What are the most significant observations that "The Book" contains regarding 1) economics, 2) class divisions and goals for equality and inequality 3) politics, 4) national borders, and 5) warfare?
Now meet with your group. You should have identified a variety of key quotes. What are the four most important quotes on your topic and why? Begin this conversation today - we will continue it tomorrow.
Homwork: Tonight, on the turnitin.com discussion bin "1984 chapter 9" each of you will post your two quotes (one before 195 and one after 195) and a brief explanation (three to four sentences) on why that quote is important. (10 points - 5 per each question)
Student Example
Politics-
Before 195- "at just this moment it had been announced that Oceania was not after all at war with Eurasia. Oceania was at war with Eastasia. Eurasia was an ally" (Orwell 180)
I chose this quote to represent how the Thought police and the other "government" people in charge are allowed to change the thinking of everyone. No on even questioned the idea of being at war with Eastasia instead of Eurasia, and the party members just accept the fact that they have been lied to by the political parties and they do not do anything about it.
After 195 - "A party member is expected to have no private emotions and not respites from enthusiasm. He is supposed to live in a continuous frenzy of hatred of foreign enemies and internal traitors, triumph over victories, and self-abasement before the power and wisdom of the party." (Orwell 211)
This quote emphasizes the fact that the party members are so brain washed by the political parties to even realize that they don't have any emotion. The party members that realize what is going on have to hide their every emotion because they are afraid of their punishments.
Monday, October 31, 2016
Wednesday, October 26, 2016
In-class AP Lang and Composition rhetorical analysis essay (40 points)
HW: Read pages 179 to the middles of 195 in Chapter 9
Also tomorrow:
Terminator Robots Coming Soon?
Police Facial Recognition Databases Log About Half Of Americans
HW: Read pages 179 to the middles of 195 in Chapter 9
Also tomorrow:
Terminator Robots Coming Soon?
Police Facial Recognition Databases Log About Half Of Americans
Tuesday, October 25, 2016
English
IV
Wesley
9/29/2016
Crazy
Crazy. I am not going to sit here and explain to whom ever may be
reading this what the meaning of the word crazy is- that would just be crazy.
There are too many different examples of the word crazy used in context and the
word is too polarizing and general to use as often as it is used. People need
to cut back on the use of the word crazy and only use it in appropriate
situations.
The word crazy means much more to some people than it does
to others. To be honest, you probably don’t have the slightest clue who is
affected by mental illness. According to Victoria Bekiempis of Newsweek, 1 in 5
Americans suffer from mental illness each year. So look around the class room.
Would you bet against the claim that 20% are somehow affected by mental
illness? If so place your wager, I'll match anything. Mental illness does not
target a certain age, race, gender or social class, it targets all walks of
life.
People obviously do not choose their mental state. Whether
it's through genetics or acquired during this long road of life, nobody has
control over the problem of mental illness. So that homeless old man sprinting
for his life, yelling out how he's being followed? He has PTSD from being
forced to serve his country in Vietnam. That kid who sleeps in class and has
done his homework twice this year? He has to take care of his bipolar father
24/7. That girl in your class who has to get her way all the time and is a
total “control freak”? You think you are the unlucky one for having to sit next
to her in class? Try being the one with OCD.
Think of how many people who have
revolutionized the world have been called crazy. Marshall Mathers, Albert
Einstein, Ken Kesey, Hunter S. Thompson, Lady Gaga, Dennis Rodman, Nikolai
Tesla, Edgar Allen Poe, Neil Armstrong, Obama. Shit, this essay has to be a
page and a half and I could make a list of people called crazy double the
length. And even if they are famous success stories, the people who are called
crazy that the world has not heard of are just important. One man has the power
to change the world and personally, I think you kind of do have to be a little
crazy to do so, in a good way.
The bottom line is, the use of the word crazy needs to decline and
should only be used when appropriate. Besides is calling somebody crazy not the
same exact same thing as writing “hypocrite” across your forehead? Admit it,
were all a little batshit. And just remember, be careful who you call crazy,
because one day, they might just show you how crazy they are.
Wesley
Lang.&Comp. [AP Rhetoric]
2 October 2016
Please Don’t Tell it Again
Originated
in 2011, the phrase cool story bro, tell
it again! is commonly used as a witty remark to give feedback on a story
that you truly did not find interesting and would not want to hear again.
According to Urban Dictionary, the phrase is used in a “dickish/sarcastic way,”
“to indicate one’s disgust or indifference towards a story.”
The
phrase is just so condescending. Don’t be a jerk. Why is it so hard to pretend
that you’re interested in their boring story? Instead of having to completely
shut down somebody’s excitement over a story, why not just nod and smile? You
don’t even have to listen. On the outside it looks like you truly are engaged,
but internally you are going over what you want for dinner or a list of things
you need to buy at Target.
Sure the rebuttal
is supremely sarcastic, but it’s utterly unoriginal. It’s become way overused.
Proof of this is that in t-shirt shops in popular vacation spots have neon
shirts that say cool story bro, tell it
again! on them. You don’t want to be THAT person, using things they’ve
seen on t-shirts from Daytona Beach, FL, during Spring Break. The phrase demotes your ability to make good
comebacks by using it. You’re not a true “sarcasm god/goddess” if you use this
ancient antiphon. Be original when it comes to your sarcasm.
Too many breaths
are used just to get it out of your mouth. You want to be quick and witty with
a response, and taking 2 breaths just to get cool story bro, tell it again! Out is a complete waste of oxygen.
By the time you’ve finished, the storyteller could’ve began another boring
story not worth repeating, and no one wants that.
The increased use
of this commentary shows how society has become pessimistic and afraid of
others having more fun or a more extravagant life. It also proves that we as a
society are afraid to fall inferior of others. By shooting down a story with
this sharp retort, people are finding satisfaction. This yet again proves that
we feel the need to cut down others exciting life events in order to feel
better about ourselves.
In the end, you
could hurt someone’s feelings by raining on their ‘cool story’ parade. They genuinely
could’ve thought their story really was cool! Another important detail to know is
if your audience understands sarcasm. The only thing worse than having to
explain a joke is telling a person you are being sarcastic. Having to explain
that their story was truly extremely boring is such a waste of time. Worst-case
scenario? Actually having to hear the story again.
Monday, October 24, 2016
Bluebells symbolism
Oranges and Lemons Print Terms for AP Lang and Comp Exam
1st period...
Liam and Charlie need to take ch 1-7 quiz
7th period...John N, Matt B, CeCe need to take quiz
Take 5 mins to review the list of rhetorical terms for the AP Lang and Comp Exam. Write "1984" next to those terms that you feel describe strategies that Orwell has consciously or subconsciously employed in 1984.
Go over prompt and passage 117-119
HW: Read Part 2, Book 5 (147-159) paying particular attention to how Orwell uses specific details to convey how the Party manipulates the emotions of the people of Oceania in the weeks leading up to hate week (147 to 149) and his use of dialogue and narrative commentary to reveal the different awareness of and attitudes towards of the party on the part of Julia and Winston, respectively (152-156).
Tomorrow:
Have students write a practice essay and then show examples
Use Composition Notebook (How To Speak Rhetoric) to copy down sentnece that you feel are well-written and reveal mature awareness. Underline the rhetorical term used to identify the strategy used.
Bluebells symbolism
Oranges and Lemons Print Terms for AP Lang and Comp Exam
1st period...
Liam and Charlie need to take ch 1-7 quiz
7th period...John N, Matt B, CeCe need to take quiz
Take 5 mins to review the list of rhetorical terms for the AP Lang and Comp Exam. Write "1984" next to those terms that you feel describe strategies that Orwell has consciously or subconsciously employed in 1984.
HW: Read Part 2, Book 5 (147-159) paying particular attention to how Orwell uses specific details to convey how the Party manipulates the emotions of the people of Oceania in the weeks leading up to hate week (147 to 149) and his use of dialogue and narrative commentary to reveal the different awareness of and attitudes towards of the party on the part of Julia and Winston, respectively (152-156).
Use Composition Notebook (How To Speak Rhetoric) to copy down sentnece that you feel are well-written and reveal mature awareness. Underline the rhetorical term used to identify the strategy used.
Bluebells symbolism
1984, Part 2, chapter 2 Rhetorical Analysis Practice Essay:
Read this, take notes, create an outline. On Monday, I will have you work with a partner to write a practice essay.
Write an essay explaining how Orwell uses various rhetorical elements to contrast the hope and beauty of a budding relationship with the darker realities of life in Oceania. You might wish consider some of the following rhetorical/literary elements: his selection and arrangement of details; imagery; setting; and mood/atmosphere. Please write legibly.
Part 2, Chapter 2
Winston picked his way up the lane through dappled light and shade, stepping out into pools of gold wherever the boughs parted. Under the trees to the left of him the ground was misty with bluebells. The air seemed to kiss one's skin. It was the second of May. From somewhere deeper in the heart of the wood came the droning of ring doves.
