Sonnet 23 Loise Labe,1524-1566, translated by Willis Barnstone What good is it to me if long ago you eloquently praised my golden hair, compared my eyes and beauty to the flare of two suns where, you say, love bent the bow, sending the darts that needles you with grief? Where are your tears that faded in the ground? Your death? by which your constant love is bound in oaths and honor now beyond belief? Your brutal goal was to make me a slave beneath the ruse of being served by you. Pardon me, friend, and for once hear me through: I am outraged with anger and I rave. Yet I am sure, wherever you have gone, your martyrdom is hard as my black dawn.
One page due tomorrow. ¶1 summary, ¶2 author’s skills, ¶3 connections, ¶4 context of author’s time.
Remember first sentence should include author’s name and title of poem. You will be graded on primarily having one full page. You will also be graded if you have one short paragraph summary at the beginning and use new paragraphs on new topics. You do not have to have all of the listed paragraphs.
Stratford Squares. We played a game as intro to Macbeth unit. All the questions and answers, including possible bluffs, are listed below.
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Below are questions for
Stratford Squares, our version of Hollywood Squares. The possible bluffs
written below each answer will give you some ideas on what you might want to
say. Your goal is to get the contestant to believe your lieor disbelieve your correct answer. The
correct answer is in bold print when possible.
1.The following words were written by Shakespeare and
can be found where?Good friend, for Jesus' sake forbear to dig the dust enclosed here.
Blest be the man that spares these stones, and curst be he that moves my bones.
Correct answer: Shakespeare's
tombstone in Stratford's Holy Trinity Church bears this inscription, said to
have been written by him
Bluff answers: You might say
that it was a famous line from one of his plays.Mention plays Titus Andromeda, Romeo and Juliet, The
Tempest, Midsummer Night’s Dream, King Lear, Henry V.Say that you saw the play or that it is your favorite play.
2.What university did William Shakespeare attend and graduate
from?
Choose Your Answer: A: Oxford, B: Cambridge, C: Glasgow,
D:None
Shakespeare, one of
literature's greatest figures, never
attended any university.
Bluff answer: say he
startedat one university and
finished at another. If you pick one of the other universities, say that your
have always been interested in one of them and you know that they have a
library with his name on it.
3) What is Shakespeare's shortest play?
Choose Your Answer: A: The Comedy of Errors, B: A
Midsummer Night's Dream, C: Macbeth, D: Timon of Athens
Correct answer: Comedy of Errors with 1787 lines Macbeth is his
shortest tragedy.
4) How many of Shakespeare's original manuscripts have survived?
None of Shakespeare's original manuscripts have survived,
due partly perhaps to the fact that they were written, many of them hastily,
strictly for stage performance.
5. Who dies first, Romeo or
Juliet or Paris?
Choose Your Answer: A: Romeo, B: Juliet, C: ParisD: Two of them die at exactlythe same time.
Paris dies outside the tomb of Juliet before Romeo goes
in to find Juiet.Bluff it any way you want. Maybe you can say that there is no
Paris in this play.
Shakespeare's only son,
Hamnet, was born approximately two years after his parents married. He died
in childhood, at the age of 11, in 1596, and was buried at Stratford. Hamnet
had a twin sister named Judith who lived into adulthood. The poet and dramatist
William D'Avenant (1606-68) was rumored to be the illegitimate son of Shakespeare,
but there is no proof to substantiate this claim.
7. At the end of Romeo and Juliet, the Montagues say they will erect
a statue of Juliet. Can such a statue be seen in the city of Verona “where we
lay our scene”?
Yes or no.
Possible bluff by saying you have visited Verona and you have
either seen the statue or haven’t seen it. You could also say that it had been
taken down because too many people had been touching the breast of the statue.
8) How many of Shakespeare's plays were published during his
lifetime?
Choose Your Answer: A: Two, B: 15,
C: 36, D: 37 E. None
Correct answer:None of Shakespeare's plays were
published during his lifetime--he wrote them, apparently, only to be performed.
Fortunately, two of his fellow actors, John Heminge and Henry Condell, gathered
36 of Shakespeare's plays and published them in 1623 in a collection that has
come to be known as The First Folio. This collection is the source from which
all published Shakespearean plays are derived.
