Project Greenlight: Time to Choose the Ultimate Winners

Hi kiddos! Here are the Project Greenlight winners from each class (with 2nd period ending in with such a close runner-up point-wise that I've included them here too). Here's what you're going to do, step by step:

1. Watch all four videos. 
2. Based on which one is both most entertaining and most closely typifies its genre, decide on the overall winner. BE AS OBJECTIVE AS POSSIBLE. While I get that there might be some Class Period Pride here, don't let that act as an obscuring influence on your overall judgment.
3. Write a comprehensive review and justification for your choice and post it here in the comments! DUE BY FRIDAY AT 5PM. ANY REVIEWS THAT ARE NOT BOTH COMPREHENSIVE AND ELOQUENT WILL BE REJECTED. 

BY NOW YOU SHOULD REALIZE WHAT I MEAN BY COMPREHENSIVE. If you need advice, take a look at Roger Ebert's review of Spirited Away: https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/great-movie-spirited-away-2002

As I've mentioned to you all, I found all of these to be supremely entertaining and very apt in portraying their respective genres. I am really having a difficult time deciding on my personal favorite!

Period 1 Winner: Frankenstein: The UnBEARable Truth
https://youtu.be/mYLOMYfkh7g

Period 2 Winner: To All the Monsters I've Loved Before

https://youtu.be/wJEPg-39D-U

Period 2 Runner-Up: Elizabeth
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tyCCk76mhmU

Period 5 Winner: Frank in Love
https://youtu.be/tqG8DLSjlUc

Project Greenlight: Self & Group Evaluation

Hey there, kiddos!

I loved the trailers you created!

Here are the questions I want you to respond to on turnitin.com by Thursday at 8pm. If you do not complete this portion of the assignment, the highest your grade will be on the overall project is an 80 out of 100.

Answer the following questions in a 3E fashion:

1. How well did your group work together in class?
2. How well did your group work together outside of class?
3. Comment on the level of commitment your groupmates displayed. Did they work diligently? Was the workload evenly distributed? Were there any members who did not pull his/her weight?
4. How do you feel you performed in relation to the others in your group?
5. How do you feel your group performed in relation to other groups?
6. What advice would you give next year’s students about this project? What strategies for success would you share?

DO NOT RESPOND HERE. YOU MUST RESPOND ON TURNITIN.COM FOR CREDIT. 

I look forward to reading your responses!

:)MamaD

Court is in Session: Who is Guilty?

Tonight's mandatory blog entry...

Consider the last speeches of Frankenstein and the monster (on pages 274-75 and 279-82 respectively) as their closing arguments, so to speak.

How do they use ethos/pathos/logos?

With whom do we sympathize more and why?

Ultimately, who is guilty? Of what? Who is innocent?

Responses due by Wednesday at 9:30am. :)

Study Tips for the SUBJECTIVE Portion of the Canterbury Tales Point Opportunity

Hi there, sweet sophomores!

Here are a few items to help you study this weekend for the SUBJECTIVE (aka short essay) portion of the point opportunity on Monday.

First, the instructions for the written portion of the exam:

Directions: For both of the short quotes below, write a mini-essay in which you 1.) state which pilgrim is being described, 2.) explain the literal and (more importantly) metaphorical significance of this description and how it ties to the pilgrim’s characteristics, and 3.) discuss how this symbol/metaphor connects to the universal message Chaucer is trying to communicate about the Estate or humanity in general. Respond in depth and detail. Check for coherence of thought, evidence of claims, and excellence in grammar/spelling/usage. (10 points each)

Next, a student sample (from two years ago) written in response to “In driblets fell his locks behind his head… / Thinly they fell, like rat-tails, one by one" :