He was a bit early. There had been no difficulties about the journey, and the girl was so evidently experienced that he was less frightened than he would normally have been. Presumably she could be trusted to find a safe place. In general you could not assume that you were much safer in the country than in London. There were no telescreens, of course, but there was always the danger of concealed microphones by which your voice might be picked up and recognized; besides, it was not easy to make a journey by yourself without attracting attention. For distances of less than 100 kilometres it was not necessary to get your passport endorsed, but sometimes there were patrols hanging about the railway stations, who examined the papers of any Party member they found there and asked awkward questions. However, no patrols had appeared, and on the walk from the station he had made sure by cautious backward glances that he was not being followed. The train was full of proles, in holiday mood because of the summery weather. The wooden-seated carriage in which he travelled was filled to overflowing by a single enormous family, ranging from a toothless great-grandmother to a month-old baby, going out to spend an afternoon with 'in-laws' in the country, and, as they freely explained to Winston, to get hold of a little blackmarket butter.
The lane widened, and in a minute he came to the footpath she had told him of, a mere cattle-track which plunged between the bushes. He had no watch, but it could not be fifteen yet. The bluebells were so thick underfoot that it was impossible not to tread on them. He knelt down and began picking some partly to pass the time away, but also from a vague idea that he would like to have a bunch of flowers to offer to the girl when they met. He had got together a big bunch and was smelling their faint sickly scent when a sound at his back froze him, the unmistakable crackle of a foot on twigs. He went on picking bluebells. It was the best thing to do. It might be the girl, or he might have been followed after all. To look round was to show guilt. He picked another and another. A hand fell lightly on his shoulder.
He looked up. It was the girl. She shook her head, evidently as a warning that he must keep silent, then parted the bushes and quickly led the way along the narrow track into the wood. Obviously she had been that way before, for she dodged the boggy bits as though by habit. Winston followed, still clasping his bunch of flowers. His first feeling was relief, but as he watched the strong slender body moving in front of him, with the scarlet sash that was just tight enough to bring out the curve of her hips, the sense of his own inferiority was heavy upon him. Even now it seemed quite likely that when she turned round and looked at him she would draw back after all. The sweetness of the air and the greenness of the leaves daunted him. Already on the walk from the station the May sunshine had made him feel dirty and etiolated, a creature of indoors, with the sooty dust of London in the pores of his skin.
Student Example 1:
Student Example 2:
He was a bit early. There had been no difficulties about the journey, and the girl was so evidently experienced that he was less frightened than he would normally have been. Presumably she could be trusted to find a safe place. In general you could not assume that you were much safer in the country than in London. There were no telescreens, of course, but there was always the danger of concealed microphones by which your voice might be picked up and recognized; besides, it was not easy to make a journey by yourself without attracting attention. For distances of less than 100 kilometres it was not necessary to get your passport endorsed, but sometimes there were patrols hanging about the railway stations, who examined the papers of any Party member they found there and asked awkward questions. However, no patrols had appeared, and on the walk from the station he had made sure by cautious backward glances that he was not being followed. The train was full of proles, in holiday mood because of the summery weather. The wooden-seated carriage in which he travelled was filled to overflowing by a single enormous family, ranging from a toothless great-grandmother to a month-old baby, going out to spend an afternoon with 'in-laws' in the country, and, as they freely explained to Winston, to get hold of a little blackmarket butter.
The lane widened, and in a minute he came to the footpath she had told him of, a mere cattle-track which plunged between the bushes. He had no watch, but it could not be fifteen yet. The bluebells were so thick underfoot that it was impossible not to tread on them. He knelt down and began picking some partly to pass the time away, but also from a vague idea that he would like to have a bunch of flowers to offer to the girl when they met. He had got together a big bunch and was smelling their faint sickly scent when a sound at his back froze him, the unmistakable crackle of a foot on twigs. He went on picking bluebells. It was the best thing to do. It might be the girl, or he might have been followed after all. To look round was to show guilt. He picked another and another. A hand fell lightly on his shoulder.
He looked up. It was the girl. She shook her head, evidently as a warning that he must keep silent, then parted the bushes and quickly led the way along the narrow track into the wood. Obviously she had been that way before, for she dodged the boggy bits as though by habit. Winston followed, still clasping his bunch of flowers. His first feeling was relief, but as he watched the strong slender body moving in front of him, with the scarlet sash that was just tight enough to bring out the curve of her hips, the sense of his own inferiority was heavy upon him. Even now it seemed quite likely that when she turned round and looked at him she would draw back after all. The sweetness of the air and the greenness of the leaves daunted him. Already on the walk from the station the May sunshine had made him feel dirty and etiolated, a creature of indoors, with the sooty dust of London in the pores of his skin.
Student Example 1:
1984 Part 2 ch 2 rhet analysis
Wesley 7
16 October 2015
1984
Rhetorical Analysis
In Orwell’s excerpt from part 2, chapter 2 of 1984, he contrasts the hope and beauty
of a budding relationship with the darker realities of Oceania by using various
rhetorical elements. Not only does Orwell use the setting to show this
contrast, but he also uses conflicting tone to illustrate the contradictory
relationship between new love and the harsh realities of Oceania.
Orwell starts the scene with Winston walking “up a lane”
with “dappled light and shade, stepping into pools of gold”, which sounds like
pleasant, happy place. He continues by describing the setting as “misty with
bluebells”, with an “air that kissed one’s skin”, another depiction of the
lovely setting that Winston first finds himself in. “It was the second of May”. He is thinking
about Julia and how excited he is to see her.
When
Winston starts to think about the horrors that could come from meeting Julia,
the setting quickly changes and all the sudden Winston is walking on “ a
mere-cattle track, which plunged between the bushes” instead of a golden lane.
He was now treading on the bluebells and killing them, rather than admiring
their beauty. This setting is clearly
not as nice as it was a few moments ago, right after he thinks about the rules
of Oceania. Orwell used this abrupt change in setting to show the contrast
between a budding relationship and the monstrosities of the world Winston and
Julia live in.
Orwell’s
tone also changes throughout the paragraphs to demonstrate this conflict. In
the first paragraph, his tone seems full of hope for the new couple as he
mentions “kisses”, “gold” , “hearts” and “doves”. It is a joyful tone, full of
words that symbolize new love and a happy ending to their story.
Moving
on to the next paragraph, the tone takes on a harsher, more matter of fact
manner as Orwell describes that “ you were not much safer in the country than
in London”. He also states that Julia
“could be trusted to find a safe place” for them to meet, even though he keeps
“cautiously glancing backwards to make sure that he was not being followed”.
The tone becomes serious and negative when talking about Oceania. The
difference in tone between the first two paragraphs illustrates the contrast
between the hope of a relationship for Julia and Winston and the realities of
the world they live in.
Both the
setting and tone used by Orwell in the passage, change dramatically and
abruptly to display the contrast between the hope of a budding relationship and
the darker realities of Oceania.
Student Example 2:
Period 7
October 16th, 2015
Wesley IV AP
Light
vs. Dark
The
life of Winston in Oceania compared to the life of Winston while he is with
Julia could not be more different. In Oceania, he is unhappy and does not find
joy in life. However, with Julia, Winston feels free to express himself and is
a happier person overall. In 1984 by George Orwell, the author uses setting and
detailed imagery to contrast the hope and beauty of a new relationship with the
darker realities of life in Oceania.
As
Winston travels from Oceania to the country, he steps “through dappled light
and shade” and “into pools of gold.” The word choice and detail that Orwell
chooses clearly represents that Winston is moving from a place of darkness to a
place that holds hope for his future. The “sweetness of the air” and “May
sunshine” highlights a warm, pretty, and calm setting for when Julia and
Winston first meet. The description of the setting allows the reader to
naturally associate their relationship with happiness and peacefulness.
However, there is always a secret fear of Oceania lurking in the background of
the setting. For example, the very feeling of sunshine makes Winston “feel
dirty…with the sooty dust of London in the pores of his skin.” Winston will
always be reminded of Oceania in some way, and is always looking out for
suspicious activity. For instance, “there [is] always the danger of concealed
microphones by which your voice might be picked up and recognized.” This
suggests that the Party hides microphones everywhere, even in the country, in
order to detect people who may be breaking some type of law. This contrasting
of light and dark highlights the danger of wanting to be in a genuine
relationship with someone in Winston’s society.
Moreover,
Orwell uses very detailed imagery to contrast Julia and Winston’s relationship
with the reality of what Oceania is really like. The “faint sickly scent” of
the bluebells lingers in the background of Winston being in the meadow where
him and Julia are supposed to meet. Orwell uses the bluebells to represent the
romance and thrill of the new relationship when Winston wants “to have a bunch
to offer the girl when they [meet].” In addition, the “greenness of the leaves”
and the fact that “the air seemed to kiss one’s skin” highlight the excitement
of being somewhere other than drab Oceania. Unfortunately, this excitement is
soon overpowered with the thought of “patrols hanging about the railway
stations” and Julia’s “warning that [Winston] must keep silent” until they get
to a more private area. Almost immediately after Winston arrives at the secret
location and begins to appreciate the natural beauty of life, he is shot down
by the reality of the danger that he is going through to even be anywhere but
Oceania.
In
conclusion, Orwell contrasts the hope of Julia and Winston’s new relationship
with the darkness and melancholy of
Oceania through setting and detailed imagery. The use of these rhetorical
elements is important in hinting to the reader that their rendezvous is
dangerous and highlights the fact that Oceania does not allow hopefulness in
its society.
