Today, Andrew and I continued reading our Gilgamesh summary and taking notes on the major plot points. We discussed how "The Epic of Gilgamesh" is a product of oral tradition, just like the mythology surrounding King Arthur, and discussed what an oral tradition is.
I addressed how diction and syntax create the elevated tone and mood of the epic poem. We then addressed what the poem tells us about values in the Anglo-Saxon culture of 600 AD England. In this regard, we focused on the role of Christian doctrine that is overlaid on the pagan values within the poem. In this regard, we explored the poem as one transformed from a pagan epic to a Christian themed battle between good and evil which yet retains numerous references to the existing pagan culture such as the role of "Fate" , magic, and monsters. I last noted the Middle English poetic device of "kennings", two nouns renaming places or people, that make the poem more elevated in tone.
Today, Andrew finished taking notes on the major plot points of the video, "The Epic of Gilgamesh." We discussed some of the major symbolism and hero's journey elements.
I provided instruction on the types narrative poems: epic, ballad, and elegy and discussed Beowulf as an epic poem, Further,we discussed common poetic devices such as alliteration, assonance, caesura, figurative language, and enjambment. I noted which devices appear in the poem and we looked at certain passages to locate examples. Last, I discussed the mixture of Christian and pagan values within the text as a reflection of Anglo-Saxon culture.
Today, Andrew and I continued our study of The Hero's Journey. I introduced the history and context of the story, "The Epic of Gilgamesh," its importance to literature and relevance to the hero's journey. We then watched a short cartoon version of the story. Andrew pointed out some observations he made about how the hero's journey is seen in the story, and he began taking notes on the major plot points based on the video.
After discussing the issues with continuing the AP course, we reviewed the general syllabus for a survey British Lit course. I then reintroduced the heroic epic poem ,"Beowulf" and briefly noted how to read the poetic enjambment or line breaks . This poem dates back to the 600s , reflects the dreams and values of early Anglo-Saxon culture ,and is a standard starting point for British Lit.
Today, Andrew and I completed drawing our Hero's Journey diagram and color-coding the stages. He summarized each stage in his own words. We began a power point of The Lion King and how it follows the hero's journey.
Today, Andrew and I completed reading the commonlit.org article on The Hero's Journey. He finished taking notes on the remaining stages of the hero's journey. We watched a short video clip of "The Hobbit" which demonstrates the stage, Refusing the Call. He started diagramming the hero's journey as a reference material for his project.
Today, Andrew and I continued our study of The Hero's Journey. We kept reading and discussing the article on commonlit.org. We reviewed the stages we covered yesterday, and today talked about The Ordeal and The Supreme Ordeal. He took notes on the stages. He answered the guiding questions and we defined the vocabulary word, "turmoil."
Today, Andrew and I continued our discussion of The Hero's Journey monomyth. We reviewed what it is, where we see it, and the first few stages we learned about yesterday. We continued reading our article on the hero's journey, answering the guided questions and taking notes on/discussing the following stages: Crossing the Threshold, Tests/Allies/Enemies. I also showed Andrew where to locate files I uploaded into Teams.
