If you want to get a jump on the weekend reading, head to Jonathan Lethem's article at Harper's.com. We'll discuss it Monday, pulling from The Pirate's Dilemma and your own experiences in writing/creating art/stealing music/plagiarism.
P.S. Be sure to check out his "Works Cited" at the bottom.
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Great first day, guys. I hate talking as much as I did, but I think we're set for the year. If you want a copy of the syllabus or the LitToC stuff, you can download it all here.
Also, here is the Scribd document of the novel. As I said before, use it only until you purchase the book. You will not be able to read the entire novel on a computer or iTouch screen.
As you read, mark the parts that are interesting to you. This will be the first thing I ask about tomorrow. (And don't forget vocab!)
Gabriel García Márquez - Love in the Time of Cholera Read More......
Strings outline below.
Is this creative, or does he have too much time on his hands?
Found via TheNextWeb
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These links have been bouncing around my bookmark folders for a while, so I thought I'd share.
During the last three weeks of this session we will be pulling from everything we've done before: critical analysis of texts, cultural analysis of works, integration and synthesis of works from different eras and cultures, and explication of literary devices. "How will we do this?" you ask? By answering an apparently simple question:
What do Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, Wilfred Owen's "Dulce Et Decorum Est," H.G. Wells's The Time Machine (and The Days of the Comet, and The Island of Dr. Moreau, and Conrad's Heart of Darkness), the Danse Macabre, 1984, punk music (The Clash!), Twitter, Wikipedia, The Wisdom of Crowds, The Starfish and the Spider, DIY, Internet piracy, and podcasting have in common?
Our answer can be as simple and complex as we want, but it will take our understanding of all these cultural phenomena and works and the skills we've acquired this year to pull off a solid answer.
Now that's a cumulative test.
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Step 1: Sign up for a gmail account.
Step 2: Send an email to one of the people from class (or me).
Step 3: Click on the link you receive.
Step 4: Add your notes! Read More......
English classes are interesting. We teachers often push aside works of nonfiction in favor of fiction's many incarnations while asking you to produce short works of nonfiction in response (think essay, book report, research paper...). Think about it: if all that you consume is fiction, what do you predict your writing will look like? Exactly.
Please to not misinterpret me: Fiction is vitally important to our understanding of the world. (Remember our discussions on the magnifying glass, the different lenses, and the fact that most communication is metaphorical.) That said, my goal with this section is to remove the pressure of fictional analysis while focusing on three vital skills: communication, collaboration, and connection. You will communicate your ideas and knowledge; collaborate with your peers; and make connections between what you know, what others know, your books, and the outside world.
Each of you has chosen a work of nonfiction from this list (if you don't have your copy yet, email me now. I'll buy it for you and meet you at Starbucks if I have to.):
These books cover a wide range of topics (group intelligence over singular genius, the impact of complex pop culture, the resilience of non-hierarchical organizations, how ideas/products become popular, and the impact of relationships and the media on young women), but they all share one thing on common: how we are impacted by the world/people around us.
Each day you may be asked to teach the class about what you've read so far. Others who are reading the same work may add to your lecture if they want to. This will be uncomfortable for you at first, but remember, we all want to learn about each of the books, but can't read them all. Use your reading journal or notes to help you keep track of your thoughts if you'd like.
If you are not teaching your book, take notes in your journal. Write down any lightbulb connections you make between the book and yours, any questions you have, or anything you might want to study further. This will allow you to make sure you understand what is being presented and solidify the connections you make between your book and others'.
After a book has been taught, I will ask the other readers of the book about their thoughts on it so far, and any connections they've come across. Before the break, I asked each of you to bring one connection between your book and the outside world to class on Monday. If you've found one, keep looking! We can never make too many connections, and I'll be asking for them often.
We will then open the floor to those who have not read the book but have questions or connections to contribute to the class's understanding.
This is not a series of presentations. This is not a book report. I will not ask you to stand in front of the class. This is a discussion amongst peers about how parts of the world works. The steps above will only be in place for the first few days. After that, we should be in the habit of explaining what we've read, sharing ideas and connections, and building on one another's ideas. The length of this assignment is dependent upon how deep we want to delve into the topics. We begin work on the final project on day one, so please come prepared. What form the final project takes is dependent upon where our discussions take us.
Grades. Because I have to. Best advice: have fun, talk to others about what they're reading, share what you know, make connections beyond the classroom.
If you're keeping track, here's the breakdown:
I found this site [Warning: The site contains images of dissected frogs that have been implanted with computer parts] while I was researching galvanism yesterday, and forgot to post the link.
Check out the "Project Exhibition Essay" in the middle of the page for the Frankenstein connection.
Remember, I'll be looking over your reading journals tomorrow.
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For those of you reading The Picture of Dorian Gray, here's a bit more insight into the life of the author.
Oh! Here's a graphic version of the novel, by Roy Thomas and Sebastian Fiumara from Marvel. Amazon link.
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on Mercury Theatre. Check out the Mercury Theatre website for streaming audio and downloadable versions of radio programs from the 1930's.
Hear Dracula, War of the Worlds, Treasure Island, and, at the bottom of the page, an interview with Wells by Welles.
Check out this article with amazing pictures from DarkRoastedBlend.com.
Also, Josiah's comment on the previous post.
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[EDIT: I neglected to mention that you should also explain how your video reflects a device.]
For the past week, we've been discussing literary devices in British music and (mostly) WWI-era poetry. To move our discussions into the realm of popular culture, we will compile a series of videos that represent our favorite devices. In doing so, we will not only demonstrate understanding and application of the devices, but also (perhaps) defend YouTube as a site worthy of our perusal. Our main challenge will be sifting through the channels for clips worth watching.
Here are the rules of the game:
The idea for this assignment came from this post on Todd Seal's blog. If you click on the link, you can view his examples for most of the devices. As you can see, he hasn't completed the list. Let's see if we can all do it in a weekend.
If you want to get a head start on About a Boy, go ahead and purchase it. (Gardner's or Steve's Sundry usually has a cheap copy.) I've ordered a class set at B&N on 41st, so we should begin our discussions on the 25th or 26th, depending on when they come in.
Have a great weekend! I look forward to watching your videos!
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If you were confused by the RSS feed talk today, check out this older post. I have listed sites that I enjoy, as well as a video about setting up an RSS feed yourself.
I'd add Treehugger and Popmatters to the list.
Remember, comment below, telling me who you are (if it isn't obvious from your name), which web sites you like to visit and anything else you care to share, like good music! If you don't have a site to share, click on a link that has been posted, have a look around, and report back.
Buy journals soon. I'll order About a Boy in a few days.
Amazing first day! Thanks, guys.
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Remember, we will be sharing articles on Tuesday. Bring an article that you find interesting, something for the class to discuss.
To assist you in your search, I thought I'd share this with you:
I use the Google RSS reader, but there are others out there. (See links in video.)
Here are a couple of good article sources that I use:
I'm a big fan of these last four. You might say they're the winning-est blogs on the web. You'd be wrong, but the wordplay remains. If you choose no other feed, subscribe to these:
If you have any further questions about RSS feeds or any other Internetness, post a comment below. The next post in my Internet Goodness will be about the wonders of Google docs. Never have to deal with emailing a report to yourself again!
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