The finish line!

Over the weekend, pat yourselves on the back (but not too confidently... I wouldn't want it to go to your heads), because we're finishing the Iliad! So read to the end and then we have two projects:

1) Write a journal entry on all the different narrative terms as applied to the Iliad. So you'll be giving me a general overview, if you will, of the Iliad, in the following outline:

I. point of view

II. setting (all of it)

III. plot 

• a-exposition, 
  
• b-crisis, 
  
• c-climax, and 
  
• d-resolution
  

IV. elaborate on one of the following themes (1 paragraph): 

a) human responsibility vs. involvement of gods, 

b) the cause of suffering

d) necessity of courage vs. the limits of courage

Sound good? I'm looking forward to some fabulous journal entries! These do not have to be in paper format (with an intro/conclusion/thesis). Instead, you can simply put it in outline format, as per the above outline. On point IV, please do write in paragraph format, with a good topic sentence. 

If that's clear as mud, feel free to post follow-up questions for clarification. :)

See ya'll on Tuesday!

Gratzi!

Thanks for writing some spectacular poetic creations, ladies and gentlemen! I'm thoroughly enjoying my readings. :)

For this Thursday, please read down to chapter 24: "The slaying (or chopping up into little peices, according to Alicia) of Hector." We're so close to the finish line! woohoo! 

And thanks for all your terrific thoughts on creativity! More to come on that topic later. "Just you wait Henry Higgins, just you wait."  (guess what movie that's from?) See ya Thursday!

Have a fab weekend!

Over this weekend, please read Chapters 15-19 of the Iliad, and if you want, go ahead and finish it, because that's the assignment for Thursday! :)

And for your grammar assignment: please do all the odd problems of exercises A & B, on page 9. You'll be capitalizing fiends in no time!

It's EASY... right?

All you have to do for Thursday is read the assignment! No quiz, no journal entry, no grammar exercise! Who could ask for better? :)

So, your reading assignment is to read chapters 11-14: "The Battle on the Plain" through "The Story of Old Phoenix." You don't have to read "The Adventure of Diomed and Ulysses" unless you just want to read ahead. :)

See you guys on Thursday! I'll be there with grammar books in hand! Woohoo!

G.K. Chesterton on "Courage"

I love this quote from one of C. S. Lewis's contemporaries, G.K. Chesterton. And it goes swell with what we're reading right now! Think about this (if it doesn't make your brain turn upside down) and then think about it in relation to the Iliad. We'll discuss it more in class!

So here's the quote:

"Courage is almost a contradiction in terms. It means a strong desire to live, taking the form of a readiness to die. 'He that will lose his life, will save it,' is not a piece of mysticism for saints and heroes. It is a piece of everyday advice for sailors or mountaineers. It might be printed in an Alpine guide or a drill book. This paradox is the whole principle of courage; even of quite earthly or quite brutal courage. A man cut off by the sea may save his life if he will risk it on the precipice. He can only get away from death by continually stepping within an inch of it. A soldier surrounded by enemies, if he is to cut his way out, needs to combine a strong desire for living with a strange carelessness about dying. He must not merely cling to life, for then he will be a coward, and will not escape. He must not merely wait for death for then he will be a suicide, and will not escape. He must seek his life in a spirit of furious indifference to it; he must desire life like water and yet drink death like wine."

More battles:

So, we talked about how Homer focuses on individuals within the battle in order to draw out qualities of heroism, while at the same time, relating both the progress of the battle and the participation of the gods. This is an intentional choice of perspective that helps to make the story more fascinating and relatable to his readers.

So, we're going to keep reading more of these accounts over the weekend! Start with Chapter 8, "Of Glaucus and Diomed," and read down to (but not including), Chapter 11, "The Battle on the Plain."

Also, don't forget we have a QUIZ!!!

Please look over the following vocabulary words and their meanings to prepair for the quiz:

• Plot: Exposition, Crisis, Climax, Resolution
  
• Point of view: 1st-person, 3rd-person omniscient, 3rd-person limitted, objective 3rd-person
  
• Theme
  
• Setting
  
• Style
  
• Tone
  
• Symbol
  
• Allegory
  

Feel free to help each other if someone didn't catch one of the above definitions! Have a terrific weekend! Maybe enjoy this weather and do your homework outside! :) See you guys on Tuesday.

On Bravery

Haha! Since we're talking about bravery, I thought I'd post an example of what Paris might have thought about it. :)

Thanks for a great class today! You guys have great questions and thoughts, and so far, I'm quite excited about your perceptive reading. Keep up the good work! :D

So, for this Thursday, please read the next chapter, entitled "Concerning Other Valient Deeds." 

Also, for your first Journal Entry, I'd like to hear what you think:

• Do you think that the story itself values bravery as a quality? If so, or if not, what clues in the story lead you to this conclusion? 
  

Your answer should be at least 2 good paragraphs if typed, or about a page, handwritten.

Over the weekend

Don't forget! Read up to, but not including, the chapter entitled "Concerning Other Vallient Deeds."

Here's a question to kick around in the comments section: If you were going to tell the story from the perspective of one of the characters, which character would you choose?

See ya Tuesday!

Thursday Assignment

The link to the Iliad is to the left. Again, let me know if you have problems trying to print it. The version I've posted is as follows:

The Iliad for Boys and Girls, Told From Homer in Simple Language (New York: The Macmillan Company, 1929), by Alfred John Church

If you're looking for a hard copy at the library, according to the catalogue, there are several copies at different locations. Here's a link!

So, for the assignment: Please read the first three chapters (down to "The Duel of Paris and Menelaus"). And don't forget to post a comment on who your favorite character is so far and why! (I know... it might be hard at this point, since you don't know much about them yet, but be creative!) 

See you guys Thursday!

Taylor Mali on speaking with conviction

Here's the video I was going to show you guys in class! Enjoy!