9) What was the name of Shakespeare's wife?
Choose Your Answer:
A: Helena,HayesB: MaryC:
Anne,HathawayD: Rosaline MontressorE. Juliet Lewis
Correct answer:In
1582, at the age of eighteen, William Shakespeare marriedAnne Hathawaywho was seven or
eight years older than the young playwright. That was before she wore Prada.
10) What actor first created the roles of Hamlet, Othello, King Lear,
and Richard III?
Choose Your Answer:A: James Burbage, B: Richard
Burbage, C: Cuthbert Burbage, D: Edward Alleyn
Richard Burbage, the son of theatrical entrepreneur James
Burbage, was one of the most famous actors of his day. He was the first
actor to play many of Shakespeare's most famous parts, including Hamlet,
Othello, King Lear, and Richard III. He remained a member of the Chamberlain's
Men (later the King's Men) until his death in 1619. Possible bluff: Who the
heck cares? Then pick one.
11) Which role is Shakespeare said to have played in the original
production of Hamlet?
Choose Your Answer:A: Hamlet,B: Laertes,C: The Gravedigger,D: The Ghost
Shakespeare is said to
have played the Ghost in the
original production of Hamlet.
12. The Black Plague that
struck England during Shakespeare's lifetime around 1603 killed how many people?
300,3300,33,000 300,000.3 million?
Shakespeare lived through the Black Death, an epidemic of bubonic
plague that killed over 33,000 people in
London in 1603 and later
returned in 1608. The plague was spread by fleas and rats.
13.The story of
Pocahontas story is an adaptation of which Shakespeare play?
Taming of the Shrew,
Midsummer Nights Dream, The Tempest,Titus Andronicus
Shakespeare’s plays have been adapted into all sorts of different
contexts including the Pocahontas story: American Charlotte Barnes, for
example, adapted The Tempest in her 1844 play The Forest Princess, which retells the story of Pocahontas and
Captain John Smith.
14 What was the date of
Shakespeare's birth, exactly?
April 23, 1564
Possibly bluff by keeping the
April 23rd, but changing the year. Say that you have always remembered it
because it was the same day of the year as your birthday
15. Shakespeare was born in a
town called Stratford on Avon, or sometimes called Stratford Upon Avon. What is
Avon?
A county?A mountain?A lake?A river?
16 How old was Shakespeare when he got married?18
17. How old was Shakespeare's
wife Anne when they got married?26 years old.
18. How old was Shakespeare
when he became a father?
He was
19 years old.
19. At the age of twenty, after two years of marriage, howmany children did Shakespeare have?
Three. At 19 he
became a father; at 20 he became the father of twins. They had no more children.
20Which of the following was not the name of one of
Shakespeare's three children?Susanna;William, Junior;Hamnet,Judith
21. Mr.Stanford Williams lives in California
and he says that he is a living descendant of William Shakespeare. Could this
be true or need it be false?
The answer is false because
there are no living descendants today. To bluff :you might
say false becauseno descendants
of Shakespeare can receive royalties from his plays if they live outside
England.
Or you could bluff by saying
true because his family changed their last name because of all the people who
would bug them for artifacts of their famous ancestor, even in America.
22 How many plays did
Shakespeare write?
He wrote 37.
23Of Shakespeare’s37 plays, 14 were comedies, 11 were histories, and 12 were tragedies. True
or False?
True. Bluff by saying false, “Most of his plays were tragedies,
just think about it;”or trick by
being honest and say true: that most people think his tragedies outnumber his
comedies because so many of the tragedies are covered in school.
24. How old was Shakespeare
when he died?Answer: 52. He died in 1616.
25. Shakespeare’s father was a respected member of the community of
Stratford on Avon,. He was a public official, landowner, and a businessman. His
business was making and selling a particular item of clothing worn by both men
and women. What was it?
Answer: gloves.
Possible bluffs: shoes, hats,
socks, scarves, ear muffs.
26. Was William wealthy or
poor when he died?
He was wealthy. Bluff by saying he lost his moneywhen the plague ravaged the population and none went to the
theatre for fear of contagion.
27 In the famous line “Romeo,
Romeo, wherefore art thou, Romeo?” what does wherefore mean?why,how,where ,
for what reason?
