"The Necklace" and "The Red Convertible"

The painting "Busy Boulevard in Paris" above is from 1885, the year that "The Necklace" was published.

At this point, studying for the midterm is trickier.  We may not get to all of the stories on the syllabus.  Today we focused on Guy de Maupassant's "The Necklace."  Wednesday we are meeting at the library.  Friday we will continue on to Louise Erdrich's "The Red Convertible" and Alice Walker's "Everyday Use."

Here are a few questions about "The Necklace."

-- Why doesn't Madame Forestier tell her friend Madame Loisel that the necklace is fake?  What does that tell us about her character, the world she lives in, and the author's view of the world?

-- Discuss the marriage of Monsieur and Madame Loisel.  Feel free to compare it to other marriages we've read about so far.

-- Discuss the character of Madame Loisel. 

-- Discuss the narrator's depiction of events.  What seems to be his attitude towards society?  towards women?  towards men and women? 

-- Discuss "The Necklace" as a story about a woman told by a male narrator.

-- Is the narrator male or female?  Justify your answer.

-- Discuss the author's use of dialogue.  How does he use dialogue to tell his story?

-- Discuss the author's blend of dialogue and exposition.  Which seems to be most useful to you?

-- What do you make about the ending?  Why?

-- Why is it still worth reading "The Necklace" in 2018?

-- Here is a biography of Guy de Maupassant.  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guy_de_Maupassant  How does this biographical information help you understand "The Necklace" and its world a little more?  I find it interesting that de Maupassant is actually known for his stories set in wartime.  Could we call the society he depicts warlike?  Why?  Why not?

Let's move on to "The Red Convertible."

Above is a picture of Dr. Robert Primeaux, a Native American (Sioux) physician who served in Vietnam.

Here are links to articles about Native American veterans of the Vietnam War. 

https://www.fcpotawatomi.com/news/native-americans-in-the-military-vietnam-war-1959-75/

https://www.ptsd.va.gov/professional/treatment/cultural/psych-trauma-native-american.asp

http://www.redeyevideo.org/vietnamVets.html

How do they help you understand "The Red Convertible" and Henry's experiences as a veteran coming home after the war?  How do they compare or contrast to Louise Erdrich's story?  How do they correct any misunderstandings?

Here are a few more questions about "The Red Convertible":

-- Discuss Lyman as a character.  What do you feel that he has learned from his experience?

-- What is the plot of "The Red Convertible"? 

-- At one point, Lyman and Henry drive up to Alaska.  What purpose does this interlude serve? 

-- What does the red convertible represent?

-- Why does Lyman destroy the red convertible?

-- Does Henry intend to kill himself?  What do you make of the brothers' last time together?

-- Do the characters in this story have agency?  Or are they limited by history and environment?  Why?  Why not?

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

More Literary Fiction (The New and the Old)

Friday we began our exploration of literary fiction with Dagoberto Gilb's "Love in LA."  Here is a link to that story:  http://www.lachsa.net/ourpages/auto/2016/1/4/67385447/love%20in%20LA%20_1_.pdf

For Monday, we will return to our anthology, reading Louise Erdrich's "The Red Convertible" and Guy de Maupassant's "The Necklace."  "The Red Convertible" is a relatively new story, and "The Necklace" is a classic from the 1800s.

Let's start with some questions about "Love in LA."

Discuss the conflict between Jake and Mariana.

Discuss Jake as an antihero or trickster.  Compare him to Coyote.  Did you root for either character?

In your opinion, how does Dagoberto Gilb expect us to respond to Jake?  Or to Mariana, for that matter?  If you feel differently, why is that?

Discuss the role that language plays in "Love in LA."  We went over the first sentence in the story.  Choose a sentence that may be a little difficult or that is fancy.  How does this sentence further the story?  How does the sentence help you the reader?

Discuss the role that setting plays in "Love in LA."

Why is the story titled "Love in LA"?  What does the title mean?

What is the theme of the story?  Is it love, man vs. woman, the adventures of a trickster, or something else?  Why?

How does the third person narration affect "Love in LA"?

How does our not knowing what Jake looks like or where he comes from affect our understanding of him, our response to him, or our understanding of the story?

How does our not knowing what Mariana is thinking affect our understanding of her, our response to her, or our understanding of the story, especially the ending?

