up to date and we work very well in class as well!

http://kerhsenglitcomp.blogspot.com/   Katie Enstad
http://narhsenglitcomp.blogspot.com/   Nicole Anderson
http://erlrhsenglitcomp.blogspot.com/   Lizzie Level

Literature Analysis

Catcher In The Rye
J.D. Salinger


Main Character: Holden, 17 years old, narrator


Summary: The novel begins with Holden getting kicked out of school and sent to a psychiatrist. While there he confesses he was expelled from an all boy prep school called Pencey Prep. We find out Holden is the jealous type when he gets angry at a boy who is taking holden's ex girlfriend out on a date. Holden begins a new chapter in his life and moves to New York. 
*An interesting topic and possibly symbolism gets brought up with the ducks.*
He wonders what happens to the ducks when the pond freezes over, but his question is dismissed and not examined closely. Holden becomes a regular at the bars and even gets a few prostitutes. He uses the prostitute as an outlet and talks to them as a type of therapy. Unlike others who use prostitutes for sex, Holden just simply wants to talk. Holden mentions his "kid sister Pheobe" a lot and his previous relationship with Jane. He then goes to find Pheobe and ends up sneaking into his own apartment to tell his sister he got kicked out of school, which she doesn't like at all. He also tells her about his fantasy of becoming the "catcher in the rye" and wanting to stop all of the people before they run off of the cliff.  Holden decides to leave one day and Pheobe wants to come along but he refuses. The novel ends very strangely... and I had to do some research to find out why this was. Holden goes to the zoo with Pheobe and Holden buys Pheobe a ticket for the carousel. He begins to cry when he sees how happy Pheobe is and then it begins to pour rain. That's it, the novel ends right there just like that...


Theme: Innocence, the struggles of growing up, and loneliness


Tone: Colloquial style, and a style of somber tied in. It can be straight forward and bitter at times.


" I don't care if it's a sad good-by or a bad good-by, but when I leave a place I like to know I'm leaving it. If you don't, you feel even worse."
"Game, my ass. Some game. If you get on the side where all the hot-shots are, then it’s a game, all right—I’ll admit that. But if you get on the other side, where there aren’t any hot-shots, then what’s a game about it? Nothing. No game."


Lit Techniques:
Symbolism/imagery- the ducks. Holden kept bringing up the ducks numerous times throughout the novel and it symbolized his innocence and curiosity. The ducks ultimately symbolized himself.


Diction/syntax- colloquial. The choice of words by the author helped the reader better understand Holden's internal struggles as well as external. 
"I'll just tell you about this madman stuff that happened to me around last Christmas just before I got pretty run-down and had to come out here and take it easy."


Setting*- the setting added to the overall tone of the story. It is interesting how something that simple can affect the story  overall. 


Direct/Indirect characterization- The author uses these techniques in such a way that the indirect characterization shines through and really explicates the structure of each character. "I ran all the way to the main gate, and then I waited a second till I got my breath. I have no wind, if you want to know the truth. I'm quite a heavy smoker, for one thing – that is, I used to be. They made me cut it out."

Video Lit Analysis

Catcher in the Rye.. hope this works...

Socratic Seminar

1.
Q: Are brands more powerful than governments?
- Names of countries are brands themselves
- Some brands are governments
- the way they power relations in the world and how they are structured

Q88: what does the future you want look like?
- To encourage more creativity and NOT to teach so much to the test!

The video with the people asking the questions reminded me of a socratic seminar

Q: why are other countries less developed than ours?
- possible not the right resources?

The Need for Play

- structure vs. free play
 - playing in a sandbox with many freedoms or being stuck in a small place with few resources? Who is more likely to succeed..

1a.
This will help me greatly when grades no longer matter. For example, some things especially from this class will help me later in life. Being able to reference to a poem I memorized in this class may be the one thing that separates me from someone else and make me stand out amongst others. When there is not longer a carrot and stick effect (getting that A) people are going to need to self motivate to get what they want in life.