Most people think it means ‘where are you,Romeo?’,but it actually means ‘why are you
Romeo?’ You might bluff by saying you were in the play in ninth grade ao you
had to learn this scene.
28. In the theater during Shakepeare’s
time, certain people were known by the name of groundlings. Why?
True answer: Groundlings stood on the ground in front of
the stage to watch the play. They paid the lowest ticket price andwere known for their drinking and rowdy
behavior.
Possible bluff: Groundlings
were the people who took care of the grounds and set up everything for the
plays. Today we might call them roadies.
29. Without rounding, and in
years, how old is Juliet when the play with her name begins?
True answer, she is 13;
she will be fourteen in a few weeks, so the answer is 13.Her birthday was July 31st,
we can tell from the play.
Bluff:Most people know that she was only
fourteen and that people got married young back then.
30. The play “Romeo and
Juliet” involves a feud between two families, the Montagues and the Capulets. From which family is Juliet?
True answer: the Capulets.
31. How many sonnets did
Shakespeare write, not counting those within plays?
True answer: 154.
Possible Bluff: Say he wrote
one for every year of his life: 52.
32. Who was queen of England
during most of William’s life?
Was itQueen Mary,II,Queen Anne, Queen Latifa,Queen Mary, Queen Elizabeth, trick question, King Henry VIII
33. Who was the King in the
later years of Shakespeare’s life?
King Henry ViIII, King James, King Edward, King Kong,
King Richard III,, King Lear?
You might bluff on this by
giving the correct answer but saying that Lebron James is called King James
because of this.
34. Romeo and Juliet takes
about two hours to perform. How much time transpires i the play?Is it four hours, four days, four weeks, four months or four years?
You might add to your bluff
by saying that you were in the play in eighth grade.
35. Which Shakespeare play is
so popular that it is probably being performed somewhere on stage at this very
moment?
Hamlet is the correct answer. Other possible bluffs are Romeo and Juliet
(who hasn’t seen it?)Macbeth , Much
Ado About Nothing (there is much ado about this play), King Lear
36. In Shakespeare’ day, a city wall ran
around three sides of London. What was on the fourth side?
The River Thames. Other bluffs might be a lake, a moat, a cliff down to the sea, a
hill, Buckingham Palace. You might bluff by saying you were there two years ago
and that your answer is still on the fourth side of the city.
37. Today we typically eat
dinner with a knife,e a fork, and a spoon; in Shakespeare’s day, one of these
had only just been invented and was not in common use.
Correct answer is fork. It had been invented in Italy and
was not commonly used in England at this time.
Possible bluff: This is a
trick question. All three utensils were in common use at this time, but only
the King was allowed to use a knife at the dinner table. Say you did a report
on it in seventh grade.
38. Were flush toilets in
existence in Shakespeare's day?
Yes, but most people used a chamber pot.Bluff
by saying that the flush toilet was not invented until years late by John
Crapper.
39. Bullbaiting, bearbaiting,
and “the horse and ape” were sports involving animal fightson which men would bet.What animal is involved in each of
these sports?
Correct answer: Dog.
Bluff: Bears were used in all
of these, but they were just different versions of the same game. For example,
bullbaiting was just a male bear.
40, If you were to pass
through the south gate of the London Bridge in Shakepseare’s day,why wouldn't you want to look up?
You would see several poles
sticking up into the air with the good chance of shriveled heads of those
people executed for high treason.
Possible bluffs: It was the
naughty lady part of town,
People through the contents of their chamber pots out
the window.
It was considered unlucky because that is where Anne Boleyn
lost her head.
41. Women who were accused of
witchcraft were strapped toa
ducking stool and plunged into water. How would you know if they were not a
witch?
If they were drowned, they were not a witch. If they
survived, they were a witch so they would be executed.
42. At the beginning of a
play, Romeo is in love with whom?
Reflective essays. Any problems. Work them out with me.
“To a Louse”
Canterbury: p 158 plowman, miller, summoner. We discussed and took notes.
Knight’s Tale
RTo A Louse. (p.844)
On seeing one on a lady's bonnet at church.
