Today in class we began our discussion about "A Psalm of Life" by Henry Longfellow. The class agreed that the poem is progress oriented, but also that the poem is about living in the present and abandoning worries of what is to come in the future. This is interesting because progress is based on the understanding of what is needed or could be needed and how to accomplish this for the future. Without looking into the future and what may be required, projects that lead to progress would be more dificult to imagine and progress would take a much longer period of time. Another point that we discussed was that the reason why people don't live in the present is because they are too busy worring about what progress they are going to make as individuals. Without planning ahead, people become more uneasy and therefore worry about the future rather than living in the moment. This means that, in today's society, progress and the present go hand in hand. This makes for an interesting paradox within the poem.
-Jen
Monday, April 27, 2009
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
April 21 minutes
William Cullen Bryant's Thanatopsis (a meditation upon death):
-Transcendental-- nature, very lush language
-about death and dying, positive aspects
-won't die alone, everyone dies, even if you are alone in life there will be company in death -- earth as a gigantic tomb
-calmness and comforting
-meditation clears out the badness (of souls)
-death is the great equalizer
-very Romantic, use of nature and imagery
To a Waterfowl:
-nature, duck is beautiful, has its place in the world
-the duck is a metaphor
-derives lesson to humans -- especially shown in last stanza
-the duck is wandering, everyone gets lost and eventually find our way
-fourth stanza: "Power".. could be God, fate, over soul, natural instinct, or yourself -- it is up to the reader to decide what the ultimate power is
-This is very transcendental; the value of "I" (the individual)
-power of natural instinct -- ducks fly south, people over think things (logic and reason)
-Romantics say logic and reason are unnecessary when you have natural instinct and emotion-- there are some things we are meant to do
-through studying things that only act on instinct you understand yourself
HW: Review readings from Longfellow
-Sammi
-Transcendental-- nature, very lush language
-about death and dying, positive aspects
-won't die alone, everyone dies, even if you are alone in life there will be company in death -- earth as a gigantic tomb
-calmness and comforting
-meditation clears out the badness (of souls)
-death is the great equalizer
-very Romantic, use of nature and imagery
To a Waterfowl:
-nature, duck is beautiful, has its place in the world
-the duck is a metaphor
-derives lesson to humans -- especially shown in last stanza
-the duck is wandering, everyone gets lost and eventually find our way
-fourth stanza: "Power".. could be God, fate, over soul, natural instinct, or yourself -- it is up to the reader to decide what the ultimate power is
-This is very transcendental; the value of "I" (the individual)
-power of natural instinct -- ducks fly south, people over think things (logic and reason)
-Romantics say logic and reason are unnecessary when you have natural instinct and emotion-- there are some things we are meant to do
-through studying things that only act on instinct you understand yourself
HW: Review readings from Longfellow
-Sammi
Monday, April 20, 2009
RVW - Diverging Themes
One of the major themes we covered in class recently was Rip's 20 year sleep and what it may show or symbolize. We agreed it showed that rip was in his own little world ignorant to the changes around him and caring very little. In the story he sees that all he once knew has changed and adapts to his new surroundings, content. I believe this may either be influenced by or a different take on events near the Romantic literary era.
The Romantic era was preceded the revolutionary war and the politic ridden neoclassical era. Events at the time, specifically the war, could be easily related to in the Romantic era. To the ordinary person either in Europe or in the United States the idea of someone disappearing for years at a time was probably all too familiar. In addition to this the idea of coming home to an entirely different place than one remembers may not have been too foreign to people either. The story told in Rip’s case seems to parallel this in many aspects but puts it into an entirely different context.
When one thinks of a war veteran they usually see someone courageously fighting for a cause or what they believe in. Rip’s character conflicts with the typical idea of a soldier in many ways. First of all he lacks a productive discipline and pursues his own desires rather than the groups. While a soldier is thought to believe in what he is fighting for and the political changes in the world, Rip tends to stay ignorant to the world around him. While a soldier loses his time to war, Rip lost his time to spirits (pardon the pun).
Despite the huge differences in character Rip is put into a situation similar to that or a returning soldier. To both coming home was like visiting a new place filled with old familiar faces.
Do you believe that the story of Rip was at all influenced by the historical context of the Romantic era or even a new theme diverging from it all together? Is the story free from this influence?
The Romantic era was preceded the revolutionary war and the politic ridden neoclassical era. Events at the time, specifically the war, could be easily related to in the Romantic era. To the ordinary person either in Europe or in the United States the idea of someone disappearing for years at a time was probably all too familiar. In addition to this the idea of coming home to an entirely different place than one remembers may not have been too foreign to people either. The story told in Rip’s case seems to parallel this in many aspects but puts it into an entirely different context.