1b.
These concepts will help build on my learning skills especially for the AP test. I have to remix everything I learn and put it into words that have meaning to my everyday life, including the AP test which I will eventually be taking. I have learned to take information and develop it and manipulate it in such a way that it will stick in my brain until I need to dig it back out again. These skills we are learning in this class will take us a long way, above and beyond the testing world..

1c.
I think we have already got a good start on collaborating with these concepts starting with our socratic seminar. We each have our own ideas that we remix again and again to try and imprint on others our personal way of thinking. I am inspired to share this information with others via internet to help them expand their learning abilities and explore ideas of thinking they otherwise would not have the opportunity to do.

This youtube video remixes my poem about immortal love...

<iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/C0_WAgwBR90" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Literature Analysis: Of Mice and Men

Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck

1. The novel begins with two men, George and Lennie, who are migrant workers in California. They travel to many farms trying to find work. George is “small and quick and dark of face” and Lennie is a giant man with the mindset of a child. Although nothing is directly said about him, it is inferred that he has a disability. George and Lennie have a brother-like relationship, and Geroge acts as Lennie's older brother. When George and Lennie get let off a bus miles away from the farm they are supposed to be at they decide to walk and along the way they discuss their plans for the future. Both of the men fantasize about their dream of owning their own farm. When they finally arrive at the ranch, all of their dreaming and fantasizing comes to an end and they are brought back to harsh reality. They meet the boss's rude son, Curley, who just married and is very protective over his wife who tends to be very flirty.. Lennie ends up meeting her later and develops a little crush on Curley's wife. This foreshadows the unfortunate events to come. As the day goes on, George and Lennie meet the other ranch hands. George meets a friend called Slim and and confesses to him that Lennie has gotten them in trouble for being innapropriate to women and he was accused of rape. Curley goes into a frenzy trying to find his missing wife later that night, and decides to take his anger out on Lennie. Lennie is very strong and powerful and he breaks Curley's hand. This symbolizes that Lennie has more power than he is aware of. The next day, Lennie is found very upset because he accidentally killed one of the puppies from the ranch. To help calm him down, Curley's wife offers to let him touch her hair because he likes the feel of soft textures. Lennie, again not realizing what power he possesses, gets flustered when she starts screaming, and he tries to make her quiet down. By doing this he breaks her neck and kills her just like that. The end of this book always makes me cry. George and Lennie escape and George shoots Lennie in the back of the head. You can tell this book was not from this time period because everyone was so ignorant when it came to handicap and disabilities. Lennie was misunderstood and because of people's lack of knowledge, he was killed out of fear.

2. Theme: isolation; ignorance; selfishness

3. Tone: brutal, straightforward, matter of fact

- “I don’t know why I can’t keep it. It ain’t nobody’s mouse. I didn’t steal it. I found it lyin’ right beside the road.”

- “For the first time Lennie became conscious of the outside. He crouched down in the hay and listened. ‘I done a real bad thing,’ he said. ‘I shouldn’t of did that. George’ll be mad. An’…he said…an’ hide in the brush till he come. He’s gonna be mad. In the brush till he come. Tha’s what he said.’”

-  “And George raised the gun and steadied it, and he brought the muzzle of it close to the back of Lennie’s head. The hand shook violently, but his face set and his hand steadied. He pulled the trigger. The crash of the shot rolled up the hills and rolled down again. Lennie jarred, and then settled slowly forward to the sand, and he lay without quivering. George shivered and looked at the gun, and then he threw it from him, back up on the bank, near the pile of old ashes.”

4.  Literary Techniques/Elements:

Foreshadowing- When George confides in Slim about how they got in trouble at their last farm it foreshadows how they are going to get in trouble at their new ranch too. They set up a “lynch party” when they got in trouble in Weed and when they get in trouble in Soledad.

