Learning Target: I can read literature and use it as a lens to reflect on relationships, gender roles, and the search for a fulfilling life.

Heroic Goalkeeper

Toronto Zoo Giant Panda Tumbles In The Snow

Stove Top Scurvy

Guinea Pig Saves The World From Scurvy

Silent Sustained Reading (SSR) Day

Homework: Read 95-116  and post one discussion question and reply to a question from someone you have not yet responded to (short paragraph 3-5 sentences).

Learning Target: I can read literature and use it as a lens to reflect on relationships, gender roles, and the search for a fulfilling life.

Baby Dwarf Squirrels

Toronto Zoo Giant Panda Tumbles In The Snow

Silent Sustained Reading (SSR) Day

Homework: Read 78-95  and post one discussion question and reply to a question from someone you have not yet responded to (short paragraph 3-5 sentences).

The Awakening 56-77

Learning Target: I can read literature and use it as a lens to reflect on relationships, gender roles, and the search for a fulfilling life.

Baby Dwarf Squirrels

Toronto Zoo Giant Panda Tumbles In The Snow

Silent Sustained Reading (SSR) Day

Homework: Read 56-77 for Monday
Post one discussion question and reply to another with a short paragraph (3-5 sentences).

November 19, 2014

Read 19-45 and post two questions (evaluative or interpretive) on turnitin.com (5 points).

Learning Target:  

I can use literature to reflect on my my values and beliefs.

Thus all concentrates: let us not rove; let us sit at home with the cause. Let us stun and astonish the intruding rabble of men and books and institutions, by a simple declaration of the divine fact. Bid the invaders take the shoes from off their feet, for God is here within. Let our simplicity judge them, and our docility to our own law demonstrate the poverty of nature and fortune beside our native riches.

But now we are a mob. Man does not stand in awe of man, nor is his genius admonished to stay at home, to put itself in communication with the internal ocean, but it goes abroad to beg a cup of water of the urns of other men. We must go alone. I like the silent church before the service begins, better than any preaching. How far off, how cool, how chaste the persons look, begirt each one with a precinct or sanctuary! So let us always sit. Why should we assume the faults of our friend, or wife, or father, or child, because they sit around our hearth, or are said to have the same blood? All men have my blood, and I have all men's. Not for that will I adopt their petulance or folly, even to the extent of being ashamed of it. But your isolation must not be mechanical, but spiritual, that is, must be elevation. At times the whole world seems to be in conspiracy to importune you with emphatic trifles. Friend, client, child, sickness, fear, want, charity, all knock at once at thy closet door, and say, — 'Come out unto us.' But keep thy state; come not into their confusion. The power men possess to annoy me, I give them by a weak curiosity. No man can come near me but through my act. "What we love that we have, but by desire we bereave ourselves of the love."

Emerson and Thoreau

Romanticism and Transcendentalism

HW: Read and annotate 1-19 in The Awakening. Write one discussion question - either interpretive/evaluative or some blend of the two - and respond/reply to one question written by a classmate.  Write a short paragraph in response to your selected question.

Thus all concentrates: let us not rove; let us sit at home with the cause. Let us stun and astonish the intruding rabble of men and books and institutions, by a simple declaration of the divine fact. Bid the invaders take the shoes from off their feet, for God is here within. Let our simplicity judge them, and our docility to our own law demonstrate the poverty of nature and fortune beside our native riches.

But now we are a mob. Man does not stand in awe of man, nor is his genius admonished to stay at home, to put itself in communication with the internal ocean, but it goes abroad to beg a cup of water of the urns of other men. We must go alone. I like the silent church before the service begins, better than any preaching. How far off, how cool, how chaste the persons look, begirt each one with a precinct or sanctuary! So let us always sit. Why should we assume the faults of our friend, or wife, or father, or child, because they sit around our hearth, or are said to have the same blood? All men have my blood, and I have all men's. Not for that will I adopt their petulance or folly, even to the extent of being ashamed of it. But your isolation must not be mechanical, but spiritual, that is, must be elevation. At times the whole world seems to be in conspiracy to importune you with emphatic trifles. Friend, client, child, sickness, fear, want, charity, all knock at once at thy closet door, and say, — 'Come out unto us.' But keep thy state; come not into their confusion. The power men possess to annoy me, I give them by a weak curiosity. No man can come near me but through my act. "What we love that we have, but by desire we bereave ourselves of the love."

