LAST CLASS TOMORROW

Tomorrow will be a writing workshop for HAMLET. Please come to class with a rough draft and we will either peer edit or I will look at your essays individually.

Dos and Don'ts for FINAL Paper on HAMLET:

1, Don't spell Hamlet or Shakespeare wrong

2, Write in present tense

3, Make sure every sentence makes sense and goes toward what you are trying to prove. ie. Don't add lines that you don't need, to fill up the page requirements.

4, Make sure you have a clear thesis statement

5, Do not hand in a first draft (I'll know)

6, Use atleast five quotes from the play.

7, Email me a first draft by Wednesday and I will look at it and give you feedback.

PAPERS DUE: FINAL DAY friday, DECEMBER 11, 2009 Via email at
lgcupolo@memphis.edu or lcupolo@gmail.com

Thanks, everyone, you were a terrific class.
Have a wonderful holiday season!!!! Remember, be safe.

Lisa Cupolo

Study QUESTIONS for HAMLET

THANKS FOR A GOOD CLASS EVERYONE. I THINK THERE WAS A LOT OF GOOD DISCUSSION GOING ON AND YOUR ANSWERS TO THE QUIZ WERE FINE.

1,For anyone who wasn't in class, below are the list of study questions that we discussed in groups in class. We only got to question 3 in the full class discussion and will continue on in that vein on Thursday.

2, ALSO, please consider the madness of Ophelia and Hamlet... Are they both mad? one or the other? PLease come to class Thursday with where you stand on the question and have proof (ie, lines from the play) to back up your decision. I'll look forward to hearing from you!

**************************************************

HERE ARE THE STUDY QUESTIONS!


USE lines from the play to support your answers:

1, READ Act I, Scene II, lines 130 – 158, Comment on its importance in the play, how it sets everything up.


2. Hamlet faces a moral dilemma. The ghost of his father urges him to gain revenge by killing Claudius. But the questions he faces are these: Is the ghost trustworthy. Is it really the ghost of his father? Is it a demon? Is there really a ghost at all? How does he answer these questions for himself?

3. At Ophelia’s grave, Hamlet declares,

I loved Ophelia; forty thousand brothers

Could not, with all their quantity of love,

Make up my sum

Popular belief is that Hamlet did indeed love Ophelia and his love for her never changed. But why is it that he never makes reference to her in any of his soliloquies? Why does he say to her,

Get thee to a nunnery.
Why wouldst thou be a breeder of sinners?
--- Act Three, Scene I, line 121.

When he kills Polonius, why does Hamlet not reflect that he has killed Ophelia’s father?


4. Why do you think Ophelia goes insane?

5. Hamlet puts on an “antic disposition”–that is, he pretends to be insane. But is he, in fact, insane or mentally unstable?

6 . Each of the main characters in the play loses a person important to them—Gertrude, Hamlet, Ophelia, Laertes. Describe how each dealt with their grief.

7. Is Gertrude loyal to Hamlet or to Claudius? Use Gertrude’s lines from the play to support your answer.

8. Does Claudius have any guilt for what he has done? Give me the lines.

9. Probe Hamlet’s mind. Then, attempt to explain why he acts as he does. True, his behavior is in large part a reaction to his father’s death and his mother’s marriage to Claudius. But what else bothers Hamlet? Is he angry because he himself did not succeed to the throne? Does the ghost cause him to dwell morbidly on death? Does he suddenly hate all women because of what his mother did?

10. Comment on the role of women in Hamlet. What might the feminists say?

READ HAMLET

That is your homework, READ IT. I said this in class but for those who weren't there....

Study the lines, the words, and have something to say about it when we get to class.

****** THERE MAY BE A QUIZ, come prepared, KNOW the story, at the very least

This is fun:

Hamlet in Cartoons
http://www.angelfire.com/oh/Pretzel/dogsummary.html

HAMLET - Words, WORDS, words

We watched half of Hamlet today in class, the Franco Zeffirelli version, starring Mel Gibson, Glenn Close, Alan Bates and Helena Bonham-Carter. It is a brilliant dramatization of the play but many lines are missing in it. I encourage to read the play over the weekend, line for line.

