Beyond the physicality of human life, what does it. mean to be human?

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Imogen Simpson
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1 Learning Goal Beyond the physicality of human life, what does it Drawing from the analysis of literary works, I will write to explore a similar topic, idea, or question about the human condition. mean to be human? Period: What is one thing that confuses you or interests you about the human condition? Name: from An Essay on Man Alexander Pope Know then thyself, presume not God to scan; The proper study of Mankind is Man. Plac'd on this isthmus of a middle state, A being darkly wise, and rudely great: With too much knowledge for the Sceptic side, With too much weakness for the Stoic's pride, He hangs between; in doubt to act, or rest, In doubt to deem himself a God, or Beast; In doubt his Mind or Body to prefer, Born but to die, and reas'ning but to err; Alike in ignorance, his reason such, Whether he thinks too little, or too much: Chaos of Thought and Passion, all confus'd; Still by himself abus'd, or disabus'd; Created half to rise, and half to fall; Great lord of all things, yet a prey to all; Sole judge of Truth, in endless Error hurl'd: The glory, jest, and riddle of the world! What does it say? What does it mean? What does it matter? 1

2 So, what does Shakespeare have to say about the human condition? Sonnet 18 William Shakespeare What does it say? What does it mean? What does it matter? Shall I compare thee to a summer's day? Thou art more lovely and more temperate: Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May, And summer's lease hath all too short a date: Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines, And often is his gold complexion dimm'd; And every fair from fair sometime declines, By chance or nature's changing course untrimm'd; But thy eternal summer shall not fade Nor lose possession of that fair thou owest; Nor shall Death brag thou wander'st in his shade, When in eternal lines to time thou growest: So long as men can breathe or eyes can see, So long lives this and this gives life to thee. from MacBeth Act 5, Scene 5, Lines William Shakespeare Sonnet 116 William Shakespeare Let me not to the marriage of true minds Admit impediments. Love is not love Which alters when it alteration finds, Or bends with the remover to remove: O no! it is an ever-fixed mark That looks on tempests and is never shaken; It is the star to every wandering bark, Whose worth's unknown, although his height be taken. Love's not Time's fool, though rosy lips and cheeks Within his bending sickle's compass come: Love alters not with his brief hours and weeks, But bears it out even to the edge of doom. If this be error and upon me proved, I never writ, nor no man ever loved. Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow Creeps in this petty pace from day to day, To the last syllable of recorded time. And all our yesterdays have lighted fools The way to dusty death. Out, out, brief candle! Life s but a walking shadow, a poor player, That struts and frets his hour upon the stage, And then is heard no more. It is a tale Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, Signifying nothing. 2

3 The Star Arthur C. Clarke Section 1 What does it say? 1. What do we learn about the priest who is our narrator? What was his state before he learned about the star? 2. How does he reconcile science and faith? 3. What is the significance of this supernova in human history? 4. What does this discovery do to the priest? Section 2 What does it mean? 1. What is the significance of the final question posed by the priest? 2. Does the priest s discovery support the existence of a Creator-God or disprove such a being? 3. Based on the text, what forces seem to be constant in the universe? Notes & Quotes Section 3 What does it matter? 1. How is the poem O Never Star Was Lost connected to the priest in The Star? 2. What is the significance of the line Gather ye rose-buds while ye may to the story The Star? 3. Compare and contrast Dickinson s treatment of faith versus science to how The Star explores the faith versus science theme. 4. Focusing on the Star of Bethlehem, how does On the Beach at Night Alone relate to The Star? 5. What do these texts reveal about the human condition? 3

4 Plot - A Chain of Events Due Date: The Star Arthur C. Clarke Section 4 Plan Writing Focus Write about a character s belief being challenged by an outside source, experience, or discovery. Develop Your Story Idea Who are your characters? Where is your story set? What is the conflict? Genre & Audience Drama Comedy Romance Mystery Science Fiction Fantasy Poetry Point-of-View Third-person - observes, knows thoughts of characters, doesn t interact First-person - story is told by one character How is the conflict resolved? 4

5 The Chrysanthemums John Steinbeck Section 1 What does it say? 1. Elisa is the main character of the story. How does the story get us to feel sympathy for her? 2. What problem does she face? 3. How does the tinker finally get Elisa to let him fix some pots? 4. What does Elisa want that the tinker has? 5. What does Elisa see on the road? Section 2 What does it mean? 1. Why does seeing the flowers on the road affect Elisa so deeply? 2. What do the chrysanthemums symbolize? 3. What is Elisa s role in her society? 4. How does Henry see his Elisa? 5. How is Elisa changed by the whole experience? Notes & Quotes Section 3 What does it matter? 1. How does the poem I Am reflect Elisa s desires in The Chrysanthemums? 2. What are the benefits and harms of the society represented in I Am the People, the Mob? 3. How would Elisa react to the ideas presented in I Am the People, the Mob? 4. What do these texts reveal about the human condition? 5

6 Plot - A Chain of Events Section 4 Plan Due Date: The Chrysanthemums John Steinbeck Writing Focus Write about a character trapped by the traditions or rules of their society. Develop Your Story Idea Who are your characters? Where is your story set? What is the conflict? Genre & Audience Drama Comedy Romance Mystery Science Fiction Fantasy Poetry Point-of-View Third-person - observes, knows thoughts of characters, doesn t interact First-person - story is told by one character How is the conflict resolved? 6

