BE CURIOUS is a resource designed to enhance the understanding, enjoyment, engagement and delivery of the AQA A Level Literature and AQA GCSE LANG/LIT qualification.
Thursday, 28 December 2017
GAP BETWEEN RICH AND POOR...More Dickens context info...
An article fromThe Guardian reports upon the findings of the Credit Suisse Group:
https://www.theguardian.com/inequality/2017/dec/27/worlds-richest-500-see-increased-their-wealth-by-1tn-this-year?CMP=twt_gu
https://www.theguardian.com/inequality/2017/nov/14/worlds-richest-wealth-credit-suisse
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-11-14/credit-suisse-sees-reversal-of-fortunes-in-wealth-creation
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-40318284
DICKENS WOULD BE THROWING CHAIRS AND BREAKING PENS!!! Students need this kind of information to offer a sense of context.
Friday, 22 December 2017
Y 13 22nd Dec 2017..Resources..
Channel Four News recently produced some powerful work linked to the HOMELESS issue in this country:
https://www.channel4.com/news/over-100000-children-will-wake-up-homeless-on-christmas-figures-show
Here are a series of short reports. YOU LOT NEED TO DIGEST THESE RESOURCES:
https://www.channel4.com/news/out-in-the-cold-homelessness-at-christmas-in-britain
Trussell Trust Food Bank statistics:
https://www.trusselltrust.org/news-and-blog/latest-stats/
https://www.channel4.com/news/over-100000-children-will-wake-up-homeless-on-christmas-figures-show
Here are a series of short reports. YOU LOT NEED TO DIGEST THESE RESOURCES:
https://www.channel4.com/news/out-in-the-cold-homelessness-at-christmas-in-britain
Trussell Trust Food Bank statistics:
https://www.trusselltrust.org/news-and-blog/latest-stats/
Monday, 18 December 2017
Y13 Resources for 19th Dec 17..
Channel Four news segment..links to Dickens and Harrison:
https://www.channel4.com/news/in-work-but-on-the-streets
Last night this segment on 'HOMELESSNESS' appeared on Ch4 news:
https://www.channel4.com/news/john-bird-on-homelessness-austerity-has-knocked-feet-out-of-poorest
Andrew Marr interviews David Gauke:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5c4pH8VxWyg
The benefits sanction system in this country is being blamed for many of the current social problems being experienced by the UK's most vulnerable people.
FACT CHECK...How many people live on the streets?
https://www.channel4.com/news/factcheck/factcheck-how-many-people-live-on-the-streets
The writing of Dickens and Harrison, unfortunately, is STILL relevant!
https://www.channel4.com/news/in-work-but-on-the-streets
Last night this segment on 'HOMELESSNESS' appeared on Ch4 news:
https://www.channel4.com/news/john-bird-on-homelessness-austerity-has-knocked-feet-out-of-poorest
Andrew Marr interviews David Gauke:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5c4pH8VxWyg
The benefits sanction system in this country is being blamed for many of the current social problems being experienced by the UK's most vulnerable people.
FACT CHECK...How many people live on the streets?
https://www.channel4.com/news/factcheck/factcheck-how-many-people-live-on-the-streets
The writing of Dickens and Harrison, unfortunately, is STILL relevant!
Friday, 15 December 2017
ATTACKS on ANGELA RAYNOR'S ACCENT..15th Dec 17.
The idea that accent is somehow linked to intellect is a ridiculous notion that is still evident in our culture. Angela Rayner's experience illustrates this depressing fact:
https://inews.co.uk/news/politics/angela-rayner-defends-accent-vows-never-change/
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-40554137
http://www.itv.com/news/granada/2017-07-10/labour-mp-says-shes-proud-of-her-accent-and-will-not-change/
What about the attitude to Tory MP Jacob Rees-Mogg. Here the Daily Mirror stereotype Mogg because of his accent:
http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/politics/millionaire-tory-toff-jacob-rees-10980350
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/features/10125164/I-will-never-be-a-phoney-man-of-the-people.html
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=crjoi8hCgjg
A clip from 'Posh and Posher' which was a BBC documentary:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wQFUOAXlZR0
https://inews.co.uk/news/politics/angela-rayner-defends-accent-vows-never-change/
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-40554137
http://www.itv.com/news/granada/2017-07-10/labour-mp-says-shes-proud-of-her-accent-and-will-not-change/
What about the attitude to Tory MP Jacob Rees-Mogg. Here the Daily Mirror stereotype Mogg because of his accent:
http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/politics/millionaire-tory-toff-jacob-rees-10980350
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/features/10125164/I-will-never-be-a-phoney-man-of-the-people.html
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=crjoi8hCgjg
A clip from 'Posh and Posher' which was a BBC documentary:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wQFUOAXlZR0
Friday, 8 December 2017
TONY HARRISON NEWSPAPER ARTICLES 8th Dec 17.
New European Nov 2017:
http://www.theneweuropean.co.uk/culture/tony-harrison-mr-angry-1-5273099
The Guardian March 2007:
https://www.theguardian.com/books/2007/mar/31/poetry.tonyharrison
The Guardian..V..Feb 2013:
https://www.theguardian.com/books/2013/feb/18/tony-harrisons-poem-v-working-class
Why the fuss over V...BBC..Feb 2013:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-21024372
http://www.theneweuropean.co.uk/culture/tony-harrison-mr-angry-1-5273099
The Guardian March 2007:
https://www.theguardian.com/books/2007/mar/31/poetry.tonyharrison
The Guardian..V..Feb 2013:
https://www.theguardian.com/books/2013/feb/18/tony-harrisons-poem-v-working-class
Why the fuss over V...BBC..Feb 2013:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-21024372
TONY HARRISON related resources 8th Dec 2017
Harrison's poetry concerns itself with class and attacking the construction of a cultural hierarchy that is reinforced by the institutions of society such as education, the law, and government.
Here are some resources to allow you to cosider this theme in a more informed manner:
Alan Milburn's letter to Theresa May:
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2017/dec/02/alan-milburn-government-not-comitted-to-social-mobility
BBC article:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-42212270
Social mobility map of Britain:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-42112436
This is a link to last night's question time. On 39 minutes the panel discuss social class:
https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b09j14d6/question-time-07122017
Please note the comments of Tory MP Bernard Jenkin. This man's father was an MP and privately educated barrister. Jenkin has also been privately educated and attended Cambridge. Jenkin believes that it is absurd to discuss class privilege...mmmmm...I wonder what Harrison would say?
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/06/28/number-poor-students-dropping-university-highest-level-five/
The James Rowntree Foundation's report on Poverty 2017.
https://www.jrf.org.uk/report/uk-poverty-2017
Here are some resources to allow you to cosider this theme in a more informed manner:
Alan Milburn's letter to Theresa May:
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2017/dec/02/alan-milburn-government-not-comitted-to-social-mobility
BBC article:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-42212270
Social mobility map of Britain:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-42112436
This is a link to last night's question time. On 39 minutes the panel discuss social class:
https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b09j14d6/question-time-07122017
Please note the comments of Tory MP Bernard Jenkin. This man's father was an MP and privately educated barrister. Jenkin has also been privately educated and attended Cambridge. Jenkin believes that it is absurd to discuss class privilege...mmmmm...I wonder what Harrison would say?
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/06/28/number-poor-students-dropping-university-highest-level-five/
The James Rowntree Foundation's report on Poverty 2017.
https://www.jrf.org.uk/report/uk-poverty-2017
Wednesday, 6 December 2017
YEAR 11 6th Dec 2017 Resources.
Francis Bacon's Screaming Popes...Note the similarity with the final section of Orwell's novella...
Pink Floyd...Another brick in the wall...note surrealist representation of education..This video uses surrealist imagery to present biting social criticism...can you link to Orwell's conclusion of AF?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YR5ApYxkU-U
The Zapp family:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BenqIVrgnfU
Pink Floyd...Another brick in the wall...note surrealist representation of education..This video uses surrealist imagery to present biting social criticism...can you link to Orwell's conclusion of AF?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YR5ApYxkU-U
The Zapp family:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BenqIVrgnfU
Tuesday, 5 December 2017
TONY HARRISON Resources..Y13 5th Dec 2017.
