SONNETS THAT SPEAK TO YOU.

READ THE SONNETS BELOW and follow the directions that follow:

#20
A woman's face with nature's own hand painted,
Hast thou, the master mistress of my passion;
A woman's gentle heart, but not acquainted
With shifting change, as is false women's fashion:
An eye more bright than theirs, less false in rolling,
Gilding the object whereupon it gazeth;
A man in hue all hues in his controlling,
Which steals men's eyes and women's souls amazeth.
And for a woman wert thou first created;
Till Nature, as she wrought thee, fell a-doting,
And by addition me of thee defeated,
By adding one thing to my purpose nothing.
But since she prick'd thee out for women's pleasure,
Mine be thy love and thy love's use their treasure.

#50
How heavy do I journey on the way,
When what I seek, my weary travel's end,
Doth teach that ease and that repose to say,
'Thus far the miles are measured from thy friend!'
The beast that bears me, tired with my woe,
Plods dully on, to bear that weight in me,
As if by some instinct the wretch did know
His rider lov'd not speed being made from thee.
The bloody spur cannot provoke him on,
That sometimes anger thrusts into his hide,
Which heavily he answers with a groan,
More sharp to me than spurring to his side;
For that same groan doth put this in my mind,
My grief lies onward, and my joy behind.

#71
No longer mourn for me when I am dead
Than you shall hear the surly sullen bell
Give warning to the world that I am fled
From this vile world with vilest worms to dwell:
Nay, if you read this line, remember not
The hand that writ it, for I love you so,
That I in your sweet thoughts would be forgot,
If thinking on me then should make you woe.
O! if, I say, you look upon this verse,
When I perhaps compounded am with clay,
Do not so much as my poor name rehearse;
But let your love even with my life decay;
Lest the wise world should look into your moan,
And mock you with me after I am gone.
#104
To me, fair friend, you never can be old,
For as you were when first your eye I ey'd,
Such seems your beauty still. Three winters cold,
Have from the forests shook three summers' pride,
Three beauteous springs to yellow autumn turned,
In process of the seasons have I seen,
Three April perfumes in three hot Junes burned,
Since first I saw you fresh, which yet are green.
Ah! yet doth beauty like a dial-hand,
Steal from his figure, and no pace perceived;
So your sweet hue, which methinks still doth stand,
Hath motion, and mine eye may be deceived:
For fear of which, hear this thou age unbred:
Ere you were born was beauty's summer dead.

Select two of the sonnets above.  What universal theme is common to them?  Is this theme relevant to the modern world?  Be sure to explain, using examples from the sonnets as well as your personal experience and background knowledge.  DUE BY END OF CLASS JAN 28

Let me tell you about my book...

Describe the subject of your self-selected non-fiction book.  Why did you chose the book?  What have you read thus far that intrigues you? 

Once you post your comment, reply to a classmate's post by using the 'Reply' option at the end of the post, and suggest a monologue idea to them based on what they wrote.  Clearly, if you are one of the first to post, you will have to revisit the blog later allowing time for classmates to post.  You can reply to anyone who posts on this blog.
PLEASE NOTE THAT THERE ARE SOME BOOK SELECTIONS THAT DO NOT MEET THE CRITERIA OF 'NON-FICTION.'  ANYONE WHO SELECTED SCIENCE FICTION OR "HISTORICAL FICTION" MUST SELECT ANOTHER BOOK ASAP!  See me with any questions you might have.

One post and one reply comment due January 11 at 8 a.m. 

Narcissus and The Swimmer

Author John Cheever originally planned “The Swimmer” as a novel that retold the Greek myth – or allegory -- of Narcissus.  In ancient Greek lore, Narcissus was a hunter from the territory of Thespiae in Boeotia who was renowned for his beauty. He was the son of a river god named Cephissus and a nymph named Liriope.  He was exceptionally proud, in that he disdained those who loved him. Nemesis (the goddess of revenge) saw this and attracted Narcissus to a pool where he saw his own reflection in the water and fell in love with it, not realizing it was merely an image. Unable to leave the beauty of his reflection, Narcissus died.  (In some versions of the story, he dies of a broken heart because he cannot leave his obsession.  In others, he wastes away by the river side.  In others he commits suicide when he realizes he can never have the object of his own desire.  Narcissus is the origin of the term narcissism, a fixation with oneself.

Cheever abandoned his 150 pages of notes for the Narcissus novel adaptation because the task became too cumbersome.  Instead, he decided instead to write “The Swimmer,” a story that is considered an allegory, or at the least, a story with strong elements of allegory.

In just one paragraph (that reflects your understanding of the TEXT model), how you feel "The Swimmer" connects to allegory, and specifically, how Neddy relates to the story of Narcissus.  Don’t be afraid to take risks.  You have 10 MINUTES.

THE GOOD, GROTESQUE AND GOTHIC

These are some of the typical elements of Southern Gothic Literature - Please review them and reflect on our story.  How does Flannery O'Connor's 'The Life You Save May Be Your Own' relate to these elements?  YOU HAVE TEN MINUTES.

1. Settings most often include large, drafty old houses that have "been in the family for years." Since castles in the American landscape were practically unheard of, early Gothic fiction writers began substituting the family estate for the traditional castle.

2. An atmosphere of mystery and suspense that is enhanced by a plot which seeks to discover the secrets lying within the supernaturally charged environment.

3. A ghostly legend, an unexplainable occurrence, or a story about a horrible death or murder that took place at the family estate in question.

4. Omens, foreshadowing, and dreams usually play a large role in the mysterious air that is created within the story.

5.  Tales include highly charged emotional states like: terror, a feeling that one is on the brink of insanity, anger, agitation, an exaggerated feeling of some impending doom, and obsessive love.

6. Supernatural events: ghosts, doors that open themselves, unexplained sounds, etc. Okay, so Mockingbird isn’t exactly supernatural, but narrated through the eyes of a terrified six-year old, it might as well be. 

7.  Damsels in distress are frequent. Women who are frightened and confused, wandering around lost, or dying due to a slow and unexplainable ailment.

8. Words designed to evoke images of gloom and doom: dark, foreboding, forbidding, ghostly, etc.

9.  Romantic themes often involve the death of a man or woman in the throes of some great passion, the obsessive nature of a man or woman in love, or excessive grief one feels upon the loss of a loved one.

10. Injustice. Almost every character in Mockingbird is at least somewhat racist, including our lovable narrator from time to time.

11.  The grotesque. Atrocities.  Monsters.  Torturers.  Circus-like curiosities.  Characters that fit the mold can run the gamut.   Mrs. Dubose is a great example of a grotesque character; she’s a humorless old bigot with an unnecessarily possessive attitude toward her camellias.  Southern writer Carson McCullers used grotesque characters to illuminate universal truths about the human condition. She said, “Love, and especially love of a person who is incapable of returning or receiving it, is at the heart of my selection of grotesque figures to write about—people whose physical incapacity is a symbol of their spiritual incapacity to love or receive love— their spiritual isolation.”

12. One of the defining features of southern gothic is the cast of off-kilter characters, many of whom are "not right in the head." The genre is riddled with many broken bodies, and even more broken souls. When southern gothic authors examine the human condition, they see the potential to do harm. Morality is in question for many characters. A major theme for southern gothic writers hinges on innocence, and the innocent's place in the world—where they are often asked to act as redeemer. 

Considering Flannery O'Connor

After viewing the biography of Flannery O'Connor, America's "only Christian writer," please comment on how her life and beliefs are reflected in "The Life You Save May Be Your Own."  You have 10 minutes.

http://video.pbs.org/video/1915701265/