Sunday, January 31, 2010
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Tuesday, January 26th
Today, the take-home quiz was distributed (due Friday) and students had a chance to work with their groups. Presentations begin Thursday!
Monday, January 25, 2010
Monday, January 25th
Today, we met in TC-208 and explored databases, etc. which will provide valuable information for the presentations. These sources are listed below.
Biography Resource Center
Literature Resource Center
Encylopedia Britannica
ipl2 - Literary Criticism
Biography Resource Center
Literature Resource Center
Encylopedia Britannica
ipl2 - Literary Criticism
Sunday, January 24, 2010
Friday, January 22nd
Friday, groups gave their mini-presentations on poems assigned Thursday, finishing up our discussion of John Donne. Monday, we'll get started on group presentations. Please meet in TC-208. Thanks.
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
Wednesday, January 20th and Thursday, January 21st
Wednesday, we discussed Ben Jonson and John Donne, focusing on their lives and work. We also discussed metaphysical poetry. According to www.poets.org, metaphysical poetry is a “poetic style in which philosophical and spiritual subjects were approached with reason and often concluded in paradox. This group of writers established meditation—based on the union of thought and feeling sought after in Jesuit Ignatian meditation—as a poetic mode."
Debora Schwarz, faculty member at California State Polytechnic University, identified these characteristics in metaphysical poetry:
- a tendency to look inward, reflecting on love and religion
- a penchant for imagery that is novel, "unpoetical" and sometimes shocking, drawn from the commonplace (actual life) or the remote (erudite sources), including the extended metaphor of the “metaphysical conceit.”
- simple diction (compared to Elizabethan poetry) which echoes the cadences (or rhythms) of everyday speech
- an argumentative structure (with the poet's lover; with God; with oneself)
- often rugged meter, not "sweet" or smooth like Elizabethan verse. This ruggedness goes naturally with the metaphysical poets' attitude and purpose: a belief in the perplexity of life, a spirit of revolt.
She also indicated the best metaphysical poetry is honest, unconventional, and reveals the poet's sense of the complexities and contradictions of life. It is intellectual, analytical, psychological, and bold; frequently it is absorbed in thoughts of death, physical love, and religious devotion.
(Full PowerPoint available upon request.)
For the quiz Thursday, know a bit about the lives of Jonson and Donne, know what metaphysical poetry is (including a conceit), and be able to identify elements in Donne's poems that align with the definition above.
In-class work:
In the groups noted below, prepare a mini-presentation for Friday about your assigned poem. Be prepared to read the poem aloud, explain its key elements (in terms of content and form), and raise two questions for discussion.
1) Kaitlyn, AJ, Frank, Jordan - "Song" (806-807)
2) Mikenna, Melanie, Becca, Ashley - "A Valediction: Forbidding Mourning" (811-812)
3) Jacqui, Melissa, Brenda, Jason, Sean - "The Flea" (810)
4) Inessa, Jess, Lydia, Janna - from Holy Sonnets (6), pg. 815
5) Claudia, Surea, Kathleen (Xiaoxi), Hillery from Holy Sonnets (10), pg. 815
Debora Schwarz, faculty member at California State Polytechnic University, identified these characteristics in metaphysical poetry:
- a tendency to look inward, reflecting on love and religion
- a penchant for imagery that is novel, "unpoetical" and sometimes shocking, drawn from the commonplace (actual life) or the remote (erudite sources), including the extended metaphor of the “metaphysical conceit.”
- simple diction (compared to Elizabethan poetry) which echoes the cadences (or rhythms) of everyday speech
- an argumentative structure (with the poet's lover; with God; with oneself)
- often rugged meter, not "sweet" or smooth like Elizabethan verse. This ruggedness goes naturally with the metaphysical poets' attitude and purpose: a belief in the perplexity of life, a spirit of revolt.
She also indicated the best metaphysical poetry is honest, unconventional, and reveals the poet's sense of the complexities and contradictions of life. It is intellectual, analytical, psychological, and bold; frequently it is absorbed in thoughts of death, physical love, and religious devotion.
(Full PowerPoint available upon request.)
For the quiz Thursday, know a bit about the lives of Jonson and Donne, know what metaphysical poetry is (including a conceit), and be able to identify elements in Donne's poems that align with the definition above.
In-class work:
In the groups noted below, prepare a mini-presentation for Friday about your assigned poem. Be prepared to read the poem aloud, explain its key elements (in terms of content and form), and raise two questions for discussion.
