For the first post: To post just click on the + sign on the top of this page.
For the second post: (if there is a second post) To comment on a classmate’s post, go to the POSTS page and click on COMMENT at the bottom of that classmate’s post.
If you DO NOT complete BOTH of the following blog posts by the above date and time, you will be considered absent for this online session (you only are allowed two absences, and after that your final grade will go down 1/2 letter grade for each absence) and you will get a zero for this online work. There are no make-ups for the online work, and I will not check after the above date and time, so please be aware of these rules.
NOTE: I will not accept entries later than the above date. If you do not post both items, you will be considered absent for that online work, and that absence will, therefore, be counted as one of your two allowed online absences (please see the syllabus for rules about absences and penalties).
Also, if, for some reason, you cannot post, you still need to email me the post by the assigned time, so make sure everything works!
Online Assignments due: May 19th, 12 pm, noon.
Final Reflections and Assessments of Your Work:
Post 1:
For this post, as at the midterm, you are to outline, again, in your groups, what strengths you have developed, or continued to developed, since the midpoint of the semester in this course, and what areas you still need to work on. Things to consider: Where did you improve? What would you do differently? When responding, you may discuss any written work (essays, pre-writing; outlining; quizzes, free-writing, class exercises; emails to me or to peers); any oral work (participation in the larger discussion, group work, oral presentation) and anything else you felt either improved during the semester, or, alternatively, aspects you still need to work on.
Post 2:
This time, you do not need to respond to another group, but you need to respond to both of your group members (or at least two other peers). In each response, you are to address a specific concern of your peer (an area to be improved) and give viable suggestions as to how your peer may strengthen that area.
Online Assignments due: May 12th, 12pm, noon.
Below is also an Extra Credit option.
Post 1:
In your groups, decide on one passage of about 150-200 words from any part of “Aura” (except part 1, as we will discuss that together, in class) that illustrates an interesting use of the second person point of view. One of you needs to “translate” the passage into both the first person and the third person. This writer then needs to briefly discuss, in about one sentence, any problems or difficulties going from the second person to the first or third person. The other members are to comment, in about 150-200 words, on the specific differences between the “translation” and the original. Make sure each member discusses a different point of view (either the first person or the third). Questions to consider: How does the second person original version affect the reader, as opposed to the first or third person translations? How does the point of view affect your interpretation of the characters, specific themes or ideas? How does this affect the tone of the narrative? You need to be very specific in your analyses, and quote from both the original passage and the translated version. Refer to our class notes and class discussion on the use of the second person in “Aura”.
Post 2:
In about 100-150 words, comment on the specific translation choices of one other group’s post. Make sure you point out very specific differences between the second, first, and third person versions, as you did in your own groups. Refer to our class notes and class discussion on the use of the second person in “Aura”.
Extra Credit Option: Read “The House of Asterion” (on our Texts page on our blog site) and in about one typed page, discuss how this version of the Minotaur Myth affects your reading of “Aura.” If you complete this task appropriately, you will receive ½ letter grade higher on your lowest larger grade (essay or final).
“Aura” by Carlos Fuentes: Class Notes:
(The Minotaur Myth: In the myth, the idea of labyrinth is usually used synonymous with maze. In other words, the way out is not readily accessible.)
Ideas (often paradoxical) for the minotaur myth (labyrinth, seeker, and minotaur):
The labyrinth/maze is an ancient a symbol for the inner life of the self; Theseus is a symbol for the one seeking self-knowledge; the minotaur is the symbol for the truth that the hero (seeker) learns; Ariadne’s thread is a symbol for staying true to one’s purpose, and finding one’s way back out to the world.
The labyrinth/maze is a symbol for the hero’s journey within, to a gain a sense of self discovery. In other words, what does the hero see at the center of the labyrinth, when he/she meets the minotaur? Does the hero sees something beautiful or divine in him/herself, or something monstrous?
The minotaur has two names: 1) Asterion (star) and 2) Minotaur (Bull of Minos)
1) The labyrinth/maze as a symbol for the journey to Enlightenment (a sense of spiritual connection). In this sense, the center of the labyrinth is a temple, a place of rebirth. The Minotaur, in this reading is a symbol for divine inspiration (the minotaur is of divine origin (Pasiphae is the daughter of a god, and the bull was sent by Zeus). When the hero reaches the center, and the minotaur “eats” the hero, there is the death of the “old” self, and the rebirth of the new, enlightened self.
OR
2) The labyrinth/maze as a symbol for being entrapped in fear and/or delusion (remaining in the center of the labyrinth). In this reading, the center of the labyrinth is a prison (the self in confusion/delusion) and/or execution chamber (the sense of self completely lost). The Minotaur here is the monster who either imprisons or devours the hero. The minotaur here is not divine but demonic or sub-human. There is no rebirth. The hero also faces the danger of self-absorption, focusing too much on the self and forgetting about the world to which he/she is to return and save. The hero then remains in the center of the labyrinth in a deluded, self-indulged state.
“Theseus and the Minotaur” (the original myth)
In ancient Crete, the legend says that Queen Pasiphae slept with a bull sent by Zeus, and gave birth to Minotaur, a creature half man – half bull. King Minos was embarrassed, but did not want to kill the Minotaur (since the minotaur’s father, a divine bull, was a gift from Zeus) so he hid the monster in the Labyrinth constructed by Daedalus at the Minoan Palace of Knossos.
According to the myth, Minos was imprisoning his enemies in the Labyrinth so that the Minotaur could eat them. The labyrinth was such a complicated construction that no one could ever find the way out alive.
Son of Minos, Androgeus, went to Athens to participate to the Panathenaic Games, but he was killed during the Marathon by the bull that impregnated his mother Pasiphae. Minos was infuriated, and demanded Aegeus the king of Athens to send seven men and women every year to the Minotaur to advert the plague caused by the death of Androgeus.
The third year, Theseus, son of Aegeus decided to be one of the seven young men that would go to Crete, in order to kill the Minotaur and end the human sacrifices to the monster. King Aegeus tried to make him change his mind but Theseus was determined to slay the Minotaur.
Theseus promised his father that he would put up white sails coming back from Crete, allowing him to know in advance that he was coming back alive. The boat would return with the black sails if Theseus was killed.
