Nov 25th, 2011

Study your Vocabulary Unit 5 for Quiz on Monday.
Begin memorization of the Prologue:  "Two households both alike in dignity...."
Memorization written test on Monday, December 5th.

Nov 24, 2011

Complete Queen Mab dreams: 

Queen Mab causes people whose noses she drives over when they are asleep to dream of different things:  lines 70-88

Lovers:

Courtiers:

Lawyers:

Ladies:

Parsons:

Soldiers:

Read Act I, scene 5.  You don't have to do a Summary unless you are one of the few who didn't do one for scene four and would like to make up a Homework Check mark.

Monday:  Vocabulary Quiz 5
TBA:  Remember to memorize the Prologue.  "Two households...."

Nnov 23, 2011

Homework:  Read and Summary of Act I, Sc 4

November 21st, 2011

Read Act I, Sc 1 of Romeo and Juliet.
Summary:
      Setting:
      Mood/Atmosphere:
      Characters:
      Conflict/Issue:
      Events:
     Quotes:

Nov 18th, 2011

No homework unless you need to memorize definitions of parts of speech or practice applying them....
You could begin to read act one, scene one if you wish, and I will be assigning the prologue for memorization next week.

Nov 17th, 2011

Google what is written on Shakespeare's tombstone.  Bring knowledge to class tomorrow!

Nov 10th, 2011

Please continue to work on your essays over the weekend if you feel the need.  All I ask is that they are typed in class on Tuesday. 

Nov 10th, 2011 C block notes on Tolerance continued.

Tolerance:

2.  cont

All people with physical and mental deviations are driven to the Fringes.

Modern society tolerate deviations, but people are still out of their comfort zones because people judge by appearances rather than personality.

Telepaths or “think togethers” are usually persecuted – Sealand woman.  157

In history people have been persecuted b/c common people have feared their abilities.

Eg:  witches

Sealand woman believes that her kind is a superior variant.  196

When blacks were discriminated against, whites believed that they were superior.

Waknuk’s intolerance of deviations

Example of Sophie’s life as a result of persecution b/c of her deviation - intolerance

Nov 9, 2011 B block notes on religion and rights in The Chrysalids

RELIGION:

Religion and racism

Deviation = blasphemy

Devil father of deviation

Reproduction only holy production

Similarities to Christian religion and former racist beliefs that were justified by evolutionary theory, and a blending of the two, eg Hitler’s Germany

In the book any deviation is unholy and from the devil

“The devil struts his wide estates and the laws of God are mocked.”  38

“Blessed is the Norm.  In Purity our Salvation” 38

In the Chrysalids different races were regarded as deviations rather than just normal variations.

“Hateful in the sight of God”  - Sophie’s six toes – kicked out of society

W opposes religion causing racism, and discrimination, fear and hatred…

2.  Yes.

All women have crosses on their dresses.

“We would all kneel while he proclaimed our repentance and led our prayers for forgiveness.”

Sacrifice of animals like Old Testament “ceremonial sacrifice of two headed calf or four legged chicken or any other offences”

The Norms had a Bible except that they had changed it a lot.  Nicholson’s Repentances.

Added the definition of man to the Genesis passage.

They went to church.

Tribulation

3.  It seems that Christianity was the religion that JW based the religion of the Waknuk and Fringes on.  This book was written in a “Christian society” where most people still attended church and were nominally Christian.

He could be critiquing religion in general or Christianity specifically.

His religious characters are fanatical, extreme, bigoted.  They torture and murder for their religious beliefs.

Those who are not fanatical like Joseph or Old Jacob, have to hide their more tolerant views.  Eg Uncle Axel.

Even though the evolutionary theory of the Sealand woman seems more tolerant, in fact, she also condemns others to death when they are not like her.

He thinks religion and deeply held beliefs cause a lot of trouble.  Separates people.  Causes wars.

Be tolerant of other ideas and religions????

Religion should include tolerance of difference, while maintaining one’s own belief system.

Can Christians evangelize?  Christians should keep in mind that everyone has the right to choose their own beliefs.

Nothing wrong with spreading faith, but no forced conversions.

RIGHTS:

“Why do they do this to us?”  Sophie 179

“I’m not a fool. ….I’ve right to marry”  Anne 91

“Does she have a moral right to create a constant threat hanging over seven heads….?” 92 Uncle Axel

“Mrs Wender, if it is just Sophie’s toes, couldn’t you have just cut them off when she was a baby?”  46

“A baby which if you were to have your way would grow up to breed….mutants and abominations…” 72 Joseph

“Waknuk had become an orderly, law-abiding, god respecting community….”