Homework
1, Write one page, journal-like, about the experience of watching Hamlet and seeing the performance, the accessibility of the language, the hearbreak in the story, whatever you want to say about the experience. What it means to you.

2, Poetry explications are DUE on Tuesday!


3, read * “Writing About a Play” (2126-2137) in your books.
I will keep posting helpful links and resources about Hamlet, in the left column.

Please email me if you still can't access the Hamlet essay questions.

Thanks and have a great weekend!

POETRY EXPLICATION Deadline Extended - HAMLET begins

1, Due to popular request, I am going to extend the deadline for the poetry explications, now due Tuesday, November 24th. To that end, I will add explication examples to the list at left. Also, I will add a few more poems to the list to choose from. There will be no excuses then for poor papers.

2, COME TO CLASS ON THURSDAY KNOWING THE STORY OF HAMLET. WHAT IS THE PLOT?

3, THE HAMLET ESSAY QUESTIONS ARE ALSO AT LEFT. DUE: December 8, 2009.

WRAPPING UP POETRY

1, The deadline for Poetry Explications has been extended to Thursday, November 19,2009. There are no exceptions to this. Please bring A PRINTED version to class.

2, Tuesday's poems listed at left and in your book:
-"Do Not Go Gently Into That Good NIght", Dylan Thomas pg 867
-"Love Calls Us To The Things of this World," Richard Wilbur, pg 739
-"Spring and All," William Carlos Williams, pg 1183
- (One other that will be linked at left

3, By POPULAR request, I will give the essay assignment for Hamlet on Tuesday. We should begin our Drama portion of the course on Thursday

AS ALWAYS, PLEASE EMAIL ME IF YOU WANT TO MEET WITH ME ABOUT YOUR ESSAYS OR ANY OTHER QUESTIONS YOU MIGHT HAVE

POEMS FOR THURSDAY AND POETRY EXPLICATION

1, Please find the poems for Thursday's class at left. Please read the poems carefully and come prepared to talk about the poems! I have your journal so don't worry about recording, but please come to class with something to say.

2, I've listed the Poems along with the Poetry Explication Assignment below.

See you Thursday!

POETRY ASSIGNMENT: DUE Tuesday, November 17, 2009

ENGLISH 2201
Lisa Cupolo

Poetry Explication Essay Assignment
Value: 10%

Due: Tuesday, November 17, 2009, in class

Format: Times New Roman font in 12-point type; 1” margins all around.
Please include a works cited page as well.
____________________________________________________________________

**
A poetry explication is defined as a relatively short analysis which describes the possible meanings and relationships of the words, images, and other literary devices that make up a poem. Writing an explication is an effective way for a reader to connect a poem's plot and conflicts with its structural features. Select any one (1) of the poems listed below that we have discussed over the course of the semester. In an essay of two to three (2-3) pages, double-spaced, discuss some interesting features of the poem you have chosen; for instance, consider the ways in which vocabulary, syntax and imagery work to develop and reinforce the poem’s tone and discuss the poet’s meter and arrangement and the effect of it.

**
The critical component I am looking for is not only an indication that you understand the basics of the poetic devices and how they reveal and/or contribute to the poem’s meaning BUT ALSO your thoughts on what the poet’s intent in writing the poem might be and/or what theme(s) might be present.
Please remember to quote directly from the poem, minimum five references to the poem.

POEMS TO CHOOSE FROM FOR EXPLICATION (all found in your text):

1, UNKNOWN CITIZEN, by W.H. Auden, pg 690
2, BATTER MY HEART, THREE-PERSONED GOD,FOR YOU pg.709
3, PIED BEAUTY, Gerald Manley Hopkins, pg. 750
4, BRIGHT STAR! WOULD I WERE STEADFAST AS THOU ART, John Keats,pg. 754
5, SHALL I COMPARE THEE TO A SUMMER'S DAY? Shakespeare pg. 767
6, RICHARD CORY, by Edwin Arlington Robinson & Paul Simon, compare these two poems, pg, 792
7, COUNTING THE BEATS, BY Robert Graves, pg. 853
8, UNHOLY SONNET, by Mark Jarman, pg 860
9, UPHILL, by Christina Rossetti, pg 902
10, AFTER GREAT PAIN, A FORMAL FEELING COMES, by Emily Dickinson, pg 1017
11, BECAUSE i COULD NOT STOP FOR DEATH, by Emily Dickinson, pg. 1019
12, O CAPTAIN! MY CAPTAIN! by Walt Whitman, pg. 1002

That was the best class, ever, in terms of discussion!