Friday, October 21, 2016
If you are going to do the revised paper, you must hand in a typed version of Part A on Monday (1 paragraph)
Example from a junior's revision paper:
Rationale
Statement: I need to work on focusing my
creating a focused and well-developed thesis statement that gives specific
points that are later explained in my essay.
If I get a well-developed thesis statement, then it becomes easier to
create good topic sentences in the body paragraphs. For example instead of using a generic, even
cliché statement, “portray how society casts views that can affect a person
internally” I should be more specific, molding the thesis to portray the events
that are laid out in The Scarlet Letter.
This is a top priority for my writing because if I can create a precise
and to the point thesis statement, then it will be easier to create paragraphs
that are not too generic. I think that
with my writing, if I do not have a specific topic that I am further analyzing
then my work becomes repetitive and not specific enough.
Writing clear and concise proseRead Chapter 2, Part 2 in class (117-127)
1984, Part 2, chapter
2 Rhetorical Analysis Practice Essay:
Read this, take
notes, create an outline. On Monday, I will have you work with a partner to
write a practice essay.
Write an essay explaining how Orwell uses various
rhetorical elements to contrast the hope and beauty of a budding relationship
with the darker realities of life in Oceania.
You might wish consider some of the following rhetorical/literary
elements: his selection and arrangement of details; imagery; setting; and
mood/atmosphere. Please write legibly.
Part 2, Chapter 2
Winston picked his way up the lane through dappled light and
shade, stepping out into pools of gold wherever the boughs parted. Under the
trees to the left of him the ground was misty with bluebells. The air seemed to
kiss one's skin. It was the second of May. From somewhere deeper in the heart
of the wood came the droning of ring doves.
He was a bit early. There had been no difficulties about the journey, and the girl was so evidently experienced that he was less frightened than he would normally have been. Presumably she could be trusted to find a safe place. In general you could not assume that you were much safer in the country than in London. There were no telescreens, of course, but there was always the danger of concealed microphones by which your voice might be picked up and recognized; besides, it was not easy to make a journey by yourself without attracting attention. For distances of less than 100 kilometres it was not necessary to get your passport endorsed, but sometimes there were patrols hanging about the railway stations, who examined the papers of any Party member they found there and asked awkward questions. However, no patrols had appeared, and on the walk from the station he had made sure by cautious backward glances that he was not being followed. The train was full of proles, in holiday mood because of the summery weather. The wooden-seated carriage in which he travelled was filled to overflowing by a single enormous family, ranging from a toothless great-grandmother to a month-old baby, going out to spend an afternoon with 'in-laws' in the country, and, as they freely explained to Winston, to get hold of a little blackmarket butter.
The lane widened, and in a minute he came to the footpath she had told him of, a mere cattle-track which plunged between the bushes. He had no watch, but it could not be fifteen yet. The bluebells were so thick underfoot that it was impossible not to tread on them. He knelt down and began picking some partly to pass the time away, but also from a vague idea that he would like to have a bunch of flowers to offer to the girl when they met. He had got together a big bunch and was smelling their faint sickly scent when a sound at his back froze him, the unmistakable crackle of a foot on twigs. He went on picking bluebells. It was the best thing to do. It might be the girl, or he might have been followed after all. To look round was to show guilt. He picked another and another. A hand fell lightly on his shoulder.
He looked up. It was the girl. She shook her head, evidently as a warning that he must keep silent, then parted the bushes and quickly led the way along the narrow track into the wood. Obviously she had been that way before, for she dodged the boggy bits as though by habit. Winston followed, still clasping his bunch of flowers. His first feeling was relief, but as he watched the strong slender body moving in front of him, with the scarlet sash that was just tight enough to bring out the curve of her hips, the sense of his own inferiority was heavy upon him. Even now it seemed quite likely that when she turned round and looked at him she would draw back after all. The sweetness of the air and the greenness of the leaves daunted him. Already on the walk from the station the May sunshine had made him feel dirty and etiolated, a creature of indoors, with the sooty dust of London in the pores of his skin.
He was a bit early. There had been no difficulties about the journey, and the girl was so evidently experienced that he was less frightened than he would normally have been. Presumably she could be trusted to find a safe place. In general you could not assume that you were much safer in the country than in London. There were no telescreens, of course, but there was always the danger of concealed microphones by which your voice might be picked up and recognized; besides, it was not easy to make a journey by yourself without attracting attention. For distances of less than 100 kilometres it was not necessary to get your passport endorsed, but sometimes there were patrols hanging about the railway stations, who examined the papers of any Party member they found there and asked awkward questions. However, no patrols had appeared, and on the walk from the station he had made sure by cautious backward glances that he was not being followed. The train was full of proles, in holiday mood because of the summery weather. The wooden-seated carriage in which he travelled was filled to overflowing by a single enormous family, ranging from a toothless great-grandmother to a month-old baby, going out to spend an afternoon with 'in-laws' in the country, and, as they freely explained to Winston, to get hold of a little blackmarket butter.
The lane widened, and in a minute he came to the footpath she had told him of, a mere cattle-track which plunged between the bushes. He had no watch, but it could not be fifteen yet. The bluebells were so thick underfoot that it was impossible not to tread on them. He knelt down and began picking some partly to pass the time away, but also from a vague idea that he would like to have a bunch of flowers to offer to the girl when they met. He had got together a big bunch and was smelling their faint sickly scent when a sound at his back froze him, the unmistakable crackle of a foot on twigs. He went on picking bluebells. It was the best thing to do. It might be the girl, or he might have been followed after all. To look round was to show guilt. He picked another and another. A hand fell lightly on his shoulder.
He looked up. It was the girl. She shook her head, evidently as a warning that he must keep silent, then parted the bushes and quickly led the way along the narrow track into the wood. Obviously she had been that way before, for she dodged the boggy bits as though by habit. Winston followed, still clasping his bunch of flowers. His first feeling was relief, but as he watched the strong slender body moving in front of him, with the scarlet sash that was just tight enough to bring out the curve of her hips, the sense of his own inferiority was heavy upon him. Even now it seemed quite likely that when she turned round and looked at him she would draw back after all. The sweetness of the air and the greenness of the leaves daunted him. Already on the walk from the station the May sunshine had made him feel dirty and etiolated, a creature of indoors, with the sooty dust of London in the pores of his skin.
HW: Read chapters 3 and 4 of Part 2 (127-147)
Complete Part A of Revision Assignment (if you are going to do a rewrite)
If you are going to do the revised paper, you must hand in a typed version of Part A on Monday (1 paragraph)
Example from a junior's revision paper:
Rationale
Statement: I need to work on focusing my
creating a focused and well-developed thesis statement that gives specific
points that are later explained in my essay.
If I get a well-developed thesis statement, then it becomes easier to
create good topic sentences in the body paragraphs. For example instead of using a generic, even
cliché statement, “portray how society casts views that can affect a person
internally” I should be more specific, molding the thesis to portray the events
that are laid out in The Scarlet Letter.
This is a top priority for my writing because if I can create a precise
and to the point thesis statement, then it will be easier to create paragraphs
that are not too generic. I think that
with my writing, if I do not have a specific topic that I am further analyzing
then my work becomes repetitive and not specific enough.
Wesley
Language
Rant rewrite option Due date: October 28, 2016
(no extensions)
1) To
be eligible for a rewrite, you have to identify, research and write about at
least one area for improvement in your language rant (see the Areas for
Improvement and the Assignment Parts below).
2) Next,
choose a new word or phrase to
write about (but I would prefer it not be “literally” or “like” – too many of
those papers already).
Areas
for Improvement
Identify and write about why you need to improve in
one of the following areas:
1) Writing clear, concise prose
You might want to choose this if
your major problems are related to wordiness/language clutter, filler words,
vague or empty words, misplaced modifiers, awkward diction or syntax, excessive
use of the passive voice and verbs of being.
2) Engaging voice
3) Specific/real examples instead
of weak/hypothetical examples
4) Problems with mechanics (punctuation,
spelling, syntax/grammar problems)
6) Clarity: Unity & coherence
Assignment Parts:
a. Write
a rationale statement explaining why you feel you most need to work on this
particular skill(s). Generally speaking,
I want you to explain why – based on past experience, comments on this paper and
others, etc. – you feel this a writing skill you most need to work on.
b. Find
a good source in print or on the internet which provides guidance on this
writing skill. Copy/print a reasonable length (6 or less pages) for the purpose
of annotating. Read it and annotate it
for important advice and tips, especially advice that pertains directly to your
struggles.
c. Write
your new language rant.
d.
Write a strong reflection paragraph
describing how you addressed the area(s) for improvement in your new paper, using specific examples from your
new paper as evidence of this growth.
Writing clear and concise prose
Read Chapter 2, Part 2 in class (117-127)
1984, Part 2, chapter
2 Rhetorical Analysis Practice Essay:
Read this, take
notes, create an outline. On Monday, I will have you work with a partner to
write a practice essay.
Write an essay explaining how Orwell uses various
rhetorical elements to contrast the hope and beauty of a budding relationship
with the darker realities of life in Oceania.
You might wish consider some of the following rhetorical/literary
elements: his selection and arrangement of details; imagery; setting; and
mood/atmosphere. Please write legibly.