The quotation in this question describes the Pardoner. The Pardoner, a member of the clergy, is used by Chaucer to display the flaws and sins many clergy members had fallen prey to during his time. In this quotation, Chaucer is describing the Pardoner’s hair, which is portrayed as thin, greasy, long locks. Through this simple quotation, Chaucer shares significant information about the Pardoner’s flaws. In terms of literal meaning, Chaucer shares with the reader that the Pardoner does not wear the hood that is characteristic of the clergy, but instead leaves his head bare. While this action may seem to be a minor offense, by not wearing his hood, the Pardoner is openly displaying defiance and disrespect toward the church, for, as a clergy member, he is always supposed to wear his hood in public. By not wearing his hood, the Pardoner is showing his resentment at being a part of the church. Also in terms of literal meaning, the length of the Pardoner’s hair depicts his feminine nature. While men can have long hair, long hair is usually associated with women. Therefore, this quotation displays the Pardoner’s feminine tendencies. This quotation also displays metaphorical elements through the comparison of the Pardoner’s hair to rat-tails. Rats are commonly viewed as dirty, disgusting animals, especially in the Middle Ages since they were the cause of the Black Plague. Therefore, the comparison of the Pardoner’s hair to rat-tails, which causes the reader to associate the Pardoner with rats, shows that the Pardoner is a dirty and flawed character. This quality is seen later in the Pardoner’s passage through his practice of selling false relics, which was a major sin of that time.   Through the metaphor of comparing the Pardoner’s hair to rat-tails, Chaucer satirizes the clergy’s corruption and greed. Chaucer hoped to inspire change in the church by pointing out its flaws. The particular flaw he satirizes through the Pardoner is the practice of clergy of the Middle Ages to use their positions for personal gain. The pardoner tricked people into buying fake relics and used his singing skills to earn money in public, even though he was supposed to be singing for no profit in church. Therefore, the Pardoner, along with other clergy members that used their position for personal gain, were being satirized by Chaucer; the Pardoner’s comparison to a rat truly portrays the corruption of the church of the time and their misplaced focus.

Finally, ten quotations to practice on:

1. “Now isn’t it a marvel of God’s grace
That an illiterate fellow can outpace
The wisdom of a heap of learned men?”
2. “His face on fire, like a cherubin,
For he had carbuncles. His eyes were narrow,
He was as hot and lecherous as a sparrow.”
3. “He rode the hindmost of our cavalcade.”
4. “Highly beloved and intimate was he
With County folk within his boundary.”
5. “He paid his tithes in full when they were due
On what he owned, and on his earnings too.”
6. “…he would add this figure too,
That if gold rust, what then will iron do?”
7. “He was a proper forester, I guess.”
8. “He had a wrought-gold cunningly fashioned pin;
Into a lover’s knot it seemed to pass.”
9. “A sanguine man, high-colored and benign,
He loved a morning sop of cake in wine.”
10. “He did not read the Bible very much.”

STUDY DILIGENTLY, KIDDOS!

Good, Evil, or Some Combination Thereof: What Would Chaucey Say?

For the last couple of days as we've delved into the saucy satire of "The Prologue," one unifying concept has been lurking underneath it all: the inherent evil or good in human nature.  Indeed, this concept is present in literature throughout the ages (we will encounter it time and again in each piece we study this year) and has been pondered by philosophers at length.  

The following excerpt elucidates this idea further and appeared in an article in The New York Times on June 24, 2012:

Are human beings intrinsically good but corruptible by the forces of evil, or the reverse, innately sinful yet redeemable by the forces of good? Are we built to pledge our lives to a group, even to the risk of death, or the opposite, built to place ourselves and our families above all else? Scientific evidence, a good part of it accumulated during the past 20 years, suggests that we are all of these things simultaneously. Each of us is inherently complicated. We are all genetic chimeras, at once saints and sinners - not because humanity has failed to reach some foreordained religious or ideological ideal - but because of the way our species originated across millions of years of biological evolution.

~Edward O. Wilson

Bringing it back to Saucy Chaucey now: given the way we've seen Chaucer portray his characters in "The Prologue," do you think he would agree with the modern perspective of human nature as Edward O. Wilson describes it? Or would Chaucer be content to see humans as either good or evil, with no "gray areas" in between? Use evidence from the text to support your perspective!

