Crucible Formal Discussion Responses

For this post, respond to the ideas that a fellow student  has shared during the in-class formal discussion of Acts I and II of The Crucible (Wednesday and Thursday).  If you agree, extend the other student's ideas by explaining why they are so essential and meaningful.  If you disagree, politely explain why you disagree and offer an alternative understanding or interpretation.

This post will be due on Friday, not Thursday.  Thanks, Mr. Telles.

First Impressions of the Crucible

Hi Everyone: Now that you have read the first act of The Crucible, write down what you think this play is shaping up to be "about."   Clearly the problem of witchcraft is concocted out of hysteria, but if witchcraft is not the problem in Salem, what is really the problem?  You can also bring up scenes, situations or statements that stood out to you for one reason or another.  This post needs to be done before Thursday.

Difficult Scenes in The Great Gatsby

Hi Everyone:

On our first day of class, I suggested that the most difficult or seemingly odd scenes in a book can often be a route to some of the book's deepest meaning.  We also noted that The Great Gatsby is unique in how restrained and mysterious the language of the text can be.  And today (Friday) we discussed what seem to be the conflicts and tensions that haunt the book.

In this blog post, describe the strange scene that you selected and (using your notes) explain how this scene may connect to one of the conflicts or tensions that we noted in class.  You can also write about why the scene is so different or unusual -- what sets it apart?  You can speculate or offer several alternative interpretations; keep in mind that you are not expected to explain precisely and definitively what everything means, as long as you offer some possibilities and impressions.  Look at the "Advice for Annotation" page for guidance.