Part 2, Chapter 2
Winston picked his way up the lane through dappled light and
shade, stepping out into pools of gold wherever the boughs parted. Under the
trees to the left of him the ground was misty with bluebells. The air seemed to
kiss one's skin. It was the second of May. From somewhere deeper in the heart
of the wood came the droning of ring doves.
He was a bit early. There had been no difficulties about the journey, and the girl was so evidently experienced that he was less frightened than he would normally have been. Presumably she could be trusted to find a safe place. In general you could not assume that you were much safer in the country than in London. There were no telescreens, of course, but there was always the danger of concealed microphones by which your voice might be picked up and recognized; besides, it was not easy to make a journey by yourself without attracting attention. For distances of less than 100 kilometres it was not necessary to get your passport endorsed, but sometimes there were patrols hanging about the railway stations, who examined the papers of any Party member they found there and asked awkward questions. However, no patrols had appeared, and on the walk from the station he had made sure by cautious backward glances that he was not being followed. The train was full of proles, in holiday mood because of the summery weather. The wooden-seated carriage in which he travelled was filled to overflowing by a single enormous family, ranging from a toothless great-grandmother to a month-old baby, going out to spend an afternoon with 'in-laws' in the country, and, as they freely explained to Winston, to get hold of a little blackmarket butter.
The lane widened, and in a minute he came to the footpath she had told him of, a mere cattle-track which plunged between the bushes. He had no watch, but it could not be fifteen yet. The bluebells were so thick underfoot that it was impossible not to tread on them. He knelt down and began picking some partly to pass the time away, but also from a vague idea that he would like to have a bunch of flowers to offer to the girl when they met. He had got together a big bunch and was smelling their faint sickly scent when a sound at his back froze him, the unmistakable crackle of a foot on twigs. He went on picking bluebells. It was the best thing to do. It might be the girl, or he might have been followed after all. To look round was to show guilt. He picked another and another. A hand fell lightly on his shoulder.
He looked up. It was the girl. She shook her head, evidently as a warning that he must keep silent, then parted the bushes and quickly led the way along the narrow track into the wood. Obviously she had been that way before, for she dodged the boggy bits as though by habit. Winston followed, still clasping his bunch of flowers. His first feeling was relief, but as he watched the strong slender body moving in front of him, with the scarlet sash that was just tight enough to bring out the curve of her hips, the sense of his own inferiority was heavy upon him. Even now it seemed quite likely that when she turned round and looked at him she would draw back after all. The sweetness of the air and the greenness of the leaves daunted him. Already on the walk from the station the May sunshine had made him feel dirty and etiolated, a creature of indoors, with the sooty dust of London in the pores of his skin.
He was a bit early. There had been no difficulties about the journey, and the girl was so evidently experienced that he was less frightened than he would normally have been. Presumably she could be trusted to find a safe place. In general you could not assume that you were much safer in the country than in London. There were no telescreens, of course, but there was always the danger of concealed microphones by which your voice might be picked up and recognized; besides, it was not easy to make a journey by yourself without attracting attention. For distances of less than 100 kilometres it was not necessary to get your passport endorsed, but sometimes there were patrols hanging about the railway stations, who examined the papers of any Party member they found there and asked awkward questions. However, no patrols had appeared, and on the walk from the station he had made sure by cautious backward glances that he was not being followed. The train was full of proles, in holiday mood because of the summery weather. The wooden-seated carriage in which he travelled was filled to overflowing by a single enormous family, ranging from a toothless great-grandmother to a month-old baby, going out to spend an afternoon with 'in-laws' in the country, and, as they freely explained to Winston, to get hold of a little blackmarket butter.
The lane widened, and in a minute he came to the footpath she had told him of, a mere cattle-track which plunged between the bushes. He had no watch, but it could not be fifteen yet. The bluebells were so thick underfoot that it was impossible not to tread on them. He knelt down and began picking some partly to pass the time away, but also from a vague idea that he would like to have a bunch of flowers to offer to the girl when they met. He had got together a big bunch and was smelling their faint sickly scent when a sound at his back froze him, the unmistakable crackle of a foot on twigs. He went on picking bluebells. It was the best thing to do. It might be the girl, or he might have been followed after all. To look round was to show guilt. He picked another and another. A hand fell lightly on his shoulder.
He looked up. It was the girl. She shook her head, evidently as a warning that he must keep silent, then parted the bushes and quickly led the way along the narrow track into the wood. Obviously she had been that way before, for she dodged the boggy bits as though by habit. Winston followed, still clasping his bunch of flowers. His first feeling was relief, but as he watched the strong slender body moving in front of him, with the scarlet sash that was just tight enough to bring out the curve of her hips, the sense of his own inferiority was heavy upon him. Even now it seemed quite likely that when she turned round and looked at him she would draw back after all. The sweetness of the air and the greenness of the leaves daunted him. Already on the walk from the station the May sunshine had made him feel dirty and etiolated, a creature of indoors, with the sooty dust of London in the pores of his skin.
HW: Read chapters 3 and 4 of Part 2 (127-147)
Complete Part A of Revision Assignment (if you are going to do a rewrite)
Thursday, October 20, 2016
For Tomorrow:
- rewrite/revision options for word rant
- read book 2, chapter 1
- A close look at the rhetorical features of the prompt at the bottom of this blog entry*: Analyze the various techniques Orwell uses in this passage to develop the characters of Julia and Winston and to characterize their relationship. In your analysis, you might consider such elements as setting, dialogue, syntax (sentence structure), mood, concrete details, and diction (specific word choices and their dentotatins/connontations).
Today:
Quiz on chapters 1-7
Begin reading book 2, chapter 1 for tomorrow...
Small group discussions...sharing your best paragraph from last night...and discussing your best inferential question.
*Which of the topics brought up in yesterday's articles most concern you as a citizen? Write about two of them, explaining in respective paragraphs of about 5 to 9 sentences each, the problem as presented in the article, why you specifically and personally are they concern you and what, practically speaking, we as individuals or a society should do to confront or correct them. Properly cite sources (using authors last names and/or the title of the piece underlined) and embed at least one short quote into the flow of a sentence.
But she must have seen him coming towards her, and perhaps she would take the hint. Next day he took care to arrive early. Surely enough, she was at a table in about the same place, and again alone. The person immediately ahead of him in the queue was a small, swiftly-moving, beetle-like man with a flat face and tiny, suspicious eyes. As Winston turned away from the counter with his tray, he saw that the little man was making straight for the girl's table. His hopes sank again. There was a vacant place at a table further away, but something in the little man's appearance suggested that he would be sufficiently attentive to his own comfort to choose the emptiest table. With ice at his heart Winston followed. It was no use unless he could get the girl alone. At this moment there was a tremendous crash. The little man was sprawling on all fours, his tray had gone flying, two streams of soup and coffee were flowing across the floor. He started to his feet with a malignant glance at Winston, whom he evidently suspected of having tripped him up. But it was all right. Five seconds later, with a thundering heart, Winston was sitting at the girl's table.
He did not look at her. He unpacked his tray and promptly began eating. It was all-important to speak at once, before anyone else came, but now a terrible fear had taken possession of him. A week had gone by since she had first approached him. She would have changed her mind, she must have changed her mind! It was impossible that this affair should end successfully; such things did not happen in real life. He might have flinched altogether from speaking if at this moment he had not seen Ampleforth, the hairy-eared poet, wandering limply round the room with a tray, looking for a place to sit down. In his vague way Ampleforth was attached to Winston, and would certainly sit down at his table if he caught sight of him. There was perhaps a minute in which to act. Both Winston and the girl were eating steadily. The stuff they were eating was a thin stew, actually a soup, of haricot beans. In a low murmur Winston began speaking. Neither of them looked up; steadily they spooned the watery stuff into their mouths, and between spoonfuls exchanged the few necessary words in low expressionless voices.
'What time do you leave work?'
'Eighteen-thirty.'
'Where can we meet?'
'Victory Square, near the monument.
'It's full of telescreens.'
'It doesn't matter if there's a crowd.'
'Any signal?'
'No. Don't come up to me until you see me among a lot of people. And don't look at me. Just keep somewhere near me.'
'What time?'
'Nineteen hours.'
'All right.'
Ampleforth failed to see Winston and sat down at another table. They did not speak again, and, so far as it was possible for two people sitting on opposite sides of the same table, they did not look at one another. The girl finished her lunch quickly and made off, while Winston stayed to smoke a cigarette.
Winston was in Victory Square before the appointed time. He wandered round the base of the enormous fluted column, at the top of which Big Brother's statue gazed southward towards the skies where he had vanquished the Eurasian aeroplanes (the Eastasian aeroplanes, it had been, a few years ago) in the Battle of Airstrip One. In the street in front of it there was a statue of a man on horseback which was supposed to represent Oliver Cromwell. At five minutes past the hour the girl had still not appeared. Again the terrible fear seized upon Winston. She was not coming, she had changed her mind! He walked slowly up to the north side of the square and got a sort of pale-coloured pleasure from identifying St Martin's Church, whose bells, when it had bells, had chimed 'You owe me three farthings.' Then he saw the girl standing at the base of the monument, reading or pretending to read a poster which ran spirally up the column. It was not safe to go near her until some more people had accumulated. There were telescreens all round the pediment. But at this moment there was a din of shouting and a zoom of heavy vehicles from somewhere to the left. Suddenly everyone seemed to be running across the square. The girl nipped nimbly round the lions at the base of the monument and joined in the rush. Winston followed. As he ran, he gathered from some shouted remarks that a convoy of Eurasian prisoners was passing.
