Allusions Assignment

Many literary works in the western tradition, especially poems, allude to mythological and biblical figures and stories that were well known to all literate people through much of our history. Below you will find a two-part assignment that is designed to help you familiarize yourselves with some of the most prominent of these. Part I - Complete each of your identifications (see below) in a word file. Make sure that you use the same format as the sample that is provided below. Please write in complete, coherent sentences and proof-read/spell-check your entries. When you have all eight in final, clean-copy form, e-mail them to me. These will be graded for 10 points per identification, and they must be sent to me by the end of the school day on Friday September 28. EXAMPLE: Cerberus – In Greek mythology, Cerberus was the hound of Hades (God of the underworld) who had three heads, a dragon-tale, and snakes down his back and mane. He permits all spirits to enter the underworld, but none to return. He is the origin of the term “hounds of hell” (i.e., Vincent Price in Michael Jackson’s Thriller). Cerberus is overcome several times in mythology and literature, and so symbolizes both the horror of death and hell and the triumph of light over dark, goodness over evil, and reason/cunning over brute force. Abraham and Isaac - CC Absalom - JD Achilles - MG Adonis - AH Agamemnon - MP Antigone - CS Atalanta - MW Atlas - CA Cain and Abel -WF Cassandra - BM Cupid and Psyche - PM Daedalus and Icarus - JM Daniel (in the lion’s den) - NS Daphne - CC David and Bathsheba - JD Dionysus (Bacchus) - TD “Eye for an eye…” - MG Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse - AH Garden of Gethsemane - MP Good Samaritan - CS Hercules (12 labors of) - MW Herod - CA Hyacinth - WF Jacob and Esau - BM Jacob’s ladder - PM Jezebel – JM John the Baptist - NS Jonah - RS Judas Iscariot - CC Laius -JD Last Supper - MG Lazarus - AH Leda (and the Swan) - MP Lot/Lot’s wife - CS Magi - MW Mammon - CA Mary Magdalene - WF Medusa - BM Midas - PM Minotaur - JM Moses – MS Narcissus - RS Nero (fiddled while Rome burned) - CC Noah and the flood - JD Odysseus - TD Oedipus - MG Pandora - AH Persephone – MP Perseus - CS Pharisees - MW Philistines - CA Pontius Pilate – WF Procrustes - BM Prodigal Son - PM Prometheus - JM Pygmalion - NS Pyrrhus - RS Rachel and Leah - CC Romulus and Remus - JD Salome - TD Samson and Delilah - MG Scylla and Charybdis - AH Sermon on the Mount - MP Sisyphus - CS Sodom and Gomorrah - MW Solomon (the wise) - CA Styx (not the band!) - WF Sword of Damocles - BM Tantalus - PM Theseus - JM Tower of Babel - NS Trojan horse - RS Uranus - RS Zeus - TD Part II - Find three poems in Western Wind and, in your composition book, write reflections on/responses to them, focusing on the way the poet interprets the myth or that way the allusion contributes to the meaning of the poem. I will collect composition books for the first check/assessment on Wednesday 10/2 Part III - AP students, you will have an out of class paper as part of this little unit as well. That assignment will be forthcoming and will be due sometime next week.

Madame Bovary, Part II Itinerary

Monday 3/11-Wednesday 3/13:  Reading and composition book work

Thursday 3/14:  Vocab Quiz #1/Discussion Day

Friday 3/15:  Composition Book Check #1 (75 pts.)

Short Fiction Finale

Week 19 -

Tuesday 2/5:                Angela Carter/Feminism Quiz (50 pts)

                                    HW:  Finish SAs if not done

Wednesday 2/6:          Melville, I and My Chimney and vocab/reading questions
                                    HW:  finish vocab/reading questions (30 pts.)

Thursday 2/7:              Go over quizzes, possible CPS quiz over I and My Chimney

                                    HW:  Melville, Bartleby the Scrivener and vocab/reading questions

Friday 2/8:                   Possible CPS quiz over Bartleby the Scrivener

                                    Discuss Bartleby
                                    No HW

Week 20 -

M-W 2/11-2/13:          I will give you time in class over the next three days to read Knut

                                    Hamsun's novella, Pan. (You will remember Hamsun from Nightroamers,  
                                    Sin and A Fragment of Life.)  We will begin each class with a brief
                                    discussion or Q/A session, but you can count on at least 45 minutes to read
                                    each day.

Thursday 2/14:            Discussion day:  plot, setting, symbolism, narrative POV

Friday 2/15:                 CPS Pan Quiz (50 pts.); annotated copy of Pan due. (50 pts.)

Week 21 -

Tuesday 2/19:              Pan AP Prompt #3 Essay (9 pts.)

                                    HW:  Begin Madame Bovary

Wednesday 2/20 - For the next three weeks, you will need to have Madame Bovary and your composition book every day in class.  Please order the Dover Thrift Edition.  This is the edition that is on the MBS list, so if your parents already bought the book you should have the right one.  *However, if you have a different edition, you need to order this edition.  It only costs $3.50 on Amazon (I have e-mailed you the link) so it will not bankrupt you.

