English IV Carpe Diem Poem

Develop and write lyrics for a carpe diem poem/song in any style. Your song/poem must have a distinct tone, imagery, and must use various forms of figurative language. Due Monday, 11/10/14.

English III Olaudah Equiano Journal

Please include your FIRST AND LAST NAME at the top of every journal you write. Your journals must be 150 words minimum. Pick ONE topic to address and write about. Journal #1 What characteristics of Equiano’s autobiography distinguish it from Phyllis Wheatley’s poem? How does the message in his autobiography differ from that in Wheatley’s poem? Journal #2 How do you account for the depth of human cruelty described in parts of this autobiography? What current world events reveal similar horrors and violations of human rights? How would Olaudah Equiano see the United States in 2014?

Fear, Control, and Puritan Sinners (English III)

Many people would agree that fear is one of the most powerful motivators in human behavior. Jonathan Edwards and other pastors at this time used harsh warnings in their sermons to make sinners understand the precariousness of their situation by actually making them feel the horror of their sinful state. Do you think fear is a great motivator?

Things Fall Apart Pre Reading Journal (English 4)

What do you think is more important to a society and culture’s success, change or tradition? Is a culture that has outdated practices and observations still relevant? Why/ Why Not? What groups/ types of people would prefer change and what groups would prefer tradition?

English II Quote Analysis for the Final

10th Grade Quote Analysis (Final Preparation) Answer the following prompts and analyze the quote. “Nearly all people can stand adversity, but if you want to test a person’s character, give him or her power.” - Abraham Lincoln • Who wrote the quote? What do you know about this person? • Explain what this quote tells you, the reader, about the character speaking. • Do you agree with this quote? Why? Why not? • Summarize the quote in your own words. • Can you compare this quote to another meaningful quote that expresses a similar message? Write the quote and explain the similarities between the two. • Can you find an example in the real world where this quote rings true? • Find examples in the sophomore texts where this quote rings true and explain the quote’s relevance and importance within the larger context of the books and plays.

English IV Final Journal (Quotation Analysis)

Given a quotation from a work/ text, students will analyze its importance in regard to the entire novel or play. Please pick ONE quote from each text. Things Fall Apart Turning and turning in the widening gyre The falcon cannot hear the falconer; Things fall apart; the center cannot hold; Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world. - W.B. Yeats (Quote from the introduction) “Does the white man understand our custom about land?” “How can he when he does not even speak our tongue? But he says that our customs are bad; and our own brothers who have taken up his religion also say that our customs are bad. How do you think we can fight when our own brothers have turned against us? The white man is very clever. He came quietly and peaceably with his religion. We were amused at his foolishness and allowed him to stay. Now he has won our brothers, and our clan can no longer act like one. He has put a knife on the things that held us together and we have fallen apart.” - Obierika The Stranger “She said, “If you go slowly, you risk getting sunstroke. But if you go too fast, you work up a sweat and then catch a chill inside the church.” She was right. There was no way out.” “I said that people never change their lives, that in any case one life was as good as another and that I wasn’t dissatisfied with mine here at all.” “As if that blind rage had washed me clean, rid me of hope; for the first time, in that night alive with signs and stars, I opened myself to the gentle indifference of the world. Finding it so much like myself—so like a brother, really—I felt that I had been happy and that I was happy again. For everything to be consummated, for me to feel less alone, I had only to wish that there be a large crowd of spectators the day of my execution and that they greet me with cries of hate.”

English IV- Existentialism Journal

Topic: Explain and analyze the pros and cons of Existentialism. Explain what the philosophy is and its stronger and weaker points. Do you agree with the philosophy of Existentialism? Why/Why not? How are Graham Greene’s short story “The Destructors” and Big Black’s song “Kerosene” examples of Existentialism?

Fate vs. Free Will

Free will is the power of acting without the constraint of necessity or fate; the ability to act at one's own discretion. Fate is the development of events beyond a person's control, regarded as determined by a supernatural power Was there a time in your life when someone told you that something improbable would happen and it did? Did the fact that the event was predicted cause you to act differently in order to make the prediction happen? Do people try to make predictions come true? Is this freewill or fate?

Poetry Class Journal #1 (Thanatopsis)

What is the main theme/philosophy surrounding Thanatopsis and what characteristics make it Romantic? Do you think his youth plays a part in how he views mortality? How might he have written it 20-50 years later? (Due Friday)

Animal Farm Journal II (English II)

What is the power of a flag? Why do countries need flags and how do they use them? Is a flag a sign of control or independence? Why do politicians use so many flags when they speak?