Already a dense mass of people was blocking the south side of the square. Winston, at normal times the kind of person who gravitates to the outer edge of any kind of scrimmage, shoved, butted, squirmed his way forward into the heart of the crowd. Soon he was within arm's length of the girl, but the way was blocked by an enormous prole and an almost equally enormous woman, presumably his wife, who seemed to form an impenetrable wall of flesh. Winston wriggled himself sideways, and with a violent lunge managed to drive his shoulder between them. For a moment it felt as though his entrails were being ground to pulp between the two muscular hips, then he had broken through, sweating a little. He was next to the girl. They were shoulder to shoulder, both staring fixedly in front of them.
A long line of trucks, with wooden-faced guards armed with sub-machine guns standing upright in each corner, was passing slowly down the street. In the trucks little yellow men in shabby greenish uniforms were squatting, jammed close together. Their sad, Mongolian faces gazed out over the sides of the trucks utterly incurious. Occasionally when a truck jolted there was a clank-clank of metal: all the prisoners were wearing leg-irons. Truck-load after truck-load of the sad faces passed. Winston knew they were there but he saw them only intermittently. The girl's shoulder, and her arm right down to the elbow, were pressed against his. Her cheek was almost near enough for him to feel its warmth. She had immediately taken charge of the situation, just as she had done in the canteen. She began speaking in the same expressionless voice as before, with lips barely moving, a mere murmur easily drowned by the din of voices and the rumbling of the trucks.
'Can you hear me?'
'Yes.'
'Can you get Sunday afternoon off?'
'Yes.'
'Then listen carefully. You'll have to remember this. Go to Paddington Station -'
With a sort of military precision that astonished him, she outlined the route that he was to follow. A half-hour railway journey; turn left outside the station; two kilometres along the road: a gate with the top bar missing; a path across a field; a grass-grown lane; a track between bushes; a dead tree with moss on it. It was as though she had a map inside her head. 'Can you remember all that?' she murmured finally.
'Yes.'
'You turn left, then right, then left again. And the gate's got no top bar.'
'Yes. What time?'
'About fifteen. You may have to wait. I'll get there by another way. Are you sure you remember everything?'
'Yes.'
'Then get away from me as quick as you can.'
She need not have told him that. But for the moment they could not extricate themselves from the crowd. The trucks were still filing past, the people still insatiably gaping. At the start there had been a few boos and hisses, but it came only from the Party members among the crowd, and had soon stopped. The prevailing emotion was simply curiosity. Foreigners, whether from Eurasia or from Eastasia, were a kind of strange animal. One literally never saw them except in the guise of prisoners, and even as prisoners one never got more than a momentary glimpse of them. Nor did one know what became of them, apart from the few who were hanged as war-criminals: the others simply vanished, presumably into forced-labour camps. The round Mogol faces had given way to faces of a more European type, dirty, bearded and exhausted. From over scrubby cheekbones eyes looked into Winston's, sometimes with strange intensity, and flashed away again. The convoy was drawing to an end. In the last truck he could see an aged man, his face a mass of grizzled hair, standing upright with wrists crossed in front of him, as though he were used to having them bound together. It was almost time for Winston and the girl to part. But at the last moment, while the crowd still hemmed them in, her hand felt for his and gave it a fleeting squeeze.
It could not have been ten seconds, and yet it seemed a long time that their hands were clasped together. He had time to learn every detail of her hand. He explored the long fingers, the shapely nails, the work-hardened palm with its row of callouses, the smooth flesh under the wrist. Merely from feeling it he would have known it by sight. In the same instant it occurred to him that he did not know what colour the girl's eyes were. They were probably brown, but people with dark hair sometimes had blue eyes. To turn his head and look at her would have been inconceivable folly. With hands locked together, invisible among the press of bodies, they stared steadily in front of them, and instead of the eyes of the girl, the eyes of the aged prisoner gazed mournfully at Winston out of nests of hair.
- rewrite/revision options for word rant
- read book 2, chapter 1
- A close look at the rhetorical features of the prompt at the bottom of this blog entry*: Analyze the various techniques Orwell uses in this passage to develop the characters of Julia and Winston and to characterize their relationship. In your analysis, you might consider such elements as setting, dialogue, syntax (sentence structure), mood, concrete details, and diction (specific word choices and their dentotatins/connontations).
Today:
Quiz on chapters 1-7
Begin reading book 2, chapter 1 for tomorrow...
Small group discussions...sharing your best paragraph from last night...and discussing your best inferential question.
*Which of the topics brought up in yesterday's articles most concern you as a citizen? Write about two of them, explaining in respective paragraphs of about 5 to 9 sentences each, the problem as presented in the article, why you specifically and personally are they concern you and what, practically speaking, we as individuals or a society should do to confront or correct them. Properly cite sources (using authors last names and/or the title of the piece underlined) and embed at least one short quote into the flow of a sentence.
But she must have seen him coming towards her, and perhaps she would take the hint. Next day he took care to arrive early. Surely enough, she was at a table in about the same place, and again alone. The person immediately ahead of him in the queue was a small, swiftly-moving, beetle-like man with a flat face and tiny, suspicious eyes. As Winston turned away from the counter with his tray, he saw that the little man was making straight for the girl's table. His hopes sank again. There was a vacant place at a table further away, but something in the little man's appearance suggested that he would be sufficiently attentive to his own comfort to choose the emptiest table. With ice at his heart Winston followed. It was no use unless he could get the girl alone. At this moment there was a tremendous crash. The little man was sprawling on all fours, his tray had gone flying, two streams of soup and coffee were flowing across the floor. He started to his feet with a malignant glance at Winston, whom he evidently suspected of having tripped him up. But it was all right. Five seconds later, with a thundering heart, Winston was sitting at the girl's table.
He did not look at her. He unpacked his tray and promptly began eating. It was all-important to speak at once, before anyone else came, but now a terrible fear had taken possession of him. A week had gone by since she had first approached him. She would have changed her mind, she must have changed her mind! It was impossible that this affair should end successfully; such things did not happen in real life. He might have flinched altogether from speaking if at this moment he had not seen Ampleforth, the hairy-eared poet, wandering limply round the room with a tray, looking for a place to sit down. In his vague way Ampleforth was attached to Winston, and would certainly sit down at his table if he caught sight of him. There was perhaps a minute in which to act. Both Winston and the girl were eating steadily. The stuff they were eating was a thin stew, actually a soup, of haricot beans. In a low murmur Winston began speaking. Neither of them looked up; steadily they spooned the watery stuff into their mouths, and between spoonfuls exchanged the few necessary words in low expressionless voices.
'What time do you leave work?'
'Eighteen-thirty.'
'Where can we meet?'
'Victory Square, near the monument.
'It's full of telescreens.'
'It doesn't matter if there's a crowd.'
'Any signal?'
'No. Don't come up to me until you see me among a lot of people. And don't look at me. Just keep somewhere near me.'
'What time?'
'Nineteen hours.'
'All right.'
Ampleforth failed to see Winston and sat down at another table. They did not speak again, and, so far as it was possible for two people sitting on opposite sides of the same table, they did not look at one another. The girl finished her lunch quickly and made off, while Winston stayed to smoke a cigarette.
Winston was in Victory Square before the appointed time. He wandered round the base of the enormous fluted column, at the top of which Big Brother's statue gazed southward towards the skies where he had vanquished the Eurasian aeroplanes (the Eastasian aeroplanes, it had been, a few years ago) in the Battle of Airstrip One. In the street in front of it there was a statue of a man on horseback which was supposed to represent Oliver Cromwell. At five minutes past the hour the girl had still not appeared. Again the terrible fear seized upon Winston. She was not coming, she had changed her mind! He walked slowly up to the north side of the square and got a sort of pale-coloured pleasure from identifying St Martin's Church, whose bells, when it had bells, had chimed 'You owe me three farthings.' Then he saw the girl standing at the base of the monument, reading or pretending to read a poster which ran spirally up the column. It was not safe to go near her until some more people had accumulated. There were telescreens all round the pediment. But at this moment there was a din of shouting and a zoom of heavy vehicles from somewhere to the left. Suddenly everyone seemed to be running across the square. The girl nipped nimbly round the lions at the base of the monument and joined in the rush. Winston followed. As he ran, he gathered from some shouted remarks that a convoy of Eurasian prisoners was passing.
Already a dense mass of people was blocking the south side of the square. Winston, at normal times the kind of person who gravitates to the outer edge of any kind of scrimmage, shoved, butted, squirmed his way forward into the heart of the crowd. Soon he was within arm's length of the girl, but the way was blocked by an enormous prole and an almost equally enormous woman, presumably his wife, who seemed to form an impenetrable wall of flesh. Winston wriggled himself sideways, and with a violent lunge managed to drive his shoulder between them. For a moment it felt as though his entrails were being ground to pulp between the two muscular hips, then he had broken through, sweating a little. He was next to the girl. They were shoulder to shoulder, both staring fixedly in front of them.
