Writing Across Cultures

Our race around Europe! In the days remaining, let's travel! Czeslaw Milosz is one of Poland's best loved poets.  His poems can be found here. Forget by Czeslaw Milosz Forget the suffering You caused others. Forget the suffering Others caused you. The waters run and run, Springs sparkle and are done, You walk the earth you are forgetting. Sometimes you hear a distant refrain. What does it mean, you ask, who is singing? A childlike sun grows warm. A grandson and a great-grandson are born. You are led by the hand once again. The names of the rivers remain with you. How endless those rivers seem! Your fields lie fallow, The city towers are not as they were. You stand at the threshold mute. Learn a little about Poland ! And some cuisine ...

Russia (basic information) : the US Department of State has information on World countries with statistics. This can be helpful for social studies courses. Compare US information with a site in the UK.  Russian Culture Russian Revolution Rasputin Vladimir Putin Soviet National Anthem News articles Russian Poets Architecture Sports Russian recipes Rap Battles: Rasputin vs. Stalin  (strong language warning!) By far, the most influential film maker of early Russian film was  Sergei Eisenstein . Please read this article on the  state of contemporary Russian Film . Anton Chekhov  is considered to be one of the greatest short story writers the world has ever known. We have read  The Sea Gull , and some of you may have read other Chekhov plays ( Uncle Vanya, The Cherry Orchard, The Three Sister, The Bear (or The Boar), The Marriage Proposal, Ivanov,  etc.)  Consider the elements of a fine fiction story. In normal fiction, a character is e...

You should have completed drafts of haiku (see post below), your collaborative dramatic monologue draft (see last few posts), and the renga and tanka drafts (see post below) from last class. Please print these out and leave them with your sub on Thursday, May 22. No credit will be given to absent students or for incomplete work (of course, remember that these are DRAFTS). Use your time in the lab efficiently. For those of you done with your writing, please take a look at: Korean poets Vietnamese poets Toeti Heraty: Indonesian poet Thailand Writers Eastlit website Please print out and turn in your writing by the end of class today. HOMEWORK: None.

In the lab, please use your time to read and write a few tanka and renga poems. The renga is a collaborative project, so find a partner and write a draft today. By Thursday, you should have completed drafts of haiku (see previous post), your collaborative dramatic monologue draft (see last two posts), and the renga and tanka drafts from today's class. I will be asking that you print these out and leave them with your sub on Thursday, May 22. Tanka  is an older form of Japanese poetry, often written by members of the court, it has become a traditional poetry form for anyone looking to celebrate or honor something. It has more feeling supposedly than haiku, although it, too, focuses on nature. It centers on a vivid image that is related to an emotion. The tanka traditionally has 31 syllables or fewer in 5 lines. Traditionally that would be 5,7,5,7,7 but contemporary tanka, like haiku, suggests fewer syllables when possible. Here are some  examples . And here are some  t...

Today in the lab, please complete the following: Read the handout on the Korean poet. I'll discuss Korea in more depth in the next few classes. Ask your sub for the handout. Read the poems. Think about them. Note what you liked and reinforce your knowledge of poetry and poetic techniques. Check out the links from last class. Read and research. Take notes where appropriate. Inspire yourself. Use the research and links, clips, etc. to create. Brainstorm some ideas. Working alone or with your group of 1-3 from last class, spend some time with your dramatic monologue writing exercise. Consider the form of your work: are you writing a one-person play script? Fiction (a short story) similar to Akutagawa's "In A Grove"? A poetry cycle with dramatic monologues? Decide with your group what form your work will take. Then spend time today in the lab to write it. Also/or: Read about and practice some haiku today. Haiku , as you probably know, is a short, closed form ...

This morning let's read a story or two and some brief poetry. Then it's off to the lab to research. In the lab, please research the following links and articles. Use what you find here to create some creative response involving Japan. Japanese News Traditional Japanese "Noh" Theater Hiroshi Kawasaki  (poet) Japanese Pop Music Sumo: cultural pastime Japanese literature and history is divided into various periods (based largely on who was controlling the country): Nara Period  (710-794 A.D. or C.E.) Japanese literature traces its beginnings from an oral tradition that later used a writing system introduced from China. Most of this literature from the eighth century was created as governmental projects. The  Kojiki  ( Record of Ancient Matters ) and  Nihon shoki  (Chronicle of Japan) are really an anthology of myths, legends, stories, and history (much like the Western Bible, but without the religious significance). The most brilliant literary...

During period 1, please complete your short story of 1,000 words set in China. 1. Research the links, read the poems, watch the videos, gather ideas. 2. Write a short story draft (due Monday) about China, Chinese culture, etc. Your protagonist may either be Chinese, of Chinese lineage, or from another culture we have studied. 3. Length should be around 1,000 words. Include a works cited page where you indicate what sources you used as inspiration for the story. During period 2, please share your story with the rest of the class. Turn in a draft to the sub or put in my mailbox or in-box, please. HOMEWORK: None.

Use the links below to gather some ideas for a short story of 1,000 words set in China. 1. Research the links, read the poems, watch the videos, gather ideas. 2. Write a short story draft (due Monday) about China, Chinese culture, etc. Your protagonist may either be Chinese, of Chinese lineage, or from another culture we have studied. 3. Length should be around 1,000 words. Include a works cited page where you indicate what sources you used as inspiration for the story. HOMEWORK: Please finish reading "A Tiger Fighter Is Hard To Find" by Ha Jin. Complete your draft for Monday. Bring the draft to "turn in" and share with the class.

Portfolios are due Tuesday. I will not be accepting late portfolios, so please make sure you can turn in your work by that date. Use the lab to work. HOMEWORK: Complete your portfolio.