Learning Target:

I can make connections across texts.

• What overlap do you see between Thoreau and Emerson? What values do they hold in common?

Count off by 6: One and six will share two quotes each from their constitution or personal moral code and discuss how they reflect or don't reflect transcendental values as exhibited in Civil Disobedience or Self-Reliance; Two and Five will share their interpretive questions and lead discussions; Three and four will lead discussions on their evaluative questions.

..Emerson believed every human being has inborn knowledge that enables him to recognize and understand moral truth without benefit of knowledge obtained through the physical senses. Using this inborn knowledge, a gift of God, an individual can make a moral decision without relying on information gained through everyday living, education, and experimentation. One may liken this inborn knowledge to conscience or intuition.  
.......Emerson and others who believed that this inborn knowledge served as a moral guiding force were known as transcendentalists—that is, they believed that this inner knowledge was a higher, transcendent form of knowledge than that which came through the senses. Because Emerson and his fellow transcendentalists trusted their own inner light as a moral guiding force, they were possessed of a fierce spirit of self-reliance. They were individualists; they liked to make decisions for themselves. If the government adopted a policy or a law that offended their consciences, they generally reacted strongly.  
.......Transcendentalism, as Emerson’s moral philosophy was called, did not originate with him or his fellow transcendentalists in New England but with the German philosopher Emanuel Kant. He used the German word for transcendental to refer to intuitive or innate knowledge—knowledge that is a priori rather than a posteriori.

• Is there any part of your moral code or constitution which overlaps with the ideas of either man? If so, share a couple of your personal or political values which you see as being some way connected to, or an extension of, a particular thought or value held by Emerson or Thoreau.  Do this as a thought web, with lines from Civil Disobedience, Self- Reliance and your moral code or constitution in bubbles, and explanation of the connections along the lines.

• Bellringer: The idea that "[common men] cannot spare the protection of the existing government, and they dread the consequences of disobedience to it to their properties and families" illustrates Thoreau's digression that it can be difficult to "live honestly and at the same time comfortably in outward respects" (11). Is it more important to defend your principles or protect your physical well-being and the well-being of your dependents? When the two are in conflict, how might you determine which is the more virtuous route to pursue?

Homework: Read pages 29-38 in Emerson's Self-Reliance and post one inferential and one evaluative question in turnitin.com.

Learning Target: I can use literature as a means of reflecting on my own beliefs and values.

What do you think this song is about? Do you see any connections between this song and our discussion on Friday about Thoreau's possible attitudes towards spirituality/philosophy of life? 

Is there a line or two which you found especially interesting or appealing? Why?  
Which lines invite interpretive questions?
Write at least one interpretive question.
What connections can you make with Thoreau's writing in Civil Disobedience? Specific quotes?

11 “Sir,” the woman said, “you have nothing to draw with and the well is deep. Where can you get this living water? 12 Are you greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well and drank from it himself, as did also his sons and his livestock?”

13 Jesus answered, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, 14 but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.”

How would you define "happiness"?  What is necessary for a person to be happy?

Evaluative Question: The idea that "[common men] cannot spare the protection of the existing government, and they dread the consequences of disobedience to it to their properties and families" illustrates Thoreau's digression that it can be difficult to "live honestly and at the same time comfortably in outward respects" (11). Is it more important to defend your principles or protect your physical well-being and the well-being of your dependents? At what point do the two issues converge?