Discuss your response to the story's ending.

How does your knowledge of an author's biography help or hinder you?  How does your knowledge of Gilb's background and biography help or hinder your reading of "Love in LA"?  For more information about his biography, see the links below:
http://www.thewittliffcollections.txstate.edu/research/a-z/gilb.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dagoberto_Gilb

Let's move on to "The Red Convertible" and "The Necklace."

-- "The Red Convertible" is narrated in the first person.  Discuss the impact of this factor.  What parts of the story are we privy to?  What are we not privy to?

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

-- How is Henry affected by the Vietnam War?

-- Compare Erdrich's depiction of a veteran harmed by war with Wilson's depiction.  How does each shed light on the other?

-- Is Lyman a good brother?  Why?  Why not?

-- Compare Lyman and Troy as men who take care of their wounded brother.

-- Discuss the ending of "The Necklace."

-- Consider the role that character, plot, narration, setting, or symbolism play in "The Necklace."

-- Do you feel that the characters in "The Necklace" are round or flat?

On to Fiction, Folklore, and Film!

This is not a picture from Godfather Death, but it is an illustration of another, more famous Brothers Grimm tale: "The Pied Piper of Hamlin."  I thought you'd appreciate a colorful image.  Below is an image of a female coyote although Coyote is almost always male.

Today we moved onto fiction, folklore, and film, starting with the folk tales "Godfather Death" and "Coyote and Eagle Visit the Land of the Dead."  Friday we will be discussing the literary short story "Love in LA" by Dagoberto Gilb.

Here are a few more questions.  In April you will be handing in a paper responding to folklore, fiction, and film.  Perhaps your paper may respond to one of these questions.

-- Compare/contrast drama/theater with fiction/folklore, using examples from our readings (including "Love in LA").  Feel free to use terms from today's cluster.

-- How does each folk tale embody the concept of orality?  (See cluster and other notes.)

-- Does it matter to you that the Brothers Grimm didn't actually write "Godfather Death" but transcribed and edited the version that Marie Elisabeth Wild told?  Why?  Why not?

-- Does it matter to you that there are different versions of "Coyote and Eagle Visit the Land of the Dead"?  Why?  Why not?

-- What do you make of the father's decision to name Death as his son's godfather?  Why did he do it, passing up God and the Devil?

-- How do the Brothers Grimm depict God, the Devil, and Death?

-- Here is a link to a Norwegian story about one boy's encounter with Death: https://www.pitt.edu/~dash/type0332.html#norway  How does it compare to "Godfather Death"?  Consider the use of repetition.  How is it different?

-- If you have read other stories edited by the Brothers Grimm, how does "Godfather Death" compare?  Here are some links.  First there is the story of Snow White: https://www.pitt.edu/~dash/grimm053.html  Then there is "Hansel and Gretel":  https://www.pitt.edu/~dash/grimm015.html  The "Pied Piper of Hamlin" is actually the version by poet Robert Browning, but here is the version that the Brothers Grimm edited: http://www.pitt.edu/~dash/hameln.html#grimm245  I'll finish with "The Girl without Hands," a harsher tale: https://www.pitt.edu/~dash/grimm031.html  Compare and contrast these stories, focusing on plot, character, narration, setting, symbols, and elements of orality.

-- Here are some audio and video versions of "Godfather Death."  What do they add to your understanding of the story?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=41Vh7LHzG_E
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tzYKIzID8h0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UfjiDANIiGY

-- Now let's watch the video of "Coyote and Eagle Steal the Sun and the Moon."  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cGXRSfdObag
What does this video add to your understanding of the story we read?
Compare each story's similarities and differences (including Coyote and Eagle).

Here are a few more videos for you.  The first is "How the Coyote Got His Cunning":  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5d2Zh318kRY
Next is a version of a South American folktale about Coyote: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ay8_yzutPzM  I know you don't know Navajo, but here is a version of a Coyote story in Navajo with English subtitles: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K2XO4ioxjII  You might enjoy seeing a live storyteller tell a tale:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-suM5f12huI

What do these videos add to your understanding of the story we read?  What do they add to your understanding of Coyote?  Coyote as trickster?

How do these stories compare to others from your own culture?

Enjoy!