* “Dumb bastard like he is, he wants to touch ever’thing he like. Just wants to feel it. So he reaches out to feel this red dress an’ the girl lets out a squawk, and that gets Lennie all mixed up, and he holds on ‘cause that’s the only thing he can think to do….”

* “Well that girl rabbits in an’ tells the law she been raped. The guys in Weed start a party out to lynch Lennie.”

Symbolism: Lennie's lack of knowledge of how much power he had symbolized power and lack of knowledge. 

Setting- The story, being set in a rural area isolated from a lot of people helps set the stage for isolation.

*“ On one side of the river the golden foothill slopes curve up to the strong and rocky Gabilan mountains, but on the valley side the water is lined with trees-willows fresh and green with every spring, carrying in their lower leaf junctures the debris of the winter’s flooding; and sycamores with mottled, white, recumbent limbs and branches that arch over the pool.”

            

Irony- It is ironic that George ends up killing his best friend, and someone he promised to take care of.

* “George shivered and looked at the gun, and then he threw it from him, back up on the bank, near the pile of old ashes. 

Time Period: This book would not have been able to exist in any other time period because that would never happen in today's society. People have more knowledge about mental disabilities, whereas in this book everyone was scared of him because they didn't know why he was different. 

Poem Interpretation

"Stairway To Heaven"
Robert Plant

There's a lady who's sure all that glitters is gold
And she's buying the stairway to heaven.
When she gets there she knows, if the stores are all closed
With a word she can get what she came for.
Ooh, ooh, and she's buying the stairway to heaven.

There's a sign on the wall but she wants to be sure
'Cause you know sometimes words have two meanings.
In a tree by the brook, there's a songbird who sings,
Sometimes all of our thoughts are misgiven.
Ooh, it makes me wonder,
Ooh, it makes me wonder.

There's a feeling I get when I look to the west,
And my spirit is crying for leaving.
In my thoughts I have seen rings of smoke through the trees,
And the voices of those who stand looking.
Ooh, it makes me wonder,
Ooh, it really makes me wonder.

And it's whispered that soon if we all call the tune
Then the piper will lead us to reason.
And a new day will dawn for those who stand long
And the forests will echo with laughter.

If there's a bustle in your hedgerow, don't be alarmed now,
It's just a spring clean for the May queen.
Yes, there are two paths you can go by, but in the long run
There's still time to change the road you're on.
And it makes me wonder.

Your head is humming and it won't go, in case you don't know,
The piper's calling you to join him,
Dear lady, can you hear the wind blow, and did you know
Your stairway lies on the whispering wind.

And as we wind on down the road
Our shadows taller than our soul.
There walks a lady we all know
Who shines white light and wants to show
How everything still turns to gold.
And if you listen very hard
The tune will come to you at last.
When all are one and one is all
To be a rock and not to roll.

And she's buying the stairway to heaven.

1. Dramatic Situation: The speaker is a male, and he is talking to a lady. The location of this person is irrelevant. It is simply telling s story of a girl..


2. Structure: This poem rhymes. Listening to this poem as a song helps understand the structure better. This song slowly builds throughout. This poem is structured so beautifully, and it has to be heard with the melody to get the full effect. There is repetition in this poem. "Ooh, it makes me wonder."


3. Theme: "My hand was writing out the words, 'There's a lady is sure , all that glitters is gold, and she's buying a stairway to heaven'. I just sat there and looked at them and almost leapt out of my seat." Plant's own explanation of the lyrics was that it "was some cynical aside about a woman getting everything she wanted all the time without giving back any thought or consideration. The first line begins with that cynical sweep of the hand ... and it softened up after that."
-Plant

Happiness will come if you take the right path.. "And there's still time to change the road you're on..."

4. Grammar and Meaning: "Your stairway lies on the whispering wind."  This line is amazing! Every line in this song has a purpose and this particular line is so moving and gives the real imagery that Robert Plant intended for this song. The Stairway to Heaven itself symbolizes the road to happiness, good fortune, etc.

