Writing Across Cultures

Surrealism (developed in the 20th-century as a literary and artistic movement) gained its popularity in Europe between World Wars I and II. Surrealism grew principally out of the earlier Dada movement , which before World War I produced works of anti-art that deliberately defied reason; but Surrealism emphasis supposedly was not on negation but on positive expression . "The movement represented a reaction against what its members saw as the destruction wrought by the "rationalism" that had guided European culture and politics in the past and had culminated in the horrors of World War I." The French poet André Breton published "The Surrealist Manifesto" in 1924 and states that Surrealism "was a means of reuniting conscious and unconscious realms of experience so completely, that the world of dream and fantasy would be joined to the everyday rational world in "an absolute reality, a surreality." Drawing heavily on Freud,...

Please read Blood Wedding by Lorca today in class. Finish this play by the time we return from break, if you do not finish it during class. Pay special attention to the weird moments in this play. It is highly metaphorical, so anything that characters do or objects they repeat or strange characters are likely to be meaningful, but obscure. Like an algebra equation, slip in X as the meaning for the object in question. Ask yourself what might be the point of this? Why does Lorca present this character in this way or what might he be trying to communicate about the human condition. Remember that death is a theme in any book that deals with it head on. So if anything tragic happens, at least we have the theme of "death." Like trees that are cut down, our lives are mortal. HOMEWORK: Complete Blood Wedding . Post a forum response to the play on our forum.

After our viewing of Babel , we will begin to examine Spain and its writers. For those of you who want to get a head start on completing your work before or during the break, please note the following deadlines: 1. Please post a forum response to the question posed on the forum to the film Babel . This is due by the end of this week (2/17/12) 2. Complete your reading of Blood Wedding (we'll start this in class and read as much as we can, but wherever we leave off you will have to finish for homework over the break). Please post a forum response to this play based on the question on the forum by the time we return: 2/27/12. 3. Continue to write material for your 4th marking period portfolio. 4. AP Lit students: you will be reading a selection from Gulliver's Travels , so there's a bit of reading for you coming up.

Portugal & Espana: Hola! Today we will cross the great straight of Gibraltar to Europe's main continent. Let's start with a little literature, and then move to some information and cultural research. Spain has an incredibly old history. From cave paintings found at Altamira to our contemporary period. The Romans and Carthaginians fought over Spain in the 3rd century B.C. Part of the Roman Empire Hispania rises and falls at the same time, being overrun by the Vandals in 409 A.D. (later repelled by the Visigoths who rule until the 8th century, followed by the Arabs). During 711-1492, Christians begin to reclaim the area at first slowly, until the Umayyad loss of power in 1031. You probably know what happens leading up to 1492 with the marriage of Isabella and Ferdinand in 1469. Still curious about Spain & Spanish Customs? Watch this. Spain suffered a vicious civil war between 1936-1939. The Spanish Civil War divided the country as tens of thousand...

HOMEWORK: Please take a few minutes to watch the following videos and, if you are intrigued, use any part of this lecture in a poem, short story, personal creative essay, play, etc. By the way, the Geva 10-minute play contest is due by Monday. If you have a script, please have it ready (in proper script format and free of errors) with a title page with your name, address, zip code, and email address. Choice (RSA Animate) Crisis of Capitalism (RSA Animate)

Normative ethics s earches for norms using authoritative standards (rules) of what ought to be. Types of Normative Ethics: A. Hedonism : the view that in the end it only matters if it is pleasurable. It is good if it feels good. B. Utilitarianism : the theory that the greatest happiness of the greatest number is the test of right and wrong. C. Perfectionism : the ultimate end is the full development or perfection of the self. D. Some theories do not readily fall under the above classification. One such is the theological theory: that it is the will of God that determines whether an action is right or wrong. E. Immanuel Kant: for one's action to be morally right, it must be seen as a universal law. That is, be willing to have everyone act in the same way (Categorical Imperative). F. Egoism : ( Thomas Hobbes ) Everyone acts always out of self-interest, maintains that an action is right only if it is in the interest of the agent. I.E. Why should I be ...

During period 1, we will read Pablo Neruda's 20 Love Songs & a Song of Despair and share our homework with a partner for feedback. Afterward, let's chat about ethics before we watch the film: Babel by Alejandro Gonzalez Inarratu . As you watch the film, please take note of both the ethical dilemma in each of the 4 sequences and pay attention to the problem of communication with each of the major characters in the sequence. You will be asked to write a forum response to the film at the end of the film viewing. Please keep your homework (see below) in your portfolio.

Mexico History & Literature I. Two civilizations merge to form the Olmec civilization - 2000 b.c. Highlands: elaborate class structure, advanced architecture, settled Lowlands: primitive aboriginal group Social structure based on theocracy Priests acted as representatives of the gods; (distributed land, sponsored trade) The Olmec civilization settles in the Maya highland of southern Mexico (Mayans) Peaceful until about 750 A.D. Fall of capital city of Teotihuacan and other Mayan centers By 900, the golden age of pre-Columbian civilization ends II. Toltec Centered around the city of Tula People were more militaristic and warlike Society was organized around rigid government control and human sacrifice By the 13th century the Toltecs had dispersed. III. Aztec (Mexica) Came into power in the 15th century Centered around the capital of Tenochtitlan Pyramid structure of power with the warriors and priests on top Servile classes: free peasants and mostly serf...

  Ethics (moral philosophy) is the study of distinguishing right from wrong and good from bad. --What does it mean to say that something is right or good? --What makes right actions right? --How can disputes about moral questions be resolved? It is the task of ethics to answer such questions. Types: 1. Practical ethics (What should I do?) 2. Theoretical ethics (Are these standards really right or are they all just arbitrary?) 3. Philosophical ethics is often called normative ethics. A. Normative ethics searches for norms using authoritative standards (rules) of what ought to be: –The speed limit is 55. If everyone goes 60, is it wrong to adhere to 55? –Murder is considered wrong. If one kills for one’s country, is this a wrongful act? B. Among the questions of normative ethics are: What makes right actions right? How can we tell what is right? Why should I be moral? Richard Dawkins on Ethics Ethics for the Real World Dilbert on Ethics Ethics for Dumm...