A long line of trucks, with wooden-faced guards armed with sub-machine guns standing upright in each corner, was passing slowly down the street. In the trucks little yellow men in shabby greenish uniforms were squatting, jammed close together. Their sad, Mongolian faces gazed out over the sides of the trucks utterly incurious. Occasionally when a truck jolted there was a clank-clank of metal: all the prisoners were wearing leg-irons. Truck-load after truck-load of the sad faces passed. Winston knew they were there but he saw them only intermittently. The girl's shoulder, and her arm right down to the elbow, were pressed against his. Her cheek was almost near enough for him to feel its warmth. She had immediately taken charge of the situation, just as she had done in the canteen. She began speaking in the same expressionless voice as before, with lips barely moving, a mere murmur easily drowned by the din of voices and the rumbling of the trucks.
'Can you hear me?'
'Yes.'
'Can you get Sunday afternoon off?'
'Yes.'
'Then listen carefully. You'll have to remember this. Go to Paddington Station -'
With a sort of military precision that astonished him, she outlined the route that he was to follow. A half-hour railway journey; turn left outside the station; two kilometres along the road: a gate with the top bar missing; a path across a field; a grass-grown lane; a track between bushes; a dead tree with moss on it. It was as though she had a map inside her head. 'Can you remember all that?' she murmured finally.
'Yes.'
'You turn left, then right, then left again. And the gate's got no top bar.'
'Yes. What time?'
'About fifteen. You may have to wait. I'll get there by another way. Are you sure you remember everything?'
'Yes.'
'Then get away from me as quick as you can.'
She need not have told him that. But for the moment they could not extricate themselves from the crowd. The trucks were still filing past, the people still insatiably gaping. At the start there had been a few boos and hisses, but it came only from the Party members among the crowd, and had soon stopped. The prevailing emotion was simply curiosity. Foreigners, whether from Eurasia or from Eastasia, were a kind of strange animal. One literally never saw them except in the guise of prisoners, and even as prisoners one never got more than a momentary glimpse of them. Nor did one know what became of them, apart from the few who were hanged as war-criminals: the others simply vanished, presumably into forced-labour camps. The round Mogol faces had given way to faces of a more European type, dirty, bearded and exhausted. From over scrubby cheekbones eyes looked into Winston's, sometimes with strange intensity, and flashed away again. The convoy was drawing to an end. In the last truck he could see an aged man, his face a mass of grizzled hair, standing upright with wrists crossed in front of him, as though he were used to having them bound together. It was almost time for Winston and the girl to part. But at the last moment, while the crowd still hemmed them in, her hand felt for his and gave it a fleeting squeeze.
It could not have been ten seconds, and yet it seemed a long time that their hands were clasped together. He had time to learn every detail of her hand. He explored the long fingers, the shapely nails, the work-hardened palm with its row of callouses, the smooth flesh under the wrist. Merely from feeling it he would have known it by sight. In the same instant it occurred to him that he did not know what colour the girl's eyes were. They were probably brown, but people with dark hair sometimes had blue eyes. To turn his head and look at her would have been inconceivable folly. With hands locked together, invisible among the press of bodies, they stared steadily in front of them, and instead of the eyes of the girl, the eyes of the aged prisoner gazed mournfully at Winston out of nests of hair.
Wednesday, October 19, 2016
Problems and solutions...
(15 minutes)
Which of the topics brought up in yesterday's articles most concern you as a citizen? Write about two of them, explaining in separate paragraphs of about 5 to 9 sentences each, 1) the problem as presented in the article, 2) why you personally are especially concerned about this topic, and 3) practically speaking, what we as individuals or a society should do to confront or correct these problems. Make sure to properly cite sources (using authors last names and/or the title of the piece underlined) and embed at least one short quote from the article(s) into the flow of your answer.
Discussion in small group
HW: Finish Book 1 for tomorrow (to page 104) and write one textually based inferential discussion question based on content from either chapter 7 or 8.
1984 quiz on chapters 1-7: 20 question 40 point quiz; multiple choice questions about direct quotes from the text (who is being described, who is talking, who is talking to whom, etc.)
"He talked a lot about the past, and I gathered that he wanted to recover something, some idea of himself perhaps, that had gone into loving Daisy. His life had been confused and disordered since then, but if he could once return to a certain starting place and go over it all slowly, he could find out what that thing was..." (Fitzgerald 110).
This quote suggests that Gatsby lives for the past, or at least a romanticized version of it. As a part of that past, Daisy to has been romanticized, to the point where it seems that Gatsby is not actually in love with Daisy, but rather with the idea of her. To what extent do you think this is true?Going a step farther, on page 111, Daisy and Gatsby's first kiss is described as the completion of Gatsby's "incarnation." Keeping this in mind, does Gatsby love Daisy because she fits the part in the glamorous life he has envisioned for himself?
Is Gatsby setting himself up to be disappointed, or will Daisy, as she truly is, be enough?
(15 minutes)
Which of the topics brought up in yesterday's articles most concern you as a citizen? Write about two of them, explaining in separate paragraphs of about 5 to 9 sentences each, 1) the problem as presented in the article, 2) why you personally are especially concerned about this topic, and 3) practically speaking, what we as individuals or a society should do to confront or correct these problems. Make sure to properly cite sources (using authors last names and/or the title of the piece underlined) and embed at least one short quote from the article(s) into the flow of your answer.
Discussion in small group
HW: Finish Book 1 for tomorrow (to page 104) and write one textually based inferential discussion question based on content from either chapter 7 or 8.
1984 quiz on chapters 1-7: 20 question 40 point quiz; multiple choice questions about direct quotes from the text (who is being described, who is talking, who is talking to whom, etc.)
"He talked a lot about the past, and I gathered that he wanted to recover something, some idea of himself perhaps, that had gone into loving Daisy. His life had been confused and disordered since then, but if he could once return to a certain starting place and go over it all slowly, he could find out what that thing was..." (Fitzgerald 110).
This quote suggests that Gatsby lives for the past, or at least a romanticized version of it. As a part of that past, Daisy to has been romanticized, to the point where it seems that Gatsby is not actually in love with Daisy, but rather with the idea of her. To what extent do you think this is true?Going a step farther, on page 111, Daisy and Gatsby's first kiss is described as the completion of Gatsby's "incarnation." Keeping this in mind, does Gatsby love Daisy because she fits the part in the glamorous life he has envisioned for himself?
Is Gatsby setting himself up to be disappointed, or will Daisy, as she truly is, be enough?
Problems and solutions...
(15 minutes)
Which of the topics brought up in yesterday's articles most concern you as a citizen? Write about two of them, explaining in respective paragraphs of about 5 to 9 sentences each, the problem as presented in the article, why you specifically and personally are they concern you and what, practically speaking, we as individuals or a society should do to confront or correct them. Properly cite sources (using authors last names and/or the title of the piece underlined) and embed at least one short quote into the flow of a sentence.
Discussion in small group
HW: Finish Book 1 for tomorrow (to page 104) and write two textually based inferential discussion questions from chapters 7 and 8.
1984 quiz on chapters 1-7: 20 question 40 point quiz; multiple choice questions about direct quotes from the text (who is being described, who is talking, who is talking to whom, etc.)
When Gatspy invites Tom and Daisy to one of his lavish soirees, both husband and wife are exposed to flaws in their affection that they are unwilling to understand. Such an example is found when Daisy and Tom are observing a gorgeous movie star and her director: "'I like her,' said Daisy, 'I think she's lovely.' But the rest offended her--and inarguably, because it wan't a gesture but an emotion...She saw something awful in the very simplicity she failed to understand" (Fitzgerald 107). What is the significance in the professions of the subjects that Daisy is choosing to admire (although the subject of her disapproval is not their careers but their actions)? Do you think that Daisy's reaction stems from envy or genuine misunderstanding? What's more, do you agree an emotion is simple and a gesture (presumably) complex as Carraway implies or vice-versa?
"He talked a lot about the past, and I gathered that he wanted to recover something, some idea of himself perhaps, that had gone into loving Daisy. His life had been confused and disordered since then, but if he could once return to a certain starting place and go over it all slowly, he could find out what that thing was..." (Fitzgerald 110).
This quote suggests that Gatsby lives for the past, or at least a romanticized version of it. As a part of that past, Daisy to has been romanticized, to the point where it seems that Gatsby is not actually in love with Daisy, but rather with the idea of her. To what extent do you think this is true?Going a step farther, on page 111, Daisy and Gatsby's first kiss is described as the completion of Gatsby's "incarnation." Keeping this in mind, does Gatsby love Daisy because she fits the part in the glamorous life he has envisioned for himself?
Is Gatsby setting himself up to be disappointed, or will Daisy, as she truly is, be enough?
(15 minutes)
Which of the topics brought up in yesterday's articles most concern you as a citizen? Write about two of them, explaining in respective paragraphs of about 5 to 9 sentences each, the problem as presented in the article, why you specifically and personally are they concern you and what, practically speaking, we as individuals or a society should do to confront or correct them. Properly cite sources (using authors last names and/or the title of the piece underlined) and embed at least one short quote into the flow of a sentence.
