Thursday, March 9, 2017

AGENDA 3/9

Perform Act II, scene i : motif of spying/distrust
Discuss and decide: What are the TWO most significant sentences of Act II.i and why? Create a justification
Continue working on Reflection and Journal entry
for Act I, scene v of Hamlet

HW: Read Act II, scene ii of Hamlet for Friday: http://shakespeare.mit.edu/hamlet/index.html
Come with your questions!!!!!!
Take-home quiz over weekend: Read Act II.ii tonight and predict the quiz! I whittled it down to the four most important speeches in the scene

Thursday, March 2, 2017

AGENDA 3/2

BLOCK SCHEDULE
Loose ends: finish Hamlet scenarios
Additional poems that need to be performed from last week

Close reading of Act I, scene iv of Hamlet and discuss
Work on computers to create 2 interpretive questions and select one important quotation, then write a brief justification for your choices.

EXAMPLE Level II Author’s Style Question:
In Act I, scene ii, Shakespeare has Claudius describe his marriage in the following way:  “With mirth in funeral, and with dirge in marriage, In equal scale weighing delight and dole, Taken to wife”.  How does Shakespeare use juxtaposition in these lines to characterize Claudius and Gertrude’s marriage?


EXAMPLE Quotation and Justification:
Act I, scene i
BER.  Who’s there?

This quotation begins the tragedy of Hamlet, and establishes the mysterious tone that pervades the play.  Bernardo does not know whether the noise he hears is one of the other guards, or the ghost that they have seen twice.  Shakespeare opens this play with a question, signaling to the audience that questions are important throughout the play.


HW: Read Act I, scene v of Hamlet LINK: http://shakespeare.mit.edu/hamlet/index.html
Please complete Google Form to request Poet for research paper

Wednesday, March 1, 2017

AGENDA 3/1

Continue watching Hamlet by Kenneth Branagh, Act I, scenes iii and iv.

HW; Reread Act I, scenes iii and iv, paying attention to character foils: Laertes vs. Hamlet, Claudius vs. Hamlet, Polonius/Laertes' relationship vs. Claudius'/Hamlet's relationship and Hamlet's relationship with his father.

Tuesday, February 28, 2017

AGENDA 2/28

Watch the beginning of the Branagh Hamlet up to the end of his soliloquy: 21:56.
Complete the soliloquy handout and work through it at tables--turn in at end of period.

HW: Review Act I scenes i and ii. For EACH of the two scenes, you’ll write two questions and choose one quotation. For the questions, one needs to be a level II (author’s style) question and one can be a level I or III (something within the play or beyond the play). Then, choose one brief quotation (about three-four lines’ worth, ok if it’s shorter or a chunk of a longer speech) to represent the most important ideas of each scene. Write down the quotation, then a brief justification of why you chose that quotation to represent the scene. You may want to type this assignment as you can use this work in your review sheets that are typically due at the end of studying each work!


EXAMPLE Level II Author’s Style Question:
In Act I, scene ii, Shakespeare has Claudius describe his marriage in the following way:  “With mirth in funeral, and with dirge in marriage, In equal scale weighing delight and dole, Taken to wife”.  How does Shakespeare use juxtaposition in these lines to characterize Claudius and Gertrude’s marriage?


EXAMPLE Quotation and Justification:
Act I, scene i
BER.  Who’s there?

This quotation begins the tragedy of Hamlet, and establishes the mysterious tone that pervades the play.  Bernardo does not know whether the noise he hears is one of the other guards, or the ghost that they have seen twice.  Shakespeare opens this play with a question, signaling to the audience that questions are important throughout the play.

Monday, February 27, 2017

AGENDA 2/27

Take out paper and respond to Journal Questions (please allow 3-4 minutes of quiet thinking and writing time after posing each question, thenshare out at tables, then a few share out with class):


  1. How common do you believe the act of revenge is in everyday life? What acts of revenge (small or large) have you observed?
  2. Would you characterize yourself as more of a “thinker” or a “doer”? Do you think your approach is successful? Would you rather be more thoughtful or more decisive?
  3. To what extent do parents have the right to “spy” or check up on their children as they grow up? Give specific examples/boundaries if you can.
  4. How are relationships between step-children and step-parents often depicted in stories and film? What complicates these relationships?
  5. If you could hear a message from someone who has passed away, what would you most like to hear, or who would you like to hear from?
  6. Are parents generally blind to their children’s faults, or over-critical of their children?
  7. Have you ever been the victim of unrequited love? How did you handle (or how do you wish you had handled) that rejection?
  8. Have you ever been the recipient of unwanted attention? How did you handle (or how to you wish you had handled) rejecting someone else?
  9. What are you most looking forward to in reading this play? What questions do you have as we start?


HW: Bring textbooks to class tomorrow. Pre-read Hamlet, Act I scene i and scene ii, tonight.  Read to find out what questions are circulating at the start of the play, what King Claudius asks of Hamlet, and what Horatio and the guards have seen. Consider watching the beginning on YouTube or finding an audiobook to hear it as you read. Watching/listening first then reading really helps!