When one thinks of a war veteran they usually see someone courageously fighting for a cause or what they believe in. Rip’s character conflicts with the typical idea of a soldier in many ways. First of all he lacks a productive discipline and pursues his own desires rather than the groups. While a soldier is thought to believe in what he is fighting for and the political changes in the world, Rip tends to stay ignorant to the world around him. While a soldier loses his time to war, Rip lost his time to spirits (pardon the pun).
Despite the huge differences in character Rip is put into a situation similar to that or a returning soldier. To both coming home was like visiting a new place filled with old familiar faces.
Do you believe that the story of Rip was at all influenced by the historical context of the Romantic era or even a new theme diverging from it all together? Is the story free from this influence?
Sunday, April 5, 2009
Rip Van Winkle
Some of the characteristics of Romanticism that are present in Rip Van Winkle are the common man, nature, and a focus on the individual. Irving attempts to make a story of the mythology of America (about a man who meets the ghost of Hudson and then sleeps for 20 years.)
Rip Van Winkle is described as a simple, good natured man and a kind neighbor. Rip acts as an example of the "common man." Throughout the story there are many depictions of nature- especially positive descriptions of the landscape. These depictions also include backwoods descriptions of the village, swamp, and woods. Rip also goes out into the woods to escape the tyranny of his wife (he goes seeking individual freedom.)
One additional thing I noted was a shift from the small village to a more urban environment when Rip came back from his sleep which seems to parallel the changes in America.
In the end of the story, Irving furthers the concept of American Mythology by having Rip tell his story to the neighbors establishing the idea that tale was one of oral tradition.
-Kelsey
Rip Van Winkle is described as a simple, good natured man and a kind neighbor. Rip acts as an example of the "common man." Throughout the story there are many depictions of nature- especially positive descriptions of the landscape. These depictions also include backwoods descriptions of the village, swamp, and woods. Rip also goes out into the woods to escape the tyranny of his wife (he goes seeking individual freedom.)
One additional thing I noted was a shift from the small village to a more urban environment when Rip came back from his sleep which seems to parallel the changes in America.
In the end of the story, Irving furthers the concept of American Mythology by having Rip tell his story to the neighbors establishing the idea that tale was one of oral tradition.
-Kelsey
Thursday, April 2, 2009
4/2/09
Today in class we continued our background history of Romanticism. We began with talking about what was going in Europe at the time. Napoleon was trying to take over Europe and Ireland had a terrible potato famine. This created a large movement of immigrants to America. The majority of these European immigrants were Catholic and the majority of Americans were Protestant so as you can imagine this didn't work out very well. This created a nostalgia for the old days. People wanted it to go back to when there were no railroads, no Catholics, and people only spoke English. Americans not only treated the Catholics terribly but also the Native Americans. Ralph Waldo Emerson spoke up for them in his writing. Next we discussed the Mexican War and how it was too far away for anyone to care about it. However, slavery was close and many people cared about it. Mainly the American writers. Most of them hated slavery and showed that in their writing. Sadly, the Civil War brought an end to Romanticism. Many of the writers died but Walt Whitman was the voice for the war because he was there. Most writers couldn't write about the war because they didn't experience it but Whitman was a nurse and he saw things that most people can't even imagine. He was one of the last writers of Romanticism.
-Callie
-Callie
Wednesday, April 1, 2009
Star Wars and Romanticsm
I'm not that knowledgeable about Star Wars but from what I have seen of it, I was able to recognize multiple parallels between the original trilogy and characteristics of American Romanticism. (corrections and elaborations are welcome!)
The American Romantics: the Jedis.
Romanticism emphasizes the elevation of the humble and the common man: in Star Wars, Luke Skywalker came from humble beginnings and was raised as a moisture farmer on a desert planet. He went on to become a powerful jedi master.
Rejoicing of nature: A major theme in Star Wars is the superiority of nature over technology. The Jedi strive to live in harmony with nature. They use technology but they do not rely on it as much as the rely on senses and feelings. On the other hand, those on the dark-side are very technologically dependent. Darth Vader is very machinne like; he has robotic limbs and relies on built-in life support. In one Star Wars scene, the Ewoks defeat the technologically advanced imperial troopers with sticks, stones, arrows and spears.
The oversoul in transcendentalsim unites everyone and everything: the force in Star Wars. The Force in Star Wars is omnipresent and bindsthe universe and everything and everyone together.
Do you see any more characteristics of the romantic period in Star Wars? or in any other movies?
