Blog, weeks 8-10

The work:
We now enter into the final stretch of senior year (BB). For the past few weeks we have been reading Stephen Crane's novel The Red Badge of Courage. We have noticed the extreme use of themes that Crane uses throughout the novel (DM). We received a project on researching "youth" soldiers in current conflicts all around the world today (TJ). The point was to graph two people and compare and contrast their life stories (VC). A trip to the library aided our efforts to identify a youth that could be compared to Henry (RH). We reviewed Henry's ideas of becoming a man and what it takes (DG).

The workers:
Brendan pointed out the relationship between Jim Conklin and Jesus (NR).
Dan noted how "The Bride Comes to Yellos Sky" parallels the Red Badge of Courage in many themes (KK).
Rob reminded us that the sheriff fights scratchy (ER).
Erik says Henry never felt so weak. Chapin correctly cited an example on the board (MF).
Mike talked about the packet of letters (TJ).
Pat told the class that Henry encounters an enemy flag bearer (DM).
Brendan made a connection between Crane and his short story's setting...(RH).

Words to live by:

"A person can die from lack of...contact." ~Martha
"Let me into the darkness again"--Stephen Crane
"He recalled with a thrill of joy the respectful comments of his fellows upon his conduct." ~Stephen Crane
"He forgot he was engaged in combating the universe." ~Stephen Crane
"And they were men." ~Stephen Crane

Library visit, 4/7

To dig for children affected by war, brainstorm some search terms. Find articles on your country at google news. Once you find a name, search with the name. Once you find a region or city, search with the region or city. Once you find search recent news accounts, research.

Also try the BBC or BBC World or CNN World.

Check Amnesty International's and the Human Rights Watch and Unicef.

Read up on your country at the CIA factbook.

Bear in mind that your Works Cited page will list every statistic or quote that you reference. Anything that will not be your own thinking in this paper must be cited. For rules on in-text citation, read here.

RBC Research

Here is the link to current conflicts compliments of the Global Security thinktank. Click on your conflict to give you a little background before you start digging (here, perhaps) for a youth.

Blog, weeks 6-7

The work:
As the week began we took notes on naturalism as we started reading Stephen Crane's The Red Badge of Courage. We can relate to the young boy Henry fighting in the Civil War by us understanding his emotions and personal growth that we all went through (BB). The class searched for Crane's usage of similes and metaphors within the text (BF). We have picked out themes thus far in The Red Badge of Courage such as nature in the spiritual sense and colors (DM).

The workers:
Mike M. noted how nature seemed to cover over the dead soldier inside the chapel (BF). Conor pointed out that Jack is emotionally torn when he needs to find info on Judge Irwin (NR). Noel identified the veracity behind the theme of color (JW). Conor demonstrated the symbolosm of running away (JW). Pat said that the last scene in chapter 7 talks about the youth's encounter with death. Brendan says that the chapel is only about as big as two people (DM). Vinny shined light to the cruelty of nature and the ways it is unforgiving (MF). Eric spoke about how Crane's lifestyle clearly affects his writing (GM). Pete commented on how Henry regretted not fighting in battle, he wanted his own "red badge of courage" (KK). Bob F. said that when the soldier says "leave me" it's like when Jesus rejects the offer of the wine on the sponge... (TR).


Words to live by:

"Within him, as he hurled himself forward, was born a love, a despairing fondness for this flag which was near him. It was a creation of beauty and invulnerability."

"Yer jest one little feller amongst a hull lot of others, and yeh've got to keep quiet an' do what they tell yeh."

"The impulse of the living to try to read in dead eyes the answer to the Question."

"Don't go a-thinkin' you can lick the hull rebel army at the start, because yeh can't."

"He wondered what those men had eaten that they could be in such haste to force their way to grim chances of death."

You don't get to say you're atoning.

Homework for 3/13:

Read the full text of Eliot Spitzer's resignation as governor of New York. Then read the first fifty reader responses people wrote below it.

