9B: Sample Macbeth paragraph

Here's the sample paragraph we wrote in class Tuesday.

Discuss the symbolism of blood in scene two, and apply it to specific lines.

In act 2 scene 2 of Macbeth, Shakespeare uses blood as a symbol of guilt in order to contrast for the audience how Macbeth and Lady Macbeth deal with the guilt over the death of Duncan. When Macbeth returns from having killed Duncan and finds blood on his hands, he worries about the ability to wash his hands clean. ‘Will all great Neptune's ocean wash this blood / Clean from my hand? No, this my hand will rather / The multitudinous seas in incarnadine, / Making the green one red.’ (II.ii.27-30) Shakespeare does this to show Macbeth’s strong sense of guilt over the act he has just performed. By saying that he doubts whether he can wash his hands clean, Macbeth symbolically shows his doubts that he will ever be free of the guilt over the murder. In fact, not only will his guilt be permanently on his hands, but it will make all of the sea red: this foreshadows the fact that Macbeth’s sense of guilt will affect not only him, but all of Scotland as it motivates his tyranny. On the other hand, Lady Macbeth has a totally different attitude about the blood and, symbolically, her sense of guilt. She says, ‘My hands are of your colour,’ but in contrast with Macbeth, assumes that ‘A little water clears us of this deed: / How easy is it, then!’ (II.ii.39-40) Lady Macbeth sees the guilt, symbolized by the blood on her hands, as insignificant; it can easily be washed away, forgotten, left behind. By having both characters talk about the blood on their hands, Shakespeare contrasts the two characters’ attitudes about guilt and the consequences of evil actions.

10B: sample analysis paragraph

Here’s the sample we wrote in class. It’s about the ad linked above.

Association

One of the most common ways of selling a product is through association. With this technique, the product is linked to a desire to which the advertiser believes the target audience will have some attachment. In the 1971 Coca-Cola advertisement, the association is with idealism, unity and internationalism. Because the late 1960s and early 1970s were heavily influenced by the youth counter-culture movement of the anti-war protests and the ‘hippie lifestyle,’ these were ideas and desires that were important, especially to young people. Naturally, young people are the target audience of the ad. When the ad starts, a young woman is singing the song alone. Her natural appearance and the fact that she is looking off into the distant sky gives the impression of her sincerity and idealism. As the song continues, more people start singing with her, giving the impression that the song is gaining in strength as the voices, belonging to a group of people with various ethnicities and wearing clothing suggestive of national costumes. (I would then go on the describe the nature of the song, the outdoor setting, the girl at the end looking like she might cry, the slogan 'The Real Thing,' etc.)

10A: sample analysis paragraph

Here's the sample we wrote in class. It's about the ad thumbnailed above. (Click for a bigger copy.)

ironic ad

Some advertisers will avoid the more mainstream advertising techniques and instead use ironic ads. Ironic ads make fun of traditional ads, and by so doing they make the consumer feel like the product trusts them. In other words, the consumer is treated like she is too smart to actually be advertised to. A classic example is the Volkswagen ‘Think Small’ campaign. Volkswagen wants to make a claim of a unique selling proposition, so they emphasize not only the differences between this car and other cars on the market, but also the differences between this ad and other car ads. For instance, the car is shown very small and on a neutral, white background, making it look somewhat ridiculous. Most car ads would show the car in great detail and in a highly associative context. The slogan ‘Think Small’ is the opposite of what one expects a car ad to say, thus making fun of that more traditional style of advertising. (Then you would keep writing about the other techniques in the ad.)

10: advertising analysis assignment

You will choose three techniques of advertising and create a poster, notebook or PowerPoint demonstrating how those techniques are used, analyzing specific ads that are examples of those techniques in use. You must include copies of the ads which you are analyzing.

9: Macbeth act II questions

Choose 2 of the following questions and answer them in structured, planned paragraphs. Aim for more than 200 words. Use specific references to the play with scene and line numbers. It would look like this: Macbeth says, “Two truths are told, as happy prologues to the swelling act of the imperial theme” (I.ii.126-128)

1. Discuss the significance of omens in this act.

2. What is Macbeth’s state of mind in either scene 1 or 2, and what specific techniques does Shakespeare use to establish it?

3. Discuss the symbolism of blood in scene two, and apply it to specific lines.

4. Is Lady Macbeth’s response to the deaths of the guards is sincere or pretended? Why do you think so, and what difference does it make in our understanding of her character?

