Friday, December 4, 2015

Blog #15 - Hope and Fear. Survivors and Empathy.

Due: Bring a printed copy to class on Monday, December 14
Minimum Words: 800
Textual References and Links: Four
Remember to quote and cite the works you are using correctly.

It seems we're always living at some point on a continuum of hope and fear. They are two emotions that are powerfully motivating and almost ever-present in our lives.  In class, we discussed how closely related the two emotions can be. Some of you went so far as to say that the two concepts are the same thing. Of course, I disagree. Others have talked about the important roles each play or the relationship between the two emotions.

Huge topics call for a lot of latitude in responses. So, I've provided several possible questions with an important disclaimer near the end. Synthesizing sources is essential.

  • How do hope and fear shape and change people? How does the roles of hope and fear change throughout a person's life?
  • What is the relationship between hope and fear? How does this play itself out in some of the works we have read and how could this relate to real life?
  • Do we truly treat survivors as winners and those who don't survive as "losers"? How is this attitude present in literature, history, and the way we treat others. What can be done about this?
  • We've talked extensively about all of the advantages fear has with motivating people. What benefits could their be from leading with hope? What advantages should there be with leading through fear? How does this show itself in some of the literature we've examined in class?
  • Hugh Howey wanted us to explore Plato's Allegory of the Cave and the 24-hour news cycle and what it does with our optimism and pessimism. Can you fully explore these ideas in the context of Wool and/or the other works we've read in class.
  • What role does hope and fear play in education in general or your education specifically? What themes from some of the works we have read fit well with your educational experience?
  • We started to explore the idea of pride and ego as they relate to fear. We also looked at the popularity of superheroes during times of fear and hopelessness. What connections can you make with these concepts and the discussions in class as they relate to the literature we've studied as a whole?
  • Propaganda can be used to inspire hope or create fear. We looked at some stereotypes created about Germans, Russians, and Japanese people during World War II. Why is it important to fear an enemy? What are the positive and negative consequences of propaganda? 
  • Under what circumstances is hope more powerful than fear? How can fear be healthy? How does this show itself in life and what connections can be made with the work we have studied in class?
  • MAUS explores the idea of survivor's guilt as it relates to hope, fear, and ego. It also brings up the fear that defined lives in the concentration camps. What conclusions can you make based on this work as they relate to other things we've looked at. If you need help citing a graphic novel, check out this resource.
  • Is there truly a difference between fear and anxiety? Is all fear the same size? How could it be important to recognize these distinctions? Is it truly possible to dance with The Resistance
If you haven't figured this out by now, it is essential that you provide evidence from the texts we've studied in class to support or illustrate your claims. Beyond that, you can create any question for yourself to pursue that allows you to synthesize multiple sources in your writing. Citing evidence and using correct formatting worth 25 of the 50 points of this blog.

Works for your consideration:
  • Wool by Hugh Howey
  • The Lady or the Tiger by Frank Stockton
  • Hiroshima by John Hersey
  • Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand
  • The Republic by Plato
  • MAUS II by Art Spiegelman
  • "All The Kings Horses" by Vonnegut
  • The introduction to Slaughterhouse V.
  • I, Zombie by Hugh Howey
  • Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe
  • Hamlet by William Shakespeare
  • The blogs and opinions of Seth Godin
  • The Hunger Games, specifically Catching Fire by Suzane Collins
Seth Godin has a unique perspective on the fear that stops people from being creative and publishing ideas or shipping new products. Here's him talking about Dancing with Fear.


He has a ton of other information about the hard work of doing Emotional Labor and often talks about how the best of us are paid to confront failure and overcome fear. If you want stuff by him, ask McCallum. 


Here is some help with how to format citations like a pro.

Don't forget to provide links within your text to your outside sources and credit all opinions that are not yours.

Monday, November 30, 2015

Blog #14: The Republic and Justice


Due: Thursday at the end of the day.
Minimum words: 400
Minimum links: 1

When I originally selected Plato's Republic for this class, I knew it would be challenging - both in the way it is written and the concepts that it contains. I wanted a piece of literature that would stretch us and make us work. However, I also wanted this work to be worthwhile - to lead us to some deep discussions and conversations about the nature or morals and justice. 

In this blog post, please reflect on your thinking about The Republic and the concepts that you found most important or interesting. Please go beyond whether or not you "liked" the book.

Here are some concepts and potential questions for you to consider if you need some help getting started:
  • What is the true nature of Justice?
  • The Forms.
  • The Allegory of the Cave
  • The Tripartite Soul
  • The value of a Philosopher king
  • The role of luxury in a just society
  • Wisdom, Honor, and Appetite 
  • Censorship and "The Noble Lie"
  • Creators, Makers, and Imitators
  • Restorative Justice versus Punitive Justice
  • The Tyrannical Man
What value is there in studying this work from 2300 years ago in a modern context?

Why is "goodness" so hard to understand or describe?

How have the philosophies in this book influenced things, beliefs, or systems you encounter in your life?

Can you connect the ideas presented in this book with current situations?

Why is justice so important to us but so difficult to describe or obtain?

Why must Socrates describe a just city in order to shed light on a just person or the concept of justice in general?



What quotations or concepts stick out to you when you look at key quotations from The Republic

Tuesday, October 27, 2015

Blog #13: Things Fall Apart

Due: Tuesday, November 3 at the end of class. 

Things Fall Apart is about a culture on the verge of dramatic change. We see how the prospect of change affects individuals within that culture.

Efulefu level (D): 250 words and a quote from the novel
Unoka level: (C/B) 350 words and two quotes from the novel
Okonkwo (B+/A-) level: 450 words and two quotes from the novel
Chukwu level: (A/A+) 750 words and at least two quotes from the novel as well as quotes and references from other works.