HW: Please read On Happiness by Aristotle.  Submit one inferential and one evaluative question to turnitin.com


Bellringer: Transcendentalism is a blanket term to describe an American literary, philosophical and spiritual movement.  What quotes in pages 16-18 (or elsewhere in the text) seem to hint at some of Thoreau's possible attitudes and beliefs concerning spirituality/religion?  Do you see any overlaps with the spirituality and philosophical beliefs of Romanticism?

Choose several stanzas, and try to make some connections to The Scarlet Letter and Civil Disobedience. 

Is government increasingly encroaching on our privacy, and if so, why?  A look at privacy in the 21st century.

I can

10th period....

Matt begins to disagree (and the bell rings immediately) with Michael's statement that Thoreau totally refutes religion and his mentions of God and the New Testaments are mere appeals to authorities in order to establish ethos with a widely religious audience.

Moments before, Audrey hesitatingly suggested that Thoreau might believe that God was inside of us.

Christian agreed with Michael, saying that Throreau was lying or sarcastically invoking God because he was mocking those who did.  I said that Thoreau clearly uses sarcasm at times, but he would have to closely examine and rhetorically analyze the text surrounding the spiritual statements which he thought were sarcastic, disingenuous.

We still have not discussed the following in a whole class discussion in either 9th or 10th:

• Evaluative Question: On page 18 Thoreau expresses his ideal “government” by saying “There will never be a really free and enlightened State, until the State comes to recognize the individual as a higher and independent power, from which all its own power and authority are derived, and treats him accordingly”. Is it possible for a state of which Thoreau describes to exist in the modern world? If not, is this impractical world due to human nature or the nature of government. Furthermore, is a government truly a government if it recognizes the individual as a higher power? 

• Evaluative Question: The idea that "[common men] cannot spare the protection of the existing government, and they dread the consequences of disobedience to it to their properties and families" illustrates Thoreau's digression that it can be difficult to "live honestly and at the same time comfortably in outward respects" (11). Is it more important to defend your principles or protect your physical well-being and the well-being of your dependents? At what point do the two issues converge?
• 
  

Choose several stanzas, and try to make some connections to The Scarlet Letter and Civil Disobedience. 

Thoreau's religious beliefs - What do the biographies tell us?

Emerson: Self-Reliance, The Transcendental Eye

Aristotle: Happiness

Is government increasingly encroaching on our privacy, and if so, why?  A look at privacy in the 21st century.

Learning Target: I can use literature as a means of reflecting on my own beliefs and values.

• Please put your Skill-focused revision assignment materials on the corner of your desk, 

Bellringer: Transcendentalism is a blanket term to describe an American literary, philosophical and spiritual movement.  What quotes in pages 16-18 (or elsewhere in the text) seem to hint at some of Thoreau's possible attitudes and beliefs concerning spirituality/religion?  Do you see any overlaps with the spirituality and philosophical beliefs of Romanticism?

2)Evaluative Question: On page 18 Thoreau expresses his ideal “government” by saying “There will never be a really free and enlightened State, until the State comes to recognize the individual as a higher and independent power, from which all its own power and authority are derived, and treats him accordingly”. Is it possible for a state of which Thoreau describes to exist in the modern world? If not, is this impractical world due to human nature or the nature of government. Furthermore, is a government truly a government if it recognizes the individual as a higher power? 

Evaluative Question: The idea that "[common men] cannot spare the protection of the existing government, and they dread the consequences of disobedience to it to their properties and families" illustrates Thoreau's digression that it can be difficult to "live honestly and at the same time comfortably in outward respects" (11). Is it more important to defend your principles or protect your physical well-being and the well-being of your dependents? At what point do the two issues converge?

• 
  

Choose several stanzas, and try to make some connections to The Scarlet Letter and Civil Disobedience. 

Is government increasingly encroaching on our privacy, and if so, why?  A look at privacy in the 21st century.

Learning Target: I can use literature as a means of reflecting on my own beliefs and values.

Form Groups of three.
Take out Civil Disobedience
and

• Please put your Skill-focused revision assignment materials on the corner of your desk, so that I can quickly check them while you are engaged in small group discussions.

