Poem:
-Setting (geographical, temporal, Cepo)
-Subject/theme/thesis
-Genre (lyric, ballad, sonnet,ode, epic)
-Voice/persona
-Distance from poem (historical, cultural)
-Diction (use of words, imagery, figures of speech, simile, metaphor, alliteration, assonance, consonance, personification, hyperbole, irony, pun, symbolism)
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
Book review
5 choices (500 words):
1-Tell what happened / plot: storline
2-Describe your favourite part of the book
3-Write a letter to the author
4-Tell how you would react if you were a character
5-Choose several (2 or 3) "quotes" from characters and say why they are meaningful
6-Why the book is awesome or not
7-Suggest a different ending or continue the story
1-Tell what happened / plot: storline
2-Describe your favourite part of the book
3-Write a letter to the author
4-Tell how you would react if you were a character
5-Choose several (2 or 3) "quotes" from characters and say why they are meaningful
6-Why the book is awesome or not
7-Suggest a different ending or continue the story
Wednesday, February 18, 2009
Sentence pattern #2
IC + Colon (:)
Statement: Explanation (specific)
Eg: Bernard Shaw Told a writer
" There are three things I disliked about your story: they are the beginnig, the middle and the end."
Statement: Explanation (specific)
Eg: Bernard Shaw Told a writer
" There are three things I disliked about your story: they are the beginnig, the middle and the end."
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
Sentence pattern #1
Sentence: complete idea/subject + verb + object (IC = independants clause)
Clause: incomplete/subject + verb /(Dependant clause) /Idea, part of the sentence
Phrase: preposition(in, on, at...)/no verb ( could have a present(ing) or past(ed) participle)
Eg: CSL(subject) has(verb) 3200 students(object).
Eg 2: CSL has 3200 students;(IC=semicolon) many(subject) are(verb) smart and talented(adjectives). (Run-on sentence)
Own examples:
Eg 1: The lady is very confused in her emotions; she has to choose between life and death for her lover.
Eg 2: Frank Stockton wrote many stories; he filled 23 volumes.
Sentence pattern #1A:
IC semicolon + conjuctive adverb + comma +IC
Eg: FS started as a wood engraver(object); however, he became a famous writer.
Sentence pattern #1B:
IC + comma + coordinating conjunction(Fanboys) + IC
Eg: The story has no ending, so the reader is left wondering what happened.
Clause: incomplete/subject + verb /(Dependant clause) /Idea, part of the sentence
Phrase: preposition(in, on, at...)/no verb ( could have a present(ing) or past(ed) participle)
Eg: CSL(subject) has(verb) 3200 students(object).
Eg 2: CSL has 3200 students;(IC=semicolon) many(subject) are(verb) smart and talented(adjectives). (Run-on sentence)
Own examples:
Eg 1: The lady is very confused in her emotions; she has to choose between life and death for her lover.
Eg 2: Frank Stockton wrote many stories; he filled 23 volumes.
Sentence pattern #1A:
IC semicolon + conjuctive adverb + comma +IC
Eg: FS started as a wood engraver(object); however, he became a famous writer.
Sentence pattern #1B:
IC + comma + coordinating conjunction(Fanboys) + IC
Eg: The story has no ending, so the reader is left wondering what happened.
Thesis statement
1-Clear, avoids vague language
2-Avoid "I"
3-Reflects what the text is about (main idea)
4-Connects all the subelements of the text
5-Makes a claim
6-Passes the "so what ?" test (Provacative)
7-Directs the structure of the argument
8-Introduces an essay
9-Determines the type of paper you write
10-Uses literary elements
11-Makes use of a "quotation" (as evidence to support it)
Three components:
1-What: Claim (interpretation) about the text
2-How: The literary elements (figures of speech, symbolism, theme) Support your claim
3-Why: The significance of your claim answers the question: So what?
