Lit Terms Booklets–compile those to begin studying the terms. We will have four quizzes with fifteen terms each (the last quiz will have only thirteen–see? I can do SOME math). The first quiz will likely be Tuesday or Wednesday of next week. I’ll let you know on Monday.

CLAIMS--I’ve evaluated the claims you made about Louise Mallard in “Story.” Let’s look at good examples and show how they can be even tighter and more direct.

• For future reference in responses that you write:
• Get to the point of the response as quickly as possible. Cut fluff, be succinct.
• Refer to authors and their works in the PRESENT TENSE. For our purposes, the text is alive right now.
• Refer to authors by their last names; don’t write “the author says.” First, use the name; second, authors don’t “say” anything, they write! Chopin writes . . .
• Avoid “I” but use “one” if you need to reference someone.
• Don’t make assumptions about the text; if you can’t find solid evidence to back up an assertion, it may be something you’ve assumed and not actually in the text. Delete it.
• Use qualifications such as “may” or “suggests” or “seems to imply” when making an assertion.
• There’s no need to compliment the author or their techniques. They’re all brilliant, that’s why we use them. Move on.

POETRY

Many of the terms we’ll be memorizing show up in poetry, so we’re going to do a brief introduction to poems and also look at additional Big 6 Ideas topics.

STRUCTURE is one of the Big Six Ideas (Character, Setting, Narration, STRUCTURE, Figurative Language, Argumentation). Most obvious in poetry, HOW an author sets up the structure of the poem lends a great deal to the understanding of it.

Baca “I am offering this poem”

Notice how he sets up the STANZAS–why does he do that?

How does each stanza end?

READ the first time to get a feel for the poem.

READ a second time taking notes in the margins. Put main ideas into your own words. Ask questions of the text. Identify what you like, what strikes you, what confuses you. (Employ any method of marking that suits you, but MARK UP THE TEXT!)

What does each stanza mean in “Offering”? How does it relate to the stanza above?

Some background on Baca:

Born in 1952 in Santa Fe of Chicano and Apache descent, Jimmy Santiago Baca was abandoned by his parents and at 13 ran away from the orphanage where his grandmother had placed him. He was convicted on drug charges in 1973 and spent five years in prison. There he learned to read and began writing poetry. His semiautobiographical novel in verse, Martin and Meditations on the South Valley (1987), received the 1988 Before Columbus Foundation’s American Book Award in 1989. In addition to over a dozen books of poetry, he has published memoirs, essays, stories, and a screenplay, Bound by Honor (1993).

Baca has conducted writing workshops in prisons, libraries, and universities across the country for more than 30 years. In 2004 he launched Cedar Tree, a literary nonprofit designed to provide writing workshops, training, and outreach programs for at-risk youth, prisoners and ex-prisoners, and disadvantaged communities. Baca holds a BA in English and an honorary PhD in literature from the University of New Mexico.

https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/jimmy-santiago-baca

Does his background now give you some additional insight? (In the exam, you’re likely not going to know anything about the authors whose writings you’re analyzing, but in class I think it’s important to see an author’s history and time period, and how all of that reflects in the writing.)

READ a third time looking specifically at imagery to discuss.

SLAM a poem. This is a useful method for analyzing poems and making sure you’re not missing anything important.

SLAM poems like a pro (Structure, Language, Affect, Meaning)

1) Read through the poem first to get a feel for it. 

2) Then read through a second time, take notes on the sides as ideas come to you.

3) Then refer to this list and see what more you can identify in the poem. 

STRUCTURE:

• How are the line breaks organized?
• How are the sentences organized? Examine the punctuation.
• How are the stanzas organized?
• How does the structure affect the meaning of the poem?

LANGUAGE:

• Examine the figurative language (simile, metaphor, alliteration, hyperbole, onomatopoeia, personification, etc.).
• Examine the sound devices (rhythm, rhyme, repetition).
• Examine the sensory language in the poem (imagery, symbols, etc.).

AFFECT:

• Mood: How does the poem make you feel? What emotions are evoked by the poem’s language?
• Tone: How does the author feel or want you to feel when you read the poem?
• Is there a shift in tone or attitude in the poem? How does that shift affect the reader and the meaning of the poem?

MEANING:

• What is the subject of the poem? (What is the poem mainly about?)
• Does the poet use symbolism?
• What are the deeper meaning of the symbols in the poem?
• What is the central message or theme of the poem?
• Why is the title important and how does it establish the context of the poem?

HOMEWORK: Complete “I am Offering The Poem” response and bring to class on Monday (Complete on Google docs; we’ll be working from your response in class.)