“not only have you blasphemed by producing a false image, but in your arrogance you have set yourself against the law and sinned in intent.” 73  Joseph

AH should have the right to have and keep her children

“Her feet Michael, oh her poor feet.”  Sally about Katherine’s torture.

“

Nov 8th Homework

Your task tonight is to gather your thoughts and write a Thesis sentence for your in class essay which will be written on Thursday.  I suggest creating an outline for your essay also.

NOv 8th, Block C notes on themes of Chrysalids - nuclear war, communication and tolerance

Nuclear War:

1.      Could not be realistic – Canada not a superpower, so might not have been a target. 

-whole seaboard is empty and USA was in Cold War with Russians sot htat would have been a prime target

Deviational plants and humans seem unrealistic – p. 58 “But the women are very tall and strong, they rule the country and do all the work…keep their men in cages.”

“There is one tribe where both the men and women are hairless and another where they all have white hair and pink eyes.” P 62

Sealand probably would have been the safest place to live and could have retained modern tech.

“It’s a place with lots and lots of houses, different fromm Waknuk houses and much much bigger, and there are funny carts without horses running along the roads, and things in the air with whizzing things on top of them.”  P. 136

Makes sense geographically that damage would be heavier along east coast of US and not so much in Labrador and NZ

“The only way I know is south….there’s plenty of Badlands coastline…soon you’re following around a big bay and you get to where there’s no gaps, it’s all badlands.”  P.  59

2.      “They created vast problems and then buried their heads in the sands of idle faith.” P. 156

Irony:  “However wonderful the old people were they were not too wonderful to make mistakes and nobody knows or is ever likely to know where they were wise and where they were mistaken.” P. 79

          -religion says they are god kind of…putting themselves in control of their own fate, but we are obviously not.

p. 153 “The Old People thought they were the tops too, had ideas…”

          - we think we are in control in our world, but when the aspect of war comes into play and people fight each other it changes the world.

“It is not pleasant to kill any creature,” she agreed, “but to pretend that one can live without doing so is self-deception.” P. 195

-         Refers to us about how killing always happens and we’ll never stop killing each other….kind of like the revolving wheel of life…

-         Is this true?  Do we all live with killing?

-         War is caused by people with different sets of beliefs and this is displayed by the feud between the Fringes people and Waknuk

-         There are killers and there are people who do nothing about it….

“The Old People brought down Tribulation and were broken into fragments by it.” P. 182

-         The way war is fought could be thought of as a sin b/c of what causes war.

-         As the Old People it is important to remember that diputes should be resolved peacefully if possible to avoid war and nuclear war.

3.      Even if this is the golden age we need to solve political disputes peacefully and control the use of our weapons.

It mankind a long time to reach the “golden age” and it can be reduced to nothing overnight.

“The mountains are cinders and the plains are black glass still after centuries….it is frightening to think that a whole race could go insane.” P, 179

          -if we did have nuclear war it would be insane and this is a conclusion we can draw from the book.

“The Old People, when in their superhuman fashion, had cut away half a mountain in order to find something or other that interested them…” p 17

          -obviously they think of us as people who go to extreme lengths to get what we want.

          -if there was nuclear war it would have a devastating effect, if mining could do such as taking away half a mountain.  We need to control our use of technology.

COMMUNICATION:

1.     Pessimistic –

“arrogant they are, true image and all that….want to be like the old people.  Tribulation hasn’t taught them a thing.”  153  Fringes man

“Maybe he didn’t shuffle quite enough, the same sequences seem to have got kind of stuck together in some places.”  153

“One day he’s going to get pretty tired of the way they can’t learn a lesson and start showing them another trick or two.”  153

“Do you know what the length of a man’s arm should be?  No.  I admit it.  Nor do I, but somebody in Rigo does, some expert on the true image.”  161 – spider man

-all show that history repeats itself and those who follow the same path and don’t learn will have disasters happen again, like those who have fallen.

2.      “….to see the steam engine….there wasn’t another steam engine within a hundred miles….”  Community has already advanced through technology.

“…it’s a place with lots and lots of houses…” 136

-example of advances through science and proof that eventually will discover new ways to communicate

Given time it is possible that a better power of human communication will develop.  In the setting of the book, this would be achieved through evolution.  Doesn’t seem likely in reality.

