English 9 Class Notes
Objectives: Freshmen identified and explained character, setting, idiom, plot, imagery, irony, foreshadowing, point of view, motif, symbol, and theme in a novel.
First freshmen, we completed To Kill a Mockingbird today and I asked you to think about relationships, after talking over Boo’s desire to express himself in the community (evidenced by his attempt to connect with and through Souct and Jem). I argued that all of the literary artifacts we’ve examined this year, all of the visual and graphic artifacts on the room’s walls, and, really, all of the products of human endeavor are essentially expressions of our need to engage one another in meaningful relationships.
I asked you to ponder different relationships and the needs implied in them in the book (Mayella’s need to relate to men as a young woman, Atticus’s need to relate to the community as a example of decorum), and I asked you think over other relationships from other stories we’ve read. We noted, for example, Juliet’s need for a love relationship other than the poisonous she ahs with her parents and Maya Angelou’s need to relate people of al races as an equalm, Madame Loisel’s need to have others relate to her as a woman of stature. As I write I think of Montresor’s need to expose his crime against Fortunato in a confessional relationhsip and Terry Williams’ uncle Alan’s need to engage people not in his situation in a relationship of understanding. I encourage you to continue to consider what connections you can make with the texts we’ve read this year, and try understand what they can tell you of your own relationships.
You have limited time to see me for assistance on your final assignment. I want to believe you’re proceeding well, but I fear, from the lack of students in my room looking for help, that too many will wait until the last minute to complete work. This can only have a negative affect on your grade. Of course, perhaps few of you need my assistance and you’ll prove me wrong. I hope so.
Have a good weekend.