DUE: Thurs. 27.11

10: short sentences

10: poetry presentations

Here are some places to look for poems for your presentations:

Here is a webpage from a few years ago with the poems on which the students presented.

Here are some random sites with other poems:

• British War poetry - WW1


• An introduction to WWI poetry


• 120 War Poems

Here is a copy of the assignment (in case you lost it).

11: Victorian poetry orals

Victorian poetry orals

1. Find a poem by one of the poets we looked at and do an analysis of that poem, identifying theme and technique. Some poems:
   
   
   
   
   1. 
      
      
      
      1. 'Grief' by Elizabeth Barret Browning
      
      
      2. 'Consolation' by Elizabeth Barret Browning
      
      
      3. some Tennyson poems
      
      
      4. some Hardy poems
      
      
      5. some Robert Browning poems
         
      
      
      
      
   
   
   
   

1. Do some research on one of the poets we looked at, and use that information to explain something about the poems we looked at. Make sure the focus is on the poetry, not a long summary of a biography.

1. Look at elements of Victorian culture and values and explain how we see those present in some of the poems we read.

1. Write your own Victorian poem. Use the techniques and elements you saw used in these poems, and have a presentation explaining how you used the poems as a source for your own poem.

Orals will be presented Tues. 18 and Wed. 19 November.

9: Macbeth Act I assignment

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="408" caption="A cartoonist's rendition from Act I scene 5. Click the image to go to his blog."][/caption]

Choose two images from  Act I that you think are important in establishing character, conflict or setting. For each, quote the lines (including reference*), create an image and write a short paragraph explaining the significance. The paragraphs should be structured.

Due Thursday 13.11.

* act, scene, line number = I,ii,15-17.

9: Macbeth links

Here are some things to help you keep up with the play:

No Fear Shakespeare Macbeth: The original text side-by-side with a more modern, easy to read translation.

MIT Shakespeare Macbeth: Just a straight text, good for cutting and pasting when needed.

10: Cruel to Be Kind

A musical paradox...

11: Ebony and Ivory

More education for you:

11: 'Don't Fear the Reaper'

So we mentioned reapers today while reading 'The Lady of Shalott,' and I remembered a song title. 'Don't Fear the Reaper' is originally by Blue Oyster Cult, but a good version is by Helsinki's own HIM.

11: grammar issues

Purdue University's OWL (Online Writing Lab) is a good resource for grammar issues.

Here's a handout called 'Comma vs. Semicolon.' Very useful.

Here's a handout about various punctuation, including the colon, parenthesis, dash, quotation marks, and italics.

And one about active and passive voice.

11: Ulysses paragraphs

Here are the paragraphs we wrote in class today.

12:

9B: 'Fair is foul, and foul is fair'

Choose one of these questions and respond, using an organized paragraph and using examples to support your ideas.

1. How can a virtue ('fair') sometimes be dangerous or harmful ('foul')? Choose one virtue and describe some situations in which that virtue would be a negative.


2. Look at the virtues and choose two that might be in conflict with each other -- for example, tact and honesty. Explain how a person decides how to prioritize competing virtues in different circumstances, using an anecdote to illustrate how that decision might be made.

Due: Tuesday November 4

A: Content	B: Organization	C: Style & Language
· Do your ideas show clarity, originality and creativity? · Do you support your ideas well?	· Does your paragraph have structure? · Do you move from idea to idea clearly?	· Are you ‘following the rules’ of spelling, grammar and punctuation? · Do you use the right word for the right situation?

9: Declaration movie

Here's a Quicktime version of our little movie.

12: commentary structure

Download a pdf with a basic commentary structure.

12: Hamlet review

10: sample conclusion

Here's the sample conclusion we wrote in class:

While the novelist shows the vulnerability and flexibility of individuality in different circumstances, people today still consider to what degree we are truly individuals and to what degree we are victims of our environment and circumstances. For instance, are career criminals just bad people, or are they bad because of the environments in which they were raised? Is the best way to deal with crime to isolate criminals because of their individual traits, or should we attempt to change the environments which sees to produce criminals? The issue of individuality and its real power is a something we still consider today.

12A1: 'I Have a Dream'

Here's a link where you can read, listen to or watch the speech.

10: sample paragraph

Here's the paragraph we wrote in class:

Thesis: During wartime, social norms and rules are abandoned and replaced by practical and physical needs.

