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Day Sixteen / 6.15.10

Today we turned in our Feminine Essays. Then we discussed poetry. The handout for the discussion is here. We listened to a song by The Cardigans. We discussed Roethke and Miller, then we read Stevens' "Thirteen Ways." We looked at sunflowers. And then we wrote poems about sunflowers (during this time, the song we listened to was by Yann Tiersen). Finally, we read Sharon Olds, "On the Subway."

We also planned our party. Here's the party favor assignments:
PERIOD 0
PERIOD 2
PERIOD 4

Day Fifteen / 6.14.10

Today we had a Vocabulary Quiz (32/33). Then we quickly covered the rubrics for the Feminine Essay.

Rubrics Are Here!

Here are the rubrics for the two essays. They're a little different from the Iceberg, so be sure to check them out.

Rubric for the Creative Story

Rubric for the Analytical Essay

Go and be merry! May your joy be complete!

Day Fourteen / 6.10.10

Today we went over the Vocab words for Sections 32/33. There is a quiz on Monday.

Then, we went over how to write a Creative Story. My humble guide, How to write a Creative Story, is here. If you're interested in reading my rough draft of the Creative Iceberg, it's here.

After that, we had a discussion on the ethics of bullfighting and our involvement in animal rights.
The handout from class is here.

If you're interested in animal rights, how we eat, and learning more about where your food comes from, I highly recommend Michael Pollan's work, or the film Food Inc. Also highly regarded is the film Earthlings, narrated by Joaquin Phoenix. And if you'd like to find out about your local food markets, the Orange County Farmer's Market website is here (Laguna Niguel's is Sundays from 9:00am-1:00pm).

Day Thirteen / 6.8.10

Today we talked briefly about the Stickmen/women. Then, we went through (one option of) how to write an analytical essay. How to write an Analytical Essay is right here. And if you want to look at my rough draft of the Iceberg Analytical, it's here. After that, we covered the last 4 chapters of the book (14-17) by looking at war imagery during the fiesta and by comparing the rise of Cohn to the fall of Romero.

HW: Read Chapter 18 in The Sun Also Rises.

Day Twelve / 6.3.10

Today we took SAR Quizzy-Poo #2. Then, we watched the first half of the SAR movie.

For homework, please read through Ch. 16/17 and complete your stickman.

Day Eleven / 6.2.10

Today we took Vocabulary Quiz 30/31. Then I handed back papers and we briefly discussed our future. Some things to remember:

1. If you're not happy with your essay grade, you can rewrite your essay for full credit.
2. If you want extra credit, you can write both of the Feminine Essays (creative and analytical). Please come talk to me if you'd like to take this option.
   

And here's the much anticipated Sun Also Rises Quiz #2 helper. We'll take Quizzy-Poo #2 at the start of class, then watch the first half of The Sun Also Rises movie.

Day Ten / 5.27.10

If you're looking for the essay information, you're in the right place. We like to call it the Papa's Feminine Side assignment.

Today we read a few of our nature poems, then turned them in. If you want to learn more about Wendell Berry, click here. Here's one poem, from your classmate:
Fishing (in the voice of Jake)

The games of love and lust wear the world thin
And dilute wholesome feelings to shadow and mirage.

But the roar of the river is true and clear.
I sit and watch the smooth surface churn into white spray and mist
And feel the friendly flicker of water drops along the breeze
In between the old beeches,
Their leaves filter the sunlight to the forest
And bathe the grass below with green warmth.

I relax in the clean simplicity
And feel whole again.

Next, we briefly covered Chapter 13's major events, then had a discussion on what is aficion/an aficionado? We discussed different athletes, actors, and public personalities, trying to generate an idea of what aficion would encompass in our world today.

Below, Ingmar Bergman, my idea of an aficionado.


Finally, we reviewed the vocabulary words (Quiz, 6.1.10), and started on the Stickman Activity.

Day Nine / 5.25.10

Today we had a Socratic seminar on Freud and what drives/motivates us. Here's the handout that we looked at to contribute to the discussion. After that, we talked briefly about the book, then we went outside. Outside we discussed Wendell Berry's nature poems. Finally, we started working on writing our own nature poems, from the perspective of Bill and/or Jake.

