I’ve been looking over your journals in class this week and shared some ideas about organization with each of you. I will ask for them periodically, but if you ever make progress and want to share, just show me before class. Remember that your current grade can always jump up if you show progress, but your journal is graded holistically; if you only have vocab from the last half of the novel, your best grade will be 3/5. Watch your progress in the grade book and adjust your habits accordingly.

The reading schedule is straightforward—a chapter a night:

Read this (by this date)
Front cover–chapter 2 (Monday 14th)
Chapter 3 (Tuesday 15th)
Chapter 4 (Wednesday 16th)
Chapter 5 (Thursday 17th)
Chapter 6 (Friday 18th)
Chapter 8 (Monday 21)
etc.

We began Frankenstein last night. Our goal in this section of the course is to better understand the Romantic era and the novel’s place within it. To this end, your prompt:

How does Mary Shelley’s argument compare/contrast with the arguments of contemporary works?

When put this way it is fairly straightforward. Indeed, you’ve already practiced this kind of comparison in your previous writings (rebellion and poetry). However, this will take it to another level—we will read contemporary works (poems, philosophy, short stories), discover and compare major themes, and use them to better understand Mary Shelley’s larger work.

If you’re interested in the Prometheus myth (or mythology in general) check out Theoi.com for the most comprehensive collection of stories on the ‘net.

I’m checking journals today, but may not get to all of them. If you need a refresher on what I’m looking for, check out this post from a while back or look over the journal rubric handout I gave you at the beginning of the year.

You should read (and journal) through chapter two by Friday.

I gave you each feedback on your journals/annotations/essay drafts in class today. If you’re having trouble making the literary connections (the motifs we’ve been discussing in class), write a list of those we’ve discussed (light imagery, creation, hubris, etc.) and record any quotations you come across that match the motif. Once you have a list, ask yourself why the authors would repeat these elements, or how one author’s use contrasts with another’s. I’m interested in what you’ll have to discuss on Tuesday.

For the record: we are reading through chapter 19 over the break.

We spent Monday looking over your essays, looking for shared connections and discussing composition techniques. I (re)emphasized the importance of outlining, as these essays are going to become part of a larger synthesis later.

Tuesday and Wednesday were devoted to application of the themes and motifs (the sublime, light imagery, creation stories, the beautiful, hubris, etc.) that we found in Frankenstein to other works found in your “Frankensources” packet. By taking copious notes in your journals along the way, you have begun writing your papers in earnest without even realizing it; those patterns you’ve discovered will become major points supported by the quotations you’ve noted. Good times.

Read through the works we discussed today and yesterday and journal through chapter 17 for tomorrow.

So that was epic. We wrapped up Hamlet in class today. Give yourself a pat on the back; you’ve just annotated one of the greatest works of Western literature. Now comes the fun part: telling others what you’ve learned. Read the rest of this entry »