Wilson-Knight, Frye, Bradley, Wilson -- With Whom Do You Agree?

We have heard presentations about four literary scholar's theories about Hamlet. Review the outlines you received and explore the following topic in your response blog.

Whose interpretation of Hamlet resonates most with your own? How has this scholar's analysis brought you closer to anwering the questions "Why must Hamlet die?"

Hamlet: The Newest Play Written

Watson writes that "bright but alienated teenagers always know that they are Hamlet."
On your response blog, comment on the following variation of an excerpt from the second soliloquy:

What's Hamlet to you, or you to Hamlet,
That you should weep for him?

Literary Theory Web Page

I found a very interesting web page that gives a short synopsis of various schools of criticism and even more outside the scope of our study. It's a university website in the U.S., but it's an interesting look ahead into the wider world of academia. Check out the Literary Theory link in the Links List. Cheers!

Formalist Literary Theory: Notes

I've founded a good summary on Formalism (New Criticism), and I added it to the links list. It's brief, but it gives you a thorough overview.

Response Topics and Reading List for Unit 2: Short Fiction

Please read the following short stories before the presentations. Select any 2 of the stories to generate 2 responses on your response blog. Each response should evaluate some aspect of the story through the lens of literary criticism attached to that story. For example, "The Shining Houses" by Alice Munro is attached to the Marxist Literary Criticism presentation, so you might choose to write about who controls the socio-economic power in the story, or you might write about how Mary is the real victim of social oppression in the story. As you can see, the topics arise from the preoccupations and priorities of the particular school of criticism.


Formalist Literary Theory -- "Araby" by James Joyce -- Echoes 12
Reader Response Theory -- "Two Words" by Isabel Allende -- Imprints 12
Marxist Lit. Theory -- "The Shining Houses" by Alice Munro -- Imprints 12
Feminist Lit. Theory -- "Touching Bottom" by Kari Strutt -- Imprints 12Archetypal Lit. Theory -- "The Return" by Ngugi wa Thiong'o -- Imprints 12Post-Modern Lit. Theory -- "A Girl's Story" by David Arnason -- Echoes 12

Argument and Persuasion

These two methods of development are quite complex. There is a lot of structure at work in each, and of course, the relationship between the two is symbiotic in application. I've attached a link here that explains some of the structures and principles in greater detail. It's worth a visit.

http://changingminds.org/disciplines/argument/making_argument/making_argument.htm

Metacognitive Reflection #1

definition of metacognition: The knowledge of one’s own thinking processes and strategies, and the ability to consciously reflect and act on the knowledge of cognition to modify those processes and strategies.


In reviewing the evidence and feedback from your socratic circle experience, explore your strengths and weaknesses as a participant in oral discussion and plot a course of action for improvement in the next go around. If you had to affix an adjective label to yourself that indicates to others the type of oral participant you are, what would the label read and why?

"How many cares one loses when one decides not to be something but to be someone."

-- Coco Chanel

Presentations and Public Speaking

"A Fire Truck" by Richard Wilbur

Our purpose here is to make clear that analysis of literature follows the same principles regardless of genre. True, the structures are different, but the same principles of reading and writing apply.

Address these two questions in your next blog posting. Complete the posting before next Friday the 13th (cue music: doo doo doo doo doo doo doo doo...)

1. What is the purpose of the poem?

2. Is "A Fire Truck" good poetry? Justify your response drawing on your knowledge of good and bad writing.

Practise Writing Methods of Development

For each of the methods of development presented in class by your peers, write a paragraph long sample of each on your blog. You could link the topic to your informal essay topic, or you could write each sample on a separate topic. You decide. The key thing is that your samples should reflect the criteria of that particular method of development. More importantly, write about what grips you "in the moment" so that your voice is authentic.

The First Five Methods of Development

1. Read all of the essays on the list for the first five methods of development. If necessary, review the chapter heading information in Prose Models to review the characteristics of each method.

