A Midsummer Night's Dream

In A Midsummer Night's Dream, there is a play-within-the-play, “The most lamentable comedy, and most cruel death of Pyramus and Thisbe”. What could possibly be Shakespeare's reasoning for including this?  Is it a particular technique that Shakespeare is using to help with the comedy, or is there another possible reason?  Please explain your reasoning.

Welcome to British Literature!

Welcome to the new term of British Literature!  

This term, I hope you will enjoy the selections we will be reading.  To begin, we will start with a comedy, after all, we need to have some laughter in class!  We will begin by reading William Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream.  To begin, you will need to create an account on Moodle.  Please go to the following site:  Bay City Public Schools - Moodle.  Go to:  High Schools - Western High School - British Literature Section 2 (Robinson).  Create a new account (unless you already have an existing account).  You will receive the enrollment key from me in class. 

Once you have created your account and logged in, please Introduce Yourself to the class!  Make sure you follow the directions as to what you need to do - I would hate for you to lose points because you didn't follow the directions!

After you introduce yourself, you will take a field trip and visit William Shakespeare in Stratford!  During your visit, you will need to answer and do the following:

1. Construct a Shakespeare timeline with at least ten important events
2. List at least three ways Elizabethan speech is different from yours
3. Describe the Globe and explain why it was reconstructed (modern day Globe)
4. Discuss the significance of the London plague including conditions during the plague and its relationship to Shakespeare
5. Define sonnet, including an example of one of Shakespeare's sonnets
6. Access Shakespeare's work online

The link to the website is:  Shakespeare Virtual Field Trip

Have fun learning about Shakespeare.  Remember, when you are finished with the field trip to Click on the Discussion Forum:  Shakespeare Virtual Field Trip and answer your questions.  After you answer your questions, reply to two other classmates (make sure you follow the directions!).  

Student Teacher

Our student teacher, Mrs. Payne will be leaving next week.  Please give a review of how you think she did.

• How did you like her? 
• What did you like in particular?  
• What is something that you didn't like that she did in class? 
• What was your favorite thing from the class?
• What was your least favorite thing?
• If you could give her a piece of advice as a teacher, what would you tell her (remember school appropriate!)?

Let's wish Mrs. Payne the very best as she goes off into the world, looking for a position as a teacher.  If you could give her one piece of sound advice, advice that you yourself would use to interview for a position, what would you tell her?  Explain.

Final Exams

Please post a reply on how you feel you did on the final exam.  What area were you strong in?  What area were you weak?  What could you have done to receive a better score?  Did you study?  Did you try your hardest on the persuasive essay?  Did you use the techniques Mrs. Payne went over with you to improve your essay?  Did you use any of the reading strategies that we went over with you?  If so, which one(s)?  Did you feel more confident taking the exam because we focused on using the reading strategies and techniques to improve your essay?  Please explain.

A Knight's Tale

A Knight's Tale is a movie that deals with what it is like to be a knight, but also an associate of a knight during the Middle Ages.  In the movie, you are introduced to William, a squire to a knight who dies.  William takes his place, and on the way, he acquires help and friends in the one's who help him.  Chaucer is also a character introduced in the movie, and through the movie you learn some of the reasoning as to why Chaucer likes and dislikes other characters from his tales.  Which character from The Prologue of the Canterbury Tales do you like the best? the least?  Bring in reasons why with examples from the text.

What Women Want . . . .

Wife of Bath

We are beginning this week "The Wife of Bath's Tale."   We started a discussion in class today on what we know about the Wife of Bath, her characteristics, and what life was like during the time period and how women were looked at.  Knowing what you know about the Wife of Bath and the time period she lived in, what do you think she would say that women want?  In our day and age, what do you think women want?  Compare your answers between both time periods.  Are there similarities?  differences?

What to Read . . . What to Read



Mary Shelley's Frankenstein

 If given a choice next term as to what novel to read, what would you choose (by a British author)?  Would you choose Frankenstein by Mary Shelley?  Or, would you choose War of the Worlds by H.G. Wells? Or, do you have a different novel in mind?   (You do need to choose a novel, not a short story, and not an author who was not considered British.)  Why would you choose that novel?  Is it because of the author?  Does it sound interesting when you read the synopsis?  Tell what novel you would read and why you would read that particular novel.  Make sure you bring in enough detail about the book so everyone has an idea of what the book is about.

                                                                                                                              

Persuasive Essay - Mini Lessons

     The last few weeks we have been working on improving your persuasive essay.  We have gone over the introduction and how to show, not tell, in the hook.  We have reviewed the thesis statement and how to write a better thesis.  We went over the body paragraphs - how to use a transition from one idea/thought to the next; how your topic sentence needs to be the very first line in the body paragraph and how your sentences after need to include details/examples with explanation; how to improve your refutation - go from basic to WOW!; and how, in the conclusion, you need to begin with a restated thesis (not word for word as the introductory thesis), and how to wrap up nice and neat.

