Character Analysis

Daily Update
Today you were offered your first experience this semester of reading your own writing aloud in small groups. After introducing yourselves, you took turns reading your response to Michelle Serros' "Senior Picture Day" to a small group of your peers. Hopefully it wasn't too painful, and it enabled you to get a sense of how your peer responded to the reading.

Following a brief large group discussion of "Senior Picture Day," we moved on to a discussion of our focus for the first major essay: Character. We watched a short clip from the show "Modern Family" and discussed attributes of the characters based on what we saw in the clip. This led to a discussion of character "types," which I'll outline briefly below.

At the end of class, I showed you how to access Angel to find your essay assignment. Read the assignment, print it, and bring a copy to class on Wednesday. If you do not know how to access Angel, let me know as soon as possible.

Homework Reminder
You need to read Literature and Composition chapter 3--just pages 45-54, as outlined in your syllabus. Be sure to do the reading! You will be accountable for this reading on Wednesday.


Character "Types": terms and definitions

• Protagonist: The "hero" of the story; the main character
• Antagonist: The "anti-hero" of the story; typically a prominent character, but also a set of characters or a situation, idea, or force of some kind
• Major characters: The character or characters who are central to the plot or main idea/conflict of the story
• Minor characters: The character or characters who help move the plot along in less dominant ways; the "supporting cast"
• Dynamic characters: Characters who show growth or change
• Static characters: Characters who remain the same throughout the plot
• Foil: A character or situation that serves to enhance or magnify the strengths of the protagonist. For example, a character whose weaknesses magnify the protagonist's strengths (the opposite of the protagonist), or a character who is much like the protagonist, but weaker or less dynamic, whose traits shine a light on or magnify the protagonist's strengths.

Writers as Readers

Daily Update
Today we discussed chapter two of Literature and Composition, which focuses on the importance of careful interpretive reading. We used the key concepts in chapter 2 to give a stronger context to Wednesday's reading of "The Road Not Taken."

I'm sure you all carefully read chapter 2 and need no additional information, but I would like to highlight a few key concepts, which we also discussed in class:

• To be a critical reader, you need to respond to literature and be able to defend your response. It's not enough just to give a personal reaction; you also need to provide evidence (such as direct quotations) to prove your reaction or analysis.
• Reading as re-creation. When you read a text, you share the "power" of making meaning with the author. The author creates meaning when s/he writes, then you as the reader re-create meaning when you read.
• Take note of the three bold terms on the bottom of page 13. Know them, their definitions, and their application.

Following our discussion of chapter 2, we carefully re-read Frost's "The Road Not Taken" and discussed the meaning (what the author intended, according to E.D. Hirsch) and the significance (or, as Hirsch explains, the "particular relevance to each reader"). The meaning of the poem ended up quite different from the significance the poem held for most students.

When we wrapped up "The Road Not Taken," we moved on to a brief discussion of "Ripe Figs," most of which dealt with the interpretation outlined in the text as well as the figurative application for individuals (age vs. youth, the passage of time, the generation gap, etc.)

Homework Reminder
For Monday, you need to read Michelle Serros's "Senior Picture Day" in Literature and Composition pp. 33-36. Then, you need to complete response paper 1. This assignment was distributed in class, and it can also be found posted on Angel (under the "Content" tab in the Week 1 folder).

Day one, take two

Daily Update
I'm glad that we were finally able to meet for our first day of the semester! After Monday's power outage and subsequent cancellation, I was feeling antsy to get started with the class. I enjoyed meeting all of you and look forward to getting to know you better during the semester as we read, write, and learn together.

Today, as you know, we went over the syllabus and discussed the expectations I have for you as students. If you have any questions about the syllabus or anything else about the course, please let me know.

Following the syllabus overview, we read Robert Frost's poem, "The Road Not Taken." You then wrote a short response that will help me to see where we are as a class in terms of reading, interpreting, and responding to literature. Again, this was just a diagnostic and won't receive a letter grade.

Homework Reminder
For Friday, you need to read pages 11-16 in our textbook, Literature for Composition: Essays, Stories, Poems, and Plays by Barnet, Cain, and Burto. Be sure to pick up your copy at the bookstore as soon as possible, as we will use it extensively in class. Do the reading and be prepared to discuss it on Friday. See you then!