Creative Blast, September 8

Read the quote below:

“And by the way, everything in life is writable about if you have the outgoing guts to do it, and the imagination to improvise. The worst enemy to creativity is self-doubt.” 
― Sylvia Plath, The Unabridged Journals of Sylvia Plath

Interpret this quote.  What does it mean?

Apply it to your own experiences as a writer.  When you are asked to write about yourself, does it relate to the way you feel?

Go the extra step:  What is the most difficult thing about evaluating another student's writing?


You may post as "Anonymous" but be sure to start your response with your own name.

Romeo and Juliet - what does it mean?

Consider this a Socratic Seminar online.  You may respond to other student's ideas.  In fact, I would like you to post your answers first, then express agreement or disagreement at least once with another classmate, making certain that you clearly state your reasons for agreement or disagreement.  Any abuse of this blog will result in a grade of zero.  That means no fooling around.

Read the text below.  THE ORIGINAL VERSION is shown first.  The same passage, in more MODERN VERSION follows (in a different font) to help you understand the conversation.  After reading, answer the questions in a post.  In the event that a post is not possible, please email your response to me.


Lady Capulet 
Enough of this; I pray thee, hold thy peace.
Nurse
Yes, madam: yet I cannot choose but laugh,
To think it should leave crying and say 'Ay.'
And yet, I warrant, it had upon its brow
A bump as big as a young cockerel's stone;
A parlous knock; and it cried bitterly:
'Yea,' quoth my husband,'fall'st upon thy face?
Thou wilt fall backward when thou comest to age;
Wilt thou not, Jule?' it stinted and said 'Ay.'
Juliet
And stint thou too, I pray thee, nurse, say I.
Nurse 
Peace, I have done. God mark thee to his grace!
Thou wast the prettiest babe that e'er I nursed:
An I might live to see thee married once,
I have my wish.
Lady Capulet 
Marry, that 'marry' is the very theme
I came to talk of. Tell me, daughter Juliet,
How stands your disposition to be married?
Juliet It is an honour that I dream not of.
Nurse An honour! were not I thine only nurse,
I would say thou hadst suck'd wisdom from thy teat.
Lady Capulet
Well, think of marriage now; younger than you,
Here in Verona, ladies of esteem,
Are made already mothers: by my count,
I was your mother much upon these years
That you are now a maid. Thus then in brief:
The valiant Paris seeks you for his love.
Nurse
A man, young lady! lady, such a man
As all the world--why, he's a man of wax.
Lady Capulet 
Verona's summer hath not such a flower.
Nurse 
Nay, he's a flower; in faith, a very flower.
Lady Capulet
What say you? can you love the gentleman?
This night you shall behold him at our feast;
Read o'er the volume of young Paris' face,
And find delight writ there with beauty's pen;
Examine every married lineament,
And see how one another lends content
And what obscured in this fair volume lies
Find written in the margent of his eyes.
This precious book of love, this unbound lover,
To beautify him, only lacks a cover:
The fish lives in the sea, and 'tis much pride
For fair without the fair within to hide:
That book in many's eyes doth share the glory,
That in gold clasps locks in the golden story;
So shall you share all that he doth possess,
By having him, making yourself no less.
Nurse
No less! nay, bigger; women grow by men.
Lady Capulet
Speak briefly, can you like of Paris' love?
Juliet 
I'll look to like, if looking liking move:
But no more deep will I endart mine eye
Than your consent gives strength to make it fly.

------------------------------------------------
LADY CAPULET

Enough of this. Please be quiet.

NURSE

Yes ,madam. But I can’t help laughing to think that the baby stopped crying and said, “Yes.” I swear, she had a bump on her forehead as big as a rooster’s testicle. It was a painful bruise, and she was crying bitterly. “Yes,” said my husband, “Did you fall on your face? You’ll fall backward when you grow up, won’t you, Jule?” And she stopped crying and said, “Yes.”

JULIET

Now you stop too, Nurse, please.

NURSE

Peace. I’m done talking. May God choose you to receive his grace. You were the prettiest baby I ever nursed. If I live to see you get married someday, all my wishes will come true.

 LADY CAPULET

Well, marriage is exactly what we have to discuss. Tell me, my daughter Juliet, what is your attitude about getting married?

JULIET

It is an honor that I do not dream of.

NURSE

“An honor?” If I weren’t your only nurse, I’d say you had sucked wisdom from the breast that fed you.