Homework: Read Chapter 13, finish Nature poem.

Day Eight / 5.20.10

Today we went over the poem Tintern Abbey by William Wordsworth, to establish a sense of pantheism, and to explore - in a very abridged fashion - the romantic ideal and how that may have influenced Hemingway. The poem can be read in full, right here. Then Mr. Ankeny took you on Hemingway's spiritual journey in Chapter 11, as we followed a Dante-istic journey through hell and purgatory before reaching Hemingway's "heaven."


Next, we watched a clip from the movie The Sun Also Rises, and evaluated whether or not the story would be better if we knew more about Jake and Brett's past and/or Jake's wound.

Finally, we watched a segment talking about Hemingway, his code hero, and some other important stuff.

Day Seven / 5.18.10

Today we started by reading "The Myth of Sisyphus" by Albert Camus. We had a minor discussion on Nihilism, Existentialism, Utilitarianism, and Determinism, then dove into a Socratic seminar on the purpose of life, how we generate morals, whether our actions are predetermined or a matter of choice.

Finally, we discussed Chapters 8-11, briefly.

Your essays are due on Thursday. Here are the rubrics for the two essays (you choose one of the two essays). Iceberg Creative. Iceberg Analytical.

Day Six / 5.17.10

Today we had a Vocab 28/29 Quiz on Monday.

Also, we took the Sun Also Rises Quiz #1. You can view a preview here.

Day Five / 5.11.10

Today we evaluated what would make a good boyfriend or girlfriend, then linked those thoughts to how Jake, Cohn, or Brett are good/bad guys/girl. We also brainstormed aspects of a loving relationship, then evaluated what aspects were present with Jake and Brett. Next we watched a clip from The Royal Tenenbaums that I felt was representative of the complexities of Jake and Brett's restricted love relationship (see below). After that we covered Chapters 5-7 briefly, then looked at a slideshow of Hemingway's life. If you'd like to read more about Hemingway, his seminal biography is Ernest Hemingway: A Life Story by Carlos Baker. Finally, we went over vocabulary words.



Homework: Read Ch. 8/9. Vocab Quiz Monday. Quizzy-Poo #1 Monday.

Day Four / 5.10.10

Today we handed back more papers, and if you haven't checked yet, grades are online (as of Friday 5.7.10). Then we watched a short video on Paris in the 1920s (see below). After that, we discussed Modern Realist Narration and the idea of the Flaneur (or wandering observer). Here's a handout that corresponds to the Flaneur. After that, we evaluated certain texts where Hemingway uses Jake as his flaneur (they're here). We thought about Jake's feelings in relation to his surroundings. We'll discuss our work tomorrow (5.11) in class.

Homework: Read Chapter 7

Part of the video we watched today:

Day Three / 5.6.10

Today we started with a quote by Papa, from his memoir, A Moveable Feast.

“All you have to do is write one true sentence. Write the truest sentence that you know.”
Next, we analyzed three pieces of fiction: Hemingway's "Cat in the Rain," Carver's "Little Things," and Goodman's "La Vita Nuova." We answered questions from this sheet. If you'd like to learn more about Allegra Goodman, her website is here.

After that we divided up and analyzed characters.

For homework, you should read Chapters 5/6.

Day Two / 5.4.10

At first, we went over the Iceberg, due 5.21.10. Then we talked about a poem from Hemingway. It's pasted below.

Neo-Thomist Poem

The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not
want him for long.

To read Psalm 23, it's right here. To read a really long Wikipedia article about Thomism, it's right here.

Next, we evaluated a series of poems that relate to the Epigraph of The Sun Also Rises (yes, I confused this with epigram, and was calling the epigraph an epigram all day). The poems are here. Finally, we had a partially successful, but mostly unsuccessful, classroom discussion of the first two chapters.

Reading Assigned: Chapters 3/4

Day One / 5.3.10

Today we started with a discussion of what we know about Hemingway. Then, we read the short story "A Clean Well-Lighted Cafe." You can find the story here. After reading, we discussed.

Homework: Read Chapters 1-2. Do 4 analysis questions (2 literary, 2 style).