A Culture On the Verge of Change
  • What forces are at play?
  • What connections can you make to things happening now?
  • What role do tradition, ritual, and ceremony play in maintaining a culture and what role do they play during a time of change?
  • What effect does status play in cultural change?
  • How does push and pull influence people.
Progress

  • In what ways does the idea of progress shape the novel?
  • How does the idea of a single story play into the idea of progress?
Tradition

  • How does tradition perpetuate and thrive from one generation to the next?

If none of these questions work, here are some questions I stole from a great school and teacher in Pleasanton, California. If you are the teacher who wrote these questions, you are getting the titles of our village. May Chukwu bless your people and your traditions - in both your motherland and fatherland. I tried to find you to ask permission and thank you, but I couldn't.


1.   How does the father-son relationship throughout three generations shape the     personalities of Okonkwo, and Nwoye? Comment on their characteristics and the role their father plays in making them who they are.


  1. "The story of Okonkwo is in a way the story of our culture; he pays a price because he places too much emphasis on strength and manliness." Discuss this quote as it applies to both the novel and our own modern American culture.


  1. One of the themes of Achebe's novel is the striving after titles, trophies, and status in general. Write an essay commenting on the presence and importance of status symbols in Okonkwo's world and today's world. Explain their appeal and the ways in which searching for status symbols is a negative force in life.  

  1. Discuss the ways in which the District Commissioner symbolizes intolerance and disrespect for cultures he considers inferior.

  1. Okonkwo suffers because he does not understand himself.  Do his experiences help lead him to self-awareness or not, and why?

  1. "[Okonkwo's] whole life was dominated by fear, the fear of failure and of weakness."  Explain how fear, in an ironic way, is the catalyst for destruction and failure in the novel?

  1. Comment on how Achebe, through this novel, counters the Imperialist stereotypes on Africa as an uncivilized continent.  What aspects of Ibo culture contradict this commonly held stereotype?  Perhaps use the District Commissioner’s comments to help convey the imperialist view.

Friday, September 18, 2015

Blog #12: Hamlet

Due Date: Saturday, September 26 and the end of the day.
Minimum Word Count: 450
Minimum Quotations and Specific Text References: 3
Please come up with a better title than "Hamlet" and start with a strong thesis or claim.

Your task:


You've been working on this blog post for the past week. It's based on the essential question that fate selected for you. If you need a reminder about your question or a copy of the outline sheet that you got in class, click here.

Throughout the process of reading, discussing, and writing about the play, you followed and took notes on your essential question. Now, this is your opportunity to present your reflections, discoveries, and conclusions in the form of a blog post, complete with textual citations and quotations (required) and multimedia (when appropriate).

You must incorporate at least two relevant quotes from the play, as well as paraphrased instances from Hamlet or other texts that relate to your thinking (between 4-8) that support your answer. You might also consider using minor supporting information from other sources (allusions to historical figures, celebrities, the Bible, or other stories/films). If you allude to anything other than the play itself, be sure it is cited correctly to credit is given to the original authors.

Here's how you cite examples and lines from the play:


25. Verse play or poem For verse plays, give act, scene, and line numbers that can be located in any edition of the work. Use arabic numerals and separate the numbers with periods.
In Shakespeare’s King Lear, Gloucester, blinded for suspected treason, learns a profound lesson from his tragic experience: “A man may see how this world goes / with no eyes” (4.6.148-49).

Thursday, September 10, 2015

Blog #11: What is justice?

Due Date: Sunday, September 13
Minimum Word Count: At least 350
At least 1 quote or reference to Plato's The Republic
At least 1 quote, reference, or link to a modern example of justice or injustice




The first week of class has focused on two main questions:

Why bother being good?
What is Justice?

These questions have sparked a lot of thought, discussion, and debate. Most of all, they've called into question some of the essential questions about what it means to be a part of a culture or civilization.

For your first blog, take time to come to some conclusions for yourself on the issues of goodness and justice. Here are some possible questions to get your started, but you are always more than welcome to come up with a question or questions on your own.




What is justice?

Is justice, as it is currently practiced, just the advantage of the stronger? How do you know?

Why do you think our discussion on the importance of doing good turned into a discussion on the benefits of being bad?

How is the ideal of justice different from how you have experienced justice?

How do children learn about justice, and what does that say about us?

Look at the current events surrounding Bradley Manning, Edward Snowden, or Trayvon Martin and discuss how you see justice or injustice playing into these situations.

Why bother defending justice?



Our questions from class:


Monday, January 12, 2015

Blog #24: Where do we go from here?

Over the past 23 blog posts, you have been responding to questions I've asked or issues we've discussed as a class. You've synthesized ideas from dozens of people, analyzed works spanning over 3000 years, tackled some of the most difficult and enduring questions facing philosophers, and made connections with both depth and breadth.

For your final blog, I will ask you the question I started with as I started preparing to teach this class: Where do we go from here?

This is your chance to write in your own way about the entirety of your experience with me. You get to make some final connections and summarize the point of your own growth and development as a reader, writer, thinker, teacher, and learner. Consider the major themes of the class as well as your thinking on what we've done that continues to resonate with you.

I am not putting a word limit on this blog and I'm not going to specify what you link to here. Please, if you can, consider the entirety of the experience, as well as the works we've read recently that talk about freedoms, laws, morals, ethics, hope, and despair. Take a look over the other posts you've done and see how your thinking and writing developed over the course of your Quest English experience.

I'm very much looking forward to reading what you come up with. This could be my last chance to read your writing for a while. This experience has changed me for the better in so many ways. I'm looking forward to seeing what you have to say.