The Great Chain of Being {English 12}

     

Oh Hamlet! We haven't even started the play and just from background information I already fear for his sanity.  During the Renaissance they had something called: The Chain of Being. What is that you ask? Well, the Reader's Digest version is that the Chain of Being is the hierarchy of the world, humanity, animal kingdom and flora/fauna of the world--with some twists and turns.

The power point will go over in class is about fifty-one slides. I know--I know, but it's pertinent information. Hamlet really believes in the hierarchy of  this--which why it drives him crazy that his mother has turned to his uncle before his father's corpse is cold. If I lose you in class today, feel free to peruse the Great Chain of Being power point at your leisure. 

Figure out where you fit in the "Great Chain of Being" or do you think it has drastically changed?

So, There was this kid who did some stuff {Catcher in the Rye} Chap. 5-8

Yay! We're on chapter five of The Catcher in the Rye. Aren't you excited? Me too! If you were absent when I handed out the study guide for chapters 5-8 <----here it is.  So far, we have read chapters five and six finding out that Holden has lost his younger brother Allie to leukemia, destroyed all the windows in his garage and took a swing at Stradlater because he worried about him giving Jane Galleghar "the time" in Ed Banky's car.

We also went over the literary terms for chapters five thru eight. You can click on the link:  Literary Terms powerpoint. Yes, there are terms from chapters one thru four, but keep clicking away until you see the information you need.

Hamlet- Hey Pops why are you translucent? I have to avenge what !?!



This will be funny, eventually. You'll see.
 It'll be corny, but funny.



We are starting Shakespeare's tragic play Hamlet. Think family duty, vengeance, madness and unrequited love all rolled into a murder sandwich.  Sounds tasty, um maybe disturbing is more fitting.

During today's class we briefly discussed the logs you will be required to keep--remember you must write three entries per scene.

In order to build background I will present a Hamlet PowerPoint to the class-- which you will have a quiz on Friday, February 10th. Yup. I said QUIZ. In case you missed something just follow the Hamlet ppt link in order to add to your notes.

They're All Phonies--at least to Holden. Catcher in the Rye Chapters 1-4

Holden Caufield

Ahhh seventeen. Breathe in the teenage angst. The "nobody understands me" and "I'm the only real person here" attitude viola! you have Holden Caufiled; the protagonist of one the greatest novels of modern literature {in my humble opinion} The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger.

In class today I handed out the first study guide for Catcher in the Rye . We will do a majority of the reading in class, but you should be prepared to read at home as well as work on your study guides.

I hope you enjoy peering into the life of Holden Caufield and being able to find pieces of yourself.

Article of the Week #3 "The Kids Are More Than All Right"

Okay---so,  originally I was going to post an article discussing when to tell when you saw a crime--of any type. Then I saw the new article, "The Kids Are More Than All Right" written by Tara Parker-Pope  from  The New York Times Magazine.  Insert "A-Ha" moment here.

Clearly, in my humble opinion this is the article to read. Why? Well, I think teenagers are tired of being told how bad they are. Besides it's uplifting to read that many of you are making the right choices. So, yay for you.

Directions:  Read the article--write down points you either agree or disagree with. Be prepared to share your thoughts in class during the discussion. Our class is not the moment to share your deepest darkest secrets, but rather your general overview of the subject.

Let's hear it for teenagers-- they're 20% less troublesome than their parents.  You apparently rock.