Les élèves absents le 11/04 pour le test de vocabulaire + mugshots, rattraperont avec un devoir différent, mardi 30/04, dès 8h.
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Below is the document you must study for Tuesday, April 30th. Read the passage carefully, and answer the questions in your notebooks. I will give you the photocopies in class, so there is no need for you to print.
Your major vocab-mugshot-one-question-about "The Open Window" test is on Thursday, April 11th.
WE WILL BE IN ROOM A 339. 1) Thoughtful Thursday: Describe a scary place you know well. 2) Thursday Mugshot: In The Scarlet Ibis, a short story by James Hurst, a boy named Doodle is symbolically connected to a exotic bird the author did this to show the beuty of a fragile life. The bird whipt it's wings wildly as it flew thru heavy unrelenting rain and wind. 3) Poe - Here is the video you must watch to fill in the worksheet for Tuesday, April 9th (grab the sheet from your classmates who took one for you): On a sheet of paper, answer the following questions... AS THOROUGHLY and HONESTLY as possible!
1) How many books have you used so far (= jusquà présent) for the reading in class? 2) Have you enjoyed "Tranquil Tuesday" (TT)? If so, have you looked forward to it every Tuesday? >> Be honest! 3) If you did not: why not? OR: WHAT did you not like about it? 4) What's your take on (= What do you think about) the note-taking task after reading? Do you find it helpful or constructive in any way? 5) What do you suggest, in order to make TT any better? READ the following notes and make a copy in your notebooks.
QUESTIONS: 1) Consider the characterization of Vera: would you say she is a manipulative, mean girl, or is she just playing a silly, innocent game? How is she a good actress as well as a good story-teller? >> Focus on her age and lifestyle. Fifteen-year-old Vera not only has a vivid imagination and mischievous (= espiègle, malicieux = espiègle et taquin, mais pas forcément méchant) nature, but she has a wild (= unbridled = débridé, déchaîné) sense of humor. Her purpose in making up the story (= inventer l'histoire) is to create the reaction she evokes in the visitor. She is probably just bored and craves (= a très envie de) a bit of entertainment (= divertissement). Her age: she is 15 = She is mature enough to be credible when she appears to be "self-possessed" and calm, and she is also young enough to be terror-stricken (= terrified). She really is young enough to still want to play pranks (= jouer des tours). 2) Telling stories - Gothic literature and Fantasy: Focus on the last line: “Romance at short notice was her speciality.”, line 95. >> cf. all the elements of Gothic literature in the last paragraph. ‘I expect it was the spaniel,’ said the niece calmly; ‘he told me he had a horror of dogs. He was once hunted into a cemetery somewhere on the banks of the Ganges by a pack of pariah dogs, and had to spend the night in a newly dug grave with the creatures snarling and grinning and foaming just above him. Enough to make any one lose their nerve.’ 3) How does Saki deceive his readers? First, we may be tricked in the same way as Framton, by Vera. Second, there are elements in the narrative, that manipulate the reader: >> consider the names: Vera for veracity Nuttel for nuts, crazy Sappleton for simpleton and sappling >> Show how we have insight into Framton’s state of mind about the situation. Lines 55-56: "She rattled on cheerfully about the shooting and the scarcity of birds, and the prospects for duck in the winter. To Framton it was all purely horrible. He made a desperate but only partially successful effort to turn the talk on to a less ghastly topic; he was conscious that his hostess was giving him only a fragment of her attention, and her eyes were constantly straying past him to the open window and the lawn beyond . It was certainly an unfortunate coincidence that he should have paid his visit on this tragic anniversary." >> The purpose of the writer here is to make Framton seem to be a lucid and reliable character. If he sees a ghost, then there must be a ghost! BONUS QUESTION for Thursday: What can you say about the symbolism of the open windows? 1) Tranquil Tuesday : don't forget your books in English!
2) Answer the following questions about the short story "The Open Window": a) Consider the character of Vera : would you say that she is a manipulative, mean girl, or is she just playing a silly, innocent game? You need to justify your answer. b) Focus on the last line ("Romance at short notice was her specialty", line 95. >> Show how she is inspired by stories she's read when she tells her last lie about Mr. Nuttel's reason for disappearing so suddenly. c) "The tragedy": how does Vera build up tension? d) How does Saki deceive (= trompe) his readers? For Tuesday, copy the following notes into your notebooks, to conclude on the point we were making in class. Make sure you use a dictionary if need be.
In part two, the aunt talks about her husband and brothers who are out shooting/hunting. As for Framton, he talks about his health/ailments/nerves. >> Characterization - Portrait of the aunt? Contrast with Framton? She seems to be cheerful; she is making small talk (= parler de tout et de rien, de choses et d'autres, faire la conversation). She appears relaxed, but she also keeps looking through the window. She seems to be expecting the men back any minute. On the contrary, Framton… is extremely nervous and horrified by her conversation about dead men (line 56). He certainly thinks she is totally (= utterly) mad/raving mad/insane/nutty. He drones on (= radoter, blablater, poursuivre) about his various ailments (= maux) even though/although she is clearly not interested (line 68). Below is the short story you must read during the holiday. Under the story, you will find questions that you must answer, in your notebooks.
