Thursday, October 30, 2014

Questions After Mike Maggio






 Good morning :)

First of all, I want to pass on Mike Maggio's praise for you.  He thought that you were a lively, engaged group of students!  Here is a link to his website so that you may stay up to date on his work:

http://mikemaggio.net/

He is often on Radio Fairfax, and he gives quite a few readings in this area.

Next I'm glad that we were able to discuss Nosferatu *after* Mike's talk.  I'm sorry that a couple of you decided to miss the rest of the class.  On the other hand, thank you, Igor et al, for staying until the bitter end!

Here are the readings for next week: "This Is What It Means To Say Phoenix Arizona" by  Sherman Alexie as well as “The Cask of Amontillado" by Edgar Allen Poe and "Saboteur" by Ha Jin.  Note that this reading is different from what's on the schedule *and* what I said in class.  We will also begin poetry in this class so that we will be ready to discuss form on Nov. 12 when Dean Redmond will be visiting.

Now the questions....

-- Why is it worth reading an older story like "The Cask of Amontillado"?

-- Compare the narrator's cruelty in "The Cask" with Mr. Chiu's cruelty in "Saboteur"?

-- Many of our stories have been realistic.  Is this a strength or a weakness?  Why?

-- What role does setting play in the stories we are to read for 11/5?  

-- What role does plot play?  Conflict?

-- What role does character play?

-- What role does narrative play?  Consider the difference between third person ("Saboteur" and "Phoenix Arizona") and first person ("The Cask").

-- How does "Saboteur" fit in with the other stories we've read?  Note that Ha Jin grew up speaking Chinese but wrote "Saboteur" in English.

-- How does "The Cask" fit in with the other, newer stories we've read?  With Nosferatu?

-- Discuss the role of humor in "Phoenix Arizona."

-- Discuss the role of relationships in the stories we've read.

-- Compare "Phoenix Arizona" with "The Red Convertible."  Note that Victor and Thomas are a little older than Lyman and Henry.

-- Discuss the use of flashback in "Phoenix Arizona."

-- Why do you think that Alexie chose this title for his story?

-- How did Mike Maggio help you understand fiction more fully?

-- How did Mike Maggio help you understand what it is like to write fiction (and poetry)?

-- Mike Maggio referred to Gogol's "The Nose" as an influence for The Wizard and the White House.  Which stories might influence you?  Why?

-- What would you like to write about for the paper on fiction?  Why?

I'm looking forward to seeing what you have to say!
Posted by at No comments:

Wednesday, October 22, 2014

Questions After Nosferatu






Here is a link to the entire film:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KO5mMVeFZEQ

Also, I want to send you a schedule of our guests:

October 29 -- SB 205 -- Starting at 7 pm, Mike Maggio will speak to us on fiction and satire.  He may be reading to us from his novel, The Wizard and the White House.  He sent us this note:  "I’m also wondering if maybe your students would like to listen to the Dennis Price Show on Tuesday night at 8 (the Tuesday before I come). Dennis will be interviewing me and we’ll be talking about the book and about publishing with the publisher of Little Feather Books.

It can be streamed on the internet at http://www.fcac.org/radio-fairfax  and click on Stream Radio Fairfax."

November 12 -- Dean Rodney Redmond will be here at 6:30 pm to observe my teaching.

November 19 -- We will be traveling to Science Center 152 to attend a performance by poet Dr. Michael Anthony Ingram.  This performance will begin at 7 pm.

Both Mr. Maggio and Dr. Ingram will be on our final, and you may respond to issues that they raise in your papers on fiction and poetry respectively.

Finally, here are the readings for next week.  Please read Poe's "The Cask of Amontillado," Alexie's "This is What It Means to Say Phoenix Arizona," and Ha Jin's "Saboteur."

Here are a few questions to start off your journal:

-- What was it like for you to watch a nearly one hundred-year-old silent movie like Nosferatu?

-- Have you ever seen a silent movie before?  If so, what was it like?

-- Compare Nosferatu to other vampire movies or TV shows you've seen.

-- Compare Nosferatu to other horror movies or TV shows that you've seen.

-- What is it like to watch Nosferatu in the era of Ebola?

-- How does Nosferatu show what it was like to be German after WWI?

-- What did you make of Ellen's sacrifice at the end?  Why?  (Note, in Werner Herzog's 1979 remake, her sacrifice is for naught as Hutter has become a vampire.)

-- Compare/contrast Hutter and Ellen's response to Count Orlok/Nosferatu.

-- Discuss the visual techniques (lighting, camera angles, iris, shadows, montages) used in Nosferatu.

-- Discuss the special effects used in Nosferatu.  This may include the count's appearance.

-- Is Nosferatu natural or unnatural?  Why?  (Consider the scenes where Prof. Bulwer is showing his students the carnivorous plants that he compares to a vampire.)

-- Discuss the impact of the soundtrack.

-- Discuss the impact of the exposition/text slides.

-- Who is the narrator?

-- What role does Knock play in Nosferatu?

-- Why do we (or why do many people) love horror?

-- Compare and contrast Nosferatu and "The Cask of Amontillado" as horror stories.