Theseus kills the Minotaur
Theseus announced to King Minos that he was going to kill the Monster, but Minos knew that even if he did manage to kill the Minotaur, Theseus would never be able to exit the Labyrinth.
Theseus met Princess Ariadne, daughter of King Minos, who fell madly in love with him and decided to help Theseus. She gave him a thread and told him to unravel it as he would penetrate deeper and deeper into the Labyrinth, so that he knows the way out when he kills the monster.
Theseus followed her suggestion and entered the labyrinth with the thread. Theseus managed to kill the Minotaur and save the Athenians, and with Ariadne’s thread he managed to retrace his way out.
Theseus took Princess Ariadne with him and left Crete sailing happily back to Athens.
Theseus’ boat stopped at Naxos and the Athenians had a long celebration dedicated to Theseus and Ariadne. After long hours of feasting and drinking, Ariadne fell asleep on the shore and didn’t enter the boat that sailed to Athens. Theseus figured out that Ariadne was not with them when it was too late and he was so upset that he forgot the promise made to his father and did not change the sails.
NOTE. A different version of the myth mentions that Theseus deliberately left Ariadne on Naxos.
King Aegeus was waiting at Cape Sounion to see the sails of the boat. He saw the black sails from afar and presumed his son was dead. He dropped himself to the waters, committing suicide and since then, this sea is called the Aegean Sea.
Class Exercise:
Within groups, each member form a dialogue between your group members, as to how the myth of the minotaur connects to the ending of Aura. You may respond to the idea of the labyrinth, the idea of the hero (Theseus), or the idea of the minotaur (refer to our class notes listed below, and the notes you were given in class). Use quotes to defend your response.
Magical Realism:
History:
- Developed in the 40s out of Art Movements: See Karl Willink’s paintings.
- Expressionism/Surrealism
- Rebellion against the hegemony of European Rationalism
- Rebellion against organized religion
Early writers: Juan Rulfo (Mexican) (Pedro Paramo) Gabriel Garcia Marquez (Colombian) Carlos Fuentes (Mexican) Jorges Borges (Argentine)
John Fowles (English) Gunther Grass (German) Naguib Mafouz (Egyptian)
Goals/Explorations/Ideas of Magical Realist Fiction:
- Explores “unrealistic” elements to discover a deeper reality: The Realist movement over-simplifies reality. True reality always “slips away.”
- Magical and the Real as equal paradigms.
- Influence of Surrealists’ indictment of restrictive empirical knowledge:
“Our reality is in itself out of proportion,” Garcia Marquez.
“Our patrimony is the universe . . . because I had abandoned myself to a
dream, I was able to accomplish . . . what I had previously sought in vain,”
Borges.
- The Kabbalistic idea that one man is the “all” and the microcosm contains the macrocosm.
Magical Realist Elements:
- Dream-like elements
- Surreal elements
- Elements of supernatural
- Elements of horror
- Very detailed, realistic world (when the world strives to be realistic) but some of those details become super or hyper real, for a thematic purpose.
- Seemingly contradictory events/images, between the psych. and/or metaphysical explanation and the supernatural.
- Intersection or “between-ness” of world’s.
Sometimes elements in Magical Realist fiction:
- Meta-fictional component. Magical capacities of fiction (rather than fiction/language’s limitations).
- Narrative told from a fresh, childlike primitive POV, or discoveries from a fresh perspective (discovery of ice in One Hundred Years of Solitude).
- Repetition—mirror like structures.
- Ancient systems/myth/folklore often underlie the text (mostly rural).
- Jungian (collective myth)
- Freudian psychology (sometimes)
- Baroque extravagance of language (unrestrained use of language).
Online Assignment Due May 5th, 12pm, noon:
Please read the following texts:
A) The poem by Mallarme, “The Virginal, Vibrant, and Beautiful Dawn” Vol. E., p. 515. (you need only bring volume F to class, not volume E, as well)
B) The video, “Breath” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=io_scJbhCOY
C) “The Chestnut Tree” selection from Nausea (on our texts page on our blog site)
Post 1: In your groups, please develop a dialogue, discussing how Mallarme’s poem. the short film “Breath,” and Sartre’s description of the chestnut tree connect to themes in Endgame. To do this, each member with create a post of about 150-200 words needs to develop a comment about one of these three texts (each group should discuss all three texts). As well, please acknowledge another group member’s comment.
Post 2: Each group member is to create a post of about 100-150 words, responding to ANOTHER group’s post. Remember to respond to a SPECIFIC aspect of the post, and not to simply make a general comment.
The pome by Mallarme, “The Virginal, Vibrant, and Beautiful Dawn” Vol. E., p. 515.
The Virginal, vibrant and beautiful dawn,
Will a beat of its drunken wing not suffice
To rend this hard lake haunted beneath the ice
By the transparent glacier of flights never flown?
A swan of former times remembers it’s the one
Magnificent but hopelessly struggling to resist
For never having sung of a land in which to exist
When the boredom of a sterile winter has shone
Though its quivering neck will shake free of the agonies
Inflicted on the bird by the space it denies,
The horror of the earth will remain where it lies.
Phantom whose pure brightness assigns it this domain,
It stiffens in the cold dream of disdain
That clothes the useless exile of the Swan.
—Stephane Mallarme
Assignments Due: April 28th, 12pm, noon.
Post 1: Comparing the staged reading of Endgame with the original text.
In your groups, each member, in 150 -200 words, is to help create a dialogue in which you discuss an aspect of the Great Works Staged Reading of the Endgame performance (during class, Tuesday, April 25) that is either different from the text or different from how you imagined this aspect in the text. As well, you might discuss an aspect of the text completely left out of the performance.
Any of these aspects may include actors (choice of actor, actor’s choices to build his character) directorial choices (pacing, tone, blocking, emphasis, etc.) or anything else you deem important. Contrarily, you may each discuss a different aspect, but make sure you acknowledge one another’s voices.
Post 2:
Each group member is to comment, in about 100 words, on a post from a peer from another group. As usual, please be very specific.
April 25th, class notes:
Samuel Beckett Notes:
Samuel Barclay Beckett 1906 –1989) was an Irish avant-garde novelist, playwright, theatre director, and poet, who lived in Paris for most of his adult life and wrote in both English and French. He is widely regarded as among the most influential writers of the 20th century.
