“That is part of the beauty of all literature. You discover that your longings are universal longings, that you're not lonely and isolated from anyone. You belong.”
F. Scott Fitzgerald

Thursday, December 10, 2015

Voice lesson on imagery 2

Write a paragraph in which you create a scene through auditory imagery.  The purpose of your paragraph is to create a particular mood.  Use one olfactory image to enhance the mood created by auditory imagery. Comment on at least one other post - mood created, choice and effectiveness of imagery. Due by Friday, December 18th. (ps Don't forgot to vote in the poll to the right)

Saturday, December 5, 2015

Rhyming couplets 2.1

Come up with a rhyming couplet for Demetrius to say to Helena just before leaving (see lines 241-244), summing up his opinion or feelings.  Write in iambic pentameter!  Feel free to comment on your classmates' rhyming couplets.

Thursday, November 26, 2015

Far from the Madding Crowd: quotations

Choose a quotation from the first two instalments of the novel (chapters 1-5 / chapters 6-8).  Remind us what chapter it comes from, then explain briefly why you chose it.  Feel free to comment on other quotations!  Due by Thursday, December 3rd. (Also, please vote in the poll on the right!)

Friday, November 20, 2015

Voice lesson on Detail 2


About suffering they were never wrong,
The Old Masters: how well they understood
Its human position; how it takes place
While someone else is eating or opening a window or just walking dully along;
    W. H. Auden, “Musée des Beaux Arts”
Task: substitute another general term for suffering in the first line (e.g. laziness, happiness…).  Now rewrite the fourth line with details about the opposite condition of your term.  Share your new stanza on the blog and comment on one other stanza.  Due by Friday, November 27th.

Friday, November 13, 2015

Voice lessons - Diction 2

"Her face was white and sharp and slightly gleaming in the candlelight, like bone."

Substitute a noun for bone that changes the meaning and feeling of the sentence.  React to a classmate's substitution, commenting on how it changes the sentence's connotation and impact.

Wednesday, October 14, 2015

Voice lesson on tone

Write a paragraph about something that amazed or amazes you.  Use diction, detail, imagery, and syntax to convey your sense of wonder.  Comment on the effects and/or effectiveness of a classmate's blog post.  Due by Friday, November 6th. (Also, please answer the poll on the right)

Saturday, October 3, 2015

Voice lesson on syntax

Write a short paragraph on the subject of your choice. Use a variety of sentence types and lengths, with at least one exclamatory sentence that clarifies or amplifies a declarative sentence.  Comment on the effects and the effectiveness of at least one other post.  Due by Friday, October 9th.