• Remembering the characteristics of a good, lively conversation, discuss the following questions, alternating leadership roles.  

• Also,a few tips for follow-up questions:

If you do not understand what someone has said and/or they have not supported it with textual evidence:

·         Ask “Why do you say that?”

·         Ask “What do you mean when you say...?”

·         Refer to a specific word or phrase in the text and ask, “What does this mean? How does it fit in?”

If you think someone needs to expand or clarify a position taken:

·         Ask “Would you explain your statement?”

·         Ask “Can your position be supported from the text?”

If you think someone is incorrect in the use of a word:

·         Ask “Why do you use this word?”

·         Ask “Is this what the author intended?”

·         Use a similar word and ask, “Does it fit?”

If someone is talking too fast or speaking without citing evidence:

·         Say, “I don’t follow quite follow you, would you explain or would you repeat your statement?”

·         Ask, “Where do you find a reference in the text?”

1) November 5, 2014 Journal Assignment: Interpretive Question and Response for Civil Disobedience. Having re-read pages 16-18, first fill out the top two entries - leader's question and your answer before discussion - on the Building Your Answer To An Interpretive Question sheet.  Then discuss the following, using textual evidence to support your answers:

Interpretive: If Thoreau thinks "that the world is not governed by policy and expediency," then what (or who) would he think governs the world based on what he has said in the rest of the essay (16)? 

Now, write your answer after discussion, and textual evidence which supported your answer.

2)Evaluative Question: On page 18 Thoreau expresses his ideal “government” by saying “There will never be a really free and enlightened State, until the State comes to recognize the individual as a higher and independent power, from which all its own power and authority are derived, and treats him accordingly”. Is it possible for a state of which Thoreau describes to exist in the modern world? If not, is this impractical world due to human nature or the nature of government. Furthermore, is a government truly a government if it recognizes the individual as a higher power? 

Evaluative Question: The idea that "[common men] cannot spare the protection of the existing government, and they dread the consequences of disobedience to it to their properties and families" illustrates Thoreau's digression that it can be difficult to "live honestly and at the same time comfortably in outward respects" (11). Is it more important to defend your principles or protect your physical well-being and the well-being of your dependents? At what point do the two issues converge?

Music Intermission: The Logical Song by Supertramp

Bellringer: 
Chris McCandless took on the pseudonym of Alex Supertramp.  While the word supertramp could suggest an uber-traveler of the country, someone who walks and travels all over, he may have also been inspired by the band, Supertramp, a band that had a popular album, Breakfast in America, when Chris (and I) were in junior high/high school. No doubt he would have been familiar with it, and one of the songs from it was called The Logical Song. As you listen to incredibly high male vocals, pay attention to the words and think about how they might appeal - or be applied - to Chris (or Thoreau) or maybe the radical side of all of us.

• Now, discuss the song and any connections you to see to McCandless, Thoreau and yourself, classmates, family, etc.

• Share one or two ideas from your constitution or moral code.

Homework: 

1. Complete the skill-based revision assignment.
2. If you had an A on The Scarlet Letter and want to receive 5 points more, I will have you review a couple of the revision assignments and provide some written feedback to those students.  (That will happen next week) 
3. November 6: Journal Assignment (typed): Write a Constitution of ____________ or a personal moral code statement Write a final draft of your Constitution or Moral Code.  Type it in a font that you like; give it that declarative feel.  Print and then sign your name to it.  Keep it as a formal journal assignment.  We will do some sharing tomorrow; I will have you read some selected portions of your constitution to one or two other people - YOU DO NOT HAVE TO SHARE YOUR ENTIRE PIECE WITH THEM.   Some people may have elements of a personal moral code, for example, which are, well, personal.  I want to respect your privacy. Keep in mind that I will read them when I collect your journal entries for the 2nd quarter (expect that it will be one of them)
4. A Personal Moral Code, which might address, among other things, your relationship/conduct toward others, the state (i.e., the ruling government),  the earth, the Divine, etc.
5. Bring Emerson's "Self-Reliance and Other Essays"

Learning Target: I can use literature as a means of reflecting on my own beliefs and values.