I. The characters - write down any information you have, or any comment you can make, about them : - Vera: > information: > adjectives used to describe her: > comments: - Framton Nuttel: > information: > adjectives used to describe him: > comments: >> How do the two characters get along? (cf. ll.69-70) - Mrs. Sappleton: > information : > adjectives used to describe her: > comments: II. What is the "great tragedy"? (>> comment on « Her great tragedy », line 23) III. Why is the window open? Recap a brief written presentation of these pictures. Be thoughtful (syntax, conjugation, link words...)!
Here are the corrections:
Don't forget you have a test on Tuesday, February 13th, on The Curious Incident Of the Dog In the Night-Time. NO need to bring your copies of the book.
1) Audio recording on usb key / flash drive
2) Go HERE and read the article for preparation of writing a synthesis. Write a mini saga : The Curious Incident Of the Dog In the Night-Time in fifty (50) words exactly.
This will be copied onto a poster which you must design as artistically as possible. It could be considered as a new cover for the novel. The finished product must be handed in on Tuesday, February 6th. Tuesday, January 15th: - Mugshot n°5: - Extract from chapter 157: We made lots of notes about the function/role of the letters as well as about the themes: you need to catch up (= rattraper) with notes from a classmate.
- We established new dates: >> mugshot test: on Tuesday, Jan. 23rd. There IS a test, but you ALSO have Tranquil Tuesday, so do not forget your personal book. Moreover, do not forget to bring The CIOTDITNT ! >> "Speed booking": on Thursday, Jan. 25th. We have postponed (= repoussé) this so that you may prepare it better. You should use the notes you copied into your notebooks to help you work on Tranquil Tuesday readings. WELCOME to our class, Lucas! 1) We watched this video today: >> You had to write a presentation and summary of it using some key words... actually, using only ten of the key words from the board. Yoy will find a picture of the board and words on "the group". >> You also had to answer the following question: "How are / To what extent are Daniel and Christopher comparable?" I will hear some of your summaries and answers on Thursday. Make sure you go over them. 2) We will be in room D105. Bring cookies and sweet things, if you wish! No drinks, though... We will have fun and games! Do bring your notebooks, because there is some work planned, too!
Random things to consider:
- There is some confusion as regards/concerning the function/job/role of the main character: >> narrator? publisher? writer? author? protagonist? Deducing from the footnotes (pages 5/22), we understand that this is deliberate : the author (Mark Haddon of course) wants to confuse the reader. - In the opening chapters, there is an almost constant to-and-fro between "I like" and "I don't like". >> Can you draw a list of feelings associated with "I like", and those associated with "I don't like"? In contrast with this simple depiction of his feelings, he is knowledgeable and capable of very precise and clear explanations. - Christopher can only report what he sees and how he interprets it. Yet/However, he finds it hard to read other people's emotions. >> How does the reader deal with this and work out (= manage to understand) the other characters' feelings? >>> This contributes to making us question the narrator: is he a reliable narrator? (Can you be a credible narrator when you have superstitious beliefs? >> cf. p. 31, chap. 47) - Structure: The chapters alternate between what is happening to Christopher in the story in the present, and information about him, or memories of the past. >> Why did Mark Haddon choose this alternating structure? >>>Why is it useful to have background information about Christopher? >> Christopher says "This is a murder mystery novel" (p.5)*, "This will not be a funny book" (p.10), "I do not / cannot tell lies" (p. 24), "everything I have written here is true". >>> All in all, we can say at the end of these opening chapters, that many elements work together to confuse the reader. Contrary to what Christopher seems to appreciate above all else, things are not straightforward at all. * What kind of story do you think it will be? - crime fiction? - story about growing up? - story about an unusual boy's life? - story for adults? for children? 1) Consider the last three chapters of Part 1 = chapters 43, 47, & 53. = His mother is dead (verb 'to be' + adjective). She died (verb 'to die') of a heart attack, two years earlier. = In chapter 43, the author uses a literary device called an analepsis (= flashback) (≠ a prolepsis / flash-forward) >> How does Christopher describe his mother’s death? Does he have all of the information? What is notable or surprising about his recollections? 2) Here are the two links for you to learn the proper (= appropriate) terminology when talking about autism: Read the two articles, and take a few notes if necessary.
1) There is no LLCER English class tomorrow, Thursday, Nov. 16th. Indeed, I will be attending a conference/discussion on bullying (= le harcèlement).
2) Your homework on the literary genres with the picture of book covers (see previous post) is for next Tuesday. 3) NEXT TUESDAY: >> BRING your copies of The Curious Incident Of the Dog In the Night-Time. >> BRING your notebooks for Thoughtful Thursday: "Tranquil Tuesday" will exceptionally be transformed into "Thoughtful Tuesday"! >>> No personal reading next Tuesday. |