I look forward to reading your responses. Since this response requires more time and effort, you have until 8pm on FRIDAY to submit your well-written comment! :)

Satire vs. Seriousness

Hello, sweet sagacious students of mine!

Your participation opportunity (due by 8pm Wednesday) is as follows: Chaucer uses satire in his attempt to effect social change.  Huxley, on the other hand, prefers a more somber tone in Brave New World.  Which method is the more effective way to communicate with an audience AND cause change: humor or seriousness?  You can use literature you've studied either this year or in the past to support your claim.

Remember to go in depth and WRITE AS AN HONORS STUDENT SHOULD: no grammatical/spelling errors, varied and impressive sentence structure, and ideas explored exhaustively!

Here's another one of my favorite parodies of all time: ESPN's SportsCenter reimagined by Key & Peele. It'll be pretty obvious to you why I enjoy it so much:

Satire vs. Parody

As we talked about on Friday during our extensive note-taking session, saucy Chaucey is keen on satirizing certain folks in "The General Prologue" of his Canterbury Tales. Satire, as I hope you remember, is a literary form/device that is used to ridicule individuals and/or society in an attempt to shame said individuals/society into improvement.

An important distinction needs to be made here between satire and parody.  Parody is also known as spoof or lampoon, and it is intended as mockery of another text/song/show, but not necessarily with the intent to shame anyone into ameliorating his/her ways.  It's usually just for chuckles.

The following video is one of my favorite more recent examples of parody:

http://www.nbc.com/saturday-night-live/video/web-exclusive-the-californians---dress-version/n13484?snl=1

So why is this parody and not satire?  Mainly because the writers/actors of SNL are probably just making fun of Californians (and the terrible TV dramas that are produced that supposedly depict life here) rather than making a deliberate attempt at helping us correct our ways. It's trying to make us laugh--not think.

Can you think of a movie/song/TV show that is of the satire or parody form? Describe it to us in a comment and explain why it's satire/parody and just what about it makes it so funny. BE SPECIFIC! Just naming Saturday Night Live isn't enough...name a specific sketch and describe what you love about it! Don't be afraid to take a stand and tell your classmates why they should love what you love! :)

Brave New World Quotation Analysis Practice: Quotation #2!

THIS BLOG POST IS MANDATORY AND WILL COUNT AS PART OF YOUR GRADE IN THE CLASS!!!!

After witnessing my lesson on Quotation #2 today (and hopefully taking copious notes as I taught), I thought it would be good for you all to get an idea of what it will be like to respond to a quotation for next Monday. So here's what I'd like you to do today...

1.) Review all your notes from my presentation today on Quotation #2.
2.) Review the directions for the writing opportunity.
3.) Set a timer for 25 minutes, and start writing your response to Quotation #2!

What's important here is that you truly adhere to the time limit. It's a little inauthentic to what will be happening next Monday since you'll be handwriting your response on Monday (here you're typing it), but it'll give you a sense for how you need to manage your time effectively in order to do the best work you can do in the time allotted.

You have until 8pm on Tuesday to get this MANDATORY BLOG POST done! Good luck!

Success in Our Brave New World

QUICK FYI: THIS IS A MORE IN-DEPTH BLOG THAN USUAL, SO YOU HAVE UNTIL FRIDAY AT 8PM TO POST YOUR COMMENT ON THIS ONE. :) 

The following very thought-provoking article appeared in The New York Times, and it relates to our work on Brave New World:

http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/08/31/who-will-prosper-in-the-new-world/?_r=0

Read the article. Then, write an eloquent response in which you use the Say-Mean-Matter structure to analyze Cowen's claims.

But what's Say-Mean-Matter? Thanks for asking! :) It is a handy structure that helps readers analyze written pieces in a meaningful way. Read on for details...