Bellringer: 
Form Groups of three.
Pick up your revised questions from yesterday.
Remembering the characteristics of a good, lively conversation, discuss your questions, alternating leadership roles.  Make sure you discuss a mix of interpretive and evaluative questions. You may discuss any of your questions from the last couple of days.

Interpretive: If Thoreau thinks "that the world is not governed by policy and expediency," then what (or who) would he think governs the world based on what he has said in the rest of the essay (16)? 


Radical by Supertramp

Evaluative Question: How might the lyrics in this song relate to Chris McCandless and Thoreau? How might they not?

Homework: 

1. Re-read 16-17, in light of the following question: Interpretive: If Thoreau thinks "that the world is not governed by policy and expediency," then what (or who) would he think governs the world based on what he has said in the rest of the essay (16)? 
2. For those of you doing the skill-based revision assignment, at a minimum, bring in your rationale statement and your annotated source materials.
3. Type one of the following...No more than one page in length...  Constitution for the State of ___________________(some derivation of your name) or a A Personal Moral Code, which might address, among other things, your relationship/conduct toward others, the state (i.e., the ruling government),  the earth, the Divine, etc.
4. Bring Emerson's "Self-Reliance and Other Essays"

McCandless and Thoreau aren't the only ones who think nature is pretty neat.

"Thoreau was a great writer, philosopher, poet, and withal a most practical man, that is, he taught nothing he was not prepared to practise in himself. ... He went to jail for the sake of his principles and suffering humanity. His essay has, therefore, been sanctified by suffering. Moreover, it is written for all time. Its incisive logic is unanswerable." - Mohandas Gandhi

"... when, in the mid-1950's, the United States Information Service included as a standard book in all their libraries around the world a textbook ... which reprinted Thoreau's 'Civil Disobedience,' the late Senator Joseph McCarthysucceeded in having that book removed from the shelves — specifically because of the Thoreau essay." - Walter Harding, in The Variorum Civil Disobedience

"I became convinced that noncooperation with evil is as much a moral obligation as is cooperation with good. No other person has been more eloquent and passionate in getting this idea across than Henry David Thoreau. As a result of his writings and personal witness, we are the heirs of a legacy of creative protest." - Martin Luther King, Jr, Autobiography

Homework: Finish Civil Disobedience and write one inferential and one evaluative question and submit both of them to turnitin.com

1. "I cast my vote, perchance, as I think right; ... I am willing to leave it to the majority. Its obligation, therefore, never exceeds that of expediency. Even voting for the right is doing nothing for it. It is only expressing to men feebly your desire that it should prevail." (5). Thoreau brings forth a very staunch insight in this passage; that Americans are all essentially sheep, following the majority for the sake of convenience alone. Furthermore, he argues that stating your claim is not analogous to advocating for it. Is Thoreau's assertion too harsh, or does it seem reasonable? Is this complacency to letting others handle the power still prevalent in our society today? Do you see yourself as a passive bystander, or as someone that is a proponent of their beliefs?

2. Henry David Thoreau discusses the importance, or lack thereof, of the role of Presidency of the United States. He defines the President as a man who was elected by force, and does not really care for his job. As Thoreau puts it, he "despairs" his country. Thoreau continues, saying "His vote is of no more worth than that of any unprincipled foreigner or hireling native, who may have been bought. Oh for a man who is a man, and, as my neighbor says, has a bone in his back which you cannot pass your hand through!" (Thoreau 6). Thoreau's interpretation of "men" is later referred to as well. He asks the question "How many men are there to a square thousand miles in this country? Hardly one" (Thoreau 6). What does Thoreau mean when he uses the term 'men'? Do you think slaves are considered 'men' to Throeau, and if they are, what makes them a 'man'? Explain.


