9/30/11

Yesterday we did a 2nd in class essay-- this time about "Hills Like White Elephants."
Today, we read a bit of "Why I Live at the P.O." and I gave you some character terms to know and use. Then I assigned this essay to work on over the weekend.

HW: Write a character analysis essay for Monday.

9/26-9/28/11

Monday: New vocab words, read and discussed general understanding of The Cask of Amontillado together.

Tuesday: Narration and POV terms, and discussed who might be the auditor in Cask.

Wednesday: Cask and Hills Like White Elephants graphic organizer-- preparing to analyze the narration of each story.

9/23/11

We began with our first Vocabulary Quiz. Then, we spent a few more minutes discussing the structure of Sonny's Blues and why it was effective for that particular story. In addition, I gave you some more notes on terms related to PLOT.

HW: Read The Cask of Amontillado for Monday.

9/22/11

Today we reviewed our plot terms and talked about the importance of considering CONFLICT when considering plot. Then, we took a few minutes and began compiling a timeline of events in Sonny's Blues in chronological order. Tomorrow we'll consider why Baldwin didn't structure the story this way. 

HW: Study your vocab. We'll have our first quiz tomorrow!

9/21/11

Today we reviewed and briefly discussed the plot diagrams you created yesterday for The Country Husband.

HW: Read Sonny's Blues for tomorrow and prepare to talk about its very different structural/plot elements.

9/20/11

Sorry I was gone yesterday, but alas, I was under the weather.
Here's a recap, in case you missed it:

Monday-- New vocab words (quiz on Friday over all 10), notes on Plot and its stages.

Tuesday-- In groups, attempt to diagram the plot of The Country Husband that accounts for all of the plot elements. Think about why Cheever would structure the plot in this way. We'll discuss your diagrams in class tomorrow.

For Thursday-- Read Sonny's Blues.

9/15 and 9/16/11

Thursday we finished up our discussion of Cathedral. We discussed the change in the narrator, how all the eating and drinking (communion?) and smoking may have broken down his barriers enough to actually allow a true interaction with Robert in drawing the cathedral-- a place of complexity, and faith and fellowship among humankind.

On Friday, you began writing your first (of what will likely be many) timed literary analysis essays. It was a big topic and many of you didn't "finish", but it was a starting place for me to see your writing and assess what we need to focus on.

For Monday, you should read the pages listed on your reading schedule regarding plot. You might also begin reading The Country Husband-- it's a longish one!

Have a great weekend!

9/14/11

Today we finished up our discussion of Flight Patterns, and began a discussion of Cathedral. We'll continue with Cathedral tomorrow- specifically, what's with the eating, drinking, and smoking. And, of course, why a cathedral?

9/13/11

Today we began our discussion of Flight Patterns, noticing the many ways that contradictions are emphasized. Tomorrow, we will conclude our discussion, attempting to pinpoint the resolution and thematic statement of the story, and begin our discussion of Cathedral.

As you read, specifically consider why Raymond Carver would choose a cathedral-- of all the possible objects he could have selected for the television program to be about, why cathedrals?

9/12/11

We began class by brainstorming a list of terms, ideas, and questions you might look for as you study a text. Then, we briefly looked at 20/20.

HW: If you didn't get it done over the weekend, be sure to read through Flight Patterns and come ready to discuss its intricacies tomorrow. You might also begin reading Cathedral, which we will delve into on Wednesday.

9/9/11

Today we discussed some big ideas related to the introductory pages you were asked to read. Some topics included: why studying literature is a worthwhile endeavor, what is/should be considered "literature," who should decide on the "canon," and what the difference is between reading literature and studying literature. These are all important questions that you should be developing a personal answer to so that you are able to understand this class in terms of its value and usefulness to you.

For homework, (see reading schedule), I have asked that you read the story Flight Patterns by Sherman Alexie and be prepared to begin discussing it on Monday. As you read you will see that it is particularly timely in light of the 10th anniversary of the attacks of 9/11.

In addition, below is a link to an interesting literature related article from last week's Oregonian. Did you know there is a whole group of scholars who think that Shakespeare is a fraud? Well, now you do.
Concordia University becomes hub of conflict over who wrote the works of William Shakespeare

9/8/11

Today we (well, most of us) successfully checked out texts. I handed out a reading schedule that covers the next several weeks and we talked about a few additional "beginning of the year" types of things. Tomorrow, we'll discuss some of the ideas from pages 1 - 10 of the text about why we study literature and the literary "canon."

9/7/11 -- Happy first day!

Welcome to the blog! It was nice to see you all today, I hope you had a lovely time in all of your other classes, as well. Hopefully you enjoyed the tour of the classroom and the quick romp through the syllabus. If you have already lost your syllabus, and need another copy, you can find a link in the column on the right.

Tomorrow, we will hopefully be able to get to the book depository and check out your anthologies. Woo-hoo! See you then.