-- How do you respond to the narrator in "The Cask of Amontillado"?

-- How do you respond to the professor in "Saboteur"?  Why does he do what he does?

-- What part does humor play in "This is What It Means..."?

-- Discuss Thomas and Victor's relationship in this story.  Why does Thomas accompany Victor?


Posted by at 1 comment:

Thursday, October 16, 2014

Questions After 10/15 in ENGL 190






I want to thank everyone for a thorough review session.  If you have questions between now and Wednesday, please let me know.  I will be on email!

Here are a few more questions for your journals.  I am also sending you a copy of our next assignment.  We will go over it on the 29th, before Mike Maggio arrives for his lecture on Fiction and Satire.

-- Expand on one of the points made in class discussion last night.  

-- Discuss Dee in "Everyday Use" and/or Arnold Friend in "Where Are You Going..." as antagonists.

-- What role does Maggie play in "Everyday Use"?  Why?

-- Do you think that Dee learns from the events of "Everyday Use"?  Why?  Why not?

-- Is the narrator fair to her daughter(s)?  Why?  Why not?

-- Discuss the ending of "Today's Demon: Magic."

-- How does Lynda Barry's artwork contribute to her story?

-- How does her text contribute to the story?

-- We haven't discussed setting much.  Which role does setting (time/place) play in a short story of your choice?  We don't really know where "Today's Demon: Magic" was set although we know when it was set.  How does this make a difference in your reading of the story?

-- How does our current understanding of brain development affect the way that we look at stories like "The House on Mango Street," "The Red Convertible," "Today's Demon: Magic," or "Everyday Use"?  How does our understanding of brain development get in our way of reading these stories?

-- How would you adapt one of our short stories to the stage?

-- What would a novel or short story based on Fences or A Doll House add to our understanding of the characters and their situations?

-- Here is a video of a storyteller telling "Coyote and Eagle Visit the Land of the Dead":  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f0qGxVx8OpY

What does this video add to our understanding of the story and of oral culture?

-- What do folktales add to ENGL 190?

-- What does graphic fiction add?

-- What does literary fiction add?



Posted by at No comments:

Monday, October 13, 2014

Study Guide, Pt. 2


The picture above is from the 2009 production of Fences at Boston's Huntington Theater.  Kenny Leon directed this production just as he directed the 2010 Broadway production with Denzel Washington and Viola Davis.

And now for terminology....

drama vs. theater (compare with fiction or film)
act, scene
plot (conflict; the narrative arc-- inciting action, rising action, climax, falling action, resolution/denouement; false closure, flashback, foreshadowing)
character (contrast; impact of action; impact of dialogue; impact of stage directions)
setting (place, time,
exposition
Aristotle's unities of drama (action, place, time)
plot-centered vs. character-centered
stage directions
orality -- note that Troy is illiterate
well-made play
coincidence



These are relevant terms for fiction:
types of stories: literary fiction, genre fiction, folktale, graphic fiction (panel), flash fiction
differences between drama/theater and fiction as well as literary fiction and folktale
note literary fiction's relationship to society and individuality
again orality
plot: narrative arc (initial incident etc.), false closure, foreshadowing, flashback, exposition, description, dialogue, epiphany
character: flat vs. round, major vs. minor, protagonist, antagonist, anti-hero, showing vs. telling -- ways to develop character
point of view: 1st person (reliable, unreliable, naive), 2nd person, 3rd person (omniscient, objective, center of consciousness, limited omniscience)
graphic fiction:  Note difference between manga and anime.  Note that graphic fiction is available in many languages, even simply visual like Blood Song, a novel set in Vietnam.

"Today's Demon: Magic" is actually part of a collection of graphic fiction by Lynda Barry.  Another demon was dancing.



How does "Today's Demon: Magic" compare to other graphic fiction you've read?  How does it compare to other literary fiction you've read?





Posted by at No comments:

Study Guide for Midterm, Pt. 1



The readings that will be fair game for the midterm include
Drama:
A Doll House
Fences

Fiction:
"Love in L.A."
"Girl"
"Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?"
"Today's Demon: Magic"
excerpt from Persepolis
"The House on Mango Street" (excerpt)
"Everyday Use"

 For plays, know the names of main/key characters (Nora, Torvald or Helmer, Dr. Rank, Kristine, Krogstad in A Doll House; Troy Maxson, Rose, Cory, Bono, Raynell, Gabriel, and Lyons in Fences).  Know the authors' names (Henrik Ibsen, August Wilson) and the general era of the play (setting and its publication).  Know the names of major actors (Claire Bloom, Anthony Hopkins, Denzel Washington, Viola Davis, James Earl Jones).

 For fiction, know the names of main/key characters, authors' names, general time frame and setting, and point of view/narration.

Although we did not discuss our folklore readings, Coyote and Raven may appear on the midterm as we watched relevant videos.  I may ask about names of Native American nations in the multiple choice.

The following videos will be fair game for the midterm:
On A Doll House:
Our DVD starring Claire Bloom and Anthony Hopkins

These refer to the recent British production starring Hattie Morahan.  (Apologies about the name!)