2. Select ONE of the essays for discussion on your blog, preferably one that you liked. In your blog posting, explain how this essay is an example of good writing and explain how the essay is a good example of its particular method of development. In doing so, I expect you to draw on your knowledge of the criteria for that method of development.

Answers for "April Fools on Polar Circus" by Janet Roddan

"April Fools on Polar Circus" – Janet Roddan

1.a. Roddan presents her thesis that "[t]he tango with fear makes me wise" in the final line of the first paragraph.

b. Roddan support her thesis when she describes how "we use our ice axes to shatter our frozen worlds into crystals of ice and fear. One of the strong pulls of ice climbing is the tremendous range of feelings one is forced to endure..." This passages reinforces the thesis concept that engaging with one’s fears leads to wisdom. The more one experiences, the more knowledge one can bring to the next experience. Thus, Roddan later writes how "the intensity is replaced with warm, smooth, flowing beats. The rhythm takes hold, and the dance begins again," thus sustaining the metaphor that ice climbing is "a tango with fear." Roddan’s goal is not to become fearless; rather, her goal is to climb with her fear.

2. The pattern of the essay is deductive. Roddan states her thesis at the end of the first paragraph and supports it with a narrative account of her ice climbing experience.

3. One method of development Roddan uses in this essay is cause and effect. When she encounters rotten ice, Roddan seeks a "reason to come down" but her climbing partner challenges her with the statement, "It depends on how much you want it." Although she is fearful of going on, the effect of these words helps to revive her "tango with fear", and she discovers that "desire, commitment, and an incredible dislike for down climbing" drive her onward to success.

Another method of development Roddan uses is description. In order to convince the reader thoroughly of the validity of her claim, she must convey the enormity of the "six long pitches of undulating ice varied, interesting, alpine" and the intensity of "a chasm fifteen feet wide...between my partner, Barb, and me." Above all she must describe the danger of passing through a "dark, claustrophobic couloir" and her struggle when " a big block of ice disengages itself." Description allows Roddan to convey the legitimacy of her danger so that the reader can understand why she must subdue her fear and not be subdued by it.

4. The simile that describes how "The last two pitches of the climb cascade out of the notch like a enormous wedding gown" is important because it establishes the relationship between the two climbers and the mountain. As they approach "wild, silent places that wait", the two women become "brides" embarking on a brand new life experiences. Thus, the simile serves to set the tone for the bridal analogy because climbing the mountain represents an act of union.
Parallel structure is evident when Roddan describes how "I force myself to breathe, to generate my own flow, to create my own beat." The imminent sense of struggle with her fear is evident in that her statement uses repetition, in this case the rhythm of a repeating sentence pattern, to impose order and calm. If Roddan is to sustain the tango, she simply cannot lose her nerve nor her sense of structure; otherwise, she would succumb to fear.

Personification occurs in the third last paragraph where "the great Goddess reveals her face of frozen water. I witness her dark, foreboding pinnacles, her places of silent, quiet peace." By personifying the mountain, Roddan reinforces the concept of relationship between herself and the ice face, thus sustaining the concept of a tango. Only when she arrives at the summit does she achieve a spiritual consummation with the mountain.

Metaphor occurs when Roddan describes how "Doubt slides in with spaghetti arms and little shivers that evaporate my courage." To dance with a partner requires trust and understanding; consequently, Roddan reveals the challenge of maintaining trust in oneself when one’s partner is fear.

5. The sustained use of dance and wedding imagery serves to unify the essay. From the thesis, expressed as the metaphor "The tango with fear makes me wise," Roddan establishes the nature of the relationship with Polar Circus. As she engages the mountain, which is "steep enough to burn our calves", she yields as the "rhythm takes hold, and the dance begins" even though it later "becomes a struggle." Only through the "desire" and "commitment" to subdue her fear will she be able to reach "the wild, silent places that wait." Likewise, the wedding imagery illustrates the sense of reward. The two climbers are innocent in their knowledge of the mountain. Roddan describes how "Today’s brides approach slowly, touched by the mystery and majesty of the place." As they ascend the "enormous wedding gown" of ice, they proceed with "solemn focus" until the "final veil is torn away." Reaching the summit, then, is a ceremony, a celebration of union with the mountain: two equals coming together in "a happy marriage of fear, sweat, intelligent strength, and smiles."