The Testimony of Patience Kershaw...Folk Song by the Unthanks:
http://www.nourishingobscurity.com/2010/11/the-testimony-of-patience-kershaw/
The BBC and Orgreave:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-south-yorkshire-27893072
You Tube footage from the BBC reporting of Orgreave:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d3gYplJ0Upc
TONY HARRISON RESOURCES.....
First section of Channel 4's film. Follow links:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WPutBM7zfv8&t=54s
Exploring V...great Radio 4 documentary:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oW49WJ0F2HM&t=926s
Dickens Resources:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N9dB9BZWDBU&t=159s
Armando Iannucci documentary concerned with work of Dickens:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6lZB6E0-yCk&t=182s
Monday, 13 November 2017
YEAR 12 13th Nov 2017.
GARY YOUNGE meets richard spencer:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=puJ-arJgkZU
Channel Four News
https://www.channel4.com/news/gary-younge-trumps-base-overwhelmingly-wealthy-and-white
5 minute YT clip..
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QS_eYk3N5Po
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=puJ-arJgkZU
Channel Four News
https://www.channel4.com/news/gary-younge-trumps-base-overwhelmingly-wealthy-and-white
5 minute YT clip..
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QS_eYk3N5Po
Wednesday, 11 October 2017
GCSE Resources...Oct 11th 2017
Thalidomide:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y2lhmSCunrI
Robert Oppenheimer:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lb13ynu3Iac
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y2lhmSCunrI
Robert Oppenheimer:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lb13ynu3Iac
Tuesday, 10 October 2017
YEAR 13 Oct 10th 2017.
Today's session considered the significance of the chapter FATHER and DAUGHTER in the first section of Dickens' HARD TIMES. Students were asked to consider the question:
HOW DOES THIS CHAPTER ALLOW DICKENS TO REINFORCE HIS CONTEMPT FOR THE UTILITARIAN EDUCATIONAL PHILOSOPHY?
Class discussion considered possible content for this question before the class produced a 25 minute written response.
HOMEWORK: Next session we will be discussing the key moments from the first section of the book. Students need to consider their own KEY MOMENTS and consider how these moments allow Dickens to shape meaning. I will also be offering feedback to the written work. READ.READ.READ.
Monday, 9 October 2017
YEAR 12 9th Oct 2017.
Today's session considered ACT TWO SCENE ONE and the significance of Shakespeare presenting Cassio and Iago as very different characters. Students were asked to consider why Shakespeare provides Cassio with such ROMANTIC and poetic dialogue and invests Iago's dialogue with such crude puns, sexual innuendo, and a very negative view of women. How would you describe Cassio's description of Desdemona? It seems that Shakespeare presents these two characters as being from very different social backgrounds. Students were encouraged to consider why Shakespeare is presenting this CLASS DIFFERENCE between the two characters and students were also asked to consider the significance of the location of CYPRUS. The unique and terrifying tempest that destroys the Turkish fleet is rich with metaphor and forewarning.
HOMEWORK: We will be considering the essay title...
HOW DOES SHAKESPEARE USE DRAMATIC FORMS
TO PRESENT THE CHARACTER OF IAGO?
I will expect students to be able to discuss the issues below and support their opinion with specific textual reference:
- The significance of the street scenes taking place at night and significance of Venice
- The significance of Iago's use of language
- The significance of Iago's soliloquy
- The significance of characters defying their initial representation
- The significance of tragedy....What is Shakespeare's aim in ACT ONE?
Saturday, 7 October 2017
YEAR 13 26th /29thSept..3rd/6th Oct 2017
These sessions continued the introduction to the first section of Charles Dickens' HARD TIMES. The class considered the question:
What are the key concerns being
explored by Dickens in the FIRST TEN CHAPTERS of HARD TIMES?
Class discussion has explored how Dickens shapes his contempt for the dehumanising nature of industrialisation and his attack on the Utilitarian approach to education. Focus has been placed on the symbolic significance of the Circus and how Dickens uses the Circus to represent the humanising power of the imagination. Students were asked to consider the questions:
- How does the relationship between Louisa and her father compare with the relationship between Sissy and her father?
- To what extent is the experience of the 'hands' of Coketown similar to the experience of the Gradgrind children?
- What kind of world does Dickens want to exist? Why does he present the world of Coketown as being so hellish?
- What is the symbolic purpose of Stephen Blackpool?
- How does Dickens use symbolism to shape meaning and what is the significance of the third person narrative sometimes being hijacked by Dickens and his own personal voice?
- The first paragraph could explore how Dickens shapes his contempt for the Utilitarian education system through his presentation of Bitzer, Louisa and Tom. These three characters have all been emotionally abused by Gradgrind's belief in the system of 'FACT' and seem unhappy and, in Bitzer's case, dehumanised. Note how Bitzer 'bleeds white', Louisa has a 'jaded sullenness..a light with nothing to rest upon, a fire with nothing to burn...'Did your father love her?' Louisa asked the questions with a strong, wild, wandering interest peculiar to her; an interest gone astray like a banished creature, and hiding in solitary places...I have been tired a long time.' Louisa is a teenage girl yet seems tired of the world and is blind to the possibilities of being alive..'What does it matter!' Tom is bitter, angry, and resentful. ALL THREE characters are used by Dickens to suggest that the Utilitarian system, or at least Dickens' interpretation of this system, is destructive and harmful.
- These characters and their education is juxtaposed with Sleary's circus. Why is 'people mutht be amuthed' such a key line? This could be linked to Dickens invading the third person narrative with his own voice at the beginning of Chapter 10. Why is it that the circus community display such empathy? How does Sissy's relationship with her father compare with the experience of the Gradgrind children? Sissy and the circus are hugely symbolic. AUTHOR'S AIM? Students might want to consider why Dickens presents Childers, Kidderminster [or Cupid as he is known..significance?], and Sleary as being almost like characters from a children's fairy tale? Why are they such imaginative constucts?
The paragraph structure should be:
OPINION
TEXTUAL REFERENCE
EXPLAIN WHY THE TEXTUAL REFERENCE IS SIGNIFICANT
QUESTION FOCUS/AUTHOR'S AIM
HOMEWORK: Complete the essay. Our next session will consider the significance of the final chapters of the first section.
YEAR 12 27th Sept/ 2nd/4th Oct 2017
The class continued to wrestle with the FIRST ACT of Shakespeare's OTHEELO. Class discussion considered how Shakespeare presents the key characters of Iago, Othello and Desdemona. The role of Brabantio was also explored as this relativcely minor character is significant when allowing Shakespeare to represent the ideology that is present in the wealthy port of Venice. Class discussion was excellent throughout.
Students might like to consider the following questions when considering the significance of the opening act:
- How does Iago represent Othello before the audience meet the 'Moor'?
- What is you impression of Othello?
- Why is Brabantio so angry?
- Why does the Duke ignore Brabantio and greet Othello with the word 'Valiant'?
- To what extent does Desdemona conform to her father's representation of his daughter?
- Why is the location of Venice so imp[ortant?
- Why is Iago's soliloquy so significant?
- What are the key quotes in this opening act?...'I am not what I am'....
Branagh's Iago soliloquy... Act One Scene Three:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fItEfJhf0oc
The role of Iago..Lucian Msamati:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JcCzk8aT8H8
Ewan McGregor discusses his Iago..
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0dF921GLl7g&t=87s
I quite like this comparison between Iago and the Joker..What do you think?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-D0Bgu1YKPI
Bob Hoskins Iago's soliloquy:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t9-VolqfNPk
Digest the resources available on previous Othello blog entries...
http://becuriouslit.blogspot.co.uk/2017/09/year-12-25th-sept-17.html
Wednesday, 27 September 2017
YEAR 13 26th Sept 17.
Class discussion considered the significance of chapters 5 to 10. The first TEN chapters will be the focus of our first essay. Students need to read ALL the resources I have presented to you and consider the following questions:
- How does Dickens represent his contempt for the Utilitarian Education System?
- How does Dickens use metaphor and symbol to represent the crushing experience of industrialisation in COKETOWN?
- How does Dickens manipulate the reader to view a character as sympathetic or unsympathetic?
- Why does Dickens value the human imagination?
- Why does Dickens offer so many references to the language of the Fairy Tale?