Bad thesis statements:
1-This poem shows the narrator comparing his love to a summer's day. (more of a plot summary)
2-The poem presents the power of love to conquer death (too universal)
3-The poem shows how narratives can last while nature cannot. (too general)
4-The poem proves that the pen is mightier than the sword. (cliché)
5-The structure, character and dialogue in the poem show us how humans search for knowledge. (list)
Good thesis statement:
1-Despite it's emphasis on love and physical beauty, the poem reveals the ways in which humans can triumph over the vagaries(changes) of nature. (images, qualities are specific, arguable, provides a structure for your argument, it goes beyond "so what?": it's provocative)
2-Avoid "I"
3-Reflects what the text is about (main idea)
4-Connects all the subelements of the text
5-Makes a claim
6-Passes the "so what ?" test (Provacative)
7-Directs the structure of the argument
8-Introduces an essay
9-Determines the type of paper you write
10-Uses literary elements
11-Makes use of a "quotation" (as evidence to support it)
Three components:
1-What: Claim (interpretation) about the text
2-How: The literary elements (figures of speech, symbolism, theme) Support your claim
3-Why: The significance of your claim answers the question: So what?
Bad thesis statements:
1-This poem shows the narrator comparing his love to a summer's day. (more of a plot summary)
2-The poem presents the power of love to conquer death (too universal)
3-The poem shows how narratives can last while nature cannot. (too general)
4-The poem proves that the pen is mightier than the sword. (cliché)
5-The structure, character and dialogue in the poem show us how humans search for knowledge. (list)
Good thesis statement:
1-Despite it's emphasis on love and physical beauty, the poem reveals the ways in which humans can triumph over the vagaries(changes) of nature. (images, qualities are specific, arguable, provides a structure for your argument, it goes beyond "so what?": it's provocative)
Monday, February 9, 2009
An Occurence at Owl Creek Bridge
3 questions about the story:
1) What is the climax of the story?
2) Who are the main characters in the story?
3) What is the crisis?
Facts about Ambrose Bierce:
1) He married his wife, Mary Ellen ("Mollie"), on Christmas day.
2) He wrote in a variety of literary genres and was known as a master of "Pure English" by his contemporaries
3) He was in the military for many years and was appointed the position of Lieutenant.
The story takes place during the Civil War. The war started several months after the election of Abraham Lincoln in 1861. The south (confederate soldiers) wanted to keep slavery and wore gray uniforms, whilst le north (union soldiers) wore blue (yankees). Over 500 000 soldiers died.
1) What is the climax of the story?
2) Who are the main characters in the story?
3) What is the crisis?
Facts about Ambrose Bierce:
1) He married his wife, Mary Ellen ("Mollie"), on Christmas day.
2) He wrote in a variety of literary genres and was known as a master of "Pure English" by his contemporaries
3) He was in the military for many years and was appointed the position of Lieutenant.
The story takes place during the Civil War. The war started several months after the election of Abraham Lincoln in 1861. The south (confederate soldiers) wanted to keep slavery and wore gray uniforms, whilst le north (union soldiers) wore blue (yankees). Over 500 000 soldiers died.
Wednesday, February 4, 2009
The Lady or the Tiger?
3 Questions:
1.What is the point of view?
2.What is the climax of the story?
3.What is the crisis of the story?
Facts about Frank R. Stockton:
1) He is best known today for his innovative children's fairy tales that were very popular during the last decades of the 19th century.
2) He was the son of a prominent Methodist minister who discouraged him from a writing career.
3) In 1860, he married Mary Anne (or Marianne) Edwards Tuttle.
4) He was quite frail as a child and was born with one leg shorter than the other.
Possible thesis statement:
The story revolves around two dilemmas:
- The first conflict is the external one between the young man and the two doors.
- The second conflict is internal involving the princess's feelings: jealousy or love?
1.What is the point of view?
2.What is the climax of the story?
3.What is the crisis of the story?
Facts about Frank R. Stockton:
1) He is best known today for his innovative children's fairy tales that were very popular during the last decades of the 19th century.
2) He was the son of a prominent Methodist minister who discouraged him from a writing career.
3) In 1860, he married Mary Anne (or Marianne) Edwards Tuttle.
4) He was quite frail as a child and was born with one leg shorter than the other.
Possible thesis statement:
The story revolves around two dilemmas:
- The first conflict is the external one between the young man and the two doors.
- The second conflict is internal involving the princess's feelings: jealousy or love?
The Tell-Tale Heart
A. Facts about Edgar Allen Poe:
1. He was the first well known American writer to try and earn his living through writing alone. This resulted in a financially difficult life.