Beckett’s work offers a bleak outlook on human existence, and became increasingly minimalist in his later career. He is considered one of the last modernist writers, and one of the key figures in the “Theatre of the Absurd“. Beckett was awarded the 1969 Nobel Prize in Literature “for his writing, which—in new forms for the novel and drama—in the destitution of modern man acquires its elevation”.
The plays deal with the subject of despair and the will to survive in spite of that despair, in the face of an uncomprehending and incomprehensible world. The words of Nell—one of the two characters in Endgame who are trapped in ashbins, from which they occasionally peek their heads to speak—can best summarize the themes of the plays of Beckett’s middle period: “Nothing is funnier than unhappiness, I grant you that. … Yes, yes, it’s the most comical thing in the world. And we laugh, we laugh, with a will, in the beginning. But it’s always the same thing. Yes, it’s like the funny story we have heard too often, we still find it funny, but we don’t laugh any more.”
Beckett is most famous for his play En attendant Godot (1953) (Waiting for Godot). In a much-quoted article, the critic Vivian Mercier wrote that Beckett “has achieved a theoretical impossibility—a play in which nothing happens, that yet keeps audiences glued to their seats. What’s more, since the second act is a subtly different reprise of the first, he has written a play in which nothing happens, twice.”
Themes:
- Humanity’s essential isolationism.
- Humanity’s apathy for other beings.
- The blur between dream and reality (the idea that our dreams are more “real” ironically than the world around us).
- The extreme precariousness of the human condition
- Dystopian future for humanity
Absurdism:
Myth of Sisyphus (scroll down). This myth may also be used as a journey model.
This is a philosophy stating that the efforts of humanity to find meaning in the universe will most likely fail (and, hence, will be absurd). The word “absurd” in this context does not mean “logically impossible” but rather “humanly impossible”.
Absurdism is related to existentialism and nihilism and has its roots in the 19th century Danish philosopher, Søren Kierkegaard. Absurdism as a belief system was born of the Existentialist movement when the French philosopher and writer Albert Camus broke from that philosophical line of thought and published his manuscript The Myth of Sisyphus. The aftermath of World War II provided the social environment that stimulated absurdist views and allowed for their popular development, especially in the devastated country of France. Albert Camus, the Algerian born Absurdist, wrote an essay entitled “The Myth of Sisyphus” in which he elevates Sisyphus to the status of absurd hero.
Both Sartre and Camus were active in the French Resistance and both won the Nobel Prize for literature. Camus’s novel, The Stranger, delineates the existential themes of absurdity, anguish, despair, and alienation, but Camus always denied that he was an existentialist. He claimed instead that the world was so absurd that the philosopher should logically contemplate suicide. The alternative, for Camus, was to dismiss the world and lead an active, heroic life. The Absurd Hero of ordinary life is the person who resolutely shoulders the responsibilities that life imposes, knowing full well that all is futile and meaningless, an attitude that is exemplified in the essay “The Myth of Sisyphus.” The divine plan was to keep Sisyphus too busy to plan another escape but Camus uses the case to illustrate the absurdity of all human existence and concludes, “One must imagine Sisyphus happy” in the act of doing
Here is a link to Camus’ version of the myth, if you would like to read it:
http://dnwilliams.com/altprod/readings/camus_themythofsisyphus.pdf
Nihilism: Life has no ostensible purpose; there is no grand plan and no one to help us.
Surrealism (movement began in 1924): The idea of juxtaposing different very realistic images in unusual contexts. See Artists: Rene Magrite; Salvador Dali, Man Ray, Yves Tanguy, Max Ernst, Marcel Duchamp, Andre Breton (the so-called founder of Surrealism, and who wrote the Surrealist Manifesto).
Myth of Sisyphus: (original myth)
Sisyphus promoted navigation and commerce, but was avaricious and deceitful, violating the laws of hospitality by killing travelers and guests. He took pleasure in these killings because they allowed him to maintain his dominant position. From Homer onwards, Sisyphus was famed as the craftiest of men. He seduced his niece, took his brother’s throne and betrayed Zeus’s secrets.
Before Sisyphus died, he had told his wife that when he was dead she was not to offer the usual sacrifice. In the underworld he complained that his wife was neglecting him and persuaded Persephone, Queen of the Underworld, to allow him to go back to the upper world and ask his wife to perform her duty. When Sisyphus got back to Corinth, he refused to return and was eventually carried back to the underworld by Hermes.
As a punishment from the gods for his trickery, Sisyphus was compelled to roll a huge rock up a steep hill, but before he could reach the top of the hill, the rock would always roll back down again, forcing him to begin again. This is an example of Absurdism, because even though Sisyphus will MOST LIKELY have to perform this task for eternity, each time he rolls the rock up the hill, there is the hope that it will be the last time; therefore, he has a modicum (however small) of hope
The maddening nature of the punishment was reserved for Sisyphus due to his hubristic belief that his cleverness surpassed that of Zeus. Accordingly, pointless or interminable activities are often described as Sisyphean.
(Franz Kafka repeatedly referred to Sisyphus as a bachelor; the Kafkaesque for him were those qualities that brought out the Sisyphus-like qualities in himself. According to Frederick Karl: “The man who struggled to reach the heights only to be thrown down to the depths embodied all of Kafka’s aspirations; and he remained himself, alone, solitary.”)
Online Assignments due for April 21st (make-up for snow day):
Post 1: (you may either post in groups or alone, for these two posts)
For this post, you are to create TWO possible thesis QUESTIONS (not statements) for the final essay, which is the Final Project.
- Each of these questions should be significantly different ( not just worded differently, but have a different focus).
- Each of these questions must work to show a narrow focus (the more focused your question, the more interesting and intense your exploration).
- Each of these questions need not be contained in one sentence. These questions should help you to probe further into what you are really interested in exploring for this final essay.
Post 2:
In about 100 words, comment on one other student’s post. To get credit for this, you MUST get very detailed in your analysis about both of the questions (not just, “ I like the first one better . . .”). In other words, what SPECIFICALLY is effective about each question. Also, work to give your peer ideas about possible areas to explore or journey models to use.
Online Assignments Due for April 7th, 12pm, noon.
