Tag Archives: Homer

Meeting Nightjohn and Discussing Heroes

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First period went to the computer lab to try out a forum we use occasionally in my class. We discussed heroism and Nightjohn.

Second and sixth periods read chapters two and three of Nightjohn. We got to see how Waller brought John onto the plantation and learned that John knows how to read. Afterward, we did some writing, sharing our initial impressions of the gruesome scene of John’s arrival and the conditions of slaves.

Fourth period finished up the presentations on mythology in contemporary culture. We’ll begin the Odyssey tomorrow.

Fourth period presentations

Homework
  • First period: work on forum site as necessary.
  • Second and sixth periods: none.
  • Fourth period:
    • read the introductory material for the Odyssey (1025-1033) and be prepared for a quiz on the material;
    • re-work the “Works Cited” page based on material presented at the end of class today.

Poetry and Homeric Similes

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First period finished up the mini-unit on sound devices and moved on to figurative language:

  • simile,
  • metaphor, and
  • personification.

We began by looking at one poem (“Concrete Mixers”) in pairs for examples of all three forms of figurative language.

First period at work

First period at work

We’ll be having a quiz tomorrow on the vocabulary terms in “Concrete Mixers”.

Second period worked on Homeric similes before starting with the second part of the Odyssey. Students discussed examples from the text; afterward, students worked in pairs to create their own examples.

Discussing Homeric Similes

Discussing Homeric Similes

Fourth and sixth periods had short tests on sound devices. After the test, we began working on figurative language.

Homework
  • First period: vocabulary quiz tomorrow on “Concrete Mixer” terms.
  • Second period: complete Homeric similes.
  • Fourth period: vocabulary quiz tomorrow on “Concrete Mixer” terms.
  • Sixth periods: none.

Poetry, the Odyssey, and a Mistaken Allusion

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First things first: I made a blunder during second period. We were looking at Odysseus’s journey to the underworld and his meeting with Tiresias. I mentioned the two famous victims of the underworld, Tantalus and Sisyphus; I elaborated on Sisyphus and the 20th-century French philosopher who designated him an “absurd hero.” I attributed this to Jean Paul Sartre.

551px-punishment_sisyphSisifo, olio su tela di Tiziano Vecellio

Sartre?! What was I thinking? Sartre is the heavily analytic, dense existentialist; it’s the man that wrote L’Être et le Néant (Being and Nothingness) — not exactly the easiest read in the world.

It was Camus who was more literary in his presentation of existenialism.

412px-johann_heinrich_fussli_063Johann Heinrich Füssli
Theresias erscheint dem Ulysseus während der Opferung

Naturally this is an oversimplification. Sartre wrote plays — No Exit and Nausea come to mind — as well as philosophical monographs. He wrote literature, but he wasn’t quite as literary as Camus.

All that aside, I wanted to make the correction. I’m sure Sartre would be flattered, but my philosophy professor from college would be horrified.

First period continued with sound devices; fourth and sixth periods began working with sound devices. All three periods working with sound devices are doing group work, and quite successfully, I might add.

Homework
  • First period: vocabulary handout.
  • Second period: five-panel storyboard of your vision of the meeting with Tiresias.
  • Fourth and sixth periods: write poem about your favorite animal.

Consonance, Alliteration, and the Lotus Eaters

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Second period began looking at the elements of the Coen brothers’ film Oh Brother, Where Art Thou? that are taken directly from the Odyssey. We’ll be watching five scenes, and we began today with the Coen brothers’ take on the Lotus Eaters.

First period worked on a rather lengthy quiz, then created signs in Microsoft Publisher for our bulletin board on poetry.

Fourth and sixth periods began poetry by looking at consonance and alliteration, two sound devices used in our first poems. Then we watched a short video in which a poet, Jacqueline Woodson, described her work as a poet.

Homework
  • First period: none.
  • Second period: read the section on the cyclops.
  • Fourth and sixth periods:
    • write a poem that describes someone;
    • complete “Works Cited” page (to be turned in tomorrow)

Citation Practice and Poetry

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First period began the poetry unit by looking at several elements of poetry, including:

  • consonnance
  • assonance
  • alliteration
  • simile
  • metaphor
  • personification

Second period began reading the Odyssey after we had a quiz on it.

Fourth and sixth periods completed their work on their “Works Cited” page.

No homework for any classes today.

Works Cited

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First period completed a second round of MAP testing. We were unable to do anything else today.

Second period began the Odyssey. We looked at elements of the epic form and discussed the background to the Odyssey.

Fourth and sixth periods worked on creating “Works Cited” pages.

Homework
  • First period: none
  • Second period:
    • vocabulary work;
    • study for quiz.
  • Fourth period: create “Works Cited” page for research project (project due Monday 8 December).
  • Sixth period: none.