Now that you have jumped into the "deep end" of the pool, reflect a little on your performance on the prose and poetry response essays. You can think of these baseline essays as a whole experience or you may separate your experiences. 

Once you have paused to reflect, compose your thoughts in a brief letter to me that illuminates this experience. You can make predictions for the year, but you should not feel that these responses will be reflective of your whole year in AP Literature. I have found that the majority of my students will grow and evolve as thinkers and writers quite a bit from September to May. Tell me how you felt, what areas were your strengths and which need more focus. Tell me about any steps you plan to take to improve (and, believe me, ALL writers can improve!) and how your future writing self will look.

Try to finish by the end of the period, but you may certainly continue at home.

​Please use a name that you select as your nom de plume and be sure to add word count.

Expectations:
​200-250 words

​​There is often a sense of moral ambiguity that one can experience because of cultural conflict. I’ve often been faced with questions such as, "Do I believe this is right or wrong because of the way I was raised, or is it right or wrong because of a universal set of morals that all humans share?"

​As we read The Poisonwood Bible, we encounter these kind of questions constantly. Some Westerners are immediately put off by many aspects of Kikongo culture (and the culture of the Prices!) portrayed in the novel, such as their treatment of women and twins, and well as some of their ideals related to marriage and education. Yet, I still question how much my culture influences my perspective and moral standing on these issues.

Reflect on these tensions for yourself, and compose a piece of personal writing addressing some (not all) of these questions:
 - To what extent do you think our morals are defined by our home cultures?
 - Do you think it is ever appropriate to say that the traditions or values of another culture are immoral?
 - Have you had any cross-cultural experiences in your own life that made you realize that perhaps what is considered right and wrong in your own culture may not be universal?
 - Have you wrestled with these tensions as you read The Poisonwood Bible as well?

Primary Blog Expectations (respond to the prompt above): 200-250 words, minimal errors in grammar and usage, thoughtful and thorough writing. Please use a name that you select as your nom de plume and be sure to add word count. Due by 11:59 pm on Friday 3/8! 
​
Secondary Blog Response Expectations (read everyone's primary responses, select two that interest you, and respond to their ideas): 100-150 words EACH, minimal errors in grammar and usage, thoughtful, and thorough writing.  Please use your nom de plume and be sure to add word count. Due by 11:59 pm on Sunday 3/10!

Today, I would like for you to read and respond to the article, "In the Minds of Others" by Keith Oatley. You should read and annotate the print article that I give you, but I will also include a link here. This article further develops the ideas from Independent Reading Blog #2 and will be of use later when we finish our Independent Reading Unit.

Your critical analysis of this article should:
     -briefly summarize the main points of the article
     -identify the author's argument
     -evaluate the author's success by analyzing how the author uses:
          1. textual evidence, such as facts or examples, to support claims
          2. reasoning to develop ideas and to connect claims and evidence
        3. stylistic or persuasive elements, such as word choice or appeals to emotion, to add power to the ideas expressed
     -conclude with a strong comment upon the value of the author's topic/argument.

Requirements:
     -typed, MLA style, 500-1,000 words (about 2 to 4 pages)
     -posted here on the classroom blog
     -AND to Turnitin by 11:59pm on Sunday night, 1/27/2019

Click on the image above to go to an electronic copy of "In the Minds of Others" by Keith Oatley.

"Literature’s Emotional Lessons:
​Grappling with the way books make students feel—not just analytical skills—should be part of the high-school English curriculum." - Andrew Simmons

ERIC AUDRAS / PHOTOALTO / CORBIS

Before you complete this blog entry, you must paraphrase this soliloquy on your Hamlet page on your own website: transcribe it in its original form, paraphrase it line by line, and please AVOID the use of Sparknote-like sources! 

Self-reproach: 'And all for nothing?'