Post 1:
In your groups, create a dialogue between yourselves, in which you are responding to either Plato’s “Allegory of the Cave” (see a summary below, or go to the text itself: https://web.stanford.edu/class/ihum40/cave.pdf) or the graphic text “Kaspar” http://www.wordswithoutborders.org/graphic-lit/kaspar in connection with the ending of “The Metamorphosis.” By the “ending” of “The Metamorphosis” I do not mean you are restricted to the last paragraph. You may discuss whatever you like in the last few pages, whether it is about Gregor, his family, or the larger society.
To complete this assignment, the group will need to first establish which text it wants to compare or contrast with “The Metamorphosis,” then each member of the group needs to write a short analysis, in 150-200 words, discussing one point of comparison or contrast between the ending of “The Metamorphosis” and either “Kaspar” or the “Allegory of the Cave.” As usual, each member needs to use a quote to support his or her assertion, and you may quote from either of your chosen texts, or both.
Post 2:
In about 100-150 words, everyone is to respond, as substantively as possible, to a response from another group. As last time, use a quotation from your peer’s response (yes, from your peer and not from Kafka’s story) in this second post. Many of you forgot to do this last time, so make sure you quote your peer!
April 4, Class Notes: The Metamorphosis, by Franz Kafka (see class notes for March 28th, for the general introduction to Kafka and his writing)
Expressionism:
Expression of an inner psychological state as a literal as physical condition.
Expressionistic art was a revolt against the mannered, commissioned portraits and landscapes of the day, presenting the upper classes as noble and generous. Expressionism was concerned with voicing an inner, often irrational or abstract truth, rather than presenting a rational, realistic view of the world. Expressionism in art and literature often used exaggerated images, to emphasize this distinction.
Wassily Kandinsky on Expressionism: “ . . . presenting nature not as an external phenomenon, but predominantly the element of inner expression.”
Wolf Dieter Dube, a writer on the Expressionistic movement: “The central thing was spontaneity of expression . . . derived from natural attitudes . . . much like chance . . . with the models frequently changing their positions.”
The Scream (1890, Edvard Munch, 1863-1944.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Scream#/media/File:The_Scream.jpg
Questions: Why might writers and artists choose to convey their ideas as distorted or abstracted images, rather state their feelings simply and realistically?
(Other examples of Expressionistic artists: Kandinsky, Kokoshka, Nolde, Klee, Kirchner, Schiele.) Connections to Surrealism, in the 1920s to the 1950s.
Kafka quotes (from his diaries):
“For [the poet] his song is only a scream.”
“Man cannot see beyond himself. He is in the dark.”
“One cannot escape oneself. The only possibility is to look on and forget that a game is being played with us.”
Of Kokoschka’s paintings:
I do not understand them. All they show ;me is the painter’s internal confusion and disorder.”
The journey model as:
Plato’s, “The Allegory of the Cave,” by Plato, 380-360 BCE (from The Republic, Book VII, section 1)
Allegory of the cave:
(attributed to Socrates talking to Glaucon) https://web.stanford.edu/class/ihum40/cave.pdf
Plato used the analogy of the cave to illustrate his idea of forms. This is a summary of the analogy:
Imagine several prisoners who have been chained up in a cave for all of their lives. They have never been outside the cave. They face a wall in the cave and they can never look at the entrance of the cave. Sometimes animals, birds, people, or other objects pass by the entrance of the cave casting a shadow on the wall inside the cave. The prisoners see the shadows on the wall and mistakenly view the shadows as reality.
However, one man breaks free from his chains and runs out of the cave. For the first time, he sees the real world and now knows that it is far beyond the shadows he had been seeing. He sees real birds and animals, not just shadows of birds and animals.
This man is excited about what he sees and he goes back to his fellow prisoners in the cave to tell them about the real world. But to his astonishment, they don’t believe him. In fact, they are angry with him. They say the shadows are reality and that the escaped prisoner is crazy for saying otherwise.
POINT OF CAVE ANALOGY: According to Plato, the world outside the cave represents the world of forms while the shadows on the wall represent objects in the physical world. The escape of the prisoner represents philosophical enlightenment and the realization that forms are the true reality. Most people are like the prisoners in the cave. They think the shadows are reality. Philosophers, though, are like the man who escapes the cave and sees the real world. They have true knowledge.
“The Metamorphosis,” published, 1915:
Areas of study:
Gregor’s transformation: in the original German, “ungeheueren Ungeziefer,” which means, literally, “monstrous vermin”.
Three areas of focus:
The individual sense of identity; the individual’s connection to and role in the family; the individual’s role in society.
POV: Third person, from Gregor’s POV until the last few pages.
Writing style: verisimilitude mixed with expressionistic elements, dark humor.
Online Assignments Due, March 31, 12 pm, noon. “The Judgment,” by Franz Kafka
Two posts due:
Post 1:
Within your groups, each member, in 150-200 words, is to help create a dialogue with each other, while discussing the significance of the ending of “The judgment.” Questions your group members are to consider (each member should address one aspect): 1) Who is responsible for Georg’s decision at the end of the story? 2) What is the significance of the very last line of the story: “At this moment, almost endless traffic rolled across the bridge”? 3) Many people see this ending as somehow unrealistic. Do you agree? Why or why not? How does it being realistic, not entirely realistic, or both contribute to your understanding of the ending?
Each group member is to address a different aspect of the three questions above, while referring, briefly, to other group members’ response. Remember to use a quotation from the text to defend your response.
Post 2:
In about100-150 words, respond to one of the aspects listed above that is addressed by a member of another group. Be very specific as to your own response, and in this post, use a quotation from your peer’s response (yes, from your peer and not from Kafka’s story, in this second post).
March 28th, Class Notes:
Kafka Bio. Notes: 1883-1924
Family, work, writing, death (died of laryngeal tuberculosis, literally of starvation). WWI Environment; Jewish Quarter in Prague.
Themes:
Alienation; Isolation; Family dynamics; Individual’s role in Society; Authoritarianism/Authority; The “journey” motif as the archetype of the labyrinth (The Minotaur Myth) especially in the three novels, The Trial; The Castle; Amerika; Expressionism; early examples of Nihilism and Absurdism.
Literary Techniques: Expressionism with Realism; dark humor; strong images; elegant structure (often 3 distinct parts).
Kafka Quotes: (from his diaries)
My wings are atrophied . . . I hop about bewildered among my fellow men.”