5. There are a lot of figurative uses of language: "Our shadows taller than our soul." Then there is use of literal language as well: "When all are one and one is all".

6. Important words: "glitters is gold", "smoke through the trees" "The piper's calling you to join him"

7. Tone: The tone actually changes from the beginning to the end of the poem. As the music builds, the same words begin to take on a new meaning. The character in this poem is starting to figure out what happiness really is, and the change in tone expresses this.

8. Literary Techniques: diction/syntax, figurative language, imagery, metaphor, repetition, narrator point of view, "the forests will echo with laughter" <--- major personification! 

9. Procedy: The song flows and gradually builds into a rhythm that is wells structured. 

Micro-AP part I (Essay)

• What was easy/expected?
• What was difficult/unexpected?
• What did you learn about the AP questions?
• What did you learn about your own performance under pressure?
• How will this experience influence your preparation for the actual exam?

I had an idea of what we were going to be writing about. The two novels were obvious, and I felt confident that with that knowledge, as well as other novels fresh in my mind, I would have a good chance.

I did not know that the essay part was going to be first. I thought the multiple choice was coming first so I was preparing for that, not an essay. Thinking of examples on the spot like that was also difficult, but I definitely think it better prepared me for the real exam. 

I learned that the questions are made to look tricky, but if I try to eliminate at least one answer I can better assess what my other options are. I also learned that I need to not stress so much, and be confident in myself. 

I feel like I perform my best under pressure. The whole time-limit thing doesn't scare me, instead it motivates me to get it done. I usually finish before the time limit is up anyways, so it gives me time to check my answers/ review my essay. 

This experience was very motivating to me. I like that we are doing more activities geared to the AP test now. I am feeling more prepared and with that I am building my confidence. I want to continue to study hard and receive the results I want for myself. 

Tale of Two Cities: Active Reading Notes (Video)

1857- The Frozen Deep play Dickens played in.  Inspired by Franklin expedition in 1845 to the Artic to find the Northwest Passage . In the play he played Richard who sacrificed himself so his best friend can be with the girl they both love. The self sacrifice aspect is passed onto the plot of A Tale of Two Cities Lucie in the story is based off of Ellen, the women he left his wife for. 1858 started a series of public readings for money.  This established a new relationship with his readers. 1858 He separated from his wife. Started a new journal that the majority is his and in late 1858 the first three chapters of A Tale of Two Cities was published. Dickens fell in love with Paris . Paris was modernizing and vibrant city during Dickens time. He was fascinated with the darker side of the city and visited the morgue often. “It was the best of times it was the worst of times”  Uses a historical setting for a very modern parallel. A Tale of Two Cities moved between Paris and France and goes up to the French Revolution <-----------------------------mine ends here Weekly Journal: Weekly Cereal- made Dickens restrict his focus, two illustrations from his novels.  Dickens illustrator for A Tale of Two Cities was Brown. He enjoyed pictures of animals, but didn’t do illustrations after this book. Dickens writes of history, not a problem.  Become aware of how he distributed the novel into cereal issues. He wrote the novel as he went along so the readers didn’t know what was going to happen. Dickens wanted people to read his stories for two reasons, because of a memorable time in France and to see reactions to exaggeration and because he felt it was his best work yet. He kept his writing hidden until it was published.   “The Only Way” in 1948, Dickens builds suspense and tension, by imagery. 1840 Thomas Carlyle influenced Dickens. “Rare and great worth of a loving man”. He enjoyed Dickens readings. Dickens turned to him to preparing A Tale of Two Cities. Weekly Journal: Weekly Cereal- good for Dickens, made him restrict his focus, two illustrations from his novels.  Dickens illustrator for tale of two cities was Brown. Pictures of horses, which he liked doing. He didnt illustrate after the tale of two cities. Dealing with history rather a problem.  Become aware of how he distributed the novel into cereal issues. Makes use of cliffhanger endings..to the next week’s issues of the Weekly Cereal.. Didn’t create the novel in pieces, he wrote as he went along, so people could witness his writings.  He would Adjust characters and split to the way characters would react. He wanted people to Read for 2 reasons: treats of a very memorable time in France and he wanted to kno what pp. Thought of the exaggeration, and because it was the best story he has written. He kept his writing private until it was published.  “the best story I have written” recognize the historical process of events in this novel. France dramatization never happened.. There were other adaptations March 1860 Tom Taylor: “The only Way”- done by two clergyman, best dramatization. Silent film in 1908 of this film. First sound film 1935.  “The Only Way” was shown in 1948. Dickens builds suspense and tension, by imagery. Public issue: revolution -  Thomas Carlyle. Tremendous influence with Dickens. They met in 1840. Dickens said he would go see Carlyle anywhere..they were very good friends.  Elen Turner: 1857 she was 18, he was 45.  “Rare and great worth of a loving man”. C enjoyed Dickens readings. Dickens turned to him to preparing a tale of 2 cities.  “Every human creature is constituted to be that profound secret of mystery…”  “I hope you care to live..”