Thanks, Summer, for bringing us "Imagine" by John Lennon and in turn, a very lively discussion about racism, cultural division and the education system in Memphis. I'm so glad that this discussion began and many of you spoke passionately about your own experiences. I'm sorry for those in the class who weren't there.

Homework for Tuesday, November 11, 2009

1, JOURNALS will be collected (Including a 1-2 page continuation of the class discussion. Many of you didn't get a chance to talk and wanted to, please tell me more of what you think about the subject.

2, Read the poems at left and make entries into your journals. Keep thinking about the poems that light a fire under you. You'll have to choose one other poem (different from the one you present) and write a 2-3 page poetry explication. Details to arrive on Tuesday.

TO MY WONDERFUL POETS!

I am reading your poems now and really enjoying them. Good work!

It was great fun in class today.

**Remember to read the poems at left, make your comments about them in your journals in terms of meaning, style, meter, historical significance, etc.

**Come to class on Thursday prepared to ask a question about the poems or contribute to the discussion by adding a comment or two. It's so much more fun when you participate and it's not just me and a few others talking. I know it's hard but we have a great group and I know everyone has opinions because I've read your work.

Enjoy the sunshine!

ONE MORE THING

"It is difficult
to get the news from poems
yet men die miserably every day
for lack
of what is found there."

--William Carlos Williams
-

GETTING IN THE GROOVE OF POETRY...

Hello Everyone!

It was a much more lively class yesterday. Thanks to everyone who showed up and participated in the class discussions. Sorry to Morgan and Jessica who didn't get a chance to present. You'll get first go on Tuesday.

HOMEWORK FOR NOVEMBER 3, 2009

1 ****WRITE A 10 LINE POEM, with 10 syllables per line (5 beats). If you weren't in class yesterday, read the section on the sonnet in the book to better understand how syllables per line work. (Two syllables make up a beat.) To make it easier (trust me it will make it easier) below is a list of words that I'd like you to use in the poem. For example, the first line of your poem should contain the word 'fire;' the second line 'do,' third line 'far' etc. Give this a try. Just start writing and let the words and images flow. Also, this does not have to rhyme. Do not try to rhyme if it doesn't come to you naturally. My favorite poems do not rhyme. The only requirements are that your poem have ten lines and ten syllables per line.
Here are the words for each line:


POEM ASSIGNMENT

1, FIRE
2, DO
3, FAR
4, RISE
5, LOVE
6, STAND
7, APART
8, TAKE
9, HILLS
10, ROSES


Still confused? Email me at lcupolo@gmail.com


2, Read the poems for Tuesday's class (at left). Make notes in your journals about meaning, meter (that means the set up of the stanzas and the lines and beats per line), and imagery/metaphor.

The rain continues to be gruesome today but it will brighten up tomorrow. Hope you have a horrific and happy Halloween! Be safe!

Who's up next, and the sonnet...! Yahoo

Hi Everyone,
Today was kind of a low energy day in the classroom. I'm just getting over a cold/flu that I had all weekend and it's raining again and I gave back your papers....so I'm sure that is a lot of it. I feel like we need to 'jazz up' our energy about these poems and talk more. The world is not divided up into "poetry people" or "non-poetry people." We are all people hoping to appreciate good writing.
We need to embrace what Robert Frost says about the poem:

Poetry is a way of taking life by the throat.
-Robert Frost


Listen to the sounds of the words and the language used and the arrangement of the lines and muster some wonder about the craft and talent it takes
To put a poem together.

For Thursday,please read the prescribed poems at left and make journal entries for each of them.

Also, read the sonnets section, pg 856 - 862.

1, Write journal notes on "Acquainted with the Night" in regards to its meaning and form
2, Choose one other sonnet to write about in your journal. Choose lines that you like and explain their meaning.

