Assignment for the week

Brainstorm topics and thesis statements for your Great Expectations essays. I expect each of you to log on several times to interact with your colleagues, thereby assisting one another in this process. Your polished thesis is due on Monday the 6th. The essay is due on Monday the 13th.

Homework for Tuesday, the 30th of September

Do the AP practice multiple choice questions based on Great Expectations. Since you have the internet, dictionaries, and each other (not to mention brilliant, or semi-brilliant, minds), I would expect you to answer them all correctly. We'll go over this on Tuesday. Sean, Elizabeth, Alex, Erik, and Grace -- pick up a packet from Mr. Hardin on Monday. I also have some on my desk, if you can find them.

Reminder: the second lit terms quiz will be on Monday Oct. 6. Have a fabulous weekend -- hope you are planning to watch the debate tonight!

Prompt to respond to before class on Friday, Sep 26

Re-read the beginning of chapter 39 describing the arrival of Magwitch. Begin with paragraph 4 and read through the paragraph that begins "You acted noble, my boy," said he." Discuss the techniques Dickens uses to create suspense.

Reminder for Monday, Sep. 22

You will have a "did you read it" quiz on Monday on Great Expectations.

Prompt to respond to before class on Sep22

Great Expectations: Re-read the section describing Magwitch eating his dinner out on the marshes (ch. III, second page, paragraph beginning "I was soon at the battery . . . through the paragraph beginning "I had often watched a large dog of ours eating his food . . .") and the description of the family eating Christmas dinner with Pumblechook, Wopsle, and the Hubbles (Ch. IV first page, paragraph that begins "We were to have a superb dinner . . . through the end of the paragraph that begins "we dined on these occasions in the kitchen . . .") What do you notice in these two descriptions? Consider atmosphere, style, character, setting, theme, symbolism, diction, syntax, etc.

Homework for Sep. 18

Study for lit terms quiz 1 (fiction and style). The focus is on usage, not just definitions, although you need to know both. Bring your copy of Great Expectations, as the discussion on that novel begins after the quiz. Expect a "did you read it" quiz on Great Expectations onMonday. I am not posting a blog prompt today, but will put one up after tomorrow's class.

Lit terms website

Vivian (from Mr. Hardin's class) posted a good website for lit terms: http://web.cn.edu/kwheeler/lit_terms.html

If you know of another good site, let your fellow students know.

Newsflash

The only homework consists of: reviewing BNW & notes, reading the "Big Nanny" article, and preparing for the timed in-class essay on Tuesday the 16th. I will collect your notes prior to writing the essay, so be sure to have these with you.

Also, the lit terms quiz will be on Thursday. Be sure to bring your copy of Great Expectations that day also, as we will begin the discussion.

There is no new discussion prompt today. Have a nice weekend!

Homework Post 9/11

"Slowly, very slowly, like two unhurried compass needles, the feet turned towards the right; north, north- east, east, south-east, south, south-south-west; then paused, and, after a few seconds, turned as unhurriedly back towards the left. South-south-west, south, south-east, east…"

Interpret this final paragraph of the book--not just as John Savage's end, but also in light of the simile that Huxley uses. What was John seeking, and how did he fare in his quest? Does he represent anyone besides himself?

Homework for Monday Sep 8

Re-read the last three chapters and come prepared with discussion issues and quotes.   Also read Huxley's foreword to the novel.

Sep 4 discussion prompt

"Not so much like drops of water, though water, it is true, can wear holes in the hardest granite; rather, drops of liquid sealing-wax, drops that adhere, incrust, incorporate themselves with what they fall on, till finally the rock is all one scarlet blob." (chapter 2, page 28)  

Consider this simile and decide what it signifies.  Consider times in the novel when the rock nearly breaks through the wax, or where the wax layer is so thin that the rock can be perceived, even if only for a moment.  

The Apology

"the life which is unexamined is not worth living" - Socrates

The above quote, from class on Tuesday, is in Plato's 'Apology.' I found a translation online: "http://classics.mit.edu/Plato/apology.html" if you are interested.

Synopsis: Socrates has been sentenced to death near the end of the apology. He states the aforementioned phrase as an explanation for his activities(he has been accused of corrupting the youth) and his willingness to die rather than denounce them.

Just use the 'find' feature on your internet browser, when you're at the website, and type in the phrase to locate it.

Homework for Thursday, Sep. 4

1. Review for "did you read it" test on Brave New World.

2. Write a 1-2 page (typed, double-spaced) first person response to the following prompt:

"The most disturbing aspect of Brave New World is the suspicion that many, perhaps most, people would like to live in such a society."