The following Burns' poem again has one line that is often quoted, though I doubt that most readers would have no idea where it comes from, or what the subject of the line refers to. It never ceases to amaze me in reading his poems, the depth of his understanding of human nature and his interpretation of it to the animal kingdom. It was one Sunday while sitting behind a young 'lady' in the church, that he noticed a head louse roaming over its domain in the bows and ribbons of her hat, and I assume her hair. Poor woman, little did she know that she would, with her head companion, be the subject of one of Burns' poems, on how we see ourselves, and how we think other people see us.
Ha! Whare ye gaun, ye crowlin ferlie?
Your impudence protects you sairly,
I canna say but ye strut rarely
Owre gauze and lace,
Tho' faith! I fear ye dine but sparely
On sic a place.
Ye ugly, creepin, blastit wonner,
Detested, shunn'd by saunt an' sinner,
How daur ye set your fit upon her --
Sae fine a lady!
Gae somewhere else and seek your dinner
On some poor body.
Swith! in some beggar's hauffet squattle:
There you may creep, and sprawl, and sprattle
Wi' ither kindred, jumping cattle,
In shoals and nations;
Whare horn nor bane ne'er dare unsettle
Your thick plantations.
Now haud you there! ye're out o' sight,
Below the fatt'rils, snug an' tight;
Na, faith ye yet! ye'll no be right,
Till ye've got on it ---
The vera tapmost, tow'ring height
O' miss's bonnet.
My sooth! right bauld ye set your nose out,
As plump an' grey as onie grozet:
O for some rank, mercurial rozet,
Or fell, red smeddum,
I'd gie ye sic a hearty dose o't,
Wad dress your droddum!
I wad na been surpris'd to spy
You on an auld wife's flainen toy:
Or aiblins some bit duddie boy,
On's wyliecoat;
But Miss's fine Lunardi! fye!
How daur ye do't.
O Jenny, dinna toss your head,
An' set your beauties a' abread!
You little ken what cursed speed
The blastie's makin!
Thae winks an' finger-ends, I dread,
Are notice takin'!
O wad some Power the giftie gie us
To see oursels as ithers see us!
It wad frae monie a blunder free us,
An' foolish notion:
What airs in dress an' gait wad lea'e us,
An' ev'n devotion
To A Louse. (p.844)
On seeing one on a lady's bonnet at church.
The following Burns' poem again has one line that is often quoted, though I doubt that most readers would have no idea where it comes from, or what the subject of the line refers to. It never ceases to amaze me in reading his poems, the depth of his understanding of human nature and his interpretation of it to the animal kingdom. It was one Sunday while sitting behind a young 'lady' in the church, that he noticed a head louse roaming over its domain in the bows and ribbons of her hat, and I assume her hair. Poor woman, little did she know that she would, with her head companion, be the subject of one of Burns' poems, on how we see ourselves, and how we think other people see us.
Ha! Where are you going, you crawling wonder?
Your impudence protects you sorely,
I can not say but you swagger rarely
Over gauze and lace,
Though faith! I fear you dine but sparingly
On such a place
You ugly, creeping, blasted wonder,
Detested, shunned by saint and sinner,
How dare you set your foot upon her –
Such fine a lady!
Go somewhere else and seek your dinner
On some poor body
Off! in some beggar's temples squat:
There you may creep, and sprawl, and scramble,
With other kindred, jumping cattle,
In shoals and nations;
Where horn nor bone never dare unsettle
Your thick plantations
Now hold you there! you are out of sight,
Below the falderals, snug and tight;
No, faith you yet! you will not be right,
Until you have got on it ---
The very topmost, towering height
Of misses bonnet.
My sooth! right bold you set your nose out,
As plump and gray as any gooseberry:
O for some rank, mercurial resin,
Or deadly, red powder,
I would give you such a hearty dose of it,
Would dress your breech!
I would not have been surprised to spy
You on an old wife's flannel cap:
Or maybe some small ragged boy,
On his undervest;
But Miss's fine balloon bonnet! fye!
How dare you do it.
O Jenny do not toss your head,
And set your beauties all abroad!
You little know what cursed speed
The blastie's making!
Those winks and finger-ends, I dread,
Are notice takiing!
O would some Power the gift to give us
To see ourselves as others see us!
It would from many a blunder free us,
And foolish notion:
What airs in dress and gait would leave us,
And even devotion!
