Final reminders for the Regents

• The exam is on June 14, at 12:00. Be there at 11:45.
• Be sure to study the "Game Plan" packet before you go into the Regents exam.
• When working on the Part II you need to be sure you use 3 sources.
• When working with quotes, you should use the following steps: introduce, quote, explain and analyze (so what? significance to claim or sub claim articulated very specifically).  Consider the work done around the quote below.

According to Joe Schmoe's article "Wild", young men's desire to perform risky behavior is cultural. He argues, "In the absence of a universal coming of age ritual for young men, they tend to create their own challenges, many of which include risky behavior." Schmoe indicates that the need of young men to be recognized as adults is driven by a modern industrial societies' lack of such cultural rituals. Chris McCandless, having performed the only ritual available to him, succeeding at college, felt unfulfilled and sought more strenuous tests of his manhood. By hitchhiking to the wilds of Alaska, burning his money and abandoning society, McCandless believed that he could prove his strength wits and resilience.

Crucible discussion questions to prepare for next class

Discussion Questions

1. What is the state of the community at the beginning of the play, as the play progresses and at the end of the play? How are insiders and outsiders defined during these times?
2. What elements existed or were created within the community to allow Abigail and the other girls to gain power?
3. What role did fear play in creating authority? How did some people choose to resist authority? Who are they and what form did their resistance take?
4. John and Abigail’s affair serves as a catalyst for the events of the play, yet historically no such affair ever took place. Why did Arthur Miller use his dramatic license to invent this relationship?
5. Provide evidence for the theme of  The Crucible that demonstrates that certainty can be dangerous.
6. Judge Danforth says, “a person is either with this court or he must be counted against it, there be no road between” (Act 3, Scene 1). What happens to a society where there is no “road between”?
7. At the end of the play, John Hale has changed his opinion of the trials. What brings about this change?
8. John Proctor comes very close to admitting guilt so that he may live, and it’s at this moment that Reverend Parris tells him that his refusal to confess is vanity. John could lie, and confess, and stay alive for his wife and children. Do you agree with Parris?

9.      . Arthur Miller has been quoted as saying “The tragedy of The Crucible is the everlasting conflict between people so fanatically wedded to this orthodoxy that they could not cope with the evidence of their senses.” What does he mean b y“this orthodoxy”? What is “the evidence of their senses”? Do you agree that this is the basic conflict?

 

10. As a socially conscious writer, Miller intended this play as a comment on McCarthyism. What are the parallels between the incidents Miller dramatizes and the acts of Senator McCarthy in the 1950s?

 

Block 1 Post your questions here

Hi everyone,

Be sure to post the questions that you would like to discuss in the comment section. You need to post 2 or 3 question, no duplicates please. We will be discussing Acts I and II, so the questions can address anything in the reading so far.

Due for the week of April 18-22

• On Tuesday you need to bring your completed read/write sheets and your completed Part II outline. We will be completed the Regents Part II as a test essay.
• On Thursday 4/21, students will present their This I Believe speeches to the class. The homework is to practice the speech in front of an audience at least once every day between now and Thursday.

Have a nice weekend!

Reminders as the Quarter draws to a close

The last day to turn in late work for 3rd quarter is April 8,

The last day of the quarter is April 15,

Papers and long assignments completed after April 8 will be reflected in quarter 4 averages. This allows students how are ill or absent to complete work, and it allows time for the careful assessment of student work.

This I Believe Drafts due on Friday (3 copies!!)

This I Believe Essay-Writing Instructions from NPR

We invite you to contribute to this project by writing and submitting your own statement of personal belief. We understand how challenging this is—it requires such intimacy that no one else can do it for you. To guide you through this process, we offer these suggestions:

Tell a story: Be specific. Take your belief out of the ether and ground it in the events of your life. Consider moments when belief was formed or tested or changed. Think of your own experience, work, and family, and tell of the things you know that no one else does. Your story need not be heart-warming or gut-wrenching—it can even be funny—but it should be real. Make sure your story ties to the essence of your daily life philosophy and the shaping of your beliefs.

Be brief: Your statement should be between 350 and 500 words. That's about three minutes when read aloud at your natural pace.

Name your belief: If you can't name it in a sentence or two, your essay might not be about belief. Also, rather than writing a list, consider focusing on one core belief, because three minutes is a very short time.

Be positive: Please avoid preaching or editorializing. Tell us what you do believe, not what you don't believe. Avoid speaking in the editorial "we." Make your essay about you; speak in the first person.

Be personal: Write in words and phrases that are comfortable for you to speak. We recommend you read your essay aloud to yourself several times, and each time edit it and simplify it until you find the words, tone, and story that truly echo your belief and the way you speak.

For this project, we are also guided by the original This I Believe series and the producers' invitation to those who wrote essays in the 1950s. Their advice holds up well and we are abiding by it. Please consider it carefully in writing your piece.

In introducing the original series, host Edward R. Murrow said, "Never has the need for personal philosophies of this kind been so urgent." We would argue that the need is as great now as it was 50 years ago. We are eager for your contribution.

 

Rough Draft  (3 copies) due:

 

 

Final Copy with peer review sheet due:

Homework Block 5

Many people puzzled over the meaning of McCandless' life, and there is a website devoted to people like  us who are Go to the Chris McCandless web page: http://www.christophermccandless.info/


Choose an article that you would like to read pertaining to McCandless. Then write a comment in which you identify the article you have read and explain your response to it. Be specific (use details and quotes from the materials you've read). Then, respond to a classmate's comment using specific details.

Remember all comments and responses need to be respectful and specific.

This assignment is worth 10 points and will be graded on its completeness, specificity, insightfulness and quality of writing.