     From the review and mini lessons, which lesson do you think was the most helpful in improving your persuasive essay writing?  Explain why with details/examples.

ACT Test - Writing

    
     The ACT test is important for all juniors in high school.  In a lot of schools, it is a requirement that you take the ACT test to graduate, while in other schools you must take the test and pass it to graduate. At Western High School, you are only required to take the test.  Should Western H.S. continue with this practice, or should students be required to take and pass the test?  The test is not going away, but what is your opinion?

Chivalry

During the Middle Ages, chivalry was a system of ideals and social codes that knights followed.  We no longer have knights in our society today, but are there still people who fill the roles of knights?  If so, do they live by a system of ideals and social codes like the knights did in the Middle Ages?  Describe the system of ideals and social codes that our “knights” live by today.  Bring in specific examples and details to back what you are saying.

     “Elements of Chivalry”

·         System of ideals and social codes

·         Oath of loyalty

·         Rules of warfare

§  Never attacking an unarmed opponent

·         Revering and acting in the name of a lady

·         Courtly love

ThinkQuest - Medieval Knights

Life in the Middle Ages vs. Life in Present

What was life really like in the Middle Ages?  What is life like today?  Is there any way to compare life in the Middle Ages to life today?  Are there similarities?  Discuss what life was like during the Middle Ages and how it compares to life today in 2011.  Bring in specific details and examples to back up what you are saying.

 Middle Ages

The Black Death

     The Black Death (plague) serves as a convenient divider between the central and the late Middle Ages.  Changes begin to take place - the growth of cities and there importance, economic and demographic crises, political dislocation and realignment, and powerful new currents in culture and religion.   The later Middle Ages are usually characterized as a period of crisis and trouble.
     The Black Death did not cause the crisis, evidence shows that it began well before 1347, but the plague exacerbated problems and added new ones, and the tone of crisis is graver in the second half than in the first half of the century.  History of Western Civilization - The Black Death
     If the plague has been eradicated from the 14th Century, how can it affect the world today?  Is anything truly eradicated, or is it "in hiding," waiting to be awakened to attack again?  Discuss this issue and bring in details as to why/why not you believe the plague is eradicated or whether anything is truly eradicated.

Geoffrey Chaucer - The Romantic or the Feminist?

     Geoffrey Chaucer was a very interesting man.  He lived during a very turbulent time:  plague, war, social revolt, religious heresy, and murdered kings.  Chaucer, through it all, was a brilliant man who wrote many poems, one of which is the Romaunt of the Rose, which is an allegory on the art of love.  The original language Chaucer wrote in was Middle English, which sounds more like someone speaking a foreign language than English.  

     Other works written by Chaucer include Troilus and Criseyde, The Canterbury Tales, and many others.   In The Canterbury Tales, Chaucer describes many different characters, some of whom he likes while others he dislikes passionately.  Within The Canterbury Tales, Chaucer has the characters he describes tell two tales of their own while on their way to Canterbury, to visit St. Thomas 'A Beckett's grave.  

     One such separate tale in The Canterbury Tales is The Wife of Baths Tale, where a woman describes what women want from men.  What does Chaucer say are her views, that of a feminist or anti-feminist? You decide by doing the activities/research on EDSITEment! Launchpad:  Chaucer's Wife of Bath.   After you finish researching, decide whether the Wife of Bath was a feminist or anti-feminist by bringing in details to explain your view.

The Middle Ages

We are now beginning our unit on the Middle Ages.  During the Middle Ages, life was changing from the time of Beowulf (The Dark Ages), but how did life change and how did those changes have an effect on a person/family?  What are some specific details about life that changed from the Dark Ages (410 A.D. to 1066 A.D.) to the Middle Ages (1066 A.D. - 1485 A.D.)?  Middle Ages link -  http://www.middle-ages.org.uk/ 

Beowulf and The 13th Warrior

Beowulf fighting the Dragon

We have finished reading the poem Beowulf and we have finished watching the first of the two movies: The 13th Warrior and Beowulf and Grendel.  How exactly is The 13th Warrior a rendition of the poem Beowulf?  Are there similarities to the story line?  Differences?  How are the characters alike? Different?  Discuss the poem to the movie, The 13th Warrior.  The 13th Warrior IMDb Database     Fact Behind Fiction - Eaters of the Dead by Michael Crichton

Beowulf as an Epic Poem

The poem Beowulf is an epic poem from around 500 A.D.  The poem was set during the time paganism was the main religion.  However, when we read the poem today there are allusions to Christianity.  Discuss how these allusions to Christianity affect the poem as a whole.