Reminder:
Monday, February 25, Half a page written on what women want.
Tuesday, February 26, An extra credit point for each line of Burn's poem that you have memorized and recite to the class. These lines need to be consecutive and must be from the original poem. Recitation must be in front of the class.
Reflective essays due today by midnight on turnitin.com
Try to use MLA. You will not be graded on MLA but you will be corrected on it. Next paper will be graded also on MLA.
Mention the following: Lengths of quotes in analysis should be short, difficult words should include what you think the words might mean, if you type daily assignments please use MLA.
Canterbury:p 153 cook, skipper, doctor, wife of bath, parson.
Knight’s Tale
Reminders:
Thursday, February 21, reflective essay due on turnitin.com
Today we covered, in Canterbury Tales, the cleric, the lawyer, the pardoner, and the host.
Mark, discuss, and hand in the assignment: “Death Be Not Proud” p 348 Write one page: First ¶ is summary of the poem. Next ¶ is what you liked about the poem. Third ¶ is what you didn’t understand about the poem. Fill the page out with any connections (connects to something else) or observations (author’s skills). Use at least three quoted phrases somewhere in your paper.
Knight’s Tale; we are up to approximately 26 minutes of the film.
Reminders:
Friday, February 15, Beowulf test.
Thursday, February 21, reflective essay due on turnitin.com
Tuesday, February 19, 2013
Beowulf test: retakes? Please take within five class days of today.
Canterbury nun, monk, friar. We read and took notes on the listed pilgrims. These are found on pages 146-149.
“Death Be Not Proud” p 348 Write one page: First ¶ is summary of the poem. Next ¶ is what you liked about the poem. Third ¶ is what you didn’t understand about the poem. Fill the page out with any connections (connects to something else) or observations (author’s skills). Use at least three quoted phrases somewhere in your paper.
Knight’s Tale/ We watched more of this video.
Reminders:
Friday, February 15, Beowulf test.
Thursday, February 21, reflective essay due on turnitin.com
Death, be not proud by John Donne
Death, be not proud, though some have called thee Mighty and dreadful, for thou art not so; For those whom thou think'st thou dost overthrow Die not, poor death, nor yet canst thou kill me. From rest and sleep, which but thy pictures be, Much pleasure; then from thee much more must flow, And soonest our best men with thee do go, Rest of their bones, and soul's delivery. Thou art slave to fate, chance, kings, and desperate men, And dost with poison, war, and sickness dwell, And poppy or charms can make us sleep as well And better than thy stroke; why swell'st thou then? One short sleep past, we wake eternally, And death shall be no more, death, thou shalt die.
Lit circle reading. You need to read two of the selected books this quarter. You will write a one page i-Search about the context of the book. That would include how the setting affects the story, and possibly how the story affects the time.
Beowulf test
Start the prologue characterizations with a handout.
Reminders:
Friday, February 15, Beowulf test.
Thursday, February 21, reflective essay due on turnitin.com
Our people who compiled the "If I had a daughter" responses read all or parts of it in class.
We are moving from the Anglo-Saxon period, which ended in 1066, to the Middle Ages. From the lit text, read pages 110-111. We looked at the timeline on pages 112-113 and discussed some interesting things that went on.
Then we continued reading pages 114-121. We watched a video "To be a Knight" and did a worksheet.
We also reviewed a bit for the Beowulf test on Friday.
The assignment is to go to turnitin.com and complete an assignment, "Getting to know you". By next week Friday, you will be sending in the reflective essay that I have called "Three snapshots on a clothesline."
DIRECTIONS FOR TURNITIN.COM
Go
to “Turnitin.com”
Create
an account. Create a new student account UNLESS you already have an account. If you already have one, sign in and add the class by using the appropriate ID and Password.
Class
IDPassword
6118297Period3Rocks(Senior
English)
6118306Period4Rocks(Senior
English)
Create
a new account. Use the above class id and passwords.
Click
on your class name. It will open up to show you current assignment.
Click
submit
Where
it says “Sumit paper by “ it is on “Cut and paste upload”. If you want to
change it to single file upload, this is the place to do it.
Either
upload, or copy and paste, or type and submit. This can all be done at home
also.
