Kate Chopin

Take a moment to read through the links. A new one was added this weekend.

Death to the Cliche

Are you a budding genius who is the apple of your mother's eye? Do you crave the best of all possible worlds and hope to find yourself on the top of the world? Do you work yourself to the bone and burn the midnight oil completing your assignments? On top of it all, do you mind your p's and q's? Do you bend over backward to do everything just right and then wonder why your teacher says that she wants to tear out her hair when she reads your papers? It's because you need to throw in the towel and eliminate cliches from your writing!

This week's homework:
Friday: Create a list of fifteen cliches and bring a shoebox to class.

Monday: Bury ten cliches both physically (in a shoebox) and metaphorically (in an elegy). Elegies are due this Wednesday via email by 8AM.

Wednesday: Find errors in sentences and use Owl at Purdue to review verb tense.

http://owl.english.purdue.edu/exercises/2/22

Thursday: Find errors in sentences (handout)

February 12 through 17

The inclass writing prompt will be Friday, February 12. You may use your book and your notes.

Over the long weekend please read The Old Man and the Sea by Hemingway. It's quick read. Notes are a must. Pay attention to character, imagery, and theme. Expect a quiz when you return. Use Gale as a resource if you need it. The password is in your planner.

Two new terms:

Foil is a person who contrasts with another character (usually the protagonist) in order to highlight various features of the main character's personality. Who serves as Santiago's foil?

Juxtaposition is synonymous with contrast. Consider Francis Macomber and Wilson.

Ideas to Ponder

When you read and take notes, ponder these ideas:

How does dialogue develop character?
Look at what is NOT said, but implied.
How do characters develop the themes found in the text?
What is the tone of the passage and are there shifts in tone? Why?
What images are present in the passage? How do those images contribute to your understanding of the text?
What struggles do the characters face, and how do those struggles develop the themes found in the text?
And, reflect on the title. For example, when was the short, happy life of Francis Macomber? Does it merely mean that he died at a young age or is there another meaning?

Please finish "The Short Happy Life of Francis Macomber" by Monday and "The Snows of Kilimanjaro" by Tuesday. There will be a notebook check this Monday.

Expect a writing prompt this Thursday.