British Literature Class Notes -- Week 10 (March 27)

Greetings!

It was good to be back with this great group of students after a week off.  

We're taking a two week foray into poetry, which some students enjoy and others tolerate.  Poetry is an "acquired taste" that requires more time and effort in order to appreciated it.  We took time this week to "unpack" a couple of notable pieces of Romantic poetry.  

William Blake's two poems of the same name, "The Chimney Sweep" (Songs of Innocence) and "The Chimney Sweep" (Songs of Experience), occupied the first part of our class. We discussed the socio-economic situations of early London and some ideas about hope.

Another poem that we discussed briefly was William Wordsworth's "Tintern Abbey."  This poem is a prime example of the Romantic's tendency to equated nature with the inner life of the mind, emotions, and spirituality.

The poem that consumed most of our class time was John Keats's "Ode on a Grecian Urn."  This poem is a good representation of Romantic poetry.  The poet is preoccupied with the figures frozen in time, yet not "frozen" because anyone who observes this urn can imagine any kind of story to go with the pictures on the urn.  As both scenes and emotions are imagined, the poet explores truth and beauty.

Next week we will read poetry of the Victorian era.  Though these are less abstract, they are rich in layers of meaning.  My hope is that we shall enjoy "unpacking" these poems, too.

Assignments for Next Week:

--- Read the poems from the handout, especially "Lady of Shallot," "My Last Duchess," and the poems by Edward Lear, Lewis Carroll, and Gerard Manley Hopkins.

-- Be ready to discuss these poems

This week's blog

Class Notes

The Victorian Era Literature

Three Characteristics of Victorian Literature

The Lady of Shallot

My Last Duchess

Poetry by Gerard Manley Hopkins

Poetry of Edward Lear

Poetry of Lewis Carroll

Have a great weekend,

Mrs. Prichard

British Literature Class Notes -- Week 9 (March 13)

Greetings!

I hope you're enjoying your "Spring Break."  With a winter storm in the forecast, it doesn't seem very Spring-like.  My apologies for the lateness of these Class Notes.  An educational conference this weekend messed with my schedule, and I'm a bit behind on my "to do" list.

Last week was our last opportunity to discuss Great Expectations, and I was so impressed with the insights and comments from this group of students.  I especially appreciated the various discussion questions that they brought to class.  "Unpacking" a good piece of literature is one of my favorite activities, and it was a pleasure doing it with students who were willing to think hard and to explore the themes and characters of this Dickens classic.  

Our next British literature adventure includes poetry from the Romantic period.  Most high school students might not pick up the works of Wordsworth, Coleridge, Shelley, or Keats and read them for "fun." I'm hoping that as we dig into the poems by these men they will appreciate the artistry of the poet and possibly, even, enjoy them.  As I mentioned in class, they should read all of the poems, but we will, in this order, discuss the following pieces:

"Ode on a Grecian Urn"  (Keats)

"The AEolian Harp" (Coleridge)

"Hymn to Intellectual Beauty" (Shelley)

"Tintern Abbey"  (Wordsworth)

Following our foray into Romantic period poetry, we will be reading Victorian poetry.  We're nearing the end of the term and our final two pieces of literature are fairly short:  Pygmalion and 39 Steps.

Assignments for Next Class (3/27):

-- Read the poetry

-- Answer the questions on the study guide for these poems.

This week's links:

Class Notes

Responding to Romantic Poetry

Poetry of John Keats

Poetry of Shelley

Poetry of Byron

Poetry of Coleridge

Poetry of Burns

Poetry of Wordsworth

Poetry of Blake

Romantic Period Literature Characteristics

Interpreting Poetry

Have a great break!

Mrs. Prichard

British Literature Class Notes -- Week 8 (March 6)

Greetings!

We had a wonderful class again, full of lively conversation with insightful comments about our book, Great Expectations.  We are 3/4's of the way through the book, and though it's hard to keep up with the reading, the twists and turns of the plot make the book interesting. We had a list of 10 questions from the students on the board for our discussion. 

We will finish the book this week and discuss the ending.  Following this book, we will  be reading poetry from the Romantic and Victorian periods. 

Assignments for Next Week:

-- Finish Great Expecations

(Note:  if you are behind in your reading, you might want to pick up with the story at page 286 and read to the end.)

-- Write 3 discussion questions to share with the class.

This Week's Blog

Class Notes

Have a great weekend!

Mrs. Prichard

British Literature Class Notes -- Week 7 (February 27)

Greetings!

We had a wonderful discussion this week, but that's what I have begun to anticipate with this group of students.

Each week the students bring discussion questions for the assigned reading portions.  Our current selection, Great Expectations, is a bit challenging; the assignment portions are lengthy and the style can be difficult.  My suggestion to them was that they find some bigger chunks of time for reading.  

For next week, we'll be working through another quarter of the book.  

Assignment for Next Week:

-- Read p. 91 - 286

-- Bring 3 discussion questions 

This week's blogs & links:

1946 version of Great Expectations

1992 BBC version of Great Expectations

Class Notes

Have a great weekend!

Mrs. Prichard