Poems for Tuesday October 27, 2009

Please read the following poems closely and write your reactions in your journal in regards to the poem's style, meaning, verse, diction. Try and have questions prepared for students who are presenting.

1, Frost, "Fire and Ice," --Amanda Voyles
2, Frost, "The Road Not Taken," -- Andrew Walkley
3, Sir Walter Raleigh, "Life" -- Justin Falk (will post this poem at left)
4, Percy Shelley, "Ozymandias" -- Chase Jones
5, Poe, "Annabel Lee" -- Jessica Wargo

For Thursday October 22, 2009

Read all the poems on the left. Read them twice.

Then, for EVERY poem, in your journal:

1, Write your immediate reactions to the poem. Did you like it, hate it, understand it, etc.

2, Record words, phrases, lines, that had an effect on you. Positively or negatively.

NO CLASS TODAY!!!!

Hi Everyone,

I've canceled class today. I'm feeling awful. I have emailed many of you whose address I have.

I was really looking forward to today's class. We were going to listen to Bob Dylan AND study the lyrics.

I will try and post the songs on my blog:
1,It's Alright, Ma
2,Spanish Boots or Spanish Leather
3, The Times they are A Changin'

Please check the blog over the weekend!!

ALSO, VERY IMPORTANT
ON THE LEFT COLUMN OF THIS POST is the schedule for poetry presentations. PLEASE FIND YOUR NAME AND NOTE THE DATE OF YOUR PRESENTATION.

1, If your name is scheduled for Thursday, October, 22, please email me at lcupolo@gmail.com to confirm that you received this email and will be ready to present after break, one week from today.

2, If your name is not on the list, please email me (lcupolo@gmail.com) and talk to me about your poem or why you haven't signed up.
.

Have a great break!

ahhhh, Poetry

Here is the first lesson in case any of you missed it or want to review it.

Ahhh, Poetry

S o u n d Is Everything

Alliteration

·  "The soul selects her own society."
(Emily Dickinson)
or

“Peter Piper picked…”

Assonance

"It beats as it sweeps as it cleans."
(Slogan for Hoover vacuum cleaners)

"I must confess that in my quest I felt depressed and restless."
(Thin Lizzy, "With Love")

Onomatopoeia

  "One of these days, Alice. Pow! Right in the kisser!"
(Jackie Gleason, The Honeymooners)

  "Plop, plop, fizz, fizz, oh what a relief it is."
(slogan of Alka Seltzer, U.S.)

Rhythm                      Rhyme

Meter

Enjambment

          Sonnets

Repetition

Syllable count

 Euphony          cacophony

Stressed and unstressed syllables

METAPHOR

Michael Stillman (b. 1940)

In Memorian, John Coltrane

Listen to the coal

rolling, rolling through the cold

Steady rain, wheel on

Wheel, listen to the

Turning of  the wheels this night

Black as coal dust, steel

On steel, listen to

These cars carry coal, listen

To the coal train roll.

Listening to a Voice

My Papa’s Waltz

My Papa's Waltz

The whiskey on your breath
Could make a small boy dizzy;
But I hung on like death:
Such waltzing was not easy.

We romped until the pans
Slid from the kitchen shelf;
My mother's countenance
Could not unfrown itself.
The hand that held my wrist
Was battered on one knuckle;
At every step you missed
My right ear scraped a buckle.
You beat time on my head
With a palm caked hard by dirt,
Then waltzed me off to bed
Still clinging to your shirt.

Short Story ESSAYS due on Tuesday!

First of all,

THANK YOU TO THE 14 PEOPLE WHO ACTUALLY SHOWED UP TO CLASS ON THURSDAY!

I may have been a little hard on your essays, but I think you'll do better because of it.

HElpful hints about writing an essay:
1, Be sure to read your work out loud. Or read it out loud and to someone else. You'll HEAR a lot of the repetition in the lines and also the extra words that need to be cut out.
2, If you haven't yet. please feel free to send me your essay for a quick once over and hopefully I can GET back to you quickly.