- How does Dickens present the Circus and why?
- WHY IS DICKENS SO ANGRY?
HOMEWORK: Read the text, digest the resources posted on the previous blog entry below:
http://becuriouslit.blogspot.co.uk/2017/09/year-13-22nd-sept-17.html
READ the text and consider the answers to the questions posted on this blog.
Monday, 25 September 2017
YEAR 12 25th Sept 17.
AND so we begin our journey through SHAKESPEARE'S OTHELLO. Here are some resources to digest:
Definition of TRAGEDY..excellent resource from The National Theatre:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dSr6mP-zxUc&t=69s
Playing Othello:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1cNOd1tUaaw
Playing Iago. The perspective from a black Iago:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JcCzk8aT8H8
RSC Director Iqbal Khan discusses the play:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cvef-Rxk6DU&t=23s
Read this article:
http://www.hamhigh.co.uk/etcetera/theatre/is-othello-a-racist-play-rsc-actor-hugh-quarshie-is-asking-the-question-1-4184119
CHEESE PLEASE:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WIIjya_5Oro
RSC Trailer:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RZqibDkdmMo
Lenny Henry:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v0tpRd7g9aw
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oYYe1vbh17o&t=1s
Homework: Students need to be familiar with the whole play but I expect ALL students to have a fairly sophisticated understanding of the OPENING ACT.
Friday, 22 September 2017
YEAR 13 22nd Sept 17.
CAN PROTEST THROUGH ART INSPIRE SOCIAL CHANGE?
Students need to explore these resources from a previous blog entry:
http://becuriouslit.blogspot.co.uk/2016/11/year-13-monday-28th-november-2016.html
This blog entry from last year will also be useful when considering the ideas being explored by Dickens in HARD TIMES:
http://becuriouslit.blogspot.co.uk/2016/11/year-13-mon-31st-oct-16.html
'Foodbanks are uplifting'..Jacob Rees-Mogg..
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2017/sep/15/jacob-rees-mogg-food-banks-tory
http://www.express.co.uk/news/politics/854573/Jacob-Rees-Mogg-food-banks-uplifting-LBC-interview-criticism
This session will discuss the significance of the first 10 chapters of HARD TIMES.
HOMEWORK: Students need to continue to read the text. Next session we will be exploring the symbolic significance of the Circus.
Students need to explore these resources from a previous blog entry:
http://becuriouslit.blogspot.co.uk/2016/11/year-13-monday-28th-november-2016.html
This blog entry from last year will also be useful when considering the ideas being explored by Dickens in HARD TIMES:
http://becuriouslit.blogspot.co.uk/2016/11/year-13-mon-31st-oct-16.html
'Foodbanks are uplifting'..Jacob Rees-Mogg..
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2017/sep/15/jacob-rees-mogg-food-banks-tory
http://www.express.co.uk/news/politics/854573/Jacob-Rees-Mogg-food-banks-uplifting-LBC-interview-criticism
This session will discuss the significance of the first 10 chapters of HARD TIMES.
HOMEWORK: Students need to continue to read the text. Next session we will be exploring the symbolic significance of the Circus.
Monday, 18 September 2017
Year 12 14th/18th Sept 17.
The aim of these two sessions was to continue to encourage students to discuss the value and function of LITERATURE in preparation for the FIRST A Level essay. The session on Thursday discussed Marvell's To His Coy Mistress and Shakey's Sonnet 18. The Monday session discussed the purpose of literature and considered the content of John Cooper Clarke's Twat and Hollie McNish's Embarrassed.
The response to McNish's poem was excellent.
HOMEWORK: Read ALL the material that I have given you. In our next lesson I will be exploring the poetry of Wordsworth, Marvell, Shakespeare, McNish, Heaney, and Imtiaz Dharker. One of these poems will be the text that will be the focus of your first essay. YOU DECIDE which poem you will be exploring.
Great interview with Hollie McNish in Hull Central Library:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F2VfYMUlHiQ
Digest the resources on the previous page:
http://becuriouslit.blogspot.co.uk/2017/09/year-12-lesson-one-11th-sept-17.html
On Thursday we will be discussing possible content for the essay and considering an appropriate structure.
Thursday, 14 September 2017
Tuesday, 12 September 2017
YEAR 13 First two lessons 8th/12th Sept.
The aim of the first two lessons of the academic year was to make students aware of the intellectual challenge that they will face this year. It is ESSENTIAL that students READ ALL THE RELEVANT TEXTS. We will be revisiting OTHELLO, exploring the poetry of TONY HARRISON, exploring the novel HARD TIMES by the wonderfully wonderful Charles Dickens, creating a 1500 word POETRY coursework essay that will be 10% of your final grade, and improving the skills required to construct a relevant critical analysis of an unseen text. WE HAVE A LOT OF HARD WORK AHEAD OF US.
On Friday we had a gentle return to Richardsonworld and today's session included a broad discussion of HARRISON'S poetry after a reading of THEM and [UZ].
I began the session with a HARD TIMES related quiz and THE RESULTS HAVE SHOCKED ME. It is obvious that at least half the class have not bothered to read the novel. WHY ARE YOU STUDYING 'LITERATURE A LEVEL' IF YOU ARE NOT PREPARED TO READ?? Two students stated that the novel was published in 1970 and one student believes that the novel was published in 1965!! I DO NOT HAVE THE WORDS..... One student gave an occupation to a character that is not even in the novel! I made it up!! Half the class managed to answer three questions correctly...out of fifteen!!! This is a disgrace.
HOMEWORK:
READ THE POEMS OF TONY HARRISON. We will be discussing Harrison's work before the winter break in December. He demands your intellectual attention.
Read HARD TIMES by CHARLES DICKENS. In the next session we will be discussing the FIRST FIVE CHAPTERS OF THE NOVEL. Students also need to consider the content of coursework.
Students need to consider WHY Dickens dedicated the novel to Thomas Carlyle, develop an understanding of the Victorian world of 1854, consider the significance of The Great Exhibition in 1851, and consider HOW Dickens shapes meaning. How would you describe his writing style? How would you describe Chuck's use of language? What are the key themes being explored in the opening chapters of the novel? I EXPECT AN INFORMED AND INTELLIGENT CLASS DISCUSSION.
SOME STUDENTS NEED TO SHOW ME THAT THEY CARE ABOUT THEIR EDUCATION.
SOME OF THE THE RESULTS FROM THE QUIZ TODAY ARE EMBARRASSING.
MORE EFFORT REQUIRED. SOME OF THIS CLASS NEED TO TAKE RESPONSIBILITY FOR THEIR OWN EDUCATION. I VALUE YOUR EDUCATION. YOU SHOULD ALSO VALUE YOUR EDUCATION. I AM VERY DISAPPOINTED WITH THE ATTITUDE OF SOME STUDENTS.
As you may be aware...I'm not happy. See you on Friday. I expect some intellectual engagement.
SHOW ME THAT YOU CARE.
Be aware of the resources posted on my last blog entry before the Summer break. YOU NEED TO SYNTHESISE THESE RESOURCES. THEY WILL ALLOW YOU TO DEVELOP AN INFORMED CRITICAL OPINION THAT WILL ENCOURAGE CRITICAL AUTONOMY AND IMPROVE YOUR CHANCE OF ACADEMIC SUCCESS:
http://becuriouslit.blogspot.co.uk/2017/07/resources-to-digest-before-sept-2017.html
Monday, 11 September 2017
YEAR 12 LESSON ONE 11th Sept 17
Hollie McNish:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-2z-Cd3luqA
Simon Armitage..POETRY IS A FORM OF DISSENT:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TvFcbedyQ0A&t=146s
KATE TEMPEST performing at Glastonbury:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mLzJUalxZYM
JOHN COOPER CLARKE:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p4qN9pduox0
I made reference to the poet IMTIAZ DHARKER in today's sermon. Click on the links below to hear some of her work:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NrBzWmCi6ps
IMTIAZ DHARKER..Honour Killing:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M04_yMEoecE
THEY SAY SHE MUST BE FROM ANOTHER COUNTRY...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KA2-OXfYETM
We will be considering 'country' by Imtiaz Dharker in our next session.
