How Bacon and I are spending our Spring Break
Well, I'm halfway through my three-week-long Spring Break, and as of today, I really have nothing to show for my time off. I had visions of scrapbooking, vidding, and sorting through all the junk in our apartment to give to Goodwill, and all I've done is watched t.v. and played Legend of Zelda, the Windwaker (thanks to Amy and Jamey who got me hooked when I went to Alabama last week). Bacon has been loving having me home - as soon as Scott gets up in the morning, Bacon moves from his spot at the foot of the bed right up to Scott's pillow and snuggles in for another two or three hours with me. At 9 or 10 we get up, have a nice long walk, then come in for a bowl of Count Chocula and an hour browsing online. Actually, while I'm browsing, Bacon takes his position at the window, watching for squirrels or people walking their dogs and as soon as he sees something, he loses control and starts barking like he's on crack. Here he is in his lookout pose (which has become his primary stance in the past 2 weeks)
Right now, as I write this, he's freaking out because there's a squirrel on the fence across the way and Bacon is convinced that the squirrel is teasing him. He keeps running toward me and pawing me, then running back to the window and howling, then hopping from the futon to the armchair and then running into the kitchen to get some water because his throat is so sore from barking, then resuming his post, all the while wagging his tail and panting happily as if this is the most fun any creature could possible have on a Wednesday morning. In some ways, I believe that he thinks he is protecting me from that squirrel, but it's more than that - he's engaging in his own little game that he's created simply because I lifted the blinds one day to let some natural sunlight in. He's so proud of himself too - man, I love my mittle mountain lion!
Well, time to actually try to get something done around here - there's a whole corner in our bedroom that's been collecting junk for the past two years - I avow to sort through it all, throw most of it away, and donate to Goodwill anything that is remotely usable.
posted by Baconlover @ 11:50 AM
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Research with Literary Criticism (5 -7 pages, typed, double-spaced, Times New Roman, 12 pt. font)
Option One: Close reading of a short story or The Lion the Witch, and the Wardrobe
Choose one of the short stories we read in class or C.S. Lewis’s novel and analyze it closely. Identify one of the overall themes of the story – what is the writer trying to say with this particular story or novel? For example, you could discuss the religious allusions within Lewis’s novel and compare Aslan to Jesus Christ, or you could analyze enlightenment among the characters in Alice Walker’s Everyday Use. Whatever you choose, the analysis should be your own – any interpretation is valid, as long as you can support it with the text. This means you must use quotes from the text to support your thesis. Then, focus on outside literary criticism and research of the author’s life to better understand what position the author is coming from. What do literary critics think about the piece that you chose? Do you agree or disagree with those sources? Do different critics interpret the text differently? You must use at least three sources (books, articles, etc.) and you will need to accurately cite any outside research that you do for this piece, using the Diana Hacker manual as a guide for the MLA formatting issues.
Option Two: Thematic Analysis over several poems
`Choose two or more poems from one author (at least one of the poems should be in the text) that you believe are linked thematically. For example, you could focus on a poet’s use of natural imagery and symbolism to discuss love and all its trappings. Or you could take a feminist approach to Gwendolyn Brooks’ work and focus on her poems about women’s oppression in a patriarchal society. The sky’s the limit! Any topic that you choose is fine - you could even choose a theme that you see overlap between two separate poets and write a compare/ contrast essay about both writers. How do they write about similar themes? Identify the different poems that you think explore the theme you’ve chosen and make sure to cite specifically from the poems. All quotes must have a signal phrase, and must adhere to proper MLA format, which means you need to put a backslash ( / ) where a line breaks unless you have chosen a long quote and are following the long quote format for poems. In addition, you must also include outside literary criticism of the poems or poets that you chose. Use at least three critical sources for this assignment.
** Just to remind you, when analyzing poetry, do not assume that the speaker and the poet are the same – when writing about the voice in the poem, remember that it is the speaker, not the poet who is talking.
Option Three: Creative Option
For this option, you will write five new original poems, at least ten lines each. These poems must employ at least four of the poetic devices that we’ve discussed in class, such as alliteration, enjambment, set meter, symbolism, imagery, personification, etc. The poems may be on any topic you wish, though I recommend you may unite the poems thematically. You may choose to write about one of the “big” themes of contemporary and classic poetry (war, suffering, love, betrayal) and write your own musing on the topic. Focus on concrete details and symbols to get your ideas across and avoid cliché images and phrases – remember poetry is the best words in the best possible order! Poetry is not just prose with arbitrary line breaks. Also, make sure each poem has a title. For your analysis, which should be at least three pages double-spaced, identify the literary devices you utilized in your poems, and discuss the overall effect you were trying to achieve with your creative piece. In addition, you must compare your work to the work of another Modern or Contemporary poet we discussed in class and identify the thematic similarities between your poems and that poet’s work. Use at least two outside literary sources to support your analysis of the poet’s work you chose. Have fun and good luck!
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