1. What does the text SAY? First, you must demonstrate understanding of the author’s argument. This would take the form of simply summarizing the salient points of the text. Ask yourself, and answer, questions like: What information is being presented? What facts are presented? The key here is to remain completely OBJECTIVE. You are reporting just the facts of what the author has written, without adding any analysis, interpretation, or opinion of those facts. In your summary, it would behoove you to use phrases like:

• The author demonstrates that ____.        
• He/she contends that ____.      
• In fact, the author acknowledges that ____.       
•  _____, he admits.

2. What does the text MEAN? Here, you need to analyze and interpret this information. What is your interpretation of what the author has written, and what makes you think so? The following phrases would be good ways to construct these sentences:

• Basically, X contends that ____.
• In other words, X believes ____.
• In making this comment, X argues that ____.
• X is insisting that ____.
• X’s point is that ____.
• The essence of X’s argument is that ____.

3. Why does the text MATTER? Here you answer the question “so what?” Why should anyone care about this? What is the significance, importance, or implication behind this text? What effect or impact should/does this text have on the reader or the world? Phrases like these work well to introduce this information:

• X’s theory of ____ is extremely useful because it sheds insight on ____.
• X’s point needs emphasizing since so many people believe ____.
• If X is right that ____, then society needs to reassess the popular assumption that ____.

All writing in English (and history, political science, psychology—you name it) connects back to this structure in some way, because in writing this way you prove that 1.) you read the text; 2.) you understand said text; 3.) you can analyze the text on a deeper level, and 4.) you can connect the text to a larger issue or theme, even if it’s just to answer a given prompt on tone or theme.

Do what you can with this. It would probably be best if you had three separate paragraphs, one for Say, one for Mean, and one for Matter. The Matter paragraph should have the most depth of analysis (and hence will likely be your lengthiest). I'm looking forward to reading your responses!

Brave New Sophomores: Quotation Hunt!

Hi sweet sophomores!

Tonight, you're going to revisit Brave New World, looking for a short excerpt (no more than 3 sentences) that strikes you as being intriguing, haunting, and/or well-written.

For your response, type the quotation at the beginning (citing the page number afterwards in parentheses!). Then analyze the following: 1.) What literary devices have been employed in the quotation, and what does their use help emphasize? 2.) How does the quotation serve a larger purpose in the scheme of the novel? Think about theme, characterization, mood...

We will be chatting about this more at length tomorrow in groups, but it would behoove you to think of YOUR answer to this in advance of our discussions. :) And always remember to USE YOUR OWN BRAIN on this. Referencing shmoop or spark notes or whatever other "study aid" sites you might gravitate towards is only helpful up to a point. At some point, you're going to have to think for yourself. It's better for you to train yourself to do so sooner rather than later!

Remember, you have until TUESDAY at 8pm to respond to this prompt.

See you all tomorrow, and be sure to bring your copy of Brave New World with you to class!

Happy hunting, friends!

Why Brave New World?

SUBMISSIONS FOR THIS BLOG POST WILL BE OPEN UNTIL SATURDAY AT 10AM. I'm giving you a little extra time on this one because 1.) I was late posting it and 2.) I really want you to think it through and give it your best shot! :)

Hello there, diligent students! :) Welcome to day two of your foray into blog participation. As I’ve said, I intend for this blog to be a space for you to participate in web-based discussions relevant to what we have discussed or will discuss in class. I know some of you may be more timid in class but still have thought-provoking, sophisticated ideas that deserve acknowledgement. You can dazzle us with your deep thoughts here. And as you have hopefully surmised, participation is a significant part of this class.

Today’s prompt is a little tougher than the previous one. I want you to ponder the following questions: Why do you think BNW was the novel assigned to sophomore-level honors students over the summer? What about the book, in your view, makes it a worthwhile novel for a student of your caliber (honors-level)?

Some of you may believe that the book was impenetrable drivel. Try not to focus on that; instead, I am interested in reading your conjectures about how reading this book could make you a stronger reader, writer, and thinker. Because even the books we dislike strongly strengthen our brains, do they not? At the very least, they help us discern what types of literature we enjoy, despise, or merely tolerate. In that, there is value.