Here is a poem by Charles Bukowski. I adore this poem. Consider this a gift from your English teacher:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cEm_lsRGdOI
The aim of today's session was to encourage class discussion and provide students with an introduction to the intellectual rigour of an A Level Literature lesson. As I stated, you have a lot of reading to confront before our next lesson.
Digest this resource...WHAT IS LITERATURE FOR?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4RCFLobfqcw
HOMEWORK: Read ALL the material I gave you in today's session:
- The sheet relating to the purpose of Literature
- Shakespeare's Sonnet 18
- Andrew Marvell's To His Coy Mistress
- Maupassant's Was It A Dream ?
- William Wordsworth's Daffodils
The texts that I have introduced today will be the focus of your first A Level Lit essay. Remember...when you read any text, consider the following questions:
- What are the ideas/themes being presented by the author?
- Why is the author promoting these ideas?
- Who is presenting the ideas? What is the nature of the narrative voice? Why has the author selected this form of narrative voice?
- How are ideas being shaped to present ideas or meaning?
******THE QUESTION AT THE HEART OF THIS TASK IS
'HOW DOES THE AUTHOR USE LANGUAGE, STRUCTURE, AND FORM TO SHAPE MEANING?'
I thought the quality of the class discussion today was OUTSTANDING. KEEP IT UP.
See you on Thursday morning. If any student needs to contact me, this is my email:
m.richardson@beverleygrammar.co.uk
See you on Thursday morning. If any student needs to contact me, this is my email:
m.richardson@beverleygrammar.co.uk
Monday, 17 July 2017
RESOURCES TO DIGEST BEFORE Sept 2017...
DICKENS RELATED. Remember, I expect ALL students to have read Dickens' HARD TIMES.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N9dB9BZWDBU&t=159s
BBC Documentary...Armando Iannucci looks at Dickens' life and work:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6lZB6E0-yCk&t=182s
The poetry of TONY HARRISON.
Simon Armitage interviews Harrison about his work:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BXV4v1oAeOA&t=139s
The Film of V..Channel Four broadcast..this caused a storm of controversy. This is Part One on You Tube...navigate through the other segments to access the whole film:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WPutBM7zfv8
Radio 4 documentary that explores the legacy of V:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oW49WJ0F2HM&t=685s
We will be constructing coursework in the first term when we return to work so PLEASE think about which poet will be the focus of your work:
http://becuriouslit.blogspot.co.uk/2017/06/year-1213poetry-resources.html
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N9dB9BZWDBU&t=159s
BBC Documentary...Armando Iannucci looks at Dickens' life and work:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6lZB6E0-yCk&t=182s
The poetry of TONY HARRISON.
Simon Armitage interviews Harrison about his work:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BXV4v1oAeOA&t=139s
The Film of V..Channel Four broadcast..this caused a storm of controversy. This is Part One on You Tube...navigate through the other segments to access the whole film:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WPutBM7zfv8
Radio 4 documentary that explores the legacy of V:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oW49WJ0F2HM&t=685s
We will be constructing coursework in the first term when we return to work so PLEASE think about which poet will be the focus of your work:
http://becuriouslit.blogspot.co.uk/2017/06/year-1213poetry-resources.html
Tuesday, 27 June 2017
YEAR 12/13..POETRY RESOURCES...
These resources are designed to help you decide WHICH poet you will be studying for COURSEWORK.
BEN OKRI:
https://www.ft.com/content/39022f72-5742-11e7-80b6-9bfa4c1f83d2?mhq5j=e2
Performance of Okri's poem:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zC9Ni-IPnAc
Interview Channel Four News:
https://www.channel4.com/news/ben-okri-on-grenfell-tower-you-catch-the-fever-of-that-anger
KATIE TEMPEST at GLASTONBURY...watch the first ten minutes:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/p056cf3l/glastonbury-2017-kate-tempest
Katie Tempest..Brand New Ancients...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JLWlB3ib7ZM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0NRYLzWovtk&t=43s
HOLLIE McNISH:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-2z-Cd3luqA
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BSoP3jaMmeU
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bJX5XHnONTI&t=34s
READ 'FEED YOUR BRAIN'.
BEN OKRI:
https://www.ft.com/content/39022f72-5742-11e7-80b6-9bfa4c1f83d2?mhq5j=e2
Performance of Okri's poem:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zC9Ni-IPnAc
Interview Channel Four News:
https://www.channel4.com/news/ben-okri-on-grenfell-tower-you-catch-the-fever-of-that-anger
KATIE TEMPEST at GLASTONBURY...watch the first ten minutes:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/p056cf3l/glastonbury-2017-kate-tempest
Katie Tempest..Brand New Ancients...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JLWlB3ib7ZM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0NRYLzWovtk&t=43s
HOLLIE McNISH:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-2z-Cd3luqA
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BSoP3jaMmeU
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bJX5XHnONTI&t=34s
READ 'FEED YOUR BRAIN'.
Tuesday, 16 May 2017
YEAR 13 MAY 15th 2017
Last week's lesson involved a response to the question:
IN HIS POETRY, HARRISON IS ALWAYS CRITICAL OF THE WAYS IN WHICH SOCIAL DIVISIONS ARE BOTH CONSTRUCTED AND MAINTAINED.
To what extent do you agree with this view?
Some people still owe me an essay. I want it asap.
Today's session considered SECTION C of the exam. The class discussion considered the 'REBELLION' question and we made some notes that may allow students to construct an introduction and a comparative paragraph. Here are some notes to accompany the OTHER question:
POLITICAL AND SOCIAL PROTEST WRITING SHOWS THAT, IF PEOPLE ARE TO EFFECT CHANGE, THEY NEED TO GROUP TOGETHER. Explore the significance of people joining together as it is presented in two political and social protest texts that you have studied.
- This question needs to begin with a brief introduction which serves to provide the examiner with an understanding of how you will approach this question. Obviously, with Harrison and Dickens political and social change is linked to the reader developing their own individual a sense of empathy and compassion in the hope that this level of individual awareness will be the catalyst for political and social change. Both authors are motivated by a didactic purpose to educate and inform. This could be linked to Orwell's comments that we discussed in today's session.
- The first argument could begin with an exploration of how Dickens illustrates the potential for the individual to change how they view the world. Gradgrind serves as a symbol for how it is possible for a powerful individual to realise that their life philosophy may be incorrect. Reference could be made to how Gradgrind initially views the purpose of education..REFERENCE TO BITZER AND HOW GRADGRIND IS UNABLE TO VIEW THE DEHUMANISING NATURE OF THE UTILITARIAN SYSTEM...BEFORE MOVING ONTO LOUISA/SISSY/BLACKPOOL illustrating the flaws in his ideology. Gradgrind moves from inflexible pedant to a compassionate politician who represents the 'people' and no longer views them as an 'abstraction'. Gradgrind's philosophical evolution is evidence that people DO NOT have to group together to effect change. IT IS IMPORTANT THAT STUDENTS REFER TO HOW THE SYMBOLIC NATURE OF GRADGRIND ALLOWS DICKENS TO SHAPE HIS FABLE. F.R.Leavis has described HARD TIMES as a 'perfect fable' and perhaps Gradgrind's ability to use his imagination to develop a greater sense empathy and compassion is one of Dickens most potent symbols.
- This could be linked to Harrison and the purpose of V. This is a poem that yearns for an end to the divisive nature of society and aims to represent working-class experience to a literary audience that may not be aware of the suffering and desensitising nature of unemployment. Reference could be made to the symbol of COAL that dominates the landscape of this poem and the idea that the potential of working-class youth to be useful members of a unified society is being squandered....like coal without a spark to release the energy beneath its surface. Harrison's V is a plea for the division to end. He wants society to be UNITED...he wants society to be entwined and unified like the notes of the beautiful classical music that provide him with such comfort when he returns home from Leeds. Similarly he wishes that the unity and connection that he feels with his wife can be experienced by the working-class culture he feels is being forgotten...'I KNOW WHAT UNITED THAT THE SKIN SPRAYED HAS TO MEAN..' Just as the Skin peppers the graveyard with words 'to shock the living'...SO DOES HARRISON! Perhaps Harrison represents the horrific nature of UNEMPLOYMENT in order to SHOCK an audience that is unfamiliar with this experience in the hope that they will sympathise and empathise with an experience that is rarely presented to a literary audience. Like Dickens, Harrison's am is to change the perception of the individual. These people are not 'SHIT', they are HUMAN...and they are suffering. The value of working-class experience could be linked to Harrison's use of iambic quatrain..a form used as a framework for some of the most canonical texts in English Literature. Working-class experience appears to be absent in literary culture and Harrison is using the form associated with the work of canonical poets to emphasise the relevance and value of working-class culture.