'What's Hecuba to him, or he to Hecuba . . .?' demands Hamlet as he sees the player weeping for the sufferings of Hecuba. Faced with an actor who can cry at the imagined torments of a fictional character in a play, Hamlet reproaches himself for his own lack of action. The actor can weep 'for nothing', but Hamlet, with a murdered father, is incapable of taking revenge ('unrepugnant of my cause'). Like a day-dreamer ('John-a-dreams'), he does nothing.

     a. Do you think that Hamlet is being too hard on himself? Consider in turn each of the things he calls himself and decide if they are true ('rogue', 'peasant slave', 'dull and muddy-mettled rascal', 'John-a-dreams', 'coward', 'pigeon-livered'). Why does he level these accusations at himself. 

     b. Consider each of the seven things Hamlet calls Claudius in lines 532-3 and discuss justified you think each description is.

     c. Shakespeare often inserts lists into his plays (a literary device called copiousness). The accumulation of items helps to increase the intensity of the mood being created. Pick out the following lists: the player's reactions (lines 506-509); what the player would do if he acted Hamlet (lines 514-518); what Hamlet imagines a bully would do to him (lines 524-527); what Hamlet calls Claudius (lines 532-533). Write a new list to insert into the soliloquy (for example, a list concerning his mother, or his false friends).

Primary Blog Expectations (respond to the prompt above): 200-250 words, minimal errors in grammar and usage, thoughtful and thorough writing. Please use the Shakespearean character's name that you selected in class as your nom de plume and be sure to add word count. Due by 11:59pm on Friday 12/14! 

Secondary Blog Response Expectations (read everyone's primary responses, select two that interest you, and respond to their ideas): 100-150 words EACH, minimal errors in grammar and usage, thoughtful and thorough writing.  Please use the Shakespearean character's name that you selected in class as your nom de plume and be sure to add word count. Due by 11:59pm on Sunday 12/16!

These images could depict some of the main plot points of Chapters 17-24. While these moments are important, they are by no means the only significant points in these chapters.
After having read these chapters:
   -Select a single passage (this may be a single paragraph or several) that you feel best typifies the action and Shelley's authorial intent in this section of Frankenstein. This MLA-cited quote should not be included in your analysis.
   -Explain the action and context of the quoted passage (you must cite the passage) and then,
 -Explain how your understanding of this passage (1) supports your understanding, (2) deepens the character development, and/or (3) builds a central message that aligns with one of the unit's essential questions. 

BE SURE TO POST YOUR WORD COUNT AT THE BOTTOM OF EACH BLOG ENTRY!!

Primary Blog Expectations (respond to the prompt above): 200-250 words, minimal errors in grammar and usage, thoughtful and thorough writing. Please use the scientists's name that you selected in class as your nom de plume and be sure to add word count. Due by 11:59pm on Friday 11/16! 

Secondary Blog Response Expectations (read everyone's primary responses, select two that interest you, and respond to their ideas): 100-150 words EACH, minimal errors in grammar and usage, thoughtful and thorough writing.  Please use the scientists's name that you selected in class as your nom de plume and be sure to add word count. Due by 11:59pm on Sunday 11/18!

These images could depict some of the main plot points of Chapters 11-16. While these are moments are important, they are by no means the only significant points in these four chapters.

After having read these 4 chapters that introduce us to Victor Frankenstein:
     1. select a single passage (this may be a single paragraph or several) that you feel offers a possible comment on one of the unit's Essential Questions (please use an ellipsis when necessary),
     2. explain the action and context of the quoted passage (you must cite the passage) and then,
     3. explain how your understanding of this passage builds a central message that aligns with this particular Essential Question.

Primary Blog Expectations (respond to the prompt above): 200-250 words, minimal errors in grammar and usage, thoughtful and thorough writing. Please use the name you were assigned in class as your nom de plume and be sure to add word count. Due by 11:59pm Friday night 11-9-2018! 

Secondary Blog Response Expectations (read everyone's primary responses, select two that interest you, and respond to their ideas): 100-150 words EACH, minimal errors in grammar and usage, thoughtful and thorough writing. Please use the name you were assigned in class as your nom de plume and be sure to add word count. Due by 11:59pm Sunday night 11-11-2018!