We just read a book about the way the governor of a state eventually gets corrupted despite his intentions of being a good, honest man. Be prepared to talk intelligently about how we can connect these two men in remarkable ways.

Then, just for kicks, read the new CM blog here.

Blog, Weeks 3-4-5

The work:
We started to get into Robert Penn Warren's political novel All the King's Men (GM). Each classmate chose a character they most closely resembled identified with individually (JW).
We learned the correct rules on how to cite sources and used examples from actual papers to show us how to do it (DM). We learned the way people can play dirty politics and the with faith in representing the people (MF). The class made some reference to the tactics that politicians use then and now in our current elections (BB). We looked at our reader response essays and tried to fix them for a 2nd draft (PD). We put the "human google" to work in search of the word 'know' (SC). "I suffer..." sums up our struggle through the hardy chapters of All the King's Men (VC).


The workers:
Keith said that Willie is an exceptional speaker. Graham mentioned that Jack is apologetic to Sadie in some scenes. (DK)
Steve told us how Anne declined Jack's hand in marriage (PS).
Travis said that the best way to start a reader response essay is with the character's first presentation (NR).
Chapin saved the class by shedding light on Jack's job of digging up dirt for Willi. (CM)
David K. made a connection between JAck Burden and his father to the relationship between King Henry IV and his son.
Steve tells us Jack is more of an innocent character in the movie. (DM)
Danny pointed out the thesis statement made by Jack on p60. (TJ)
Silverio stumped McG. with what show Jackie was watching in chapter 7. (ER)
John said that Jack chose to go to state college rather than Harvard. (SC)
Andrew compared the description of the highway in chapter six to the highway in chapter 1 that came as a result of Willie's ascension to governor (RH).



Words to live by: (from guest blogger, Brendan B)

Don't give him too much, he's not used to it. -There's a lot of things he's not used to. ~Sadie
The truth is a terrible thing. ~Jack
Nothing fazed him, not insult or anger or violence of getting his face beat into a hamburger. He was a true businessman. He knew the value of everything. ~Jack

Blog, Term II, weeks 1+2

The work:
We started the Glass Menagerie by Tennessee Williams, and studied quote handouts, poems, and reader responses that focused on it (GM). We read and dissected hte play, including looking at the film version starring John Malkovic. We wrote an in class essay about how they are all equally pathetic characters (NR). Each [character in the Glass Menagerie] is fragile in disposition whether it be their emotional intake, the fragility of a heart, the feeling of brokenness in a career...(VC). We compared e.e. cummings' poem "somewhere i have never travelled gladly beyond" to Tom's goodbye speech in the Glass Menagerie (SC).

The workers:
Mike relates the parent child relationship in the GM to that of the Grapes of Wrath (NR). Erik knew the word "jonquils" in the story meant "flowers" and prevailed after McG. called his bluff (PD). Steve said that anger is provoked in both Death of a Salesman and the Glass Menagerie (VC). Andrew believed that Tom in the film seemed to be drunk but there was no textual evidence for that (RH). Michael compared "traveled" in the first line of the cummings poem to the first line in Tom's concluding speech (RH). Silverio brought up the physical appeal of Laura and how she feels about herself (DG). Eric said that Amanda was trying to live her life through her daughter (DG). Travis spoke on Amanda's controlling attitude (GM). Keith identified how Tom's character is rebellious throughout the play (DK).

Words to live by:
"The actual world is less intense than the world of this invention and consequently his life." ~Tennessee Williams

"Time is the longest distance between two places." ~Tom (in GM)

"Glass breaks so easily. No matter how careful you are." ~Laura

"He is the long-delayed but always expected someone that we live for." ~Tom

"We live in a mysterious world, don't we." ~Tom

Guest blogger: Conor M., Weeks 15 and 16

In the past two weeks we have started to take a look into the life of Willy Loman in the play Death of a Salesman. Using our experience from reading other dramas like Henry IV we were able to pick apart the meaning of DOS. We looked at the classic descent of a hero from heaven to hell through the story. The class was allowed to focus on a specific scene between Willy and Biff and perform it to their own interpretation. James showed the class the necessity, in acting to rehearse, not only your lines but the props you are using! We then took a look at how professional actors acted out the same scene. We finished off the week by reviewing for midterms.