- The essay could then go on to discuss how Harrison attacks an EDUCATION system that perpetuates the idea of a cultural hierarchy with the aim, once more, of challenging the perception of an individual and link the UTILITARIAN PHILOSOPHY in HARD TIMES. Both are destructive in their different approaches to learning. Your task is to navigate through the argument and illustrate the difference between why Harrison attacks education and why Dickens attacks this inflexible approach to FACT based learning. Reference could also be made to Dickens' representation of the UNIONS. He is clearly criticising this form of people 'grouping together'..WHY is Slackbridge as grotesque as Bounderby? Both authors are offering an insight to the individual reader that may lead to the reader developing a philosophical sensibility that will encourage unity, equality and love...rather than division and hate. Both authors seem to encourage an individual revolution of the mind rather than a violent physical revolution similar to France in 1879!! They are not advocating violent uprising as a means of creating political and social change. Both authors suggest that a change in individual sensibility may inspire wider social and political change!
HOMEWORK: I expect students to provide an introduction and one comparative paragraph to ONE of the questions above. I expect the work to refer to at leat two critical comments. Orwell? G.B Shaw? Leavis? Macaulay? Check your notes. I expect this to be handed to me at the start of the next session. KEEP CHECKING EMAILS as I am going to send you some notes to help with this task.
Monday, 15 May 2017
YEAR 13 15th May 2017
Panorama BBC documentary: What Facebook knows about you. Link below:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b08qgbc3/panorama-what-facebook-knows-about-you
Link to article concerned with Dutch Musician Joep Beving:
https://www.theguardian.com/music/2017/may/13/joep-beving-dutch-pianist-spotify-star-solipsism
Link to article concerned with poet Rupi Kaurs:
https://www.theguardian.com/books/2016/sep/13/poet-rupi-kaurs-milk-and-honey-sells-more-than-half-a-million-copies
NHS malware nightmare:
https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2017/may/14/cyber-attack-escalate-working-week-begins-experts-nhs-europol-warn
Channel Four News:
https://www.channel4.com/news/cyber-attack-could-intensify-on-monday-morning
Is this the most dangerous man in Britain?...Paul Dacre..editor of The Daily Mail..Observer article:
https://www.theguardian.com/media/2017/may/14/is-paul-dacre-most-dangerous-man-in-britain-daily-mail
Here are some resources to help you synthesise some issues linked to the regulation of social media.
ALL students need to be able to construct an argument linked to the difficulty of regulating content on social media.
SOCIAL MEDIA REGULATION:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/collegeofjournalism/entries/81cc6ff0-6df2-35e9-a88c-dfe2dc8b31b9
DADDYo5:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-39783670
Zuckerberg's apology:
http://www.cnbc.com/2017/02/17/why-facebook-ceo-mark-zuckerbergs-vulnerable-apology-makes-him-a-strong-leader.html
Pewdiepie Controversy:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/2017/02/14/pewdiepie-disney-drops-youtube-star-anti-semitic-video-controversy/
What do we learn about the digital world through these resources?
Monday, 8 May 2017
Monday, 24 April 2017
YEAR 13 Mon 24th April 17
Today's session explored the issues within TONY HARRISON'S..
- DIVISIONS
- WORKING
- MARKED WITH D
Class discussion considered the nature of the crude male working-class stereotype being offered to the reader in Divisions and WHY Working is such an important poem. Below are two versions of the famous folk song that represents the experience of PATIENCE KERSHAW.
This is a resource that offers a link to the testimony of PK:
WORKING is such an important poem because it includes evidence of Harrison's doubt when considering the value of his poetry and concludes with a couplet that illustrates WHY he bothers to construct his work: 'the job's breaking the silence of the worked-out-gob.' This links to the belief that 'the tongueless man gets his land took' and illustrates the idea that Harrison is creating poetry that reflects working-class experience. He is presenting his culture to an audience that may not be familiar with the working-class experience. He is capturing the history, language, dignity, and struggle of working-class culture. He is providing a poetic voice for people denied a poetic or literary representation; very similar to Wordsworth in The Lyrical Ballads. This is the idea being expressed in the epitaph in V. He is providing a poetic voice for the voiceless.
This lesson also considered MARKED WITH D and the influence and inspiration that Harrison finds in the memory of his Father and the fact that he wishes to give a voice to 'the tongue that weighed like lead'. The idea of providing a poetic voice for a culture often denied a presence within literature is an idea that is central to Harrison's work. His work challenges the view of the teacher in THEM and [uz] when the teacher suggests that there is a cultural hierarchy and Harrison's cultural origins are inferior when compared with 'the Receivers'.
HOMEWORK: Some students need to send me an essay ASAP. READ Harrison's poetry and consider content within the context of the question that I gave you at the end of the session. This essay title will be our next written task. Thanks to Patrick and Harry who were superb in our session at the end of the school day. Great work. Keep it up.
I expect ALL students to be reading HARD TIMES and HARRISON in order to develop an informed and coherent understanding of content that will allow us to compare and contrast the ideas of Dickens and Harrison in the coming weeks. WHAT IS THE MOTIVATION OF EACH AUTHOR? WHAT IS THE NATURE OF THEIR PROTEST? WHAT IS THEIR AIM? WHO IS THEIR AUDIENCE?
I expect ALL students to be reading HARD TIMES and HARRISON in order to develop an informed and coherent understanding of content that will allow us to compare and contrast the ideas of Dickens and Harrison in the coming weeks. WHAT IS THE MOTIVATION OF EACH AUTHOR? WHAT IS THE NATURE OF THEIR PROTEST? WHAT IS THEIR AIM? WHO IS THEIR AUDIENCE?
Saturday, 8 April 2017
YEAR 12 4th/7th April 2017
These two sessions considered Shakespeare's Othello. The Tuesday session included a 30 minute written response to a past paper and the Friday session considered the question:
WHY IS THIS MOMENT FROM THE TEXT [OTHELLO'S FINAL SPEECH IN ACT 5 ACENE 2] SO SIGNIFICANT AND HOW DOES THIS MOMENT ENHANCE THE TRAGIC NATURE OF THE PLAY?
- Consider the presentation of Othello.
- Consider the significance of the dramatic setting
- Consider other relevant aspects of dramatic tragedy.
Class discussion of the issues that could be considered when approaching this question was excellent. Obviously, student perception of Othello as a character and the tragic nature of the play will be informed by how this moment is perceived. THIS IS A KEY MOMENT. This question expects students to focus upon this textual moment but also broaden the response to consider aspects of the whole play.
HOMEWORK: We now have the TWO WEEK Pagan Festival so students need to complete this essay AND READ the texts. I expect ALL students to READ THE GREAT GATSBY and continue to WATCH/LISTEN to OTHELLO. This is a massively important period as the reading will provide the foundation for our final push toward the exam. Students will only be able to offer an informed and sophisticated response if they are familiar with the nuance of the text. Remember...OTHELLO is a closed book exam..GATSBY is open book.
You have been magnificent this term, and throughout the course, I appreciate your hard work, fierce intellect, and good humour.....NOW IT'S TIME TO READ LIKE BEASTS. Any issues, drop me an email. I am in school the WED/THU of the second week.
Tally ho.....and toodle pip....
Wednesday, 5 April 2017
YEAR 13 Monday 3rd April 2017
Today's session considered the question:
WHAT ARE THE KEY CONCERNS WITHIN THE POETRY OF TONY HARRISON?
Class discussion, thanks mainly to Ellie and James, was OUTSTANDING. I have tried to shape a potential essay structure based on the content of the class discussion.
- The introduction needs to briefly summarise the key themes being explored by Harrison and why he explores these issues. Harrison is concerned with providing a poetic voice for a class of people often denied a presence within poetry. His poetry deals with identity and culture and how education is used to promote the idea of cultural superiority. An idea that Harrison reacts against in a defiant manner. His poetry also explores the conflict of division within society and the conflict that Harrison himself feels as his education and role as poet seems to alienate him from his own family and culture.