6. The title gives the piece an ironic flavour because of the play on words. While the climb occurs on April Fools day, Roddan concludes that the two climbers are also "The April fools, married with fear and laughter on Polar Circus". Clearly, many would perceive them as fools for undertaking such a dangerous climb, especially at that time of the year. However, Roddan challenges the skeptics with her thesis "The tango with fear makes me wise" through which she reveals a central paradox: that she is wiser because of her foolishness.

Questions for "April Fools on Polar Circus" by Janet Roddan

"April Fools on Polar Circus" by Janet Roddan

1.a. What is the thesis of the essay? [= one sentence]

b. Quote two examples from the essay that Roddan uses to support her thesis and explain how each example accomplishes that support. [= one paragraph]

2. Identify whether the pattern of the essay is inductive or deductive and explain your choice.
[= two sentences]

3. Identify and explain two methods of development that Roddan uses to develop her thesis.
[= 2 paragraphs]

4. Identify the use of the following rhetorical devices in the essay and explain how their use contributes to the development of either the thesis or the tone: [= brief paragraph for each one]
a. simile
b. parallel structure
c. personification
d. metaphor

5. Explain how Roddan achieves unity in her essay through the sustained use of dance and wedding imagery. [= one paragraph]

6. Given the content of the essay, why is the title "April Fools on Polar Circus" appropriate?
[= one paragraph]

Good and Bad Writing

The distinction between good and bad writing is more than just a matter of subjective preference. There are objective standards that are applied to judge whether prose is good or bad, or at least effective and ineffective. Our assessment of prose follows two tracks: content and style.

The content of the prose needs to be informed and accurate. It needs to avoid "truisms" that are self-evident claims requiring no explanation. The content needs to be reasonably original and the writer needs to have something worthwhile to say about the topic.

How the writer expresses his/her opinion is a matter of style. Certainly grammatical accuracy, correct spelling, and word usage are important aspects of style. If the reader can't follow your meaning because of poor use of the language, your prose is ineffective. Even so, style is more than correct usage. Some experts express style as a matter of using the "right words in the right place." This awareness of what is "right" grows from exposure to a wide range of writing styles, knowledge and use of rhetorical devices (e.g., metaphor, simile), and careful study of objective rules and principles. John Ciardi writes that a student's awareness of what constitutes good and bad writing in their reading and their own writing will unfold at something like the same rate. Such is our goal in this first unit.

Follow the links to Seven Types of Bad Writing and review the principles. Next, follow the links to Samples of Good & Bad Writing (note that there are 3 separate examples of bad writing although they are not clearly labelled so).

On your response blog, explain why the samples are labelled "good" and "bad" using the criteria from Seven Types of Bad Writing. To what extent is the concept of audience the most decisive and difficult factor in the assessment of good and bad writing?

Informal Essay Instructions

Length: 500 - 600 words.

Topic: Your choice -- an interest, a passion, a reflection, an epiphany, an observation, a raising of consciousness. Regardless of topic choice, keep in mind the following:
* be honest
* write about something that matters to you.
* make the ordinary extraordinary

Organization: Deductive or Inductive

Development: Use 1 or more of the 11 methods of develoment with intention. Remember, content dictates form, not the other way around.

Tone: Direct or Ironic

Thesis: see Organization for placement.

Style: Informal -- Demonstrate use of rhetorical devices (see your notes) artfully.

Include all process work with the final copy, otherwise it won't be accepted.
Due Date: Monday, March 2nd, 2009