“In us all it [the old Jewish quarter of Prague] still lives—the dark corners, the secret alleys, shuttered windows, squalid courtyards, rowdy pubs and sinister inns . . . inside we tremble just as before in the ancient streets of our misery . . . with our eyes open we walk through a dream: ourselves only a ghost of a vanished age.”
“The Judgment” (1912): Family dynamics; Authoritarianism vs. Individual Freedom; Guilt and Punishment.
Assignment: Due Friday, March 24th, Midpoint Reflections on Your Work
A Group Dialogue
Post 1:
As you know, you are graded from a variety of perspectives, based on the strength of your written work, and your oral work/participation (see the syllabus for exact percentages). For this post, you are to outline, again, in your groups, what strengths you have developed, or continued to developed, this semester, in this course, and what areas you need to work on, to improve your grade. Things to consider: Written communication (essays, pre-writing; outlining; quizzes, free-writing, class exercises; emails to me or to peers); Oral communication (participation in the larger discussion, group work, oral presentation work, if applicable) and anything else you deem important to strengthen your performance, so that you can work more realistically toward the grade you are striving for.
Post 2:
This time, you do not need to respond to another group, but you need to respond to both of your group members (or at least two other peers). In each response, you are to address a specific concern of your peer (an area to be improved) and give viable suggestions as to how your peer may strengthen that area.
Assignment: Midterm Preparation: Due Friday, March 17, 12 pm, noon.
The following posts are in preparation for the midterm exam on Tuesday, March 21st (see the syllabus). People typically need the entire period for this exam, so please get there on time! I cannot allow anyone to stay later than our class time.
Midterm Materials:
You are required to bring Volumes D and E of our Norton Anthology of World Lit., print edition (or print copies) only. No e-books will be allowed. Remember, you will need to quote.
You will need your own paper (normal size, please) and pens. I do not use blue books.
No class notes are allowed.
No electronics are allowed.
Optional: Journey to the West (pdf) print version, only, no e-books.
Print dictionary or grammar book (no e-books).
Midterm Texts:
Think about these works: Journey to the West (chapter 1, Norton, third edition); Journey to the West (pdf from Norton, 2nd edition); from Life of a Sensuous Woman; “Bartleby the Scrivener.” Remember, you are not responsible for bringing the pdf version of Journey, but you may use it if you wish, either for the exam or for the following posts.
Midterm Format:
As I discussed in class on the 7th, you will be asked to write a series of paragraphs (6 or 7). Some paragraphs will be compare/contrast between works, and others will be topics concerning single works. Paragraph format is really important, so make sure you look this over and understand this, as I WILL NOT POST THIS ON THE DAY OF THE EXAM. Your paragraphs will be about 10-12 sentences, as we’ve discussed in class, so make sure you spend most of your time on your analysis (#4 below) and DO NOT SUMMARIZE OR PARAPHRASE. This is a very doable exam, if you follow the form and do not summarize or paraphrase (I cannot emphasize this enough).
Remember our paragraph form: (and these items need not be in this order)
1 Concise topic sentence (your assertion, which is actually a sub-topic of your thesis)
2 Short introduction to your support (putting your quote in a context).
3 Support for your topic sentence/assertion (not more than one or two sentences). You are only to use one quote per paragraph, so make sure it is a very rich quote.
4 Explanation of why, very specifically, your quote defends your assertion. This is most of your paragraph, so you need to make sure you are doing an in-depth analysis of your chosen piece of text, and not simply a summary or paraphrase. You will certainly want to go back into the quote and point out specific words that “prove” your assertion.
Post 1:
NOTE: From now on, in the topic heading of your post, please include all the names of your group members. Thanks!
In your groups, each group member is to make up a midterm question or topic that asks the writer to either compare or contrast (not both) a connecting theme, literary model, or character trait between two of the works above. For this blog post, you are not asked to write the corresponding response, as of course you will be for the exam, but you should at least think about how you would viably respond.
For the Midterm itself, you will be asked to write a series of paragraphs, so your questions/topics should guide the writer to that kind of analytical response. Questions/topics can be more general or more specific, but remember, the more general the question/topic is, the more you will need to narrow the topic sentence in your response (on the exam). The midterm I’ve created includes a variety of both general and more specific questions/topics, so you might want to try to create both kinds of questions/topics yourselves, so people can think about different ways to respond. No two group members are to write questions or topics on the same two works. Look through our notes for viable suggestions.
Post 2:
In about 100 words, respond, as specifically as you can, as to how effective and/or doable a peer’s (from another group) question/topic is. I’m asking you to respond, as specifically as you can, to the strength of the question or topic. Reading through everyone’s questions and responses should be an effective way to review for this midterm exam (along with going over your own notes, of course).
Class Notes for March 14th: Rabindranath Tagore Indian, 1861-1941 Poet, Novelist (Novel Prize, 1913) Artist, Composer
Interests:
Opposition to Imperialism (British Colonialism at the time); the Caste System (in place during his time, but is no longer legal); Self-Victimization of the poor.
Themes he explores in “Punishment”:
Social Stratification; Social/Political Injustice; Authority versus Authoritarianism; Connection of Humanity with Nature; Psychological Cause and Effect; Poverty; Urban versus Rural (standard of living); “Roshomon Effect,” Roshomon, film by Akira Kurisawa, 1950.
Other ideas we will explore:
“Punishment” and the idea of the “no” or the refusal, and how this connects to “Bartleby.”
The idea of the refusal as a journey model.
See also: Bartleby & Co. on our blog site.
The idea of feminism: Is it truly present here (in the role of Chandara or otherwise)?
Characterization: Stereotype versus development.
Setting: How does this affect the narrative, and could the setting be seen as a “character”?
What images are important, and how do they deepen Tagore’s exploration from localized social injustice to larger issues about human nature?
Assignment: Melville: “Bartleby, the Scrivener.” Due Friday, March 10, 12 pm, noon.
Post 1:
Group Exercise (you may stay in your previous groups).
