Getting Ready for the Second Half of the Semester

Above are some pictures from the 1979 version of Nosferatu.  Werner Herzog was the director.  Klaus Kinski played Nosferatu...Count Dracula.  Isabelle Adjani played Lucy Harker, and Bruno Ganz played Jonathan Harker.  The bottom image is of Harker as a vampire after his wife's death.

The homework for next week is to read chapter 7 and the following stories: James Joyce's "Araby," Edgar Allan Poe's "The Cask of Amontillado," Ha Jin's "Saboteur," Michael Oppenheim's "The Paring Knife," and Catfish McDaris' "The Magic Rabbit."  All of the stories but "The Magic Rabbit" are in our book.  "The Magic Rabbit" is on Blackboard.

Also, please send me your journals or the links to your journals.  I am taking up the collection for midterm.

The questions below will count for the second half of the semester.

Compare and contrast Nosferatu with other vampire movies or horror movies that you've seen.

What does Nosferatu add to your understanding of film history?

The Guardian's Film Blog posted a list of the top ten silent films.  What does this list tell you about silent film?  What does it tell you about Nosferatu?
https://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2013/nov/22/top-10-silent-movies-films
Nosferatu is the 7th best horror movie of all time:  https://www.theguardian.com/film/2010/oct/22/nosferatu-symphony-horror-murnau

Choose one of the literary elements (plot, character, point of view, theme)  that we have discussed so far and apply it to Nosferatu.

Which symbols do you see in Nosferatu?  How do they help you understand this film better?

 Pamela Hutchinson explains why it's okay to giggle at silent movies.  How does her explanation help you understand Nosferatu better?  https://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2015/nov/16/make-em-laugh-why-its-ok-to-giggle-at-silent-movies

Take a look at these articles about Murnau and his career.  How do they help you understand Nosferatu more fully?
http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/371/fw-murnau-his-films-and-their-influence-on-german-expressionism
http://gaycitynews.nyc/gcn_337/murnauthemaster.html

On to the stories!

Choose one of the stories we are reading this week.  Which symbols do you see in it?  How do they make the story more rich and meaningful?

What do you make of the ending of "Saboteur"?  Why does the professor do what he does?

Compare and contrast flash fiction with full-length fiction.

What do you make of the ending of "The Cask of Amontillado"?  Why does the narrator do what he does?  Why does he tell us this story?

What do you make of the protagonist's epiphany in "Araby"?  How has the story prepared us for this moment?

Is Quick in "The Magic Rabbit" a good person?  Why?  Why not?

The Last Class Before the Midterm

The homework for next week is to study for the midterm.  Take a look at the midterm guide on this blog as well as at the sample midterm.  We are following the same format for this test.  Let me know if you have questions.

I also handed out copies of the assignment sheet for the paper on fiction.  Perhaps your paper will be on one of these questions.

We watched part of Bill Moyers' (relatively) recent interview with Sherman Alexie:  https://montgomerycollege.idm.oclc.org/login?url=http://fod.infobase.com/PortalPlaylists.aspx?wID=16705&xtid=53456  The segments we watched were "Living In Between Cultures," "Alien in Your Birthplace," "Tribalism," and "Alexie Reads 'Tribal Music.'"

Compare and contrast this interview with Moyers' earlier interview with Louise Erdrich and Michael Dorris.  What light do these interviews shed on Native American culture and writing for you?  What light do they shed on Erdrich and Alexie's work?  Consider that Alexie is almost twenty years younger than Erdrich, so he is from a different generation.

How does Alexie depict the reservation in his two stories?  Consider how Erdrich depicts it in "The Red Convertible."

Why does the narrator in "The Lone Ranger..." leave the reservation?

Why does "The Lone Ranger..." jump around in time?  How does that affect you as a reader?

What do you make of the ending of "What It Means..."?  of "The Lone Ranger..."?

How does Alexie's "black and white" thinking affect the stories of his that we've read?