3, Use enough quotes to support your thesis, at least 3 and as many as 9! Make sure the quotes match the claim you are trying to make. 
Good luck!
COME TO CLASS ON TUESDAY AND BRING YOUR FINAL AND BEST PAPER!

POETRY BEGINS on Tuesday, like it or not, and I think you'll like it.
**It will be the same format in many ways, in that I'll assign poems and you'll READ them closely and journal about them and then we'll talk and do group work. But at the beginning of each class we'll have 4 to five presentations.

* IF YOU still have not talked to me or emailed me about your poem or poet, I'll have to assign you a poem. If you don't want that, come and talk to me!

*If WOULD LIKE TO VOLUNTEER TO be in the first group to PRESENT YOUR POET AND POEM  I'd really appreciate it. Please email me or talk to me after class on Tuesday.

Can't wait to read your final papers!

MATH is NOT my STRONG POINT

DEAR STUDENTS,
It OCCURS to me that 400 - 600 words is not nearly enough to make a good argument for your papers. I thought 400-600 words was 3 to 5 pages, and 3 to 5 pages is ACTUALLY what I'll require for the paper. You'll require it too because I'm sure you've noticed how difficult it is to prove a point with so few words.  I'm so sorry for this late change to things.

We'll talk about it in class tomorrow too.

Draft of Essay is DUE tomorrow!

Hi Everyone,
- A draft of your 1st essay is due tomorrow and we'll do in class peer editing.  
- Please work as hard as you can on these. Remember, the more time you spend on the essay, the better it'll be, the better your mark.

 - Also, I will bring in a host of poems that we'll read and examine.

Please email me if you have any questions. lgcupolo@memphis.edu

For Tuesday, October 6, 2009

What a great class! Even though most of you hadn't pre-read the excerpt from "Peace" by Richard Bausch, you did well at asking him questions. It was a good discussion and very thought provoking.

Since you guys talked me into it, I'll give you until Thursday next week to have a draft of your essay completed. However on Tuesday I want to know what story/stories you are going to be writing about and what question you'll answer.

1, For part of the class we will talk about some of the important elements of writing a good essay and how to structure an essay. Bring your books with you.  

2, We'll also discuss the story "An Ex-Mas Feast" by Uwem Akpan (find it online here, at left)

Have a great weekend!

NOTE TO ALL!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I just now realized that I posted the incorrect link for the Richard Bausch story,
Peace.  I have just corrected it but please let me know when you've received this email
and that you've
read the correct version. It should be 13 pages long in PDF. Does that
make sense?
Thanks!

Read the Prize Winners!!!!

FOR Thursday, October 1, 2009

Please read:

1, PEACE by Richard Bausch (find story link on this blog)
2, "Say You're One Of Them" by Uwem Akpan (find story link on this blog)

* INSTEAD OF WRITING A FULL ENTRY IN YOUR JOURNALS,
read both stories closely and come up one question about each of the stories!

See you in October!

English2201 Essay #1

Please let me know if you can open this link for the essay questions.
Note:The reading list for Tuesday is in the post below.

http://docs.google.com/Doc?docid=0AX4IHmNzDnx0ZGNjbXA3dl8xOWNiNDRoOW5q&hl=en

Hemingway, James Baldwin and O'Henry: Oh la, la

I thought it was a very good class today talking about "A Thousand Years of Good Prayers" and I think we are breaking new ground on what it means to be close readers. Please apply the same attentiveness and enthusiasm for the stories we'll be reading next week:

Tuesday, September 29, 2009
- 1, Sonny's Blues by James Baldwin
- 2, A Clean Well-Lighted Place by Ernest Hemingway
- 3, The Gift of the Magi, by O'Henry

Thursday, October 1, 2009
- 1, PEACE by Richard Bausch (find story link to it on the blog)
- 2, "Say You're One Of Them" by Uwem Akpan (find story link on the blog)

PLEASE NOTE:
*Essay assignment #1 will be posted to this blog over the weekend, due October 12
* Please feel free to make comments on this blog and in that way we can continue the conversation about the stories or any questions or comments you might have.

WE LISTENED TO FLANNERY O'CONNOR!!!!