At different times, and from different perspectives, people see both Bartleby and the narrator as different kinds of “heroes.” In about a 150-200 word paragraph, each group member is to defend Bartleby, or the narrator, if you prefer, as either a Traditional Hero (Campbell or Aristotle), Anti-Hero, Satanic Hero, or no hero at all (and if you choose this, you must carefully defend this with a very specific response). Whatever you choose, you must thoroughly explain yourself, using good paragraph form, with one solid quotation from the text. No group member should address the same kind of hero. For a comparison of all three heroes, refer to our in-class discussion, so if you weren’t there, you need to get notes from a classmate. Remember, this time you need to write carefully constructed paragraphs, which should conform to the paragraph format that I gave the class. If you don’t have the format, you’ll need to get notes from a classmate.
Post 2:
In about 100 words, each member of the group (not the group as a whole) is to comment on at least one aspect of another post, from another group.
As before, make sure everyone’s name is clearly visible on both posts.
Class Notes: “Bartleby the Scrivener”
Herman Melville: American, 1819-1891
Brief Bio. Moby Dick, 1851 (“Bartleby” 1853)
Interests:
Social Criticism
Mythological/Philosophical observations and Archetypes:
The use of light/dark; the idea of the wall; inner/outer space
Themes:
Alienation
The complexity of moral choice
An individual’s responsibility for others
An individual’s desire vs. society’s expectations
The idea of personal revolt
The idea of societal corruption
The distinction between “good” and “evil”
The Traditional Hero; The Anti-Hero; The Satanic Hero
The idea of Nihilism
The idea of journey as a negation of self
Melville wrote just before the beginning of the Romantic Era (discussed below). We will discuss what elements of Romanticism we see in “Bartleby, the Scrivener.”
Romanticism (also the Romantic era or the Romantic period) was an artistic, literary, and intellectual movement that originated in Europe toward the end of the 18th century and in most areas was at its peak in the approximate period from 1800 to 1850. Partly a reaction to the Industrial Revolution,[1] it was also a revolt against the aristocratic social and political norms of the Age of Enlightenment and a reaction against the scientific rationalization of nature.[2] It was embodied most strongly in the visual arts, music, and literature, but had a major impact on historiography,[3] education[4] and the natural sciences.[5] Its effect on politics was considerable and complex; while for much of the peak Romantic period it was associated with liberalism and radicalism, its long-term effect on the growth of nationalism was probably more significant.
The movement validated intense emotion as an authentic source of aesthetic experience, placing new emphasis on such emotions as apprehension, horror and terror, and awe—especially that which is experienced in confronting the sublimity of untamed nature and its picturesque qualities: both new aesthetic categories. It elevated folk art and ancient custom to a noble status, made spontaneity a desirable characteristic (as in the musical impromptu), and argued for a natural epistemology of human activities, as conditioned by nature in the form of language and customary usage. Romanticism reached beyond the rational and Classicist ideal models to raise a revived medievalism and elements of art and narrative perceived to be authentically medieval in an attempt to escape the confines of population growth, urban sprawl, and industrialism. Romanticism embraced the exotic, the unfamiliar, and the distant in modes more authentic than Rococo chinoiserie, harnessing the power of the imagination to envision and to escape.
Although the movement was rooted in the German Sturm und Drang movement, which prized intuition and emotion over the rationalism of the Enlightenment, the events of and ideologies that led to the French Revolution planted the seeds from which both Romanticism and the Counter-Enlightenment sprouted. The confines of the Industrial Revolution also had their influence on Romanticism, which was in part an escape from modern realities. Indeed, in the second half of the 19th century, “Realism” was offered as a polar opposite to Romanticism.[6] Romanticism assigned a high value to the achievements of ‘heroic’ individualists and artists, whose pioneering examples, it maintained, would raise the quality of society. It also vouched for the individual imagination as a critical authority allowed of freedom from classical notions of form in art. There was a strong recourse to historical and natural inevitability, a Zeitgeist, in the representation of its ideas.
Assignment: Haiku: Basho and others. Due Friday, March 3, 12pm, noon. Two posts due.
NOTE that this time you are to do TWO posts.
NOTE: I will not accept entries later than the above date. You will have two posts due, and if you do not post BOTH items by that date/time, you will be considered absent for that online work, and that absence will, therefore, be counted as one of your two allowed online absences (please see the syllabus for allowed absences and penalties).
Also, if, for some reason, you cannot post, you still need to email me the post by the assigned time, so make sure everything works!
Post 1:
Within your groups, together, research ONE modern day “floating world” (red light district). Each group should choose a different district, and please try not to discuss a district another group has already discussed. Your district (either legal or illegal) can be from anywhere in the world, including this country. In your discussion, each group member, in 150-200 words is to discuss a different aspect of your chosen district. Aspects you might want to consider (but you can also choose your own): nature of this particular “floating world”; history of this district; the district’s connection to the existing culture; benefits and/or liabilities to the surrounding society; benefits/liabilities to the prostitutes; typical age/gender of the prostitutes and length of time in service, etc.
Post 2:
In about 100-150 words, comment on one member of another group’s post. As usual, discuss, in a substantive post, something specific.
Class Notes: Feb. 28th.
Haiku/ Basho
17th Century Japan: Much social change: civil wars, rise of the middle and warrior (samurai) class, commercial printing allowed a much larger readership.
Haiku (originally hokku) was first used as only an opening verse to longer, linked poems. Gradually, the shorter poem (5/7/5 syllable pattern) became more popular than the classically longer poems.
The haiku traditionally includes a “seasonal” word, to set the mood, and “cutting word” (usually at the end of the first or second line) which “cuts” the poem into two parts.
The intent of the haiku is to go from a concrete image to an abstraction (emotion or philosophical observation)
Matsuo Basho (most well-known of the haiku poets of the day)
1644-1694
Worked with mixing haiku with longer prose texts (called the haibun) especially in his travel diaries.
The Narrow Road to the deep North is one such diary.
His poetry is characterized by startling images and unusual use of more prosaic images.
Assignment: Saikaku: Due Friday, February 24, 12pm, noon. Two posts due.
NOTE that this time you are to do TWO posts.
NOTE: I will not accept entries later than the above date. You will have two posts due, and if you do not post BOTH items by that date/time, you will be considered absent for that online work, and that absence will, therefore, be counted as one of your two allowed online absences (please see the syllabus for allowed absences and penalties).
Also, if, for some reason, you cannot post, you still need to email me the post by the assigned time, so make sure everything works!