The workers:
At the beginning of the play, Erik shared with the class his belief that drama can provide more of an emotional connection than fiction. Steve told the class his view of Biff and Willy being sexist by calling a woman a "pig." When acting out his scene, David showed his forensics experience with acting. Michael gave us all a surprise with the volume of his recitation. Steve's group showed the class how necessary it is to also know your partner's lines in case they skip one. Brendan commented on the constant stress and anger in Willy's life. Pat noticed the entrances of Ben into a scene are easier to notice. Ryan also picked up on the red walls of the restaurant which also happens to be Willy's "hell."

Words to live by:
"Life is a casting off." ~Linda
"Nobody's worth nothing dead." ~Charley
"Bot sometimes, Willy, it's better for a man just to walk away." ~Bernard
"Why must everybody conquer the world?" ~Linda

The Glass Menagerie--some topics

Here is some brainstorming I've been doing in preparation for tomorrow's in-class essay. I've narrowed down the essay I'll ask you to write to three possibilities:

• All of the characters in The Glass Menagerie (TGM) are equally portrayed as pathetic and living a life of illusion separate from reality. Explain each of their illusions and argue which of them, if any, are left at the end of the play still living in their illusions.
• Critic Benjamin Nelson said, "When Tom leaves he escapes from a trap, a situation which is plainly unendurable, but there is nothing heroic or even positive and challenging in his departure...His departure is little more than a snap of a twig in the wind." Explain what Nelson means about Tom.
  
• According to Amanda, Mr. Wingfield, her husband, was a true gentleman. What does this mean? How does the father play into the story as a significant character? And how does the notion of a "good man" get distorted by Williams through the presentation of Wingfield in this play?

McG's Top 10 Poems most of you missed.

Top ten poems most of you should have also considered in my humble opinion:

"Crossing the Bar"--Tennyson
"Traveling through the dark"--Stafford
"Constantly risking absurdity"--Ferlinghetti
"Anthem for doomed youth" --Owen
"On first looking into Chapman's Homer"--Keats
"Siren Song"--Margaret Atwood
"I died for beauty..." --Dickinson
"Theme for English B" --Hughes
"Summer Day"--Oliver
"The Snow Man"--Stevens

Weeks 13/14 Blog

The work:
Despite the severe snow storms, field trips, and absences, our class was able to produce a plethora of literary insight and great discussions (DG). We looked at poems such as "The Eagle," "The Whipping," "Mind," and "Cross" (RH). We took these poems and picked a few to discuss intelligently in class (DM). The poetry unit as a whole seemed to be quite enjoyable with the class having to read from a variety of poems in our text (BB). Reader responses have been done for all the chapters and we broke some poems up and ripped them apart (DC). As the weeks progressed we were given the opportunity to write our very own anthology of our top ten poems (TJ).

The workers:
Silverio explained what good poetry was in his heart (BF).
Conor finds the hidden meaning behind Sylvia Plath's "Metaphors" which is about pregnancy (NR).
Travis told us where the main character would die in the poem "Cross"--"in the middle" (DM).
Eric said that Frost may not be talking about just the woods in "Stopping by Woods..." (AH).
Graham felt that "hidings" in "The Whipping" has a double meaning and represents secrets as well as being whipped (RH).
Danny added that "Metaphors" has fruit imagery (SC).
Steve observed that the whipping portrayed a one-sided scenario and caused anger toward the mother (VC).

Words to live by:
"We mortal millions live alone."~Matthew Arnold
"The way to begin is always the same." ~Martha Collins
"True ease in writing comes from art, not chance." ~Alexander Pope
"The art of losing isn't hard to master." ~Elizabeth Bishop
"Do not go gentle into that good night." ~Dylan Thomas