- The first paragraph needs to deal with the significance of FORM in Harrison's work. The poem V uses the iambic quatrain and the 16 line Meredithian Sonnet form in Them and [uz], Working, and Marked With D. The fact that Harrison uses a form of the sonnet that does not conform to the more traditional and more recognisable 14 line Shakespearean Sonnet form is somehow symbolic of his desire to defy convention and accepted notions of literary convention. The quatrain links Harrison's work to the literary traditions of Greece, Shakespeare and canonical works such as Gray's Elegy. How does this use of form link to the content of Harrison's poetry? Why is the quatrain the structure used to amplify the concerns of social division and class disaffection and unemployment in V? Why use the form of classical literature to provide the framework for the content of his poetry? Why use the form associated with canonical poetry to illuminate and consider the nature of post-industrial working-class experience? Students must link Harrison's use of form to meaning. THIS IS A FEATURE THAT STUDENTS MUST COMPREHEND TO ACCESS THE HIGHER GRADES.
- The next paragraph needs to consider how Harrison explores the theme of conflict in V. Harrison presents a society that appears fractured ['These Vs are all the versuses of life..the unending violence of US and THEM personified in 1984 by Coal Board MacGregor and the NUM..']. He seems to present a poem that amplifies a sense of outrage with the divisive state of Britain in the late twentieth century. STUDENTS NEED TO SHOW ME PRECISE TEXTUAL REFERENCE TO ILLUSTRATE HARRISON'S OPINION AND POETIC AIM. WHAT IS THE NATURE OF HIS PROTEST? Harrison desires disaffected unemployed youth, symbolised in the figure of the 'skin', to be given a sense of hope. In Gray's Elegy, this canonical poem presents a pastoral representation of a pre-industrial England that is not having to deal with the blight of unemployment, and 'useful toil' is at the heart of the poem. This is a poem rich with the idea that work provides dignity and purpose for people denied 'the pomp of power.' WHY DOES HARRISON ALLUDE TO THE CONTENT OF THE ELEGY? The skin in V states that ' ..ave got about as much scope to aspire above the shit they're dumped in, cunt, as coal aspires to be chucked on t'fucking fire.....Me I'll croak doing t'same nowt ah do now as a kid.' Gray refers to 'Some heart once pregnant with celestial fire' and figures who '..no more the blazing hearth shall burn' and these images of light and fire are present in V as Harrison suggests that unemployed youth, just like the coal beneath the graveyard and the coal at the centre of the mining strike, need a spark to ignite potential. V is littered with the imagery of coal and this is a key symbol that links to the theme of human potential. SHOW ME YOU WERE LISTENING. Harrison clearly wants the 'skin' to move beyond his disaffection and feel that his existence has value. WE HAVE BEEN DISCUSSING V FOR THREE SESSIONS...NOW IS THE TIME TO SHOW ME YOU WERE LISTENING TO THE CLASS COMMENTARY....'For vast, slow, coal-creating forces that hew the body's seams to get the soul..'
- The next paragraph needs to deal with the internal conflict that the narrative voice [We have to be careful about assuming the narrative voice is Harrison] experiences due to his selective grammar school education having distanced him from the working-class culture of his familial origins in Leeds. His role as a poet clearly causes him some distress as the skin is dismissive of the value of poetry: 'This pen is all I have of magic wand...They'll chisel fucking poet when they do you and that, yer cunt, 's a crude four-letter word.. a book yer stupid cunt 's not worth a fuck..Don't talk to me of fucking representing the class yer were born into any more..it's not poetry we need in this class war...Who needs yer fucking poufy words..' The cultural alienation that the narrative voice explores reflects the alienation his father experiences in Leeds as his local community is transformed into an environment that he struggles to comprehend. It is quite ironic that the only link with his father is a shared sense of cultural alienation. V is a poem within which the narrative voice questions his purpose and considers why he actually bothers writing poetry. The epitaph at the conclusion of V confirms the narrator's view that he writes poetry to present the experience of the working-class people of Leeds to a poetic audience that may not be familiar with the cultural experience explored within Harrison's poetry. The poem concludes with the narrator stating that 'poems can grow from [beat you to it!] SHIT' and urges the figure visiting his grave to look at the city of Leeds as the people in this city are his poetic inspiration. Harrison recognises that his work may be futile but he will continue to provide a poetic presence for people who may not themselves view value in poetry. WHY DOES HE BOTHER WRITING POETRY? THIS CONFLICT IS A CRUCIAL ELEMENT WITHIN HARRISON'S WORK. Remember...in National Trust the narrative voice states that 'the tongueless man gets his land took.'
- The conclusion is ALL YOURS! Try and use a critical quote to weave into your conclusion. Is this poetry valuable? Offer a personal reaction to his work. Is he relevant? Is he artistic? Crude? Creative? Unique? Synthesise my resources. The Radio Four resource below is SUPERB. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oW49WJ0F2HM&t=130s
HOMEWORK: Complete the HARRISON essay and send it to me before the Friday of next week. READ DICKENS and HARRISON. In the Thursday session I will be comparing both texts.
Sunday, 2 April 2017
YEAR 12 Tue 28th/Thu 31st March 2017
These two sessions involved a discussion of tragedy within Othello before attempting a written response within the framework of timed conditions. Students were handed an exam paper and a chill spread through the class as students became aware that the exams are nearly upon us. The written work on Tuesday was good and Friday's session involved producing a 30 minute response to the question:
HOW DOES IAGO'S USE OF LANGUAGE AND SOLILOQUY ENHANCE THE TRAGIC NATURE OF THE PLAY?
The aim of the last two sessions has been to provide students with an understanding of the importance of structure when creating a critical written response and provide an opportunity to discuss possible content before offering a timed response. Consider it a gift!
HOMEWORK: COMPLETE THE OTHELLO ESSAY....
Monday, 27 March 2017
YEAR 13 Mon 27th March 17:
Today's session discussed the final section of Harrison's V. Class discussion involved a consideration of the significance of the media images within the poem and the significance of the epitaph. Students were encouraged to consider the incredible range of allusions and cultural and historical references that populate this poem...from football and lager to nineteenth century French literature and allusions to eighteenth century British canonical poetry. The range of reference in this poem is astonishing. The highlight of the lesson was Ellie 'telling me off' for stereotyping bankers as 'greedy bastards'!
HOMEWORK: I would like students to produce a one [or two] paragraph response to the question:
HOW SIGNIFICANT IS GRAY'S ELEGY WHEN
CONSIDERING MEANING IN HARRISON'S V?
I would like students to focus upon form and the significance of the iambic quatrain. Why does Harrison use these allusions? Students should not just consider the thematic similarity between each text.
REMEMBER....consider whether it is possible to fully comprehend Harrison's aim in V if the reader is not aware of Harrison's use of the form and thematic concern of Gray's famous poem?
I would like this written work handed to Sam on Wednesday. I would like to mark this response before our next session. This paragraph will be useful for students when constructing our Tony Harrison essay.
HOMEWORK: I would like students to produce a one [or two] paragraph response to the question:
HOW SIGNIFICANT IS GRAY'S ELEGY WHEN
CONSIDERING MEANING IN HARRISON'S V?
I would like students to focus upon form and the significance of the iambic quatrain. Why does Harrison use these allusions? Students should not just consider the thematic similarity between each text.
REMEMBER....consider whether it is possible to fully comprehend Harrison's aim in V if the reader is not aware of Harrison's use of the form and thematic concern of Gray's famous poem?
I would like this written work handed to Sam on Wednesday. I would like to mark this response before our next session. This paragraph will be useful for students when constructing our Tony Harrison essay.
Sunday, 26 March 2017
YEAR 12 FEB/MARCH 2017....
RERSOURCES FOR OTHELLO....All link to the 2016 RSC version that includes the first black actor to play Iago..