These images could depict some of the main plot points of Chapters 5-10. While these moments are important, they are by no means the only significant points in these four chapters.
After having read these chapters:
   -Select a single passage (this may be a single paragraph or several) that you feel best approaches an answer to or a comment upon one of the unit's Essential Questions (at this point in the novel, you should be focusing in on one or two possible Essential Questions to follow for the entire unit). 
   -Explain the action and context of the quoted passage (you must cite the passage) and then,
 -Explain how your understanding of this passage (1) supports your understanding, (2) deepens the character development, and/or (3) builds a central message that aligns with one of the unit's essential questions. 

Primary Blog Expectations (respond to the prompt above): 200-250 words, minimal errors in grammar and usage, thoughtful and thorough writing. Please use the scientists's name that you selected in class as your nom de plume and be sure to add word count. Due by 11:59pm on Friday, 11/2/2018! 

Secondary Blog Response Expectations (read everyone's primary responses, select two that interest you, and respond to their ideas): 100-150 words EACH, minimal errors in grammar and usage, thoughtful and thorough writing.  Please use the scientists's name that you selected in class as your nom de plume and be sure to add word count. Due by 11:59pm on Sunday, 11/4/2018!

These images could depict some of the main plot points of Chapters 1-4 illustrating some main events in young Victor's life and development: his idyllic childhood and introduction to Elizabeth Lavenza, his mother's death, and his entrance into university. While these are moments are important, they are by no means the only significant points in these four chapters.

After having read these 4 chapters that introduce us to Victor Frankenstein:
     1. select a single passage (this may be a single paragraph or several) that you feel offers a possible comment on one of the unit's Essential Questions (please use an ellipsis when necessary),
     2. explain the action and context of the quoted passage (you must cite the passage) and then,
     3. explain how your understanding of this passage builds a central message that aligns with this particular Essential Question.

Primary Blog Expectations (respond to the prompt above): 200-250 words, minimal errors in grammar and usage, thoughtful and thorough writing. Please use the name you were assigned in class as your nom de plume and be sure to add word count. Due by 11:59pm Friday night 10-26-2018! 

Secondary Blog Response Expectations (read everyone's primary responses, select two that interest you, and respond to their ideas): 100-150 words EACH, minimal errors in grammar and usage, thoughtful and thorough writing. Please use the name you were assigned in class as your nom de plume and be sure to add word count. Due by 11:59pm Sunday night 10-28-2018!

​The painting above depicts a fate that Walden fears but is willing to face, risking the lives of his crew, in order to fulfill his all-consuming pursuit of fame's immortality. 

After having read these initial letters from the ship's captain to his sister:
     1. select a single passage (this may be a single paragraph or several) that you feel offers a possible comment on one of the unit's Essential Questions (please use an ellipsis when necessary),
     2. explain the action and context of the quoted passage (you must cite the passage) and then,
     3. explain how your understanding of this passage builds a central message that aligns with this particular Essential Question.

Primary Blog Expectations (respond to the prompt above): 200-250 words, minimal errors in grammar and usage, thoughtful and thorough writing. Please use the name you were assigned in class as your nom de plume and be sure to add word count. Due by 11:59pm Friday night 10-19-2018! 

Secondary Blog Response Expectations (read everyone's primary responses, select two that interest you, and respond to their ideas): 100-150 words EACH, minimal errors in grammar and usage, thoughtful and thorough writing. Please use the name you were assigned in class as your nom de plume and be sure to add word count. Due by 11:59pm Sunday night 10-21-2018!  ​

Read the prompt on pg 97 of the Jago text, followed by the stage directions for Lorraine Hansberry's play A Raisin in the Sun. Answer the questions found in the prompt for this passage in your blog response.

Primary Blog Expectations (respond to the prompt above): 100-150 words, minimal errors in grammar and usage, thoughtful and thorough writing. Please use the name you were assigned in class as your nom de plume and be sure to add word count. Due by 11:59pm Wednesday night 10-3-2018! 