On Fences:
Here are links to the scenes we watched:



Here are the videos on baseball that we saw in class:

And here is the link to the video of Denzel Washington and Viola Davis discussing their production of Fences:
On Folklore and the Trickster:


On "Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?"

 One question I may ask is this: does fiction encourage empathy?  Why?  Why not?







Posted by at 3 comments:

Wednesday, October 8, 2014

Questions after 10/8 in ENGL 190





Above is Bill Reid's sculpture of Raven releasing humans from a cockle shell.  A Haida artist, Reid was also involved in preserving artwork from this culture and participating in environmental activism.

Good evening :)

Next week will be a catch-up week so that we will have time to add to our collection of stories for the midterm and do more review.  For the next class, read Lynda Barry's "Today's Demon: Magic" in ch. 5 and Alice Walker's "Everyday Use" and Sandra Cisneros' "The House on Mango Street" in ch. 6.

I will also hand out copies of our next essay assignment, the extended response to fiction.

Finally, the study guides are going up starting tonight.

Here are a few questions for your journal.  By the 22nd, you should have six entries.  Each entry should answer two to five questions.

-- Continue to compare and contrast "Girl" and "Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?," focusing on plot, character, point of view, or theme.  Feel free to use terminology.  Consider what is written on the page and what is implied.  Consider that both are literary fiction.

-- Continue to compare and contrast folklore and literary fiction.

-- If Arnold Friend is indeed the Devil, how does this affect your reading of "Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been"?

-- If he is simply a not-so-young man who preys on teenage girls, how does this affect your reading of "Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?"

-- Argue for or against more "experimental" fiction like "Girl."  

-- Argue for or against more conventional fiction like "Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?"

-- What role does the text in "Today's Demon: Magic" play?  What role do the images play?  Why

-- If you regularly read graphic fiction (or have read some examples), where does "Today's Demon: Magic" seem to fit in?  Why?

-- Compare and contrast "Today's Demon: Magic" with either "Girl" or "Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?," focusing on plot, character, point of view or theme.  What do both stories teach us about growing up female?

-- Do you believe the narrator in "Everyday Use"?  Why?  Why not?

-- Compare and contrast the stories told in first person with the other stories in second and third.  Which perspectives seem to be more satisfying?  Which seem to be more natural?  Why?

-- What role does narration play in the stories that we've read so far?  Consider Cisneros' use of a child as a narrator.

-- Discuss the family dynamics in "Everyday Use" and/or "The House on Mango Street."  Consider how much "Everyday Use"'s narrator seems to dislike Dee.  

-- How would the family in "Everyday Use" be different if the father were alive?

-- Choose a minor character in one of our short stories.  What does this character add to the short story?

-- How is genre useful when studying literature?  How is it not useful?

I'm looking forward to seeing what you have to say!

Dr. Szlyk


Posted by at No comments:

Thursday, October 2, 2014

Questions After 10/1 in ENGL 190




Good morning :)

I wish that we had a little more time to discuss drama and read more plays, but it's now time to move on to fiction.  However, your papers that are due on the 7th of October (or later, if we've talked) will give me the opportunity to return to this wonderful genre and some of the topics (Gabriel, the impact of a female playwright or director) we did not touch on.  

And, yes, here are links to the drama/theater videos we watched last night.  The first set refer to the recent British production starring Hattie Morahan.  (Apologies about the name!)





We didn't have time to watch Janet McTeer's interview with Charlie Rose, but I thought you might like it.


And here is the link to the video of Denzel Washington and Viola Davis discussing their production of Fences:

Enough!  I am also attaching a sample midterm and the sample papers that we looked at!

For next week, let's reread the folktales at http://www.pitt.edu/~dash/grimm044.html  (Godfather Death)

http://www.native-languages.org/wishramstory.htm (Coyote and Eagle Visit the Land of the Dead)

We will read chapter 5 in our book and “Girl” (317-8) as well as “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” (481-493).

Here are a few questions for your journal:

-- How is your paper coming along?  (Feel free to post your rough draft as a journal entry.)

-- Compare fiction and drama/theater.

-- Compare folk tales and literary fiction.

-- Compare the Native American folktales that we are reading to folk tales in your own tradition.

-- Compare the American short stories to short stories in your own tradition.

-- Does length matter in short stories?  How short is too short?  How long is too long?

-- Discuss the role of plot and character in the stories we have read so far.  Are these stories plot driven?  character driven?  or setting driven?

-- Discuss the ways in which fiction encourages empathy.  How does this compare/contrast to drama/theater?

-- Discuss the ways in which fiction encourages moral behavior.  How does this compare/contrast to drama/theater?

-- Discuss Death, the godson, and his father as characters.  Consider that, in Fences, Troy wrestles with Death.

-- Discuss Coyote and Eagle as characters.  Why does Coyote go to the land of the dead?  Why does he not carry out his mission?

-- Look for other stories about Coyote.  How does he differ from story to story?

Here are entries that give background about him and Native American cultures:

I'm looking forward to seeing what you have to say!

Dr. Szlyk

Posted by at No comments:
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)