*There are literally a dozen different translations, and they can be very different, and we cannot do vocab or even analyze passages from the novel together if we are working from different texts.  

 

http://www.amazon.com/Madame-Bovary-Dover-Thrift-Editions/dp/0486292576/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1360062204&sr=1-1&keywords=madame+bovary+dover+thrift

 

 

 

 

Poetry Quiz #2

We will have our second poetry quiz tomorrow, Friday 9/28 (50 pts.). This will be mainly a multiple choice exercise, and you will need to know the following terms to do well on it:

Assonance
Alliteration
Synesthesia
Onomatopoeia
Ceasura
Rhyme
Meter
Tone
Consonance

The link I posted earlier will help, as will the glossary of terms on p. 1660 of Perrine's. Re-reading chapters 10-13 won't hurt either.

Poetry Paper #1

Using the suggestions from “Writing about Literature” in Perrine’s, write a paper analyzing or explicating a single poem, or comparing and contrasting any two poems in the poetry section of the text (or of your choosing).  This paper should be a minimum of 500 words, typed and double-spaced. We are going to workshop this paper, so you need to keep to the following schedule:

Poems and topic of paper selected and e-mailed to me – Monday 9/24
First draft of paper – Monday 10/1
Second draft – Wednesday 10/3
Final draft – Friday 10/5

Poetry Quiz I Review

We will have our first poetry quiz on Tuesday 9/18 (50 pts.). This will be mainly a multiple choice exercise, and you will need to know the following terms to do well on it:


Simile
Apostrophe
Metaphor
Personification
Metonymy
Allusion
Paradox

The link below will help, as will the glossary of terms on p. 1660 of Perrine's. Re-reading chapters five and seven won't hurt either.

http://www.poetsgraves.co.uk/glossary_of_poetic_terms.htm

Classical/Biblical Allusions

Many literary works in the western tradition allude to mythological and biblical figures and stories that were well known to all literate people through much of our history. Below you will find an assignment that is designed to help you familiarize yourselves with some of the most prominent of these.


What I want you each to do is complete each of your identifications in a word file. Make sure that you use the same format as the sample that is provided below. Please write in complete, coherent sentences and proof-read/spell-check your entries. When you have all six in final, clean-copy form, paste them into a post on this blog. These will be graded for 5 points per identification, and they must be posted by the end of the school day on Monday September 10 (you should really be ablle to complete them by the end of class Friday!).

EXAMPLE:

Cerberus – In Greek mythology, Cerberus was the hound of Hades (God of the underworld) who had three heads, a dragon-tale, and snakes down his back and mane. He permits all spirits to enter the underworld, but none to return. He is the origin of the term “hounds of hell” (i.e., Vincent Price in Michael Jackson’s Thriller). Cerberus is overcome several times in mythology and literature, and so symbolizes both the horror of death and hell and the triumph of light over dark, goodness over evil, and reason/cunning over brute force.

Abraham and Isaac - CA
Absalom - MCC
Achilles - TF
Adonis - AG
Agamemnon - LH
Antigone - EH
Atalanta - HK
Atlas - FK
Cain and Abel - CS
Cassandra - GS
Cupid and Psyche - BS
Daedalus and Icarus - CA
Daniel (in the lion’s den) - MCC
Daphne - TF
David and Bathsheba - AG
Dionysus (Bacchus) - LH
“Eye for an eye…” - EH
Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse - HK
Garden of Gethsemane - FK
Good Samaritan - CS
Hercules (12 labors of) - GS
Herod - BS
Hyacinth - CA
Jacob and Esau - MCC
Jacob’s ladder - TF
Jezebel – AG
John the Baptist - LH
Jonah - EH
Judas Iscariot - HK
Laius - FK
Last Supper - CS
Lazarus - GS
Leda (and the Swan) - BS
Lot/Lot’s wife - CA
Magi - MCC
Mammon - TF
Mary Magdalene - AG
Medusa - LH
Midas - EH
Minotaur - HK
Moses – FK
Narcissus - CS
Nero (fiddled while Rome burned) - GS
Noah and the flood - BS
Odysseus - CA
Oedipus - MCC
Pandora - TF
Persephone – AG
Perseus - LH
Pharisees - EH
Philistines - HK
Pontius Pilate – FK
Procrustes - CS
Prodigal Son - GS
Prometheus - BS
Pygmalion - CA
Pyrrhus - MCC
Rachel and Leah - TF
Romulus and Remus - AG
Salome - LH
Samson and Delilah - EH
Scylla and Charybdis - HK
Sermon on the Mount - FK
Sisyphus - CS
Sodom and Gomorrah - GS
Solomon (the wise) - BS
Styx (not the band!) – CA/HK
Sword of Damocles – CS/MCC
Tantalus – BS/FK
Theseus – AG/TF
Tower of Babel – EH/GS
Trojan horse – LH