Is Othello a racist play?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zAcmVH8vqZw&t=15s
Iqbal Khan:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cvef-Rxk6DU&t=4s
Playing Othello:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1cNOd1tUaaw
Act 3 Scene3:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W1c_HQijEBo
Playing Iago:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JcCzk8aT8H8
THAT BRILLIANT DRAMATIC TRAGEDY RESOURCE FROM The National Theatre:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dSr6mP-zxUc&t=69s
An Introduction to Greek Theatre:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aSRLK7SogvE
Anthony Hopkins 'blacked-up' for Othello...what do you make of this?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FnjPTBpsEnY
Laurence Olivier...'blacked-up'!!! Again..what do you lot make of this??
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tWCe6bW0-Fs
Read the resource that I gave you last week within which HUGH QUARSHIE offers his reservations about playing Othello...
http://www.hamhigh.co.uk/etcetera/theatre/is_othello_a_racist_play_rsc_actor_hugh_quarshie_is_asking_the_question_1_4184119
HOMEWORK: I stopped the last lesson twenty minutes into the session to discuss 'other matters' related to Sixth Form life. On Tuesday we will continue to discuss the play. The title for the next essay is..TO WHAT EXTENT CAN OTHELLO BE CONSIDERED A TRAGIC HERO?
Here is a potential essay structure:
Is Othello a racist play?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zAcmVH8vqZw&t=15s
Iqbal Khan:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cvef-Rxk6DU&t=4s
Playing Othello:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1cNOd1tUaaw
Act 3 Scene3:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W1c_HQijEBo
Playing Iago:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JcCzk8aT8H8
THAT BRILLIANT DRAMATIC TRAGEDY RESOURCE FROM The National Theatre:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dSr6mP-zxUc&t=69s
An Introduction to Greek Theatre:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aSRLK7SogvE
Anthony Hopkins 'blacked-up' for Othello...what do you make of this?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FnjPTBpsEnY
Laurence Olivier...'blacked-up'!!! Again..what do you lot make of this??
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tWCe6bW0-Fs
Read the resource that I gave you last week within which HUGH QUARSHIE offers his reservations about playing Othello...
http://www.hamhigh.co.uk/etcetera/theatre/is_othello_a_racist_play_rsc_actor_hugh_quarshie_is_asking_the_question_1_4184119
HOMEWORK: I stopped the last lesson twenty minutes into the session to discuss 'other matters' related to Sixth Form life. On Tuesday we will continue to discuss the play. The title for the next essay is..TO WHAT EXTENT CAN OTHELLO BE CONSIDERED A TRAGIC HERO?
Here is a potential essay structure:
- The first critical paragraph must consider the character and the play within the context of tragedy. Othello can clearly be considered to follow the dramatic conventions of a tragic hero as Shakespeare offers evidence of HAMARTIA and HUBRIS. Students need to support their argument with appropriate textual reference. Is Othello's hamartia jealousy? Poor judgement? The inability to comprehend the complexity of love? The inability to perceive that Iago is a liar? WHAT DO YOU THINK? All commentary needs to be supported with clear textual reference. To what extent does Othello conform to Aristotle's definition of a tragic hero?
- The second paragraph needs to consider the significance of ACT 5 SCENE 2 as this is the moment within the play that may determine whether the audience view Othello as a tragic hero, tragic victim, or even tragic villain. A.C. Bradley believes Othello is a tragic hero but T.S. Eliot has suggested that Othello becomes a 'pathetic figure' at this point in the play. READ YOUR NOTES. What do you think? Which critic are you going to weave into your argument? When Othello attempts to cleanse Desdemona of her sin, is this heroic? Misguided? Deluded? Hubris? When Othello realises his mistake and becomes his own judge and executioner, does he become a sympathetic figure? Does the murder of Desdemona and the death of Emilia make it impossible to view Othello as a tragic hero? WHAT DO YOU THINK?
- The third paragraph needs to consider the significance of language and form and how this allows Shakespeare to present the influence of Iago. Does Othello rediscover the 'Othello Music' at the end of the play? Does he rediscover his calm nobility? How does this use of language and symbolism enhance the tragedy? Use of soliloquy? Is the tragic nature of the play enhanced by the fact that Shakespeare allows the audience to view the successful manipulation of Othello by Iago but all the other stage characters remain ignorant of Iago's true character? Brennan describes the audience as being in a state of 'helpless frustration'. How does this enhance the power of the drama? How does Shakespeare want the audience to react? Why does he use this powerful from of dramatic irony?
- The final paragraph needs to consider the PITY and FEAR. Where is the PITY? Where is the FEAR? How is the audience to react if the play is to be considered a success? What is the contemporary significance of this play? Refer to the view of a critic. Arthur Miller? Tragedy as an 'optimistic genre'? 'Pointing the heroic finger at the enemies of human freedom'? 'Perfectibility'? D.H.Lawrence and tragedy being a search for 'truth'? What is the contemporary relevance of this play? You could link to a quote that presents the purpose of Literature. See your notes. Why is this play still being performed? WHY IS IT SO POERFUL? Does it have a universal significance? QUESTION FOCUS...I want the conclusion to offer a STRONG personal voice. Throw some FIRE in your words.
YEAR 13..MARCH 2017..
The last few lessons have been investigating the work of TONY HARRISON. Students should be aware of the following resources. This RADIO FOUR programme with BLAKE MORRISON explores issues linked to HARRISON'S 'V'. This is a cracker. GIVE IT YOUR EARS:
HARRISON READS V on BBC Radio Four...Audio Resource:
Part Two:
Simon Armitage interviewing Harrison is always worth your eye and ear time:
Simon Armitage interview...'Poetry is a form of dissent' :
Tomorrow's lesson [27th March] will involve discussing issues within Harrison's V and a consideration of the essay question:
Wednesday, 15 February 2017
YEAR 13 Monday 13th Feb 2017.
Today's session contained a feedback to the quality of the last set of essays and considered possible content for the essay question:
'POLITICAL AND SOCIAL PROTEST WRITING SHOWS THAT, IF PEOPLE ARE TO EFFECT CHANGE, THEY NEED TO GROUP TOGETHER.'
To what extent is this true of HARD TIMES?
HOMEWORK: I expect this essay to be handed to me after half-term. I also expect students to read ALL the poetry of Tony Harrison and synthesise the HARRISON resources posted elsewhere on this blog.
http://becuriouslit.blogspot.co.uk/2017/02/year-13-monday-6th-feb-2017.html
http://becuriouslit.blogspot.co.uk/2016/06/year-12-27th-june-16.html
'POLITICAL AND SOCIAL PROTEST WRITING SHOWS THAT, IF PEOPLE ARE TO EFFECT CHANGE, THEY NEED TO GROUP TOGETHER.'
To what extent is this true of HARD TIMES?
HOMEWORK: I expect this essay to be handed to me after half-term. I also expect students to read ALL the poetry of Tony Harrison and synthesise the HARRISON resources posted elsewhere on this blog.
http://becuriouslit.blogspot.co.uk/2017/02/year-13-monday-6th-feb-2017.html
http://becuriouslit.blogspot.co.uk/2016/06/year-12-27th-june-16.html
Monday, 6 February 2017
YEAR 12 LITERATURE JAN 2017...
The mocks are over and we rush forth inside Shakespeare's OTHELLO. The aim of the sessions throughout January was to familiarise students with this fantastic play. Here are some resources for students to digest:
The Tragedy resource. This is the definition of dramatic tragedy. It's ace. Synthesise the content:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dSr6mP-zxUc
OTHELLO resources:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jyoCIwJn9Ic
Ewan McGregor talks about playing Iago:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0dF921GLl7g
Is Othello a racist play?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zAcmVH8vqZw
The role of Othello:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1cNOd1tUaaw
HOMEWORK: Before our lesson on Tuesday 7th Feb, students should have read/watched/listened to the first THREE ACTS of the play.
The Tragedy resource. This is the definition of dramatic tragedy. It's ace. Synthesise the content:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dSr6mP-zxUc
OTHELLO resources:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jyoCIwJn9Ic
Ewan McGregor talks about playing Iago:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0dF921GLl7g
Is Othello a racist play?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zAcmVH8vqZw
The role of Othello:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1cNOd1tUaaw
HOMEWORK: Before our lesson on Tuesday 7th Feb, students should have read/watched/listened to the first THREE ACTS of the play.
YEAR 13 Monday 6th Feb 2017.