Finishing Up Fences and Moving on to Folklore/Fiction (with new question!)

Today we watched the last scene of Fences and finished up our unit on drama/theater.  We also went over the upcoming paper.  At some point soon, I want to start talking about our midterm.  It will cover only what we go over in class.

Here are a few last questions about Fences and its last scene.

-- Why does August Wilson end his play with this last scene?  Note that it takes place eight years later and that Troy is now dead.  What does this last scene tell us about Troy and his family?  How does it conclude the play?

-- What do we learn about the other characters in this last scene?  How does this scene develop their characters?

-- Here is the last scene of Death of A Salesman: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zgm1uEKHeY4
I am also including a brief summary of the play: https://www.bard.org/study-guides/synopsis-death-of-a-salesman

How do these last scenes compare to each other?  Is August Wilson writing a response to Death of A Salesman?  If so, how is he rewriting this last scene?

-- Consider the very last bit of Fences as Gabriel blows his horn for St. Peter to open the gates for Troy.  How does this scene conclude the play?  What does it tell you about the characters?  about the world of the play?  Feel free to compare the film's version with the version you read in our anthology.

-- How has his father's death affected Cory?  Why does he not want to attend the funeral?  What do you think about Rose's compelling him to come along?  Do you think that he did the right thing?  Why?  Why not?

-- What is Raynell's role in Fences?

-- We've been discussing the characters of Fences as individuals.  Could we also consider them as archetypes?  Here is a definition of archetype: http://www.dictionary.com/browse/archetype  For more information about archetypal literary criticism, see this link: https://public.wsu.edu/~delahoyd/archetypal.crit.html  To what extent are the characters archetypes rather than individuals?  Why?  Why not?

Discuss Troy and Gabriel as brothers and as characters arising from magic realism.  For more about magic realism, see this handout from Dallas Baptist University:  http://www3.dbu.edu/mitchell/magical.htm    Why does the play begin with Troy's story and end with Gabriel's dance?

New questions:

What do you make of Cory's decision to become a soldier?  How does Wilson want us to think about it?  Why?  How does your knowledge of history affect your opinion?  How does your experience with the military?

Do you think that Cory will leave the military?  Or will he take Lyons' advice and stay in?  





Wednesday we are moving on to fiction, beginning with folklore.  Our readings are the folktales "Godfather Death" and "Coyote and Eagle Visit the Land of the Dead."  The readings are available on Blackboard, but here is a link to "Godfather Death":  http://www.pitt.edu/~dash/grimm044.html  See this link for "Coyote and Eagle":  http://www.native-languages.org/wishramstory.htm

How do these folktales handle literary elements such as plot, character, narration, setting, and symbolism?

Compare the folktales we've read to folktales in your tradition.

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:

http://en202.blogspot.com/2014/01/native-american-folktales-for-spring.html

http://en202.blogspot.com/2014/01/trickster-tales-for-2014.html

http://en202.blogspot.com/2014/01/more-trickster-for-2014.html

Act 2 of Fences

Today (Friday) we moved on to Act 2, the act when Troy's world seems to fall apart and the play progresses to its ending.  The scenes we watched were really quite compelling.

At this point, we are almost a week away from the due date of the extended response to drama.  Do you have your paper topic yet?  If not, here are some ideas.

Is Troy a narcissist?  Why?  Why not?  Be sure to define the qualities of a narcissist.  Is a narcissist a more compelling protagonist for a play?  Why?  Why not?

Is Troy a good person, a bad person, or just a human being?  Define your key terms.

What do you make of Rose's response to Troy's revelation that he and Alberta will be having a child?    Why?

Did you expect this plot twist (Rose's responses or Troy's fathering a child with Alberta)?  Why?  Why not?  How was this event foreshadowed in the play?  (In other words, did August Wilson drop any clues?)

How does the film bring this part of the play to life? 

What do you make of Troy walking out to an empty bar?  Note that in the play he and Bono talk on the porch.

We also discussed the concept of orality: https://orality.net/about/what-is-orality/  http://neamathisi.com/literacies/chapter-1-literacies-on-a-human-scale/ong-on-the-differences-between-orality-and-literacy  http://homepages.bw.edu/~rfowler/pubs/secondoral/oral.html

For information about orature, see this link: http://www.oralliterature.org/about/oralliterature.html

How does Troy's illiteracy affect him?  How does it shape his character?