Discussion in small group
HW: Finish Book 1 for tomorrow (to page 104) and write two textually based inferential discussion questions from chapters 7 and 8.
1984 quiz on chapters 1-7: 20 question 40 point quiz; multiple choice questions about direct quotes from the text (who is being described, who is talking, who is talking to whom, etc.)
When Gatspy invites Tom and Daisy to one of his lavish soirees, both husband and wife are exposed to flaws in their affection that they are unwilling to understand. Such an example is found when Daisy and Tom are observing a gorgeous movie star and her director: "'I like her,' said Daisy, 'I think she's lovely.' But the rest offended her--and inarguably, because it wan't a gesture but an emotion...She saw something awful in the very simplicity she failed to understand" (Fitzgerald 107). What is the significance in the professions of the subjects that Daisy is choosing to admire (although the subject of her disapproval is not their careers but their actions)? Do you think that Daisy's reaction stems from envy or genuine misunderstanding? What's more, do you agree an emotion is simple and a gesture (presumably) complex as Carraway implies or vice-versa?
"He talked a lot about the past, and I gathered that he wanted to recover something, some idea of himself perhaps, that had gone into loving Daisy. His life had been confused and disordered since then, but if he could once return to a certain starting place and go over it all slowly, he could find out what that thing was..." (Fitzgerald 110).
This quote suggests that Gatsby lives for the past, or at least a romanticized version of it. As a part of that past, Daisy to has been romanticized, to the point where it seems that Gatsby is not actually in love with Daisy, but rather with the idea of her. To what extent do you think this is true?Going a step farther, on page 111, Daisy and Gatsby's first kiss is described as the completion of Gatsby's "incarnation." Keeping this in mind, does Gatsby love Daisy because she fits the part in the glamorous life he has envisioned for himself?
Is Gatsby setting himself up to be disappointed, or will Daisy, as she truly is, be enough?
Tuesday, October 18, 2016
What do we learn about sex, love and marriage in Oceania? For Party members? For proles?
With a partner, write one short paragraph (five sentences) on each (sex, love, marriage) with at least one embedded quote per paragraph.
Homework: Read and annotate
* chapter 7 (69-71) for tomorrow
* Big Brother is Watching You Drive (Frontline - also posted below)
*Americans Are Now Living in a Society That Rivals Orwell's 1984 -
Write reactions and questions in the margins of each of the latter two texts.
Return language rant papers - I will talk to you about rewrite options tomorrow or Thursday.
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/frontline/article/big-brother-is-watching-you-drive/ Big Brother Is Watching You Drive
JULY 17, 2013
by SARAH CHILDRESS Senior Digital Reporter, FRONTLINE Enterprise Journalism Group
In this March 18, 2011 photo, Maplewood, Minn. police officer Steven Hiebert prepares to go out on patrol using the License Plate Ready System, which consists of a camera that photographs license plates and then compares them with those in a database of stolen vehicles. (AP Photo/Star Tribune,Jim Gehrz) (AP Photo/Star Tribune,Jim Gehrz)
Law enforcement agencies nationwide increasingly rely on automatic license-plate readers to track and store information on American drivers, a new report found, in the latest revelation in how the government gathers data on its citizens.
About 75 percent of federal, state and local agencies use these readers — cameras mounted on patrol cars, road signs and bridges — that photograph vehicles, scan license plates and record the time and date, according to the report (pdf) by the American Civil Liberties Union.
The system checks the plate numbers against a “hot list” of cars that have been stolen or used in a crime, and alerts police when it finds a match. But it also stores records on millions of innocent drivers.
FRONTLINE reported on the plate readers in the film Top Secret America, which showed that the federal government has encouraged their use as part of its effort to use state and local law enforcement agencies to help gather intelligence. (Watch the clip to see a plate reader in action.)
The use of these cameras is expanding, bolstered by millions in federal and state grants, the report found. The Department of Homeland Security alone spent more than $50 million in grants to help law enforcement agencies buy readers over the past five years. A full 85 percent of agencies said they planned to increase their use in the next five years, according to a 2011 survey (pdf) conducted by the Police Executive Research Forum.
But even as their use increases, the plate readers don’t generate many hits. In Maryland, for example, the system registered one hit for every 500 plates recorded. Of the hits, 97 percent were for a suspended or revoked registration, or a violation of the state emissions inspection program.
And while some departments delete the data after hours or days, others keep records for years or even indefinitely, even on cars not linked to a crime. Departments are also beginning to pool the data in regional databases, such as those at the 70-some fusion centers set up nationwide to coordinate counterterrorism efforts among law enforcement, which could lead to even less regulation of the data.
Private companies have also gotten into the business, building up huge databases to sell to law enforcement. MVTrac, for example, says it was data on “a large majority” of registered vehicles in the U.S., the report found. The Digital Recognition Network gathers data on up to 50 million cars each month. Vigilant Solutions has more than 800 million license plate records in its database, which is used by the Department of Homeland Security and more than two thousand other law enforcement agencies, the report said.
One major concern with the readers, the ACLU said, is that the scans could be used by police to track innocent people, or target groups based on their ethnic background or personal or political beliefs. In at least one instance in the U.S., that’s already happened.
In New York, police officers in unmarked cars used license plate readers to record the attendees at local mosques, the Associated Press found, as part of a broader effort to spy on the city’s Muslim community.
The ACLU filed hundreds of Freedom of Information Act requests for the data from state, federal and local agencies, asking how they regulated use of the automatic readers. Read the full report here (pdf). Find out about what’s happening in your state here.
With a partner, write one short paragraph (five sentences) on each (sex, love, marriage) with at least one embedded quote per paragraph.
Homework: Read and annotate
* chapter 7 (69-71) for tomorrow
* Big Brother is Watching You Drive (Frontline - also posted below)
*Americans Are Now Living in a Society That Rivals Orwell's 1984 -
Write reactions and questions in the margins of each of the latter two texts.
Return language rant papers - I will talk to you about rewrite options tomorrow or Thursday.
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/frontline/article/big-brother-is-watching-you-drive/ Big Brother Is Watching You Drive
JULY 17, 2013
by SARAH CHILDRESS Senior Digital Reporter, FRONTLINE Enterprise Journalism Group
In this March 18, 2011 photo, Maplewood, Minn. police officer Steven Hiebert prepares to go out on patrol using the License Plate Ready System, which consists of a camera that photographs license plates and then compares them with those in a database of stolen vehicles. (AP Photo/Star Tribune,Jim Gehrz) (AP Photo/Star Tribune,Jim Gehrz)
Law enforcement agencies nationwide increasingly rely on automatic license-plate readers to track and store information on American drivers, a new report found, in the latest revelation in how the government gathers data on its citizens.
About 75 percent of federal, state and local agencies use these readers — cameras mounted on patrol cars, road signs and bridges — that photograph vehicles, scan license plates and record the time and date, according to the report (pdf) by the American Civil Liberties Union.
The system checks the plate numbers against a “hot list” of cars that have been stolen or used in a crime, and alerts police when it finds a match. But it also stores records on millions of innocent drivers.
FRONTLINE reported on the plate readers in the film Top Secret America, which showed that the federal government has encouraged their use as part of its effort to use state and local law enforcement agencies to help gather intelligence. (Watch the clip to see a plate reader in action.)
The use of these cameras is expanding, bolstered by millions in federal and state grants, the report found. The Department of Homeland Security alone spent more than $50 million in grants to help law enforcement agencies buy readers over the past five years. A full 85 percent of agencies said they planned to increase their use in the next five years, according to a 2011 survey (pdf) conducted by the Police Executive Research Forum.
But even as their use increases, the plate readers don’t generate many hits. In Maryland, for example, the system registered one hit for every 500 plates recorded. Of the hits, 97 percent were for a suspended or revoked registration, or a violation of the state emissions inspection program.
And while some departments delete the data after hours or days, others keep records for years or even indefinitely, even on cars not linked to a crime. Departments are also beginning to pool the data in regional databases, such as those at the 70-some fusion centers set up nationwide to coordinate counterterrorism efforts among law enforcement, which could lead to even less regulation of the data.
Private companies have also gotten into the business, building up huge databases to sell to law enforcement. MVTrac, for example, says it was data on “a large majority” of registered vehicles in the U.S., the report found. The Digital Recognition Network gathers data on up to 50 million cars each month. Vigilant Solutions has more than 800 million license plate records in its database, which is used by the Department of Homeland Security and more than two thousand other law enforcement agencies, the report said.
One major concern with the readers, the ACLU said, is that the scans could be used by police to track innocent people, or target groups based on their ethnic background or personal or political beliefs. In at least one instance in the U.S., that’s already happened.
In New York, police officers in unmarked cars used license plate readers to record the attendees at local mosques, the Associated Press found, as part of a broader effort to spy on the city’s Muslim community.
The ACLU filed hundreds of Freedom of Information Act requests for the data from state, federal and local agencies, asking how they regulated use of the automatic readers. Read the full report here (pdf). Find out about what’s happening in your state here.
Monday, October 17, 2016
What are the characteristics of New-speak and how does it differ from Old-speak?
Why did the Party create Newspeak? What are their objectives?
Who is Symes? What does he do?
What are some of Symes characteristics? What details and descriptions does Orwell use to show us (rather than tell us) what Symes is like (physically, psychologically, politically, intellectually, etc)?