Apply the concepts of "living in between cultures," "alien in your birthplace," and "tribalism" to "Everyday Use" and/or "The House on Mango Street."  Consider that these stories are not about Native Americans.

Choose one story that we've read so far.  Which theme does it appear to illustrate?

Choose one story that we've read so far.  Discuss the impact of the narration whether it is first person or third person, whether it is naive, reliable, or unreliable, whether it is omniscient, limited, or objective.  If it is in third person, is there a center of consciousness?

Choose one story that is in first person and another story that is in third person.  Consider the pros and cons of each method.  How does each method shed light on the story's events and on character?  How does each method allow the writer to develop his/her theme?  How does each method affect you as a reader?

After our discussion, do you believe that the mother in "Everyday Use" is a reliable narrator?  Why?  Why not?

How did it help you to look at Dee and Maggie's perspective as well?

Midterm Guide for ENGL 190

This morning I'd like to start posting the study guide.  We are covering *only* what we cover in class.  The format that we follow will be the format of the sample midterm from 2014.  The questions will be different as we have covered different topics in class.

Drama:
A Doll's House (plus film version starring Anthony Hopkins and Claire Bloom, version starring Jane Fonda, and stage version starring Hattie Morahan)
Fences (plus trailers of versions starring Denzel Washington and Viola Davis as well as version starring James Earl Jones)

terms: drama vs. theater; central idea; stage directions; dialogue; narrative arc; well-made play; plot vs. character; Century cycle; trickster; orality

Fiction:
"Coyote and Eagle Visit the Land of the Dead" -- Wishram
"The Red Convertible" by Louise Erdrich (plus video with her and her husband)
"Love in LA" by Dagoberto Gilb (flash fiction--under 1,000 words)
"Today's Demon: Magic" by Lynda Barry (graphic fiction)
"A Good Man Is Hard to Find" by Flannery O'Connor
"The House on Mango Street" by Sandra Cisneros
"Everyday Use" by Alice Walker
"This is What It Means to Say Phoenix, Arizona" by Sherman Alexie (plus film clip)
"The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven" by Sherman Alexie (plus clips from interview)

terms: plot (narrative arc; flashback; foreshadowing; epiphany; exposition)
character (round/flat; major/minor; stock character; protagonist; antagonist; motivation)
setting
narration/point of view (1st person: reliable, unreliable, or naive; 3rd person: omniscient, objective, or limited)
theme
folktale
orality (in medias res; flat characters; performative; episodic)
trickster

More Fiction!

The period leading up to midterms is always a challenging time, so I appreciate those of you who attended class on Wednesday night.  The midterm and final covers only what we discussed in class.

The homework for next Wednesday is to read chapter 6 (except for "A Rose for Emily") as well as Tim O'Brien's "The Things They Carried" and the two stories by Sherman Alexie ("What It Means to Say Phoenix, Arizona" and "The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven").  Our midterm will be October 26.  Please see the folder midterm/final for more information, including sample midterms.

Here are a few questions for your journals.

In class, we watched segments from the following video on Louise Erdrich and her husband Michael Dorris: https://montgomerycollege.idm.oclc.org/login?url=http://fod.infobase.com/PortalPlaylists.aspx?wID=16705&xtid=4949  (You may need to log in to watch this video, "Searching for a Native American Identity.")  The segments we watched were "Political Situation," "Victor-Oppressor Relationship," "Dark Humor," "Reservation as Cultural Preservation," and "Learning from Indian Culture."  What did the video teach you about Native American culture?  about Louise Erdrich?  How did it shed light on "The Red Convertible"?  How did it prepare you to read Sherman Alexie's stories--granted that Alexie is from a different generation and a different people?

Compare Erdrich and O'Brien's writing about the Vietnam War.  How does O'Brien avoid making his characters stock characters?  Or does he?

Discuss Erdrich and O'Brien depict war.  Feel free to discuss your own experience of being a soldier or the experiences of family members and friends who have served.

Choose one of the stories we've read so far.  What role does point of view play in the story?  What role does narration play.

