YEAR 12 LESSONS 28/29: Homework.

The aim of the two lessons that students have endured since returning from the trauma of AS exams has been to broaden the students knowledge of literary reference and provide a flavour of the Year 13 Lit experience. Students have been provided with an Anthology of poetry that provides the focus of class debate. Students have been introduced to the work of Philip Larkin and should continue to revisit his work to access a sophisticated critical understanding of his verse. What is the symbolic significance of the Toad? Why is Aubade considered to be so characteristic of Larkin's poetry? Why is The Old Fools so terrifying? How does Larkin use Language? How does he use form? Is This Be The Verse an example of self-mockery? Is Larkin statue worthy?

Below is a link to a BBC Radio 4 documentary broadcast last year within which David Walliams discusses his love of Larkin's work with Andrew Motion:
http://soundcloud.com/fishymedia/larkin-doc-radio-four-dec-10

Furthermore, the BBC created a film documentary in 1964 about Larkin and his work. For many years this film was unavailable...but now we have YOU TUBE...and the rare film is now accessible on a global scale. The film contains interviews with Larkin and some wonderful images of Hull in the 1960s. Larkin is interviewed aboard the Humber Ferry! A classic visual archive. This is well worth 40 minutes of your time.
Click on link below to access part one of this iconic documentary:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BTdDS05x6d0

Remember to use 'the cat coughing-up a furball technique' to develop a decent reading of all the poems in the Anthology. Which is your favourite poem? Why?

Students were also introduced to the idea of THE GOTHIC which is the central feature of the Year 13 Lit course. Students have been offered Poe's The Tell Tale Heart and Maupassant's Was It A Dream? If these two texts are considered to be gothic, what kind of thematic content can the class expect from gothic literature in Year 13?

Students have also been introduced to the idea of the canon. Students have received an article from the A2 Critical Anthology that explores ideas relating to the relevance of the canon. What is the canon? Is it elitist nonsense?

Homework: Read all the material that I have offered to students in the last two lessons. This material forms the basis of the work that we will be discussing in the final three/four sessions.

YEAR 13 LESSON TWENTY NINE [23rd May 11]: Homework.

The final 'official' session of the academic year explored issues relating to the role of comedy in Marlowe's Faustus and the idea that a gothic text deals with 'the negative aspects of human personality'. The phrase 'negative aspects' was discussed as this phrase perhaps fails to capture the nature of the gothic. A more appropriate phrase may be 'the gothic explores the more challenging and disturbing aspects of the human condition'. The class discussion moved on to consider the myth of Prometheus and the fact that Prometheus is eventually rescued by Hercules and how this myth could relate to Shelley's alternative title for her novel. In what sense could this novel be considered The Modern Prometheus?

The discussion then moved on to consider how the use of landscape linked to the key thematic concerns of isolation and alienation. These themes seem to be a central thematic concern in gothic literature. The discussion also considered the significance of dreams before the final section of the lesson considered the question:

What is the significance of Victor's illness in chapter 5 and chapter 21?

Students were directed to consider the themes that could be discussed when answering this question, gothic issues or concerns, relevant features of language, form and structure, and author's aim. The class then produced a written response to the question.

Homework: READ.READ.READ. Peruse your own notes and those provided by the teacher and any areas of the text that remain a puzzle, e-mail me with your questions or pop and see me in E4 after the break. GET REVISING. E-mail me some essays!!

A GOTHIC PODCAST WILL BE CREATED BEFORE THE EXAM.