Should reading and writing always be easy and painless? I would answer that question with a resounding "no." If we believe that it should, then by extension we are no better than the brainwashed citizens of the World State in BNW. So much is made of triumph over adversity in the physical realm--athletes powering through pain or difficult training regimens to become the best of the best. Why can't we apply that same logic to reading and writing?

Of course, there may be some of you who found BNW to be completely accessible and fascinating, though I suspect you are in the minority. Your perspective is most welcome here as well!

As always, remember to check and re-check for spelling and grammar problems in your writing and to be certain that you have answered ALL PORTIONS OF THE PROMPT in as sophisticated a fashion as possible. I look forward to reading your responses!

And just a side note: please bear with me as I attempt to learn all of your names/faces...it should happen sooner rather than later. :)

Welcome to English 2 Honors, IncreDIBBLEs!

READ THIS ENTIRE POST!

Hello, teen geniuses!

Welcome to Ms. D's blog, where you will ponder and write upon many challenging and scintillating topics for the year to come. This is a safe space for you to feel that your voice is being heard--even if you are reticent to speak up much in class. You will earn participation points for every post you submit here--as long as it is of honors quality and is thus approved by yours truly. :)

What do I mean "of honors quality"? Thanks for asking! It means that your comment...

1. answers the question (prompt) that has been asked with both depth and detail (a good response is often comprised of multiple paragraphs, each paragraph usually at least five sentences in length)
2. is free of grammatical or spelling errors (I am very picky here)
3. demonstrates sophisticated, mature thinking and writing
4. does not veer off-topic
5. does not in any way put down another classmate (though taking issue with another classmate's ideas is acceptable, as long as it is done in a respectful fashion)

Remember to make sure you have logged in appropriately when you comment, because if I can't attribute your comment to you, you will not earn credit. Furthermore, please know that I approve these as quickly as I can, but I am only human. I do not usually get around to approving comments posted after 10pm until the following morning. If your comment does not appear immediately after you've posted it, wait an hour and check back...though if you posted after 10pm, you will need to check back in the morning. If your comment is not posted by 8am the following morning, that means that there was a problem with your comment and that you should see me for details. ***Clicking "submit" nine times will only annoy me, because I will receive NINE SEPARATE EMAILS ALERTING ME THAT YOU HAVE COMMENTED. It doesn't take a genius to figure out that that is NO BUENO. Clicking "submit" once is enough.***

Also, if you are ever concerned about privacy or feel like you'd rather not have your post broadcast for everyone in class to see, you can always email it to me at my school email address. :)

In light of all of this, I now invite you all to write your very first comment of the school year on Ms. D's English Nerd Blog! This is a very exciting moment. :) Here is what I'd like you to ponder and pontificate upon: 

What does it mean to be an honors student in English? Are you up for the challenge? How and why do you know you are ready, willing, and able to perform as needed in English 2 Honors?

YOUR RESPONSE IS DUE BY THURSDAY AT 8PM. YOU MAY SUBMIT YOUR RESPONSE ANY TIME BEFORE THEN, BUT I WILL NOT POST ANY RESPONSES UNTIL AFTER 5PM ON THURSDAY.

Quick note: this will likely be the easiest prompt you will see on the blog this year. I thought I'd be nice and give you guys a personally reflective prompt for your first participation opportunity. :)

Also, as I noted at the beginning of this post, make sure you always read my entire post. I will often embed key pieces of information--even studying advice for tests and rare extra credit opportunities--in the last third of my posts, where many would least expect it. In other words, you should never go tl;dr on me. So for those of you who did get this far, if you end your comment with "My name is [insert name], and I will never forget to be awesome," you will earn double credit for this participation opportunity. Following directions is EXTREMELY IMPORTANT in this class and in life, teen geniuses.

I'm truly excited to get to know each and every one of you this year! And just in case you need a little inspiration...

MAKE YOUR DREAMS COME TRUE!