“…She says I’ll get better still if I work at it, and when I grow up I must have babies who can have strong think pictures.”  145

-Sealand is already trying to breed and spread the abilty to communicate telepathically so everyone can do it.

“She paused seeming to wonder if she were attempting an explanation beyond the understanding of such primitives as we.”

-Sealand woman regards Waknuk norms as primitive and Sealanders as more advanced.  Discrimination

“We are able to think together and understand one another as they never could.”  193

-old people less advanced than New People

-lack of communication could bring down “tribulation”

3.      A universal language would not necessarily solve communication issues b/c there would still be misunderstandings, miscommunications and misjudgments.  People would still persecute one another just like Emily did to Harriet after learning about H’s idea about saving her baby.

“I think you must be mad Harriet”  71

-talking same language but disagreeing

‘It’s you who haven’t thought Michael, or any of you.”  92

-Anne disagreeing with group

4.      If no telepathy – body signals or language, hands or facial expressions, or what can be expressed with written language

“My father checked his step.  With an ill-tempered gesture, he threw the whip back on the table.  He glared at the inspector and turned to follow me.”

52

-if talking fails, beat your child

“It was worth while”  she said in words….”  193  -talking as opposed to using telepathy.

“As they were leaving she noticed a folded sheet of paper lying on the table.”  101

-Anne’s suicide note

“Rachael read it through twice and carefully burnt it.”  Stops intended communication  102

“She was sure of herself, with a serenity of confidence.”  192

-Sealand woman’s description

-discern confidence through body language

Chrysalids:  similar to chrysalis, which is the outer covering of a larvae or pupa as it changes into a butterfly, but more importantly it represents the change of one thing into something else, evolution…

-protected and isolated it changes on its own

“For ours is a superior variant and we are just beginning” 196

“It is not easy to explain in words how one can make intelligible thought shapes, all of us had first found for ourselves.”  112

          -had to change and grow to develop abilities, be who they had to be not what community wanted them to be.

TOLERANCE/INTOLERANCE:

Intolerant:  disallow differences

Tolerant:  allows differences without active opposition

Religion and philosophy causes lots of discrimination

Eg Hitler executed people b/c of race, this also happens in The Chrysalids.

People not of Norm are outlawed and despised and others adopt this philosophy b/c they want to belong.

The author is trying to say that religion can cause intolerance, eg the Norm is the image of God.

Religion of Waknuk states that any creature not meeting definition is not human.

This is similar to seeing people of other races as not fully human and thus not human or dehumanized.

“Any creature that shall seem to be human but is not formed thus is not human.”  P 13

Some characters such as David and Sophie have a tolerant attitude toward deviation b/c they question the Waknuk religion.

David indicates this when Sophie is expelled to the Fringes

54  “I couldn’t help it”   Betrayal is evidence of fact that he tolerated her and found her persecution horrible.

In modern society people who have deviations are tolerated, even though people try to avoid them, and the law protects them.  People get out of comfort zones with different people.

Waknuk lacks tolerance for deviants, and David can’t stand the idea of Petra mutilated and thrust naked into Fringes country.  120

We would think this is extreme and bigoted, but there have been instances where this has happened.

Eg hunting down witches because of own fear of difference

The woman from Sealand says that the people who are not telepathic are only “ingenious half-humans, little better than savages.” 156

-this is just like Hitler persecuting Jews, or discrimination against blacks.

2.  Intolerance of mental and physical deviations…

Waknuk only tolerates Norm

Only the image of God is man 18

In the past people believed this philosophy.

Hitler and Jews = Waknuk and Fringes

Judge by appearance rather than personality

November 8th, 2011 B block class notes on Chrysalids themes of Communication and Tolerance

Communication:

1.     Always an enemy in world

Hopeful and doubtful

Eg – Waknuk vs Fringes

Sealanders vs Norms

“a brighter sun than Waknuk ever knew poured down upon the wide blue bay” 199

          -a new start to David, humanity a new future

“they could never have succeeded” p 157  pessimism, referring to the Old People

“what can they have done to create such a frightful place?” p. 179 – poor communication led to nuclear war

2.     Tech always going to improve

Not ever going to be think togethers

We can understand each other in different ways than telepathy

Eg:  Dave and U. Axel understand each other well, and David can talk to him.