LADY CAPULET

Well, start thinking about marriage now. Here in Verona there are girls younger than you—girls from noble families—who have already become mothers. By my count, I was already your mother at just about your age, while you remain a virgin. Well then, I’ll say this quickly: the valiant Paris wants you as his bride.

NURSE

What a man, young lady. He’s as great a man as any in the whole world. He’s as perfect as if he were sculpted from wax.

LADY CAPULET

Summertime in Verona has no flower as fine as him.

NURSE

No, he’s a fine flower, truly, a flower.

LADY CAPULET

(to JULIET) What do you say? Can you love this gentleman? Tonight you’ll see him at our feast. Study Paris’s face and find pleasure in his beauty. Examine every line of his features and see how they work together to make him handsome. If you are confused, just look into his eyes. This man is single, and he lacks only a bride to make him perfect and complete. As is right, fish live in the sea, and it’s wrong for a beauty like you to hide from a handsome man like him. Many people think he’s handsome, and whoever becomes his bride will be just as admired. You would share all that he possesses, and by having him, you would lose nothing.

NURSE

Lose nothing? In fact, you’d get bigger. Men make women bigger by getting them pregnant.

LADY CAPULET

(to JULIET) Give us a quick answer. Can you accept Paris’s love?

JULIET

I’ll look at him and try to like him, at least if what I see is likable. But I won’t let myself fall for him any more than your permission allows.

Describe the relationships between the 3 women (Juliet and the Nurse; Juliet and her mother; the nurse and the mother).  What do you find surprising or unusual? 

Who's the Bully?

Piggy brings order and civilization to the island.  It is his idea to have a meeting, use the conch to avoid chaos, and to worry about the littluns.  But he is not treated kindly by the other boys.  Give three examples of how Ralph and Jack treat him unfairly, then determine whether or not you consider their actions as bullying.  You have 15 minutes to respond.  Please start with your name on the top of the post. 

What are we willing to do for love?

Would you, as King, leave your throne to marry a woman who doesn't meet the royal expectations of your country?

Would you give up a glamorous career as a film star, to join your soul mate in a world that is so insulated, no one remembers one movie you've done?

Would you give up your parents, friends and siblings to go off with someone they consider undesirable?

If you had to choose between your parents and a love interest, who would win?

What kinds of sacrifices are reasonable when it comes to love?  Is there a limit on what you are willing to give up for your true love?

Share your thoughts before Thursday, February 27, 12 noon.

Which are you?

Civilization is made up of leaders, followers, inventors and peacemakers.  Which are you?  Give examples of the qualities you have that make you a leader, follower, inventor or peacemaker.  Four to five sentences.

Never give all the heart

Consider the poem below.  What is the author's attitude toward romantic love?  Do you agree with his position?  Please post before Wednesday, 12 noon.

Never give all the heart

  by W. B. Yeats

Never give all the heart, for love
Will hardly seem worth thinking of
To passionate women if it seem
Certain, and they never dream
That it fades out from kiss to kiss;
For everything that's lovely is
But a brief, dreamy, kind delight.
O never give the heart outright,
For they, for all smooth lips can say,
Have given their hearts up to the play.
And who could play it well enough
If deaf and dumb and blind with love?
He that made this knows all the cost,
For he gave all his heart and lost.

Where are you going, where is the theme?

Consider the elements of Southern Gothic Literature:
* Setting is eerie, remote, sometimes drafty old family estate;
* Atmosphere is mysterious, suspenseful;
* There is a ghostly legend, an unexplained occurrence, OR a horrible death or tragedy that took place;
* Omens, foreshadowing, dreams, that add to the mystery;
* Emotions run high, particularly terror, anxiety, anger, agitation, a feeling of doom, or obsessive love;
* Supernatural events (sometimes masqueraded as natural events -- including weather and natural disasters);

* Damsel in distress, women who are frightened, threatened or confused; women who are ailing, dying of a mysterious disease;
* Words (diction) that evoke gloom and doom, foreboding, forbidding, ghostly imagery;
* Romanic themes of that involve the death of a man or woman who are madly in love; obsessive love, excessive grief upon the loss of a loved one;
* Injustice.

How do Mockingbird and "Where are you going..." measure up as Gothic works?  Is one work more "gothic" than the other?  Explain your answer.  Due in class today.