Choose one of the stories we've read so far.  What role does plot play?  When does the story begin?  Does it contain flashbacks or foreshadowing?  How much exposition is present to give the reader background information?  How much dialogue is present?  How does the story end?  Are you satisfied?  Why?  Why not?

Chose one of the stories we've read so far.  What role does character play?  Why?

Choose one of the characters we've encountered so far.  Is he/she flat?  round?  Is he/she a protagonist?  an antagonist?  Discuss his/her motivations.  Is he/she believable?  Why?  Why not?  Could he/she be considered a stock character?  Why?

Compare a story narrated in first person with one narrated in third person.  How does each narration help you understand the story?  What do you know?  What do you not know?

Discuss Victor's relationship with his father.  What do you make of his reaction to his father's death?

Discuss Victor's relationship with Thomas.  What do you make of it?  Should Thomas have helped Victor out?  What do you make of Thomas' final request?

How does Sherman Alexie depict Native Americans' lives, both on and off the reservation?

Why do you think that Victor's father leaves the reservation?

Discuss the humor in Sherman Alexie's stories.

Discuss Thomas as a character.

Choose one story we've read so far.  How does the author depict men?  What does this tell us about the world he/she depicts?  about the author's world view?  How do these men interact with women?  How do they interact with each other?

Choose one story we've read so far.  How does the author depict women?  What does this tell us about the world he/she depicts?  about the author's world view?  How do these women interact with men?  How do they interact with each other?

Nothing But Fiction and Folktales

Last night we moved on from drama to fiction and folktales.  This week coming up we will focus on literary fiction, namely "The Red Convertible," "Love in LA," and "Today's Demon: Magic."  The last story is also graphic fiction.

However, I want to add a few questions about our folktales.

Here is a handout on the trickster from Encyclopedia Britannica:  https://www.britannica.com/art/trickster-tale
Joseph Campbell speaks on the trickster:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JM10AvJ3bsM

How do these links help you understand "Godfather Death," "Coyote and Eagle Visit the Land of the Dead," and even Trickster Troy from Fences?

Here are some videos of stories about Coyote.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nCjooh6oUSA
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jlCf4et66r8
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f0qGxVx8OpY
What do they tell you about him?  about storytelling?  about folktales?  Do they seem to be authentic?  Why?  Why not?

Here is a story about Raven, another trickster.  Compare Raven as a trickster to Coyote:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=un3QcybRFc0

Now let's move onto the literary fiction.

Is Henry's death an accident?  Or is it suicide?  Justify your answer.

How does Lyman change over the course of "The Red Convertible"?

Discuss Lyman as a narrator.  Is he reliable?  Is he naive?  Why?  Why not?

What are Lyman's strengths and weaknesses as a narrator?  How might "The Red Convertible" appear from Henry's point of view, an omniscient or limited 

third person narrator's point of view, or the point of view of the others on the reservation?  What does Lyman know that these people do not?  What does he not know that makes the story better?

Does Lyman seem to be narrating events that happened in the distant past?  Or the recent past?  Why?

What does the story of Henry and Lyman's road trip add to the story?  Why?

How does "The Red Convertible" make use of foreshadowing?  of epiphany?

"Love in LA" is a very short story.  Is this a good thing?  Or a bad thing?  Why?

Do Jake and Mariana change as characters?  Why?  Why not?

"Love in LA" is narrated by a third person narrator with limited omniscience.  How does that affect what we understand of this story?  How would this story be different if Jake or Mariana narrated it?

Describe Jake as a character.

Does he get away in the end?  Why?  Why not?

What do the graphic elements add to "Today's Demon: Magic"?  What does the text add?

Why does the narrator push her friend Ev away?

How do you think that Ev would react to this story?  Why?

What are the narrator's strengths and weaknesses as a narrator?  How might "Today's Demon: Magic" appear from another perspective?

-- If we consider "Love in LA," "The Red Convertible," and possibly "Today's Demon: Magic" to be literary fiction, what are the characteristics of this category?  Why might "Today's Demon: Magic" not fit?

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