- Julie S.
Class Notes 4/1
Today in class we went over more details about the outline that will be due for us. First of all, the outline is going to be a full sentence outline. That means each and every point has to be a full sentence. Also the important rules to remember are every A has a B and every 1 has a 2 for each point we make on the outline. The headings for the outline are as follows: I, A, 1, a, (1), (a), i. The roman numerals are multi paragraph ideas or could be just a single paragraph idea. The A is always the topic sentence for the paragraph. We went over three more important rules today in class.
1. Each point should be one sentence with the exception of quotes which can be up to 4 lines. If the quote is longer than 4 lines then it is a block quote and we would only write the first line and a ..."
2. Each of our quotes that we introduce need to be anchored by expressions such as as the author says and similar phrases.
3. The third point is that we need to put in a parathetical citation in for each of the quotes we put into our outline. You do this by putting (last name, pg #).
-Joe
1. Each point should be one sentence with the exception of quotes which can be up to 4 lines. If the quote is longer than 4 lines then it is a block quote and we would only write the first line and a ..."
2. Each of our quotes that we introduce need to be anchored by expressions such as as the author says and similar phrases.
3. The third point is that we need to put in a parathetical citation in for each of the quotes we put into our outline. You do this by putting (last name, pg #).
-Joe
Outline Notes
3/31
Today we started learning about the term paper outline. This outline is full sentence outline , which means that every point made in the outline must be a complete sentence. We learned about the basic structure of the Outline. (see diagram)
I. (multi-paragraph idea)
A. (topic sentence of a paragraph)
1.
a.
(1)
(a)
i.
(every line is indented further)
The roman numeral should demonstrate a multi-paragraph idea. The capital letter is a topic sentence of a paragraph. Every indent, indicates that the point beneath is a direct development of the previous point. so, the points build on each other. A rule that should be observed when completing the outline is : when there is an "A" there is ALWAYS a "B". This the same for numbers in which, when there is a 1 there is always a 2. Basically, a point should never be in isolation.
We also reviewed the Paragraph structure.
1. topic sentence
2. a sentence that developes the topic sentence
3. support-a quote, paraphrase, or summary that supports the topic sentence.
4. explanation-explains the support
5. conclusion/transition sentence
A rule concerning the paragraph is that you always MUST explain the support. A paragraph isn't necessarily 5 sentences, you could have multiple quotes, as long as they're explained.
Additional announcements
We also have homework concerning the term paper, the annotated bibliography. The purpose is to show the reader, a brief summary of each of your sources,(there was a handout showing examples, see Mr. Lazarow if you didn't get it). Each entry should start with the MLA citation of the work. Followed by a brief, 4-6 sentence, summary of the work and how you used it in your paper. The citations should be in alphabetical order. It should be typed using a 12-point font. Also like a MLA citation, the second line should indented, and then followed by the summary. Only 2 spaces should separate the citation and the summary. This is due next Tues.
Ashley Hill
Today we started learning about the term paper outline. This outline is full sentence outline , which means that every point made in the outline must be a complete sentence. We learned about the basic structure of the Outline. (see diagram)
I. (multi-paragraph idea)
A. (topic sentence of a paragraph)
1.
a.
(1)
(a)
i.
(every line is indented further)
The roman numeral should demonstrate a multi-paragraph idea. The capital letter is a topic sentence of a paragraph. Every indent, indicates that the point beneath is a direct development of the previous point. so, the points build on each other. A rule that should be observed when completing the outline is : when there is an "A" there is ALWAYS a "B". This the same for numbers in which, when there is a 1 there is always a 2. Basically, a point should never be in isolation.
We also reviewed the Paragraph structure.
1. topic sentence
2. a sentence that developes the topic sentence
3. support-a quote, paraphrase, or summary that supports the topic sentence.
4. explanation-explains the support
5. conclusion/transition sentence
A rule concerning the paragraph is that you always MUST explain the support. A paragraph isn't necessarily 5 sentences, you could have multiple quotes, as long as they're explained.
Additional announcements
We also have homework concerning the term paper, the annotated bibliography. The purpose is to show the reader, a brief summary of each of your sources,(there was a handout showing examples, see Mr. Lazarow if you didn't get it). Each entry should start with the MLA citation of the work. Followed by a brief, 4-6 sentence, summary of the work and how you used it in your paper. The citations should be in alphabetical order. It should be typed using a 12-point font. Also like a MLA citation, the second line should indented, and then followed by the summary. Only 2 spaces should separate the citation and the summary. This is due next Tues.
Ashley Hill
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