Edgar Allan Poe the Social Critic

Edgar Allan Poe or perhaps more accurately, Edgar Allan  Bro.  However you see it, Poe is a much beloved writer from the early nineteenth century.  We typically think of him for his short fiction, but should not disregard his creation of the detective story or discount his desire to be known as a poet. 


Poe's death certainly carries and air of fitting mystery, and thanks to the Poe Museum, you now have the chance to solve said mystery. Another cool facet of the museum is the 1954 production of "A Tell-Tale Heart."  I highly recommend completing both activities.


Thomas C. Foster alleges in How to Read Literature Like a Professor that Edgar Allan Poe is a social critic.  It's difficult to argue this point thanks to stories such as "The Masque of the Red Death," "The Cask of Amontillado," and "The Fall of the House of Usher." 


Why am I telling you all of this?  That question is simple enough: you are to write at least three hundred words discussing the theme of one of Poe's works (it may be helpful to think about the social implications).  In doing this, remember that Poe did not miss the chance to include a symbol in his work, as these will help you to defend the theme that you are championing.


One final note, if you write a second blog about Poe solving the mystery of his death, you could potentially earn some extra credit. In order to do so, you must defend your thinking.

Dr. Seuss is Propoganda

We've recently finished Animal Farm and found that Squeeler is quite the propagandist. What you may not know, is that Theodore Seuss Geisel was quite the propagandist himself (you can find some of his work during World War II here).  He didn't limit himself only to these cartoons; he was also an active teacher in many of his children's books.  He taught of conservation, the trouble with racism, and the fear of the unknown - to name a few.  You can find literal titles of his work here. 


Why are you telling us this, you ask?  Because, your task is to read a Dr. Seuss book (if you don't have one you can easily find the text to many of them with a simple Google search) and explain how the book is propaganda.  Remember to use your notes on persuasion (ethos, pathos, and logos anyone?) to help you.  You also will want to focus on the symbols in the books.  As always, I will be looking at writing conventions and clarity in your argument.


“The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you’ll go.”  - Dr. Seuss

Fathers and Sons

Fathers and sons (and their issues) serve a prominent role in a great amount of film, literature, and music, illustrating the realities of society; it's hard to listen to Staind and not be bludgeoned by these issues.  There are groups such as the Healthy Fathering Collaborative of Greater Cleveland that promote fathers being active in their child's life through events like the annual Fathers Walk.  Articles, such as this and this, discuss the need for a father and the search for the lost father.  Read at least one of these articles and discuss how at least two of the films that we have viewed deal with the father/son issues presented in the article.  Remember, you need to use at least three hundred words and good writing conventions; it will also be helpful to follow standard writing protocol (intro, body, conclusion).

Your Metamorphosis

"When Gregor Samsa awoke one morning from troubled dreams, he found himself transformed in his bed into a monstrous insect;" such is the opening line of Kafka's "Metamorphosis."  (Speaking of Kafka, did any of you notice that this is the name of Arnold Joseph's dog in Smoke Signals? I haven't yet arrived at a conclusion for this).  Anyway, I mentioned to you that along with Kafka's work, you would be creating your own "Metamorphosis;" however, you will not be transforming into a bug.  What you transform into is up to you. 


As usual, you need to write at least three hundred words that demonstrate quality writing conventions.  I also want to remind you that this is a narrative work, so you will want to make sure that you include the appropriate elements.

Teachers vs. Students

Often, when I begin to think about what your blog prompt should be, I peruse the Writer's Digest website for ideas.  Sometimes I will borrow and adapt their prompts and sometimes come up with my own.  Today is one of those days where I couldn't help but borrow from them, as I think the possibilities (and hilarity) that this prompt allows will be worth it (it may also be that the Indians didn't score any runs last night while receiving quality pitching).   Remember that you need to write at least three hundred words and demonstrate good writing conventions.  A final suggestion: start in the middle of the action.


And now for the prompt: "The fight has been raging for three days. The teachers on their end, toting rulers, eraser canons and textbook grenades, and the students on the other, with only school-approved items found in their bookbags. Both sides have suffered casualties and people are wondering, what happened three days ago at [Geauga Academy]that started this mess? Start your story three days ago."

I Think I'm a Clone Now

Ah, back home and time to relax. Long weeks are brutal. Is that the television you hear? Well you haven’t been home all day so you decide to check it out, thinking you left it on. As you enter the room you see the television is indeed on. And you’re already sitting there watching it. What’s going on here?


You need to use at least three hundred words and good writing conventions to explore this dilemma.

English 10 is Joining In

By now I'm sure that you heard me mention blogs at least a few times (and if you're another English class, you have hopefully written one).  It is now the English 10 class' turn to join in on blog writing. 


I spend a lot of my free time attempting to come up with new ways to interact with texts and materials.  This is my most recent endeavor.  While my English classes may not be happy to be creating blogs so that they can interact with texts and each other in a technological setting, they are Surely Out of Luck.

Using blogs in education is beneficial to the students' critical and analytical thinking, it increases students' interaction with one another while discussing content and texts, it will increase students exposure to quality content, allows for students to interact while outside of the classroom, and also offers a means for students to express their thoughts on a topic completely.

Obviously, some may try to take their blogging to a new level and even try to push the envelope on what is appropriate for the school-based use.  The things that students need to know about their blog posts are: 1. If I deem their post inappropriate they will be asked to remove it and receive no credit for their work. 2. Writing conventions are certainly going to be graded.  3. Each blog post must be at least 300 words and will be worth 10 points. 


So what are we writing about, anyway?  Your task is to envision yourself in Mr. Leonard Mead's world ("The Pedestrian" by Bradbury) and determine how you would handle the predicament that he finds himself in.  Would you even be in such a situation?  Why or why not?  It might be helpful to think about what or whom seems to be in control in the society in which he lives.