I'm not sure what you thought about listening to the recording
of Flannery O'Connor reading, "A Good Man Is Hard to Find,"
(the author reading her own work) but I think it will be an
experience you will not soon forget.
Please write an entry in your journals about the experience
of listening to a story instead of reading it.

So....on Thursday we will do the stories that were meant for
today. "A Thousand Years of Good Prayers," and
"Interpreter of Maladies"
This means you'll have more time to think about the stories.
***COME TO CLASS WITH SOMETHING TO SAY ABOUT THEM !

For Tuesday, September 22

1, Review (read again!)
"Interpreter of Maladies" and "Thousand Years of Good Prayers" (see syllabus or sidebar for where to find them) and fill in your work sheet. Come to class prepared to talk about both.

2, POETRY assignment
Please look over the poems in your poetry handbook and find a poem that speaks to you, ie, makes you feel something. The assignment (not due until mid-October) will be to present your poet and the poem to the class (3 to 5 minutes)

Have a great weekend!

Readings for Spetember 17, 2009

That was a great class today. Thanks everyone for your contributions!
I'll look forward to reviewing your journals.

For Thursday:

1, Read "Interpreter of Maladies" by Jumpa Lahiri. (pg 579) It's also on the left here with an online link

2, Review the list of upcoming short stories and consider the writers, then
look through the book of poetry and see if there is a writer/poet that speaks
to you. Many of you will be familiar with some of the writers in the book. Alternatively, you can pick your own (if it stands up to the quality of the writers we are studying)
Try and come to class with a couple of names of writers that you'd like to
explore further.

Please email me at lgcupolo@memphis.edu if you're unclear about the assignment.

Stay healthy!

Readings and Homework for 09/15/09

Hi Everyone, Sorry this post is so late. I was convinced I posted these readings and homework
last week after class but perhaps the post didn't get published. Anyway, thanks to Devon who let me know this wasn't up.

OKAY, for tomorrow the readings are:

Raymond Carver, "Cathedral" (98-109)
You can find it here online:
http://www.ndsu.nodak.edu/instruct/cinichol/GovSchool/Cathedral2.htm

Dagberto Glib, "Look on the Bright Side" (540-548)

Please complete the worksheet that I handed out last week for each of the stories. Copy the different elements of the story (Plot, Point of View, etc) into your journals and fill them in for both stories.

Email me at lgcupolo@memphis.edu if you have questions. Thanks!

READINGS for 09/10/09

Read each of these stories below carefully and with attention to detail. Prepare a discussion question on one of the assigned stories below. Then write a ½ page response to the question to begin discussion.

1, Anton Chekhov, "The Lady With The Pet Dog," pg. 512

2, D.H. Lawrence, "The Rocking-Horse Winner," pg.593

Homework for Tuesday,September 9

Prepare a discussion question on one of the assigned stories below. Then write a ½ page response to the question to begin discussion.

“Point of View” (23-28 and 70-72)

Yiyun Li, “A Thousand Years of Good Prayers” (262-271)

Flannery O’Connor “A Good Man Is Hard to Find” (358-368)
http://pegasus.cc.ucf.edu/~surette/goodman.html

Jamaica Kincaid, “Girl” (578-579
http://www.turksheadreview.com/library/texts/kincaid-girl.html

Homework for 09/3/09

Dear Class,
I've had a few inquiries about the specifics of the
homework. I'll try and make it simpler.

There are three things you have to complete:

1, Think of what you like to read. Anything?
Is it the
Sports page? Us Magazine? Harry Potter? poetry?
Cartoons? novels? kids books?

On a piece of paper write down what you like
to read and then tell me why it interests
or stimulates your passions or imagination.
1/2 page.

2, Read the story (it's only 2 pages!!!) called
"The Story of An Hour"
Click here for the story
http://www.pbs.org/katechopin/library/storyofanhour.html

3, For simplicities sake, I'll give you the question to
answer this time.
On a clean piece of paper write this:
Does Mrs.Louise Mallard love her husband?
Answer this question using examples from the
story.
1/2 to full page

Please email me if you still have questions.

Lisa Cupolo
lgcupolo@memphis.edu
_______________________________________

Best,

Lisa Cupolo