Closely read the passage from Tess of the D'Urbervilles on pgs 72-73. While you are reading, consider how the author's use of setting develops the character of Tess for the reader. Please be sure to read the textual instructions to help support your analysis of this short passage.

Primary Blog Expectations (respond to the prompt above): 200-250 words, minimal errors in grammar and usage, thoughtful and thorough writing. Please use the name you were assigned in class as your nom de plume and be sure to add word count. Due by 11:59pm Monday night 10-1-2018! 

Please read the excerpt from The Great Gatsby on page 26-26 of your text. At the end of the novel, Nick Carroway, remembers Jay Gatsby as a person with a great "capacity for wonder." After reading this passage carefully, analyze how the style of the writing conveys this sense of Gatsby.
​
Primary Blog Expectations (respond to the prompt above): 300-350 words, minimal errors in grammar and usage, thoughtful and thorough writing. Please use the name you were assigned in class as your nom de plume and be sure to add word count. Due by 11:59pm Monday night 9-24-2018! 

Read the poem "Bored" by Margaret Atwood and then discuss your experience of it, your analysis of it, and how you might extend your analysis beyond the story. Please keep in mind that these are not entirely separate steps. Simply go through the steps as you compose your response.
Primary Blog Expectations (respond to the prompt above): 300-350 words, minimal errors in grammar and usage, thoughtful and thorough writing. Please use the name you were assigned in class as your nom de plume and be sure to add word count. Due by 11:59pm Thursday night 9-20-2018! 

Note: Thiis image was attached to the following question: Could the Tree of Knowledge be an ancient library? That's an interesting question to ponder.

​"Choose a book that you think would be appropriate for establishing common ground through discussion in our school or class. What issues would this book enable the community to explore? Why are those issues important to our school or community?" (Jago, et al. 8)

Primary Blog Expectations (respond to the prompt above): 200-250 words, minimal errors in grammar and usage, thoughtful and thorough writing. Please use the name you were assigned in class as your nom de plume and be sure to add word count. Due by 11:59pm Monday night 9-17-2018! 

Neil Gaiman is one of my favorite authors. His is the first name that comes to mind when I am asked these questions: Whos's your favorite author? What's your favorite book? Who is your virtual BFF? Which writer's life intrigues you the most? Who's going to be Husband #2 (Just kidding, Husband #1! Haha!)? I could go on...

Clearly, I am a fangirl, but this is because Gaiman has most often struck me with his "truthiness" and his unique world view. After today's readings, use Gaiman's quote below as a lens to illuminate your own understanding of what is a lie and what is, as Dickinson writes, "tell[ing] all the Truth but tell[ing] it slant." You should refer to something that you have read before to illustrate this point for you. Write thoughtfully and clearly (if you're a word count person, aim for 150-250) and please use the nom de plume we selected in class.

The image above could depict Jalil composing the letter that Laila reads  in Part IV of A Thousand Splendid Suns. While this moment is important, it is by no means the only significant point in these chapters.
After having read these chapters:
   -Select a single passage (this may be a single paragraph or several) that you feel best typifies the action and Hosseini's authorial intent in this section of ATSS. 
   -Explain the action and context of the quoted passage (you must cite the passage) and then,
 -Explain how your understanding of this passage (1) supports your understanding, (2) deepens the character development, and/or (3) builds a central message that aligns with one of the unit's essential questions. ​

Primary Blog Expectations (respond to the prompt above): 200-250 words, minimal errors in grammar and usage, thoughtful and thorough writing. Please use the name you were assigned in class as your nom de plume and be sure to add word count. Due by 11:59pm Tuesday night 4-10-2018! 