1) Kaitlyn, AJ, Frank, Jordan - "Song" (806-807)
2) Mikenna, Melanie, Becca, Ashley - "A Valediction: Forbidding Mourning" (811-812)
3) Jacqui, Melissa, Brenda, Jason, Sean - "The Flea" (810)
4) Inessa, Jess, Lydia, Janna - from Holy Sonnets (6), pg. 815
5) Claudia, Surea, Kathleen (Xiaoxi), Hillery from Holy Sonnets (10), pg. 815
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
Tuesday, January 12th
Today, we continued our discussion of Shakespeare. Our agenda was as follows:
1) Distribute quiz, due Friday.
2) Discuss sonnet 130, pg. 741 (also linked below)
3) Provide a brief overview of Shakespeare's plays, including the genre of Romantic Comedy.
4) Watch an excerpt from the movie Twelfth Night (Act 1, scene 5 and Act 2, scene 2). This excerpt is linked below.
5) In groups, share the discussions questions you brought to class. Choose 4 to answer as a group. Be prepared to share your questions and answers in class tomorrow.
Groups:
1) Kaitlyn, Hillery, Becca, Claudia
2) AJ, Brenda, Sean, Jessica F.
3) Inessa, Jess, Ashley, Jacqui
4) Frank, Melissa, Kathleen (Xiaoxi), Janna
5) Jordan, Melanie, Surea
1) Distribute quiz, due Friday.
2) Discuss sonnet 130, pg. 741 (also linked below)
3) Provide a brief overview of Shakespeare's plays, including the genre of Romantic Comedy.
4) Watch an excerpt from the movie Twelfth Night (Act 1, scene 5 and Act 2, scene 2). This excerpt is linked below.
5) In groups, share the discussions questions you brought to class. Choose 4 to answer as a group. Be prepared to share your questions and answers in class tomorrow.
Groups:
1) Kaitlyn, Hillery, Becca, Claudia
2) AJ, Brenda, Sean, Jessica F.
3) Inessa, Jess, Ashley, Jacqui
4) Frank, Melissa, Kathleen (Xiaoxi), Janna
5) Jordan, Melanie, Surea
Monday, January 11, 2010
Schedule: Week 2
Monday: Sir Walter Raleigh, Shakespeare (sonnets).
Tuesday: Distribute quiz. Discuss Twelfth Night, 745-761 (Act 1, Scene 1 - Act 2, Scene 3). Three discussion questions due (see assigment at right).
Wednesday: Twelfth Night, 761-782 (Through Act 4, Scene 3).
Thursday: Finish Twelfth Night.
Friday: Quiz due, Ben Jonson.
Tuesday: Distribute quiz. Discuss Twelfth Night, 745-761 (Act 1, Scene 1 - Act 2, Scene 3). Three discussion questions due (see assigment at right).
Wednesday: Twelfth Night, 761-782 (Through Act 4, Scene 3).
Thursday: Finish Twelfth Night.
Friday: Quiz due, Ben Jonson.
Sunday, January 10, 2010
Friday, January 8th
Friday, we completed the group work and finished our discussion of Queen Elizabeth I. Please see Monday's homework related to Sir Walter Raleigh. Next week: Sir Walter Raleigh, Shakespeare, and Ben Jonson.
Wednesday, January 6, 2010
Thursday, January 7th
Groups --
1: Kaitlyn, Melissa, Becca
2: Jason, Surae, Lydia, Claudia
3: Inessa, Kathleen, Brenda, Jessica W.
4: Frank, Melanie, Jacqui, Sean
5: Jordan, AJ, Ashley, Hillery
6: Jessica F., Janna, MiKenna
With your group, please answer the following questions/complete the following tasks:
1. Both “Written on a Wall at Woodstock” (618) and “On Monsieur’s Departure” (619) use contrast. Is this an effective technique for conveying the poem’s central idea? Explain. (Choose either poem.)
2. In “On Monsieur’s Departure,” Elizabeth says, “My care is like my shadow in the sun,/Follows me flying, flies when I pursue it,/Stands and lies by me, doth what I have done” (lines 7-9). What does she mean in these lines?
3. What are the main ideas Elizabeth is trying to convey in “On Marriage” (622-623)? Do you get the sense that she ever intends to marry? Support your answer with evidence from the speech.
