LITERARY ANALYSIS
Jan 20th, 2011 by hharvey
Rebellion and the Search For Identity
by Jeremy Keeshin
It is natural for youth to reject society. This rejection is blatantly evident in today’s culture of gangs and drugs and dismissing authority. This is a necessary step in maturing that helps teens and young people in general find their identity. They say high school is a time for experimentation, and this is because teens need to circulate through different groups and activities to find to which they belong. Rebellion in youth searching for their identity has existed throughout the ages. In his novel The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Mark Twain highlights the struggle of the search for identity in youth. The title character, Huckleberry Finn, does not have an identity and this leads him to rebel against society. Huck’s rebellion exacerbates his lack of identity, and his struggle and failure to find his identity is integral to him establishing his own needs so that he can integrate into society.
The Rose that grew from concrete
Did you hear about the rose that grew
from a crack in the concrete?
Proving nature’s law is wrong it
learned to walk with out having feet.
Funny it seems, but by keeping its dreams,
it learned to breathe fresh air.
Long live the rose that grew from concrete
when no one else ever cared.
Title: The Rose that Grew from concrete, an individual from a bad neighborhood, or rough start.
Paraphrase: The Rose that overcame the odds
It proved everyone wrong
It does not give up
It did the best with what it had
Incentive to grow
nobody cared but it did not stop this person.
Connotation: Personification- roses being able to walk
Symbolism- concrete is symbolic of struggle or rough environment
Rhyme Scheme- A, B, A, B
Attitude: Angry that nobody cared, proud that that he rose against the odds.
Shift: A shift occurs in this poem where he begans to speak of his success as opposed to his rough beginning.
Title: The new title may be the success bred from a rough start.
Theme: The theme of this poem may be that it does not matter where you have come from or what you had started with, but what you did with what you had and where you ended up.
ILLUMINATED TEXTS
Jan 20th, 2011 by hharvey
The website Away to Teach has excellent ideas on illuminating texts -
You can use Flash or ppt to create visual or animated poems.
BOOK TRAILER
Jan 20th, 2011 by hharvey
Temporarily living with his mom at his grandparents’ home on Bird Lake, 12-year-old Mitch Sinclair’s plans to make the seemingly abandoned house next door his own are shattered when Spencer Stone arrives with his family. Both the Sinclairs and the Stones are in crisis-Mitch’s parents are divorcing, and Spencer’s parents are returning to the house for the first time since the death of their son Matty, who drowned there when Spencer was two. While each boy is deeply affected by his family’s drama, both are powerless to influence its
unfolding. Mitch, indignant at the Stoneses’ intrusion, attempts to scare them off by creating mysterious signs that suggest a ghostly presence. Spencer observes these signs but chooses not to share them with his family. Eventually, the boys meet and connect immediately, leaving Mitch resolved to set things right. Characters are gently and believably developed as the story weaves in and around the beautiful Wisconsin setting. The superbly crafted plot moves smoothly and unhurriedly, mirroring a slow summer pace. Alternating perspectives between the boys gives readers deep insights into their feelings and actions. The secondary characters, the adults and Spencer’s firecracker sister, Lolly, are also fully limned, complex individuals. Henkes creates compelling, child-centric images, excellent dialogue, and a believable resolution, with humor and just the right amount of tension to make this a significant and highly readable book.
LITERATURE CIRCLE PODCASTS
Dec 4th, 2010 by hharvey
THE SNIPER
Nov 16th, 2010 by hharvey
STRONG WOMEN, SOFT HEARTS DISCUSSSION 2
Nov 14th, 2010 by hharvey
THE ROAD BOOK DISCUSSION
Nov 14th, 2010 by hharvey
The Road Book Discussion from Valencia Voice on Vimeo.
LYSISTRATA PERFORMANCE
Nov 14th, 2010 by hharvey
Cassie, Allie, Amanda, Kayla from BOOKER HIGH on Vimeo.
From Wikipedia
Lysistrata (Attic Greek: Λυσιστράτη, “Army-disbander”) is one of the few surviving plays written by Aristophanes. Originally performed in classical Athens in 411 BC, it is a comic account of one woman’s extraordinary mission to end The Peloponnesian War. Lysistrata convinces the women of Greece to withhold sexual privileges from their husbands and lovers as a means of forcing the men to negotiate peace, a strategy however that inflames the battle between the sexes. The play is notable for its exposé of sexual relations in a male-dominated society and for its use of both double entendre and explicit obscenities. The dramatic structure represents a shift away from the conventions of Old Comedy, a trend typical of the author’s career. It was produced in the same year as Thesmophoriazusae, another play with a focus on gender-based issues, just two years after Athens’ catastrophic defeat in the Sicilian Expedition.