The Poll Tax riot:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5o98_hia8tA
Ken Loach and Orgreave:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VO2hoGW2mLM
The Miners and the 84/85 Strike:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qzwATFfA1Lo
The Battle of Orgreave:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d2jH53e6_jQ
Today's session was an introduction to Tony Harrison and the session explored the historical context of the Thatcher moment. This was a time of incredible social division and students need to be aware of the conflict that inspired Harrison's V poem. Click on link below to access resources linked to TONY HARRISON. These resources will inform your reading.:
http://becuriouslit.blogspot.co.uk/2016/06/year-12-27th-june-16.html
HOMEWORK: READ V and read Gray's ELEGY IN A COUNTRY CHURCHYARD. Students must be familiar with the similarities between this famous 18th Century poem and Harrison's 20th Century version.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G76uhV4QIY4
Sunday, 29 January 2017
YEAR 13 Monday 30th Jan 2017
WILL SELF...Teaching to the test..
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b08bbpr5
Listen to this resource from Radio 4. The great Will Self discusses the obsession with testing students.
This session considered the question:
THE MAIN CONCERN OF DICKENS IN THIS NOVEL IS THE ABUSE OF POWER.
To what extent do you agree with this assessment of the novel?
The class discussion explored the question in relation to the Utilitarian educational philosophy, Bounderby and his ignorance and dismissive attitude toward working people and the significance of the trade union narrative. Below is a potential essay structure that should help students construct a coherent critical narrative.
STRUCTURE
- Begin with a very brief introduction that allows the examiner to comprehend the critical direction of your response. This is a novel about the abuse of power, especially when considering the Utilitarian education system, but it also explores the destructive nature of Boundary's ignorance and arrogance, the trade union failing to respect the freedom of the individual, and the destructive indifference of Members of Parliament. The politicians seem to have very little interest in using their power to create a fairer world. Do they actually appreciate the power that they have to improve society? Students could also discuss Dickens' use of Gradgrind and how he presents this character as a symbol of hope and change. He unwittingly abuses his power but realises his error and becomes a compassionate father and compassionate politician.
- The first paragraph could explore the Utilitarian system and how the adults directing this system abuse their power to educate children. Obviously Dickens presents his contempt of this form of education through one teacher being named 'M'Choakumchild' and the title of the second chapter being titled 'Murdering the Innocents'. OBVIOUSLY Bitzer is used to shape the idea that this form of learning dehumanises young people and creates incredibly cruel adults incapable of empathy and compassion. Self-interest appears to be at the heart of this philosophy and this clearly angers Dickens. Why does Dickens despise this system? What is his ideal form of education? STUDENTS MUST EXPLORE HOW DICKENS USES SYMBOLISM TO SHAPE MEANING. Refer to your notes. I have given you some key quotes and marked written paragraphs that deal with Bitzer as symbol. Could link to Thomas Carlyle's view that 'men are grown mechanical in heart and head, as well as hand.' This quote could easily be used within the second critical paragraph...or the conclusion!!
- The second critical paragraph could deal with Bounderby.: 'the bully of humility.' Is he abusing his power? Is he aware that he has the power to improve the lives of the factory workers of Coketown? What is his power and does he use it? He clearly believes that the workers are less than human. He refers to them as 'hands' and 'the pests of the earth.' BE AWARE OF THE SIGNIFICANCE OF THE MEN AND MASTERS chapter. Blackpool delivers a strangely articulate speech and states that 'the strong hand will never do it...Agreeing to make one side awlus and forever right, and toother side..forever wrong..will never do it.' He is then sacked as Bounderby suspects the 'gold spoon look-out.' This decision leads to Blackpool's death. Why does Dickens contrast the virtue and humanity of Stephen Blackpool with the arrogant duplicity of Bounderby? How does Dickens want factory owners to view the people that work in their factories? Why does Dickens present Blackpool and Rachael as being so decent, selfless, compassionate, and selfless? Why is Bounderby presented as being such a vile human? REMEMBER...the whole of this novel is an appeal for empathy....WHY? HISTORICAL CONTEXT? THE GREAT EXHIBITION of 1851 suggested that the industrial revolution was improving the quality of life for everybody. How does this novel challenge that perception? What kind of change is Dickens urging through the contrast between Bounderby and Blackpool? How is Dickens shaping meaning through the symbolic characters of Bounderby and Blackpool?
- The third critical paragraph could deal with how the union should have the power to represent the and unite ALL the workers but Dickens presents union leader Slackbridge as a cruel bully more reminiscent of Bounderby. Once more, the name of the character is significant, and Dickens describes Slackbridge as an 'ill made' man with a 'sour expression..a sneer of great disdain and bitterness.' MEN and BROTHERS is a significant chapter for considering Dickens' attitude towards the trade unions. Slackbridge is concerned with humiliating Blackpool and Dickens never presents the trade union as attempting to deal with any industrial injustice. Dickens presents the union in a very negative manner and clearly views unions as another means of individual freedom being suppressed. Macauley [1934] described this novel as 'sullen socialism' but Dickens clearly views the union as a negative institution and challenges the view that this novel is championing any single political system. Dickens appears to be encouraging people to respect each other and value compassion and empathy. He clearly does not believe that the union movement can help working people. Dickens appears to view the union as pointless. Perhaps he has misunderstood the value of workers having the voice of a union. CHECK HISTORICAL CONTEXT. The union movement did inspire lots of reform and did help fight to improve the quality of working conditions.
- Another idea for a paragraph could be to explore the apathy of the political class who seem to use the privilege of wealth to ignore the fact that they could help the suffering of the poor. Obviously Harthouse is viciously attacked by Dickens. His indifference and philosophy that ' every man is selfish in everything he does, and I am exactly like the rest of my fellow-creatures..What will be will be..' Dickens seems infuriated by the ignorant rich who use their money to become an MP and then ignore, or are unable to perceive, the suffering being endured by the mass of working people. Dickens states: 'It is the drifting icebergs setting with any current anywhere that wreck ships.' Harthouse lacks any form of moral conscience and attempts to have an affair with Louisa. His indifference is potentially destructive. Students could compare Arthouse with Gradgrind who becomes the kind of MP that Dickens believes should be populating Parliament. Could link to CHARTISM. Remember, students must offer an understanding of historical context.
- Conclusion needs to offer a strong personal voice and use some critical commentary to weave within your concluding commentary. Is attacking the abuse of power really Dickens' main concern? Dickens does concern himself with the abuse of power but you could argue that his main concern is REFORM. This novel appears to urge for political reform and human reform...A REVOLUTION OF THE MIND!!
SO FOLKS...this a big essay. You need to show me that you understand this novel. An understanding of author's aim and how meaning is shaped by Dickens are crucial aspects of this essay. I expect a brief intro , THREE CRITICAL PARAGRAPHS AND A POWERFUL CONCLUSION.
Good luck.
HOMEWORK: Complete the essay and read the Tony Harrison resource.
Below is a previous blog entry that offers some Tony Harrison resources:
http://becuriouslit.blogspot.co.uk/2016/06/year-12-27th-june-16.html
Below is a previous blog entry that offers some Tony Harrison resources:
http://becuriouslit.blogspot.co.uk/2016/06/year-12-27th-june-16.html
Friday, 20 January 2017
YEAR 13 Monday 16th Jan 2017.
The Winter break is over, mock exams have been attacked, and now we begin again. This lesson looked at the characters of HARTHOUSE, BITZER, and STEPHEN BLACKPOOL. Class discussion considered how Dickens uses these characters to shape meaning. Bitzer is an interesting character as he is used by Dickens to illustrate the 'success' of the Utilitarian educational system in a creative but accessible manner.
HOMEWORK: Complete ONE paragraph of writing linked to either HARTHOUSE, BLACKPOOL, or BITZER. Consider how Dickens uses character as a symbol to present his ideas. What is Dickens attacking and why? How is Dickens using these characters? What do they symbolise?
Title: How does Dickens use the character of ????????? to shape meaning?
I expect students to construct a detailed A Level quality response. The paragraph should contain:
- Opinon
- Textual reference
- Explain how textual reference supports opinion.
- The final section should be a mixture of author's aim, question focus, and historical context. This is the section of the paragraph that proves that you are engaging with the text.
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