4. Considering her speech in combination with the letters to Mary, Queen of Scots and James VI, how does Elizabeth feel about Mary’s execution? In your opinion, is Elizabeth “guiltless and innocent” (627)?
5. Write one discussion question related to any of Queen Elizabeth’s writings.
One person in your group (or a combination of people) should record your responses.
1: Kaitlyn, Melissa, Becca
2: Jason, Surae, Lydia, Claudia
3: Inessa, Kathleen, Brenda, Jessica W.
4: Frank, Melanie, Jacqui, Sean
5: Jordan, AJ, Ashley, Hillery
6: Jessica F., Janna, MiKenna
With your group, please answer the following questions/complete the following tasks:
1. Both “Written on a Wall at Woodstock” (618) and “On Monsieur’s Departure” (619) use contrast. Is this an effective technique for conveying the poem’s central idea? Explain. (Choose either poem.)
2. In “On Monsieur’s Departure,” Elizabeth says, “My care is like my shadow in the sun,/Follows me flying, flies when I pursue it,/Stands and lies by me, doth what I have done” (lines 7-9). What does she mean in these lines?
3. What are the main ideas Elizabeth is trying to convey in “On Marriage” (622-623)? Do you get the sense that she ever intends to marry? Support your answer with evidence from the speech.
4. Considering her speech in combination with the letters to Mary, Queen of Scots and James VI, how does Elizabeth feel about Mary’s execution? In your opinion, is Elizabeth “guiltless and innocent” (627)?
5. Write one discussion question related to any of Queen Elizabeth’s writings.
One person in your group (or a combination of people) should record your responses.
Wednesday, January 6th
Today, students shared highlights of their assigned time period. Once I receive all the timelines, I will share them with the class.
Then, I provided an overview of Queen Elizabeth I - her genealogy, significant aspects of her reign, and a brief look at a couple of her poems. Unfortunately, I can't post the PowerPoint to the blog, but if you were absent, please send an e-mail to request it.
Tomorrow, there will be a short quiz (see note at right) and more discussion of Elizabeth I's work. Please have read Sir Walter Raleigh's works (as noted on the syllabus) by Friday.
Then, I provided an overview of Queen Elizabeth I - her genealogy, significant aspects of her reign, and a brief look at a couple of her poems. Unfortunately, I can't post the PowerPoint to the blog, but if you were absent, please send an e-mail to request it.
Tomorrow, there will be a short quiz (see note at right) and more discussion of Elizabeth I's work. Please have read Sir Walter Raleigh's works (as noted on the syllabus) by Friday.
Tuesday, January 5, 2010
Tuesday, January 5th
Today, in assigned groups, students worked on a timeline for their 50-year period. Each group will report out on their findings Wednesday, discussing major historical figures and authors, and significant events.
These timelines will be distributed to everyone in the class as a reference for future discussions and readings.
Wednesday, we will also begin discussing Queen Elizabeth I and some of her poetry.
These timelines will be distributed to everyone in the class as a reference for future discussions and readings.
Wednesday, we will also begin discussing Queen Elizabeth I and some of her poetry.
Monday, January 4, 2010
Monday, January 4th
Today, we reviewed the syllabus and got to know one another. Tomorrow, we’ll get to work on a timeline, providing historical context for future discussions.
The homework: According to last name, focus on a 50-year span. Research who was in power during those years, birth/death dates for the authors on our syllabus, and identify at least four significant events that happened during that time.
1550-1600: Last names that begin with A-B
1600-1650: Last names that begin with C-H
1650-1700: Last names that begin with I-P
1700-1750: Last names that begin with R-S
1750-1800: Last names that begin with T-Z
Also, please obtain the text, The Longman Anthology of British Literature, ASAP!
The first quiz is Thursday; it will only cover the Queen Elizabeth I readings, including the introduction on pgs. 616-618.
Welcome to class!
The homework: According to last name, focus on a 50-year span. Research who was in power during those years, birth/death dates for the authors on our syllabus, and identify at least four significant events that happened during that time.
1550-1600: Last names that begin with A-B
1600-1650: Last names that begin with C-H
1650-1700: Last names that begin with I-P
1700-1750: Last names that begin with R-S
1750-1800: Last names that begin with T-Z
Also, please obtain the text, The Longman Anthology of British Literature, ASAP!
The first quiz is Thursday; it will only cover the Queen Elizabeth I readings, including the introduction on pgs. 616-618.
Welcome to class!
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