Found Poem Project

Now that you have read The Great Gatsby you are to compose a found poem using quotes and passages from the book. The theme of your poem may be about any of the following: love lost, love sought, dreams shattered, optimism vs. realism, Gatsby’s pursuit of his dream and that endeavor’s consequences, living in the past or trying to repeat the past.

For more specifics about the poem, refer to your assignment handouts from class.

On Monday and Tuesday we will be in the computer lab creating the second phase of this project. You will use the poem to create a movie in PowerPoint. Here is a sample project from last year to clarify what I mean...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1EtLqPSV79w&list=PL420262B06F5107E1&index=7&feature=plpp_video

You will need to bring in a flash drive with a song file you want to use for your soundtrack.

You may wish to start finding images now for your slides and also save them on the flash drive. This is not imperative as you will also have time to find images in the computer lab on Monday and Tuesday.

I will distribute a handout on Monday outlining how to incorporate music in a PowerPoint slideshow.

For those of you who are interested in designing your movie an alternative platform go for it. Just know that you must have your entire poem, images, and music in the final product, composed in such a way that the theme of your poem is given greater depth than what is conveyed in black and white. Also, if you choose this route, you must be very confident in your skills as I will not have time to troubleshoot major glitches with you (sometime simplicity is the smarter option).

Please feel free to begin threads and post responses here about saving song files, etc. I will check in periodically to offer support.

Huck Blog #5: The End & your Final Thoughts

In your final entry please discuss your opinion of the following:

- Does Jim really become free? Has he escaped? Did he free himself or was he once again at the mercy of the whites?
- Does anyone realize how terrible slavery is at the end of the story?
- What message have you extracted from Twain's satire (and "slavery is bad" is not an appropriate response)?

Huck Blog #4: Huck's Moral Progress

Twain utilizes Huck's ignorance as a way of employing Socratic irony, and this ignorance is most poignant in chapter 31, when Huck believes his choice to liberate another human being will damn him to Hell for all eternity because that other human being is an enslaved black man. In order to trace the evolution of Huck's morality, one must consider the following:

- Return to chapter 16. Consider: 1) Why would a young white racist boy go to such lengths to free a runaway slave? 2) In what way does the evolution of Huck's choices illustrate his coming of age?

- Chapter 27-30: Consider the manner in which Huck is behaving differently than in previous chapters.

- Chapter 31: Examine why Huck's decision is so crucial. Has Huck fallen backward or progressed morally at this point?

- Chapter 31: What is so ironic about chapter 31's "moral moment"?

Your Blog:

1. Reveal your findings in regards to the evolution of Huck's morality. Be sure to cite quotes to support your response.
2. Respond to one of your classmates’ responses.

Huck Blog #3: The Feud & Mob Mentality

Revisit Socratic irony just to be sure you have a grasp of the concept. Consider how Twain makes use of such a technique in chapters 17-18 and 22. Consider the following questions as you examine his crafting of such irony and what he is revealing about society.

- Why are the two families feuding in chapters 17&18? How long has it been going on? How did it begin?

- What comments are being made about the antebellum South and genteel North?

- How might Twain have used these two families to make statements about social culture or class.

-What comments are being made about conformity and mob mentality by Col. Sherburn (p. 146-148)?

- How does this episode parallel what Twain is saying in the episode of the feud?

Your Blog:

1. Reveal your findings in regards to how Twain makes use of Socratic irony in chapters 17-18 and 22; what is he trying to make readers see or question? Be sure to cite quotes to support your response.
2. Respond to one of your classmates’ responses.

Huck Blog #2: Jim's Minstrel Mask

Much of the controversy around Huckleberry Finn involves the portrayal and treatment of Jim. One side says that Jim is purposefully portrayed to look like a stupid slave while the other believes that Jim is simply playing a role.

“Twain fitted Jim into the outlines of the minstrel tradition, and it is from behind this stereotype mask that we see Jim’s dignity and his complexity”

Your reading for these chapters should focus on thinking critically about why Jim acts the way he does and whether has anything to gain or lose as a result of his behavior.

Passages for Consideration:

P. 5-7: Jim as a crazy black slave or a smart man that made the best out of a given situation. He ended up famous and got a little money out of it. What else could he have done?

P. 17-18: Jim as superstitious or again a smart man that not only appeared to be right all along but also got a little money and maybe even a little respect.

P. 41-47: Does Jim really think Huck is a ghost? Does Jim need Huck? Gun? Jim v. “Misto Braddish’s Nigger.”

P. 50-51: Why doesn’t Jim want Huck to see the man? Huck would have seen much worse.

Ch. 14-15: Huck’s feelings for Jim

P. 17 v. 70 & P. 84-86 v. 90-92: How does Huck treat Jim differently as the book moves along?

Your Blog:

1. Reveal your findings in regards to why Jim acts the way he does and whether has anything to gain or lose as a result of his behavior. Be sure to cite quotes to support your response.
2. Respond to one of your classmates’ responses.

Huck Blog #1: What Have You Heard?

What is your prior experience with this story, the book, and/or its author. Maybe you haven't read about it but you heard about all of the controversy in the fall of 2010 about censoring a version of the text for younger readers. Perhaps you have seen a movie or cartoon based on the story and you have a loose idea of what the story is about.

Share what knowledge of the book you will bring to your reading of it and then respond to one other classmate's post for a total of two (2) entries.

THERE IS NO READING REQUIRED FOR THIS POST!!

Summer Reading 2011-2012

11 Honors Summer Reading

Texts:

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain

How to Read Literature Like a Professor by Thomas Foster

ONE (1) book from the choice book list

Projects:

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn

1. Read The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
2. Blog about it, and prepare to discuss it when school starts… there might even be a quiz….. TO BLOG: go to edmodo.com and register as a student. Join the group “11 Honors 2011-2012” by entering the code: lyaofp. Then message away on Huck, Jim, the Grangerfords, the Duke, Aunt Sally…

How to Read Literature Like a Professor

1. Be prepared to present a randomly assigned section of the text as an “expert” to the class during the first week of class during a review activity.
2. Write a 2-3 page analysis of “The Garden Party” in the chapter called “Test Case”. This is to be a polished essay in which you use the skills taught in the text to analyze the short story. You may use the information Foster provides in the chapter as support, but relying on it as your commentary is plagiarism. You will be graded on your use of Foster’s topics, clarity of your argument (that those symbolic elements, such as baptism, are present in the story), and grade level grammar, usage and mechanics (G.U.M).

Your Choice Book: One writing assignment chosen from the summer reading project options

Due Dates:

The choice book project, as well as any additional work, will be due on the Wednesday of the first week of school. There will be a designated location for handing in any assignments that are not uploaded to the internet.