Where does Orwell let Syme's own speech reveal some element of his personality?
Where does Orwell use Winston's commentary to more directly communicate a point about Syme to the reader?
What is Facecrime?
HW: Read and annotate chapter 6 of Part 1
Why did the Party create Newspeak? What are their objectives?
Who is Symes? What does he do?
What are some of Symes characteristics? What details and descriptions does Orwell use to show us (rather than tell us) what Symes is like (physically, psychologically, politically, intellectually, etc)?
Where does Orwell let Syme's own speech reveal some element of his personality?
Where does Orwell use Winston's commentary to more directly communicate a point about Syme to the reader?
What is Facecrime?
HW: Read and annotate chapter 6 of Part 1
Friday, October 14, 2016
Friday, October 7, 2016
The Cold War
McCarthyism
FBI spies on civil rights leaders
Nixon and Watergate
China, USSR, North Korea, The Program (USA post 9/11)
1984 by
George Orwell
Chapter 1 Annotation/reading guide
Annotate for all the things
you normally pay attention to, but make sure you pay attention and annotate for
the following?
1. Who is the main character?
What is he like physically, emotionally/psychologically, intellectually?
2. What is the setting of the
novel? What are some defining characteristics of the setting, both in terms of
location and time, and also the political/social/psychological characteristics
of this society.
3.a. What are the three slogans of the Party?
3.b. Inferential Question: What, in your opinion,
is strange about these statements, and what might they suggest about the
society?
4. What does the caption on
the posters say, and in your opinion does it seem to be comforting or
threatening?
5. Name each of the
Ministries and explain its function. Also include the Newspeak
name for each ministry.
6. What date does the main
character record in his journal?
7.a. Describe the two people
the main character sees just before the Two Minutes Hate.
Tell what he thinks of each
of these people.
7.b. Inferential
Question: What seems to be the purpose
of the Two-minute hate? How might it
serve the purposes of The Party?
8. Explain the importance of
Emmanuel Goldstein. Also describe the way he is portrayed and what effect
certain characteristics of his are meant to have on the citizens of Oceania.
9. How is Big Brother
depicted in the posters, and why is he important in their society?
10. What crime does the main
character commit? How does he do this? What is the punishment for this crime?
11. What is the telescreen
and how is it used?
12. What is thoughtcrime?
13. Which elements of this society do you find
most disturbing and why? Which elements seem like possibilities for our future
– if we let them happen - and why? Note:
Both partners should do some of the writing for this longer question.
HW: Read and annotate chapter 1 (pp 1-20) of Part 1 of 1984
Thursday, October 6, 2016
What do you think Liza's future life will look like? Work? Relationships? Living situation? What facts from the play lead you to your hypothesis? Explain in a paragraph that considers the various factors, including her own personality, which could influence her future.
Pair and share (count off by 11's)
1984 pre-reading
1) What are the benefits of security cameras? Cons? Make a double-entry column.
Pros Cons
____________________________
2) Where do you think we should have security cameras? Where should they not be?
Homework: Bring 1984 tomorrow
Pair and share (count off by 11's)
1984 pre-reading
1) What are the benefits of security cameras? Cons? Make a double-entry column.
Pros Cons
____________________________
2) Where do you think we should have security cameras? Where should they not be?
Homework: Bring 1984 tomorrow
Tuesday, October 4, 2016
Reading well means reading the situation, the person, the tone, not just the words. Humor and satire depend upon reading the tone and mood properly.
Irony depends on incongruence, that is, things not matching up.
Verbal irony...Verbal irony is the most common type of irony that a reader will come across when examining literature. In this type of irony, a character or speaker in the narrative will say or do something that is the opposite of what he means or intends. What impression does she intend to give? What does impression create with the reader? What impression does she create with various members of the audience?
For example, in a story, the wife of a thief might tell her husband to, “do the respectable thing and bring back some jewels tonight so that we can have food on the table tomorrow.” This is ironic because she is encouraging her husband to steal jewels in order to sell them for money. This act is far from respectable, thus ironic. Whether or not verbal irony is readily understood by the reader depends on the skill of the writer. It is up to the author to put the irony into context in order for the readers to understand its meaning and use.
When it comes to questions of money, what does middle class morality in America consist of? How is it perhaps similar to the middle class morality in Victorian England? You've got to be deserving... What do most Americans believe it mean to be "deserving" of financial assistance? I gave some money to an older (probably 65) homeless guy the other day..he told me a story about having served in the military and needing money for a bus. I didn't believe him, but I talked with him for awhile and gave him a couple of bucks anyway. A young couple scowled at me as they walked by, clearly pissed that I was giving money to a guy that might be telling a story. I also realize he might use the money to buy alcohol or get hi. Is he the deserving or undeserving poor? Should I have given him money?
Write an analysis of how Shaw uses a variety of elements to make Liza's "small talk" scene so humorous. Some elements you might consider include the rhetorical situation, irony, setting, dramatic irony, differences between the background of Liza (speaker) and audience, grammar (diction and syntax), and content/topics of Liza's talk come together to create a humorous situation.
What do you think of Higgin's and Pickering's experiment with Liza? Is it ethical? How do the perspectives of some of the women in the play differ from the perspective of Higgins and Pickering?
What makes Doolittle's comments seem both contradictory but also to possess a sort of "rough logic", as Higgins says?
Professor Higgins is not dumb. Why is he impressed by the persuasive skills of Doolittle? As a student of rhetoric, what do you think impresses him about Doolittle's argument and delivery?
Irony depends on incongruence, that is, things not matching up.
Verbal irony...Verbal irony is the most common type of irony that a reader will come across when examining literature. In this type of irony, a character or speaker in the narrative will say or do something that is the opposite of what he means or intends. What impression does she intend to give? What does impression create with the reader? What impression does she create with various members of the audience?
For example, in a story, the wife of a thief might tell her husband to, “do the respectable thing and bring back some jewels tonight so that we can have food on the table tomorrow.” This is ironic because she is encouraging her husband to steal jewels in order to sell them for money. This act is far from respectable, thus ironic. Whether or not verbal irony is readily understood by the reader depends on the skill of the writer. It is up to the author to put the irony into context in order for the readers to understand its meaning and use.
Definition of Dramatic Irony
Dramatic irony is an important stylistic device that is commonly found in plays, movies, theaters and sometimes in poetry. Storytellers use this irony as a useful plot device for creating situations where audience knows more about the situations, the causes of conflicts and their resolutions before leading characters or actors. That is why the readers observe that the speech of actors takes on unusual meanings. For instance, the audience knows that a character is going to be murdered or making a decision to commit suicide; however, one particular character or others may not be aware of these facts. Hence, the words and actions of characters would suggest a different meaning to the audience from what they indicate to the characters and the story. Thus, it creates intense suspense and humor. This speech device also emphasizes, embellishes and conveys emotions and moods more effectively.
Example:
Jonathan Richman’s comedy movie, “There’s Something About Mary” contains several instances of dramatic comedy. For instance, when Ted thinks that the police have arrested him for picking up hitchhiker, the audience knows that the police interrogate him about a murder. Therefore, Ted delivers innocuous lines by saying,
“I’ve done it several times before’ and ‘It’s no big deal,’ generate laughter.”
This looks quite funny due to his misunderstanding.
(There’s Something About Mary by Jonathan Richman)
(There’s Something About Mary by Jonathan Richman)
In what way is there some degree of dramatic irony in the drawing room scene? What do we know that some of the characters do not?
The final kind of irony is called situational irony. Situational irony is an incongruence in what is expected to happen and what actually takes place. It is sometimes referred to as a twist of fate and usually has tragic consequences in literature. One example of situational irony is a pair of siblings who are separated at a young age, only to find out that they are living next door to one another after one suddenly dies.
When it comes to questions of money, what does middle class morality in America consist of? How is it perhaps similar to the middle class morality in Victorian England? You've got to be deserving... What do most Americans believe it mean to be "deserving" of financial assistance? I gave some money to an older (probably 65) homeless guy the other day..he told me a story about having served in the military and needing money for a bus. I didn't believe him, but I talked with him for awhile and gave him a couple of bucks anyway. A young couple scowled at me as they walked by, clearly pissed that I was giving money to a guy that might be telling a story. I also realize he might use the money to buy alcohol or get hi. Is he the deserving or undeserving poor? Should I have given him money?
Let's take a closer look at Liza. How do disconnects or differences between expectations
Write an analysis of how Shaw uses a variety of elements to make Liza's "small talk" scene so humorous. Some elements you might consider include the rhetorical situation, irony, setting, dramatic irony, differences between the background of Liza (speaker) and audience, grammar (diction and syntax), and content/topics of Liza's talk come together to create a humorous situation.
What do you think of Higgin's and Pickering's experiment with Liza? Is it ethical? How do the perspectives of some of the women in the play differ from the perspective of Higgins and Pickering?
What makes Doolittle's comments seem both contradictory but also to possess a sort of "rough logic", as Higgins says?
Professor Higgins is not dumb. Why is he impressed by the persuasive skills of Doolittle? As a student of rhetoric, what do you think impresses him about Doolittle's argument and delivery?
Homework:
Finish reading the play (Act V)
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