Post 1:
Saikaku, in his Life of a Sensuous Woman, the narrator (the “sensuous woman”) discusses various ways she reacts to a profession (arguably prostitution) she was thrust into at a very early age.
In your groups, each group member is to explore and analyze a different way the narrator deals with her various relationships with men. As evidence, you need to use two quotations, from three different parts (sections or tales) of the text, in each of your observations. Each group should include, then, three 150-200 word discussions of each pair of quotations.
As before, the second two responders in the group will need to refer to one of the other group member’s comment.
Each group member needs to sign his/her name to the section he/she wrote.
NOTE: One group member will need to actually post for the group, but make sure all group members’ names are clearly visible. Or, one group member can post, and the others can simply use the COMMENT button.
Post 2:
In about 100 words, each student (not just each group) must comment on one other group’s post. Always refer to something specific in your peer’s post.
Class Notes:
Ihara Saikaku 1642 –1693) Japanese poet/writer and creator of the so-called “floating world” genre of fiction, a fiction with settings in the pleasure districts of larger cities of Japan.
Saikaku’s Themes:
Contemporary Life Structures; Social Stratification; Roles of Women/Men; Economic/Social Injustice; Role of Dream/Vision; Idea of Journey; Idea of Hero.
Observation versus Formal Paragraph form:
The Pillow Book is a book of observations and profound thoughts, mostly used during the 990s and early 1000s in Japan. In a Pillow Book, one includes lists of all kinds, personal , thought-provoking ideas, opinions on current interesting events, or even bits of poetry.
Summary of Aristotle’s ideas on the tragic hero in Poetics
- a) The tragic hero is a character of noble stature and has greatness. This should be
readily evident in the play. The character must occupy a “high” status position but
must ALSO embody nobility and virtue as part of his/her innate character.
- b) Though the tragic hero is pre-eminently great, he/she is not perfect. Otherwise,
the rest of us–mere mortals–would be unable to identify with the tragic hero. We
should see in him or her someone who is essentially like us, although perhaps
elevated to a higher position in society.
- c) The hero’s downfall, therefore, is partially her/his own fault, the result of free
choice, not of accident or villainy or some overriding, malignant fate. In fact, the
tragedy is usually triggered by some error of judgment or some character flaw that
contributes to the hero’s lack of perfection noted above. This error of judgment or
character flaw is known as hamartia and is usually translated as “tragic flaw”
(although some scholars argue that this is a mistranslation). Often the character’s
hamartia involves hubris (which is defined as a sort of arrogant pride or over-
confidence).
- d) The hero’s misfortunate is not wholly deserved. The punishment exceeds the
crime.
- e) The fall is not pure loss. There is some increase in awareness, some gain in
self-knowledge, some discovery on the part of the tragic hero..
- f) Though it arouses solemn emotion, tragedy does not leave its audience in a
state of depression. Aristotle argues that one function of tragedy is to arouse the
“unhealthy” emotions of pity and fear and through a catharsis (which comes from
watching the tragic hero’s terrible fate) cleanse us of those emotions. It might
be worth noting here that Greek drama was not considered “entertainment,” pure
and simple; it had a communal function–to contribute to the good health of the
community. This is why dramatic performances were a part of religious
festivals and community celebrations.
Assignments Due: Feb. 17, 12pm, noon. One post due.
NOTE: I will not accept entries later than the above date. If you do not post, that absence will be counted as one of your two allowed online absences (please see the syllabus for rules about absences and penalties).
Post: Group Work. If you are not in a group, make sure you attach yourself to an existing one; you may contact classmates through our blog space.
In your groups, each member, in 150-200 words, needs to discuss how either Monkey or Tripitaka (or another character, if you feel it is appropriate) fits into the Heroic Journey model. When discussing the HJ model, it would be best to refer to one point of the model, and certainly not more than two points, and please don’t simply repeat what you discussed in our last post, on Feb. 10th. All group members must not discuss both characters, and in fact, it would be better for each member to focus on one character or another, but within the group, both characters need to be discussed, and you may assign these characters to your group as you see fit. As last time, the last two members to respond, need to refer to another member’s post. Each member is to use two quotes, from two different sections of the pdf, to defend your assertions.
ONLINE ASSIGNMENT DUE: FEB. 10, 12 pm, NOON. Both responses are due by this time, and remember, to get online credit for this week, you will need to complete both responses. I cannot accept any late responses.
Online Assignments Due: Feb 10, 12pm, noon.
NOTE: I will not accept entries later than the above date. If you do not post both items, you will be considered absent for that online work, and that absence will, therefore, be counted as one of your two allowed online absences (please see the syllabus for rules about absences and penalties).
Journey to the West , by Wu Cheng’En (Chapter 1, pp. 421-436, Vol. D, Norton Anthology).
Make sure you have read, as well, the introduction to Journey to the West in your Norton Vol. D, 421-423.
You will have two posts due: Friday, Feb. 10th, 12pm, noon.
Remember: YOU MUST BRING YOUR PRINT EDITION OF THE APPROPRIATE VOLUME OF NORTON TO EACH IN-CLASS SESSION, UNLESS OTHERWISE INSTRUCTED. NOT BRINGING YOUR TEXT WILL RESULT IN A PENALTY WHICH WILL AFFECT YOUR GRADE.
POST 1:
This will be a group dialogue. On Tuesday, Feb. 7, we will form groups of no more than three students. If you were not in class Tuesday, and were not assigned a group, then you must contact a peer and join that group. You can contact a peer through our blog site. If you were absent on Tuesday, and for some reason are unable to connect with a group, I will accept an individual post.
First, each group needs to decide on a theme, idea, or literary concept to connect to Monkey’s being given the name, Wake-to-Vacuity, at the end of Chapter 1. You may chose one of the six perfections, an element of the heroic journey (see the class notes below) or some other theme/idea/concept. No two groups may choose the same theme/concept/idea.
Then, EACH MEMBER of each group needs to discuss, in 150-200 words, the significance of Monkey being given the name, Wake-to-Vacuity, in light of the theme/idea/concept the group has chosen. In these individual discussions, each member needs to respond to another member of his or her group, and then build on that concept (please don’t just agree or disagree). Each member must also include at least two quotations from the text.
Remember: Each group member must write a response of 150-200 words, then sign your sign to your individual response. One group member should post all three responses together, in one post.