Dicken's Question

1. Read this quote:
"What is it that makes you want to write songs? In a way you want to stretch yourself into other people's hearts. You want to plant yourself there, or at least get a resonance, where other people become a bigger instrument than the one you're playing. It becomes almost an obsession to touch other people. To write a song that is remembered and taken to heart is a connection, a touching of bases. A thread that runs through all of us. A stab to the heart. Sometimes I think songwriting is about tightening the heartstrings as much as possible without bringing on a heart attack." -Keith Richards
2. Answer this question in a post to your blog: 
What is it that made Charles Dickens write the novel you're reading? What in your analysis of literary techniques led you to this conclusion? (Make sure to include textual support illustrating Dickens' use of at least three techniques.)


-- I am glad we did an analysis of Dickens' life before we started reading our novels. This made it easier for me to understand his motives for writing and motivated me to get through the (for lack of better words) boring parts of the book. 


I believe people write songs to express themselves in a way that they otherwise couldn't in colloquial conversation. Songs are a lot like books in the sense that they are unique and each one has a different message. The author of songs are similar to the author of books because they both share a common goal: Causing a "stab to the heart.... to tighten the heartstrings as much as possible without bringing on a heart attack." Some classic songs will always be remembered, for example, Stairway to Heaven; everyone knows that song and it is referenced to all the time. The same literary techniques are applied to classic books such as Hamlet, or the Great Gatsby.


After doing some further research, I came to find that Dickens was going through a rough time when he wrote Great Expectations. One of Dickens' strongest points as a writer was his use of literary techniques to convey his story in a more creative way. Just like in a song, Dickens created a character with a problem and developed him through use of tone, mood, syntax/diction, and irony. Dickens develops Pip as a character throughout the novel, from an orphan to a gentleman. "It is considered that you must be better educated, in accordance with your altered position, and that you will be alive to the importance and necessity of at once entering on that advantage." To me, his development of learning was subliminal, and I didn't notice it until I looked back. He had learned from Biddy, through Joe,  and Miss Havisham.

Literature Analysis

lit anal

Discussion Notes: Great Expectations

Literary Devies Used:


Allegory
Symbolism
Imagery
Narrator point of view
Allusions 
Tone
Mood
Syntax
Foreshadowing 
Diction 


This whole novel is bound together with elements of darkness. Accompany that with mists and you have a very dark novel. Dickens uses light to symbolize a contrast with the darkness, and this imprints the Gothic element in our brain. Dickens uses the narrator point of view to show that it is a memoir of Pip. Dickens uses Pip to foreshadow events, and give hints to the reader of what is to come ahead without giving everything away. Dickens uses the Allusion when Pip goes to see one of Shakespeare's plays Hamlet. Dickens creates a mood that is very dark, as mentioned above, by using imagery for the reader to picture it. The choice of language in this book suits each character. Pip seems very innocent and this shapes him as a character. The tone is reflective, remorseful, bittersweet, comical, and passionate.


to be continued..