Period 3 went to the library computer room and directed themselves to turnitin.com An assignment was given on Turnitin, but also I posted the reflective essay assignment (here named three snapshots on a clothesline).
Period 4 did the Thane game as a review of Beowulf. At the bottom of this post, find listed some of the questions that were answered in the review.
Reminders:
Friday, February15, final over Beowulf
Thursday, February 21, reflective essay due on turnitin.com
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55 B.C.
When Beowulf and his 14 men land on the beach, he is
greeted by what?
descendant of Shield Sheafson who is alive during
this epic.
449 AD
Number of years that Grendel attacked the mead-hall
code of conduct during Anglo-Saxon period
793 AD
Ecgtheow's son
All monsters came from this person
1066 AD
Wyrd means what?
Character in Beowulf who is said to have murdered
his brother.
What group put the oral epic
"Beowulf" onto paper?
wergild
The person who originated the poem Beowulf is
number of manuscripts of end
Wife of Hrothgar
The Beowulf story is most notable because . . .
three antagonists in Beowulf
Character in Beowulf who embodies loyalty.
Hrothgar's mead hall is called. . .
Hrunting is what?
Why can't weapons injure Grendel?
True or false? Beowulf takes place in seventh
century England.
Who is envious of Beowulf's bravery?
How long does Beowulf rule his land?
battle-dew =
Who is the only warrior to help Beowulf at
his death?
How does Beowulf die?
what is the witan?
sky-candle=
whale-road=
sword-storm=
sea-stallion=
The language Beowulf was written in.
Does Beowulf kill Grendel in the great hall?
What does Beowulf do with the arm of
Grendel?
Why does the dragon want revenge on mankind?
In the 1970s, Gardner wrote what book about Beowulf,
but perspective of antagonist
What goup of people does Beowulf belong?
Who or what is Sutton Hoo?
The name Beowulf means what?
Who gave Beowulf a sword?
Who avenges Grendel's death?
ring-giver-=
The worst sin a man could commit:
In the 2007 movie version, what actor(actress) plays
Grendel's mother?
What class of people were the warriors (lower,
middle, nobility, religious)?
Wealthow
what are the storytellers called?
The Romans built this 73-mile long fortification to
keep invaders out.
The array of huge stones on Salisbury
Plain in Wiltshire, used for religious rites.
The word that means "the perfect example
of". Beowulf is a(n) _________ hero.
When Beowulf asks if he can fight Grendel, he asks
one condition regarding his choice in weaponry. What?
Why did Beowulf not leave Brecca far
behind in their contest?
mound-keeper= ?
To the Norse, what term meant "to go
raiding".
Which value does Beowulf not embody:
courage, loyalty, intelligence, strength?
A Norse warrior in a trance-like fury is called
what?
Thursday, February 21, reflective essay due on turnitin.com
Gray Veil
My life has been many different colors. I remember the soothing blues and dark greens of summer evenings when woods, sky, and ground melted into the darkness. Reds, blues, and browns blurred tan with white at Saturday basketball games. Blazing orange and yellows on a summer’s beach have left their brush marks on my mind. My face has been painted by the amber licking flames of sputtering logs separating two good friends on a July night.
But one color, a certain tenacious shade of gray, has dirtied the brush and spreads its weariness into all the paint it touches.
I first notice this color in seventh grade. There were puddles of leaves and matted yards of grass. The grass wasn’t exactly browned or yellowed, but hardly green, betraying in it blend with earth its own lack of color. The streets had lanes of dirt near the curb, with a grimy stripe down the middle, like the crusted ring in an old metal coffee pot, marking water lines. The days looked warm from indoors, seducing people to wear light jackets, while outdoors, gusts of wind would poke raw fingers up jacket sleeves and down the necks. My body shivered as I made my way into the public library. The librarian, who wore her years upon her face like a shoe upon its papery sole, raised a brow at me as I walked by her. I made may way to the table with the oversized books, wondering why so many great books didn’t fit on regular shelves. I found a book and sat on the bench by the door.
While I sat, three girls came walking in, laughing, tossing hair, and bumping arms that carried ninth grade books. When they neared, the closest stepped on my foot. My head jerked up and my mind flashed with the words I would have to answer to her apology. But she continued walking, leaving behind the scent of a woman’s perfume. There were no words to excuse her step, no notice of me at all. The incident seemed insignificant. My toe hardly knew the difference, but that foggy color dropped its veil on this memory and it has always been with me.
