The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath

Transcription

1 The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath Your Tasks: READ EACH CHAPTER BY THE DATES LISTED. TAKE HW NOTES: A minimum of three annotations per chapter are to be completed by the dates listed. ADD IN-CLASS NOTES: Additional annotations that I give you in class will be added in class after we reread passages. GRADING : The total number of HW AND IN-CLASS NOTES will be checked on Fridays, every 5 chapters. END OF UNIT ASSESSMENT: There will be an in-class essay test. There are 5 prompts to choose from--see last page. 2/19 2/20 2/21 Preface & Poetry 2/22 Preface & Poetry 2/23 Begin Novel 2/26 2/27 2/28 3/1 3/2 Ch 1 Ch 2 Ch 3 Ch 4 Ch 1-5 Note 3/5 3/6 3/7 3/8 3/9 Ch 6 Ch 7 Ch 8 Ch 9 Ch 6-10 Note 3/12 3/13 3/14 3/15 3/16 Ch 11 Ch 12 Ch 13 Ch 14 Ch Note 3/19 3/20 3/21 3/22 3/23 Ch 16 Ch 17 Ch 18 Ch 19 CH Note

2 Elements to Annotate when reading: Literary Elements & Techniques, especially Setting Characterization Conflict Figurative Language Allusion Symbolism Structure Motif Theme Plot Notes Quotations: What you find interesting. What you find important to your understanding. What you might connect with. Original thoughts/reactions. Social Issues: Relevant in the literature Relevant today Elements of Language: Significant words or phrasings you find unique, expressive, interesting, or important. Words and phrasings you don t understand Personal Reactions/Observations: What you find interesting. What you find important to your understanding. What you might connect with. Original thoughts/reactions. Questions: Any question related to the text is a good question. Questions to clarify understanding. Questions about character motivation. Questions about why author made certain choices. Questions you might put on a test if you were the teacher. Questions that may or may not have an answer. Predictions: This will keep your mind engaged with the story. It s not a problem if your prediction is wrong. Critical Perspectives: Gender Studies Concerned with how men and women are portrayed, and the power dynamics between them. Also concerned with how gender identity is shaped. Marxism Concerned with power, money, and the conflicts that arise based on those elements. Psychoanalysis Concerned with behavioral cause and effect, conscious and unconscious desires, and analyzing the text as if it were a dream to be interpreted. ALWAYS INCLUDE PAGE NUMBERS WHEN ANNOTATING Set up your looseleaf as follows:

3 Title: The Bell Jar Element Chapter: Quotes/Observations/Details with page numbers

4 Example: Title: A Streetcar Named Desire Chapter: Scene 1 Element Quotes/Observations/Details with page numbers Setting The French Quarter in New Orleans Louisiana. It s May, but it doesn t say what year (13). Could it be the same as the year published? Plot Characterization: Blanche Allusion In this scene we meet Stanley, his wife Stella, and her sister Blanche. Stanley and Stella live in the apartment, and Blanche is visiting from Laurel (13-31). Blanche is very nervous. She drinks to calm her nerves. I wonder what she is so nervous about. She says she took a leave from her job as a school teacher because her nerves broke (18-21). Later she discusses how she had to deal with many deaths in the family, and lost the family plantation known as Belle Reve (26-7). She seems to blame Stella for this, and also mentions later that she had a husband that died (31). The neighborhood is called Elysian Fields (15) which is where Greek Mythological Heroes go when they die. How is this significant? Characterization: Stanley In the stage directions, Tennessee Williams describes Stanley as a richly feathered male bird among hens, and that he sizes women up at a glance, with sexual classifications, crude images flashing into his mind and determining the way he smiles at them (29).

5 Notes Rubric 100 Excellent 80 Adequate 65 Bare minimum 50 Faking it 0 Really? All HW notes and IN-CLASS notes completed on time Most HW notes and IN-CLASS notes completed on time Some HW notes and IN-CLASS notes completed on time Notes are late without an excused absence. Notes are found to be plagiarized from a classmate or an online source. advanced, insightful understanding of text. basic understanding of text. minimal understanding of text. Notes are painstakingly detailed and reach for meaning beyond the surface. Notes are adequately detailed but depth is inconsistent. minimal detail and depth. If you are absent on a Friday, turn in your notes immediately upon your return to avoid penalty. You have to track this.

6 End of Unit Test Essay Prompts: 1. Mental Healthcare: Evaluate the way in which mental healthcare is portrayed in The Bell Jar and identify what theme emerges based on that portrayal. 2. Theme & Literary Techniques: What is the theme of The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath, and what literary techniques does she use to develop that theme? 3. Coming-of-Age: Discuss how The Bell Jar is a Coming-of-Age aka. bildungsroman novel. What theme emerges based on this perspective? 4. Bell Jar Motif: Discuss the bell jar imagery in The Bell Jar as a way of understanding the meaning of he novel. What theme emerges through this imagery? 5. Women in Society: Discuss the subject of womanhood in The Bell Jar. What theme emerges based on this perspective?