Week 5, Quarter 1

Monday/Tuesday

Have your "October Island" essays ready to turn in--along with previous drafts and any other pre-writing activity. Remember, 25% of your grade is process.
Next, we'll review "Hamlet" so far, assign parts, and then read. Take notes as we do so. In addition, we will watch part of Kenneth Branagh's version of "Hamlet." One of the first things we see is the scene with the guards. There are allusions to the impending and past wars. Branagh's movie emphasizes the anti-war aspect of the play. As such, and perhaps for emphasis, Hamlet Sr. seems demonic. Note the special effects.

I also want you to take special note of the fact that Branagh's version takes place in the last half of the nineteenth-century, at the height of European imperialism. Look at the wonderful costumes and the color schemes.

At the time this movie was made, Branagh was 35 years old. Julie Christie, who plays Gertrude, was 55. Pay attention to the clothing of the women. For the most part, it's pretty conservative; members of the court wear costumes popular around the mid-late1850's and modest (except for Ophelia, who is often shown in something that looks like a red military uniform). Gertrude, however, wears haute couture. Not only that, but her dresses show her figure, and might have therefore been considerate inappropriate for a woman of her age. The first time we see Gertrude, she actually wears a white wedding gown. Now, it wasn't until the Victorian age that white was the color of brides, and more particularly, virgin brides. This might have been another reason that Branagh set the play in the late 1800s.

Another thing I want you to notice is all the secret passages. Nothing in this castle is what it seems.

I'll say more later, probably later this week, as it relates to the film.

No homework due on Wednesday/Thursday, but complete the vocabulary review exercises for Friday.

Wednesday/Thursday
We will continue with reading aloud from "Hamlet" and portions of the film. I will probably give some notes with both.
For homework, do the review exercises in your vocabulary books. There will be a test on Wednesday/Thursday of next week.

Friday
I will check that you have done the review exercises. Then we will go over them. If there is time left, you may study for the vocabulary test that will be next Wednesday/Thursday.

Week 4

I hope you liked the short story, "October Island" as much as I did. This week, we are going to do some writing. We will start with a brief discussion of the story. Then I will assign different questions to different students. Your task then, will be to find examples of what I request to bring to class on Wednesday/Thursday. You will need to be able to cite with direct quotes. Among the topics are: 1. parallels to "Genesis" and what this means to the text as a whole; 2. an analysis of Irma as a protagonist but also as an antagonist. She does some awful things but we also get an idea of why she is as she is; 3. An analysis of the Barnfields' marriage; 4. the impact of imperialism on the events in the story; 5. An analysis of Sam Barnfield; 6. an analysis of Hansen and the circumstances of his birth; 7. All the fertility images and how Irma reacts to them. There will probably be a few more, but those are the ones that came to mind.

Your homework then will be to find those concrete examples. You will not have to find them for all the categories, only the ones assigned to you.

As for classwork, we will continue with reading "Hamlet" aloud and taking notes. The same will be true on Wednesday/Thursday, though part of Wednesday/Thursday will be spent in talking about the story from those various perspectives.

Remember to bring your vocabulary books on Wednesday/Thursday. Remember to have completed the exercises for Friday.

Over the weekend, I will assign a prompt and you will write an essay about "October Island." I will probably give you a prompt--not necessarily related to the one you researched--and you will answer a question, supporting a thesis with paraphrased passages and by carefully selected direct quotes.

Week 3, Quarter 1

Monday/Tuesday

Expect a reading quiz on "Gilgamesh"--chapter 3 through the end. The quiz will probably also include one question about the Koran's version of the story of Noah.

Because our school is doing "Hamlet" this year, we will also begin reading "Hamlet." Be ready to take notes in class. Be ready to read a part in class. Don't be embarrassed if you have never done this before. It gets easier. And it's kind of fun. You can see things in the writing you might miss if you read silently. Besides, having taught this play for fifteen years (four to five classes per year), I know it really well. Because I love the play, I have also read extensively about it and know it better than any of the bard's other plays. Even knowing that, however, I have found that I see something new everytime I teach it. It never gets old.

For homework, you will be reading George Orwell's "Politics and the English Language." It is the best article I have ever read on the basics of good writing and applies to almost any kind of writing. Be prepared to discuss the article on Wednesday/Thursday. If it looks as though no one has read it, I will likely give a pop quiz. But if the discussion is lively, I will not.

Wednesday/Thursday

Possible quiz on Orwell, though I hope not. I teach this every year, so I do have quizzes at the ready. If we do not have a quiz, we will be going over the article. Next, I will distribute copies of "October Island," a short story by William March. You must finish reading this over the weekend. In class, we will go over the vocabulary words. The exercises in chapter two will be due on Friday. After that, we will read more of "Hamlet." Again, I suggest that you take notes. Note: Because of Constitution Day, there may be some adjustments made.

Friday

Check for vocabulary words. Go over. Continue reading. Finish "October Island" for homework.

Week 2, Quarter 1

As with any reading assignment, there may or may not be a reading quiz--multiple choice, if there is--on either of the two days. I have already made up one for Gilgamesh; expect a reading quiz on day two.

We will begin Monday / Tuesday with About a Boy and then go on to a discussion of Gilgamesh so far. We will then go on to another Middle-Eastern text--the Old Testment of the Bible. We will read aloud from passages of Genesis--particularly the creation, the fall, the Tower of Babel, and flood story (52-60). ("Gilgamesh" has a flood story too). For homework, read Book II of "Gilgamesh"--pp. 17-25. Expect a reading quiz on Wednesday/Thursday.

Be ready to start working on vocabulary this week also. Bring your vocabulary books on Wednesday/Thursday. We will go over the words in chapter one. Do all but the last exercise.

On Wednesday/Thursday, we will start with the reading quiz. At least 50% will be what we did in the class reading on Monday/Tuesday, so, as I told you in the beginning, it will greatly benefit you to pay attention. We may or may not go over it immediately after we finish; I may want to wait until all students have taken the quiz. After that, I will read from About a Boy. Following that, we will read aloud from the Koran--the story of Noah (p. 887). You may then either work on your vocabulary exercises or continue reading "The Epic of Gilgamesh." You will be expected to finish "The Epic of Gilgamesh" over the weekend. The only thing actually due on Friday will be the vocabulary.

On Friday, I will check that you did your vocabulary homework and then we will go over it. I will read from About a Boy. If we did not go over the quizzes on Wednesday/Thursday, we will go over them today. Your homework is to finish "The Epic of Gilgamesh." Remember, whenever there is a reading assignment, there may be a quiz on the next day of class.