“I hesitated, b/c he was UA and my best friend among the grown ups….This isn’t play stuff you’re talking about Davey…”

-         Even though UA is not a telepath he understands David, without the same abilities.

Since 1955 – colour TV, all people have telephones, we have auto translate on internet, “there’s an ap for that…” cell phones, facebook, social networking, faster and faster internet,

There might be a way to develop better communication through science.

“she says petra implied that people who can only talk with words have something missing.’ P. 180

We don’t think that evolution will cause think togethers – “neither his kind nor his kind of thinking will survive long.” P 182

3.     It would solve language barriers in being able to talk to everyone.  If we had one language that everyone understood one another, we’d still have arguments…

Tower of Babel

Eg:  Anne and the group – all have telepathy but she still argued with them and blocked them out.

Petra and Sealand people – everyone can speak same language with thought shapes – communication allows rescue

Petra and detecting behind thinks – could be bad because she could use her ability to take over sealand.

“Anne kept it up so that one could almost believe that she had succeeded in renouncing her difference and in becoming a Norm.”  p. 97

“Your minds are confused by your ties and your upbringing.  You are still half thinking of them as the same kind as yourself.” P. 196

     -even if they had a universal language it wouldn’t change how you were brought up, still retaining the prejudices you were brought up with.

4.     Writing, typing, acting in plays, body language, sign language,

“Sophie says “ you give an outsider an uncomfortable feeling.” P. 183

-         Through their actions and body language Sophie felt apart from them.

Paraphrase – think togethers have conversation which Sophie knows is happening but can only regard with curiosity – p. 183

5.    Chrysalids:  most similar to chrysalis, which is where a caterpillar is in a cocoon and blossoms into a butterfly

Meaning: new minds developing, development of the New People, perhaps using evolution as a theory

TOLERANCE:

We do send people to the Fringes, casting people out b/c of their differences, things that shouldn’t be significant

We are intolerant of those who don’t look perfect, those whose incomes are lower, below the poverty line.

Judgement – b/c we have a standard of what is expected of everyone.  If people don’t meet standard they aren’t perfect and don’t fit in.

Cave – Probably luxury in the Fringes – “the entrance was covered with skins, there are a few bowls and utensils, but nothing much else.” P. 169

David compares it to the Wenders’ old cottage and the clean bright room that had seemed so friendly.

“he sat there looking at the shadows on the walls and listening to the plop plop plop of the drip and very likely this is luxury in the Fringes.’

As a society people have a tendency to judge everything that is different from what they are used to.  Therefore Sophie’s living conditions are shocking to them.

Upper and middle class think that people in poverty are there b/c they are lazy or addicted, but many times it is due to life’s challenges like what happened to the people in the Fringes.  They have been tossed out to the Fringes for being deviational.

In various time periods people have ostracized others due to skin colour – racism

Uncle Axel explains about different people groups who all think they’re in the true image

“there’s another where they have white hair and pink eyes. You’ll find islands where the people are all thick set and others where they are thin.  There’s even said to be some islands where both men and women would be passed as true images if some strange deviation has turned them all completely black.”

Waknuk has opinion on what true image is, so do many neighbouring cultures and tribes.

UA is tolerant talking about differences, but is the Waknuk religion????

So when do intolerances start to interfere with people groups living beside one another?

“Accursed is the Mutant, the enemy not only of the human race but of all the species of God as decreed, the seed of the devil within trying unflaggingly to come to fruition in order that it might destroy the divine order and turn on man, stronghold of God’s will upon earth to lewd chaos…where true stock had given place to unnameable creatures., abominable growths flourished and the spirits of evil mocked the lord with their obscene fantasies…”p    ? cha 6

     -everyone judges

     -uses god as support for judgments

Fringes in our society:

     Old

Obese

Teens

Gays, lesbians

Racism

Ethnic background

Class

Apparel

People who are easily judged

IQ

Reputation

Religion

Mental disorders like ocd

2.  we do extend tolerance as a community and we try to help those who are different, but we are intolerant as individuals.

Eg – the community will have stories on the news about how a boy was bullied b/c he is gay and made a suicide attempt and the community will try bully prevention programs….

As individuals or families we can be intolerant of different coloured people and that can be taught and grow on individuals.

Waknuk’s Repentances “Only the image of God is man” – sometimes people will turn to this, or some won’t believe it.

