Today, we began looking at To Kill a Mockingbird in earnest. We looked at the opening pages to determine how the author developed a Southern voice. Remember first that voice comes from

1. Diction (word choice)
2. Syntax (how sentences are formed)
3. Topical concerns (what it’s about)

We determined that Lee uses several tricks to create a distinctly Southern voice:

1. Long sentences
2. Diversions
3. Dated language
4. Folksy-sounding language
5. Exaggeration/embellishment
6. Understatement/deprecation
7. Importance of family,
8. Sense of community,
9. Importance of religion,
10. Importance of time, place, and the past
11. Allusions

We began marking the text to see just how prevalent these techniques are.

Homework

• English I Honors: 
  • complete the assessments of the Romeo and Juliet project;
  • complete the phrase work;
  • be prepared to complete and turn in the project work after you get your feedback (remember: you can earn extra points by turning it in Friday);
  • read through chapter 4 of To Kill a Mockingbird by Friday.