BigQuestion Intro

BIG Q

Reading Questions: Great Expectations

1. What role does social class play in Great Expectations?
2.Explain what you think Pip would look like in person. Use textual examples to help support your analysis. 
3. Where does this novel take place? Why did the author choose this location?
4. What impression do you get of London society after reading Great Expectations?
















A1. Relating this question to Pip, he starts off as a lower middle class person. When he meets  Havisham who is an upper class lady, his views begin to change. When he gets money he realizes it cannot give him happiness. "Money can't buy you happiness."


A2. Just by his name, and how it is so short and unimportant sounding, I picture him being short and scrawny, or the kid that gets beat up after school by bullies. The fact that he is so innocent and compassionate in the beginning of the novel supports my analysis. 


A3. Great Expectations took place in the Kent region of England and London.

A4. ...

Literature Analysis

The Stranger 

- Albert Camus

1. Summary: The novel begins with the main character, Meursault's mother dying, and he has to go to her funeral. He returns to Algiers and goes on a date with a Marie, who is his co-worker. Meursault then runs into his neighbor, Raymond, and they have dinner. Raymond tells Meursault that his girlfriend when he found out she was cheating on him. He said that her brother and him fought over it. Meursault is asked to help Raymond get his girlfriend back by writing her a letter. Raymond then gets arrested for beating his girlfriend, and Meursault has to speak on his behalf. While at the beach, Raymond, Meursault and Marie see his girlfriends brother, and they fight again and this time Raymond gets badly wounded by a stabbing. .Raymond, furious, wants to shoot her brother but Meursault calms him down. Later on however, Meursault ends up shooting her brother and kills him. Meursault is arrested and imprisoned. He is then encouraged to turn his life around and accept God into his life. Meursault actually grows ti like his life in prison, and realizes that there is no real meaning to life anyways. He seems depressed, however and spends most of his time lying around and sleeping. The judge finds him guilty of the crime and is not impressed with meursaults morals. He is then sentenced with the death penalty of being beheaded. The novel ends with Meursault accepting that his life had no reasoning or meaning, and he dies with that comforting him. 

2. Theme: The sooner you accept that life has no meaning, the happier you will be. You cannot dig to deep under the surface of life. 

3. The author's tone is mundane, depressing, and carefree.

 For example, "Mother died today. Or, maybe, yesterday; I can't be sure."

"It seemed to me that the idea behind it was still further to exclude me from the case, to put me off the map... by substituting the lawyer for myself."

"Anyway, it hardly mattered; I already felt worlds away from this courtroom and its tedious 'proceedings.'"

4. Five literary elements/techniques: characterization, syntax, foreshadowing, understatements, and the overall message. 

The theme was portrayed by the characters personalities of being so carefree and nonchalant.  "And so, with that crisp, whip crack sound, it all began. I shook off my sweat and the clinging veil of light. I knew I'd shattered the balance of the day, the spacious calm of this beach on which I had been happy. But I fired four shots more into the inert body, on which they left no visible traces. And each successive shot was another loud, fateful rap on the door of my undoing."

The choice of words that were used by the author created a character with little structure that helped me realize that they were little meaning to what they said. It was more about their actions. "When leaving, I very nearly held out my hand and said, 'Good-by'; just in time I remembered that I'd killed a man."

"I caught myself thinking what an agreeable walk I could have had, if it hadn't been for Mother." Also, "Now, in the full glare of the morning sun, with everything shimmering in the heat haze, there was something inhuman, discouraging, about this landscape."

In the beginning when Meursault's mother dies, it made me appreciate what I jadm and also how little attention he gave that subject. He didn't mention it much, and  I think he shot Raymond's enemy because he was angry and did not know how to deal with his problems correctly.