“Devil is father of deviation”

P 18

Any quote from Repentances teaches intolerance of difference

Sometimes we may be hesitant about different people, but at least we are trying unlike the Waknuk people who don’t give anyone a chance.

Sealand woman was intolerant of the Norms b/c she thought her species was more advanced and better.  P. 156

“We can make a better world than the Old People did…”

“half humans”

No better than savages

Clumsy words

She doesn’t have any good connection with the Norms.

Uses weapon to kill them b/c they’re in her way, and New People deserve to survive more than Norms do….

The Norm species won’t survive b/c they are less capable and less advanced, and “we should feel sorry for them”

Compare this to someone with mental disabilities, and author is bringing to our attention the question of how we could better handle this communication situation.

Eg of intolerance at school – groups of popular or unpopular or different IQ’s etc

At school people get reputations and people can become intolerant of others b/c someone has got a bad reputation.

Waknuk – dangerous to lack humility, better to love one another equally, which would remove hostility between people groups.

Nov 7th, 2011

Find Quotes with page numbers to answer the theme questions.  Be prepared for leading class discussion and note taking tomorrow.
Test Wednesday.

Nov 3rd, 2011

Themes in The Chrysalids: 

Normally, we spend about three days discussing these themes in small groups.  Each group gets a set of questions on one of the themes.  The groups respond to the questions, supporting their responses with quotes found from throughout the book.  Quotes must be written out, and page numbers noted down to share with class mates.  These will become the Concrete Details of your in class essay which you will be writing instead of a test on the novel.

Each group will share their ideas in response to the questions.  I will take notes, providing them for you on the LCD screen, and you will take notes of the areas that interest you, because you will choose one theme to write on for the in class essay.  There is much cross-over of information between the themes I have identified, so please take good notes and pay good attention to your class mates’ opinions and the CD’s they are based upon.

You will write the in class open book essay on Tuesday or Wednesday of next week, depending on the length of discussion we have as a class.

Communication

Nuclear War

Religion

Rights

Tolerance

Communication:

1.      Is the author hopeful or pessimistic about humanity's future?

2.      Given time, is it possible that better powers of human communication will develop?  By evolution?  Through science? (1955)

3.      Would a universal language solve communication problems?

4.      If the problem of communication is man's greatest problem, and if no form of telepathy artificial or natural, can be developed, what other forms of understanding are available to us?

5.      Does the theme of communication suggest an explanation of the title's significance?  “Chrysalids” is a made up word.  What word is it most similar to?

Nuclear War:

1.         If nuclear war breaks out, is the picture of life afterwards as in The Chrysalids realistic?

2.         Waknuk people believe that the "Old People" brought "tribulation" down upon themselves because of sin.  As the "Old People," how do you feel about this?

3.         If the danger of war is real, and the possible consequences so terrible as to make the description of the aftermath presented in The Chrysalids reasonably valid, what conclusions should we draw from the book?

Tolerance:                                                                       

1.         Are we as a society bigoted or intolerant as the Waknuk society is?  Do we send people to the Fringes?

2.         Intolerance of any mental and physical "deviation" is a basic attitude in Waknuk.  How much real tolerance do we extend to physical and mental "deviants" today?

Rights:

1. How does the author consider the issue of rights?
2. Does everyone have the right to possess rights?
3. If everyone has rights, how do these rights co-exist?
4. How do you reconcile a criminal and a law-abiding citizen both having rights?
5. When do rights start for an individual and when do they stop?

Religion:

1.         What is Wyndham's view of religion?  What specifically does he oppose?

2.         Does the author use any Christian symbols or references in the text?

3.         Does Wyndham oppose Christianity specifically?

         Explain.

Nov 2nd, 2011

Complete ch 14 questions for homework please.

Nov 1st, 2011

Complete the vocabulary section for homework tonight.  We will be working on the questions in class tomorrow.

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

The Spider-Man

Vocabulary

Write three sentences using these words:
symbiosis-  homogeneal -  consensus

Analysis

1.    This a chapter of crisis. What predicament are David, Rosalind, and Petra in?

2.   The author now follows two major directions to sustain suspense. Mention them, and explain how the author uses them to maintain suspense.

3.   In your own words retell the Sealand woman's explanation of her country.  In what ways is the novel made more believable as a result?

4.   In your own words explain the Sealand philosophy.

5.   In what way is the philosophy of the Fringe people similar to that of the people of Waknuk?

6.   In what way does the Spider-Man's story explain Joseph Strorm's behaviour?