English Lang/Lit LPs

  Section 5: chapters XXV - XXX How does chapter 26 illustrate the dilemma facing a slave who wanted dreamed of freedom? Does it suggest the correct solution to this dilemma? Many slaveowners see themselves as "nice slaveowners", thinking that as long as they treat their slaves right and free them eventually their hands are clean. Chapter 26 is a nice illustration of how this is a deluded notion. Linda's brother sees freedom as something that can't be bargained for and can't wait. He leaves when he can no matter how nice his slaveowner is, who believes that his slave will return in good time. The struggle for freedom and dignity is a conquering force in the human psyche. Chapter 26 very clearly states that slaves have no obligations to their "masters" in matters of freedom, no matter how kind or how sadistic that slaveowner may be. Comment on the effect of this quote from chapter 27: “I had no trust in thee, O Slavery!” Chapter 27 outlines, among other ...

 Conceptual Focus Qs How can the writing/reading of a text transform the author/reader? How do form and structure interact with meaning? How is the cultural context of a work/text relevant to an interpretation of it? Daytripper Structure is an integral tool for Daytripper in how it weaves its story. Daytripper is a comic(or graphic novel) meaning that structure is immediately noticeable. Daytripper is one of many comics that use structure creatively to not only create a better flow for the story but also to deepen and highlight certain parts of the story. Choices like panel style, the shape of dialog boxes, and letting some panels bleed into each other all create an effect that can lend itself to the meaning of Daytripper. Daytripper also has large influences from its cultural context, Brazil and Brazillian culture are intertwined with this work and it's an important thing to keep in mind when reading Daytripper. Works are always influenced by their authors, through this cultural c...

 We've started doing comic analysis for Daytripper. Daytripper has been interesting, at least for the first 4 chapters. Stories that have an interesting take on death or otherwise deal with it in a relatively high-concept way are usually interesting. The comic isn't overt or in your face about what it's saying either. The main theme is death, but also life it would seem. Life, or more accurately how to approach/live your life is explored through death. Chapter 2 stood out for this reason because one of the characters Brás meets seems to have a lot to say about how you should approach life. Although not directly related I also noticed that the same-ness of each chapter's progression drew attention to the specific meaning/message of each chapter, at least for me it did. Overall Daytripper seems to be an interesting piece of work with some thought-provoking ideas in it.

Independent Lesson 5   The conceptual guiding questions are used to help improve one's analysis in English. The questions are pretty fundamental to literary critique and help create a well balanced and nuanced analysis of a text. They also are pretty interesting with regard to thinking about the text generally and may provoke a better understanding of the text, its message, or biases in it. While discussing Martin Luther King Jr and Kendrick Lamar, we used conceptual focus questions(i assumed these were the same thing, very sorry if they're not). In my group specifically, we were discussing how authors facilitate communication through authorial choices. There were also questions like "In what ways do texts lead to transformative actions?" These types of questions are good because they highlight a certain focal point for analysis and also get you to show the methods used in the text, but they also are able to get you to discuss the effect of the writing. These question...

  For Sale? In the song "For Sale?" the main idea is that famous people are tempted into a very indulgent lifestyle. This is something to avoid and resist. The song approaches the topic from one of personal experience and also frames the dichotomy in a religious setting. The song’s tone is very personal and cautionary, as well as being quite stoic in its presentation. The song’s video is framed as a baptism, where Kendrick’s head is submerged underwater and he sees visions(?) of good looking women with their tops of that are trying to seduce him. This is an allegory of sorts for seduction and temptation. Kendrick remains stoic and unresponsive in these parts and ignores what’s going on. The video is a metaphor telling the audience to resist the seduction of the famous lifestyle. The video ends with Kendrick’s head emerging from the water.      Notable artistic choices linked to presentation are, among others, the fact that the “temptation scenes” are shot with red li...

Notes  Meaning: About new atomic clocks that might replace the old ones, how important is time? The text is fond of the old clocks but impressed with the new ones Purpose: Inform readers about the new clocks and to discuss time in British society. Context: Nature seems to be some kind of scientific journal, therefore readings of the text are more information-focused and less opinion wary. Audience: The wider British public, presumably subscribers. Authorial choices: list ways in which language is used and cite from the text, comment of effect.  ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The text in question for this analysis is an article from the academic journal Nature . It concerns the approaching replacement of atomic clocks, based on caesium with more accurate optical clocks, based on elements like strontium and ytterbium. The text holds a certain fondness for the atomic clock even though i...

 An excerpt from MLK's "A Knock at Midnight" Sermon. And there is the deep longing for the bread of love. Everybody wishes to love and be loved. He who feels that he is not loved feels that he does not count. Much has happened in the modern world to make men feel that they do not belong. Living in a world which has become oppressively impersonal, many of us have come to feel that we are little more than numbers. Ralph Borsodi in an arresting picture of a world wherein numbers have replaced persons writes that the modern mother is often maternity case No. 8434 and her child, after being fingerprinted and footprinted, becomes No. 8003, and that a funeral in a large city is an event in Parlor B with Class B flowers and decorations at which Preacher No. 14 officiates and Musician No. 84 sings Selection No. 174. Bewildered by this tendency to reduce man to a card in a vast index, man desperately searches for the bread of love. When the man in the parable knocked on his friend’...