The second time that color appeared was a few quick months later when my family moved to a different town. Packing became a confusion in all its careful orderliness. I remember taking my last look at all the empty rooms, once so full of me, and hearing the big front door slam shut with all the finality of a last good-bye. Days later I stood in front of a mural of strange faces when introduced to new classmates. They looked at me as though to learn something about me. But they could never know me or the secrets I left behind in that old house. They could never see the worn path through the back yard or the small unmarked grave of my dog under a neighbor’s porch. They could never know, and I could never tell them. That mural of faces grew tinted with a clammy gray shade.
The third incident was after we had just received a bit of snow. It was the kind of snow that parents hate but kids love. It t jumped into children’s hands, packing itself, and darting its way at a hundred different targets. I hurried home from school and started working on a snow fort. The fort seemed to sprout from the ground and round itself out. I piled snow on snow and packed it hard until the fort was swallowed up in evening. The next day I hurried home to drill a couple peepholes. I started a cold war by manufacturing tens of frozen ballistic weapons. Having created a large enough arsenal, I rested against the frozen walls that protected me from winter winds. I waited for someone to assault my walls, but no assault came. I waited to hear the sounds of other kids playing outside, to test their snow weaponry against mine. No one showed. Suddenly I felt a dampness against my skin and jumped up to brush my clothes off. Looking over my shoulder at the back of my jeans, I saw that same gray color spotting my clothes. That color had somehow invaded even my fort so I ran inside my house to put on some dry clothes. The next time I saw that fort, half of it had dissolved back into the ground and I didn’t even care.
We read Beowulf up to page 36, not including 36.
We worked on our reflective essays, discussing how to stay away from weak evaluative language and embrace descriptive language. Samples include one evaluative sentence, followed by multiple descriptive sentences.
It was a nice shirt, adorned by the colors of the rainbow. The purple fur that covered the collar gleamed in the sunlight. The shirt drew smiles from passers-by. The cashmere kissed my cheek as I brushed my face across the sleeve.
It was a beautiful day at the beach. The sun shone brightly like a 75 watt clear lightbulb. The ocean was a warm blanket for the sand. Heat waves danced on the sand.
The fourth period students were tired. They were snoring as loud as a chain saw. The clock ticked as slowly as Tigard High parking lot traffic. Their hands cramped and fell off like the hand hanging from the light fixture in the back of the room. Looking a the comfy chairs reminded the students how much their buttocks hurt.
The valley was beautiful. The sky was as blue as the Caribbean Sea in July. The wind whistled like a man to his horse. The sun peeked between the clouds like the silver lining that so many people talk and dream about. The birds in the trees sang to each other.
She smelled bad. Like the Tigard High cafeteria. Not even flies dared to be in her presence. hair curled in her odor's reach. Death hazed above her. Everyone's nose cringed as she passed by. Hygiene was not in her vocabulary. She smelled like a bratwurst fart.
We continued with the process of our reflective essay.We concentrated our efforts on page 31 of the Language book, the three steps.
Reminders: Friday, February 8, reflective rough draft due Thursday, February 21, reflective essay due on turnitin.com
Thursday, February 28, to add up to 10 points to your writing, create an audiovisual version of your essay. See pages 53 and 54 of Language book.
Our attack for each class is double-pronged. We will be working on Beowulf and a reflective essay.
From the literature textbook, we started with pages 1-5, and 18-20.
The story can be found in the textbook. Go to Tigard High home page, on
left side click library, click online books, user name: elmckee,
password: tigers. Click on sixth level literature book. Go to desired page.
From the Language book for the reflective essay, we read and studied the sample on pages 37-38. Our key words are: snapshot, which is a narrative about a short period of time; dialogue, which is a conversation between two or more characters; comma splices, which is combining two sentences with a comma ( and should be avoided); and semi-colons, which have two uses: one is to combine sentences to show a strong relationship between them, and two, in series of items that already have commas in them.
Then we continued with reflective essay writing by reading and discussing pages 28-32. Our brainstorming for our own essays has already begun.