3. "I know this well that if one thousand, if one hundred, if ten men whom I could name,-if ten honest men only- aye if one HONEST man, in this state of Massachusetts, ceasing to own slaves, were actually to withdraw from this copartnership, and be locked up in county jail therefor, it would be the abolition of slavery in America." (Thoreau 9) 

How does the syntax of the above statement convey Thoreau's desire to abolish slavery? How does one get the impression he is almost begging these "honest men" to turn themselves in and thus end slavery? Will Thoreau's position on this matter influence his following essays?

November 3, 2014 Civil Disobedience

Learning Targets: I can use literature as a means to explore my beliefs and values.

Please pick up a copy of the Shared Inquiry Handbook.  We will have Socratic Discussion tomorrow and I want to review some fundamentals.

Please pick up the revised version of the skill building revision assignment (there were some mistakes in the copies I handed out next week – make sure you read your chosen assignment again!) Also, the due date is now pushed to Friday.

Homework: 

• Read and annotate pp 1-9, through the end of the paragraph ending with “not wholly waive the following winter”. Annotate for his ideas, questions, and the rhetorical characteristics/elements of the piece.

• Also, post one inferential discussion question on the turnitin.com discussion board.

November 3, 2014: Today’s Discussion Starter Journal…The Machine of Government  (10 minutes)

“If the machine of government is of such a nature that it requires you to be the agent of injustice to another, then, I say, break the law.” 

·       What some historic examples people breaking the law to combat injustice?

    Are there any current injustices which you feel strongly about? What are they? What do you  think you would be willing to do to change them? What actions do you think would be most effective and moral? Would you be willing to break a law to fight this injustice?

Pair and Share

Whole Group Discussion

 Inferential Question Examples:

Tayo used to carry around a tin frame of his mother when he was a child: "But one evening, when he carried it with him, there were visitors in the kitchen, she grabbed it away with him. He cried for it and Josiah came to comfort him; he asked Tayo why he was crying, but just as he was ashamed to tell Josiah about the understanding between him an Auntie, he also could not tell him about the picture..." (71) Why does Tayo feel the relationaship between himself and his aunt is private?  How might his  relationship with his Aunt  affect Tayo's view of his own mother.

On page 74, Josiah described the cattle saying that "if you separate them from the land for too long, keep them in barns and corrals, they lose something. Their stomachs get to where they can only eat rolled oats and dry alfalfa." Does Josiah's description of the cattle parallel Tayo's PTSD and how he copes with being away from the land for so long?

Evaluative questions ask us to judge whether what an author has written is true in light of our own experience, including other works we may have read. For example, Is the Declaration of Independence still relevant today, or is its interest mainly historical? Evaluative questions are typically broad and often range beyond the selection being considered. Evaluative questions help us make connections between the insights gained through discussing great writings and how we live our lives. They tend to be more rewarding if they are grounded in the work being considered and based on sound interpretations developed by participants in the course of discussion.

Example Evaluative Question: 

Into The Wild evaluative question example

Is it better to live life completely according to your own truth, or should you be willing to compromise your values for the sake of family who might be hurt if something bad happened as a result of your choice to live in full accord with your moral principles?

Great Expectations evaluative question…

In Great Expectations Charles Dickens makes it clear that social class was extremely important in 19^th Century England.  How important is social class in 21^st century America? What are some specific ways in which it affect our lives?

“Unjust laws exist; shall we be content to obey them, or shall we endeavor to amend them, and obey them until we have succeeded, or shall we transgress them at once? Men generally, under such a government as this, think that they ought to wait until they have persuaded the majority to alter them. They think that, if they should resist, the remedy would be worse than the evil. But it is the fault of the government itself that the remedy is worse than the evil. It makes it worse. Why is it not more apt to anticipate and provide for reform? Why does it not cherish its wise minority? Why does it cry and resist before it is hurt? Why does it not encourage its citizens to be on the alert to point out its faults, and do better than it would have them?” 
― Henry David Thoreau, Civil Disobedience and Other Essays