How did reading and watching more of Fences affect your thoughts on the other characters?  Why?

How does Wilson's emphasis affect the play so far?

How might a female director handle Fences?

Act 1 of Fences

Above is a picture from Boston's Huntington Theater's production of Fences.  It represents our peek at theatrical versions as well as our scrutiny of Act 1.

Here is the link to the scene from the recent Broadway version of Fences: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7v4l36NTrsA

I'm also including the Broadway version of Troy and Cory's confrontation:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UBTXS42dj40

You may want to compare this scene with James Earl Jones and Courtney B. Vance's interpretation back in 1987:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K_kGtQmvrVI&t=2s

How do these stage versions compare to the film versions?  What appear to be the characteristics of stage and film?

How does each group of actors handle the scene?

How do the camera angles, shot, and settings help you understand the play more?  How do they distract you?

Which version is truer to August Wilson's ideas for the play?  Why?

Is Troy a good person, a bad person, or just a human being?  Why?  Explain your criteria.

Now that you've seen more of Troy, how would you describe him as a character?

Now that we've seen almost all of the key characters in the play, how does Troy seem to relate to them?  How do they relate to Troy?  Which part does each character play in the drama? Which purpose does each character serve?

How do the characters' actions generate Fences' plot?

How do plot and setting affect the characters?

How would you describe Troy and Rose's marriage?

Which do you prefer: plays on a stage, plays on the page, or film versions of plays?  Why?

Why does Gabriel want to live at Miss Pearl's?

What purpose does his poetic language perform?

Which is more important to you: plot or character?  Why?

On to Act 2!  

How does Act 1 prepare you for Act 2?

How does Act 2 build on Act 1?

Act 2 contains several jumps in time.  Is this a flaw in the play?  Is it a strength?  Why?  Why not?

Moving On To Fences

We've now moved on to August Wilson's Fences.  We watched the first few scenes of the recent film version, and the reading for Monday is Act 1.

We also went over the assignment sheet for the first paper, which reminds me that I'd like to ask you some final questions about A Doll's House.  However, first, here are some links to some theories of development.  You may also apply them to Fences.

First is Kohlberg's theory of moral development: http://pegasus.cc.ucf.edu/~ncoverst/Kohlberg%27s%20Stages%20of%20Moral%20Development.htm

Next is Gilligan's theory: https://www.stolaf.edu/people/huff/classes/handbook/Gilligan.html

I will conclude with Erikson's theory.  It was popular in the 1960s and 1970s.  Not sure about now: https://peoplesadvocacycouncil.wordpress.com/2017/03/16/erik-ericksons-8-stages-of-development/

I would like you to choose one of these theories and apply them to one or more of the characters in either A Doll's House or Fences.  How do these theories help you understand them more fully?  How do they help you understand the play more fully?

Did you know that, originally, in Germany, A Doll's House had a "happy" ending where Nora did not leave her husband and children?  What do you make of that ending?  Why?

Let's move on to Fences.

-- August Wilson prefaces his play with a discussion of its historical context.  How does that preface help you understand his play more fully?  What do you think that he wants you to know?

-- How does the film version help you understand the play more fully?  What do you learn about the city of Pittsburgh?  about the 1950s?  about Troy's world?  about Troy?

-- How would you describe Troy as a character?

-- How does Troy relate to his friends and family?

-- How would you describe Troy and Rose's marriage?  Why?

-- What does baseball represent for Troy?  Why?

-- How does your knowledge of African-American history and culture help you understand Fences?

-- How does your knowledge of history help you understand Fences?

-- How would you describe Rose as a character?

-- August Wilson is known for writing character-driven plays.  Discover evidence of this quality in Fences.

-- How does Denzel Washington and Viola Davis' acting bring the play to life?  (Mention not only their delivery of their lines but also their body language, movement, and facial expressions.)

-- Here is a clip from the Broadway production of Fences.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7v4l36NTrsA&t=1s  Troy (Denzel Washington) is telling the story of his encounter with Death.  We saw the film version of this scene.  Compare and contrast both versions.  Consider the impact of the play's reliance on a stage set versus the film's seemingly more realistic setting.

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