We reviewed Joshua's AP MCQs for unit 6 and for last night's homework in order to address areas or questions of concern, With respect to the poetry analysis , I emphasized the need to first refer to the specific lines referenced in the question and then to determine if the question seeks an implication or a statement. Regarding implication ,for example, I noted how the reader can infer the speaker's anger from the verb "flung" . We further studied how tone can be determined from a passage written in the late 1890s and how from discerning tone we can also better recognize the author's purpose.
Per the AP curriculum , we are studying the novel to analyze how conflict and plot create both choices and resolutions that reveal character. Joshua first identified quotes /passages from the reading and explained the nature of the conflict, generally independence vs the patriarchy, and then discussed what Janey's choices or resolution reveal about Janey. I discussed the novel as a unique bildungsroman with Janey evolving as she finds her voice and self . In this regard ,I placed some quotes from the reading on the board that encapsulate Janey's journey, and we parsed the text to isolate plot events and conflicts that lay the path to Janey's selfhood .
We closely explored the deterioration of Janey's marriage to Joe as Joe deprives Janey of her "voice" . We noted Janey's growing more fractious as she challenges Joe's masculinity resulting in Joe's violently striking her. We discussed how the depiction of Black society as violent and uneducated resulted in the Black literary world ostracizing the author. We also analyzed an intricate metaphor comparing Janey as a jewel covered by the mud of the oppression of a domineering husband.
Today's session addressed locating quotes or passages that illuminate conflict, identifying the conflict ,and last discussing how the resolution of the conflict informs character. I provided examples such as "Killnicks (the husband) desecrating the pear tree(Janey's metaphor for love and fulfillment) After we dissected the metaphors, we discussed the sexuality of the description of bees pollinating the pear tree in blossom and examined how Killnicks degrades Janey as if she were a mule and deprives her of a "voice" or identity. We studied other examples that inform the character of Nanny.
Joshua took the multiple choice section of an AP practice exam so that we could monitor his pacing and use the exam as a review class. HIs pacing was within time limits and we will review substance in class tomorrow.
Unit 9- Character development and narrative perspective
Lesson Outline
I provided instruction on the core concepts of Unit 9 -how dynamic and even static characters make choices in response to conflict resolution . These choices illustrate character and add to a work's interpretation. Then, using our last novel, The Scarlet Letter, we applied these concepts discussing how Dimmesdale's response to the novel's climax and the conflict 's resolution emphasize an interpretation as to the efficacy of expiation of sin. I further explored the role of literary catharsis as the reader experiences Dimmesdale's seemingly futile confession .
For our introductory lesson on our next novel ,I provided instruction on the life of Zora Hurston and the importance of the Harlem Renaissance. I then discussed the novel as lyric in style and as anthropological fiction given the author's background. In this regard, we noted the importance of the use of dialect in the book.Thematically, I introduced the novel as a bildungsroman and a feminist novel as Janie, the protagonist, is on a journey of self discovery that places her in conflict with the patriarchy that according to the author is a source of oppression even greater than the oppression of White society.
