Hey everyone,
I just finished what I think was a pretty comprehensive outline for shredding a passage-based essay task. Do yourselves a favour and have a look at it on the AS Lit page.
Let me know if it helps!
- T. Marcus
Monday, 23 May 2016
Thursday, 19 May 2016
Death of a Salesman - further observations
Hi everyone,
I started looking into a few more aspects that it would be good to discuss in our essays, and here's some starting points for you.
I haven't put them in the bars to the side because they take a little explanation.
To begin, I know we already discussed Miller's juxtaposing of time & space, but you'll want to read this article anyway. Very good stuff.
I found a link on Naturalistic vs Realism theatre conventions, and while the lead-up explanation initially looks promising, it turns out to mostly be a lot of waffling smothered in smart words. That said, the bulletpoints on Naturalist conventions are pretty thought-provoking, so scroll down to that. The discussion responses to the initial post may also give some good insights.
A google search of Expressionism will also be quite telling. Look up the Wiki page for what its purpose was; try to figure out the essence of this style and how it applies to our text.
That said, apparently Expressionism was developed as a departure from Naturalism and Realism conventions. This is a great essay written on how Arthur Miller successfully uses both styles simultaneously.
That should be enough for now. Enjoy!
- T. Marcus
I started looking into a few more aspects that it would be good to discuss in our essays, and here's some starting points for you.
I haven't put them in the bars to the side because they take a little explanation.
To begin, I know we already discussed Miller's juxtaposing of time & space, but you'll want to read this article anyway. Very good stuff.
I found a link on Naturalistic vs Realism theatre conventions, and while the lead-up explanation initially looks promising, it turns out to mostly be a lot of waffling smothered in smart words. That said, the bulletpoints on Naturalist conventions are pretty thought-provoking, so scroll down to that. The discussion responses to the initial post may also give some good insights.
A google search of Expressionism will also be quite telling. Look up the Wiki page for what its purpose was; try to figure out the essence of this style and how it applies to our text.
That said, apparently Expressionism was developed as a departure from Naturalism and Realism conventions. This is a great essay written on how Arthur Miller successfully uses both styles simultaneously.
That should be enough for now. Enjoy!
- T. Marcus
Tuesday, 10 May 2016
Critics & how to use them!
Hi girls,
I suggest you start collating critic quotes - can you tie them to a theme? A character? A symbol? An event?
Make flashcards! What are the major themes in a given text? Who comments on them and what do they say? And so on with the other above-mentioned.
Good luck!
- T. Marcus
I suggest you start collating critic quotes - can you tie them to a theme? A character? A symbol? An event?
Make flashcards! What are the major themes in a given text? Who comments on them and what do they say? And so on with the other above-mentioned.
Good luck!
- T. Marcus
Death of a Salesman
Hello ladies!
As we wrap up Othello, so also we rip into our next text; I know you were all expecting Americana, yet I have chosen to skip directly to Death of a Salesman.
The division of scenes is largely subjective, as the author has seen fit only to differentiate between acts 1 & 2. Scene demarcation in plays is widely accepted to be based upon a shift in location. This guideline may be loosely applied here as we will shift through time (flashback), topic, character grouping and more. The author seems to have been going for a seamless stage production, the possible effect of which we will be discussing further in class.
Beyond the various research resources off to the side, I'd like you to notice the opening of the play. How much of the stage direction would be instantly obvious to the audience? How much would they miss entirely, or seems more directed at the actors than the audience?
This is a Tragedy, so let's look at how tragic theatre theory applies to Miller's work. In the essay "Tragedy and the Common Man," we will hear from the author himself in his personal defence of how he defined tragedy.
(Having gotten an overview of this, make sure to try to attribute other tragic roles to each character as we go!)
Read the back of the book; Miller has defined the purpose of creating Loman as 'to set forth what happens when a man does not have a grip on the forces of life.' With that in mind, it would be good to also monitor the characteristics and allegorical lessons which may be observed of the other characters surrounding Willy Loman.
More in class. This should get you started. :)
Enjoy!
- T. Marcus
As we wrap up Othello, so also we rip into our next text; I know you were all expecting Americana, yet I have chosen to skip directly to Death of a Salesman.
The division of scenes is largely subjective, as the author has seen fit only to differentiate between acts 1 & 2. Scene demarcation in plays is widely accepted to be based upon a shift in location. This guideline may be loosely applied here as we will shift through time (flashback), topic, character grouping and more. The author seems to have been going for a seamless stage production, the possible effect of which we will be discussing further in class.
Beyond the various research resources off to the side, I'd like you to notice the opening of the play. How much of the stage direction would be instantly obvious to the audience? How much would they miss entirely, or seems more directed at the actors than the audience?
This is a Tragedy, so let's look at how tragic theatre theory applies to Miller's work. In the essay "Tragedy and the Common Man," we will hear from the author himself in his personal defence of how he defined tragedy.
(Having gotten an overview of this, make sure to try to attribute other tragic roles to each character as we go!)
Read the back of the book; Miller has defined the purpose of creating Loman as 'to set forth what happens when a man does not have a grip on the forces of life.' With that in mind, it would be good to also monitor the characteristics and allegorical lessons which may be observed of the other characters surrounding Willy Loman.
More in class. This should get you started. :)
Enjoy!
- T. Marcus
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