- Next class (Tuesday) we will peer review the rough drafts of your Inferno rewrite. The final copy of your rewrite will be due on Thursday.
- Next Thursday we will have a full class discussion of Heart of Darkness.
- The sampling paper will be due on February 4. Before you read part III of Heart of Darkness you should identify a question/issue that you would like to pursue, and read part III with the question/issue in mind so that you can identify significant passages as you read.
Thursday, January 16, 2014
Block 1 Reminders
We ended class very quickly, so I wanted to make sure that we are all clear on the homework and due dates.
Monday, January 13, 2014
Updates
If you are in block 1, we will be discussing Part II of Heart of Darkness in class on Tuesday. Please remember to bring your book to class. We will then discuss Part III in class next Monday. If you have not posted a link to your outside reading blog, please do so PRONTO. Please attach the link to the post "Outside Reading the Nitty Gritty."
If you are in block 2, we will discuss Part II of Heart of Darkness on Friday, and Part III of Heart of Darkness the following Wednesday.
All students, please remember that in order to make the blogging process go more smoothly please title your posts as posts in order to differentiate them. Blogger will only allow the owner of the blog to post, so although your "post" will appear in the comment section, I will count it as a post.
If you have some time on Tuesday afternoon the English department would love you to join us in the Little Theater for Poetry Outloud; we will select the student who will represent Niskayuna in the regional competition.
If you are in block 2, we will discuss Part II of Heart of Darkness on Friday, and Part III of Heart of Darkness the following Wednesday.
All students, please remember that in order to make the blogging process go more smoothly please title your posts as posts in order to differentiate them. Blogger will only allow the owner of the blog to post, so although your "post" will appear in the comment section, I will count it as a post.
If you have some time on Tuesday afternoon the English department would love you to join us in the Little Theater for Poetry Outloud; we will select the student who will represent Niskayuna in the regional competition.
Wednesday, January 8, 2014
Heart of Darkness Part I
The following are questions generated by block 1 for the first section of Heart of Darkness; we will be discussing these questions in class on Friday (block 1) or on Monday (block 2). Come prepared to discuss these issues in section I.
- What is the significance of Mr. Kurtz?
- What is the significance of Marlow?
- On page 6 the text addresses the history of Britain under the Romans, why is this passage included in the book?
- Marlow seems to be revealed and characterized by the actions of other people towards him. Is there significance to this?
- Why does the boat open with the scene on the yacht?
- Why is there a narrator through which we hear Marlow's story?
- Could we discuss the section of the book in which Marlow rants about the rivets?
- What is motivating Marlow to embark on this journey? Why is he there?
- What connections exist between this section of the novella and Dante's Inferno?
- Is Conrad expressing guilt or culpability, or is he just a narrator?
- Where is the sepulchral city?
- What role does the manager have?
- What is the significance of Marlow going to the office where the women meet him and the doctor examines him?
- What does "Ave! Morituri te salutat" mean?
- What is the significance of the Company's chief accountant (pages 17 and 18)?
- On pages 16-18 Marlow meets the dying man, what are we supposed to make of his behavior in this situation?
- How moral/immoral has Marlow been so far?
- Why is time never discussed?
Outside reading due dates
Block 1- January 27,
Block 2- January 28,
Please note that I have pushed the due date back because of the snow days. As a result, it is not likely that the blog assignment will be reflected in the grade for second quarter. Happy blogging!
Block 2- January 28,
Please note that I have pushed the due date back because of the snow days. As a result, it is not likely that the blog assignment will be reflected in the grade for second quarter. Happy blogging!
Monday, January 6, 2014
Bring your copy of Inferno to class
As we delve deeper and deeper in the Heart of Darkness we will explore the relationship between Conrad's novella and Dante's epic poem. Be sure to bring your copy of Inferno with you to class.
Outside reading: the nitty gritty
Now that you have established a reading group and you have your books, the next step is to get reading and blogging about the book. Here is a list of practical tips to help you along in the process.
1. Decide as a group whether you will blog as you are reading the book or after you complete the book. I encourage you to blog while reading as it leads to better reading, better responses and less procrastination :) There are generic topics listed in the assignment; however, topics that you generate based on your specific book group will be the best.
2. For each blog post identify an issue, question, or quotation that you would like to address in your post. The topic of the post should be easily discerned from the title of the post. Remember, the required number of posts is only five; so, I expect each post to be substantive in topic and polished in its writing.
3. Be sure to include enought text, detail and specifics in your post so that those of us who haven't read the book (me) can follow the discussion.
4. Comment on at least five of your fellow bloggers posts. The best comments generate discussion amongst fellow bloggers.
5. One person from each group needs to post the link to their blog on the class website. Be sure to do this by January 10, 2014.
1. Decide as a group whether you will blog as you are reading the book or after you complete the book. I encourage you to blog while reading as it leads to better reading, better responses and less procrastination :) There are generic topics listed in the assignment; however, topics that you generate based on your specific book group will be the best.
2. For each blog post identify an issue, question, or quotation that you would like to address in your post. The topic of the post should be easily discerned from the title of the post. Remember, the required number of posts is only five; so, I expect each post to be substantive in topic and polished in its writing.
3. Be sure to include enought text, detail and specifics in your post so that those of us who haven't read the book (me) can follow the discussion.
4. Comment on at least five of your fellow bloggers posts. The best comments generate discussion amongst fellow bloggers.
5. One person from each group needs to post the link to their blog on the class website. Be sure to do this by January 10, 2014.
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