7 Section 1 What does it say? 1. How would you describe the relationship between the wife and Robert? 2. How would you describe the relationship between the wife and the narrator? 3. How does the narrator spend many of his nights? 4. What stereotypes about the blind does the narrator deal with throughout the story? 5. What do the narrator and Robert do at the end of the story? Cathedral Raymond Carver Section 2 What does it mean? 1. Compare and contrast the marriages between Robert and Beulah and the narrator and his wife. 2. What do the cathedrals symbolize in the story? 3. What happens to the narrator as he draws with Robert? 4. Why does the narrator keep his eyes closed at the end of the story? 5. How is the narrator changed in the end? Notes & Quotes Section 3 What does it matter? 1. Explain how the narrator in Cathedral and the speaker in A Blessing are transformed. 2. How does the final moment in Cathedral reflect the same ideas as euphoria? 3. What do these texts reveal about the human condition? 7

8 Plot - A Chain of Events Due Date: Cathedral Raymond Carver Section 4 Plan Writing Focus Write about a character s perspective being transformed after an experience. Develop Your Story Idea Who are your characters? Where is your story set? What is the conflict? Genre & Audience Drama Comedy Romance Mystery Science Fiction Fantasy Poetry Point-of-View Third-person - observes, knows thoughts of characters, doesn t interact First-person - story is told by one character How is the conflict resolved? 8

9 Leiningen Versus the Ants Carl Stephenson Section 1 What does it say? 1. How did the ants finally manage to cross the moat? 2. What defensive strategies do the plantation workers use to defend against the ants? 3. What preparations does Leiningen make for his dash to the dam? 4. What is the climax of the story? 5. What type of ants are attacking? 6. How do the two Indians die? Section 2 What does it mean? 1. What is the main theme of the story? 2. How are the ants identified with the military? 3. Do the events of the story support Leiningen s motto and reinforce its truth, or do they reveal that it is faulty? 4. How is the relationship between Man and Nature depicted? Notes & Quotes Section 3 What does it matter? 1. Create your own matter question here: 2. What does this text reveal about the human condition? 9

10 Plot - A Chain of Events Due Date: Leiningen Versus the Ants Carl Stephenson Section 4 Plan Writing Focus Write about a character interacting with nature and being changed by the experience. Develop Your Story Idea Who are your characters? Where is your story set? What is the conflict? Genre & Audience Drama Comedy Romance Mystery Science Fiction Fantasy Poetry Point-of-View Third-person - observes, knows thoughts of characters, doesn t interact First-person - story is told by one character How is the conflict resolved? 10

11 George Section 1 What does it say? 1. What does Brennan paint at the beginning of the story? 2. Why is Brennan unsettled? 3. What is Brennan afraid of when George arrives? 4. Why can t George help Brennan when the burglars arrive? 5. What happened to Brennan when he was a child? 6. Who or what is George? Section 2 What does it mean? 1. What does the treehouse symbolize in the story? 2. Why does George arrive to see Brennan after twenty years? 3. Why did George first appear to Brennan? 4. How does fear interact with Brennan throughout the story? 5. What is significant about George s final statement? 6. What does this story say about art and memory? Notes & Quotes Section 3 What does it matter? 1. How does the poem A Dream Within a Dream and the story George deal with the concept of reality? 2. If fancy is imagination, then how does Good-bye My Fancy! reflect Brennan s journey in George? 3. What do these texts reveal about the human condition? 11

12 Plot - A Chain of Events Due Date: George Section 4 Plan Writing Focus Write about a character finding out a startling truth about his or her past. How does the truth change them? Genre & Audience Drama Comedy Romance Mystery Science Fiction Fantasy Poetry Point-of-View Third-person - observes, knows thoughts of characters, doesn t interact First-person - story is told by one character Develop Your Story Idea Who are your characters? Where is your story set? What is the conflict? How is the conflict resolved? 12

13 Final Unit English 1/English 1 Honors 13

14 DUE ON MAY 29 TH! Final Essay Write a 1-2 page essay describing the thread (or universal truth) about the human condition that holds everything that we have done this year together. Be sure to reference and cite at least three texts that we have read this year. Here is a list of the texts that we have studied this year: The Most Dangerous Game Introduction to Poetry* Catch the Moon Mother to Son* The Monkey s Paw Hope is the thing with feathers* Prohibition* The New House* The Man Who Shouted Teresa* Grass* Like the Sun* I m nobody! Who are you?* The Say / I Say Introduction* The brain is wider than the sky* Letter from Birmingham Jail* The Soul selects her own Society* The Star* Sonnet 18* The Chrysanthemums* Sonnet 116* Cathedral* From MacBeth Act 5, Sc. 5, L * Leiningen Versus the Ants* O Never Star Was Lost* To the Virgins to Make Much of Time* DUE ON MAY 29 TH! Faith is a fine invention* On the Beach at Night Alone* I Am* I am the People, the Mob* A Blessing* euphoria* A Dream Within a Dream* Good-bye My Fancy!* From An Essay on Man* *See the blog for the texts not found in the textbook: tornadoenglish.blogspot.com The FINAL EXAM will test you on the following items: Figurative language Foreshadowing How to correct cite a text Symbolism They Say / I Say format Rhetorical devices What is Poetry? What is Freedom? What does it mean to be human? Be able to connect ideas over multiple texts. Be able to write in response to a textbased questions (What does it mean?). Be able to use reading strategies to comprehend different types of texts. Grammar, Conventions, Punctuation Author s Purpose Main Idea Character Development Unintended Consequences Just & Unjust Laws 14

WRITING A LITERARY ANALYSIS. The Tragedy of Macbeth

WRITING A LITERARY ANALYSIS. The Tragedy of Macbeth WRITING A LITERARY ANALYSIS The Tragedy of Macbeth WHAT IS A LITERARY ANALYSIS? A literary analysis involves reading the play as one would any other piece of literature, and then analyzing the literary