Week of November7th--Grapes of Wrath!

1.       Discuss the contextual importance of the Great Depression and the Dust Bowl in analyzing the significance of the Joads and their transient nature.

2.       What is at the heart of the plight of the Joads?

3.       Define what it means to be a composite character? How are the Joads actually a singular composite character; almost as if their characters are not fully developed unless in relation to each other.

Week of November 7th--Native Son!

1.       In the introduction, written by the author Richard Wright, Wright discusses at length the making of his protagonist, Bigger Thomas; he reflects on his childhood all the way up to his adulthood, and outlines specific examples of when he met a Bigger and the informing aspect of each incident. Please discuss the many Biggers that Wright experienced in the course of his life, and what did they ALL have in common. Please use concrete details to support your analysis.

2.       Analyze the following quote from the introduction to Native Son, written by Richard Wright:

From these items I drew my first political conclusions about Bigger: I felt that Bigger, an American product, a native son of this land, carried within him the potentialities of either Communism or Fascism. I don’t mean to say that the Negro boy I depicted in Native Son is either a Communist or a Fascist. He is not either. But he is product of a dislocated society; he is a dispossessed or disinherited man; he is all of this, and he lives amid the greatest possible plenty on earth and he is looking and feeling for a way out.

3.       What is at the heart of Bigger’s fears?

Week of October 25th--Gothic Literature!

Directions: Each member of each blog group must write their own Gothic Literature short story using their understanding of the tenents of Gothic Literature. For this week only, you have to write and post your Gothic Literature stories for your members to read and discuss. Good Luck!

Week of October 25th--Stone Diaries!

1. Identify scenes in the novel where there is situational irony and/or dramatic irony. Discuss how the irony informs the theme of the novel.

2. Identify the central purpose of the novel, and articulate and discuss the theme.

3. We have discussed the importance of style in conveying meaning, what is the writer's style in Stone Diaries and how does it work to inform meaning?

Week of October 18th--Stone Diaries!

Directions, please create 2 level 2 questions and 1 level 3 question pertaining to your current reading of Stone Diaries. The expectation remains the same for responses, you will go in at least 3 times throughout the week to inform and refine your responses. Use lots of details!

Week of October 18th--Gothic Literature!

Directions: You will create 1 level 2 question and 1 level 3 question that you will then respond to throughout the week in regards to your last Gothic Literature short story, "Cask of Amontillado." Please remember to provide details, specific examples and concrete details to the questions that you develop.

Week of October 11th--Stone Diaries!

In the first 3 chapters of Stone Diaries, who are some of the main characters? Describe these characters in thoughtful details, including oddities they possess, their relations to each other, and any changes you notice as you progress in your reading of those first 3 chapters.

What are some of the predominant tensions that emerge in those first 3 chapters? Be specific, use appropriate details from the story.