Extra Credit Assignment

Write a 1-2 page analysis of your favorite movie, TV show, song or book using one of the Critical Lens Theories we learned about (Social Class, Gender, Reader Response, Psychoanalytical). This will count as two quiz grades.

Final Blog

Which Critical Literary Theory/Theories best apply/applies to your book and why? Write your final blog post here. All rules still apply! This is due AT THE END OF CLASS!!

Final Essay Assignment

Name:                                                                        12^th Grade Honors English

Literary Criticism Essay

Task

Now that you have studied various methods of Literary Criticism, it is your turn to put one of these methods to use by applying them to your Literature Circle book. It is time for you to pull all these skills together to write a literary analysis essay. 

Procedure

Your first step is to re-read your group’s discussion blog and notes from your Literature Circle books from a Social Class, Gender, Reader-Centered or Psychoanalytical perspective.  You should identify key passages of your book that relate to your chosen type of criticism.

Next, review your notes and your blog threads. Select your 3 strongest answers/ideas; these will become your 3 main ideas/topic sentences for your essay. Looking at these three ideas, ask yourself how they are related or how you could state all three of these ideas in one sentence—this sentence will become your THESIS statement. If you have trouble with this step, use the following template and fill in the blanks:

(Reader-Centered/Psychoanalytical/Gender/Social Class) criticism offers a unique understanding of author’s book, Book Title because __________________________.

For example, perhaps you read Of Mice and Men from a Social Class Theory perspective. In your notes/blogs, you saw that:                                                              1) power is maintained through economics 
2) power is established through social class 
3) power is established through race.

You could write:

Thesis:

Social Class Criticism offers a unique understanding of John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men because it helps show how power is related to economics, social class and race.

·      Your next step is to create an outline (any format you choose) with a thesis for your essay. Remember that this essay will be planned, outlined and written during class time—use the time effectively.

·      Your thesis needs to be approved and initialed by me before you move on!

·      You need at least three quotes (one per body paragraph) that represent all parts of the book!

·      The essay will be marked on the standard essay rubric on the back of this paper.

Dates:

Thesis Statement & Outline: Due at the end of class on Thursday, March 1

First Draft: Due at the end of class on Wednesday, March 7

Peer Editing Comment: Due at the end of class on Thursday, March 8

Final Draft: Due at the end of class on Friday, March 9

Syllabus & Rubrics

Literature Circle & Literary Criticism Unit

This is a place to share thoughts and ideas about the books we're reading this term!

To start blogging, click on the image of your book to the right!

Overview & Goals 
In this unit, we have the pleasure of reading some of the most loved and admired writers of modern times. Our goals are to expand our familiarity with writers who are recognized in the modern Canon, to develop our own tastes in recent fiction, and to further our understanding of the text by engaging in dialogue with other readers.


Dates 
Literature Circles will run from Tuesday, January 31-Friday, March 9, 2012.

Reading 
Reading happens independently outside of class, according to the pacing guide established by each group on Tuesday, January 31, 2012. Literature Circle reading and blogging happens simultaneously with other regular work in English class; please manage your time wisely.

Blogging 
Blogging is the primary way we will communicate with Literature Circle group members about the text. Post to the blog once a week with a thoughtful entry of no more than 250 words! One of the challenges of this project is to be specific and concrete while also succinct. Please ground your responses to the text in the text itself, using quoted textual evidence whenever possible to support your analysis. Textual quotes should be in the service of deeper analysis of the themes and crafting of the text; the goal is to bring the author's voice into the discussion and analyze particular instances of his/her genius. Do not take up blog space with plot summary -- we will assume that all bloggers on the site are up to date with their reading and understand the plot line. Focus on analysis of message, style, and ideally the nexus of the two. Work to develop a community with your fellow bloggers by responding to specifics of their posts by building on or respectfully questioning their ideas. Please show the same respect for your peers online as you do so well in class on a daily basis. Rules for the safety of your online identity, expectations and assessment criteria, and ideas for starting discussion are posted to the right under Assignment Guidelines; read and adhere to these. Blogging is a significant project grade. Links to blogs are at the right; just click on the name or picture of your book.

If you have questions or messages for Ms. Lambert regarding the blog, it's best to address her in person or via e-mail. Face-to-Face Brief in-class meetings will happen 2-3 times while reading. These will have short reflection/note-taking assignments associated with them that will be graded as classwork. The primary forum for these Literature Circles is online, but you are encouraged to discuss more in person!

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time

Drown

The Life of Pi

Breath, Eyes, Memory

The Brief and Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao

This is a very uniquely written and interesting text about a young boy named Oscar.