NOTES TO BE DISCUSSED IN CLASS TOGETHER ON FEB. 7TH
Assignment Sheet: First Critical Response Essay.
Assignment Sheet: Oral Assignment,
Sign-Up Sheet.
Journey to the West is essentially a text about a journey to Enlightenment. This version is a compilation from several oral retellings of this famous story, but the final version, the one we are reading, is usually attributed to Wu Cheng’En in 1592.
Siddartha-Gautama Buddha founded Buddhism (either 563 BCE or 480 BCE)
God beyond god, but the soul (individual identity) is an illusion. Nirvana is the end of this illusion. Enlightenment is realizing the illusion that we are individual selves and so are “empty” as individual selves. This is the idea of Buddhist “Emptiness”. We must empty ourselves of desire/fear to eliminate karma (the sense that our individual selves are real) and achieve nirvana.
Karma is the idea that “what goes around comes around”. We are responsible for every action. If I hurt someone, I will have to pay (spiritually) for that infraction.
Journey to Enlightenment: The Six Perfections:
These seem obvious? Think about it. How often are we all (or even any) of these things?
1) Generosity
2) Patience
3) Action
4) Meditation
5) Wisdom
6) Integrity
The Heroic Journey: Created by Joseph Campbell
The journey of the individual to reach his or her “bliss,” which is one’s realization of one’s true self, in order to achieve one’s true purpose and to help others find their own “bliss.”
Stages:
1) Ordinary World: Safe, but something isn’t working.
2) Call to Adventure
3) Refusal of the Call
4) Threshold: Point of letting go.
5) Special World
6) Trials: Facing new challenges
7) Helpers
8) Facing one’s darkest fear: The “Abyss”
Success: Finding one’s true sense of self, finding one’s bliss. One can now
return to help others on their own paths.
OR
Failure: Fall back to “old” strategies of old self.
or
Delusion.
or
Death.
The Return: The hero must return to the ordinary world to help others.
The Text:
- Characteristics of the Monkey King, in this first chapter of Journey to the West): The significance of his being created from stone; early initial personality traits, that significantly influences the story.
- The ordinary world.
- Traits of the “hero”.
- Significance of the quest.
- What is the true quest?
- Definitions of immortality.
Visual Examples/Interpretations of the Monkey King.
Assignment Due: Feb. 3, 12pm, noon.
Tao poetry responses. The Tao poems are found on this page, below these instructions.
Post 1: 150-200 words.
Choose one poem, and discuss, as specifically as you can, a major theme that seems to be emerging. In your discussion, quote at least three times, to defend your interpretation. Please choose a different poem from your classmates, if possible. If you do choose the same poem as others, make sure you are pointing to a different theme, and using different quotations.
Post 2: 100-150 words.
Respond, as specifically and meaningfully as you can, to one of your peer’s responses. Please respond to a peer who has chosen a different poem, than the one you chose to discuss.
Tao Te Ching
English and Feng Translation
Twenty-five
Something mysteriously formed,
Born before heaven and Earth.
In the silence and the void,
Standing alone and unchanging,
Ever present and in motion.
Perhaps it is the mother of ten thousand things.
I do not know its name
Call it Tao.
For lack of a better word, I call it great.
Being great, it flows
I flows far away.
Having gone far, it returns.
Therefore, “Tao is great;
Heaven is great;
Earth is great;
The king is also great.”
These are the four great powers of the universe,
And the king is one of them.
Man follows Earth.
Earth follows heaven.
Heaven follows the Tao.
Tao follows what is natural.
One
The Tao that can be told is not the eternal Tao.
The name that can be named is not the eternal name.
The nameless is the beginning of heaven and Earth.
The named is the mother of the ten thousand things.
Ever desireless, one can see the mystery.
Ever desiring, one sees the manifestations.
These two spring from the same source but differ in name; this appears as darkness.
Darkness within darkness.
The gate to all mystery.
Four
The Tao is an empty vessel; it is used, but never filled.
Oh, unfathomable source of ten thousand things!
Blunt the sharpness,
Untangle the knot,
Soften the glare,
Merge with dust.
Oh, hidden deep but ever present!
I do not know from whence it comes.
It is the forefather of the gods.
Ten
Carrying body and soul and embracing the one,
Can you avoid separation?
Attending fully and becoming supple,
Can you be as a newborn babe?
Washing and cleansing the primal vision,
Can you be without stain?
Loving all men and ruling the country,
Can you be without cleverness?
Opening and closing the gates of heaven,
Can you play the role of woman?
Understanding and being open to all things,
Are you able to do nothing?
Giving birth and nourishing,
Bearing yet not possessing,
Working yet not taking credit,
Leading yet not dominating,
This is the Primal Virtue.
Thirteen
Accept disgrace willingly.
Accept misfortune as the human condition.
What do you mean by “Accept disgrace willingly”?
Accept being unimportant.
Do not be concerned with loss or gain.
This is called “accepting disgrace willingly.”
What do you mean by “Accept misfortune as the human condition”?
Misfortune comes from having a body.
Without a body, how could there be misfortune?
Surrender yourself humbly; then you can be trusted to care for all things.
Love the world as your own self; then you can truly care for all things.
Sixteen
Empty yourself of everything.
Let the mind become still.
The ten thousand things rise and fall while the Self watches their return.
They grow and flourish and then return to the source.
Returning to the source is stillness, which is the way of nature.
The way of nature is unchanging.
Knowing constancy is insight.
Not knowing constancy leads to disaster.
Knowing constancy, the mind is open.
With an open mind, you will be openhearted.
Being openhearted, you will act royally.
Being royal, you will attain the divine.
Being divine, you will be at one with the Tao.
Being at one with the Tao is eternal.
And though the body dies, the Tao will never pass away.
Twenty-two
Yield and overcome;
Bend and be straight;
Empty and be full;
Wear out and be new;
Have little and gain;
Have much and be confused.
Therefore the wise embrace the one
And set an example to all.
Not putting on a display,
They shine forth.
Not justifying themselves,
They are distinguished.
Not boasting,
They receive recognition.
Not bragging,
They never falter.
They do not quarrel,
So no one quarrels with them.
Therefore the ancients say, “Yield and overcome.”
Is that an empty saying?
Be really whole,
And all things will come to you.