The American Dream: Readings/Workshops

By -

 After our viewing of the Crash Course video and completing the slideshow on Quizezz, we'll workshop a couple student poems and then take about 20 minutes of class to write (or continue writing) your MCAAD American Dream response (a poem, story, essay of 1,000 words or less). 


With whatever time we have left in class, we will begin reading and discussing the "myth" of the American Dream. The materials we do not get to in class should be read and "responded to" in a creative way that might be incorporated into your creative draft, or they may simply be used as models for your own writing, or they may be discussion points as we examine this topic. 

[A reminder that the MCAAD contest has a quick turnaround deadline: September 21st by 3:00. The problem here is that without drafts to revise, many of you will not risk submitting your draft to the contest. The delay of school this year has caused some issues, alas. To help, anyone who wishes to enter the contest Monday, I will review and give you feedback to strengthen your draft. When you turn in the draft, leave me a comment that you would like specific feedback to enter the contest. Normally (with more time) we would workshop these pieces much more. You can, of course, seek other help from peers as well.]

Next class we will respond to and discuss the selections presented here. 

As participation credit to encourage you to read these pieces, please leave me a SHORT summary of the pieces you read and what you thought of them by next class. You should only summarize the pieces you actually read. Each summary should be specific with enough details to prove you've read the piece, and perhaps a comment or two about what you thought about its theme, structure, form, characters, message, etc. The film is a little longer than the other pieces, but take a look at it.

HOMEWORK: Complete any readings we didn't get to in class today and write a short summary of those pieces to turn in to the assignment posted on our Google Classroom for participation credit. We will be discussing the American Dream next class.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Namesake Analysis/Discussion Chp. 1 & 2; How It Feels To Be Colored Me

By -
Image
Let's go back to examining  The Namesake , Chapter 1 this morning to continue examining the writing style going on here. Take a closer look at these passages: Pg. 3 (1st full paragraph) to 4 (end of 1st full paragraph): How is Ashima's character compared/contrasted with the American women in the hospital? What do you notice about the sentence structure of this paragraph? What does the use of dialogue in this paragraph provide for the reader? What literary devices do you notice? Can you find figurative language/metaphor/alliteration or other elements of imagery? How are the sentences similar to a contraction (the action in the scene)? Pg. 10-12: how is Ashoke's character presented? How does his story parallel or contrast with his wife's? How is Ashoke different from the other American men in the waiting room? What details do we learn about him?  Pg. 13-14: Nickolai Gogol and the short story "The Overcoat" is alluded to here. Just notice it for now. This al
Read more

Clash of the Titans (Conclusion); Creation Myths

By -
Clash of the Titans (conclusion) Clash of the Titans   (1981)--produced and designed by  Ray Harryhausen . Directed by  Desmond Davis . Starring:  Laurence Olivier  as Zeus,  Maggie Smith  as Thetis,  Harry Hamlin  as Perseus, and  Burgess Meredith  as Ammon. Clash of the Titans (2010) & Clash of the Titans (2010) Medusa Scene Wrath of the Titans (2012) Percy Jackson: The Lightning Thief (2010) Percy Jackson Sea of Monsters (2013) Percy Jackson Titan's Curse (2017) Use mythic criticism to review (in writing or as a podcast or vlog post)  Clash of the Titans . Take notes during the film to help you prepare your review. Myth Criticism  asks: 1. How does the story resemble other stories in plot, character, setting or use of symbols? 2. Are archetypes presented, such as quests, initiations, scapegoats, descending, or withdrawals and returns? [Use your handout/notes to help!] 3. Does the protagonist undergo any kind of transformation (such as movement from innoc
Read more

Wilderness Tips - Examination & Analysis

By -
Image
Use period one to continue the story draft you started last class. Use your time to develop your ideas, theme, work on plot, character development, setting, and other aspects of your fiction writing. Remember, your story should include the following: Write a draft that includes a flashback . Consider an urban setting, but at some point in your story, move to a more natural setting. The setting should reflect the inner conflicts of your protagonist if possible. Avoid character cliches: surprise your reader (and possibly yourself or even your character) Include a secondary character who should act as a foil to the protagonist. Write in present tense ; (flashbacks can be written in past tense); Use 3rd person POV (limited, omniscient, objective). See the previous post for more details. Period 2: Let's discuss what we've read so far in the collection. Wilderness Tips is   Margaret Atwood’s second volume of short stories ( Bluebeard’s Egg and Other Stories (198
Read more