In the environment of war, social rules are easily abandoned. One social rule which is abandoned is respect for authority. Before the war, Paul and his friends respect Kantorek enough to join the army at his encouragement. However, when talking about people like Kantorek and their responsibility for the deaths of young recruits, he says, ‘[T]hat is the very root of their moral bankruptcy’ (9). In the environment of war, the idea that a headmaster ought to be respected merely because of his age and social position is easily discarded; the soldiers’ experiences have shown him to be wrong, and so the respect is unnecessary. Additionally, respect for human life is abandoned in war. In chapter nine, Paul finds himself in the shellhole with the French soldier he has killed, and he feels deep sympathy and guilt for his death, feelings we find consistent with social norms. However, as Paul returns to his own line, he finds that sympathy ridiculous, and his fellow soldiers agree. ‘What else could you do? That’s why you’re out here,’ they tell him (161). The requirements of the war environment make the normal sympathy in the face of the loss of human life wasteful and unnecessary. As Kat encourages Paul to watch the celebrating snipers, Paul finds it easy to abandon the social norm of respecting human life.

11A1: satire

Here is two parts of a CNN documentary called 'The Spirit of Satire.'  might find of the definitions interesting.

9: poetry calendar downloads, info.

Download a blank calendar sheet (doc).

Download page one and page two of my sample calendar (pdfs).

The assignment sheet is below. (If you don't see it, click 'More'.)

10A: sample introduction

Here's a PDF of the introductions handout.

Here's the sample introduction we wrote together in class today:

As students walk around the halls of The International School of Helsinki, they see the motto, ‘Each one is unique.’ But are we all really unique? Can we claim that every individual is essentially different, or are our apparent differences the result of the situations in which we have found ourselves? For Remarque, author of All Quiet on the Western Front, he sees the limitations of individuality because of war. In the opening chapters of the novel, individuality is seen as vulnerable and flexible in the face of circumstance. 

10: Streetcar questions

1.    For each of the characters listed, identify the defining characteristic, motivation, internal conflict and/or symbolic significance: Blanche, Stella, Stanley, Mitch.

2.    There is a difference between why Blanche says she has come to stay with Stella and Stanley and why she has actually come to stay with them. What is that difference?

3.    Can we see Stella as being ‘between’ Stanley and Blanche? Explain.

4.    What does Stanley’s behaviour at the poker game and around the house tell us about him and the world in which he lives?

5.    What does Blanche’s obsession with lighting tell us about her? What about her interaction with the paper boy?

6.    At the end of the play, what has Stanley done to Blanche? How do the other characters respond to that?

7.    How do we end up feeling about Blanche at the end of the play?

response question:

1.    Compare how The Glass Menagerie and A Streetcar Named Desire deal with a similar theme.
2.    Compare a character from The Glass Menagerie with a character from A Streetcar Named Desire.
3.    What role does the setting play in A Streetcar Named Desire? Think about atmosphere as being past of setting. Be as specific as possible.

12A1: WL2 template

Here is a link to download the template you used for your world lit. 1. I couldn't alter it as I have a virus on my home computer. Some additional things you need to do for this one:

1. On the title page, include which world lit 2 assinment youre doing (2A, 2B, 2C). If you're doing 2C, include the type of assignment you're doing (commentary? analysis of a passage?) in your title along with the work and aspect.


2. Change the header to 'World literature assignment 2.'


3. If you're writing about Year of the Hare or Hour of the Star, cut and paste the bibliographic entry from below.


4. If you are doing a commentary, include a copy of the passage you are using, clearly marked, and attach it to the end of the assignment.

Lispector, Clarice. The Hour of the Star. Trans. by Giovanni Pontiero. Manchester: Carcanet. 1986.

Paasilinna, Arto. The Year of the Hare. Trans. by Herbert Lomas. London: Peter Owen. 1995.

DUE Thursday 18 September.

11A1: Year of the Hare intro reading

Here is the document we looked at on Wednesday 10.9. It has background information about the novel and a reading schedule. Get a copy before Monday so you can do the reading.

11A1: Catcher orals

Catcher in the Rye orals

 

• Alone or in pairs


• 5 minutes per person


• Look at criteria


• presentations on Wednesday

12: Hamlet text & translation

E-notes has a side-by-side text and translation for acts I-IV. If you want act V, you have to subscribe and pay.

9: carpe diem film clip

This is the clip from Dead Poets' Society we watched Tuesday in class.

10: The Glass Menagerie typography

Here's an animated typography of a passage from the play. Quite cool.