2. His first book was not published under his name, but as "A Bostonian" .
3. He married his 13 year old cousin when he was 26 years of age.
B. Plot
This story is about a man who is completely obsessed by his master's eye. This eye ressembles one of a vulture, it is pale blue with a white film over it. It consumes him day and night and so he decides to get rid of it by killing his master. This narrator has an accute sense of hearing and can hear almost anything. He is said to be a mad man! So one night, he creeps up to his masters room to try and kill him during his sleep. He has to be extremely quiet to not wake him and to have him suspect absolutely nothing. He does this every night for seven days straight but does not succeed because the old man's eye is closed. But one night, just after midnight, he creeps up to his master's room and sees the eye wide open, staring out into the night. He cannot take it any longer, he must get rid of the retched eye!
The old man's servant stood in silence for many hours. He could hear a light thumping growing louder and louder and even louder still! It was the old man's heart beating faster and louder every minute. He couldn't take it anymore so he burst into the room and smothers him under the bed. The old man let out one shreak, only one, before he was completely silent and immobile. Police arrive at the house after this and demand to inspect the area. The narrator has no problem with this for he has hidden all the evidence well. But it's not until the three police men have inspected and are sitting and having a cup of tea, that the narrator hears the thumping once again. He cannot stand it and revealsto the men what he has done.
C. Analysis
1) Setting: The story takes place in the house of an old man, where the narrator lives. The story probably takes place in the 1840's and over 8 days.
2) Characters: The narrator is the protagonist and is the main character. He is an unnamed person, and calls himself sane but in fact is insane. We don't know if he is a man or a woman but we can make certain assumptions as to what gender he is. (Poe always uses a man protagonist and the actions the narrator does to kill the old man would not be used by a woman.) The other characters are the old man, who has the evil eye. The neighbor hears the sceam and calls the police, and finally the three police men who investigate the house and arrest the narrator.
3) Themes: (Reader interpretation)
1. A human being has a perverse, wicked side - another self - that canprovoke him to doing evil things without an apparent motive.1. He was the first well known American writer to try and earn his living through writing alone. This resulted in a financially difficult life.
2. His first book was not published under his name, but as "A Bostonian" .
3. He married his 13 year old cousin when he was 26 years of age.
B. Plot
This story is about a man who is completely obsessed by his master's eye. This eye ressembles one of a vulture, it is pale blue with a white film over it. It consumes him day and night and so he decides to get rid of it by killing his master. This narrator has an accute sense of hearing and can hear almost anything. He is said to be a mad man! So one night, he creeps up to his masters room to try and kill him during his sleep. He has to be extremely quiet to not wake him and to have him suspect absolutely nothing. He does this every night for seven days straight but does not succeed because the old man's eye is closed. But one night, just after midnight, he creeps up to his master's room and sees the eye wide open, staring out into the night. He cannot take it any longer, he must get rid of the retched eye!
The old man's servant stood in silence for many hours. He could hear a light thumping growing louder and louder and even louder still! It was the old man's heart beating faster and louder every minute. He couldn't take it anymore so he burst into the room and smothers him under the bed. The old man let out one shreak, only one, before he was completely silent and immobile. Police arrive at the house after this and demand to inspect the area. The narrator has no problem with this for he has hidden all the evidence well. But it's not until the three police men have inspected and are sitting and having a cup of tea, that the narrator hears the thumping once again. He cannot stand it and revealsto the men what he has done.
C. Analysis
1) Setting: The story takes place in the house of an old man, where the narrator lives. The story probably takes place in the 1840's and over 8 days.
2) Characters: The narrator is the protagonist and is the main character. He is an unnamed person, and calls himself sane but in fact is insane. We don't know if he is a man or a woman but we can make certain assumptions as to what gender he is. (Poe always uses a man protagonist and the actions the narrator does to kill the old man would not be used by a woman.) The other characters are the old man, who has the evil eye. The neighbor hears the sceam and calls the police, and finally the three police men who investigate the house and arrest the narrator.
3) Themes: (Reader interpretation)
2. Fear of discovery can bring about discovery. He was afraid of being discovered, wich lead to his discovery.
3. The evil within is worse than the evil without.
4) Point of view: First person narrator.
5) Sentence style: "Object, there was none, Passion, there was none, I loved the man."
6) Figures of speech:
- Anaphora (Repetition): "I heard things in heaven, I heard things in hell"
- Personification: "Death" becomes a person
- Simile (Comparison using "like"): "A single ray of light like the thread of a spider"
- Alliteration (Repetition of sounds): "Hearken! Observe how heartily, how calmly."
- Irony: "I was never kinder to the old man during the week before I killed him."
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