Secondary Blog Response Expectations (read everyone's primary responses, select two that interest you, and respond to their ideas): 100-150 words EACH, minimal errors in grammar and usage, thoughtful and thorough writing. Please use the name you were assigned in class as your nom de plume and be sure to add word count. Due by 11:59pm Wednesday night 4-11-2018!  ​

This image could depict Mariam at peace in the final chapter of Part 3.2 of A Thousand Splendid Suns. While this moment is important, it is no means the only significant point in these chapters.
After having read these chapters:
   -Select a single passage (this may be a single paragraph or several) that you feel best typifies the action and Hosseini's authorial intent in this section of ATSS. 
   -Explain the action and context of the quoted passage (you must cite the passage) and then,
 -Explain how your understanding of this passage (1) supports your understanding, (2) deepens the character development, and/or (3) builds a central message that aligns with one of the unit's essential questions. 

Primary Blog Expectations (respond to the prompt above): 200-250 words, minimal errors in grammar and usage, thoughtful and thorough writing. Please use the name you were assigned in class as your nom de plume and be sure to add word count. Due by 11:59pm Friday night 4-6-2018! 

Secondary Blog Response Expectations (read everyone's primary responses, select two that interest you, and respond to their ideas): 100-150 words EACH, minimal errors in grammar and usage, thoughtful and thorough writing. Please use the name you were assigned in class as your nom de plume and be sure to add word count. Due by 11:59pm Sunday night 4-8-2018!  ​​

The images above could depict scenes in Part 3.1 of A Thousand Splendid Suns. While these moments are important, they are by no means the only significant points in these chapters.
After having read these chapters:
   -Select a single passage (this may be a single paragraph or several) that you feel best typifies the action and Hosseini's authorial intent in this section of ATSS. 
   -Explain the action and context of the quoted passage (you must cite the passage) and then,
 -Explain how your understanding of this passage (1) supports your understanding, (2) deepens the character development, and/or (3) builds a central message that aligns with one of the unit's essential questions. 

Primary Blog Expectations (respond to the prompt above): 200-250 words, minimal errors in grammar and usage, thoughtful and thorough writing. Please use the name you were assigned in class as your nom de plume and be sure to add word count. Due by 11:59pm Friday night! 

Secondary Blog Response Expectations (read everyone's primary responses, select two that interest you, and respond to their ideas): 100-150 words EACH, minimal errors in grammar and usage, thoughtful and thorough writing. Please use the name you were assigned in class as your nom de plume and be sure to add word count. Due by 11:59pm Sunday night!  ​

These images could depict some of the main plot points of Part II of A Thousand Splendid Suns. While these moments are important, they are by no means the only significant points in these chapters.
After having read these chapters:
   -Select a single passage (this may be a single paragraph or several) that you feel best typifies the thematic importance of "shelter" in this section of ATSS. 
   -Explain the action and context of the quoted passage (you must cite the passage) and then,
 -Explain how your understanding of this passage (1) supports your contextual understanding, (2) deepens the character development, and/or (3) builds a central message that aligns with one of the unit's essential questions. 

Primary Blog Expectations (respond to the prompt above): 200-250 words, minimal errors in grammar and usage, thoughtful and thorough writing. Please use the name that you were assigned in class as your nom de plume and be sure to add word count. Due by 11:59pm on Friday night! 

Secondary Blog Response Expectations (read everyone's primary responses, select two that interest you, and respond to their ideas): 100-150 words EACH, minimal errors in grammar and usage, thoughtful and thorough writing.  Please use the name that you were assigned in class as your nom de plume and be sure to add word count. Due by 11:59pm on Sunday night! 

In Part 1 of A Thousand Splendid Suns, Nana says the following to her daughter, Mariam: “Women like us. We endure. It’s all we have.” Select three distinct passages from Part 1 that show how this sentiment informs Mariam’s life and how it relates to the larger themes of the novel. 

Primary Blog Expectations (respond to the prompt above): 200-250 words, minimal errors in grammar and usage, thoughtful and thorough writing. Please use the name that you were assigned in class as your nom de plume and be sure to add word count. Due by the end of Friday night! 

Secondary Blog Response Expectations (read everyone's primary responses, select two that interest you, and respond to their ideas): 100-150 words EACH, minimal errors in grammar and usage, thoughtful and thorough writing. Please use the name that you were assigned in class as your nom de plume and be sure to add word count. Due by the start of class on Monday!  ​