DIDLS

We started off the year with a close reading technique: DIDLS

in general, write while you read- it's a conversation, and will grow your understanding and go deeper- you'll find patterns, have notes of first impressions

Diction
one word- not phrase
tone- colloquialism (from slang to epic language)
dialect
connotation and denotation
the ambiguity or tangibility (concrete v abstract)

Imagery
senses- how complete?
tied with poetry- language condensed to artistic effect

Details
specifics, no more than it sounds like

Language
poetic devices

Syntax
punctuation, meter, mechanical aspects and their effects
(sentence length, construction)
(effects pace, tone, emphasis)

we used these to analyze while discussing/annotating these books and plays (though, really, with all that we've talked about this year):
American Dream
Death of a Salesman
Ceremony
Pride and Prejudice
Hamlet

It’s Your (Virtual) World. Feel Free to Roam or Slay.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/26/arts/video-games/the-elder-scrolls-v-skyrim-video-game-review.html?ref=arts

      Schiesel is quite positive in his review of Skyrim. His article makes the game sound exciting, and he appeals to gamers with images they can easily slip into.

      Schiesel's diction carries his images. He uses specific verbs and a lot of variety; the player can "infiltrate," "[delve]," "[slay]." These words carry motion because of their unusualness. Towns aren't crowded, but "teeming." The game becomes much more attractive with his specific word choice.

      Tied to the diction is Schiesel's imagery. He describes "steep peaks and river gorges, hidden shrines and bandit keeps," bringing the reader into Skryim. His images of readers being "absorb[ed]... for months or even years" is relatable; he knows his audience. His beginning and ending image, one of being "lost," does the same kind of thing. It's a testimony to the pull of the game.

      The details, similarly, try to convince the reader of the magnitude of the game. Schiesel lists a mass of things found in the game: "giants and ogres and goblins and demons and spirits...." His lists give the reader of what the game's about, as well as the scale. He later gives examples of characters a player could make, again appealing, through variety, to the reader. Schiesel tries to show the reader what they could expect from Skyrim.

Fifth Class Response

      Since the last post, we've been reading Ceremony and discussing it as a class. I loved the book. It's woven with such detail! Close reading has only given me more respect- everything seems connected and meaningful to the point of being overwhelming. Ceremony's a work of art. I'm really glad that we're discussing it so much in class! I hadn't even thought about the relevancy of color, and certainly hadn't thought much about its cultural background.

2004 prompt

2004, Form B. The most important themes in literature are sometimes developed in scenes in which a death or deaths take place. Choose a novel or play and write a well-organized essay in which you show how a specific death scene helps to illuminate the meaning of the work as a whole. Avoid mere plot summary.

      Rocky's death in Ceremony further distances Tayo from his tribe. He was supposed to be the one who brought Rocky back, something he had trouble forgiving himself for. The experience haunts him, and reflects the uncertainty and pain in Tayo's search for belonging.

      Rocky was the child who had grown up to join white culture. He was going to go to college, be a football champion, escape the reservation. He was Auntie's pride, someone who could fit in that promising foreign world. Following that lure was his downfall; he died in a war that he chose to join. He died in a war that was not his own. That betrayal follows Tayo, and, with that so close to his heart, he can see how white people have abandoned the white veterans. He dares the others to see past the illusion; at the bar, he breaks Emo's ceremony, isolating himself.

      The death is also a failing of Tayo's. He was supposed to bring Rocky home alive, or died with him. Instead, he comes home alive, uncertain of whether he still fit in the society. His memories are confused and woven together. The uncertainty of Rocky's death plays a part in that, as well; Tayo blocks Rocky's dying scream out with his own, and in not knowing the noise, anything can bring him back to the memory. It tangles the web of his mind even further.

      Rocky's death leads to the heart of the novel. It reflects the tension that Tayo is going through, and displaces him even more.

      

Fourth Class Response

      Since my last post, we've read and analyzed Death of a Salesman, written and discussed an essay on the "Barred Owl" and "The History Teacher", and had a project on literary eras.
      I read Death of a Salesman last year in Ishall. I don't know whether it was because I had read it before or if it was the different medium, but I found the movie much more emotionally involving. I was surprised that, in the class discussion, others didn't focus on Biff's and Willy's relationship as I did, yet veered into a very separate thematic reading. Death of a Salesman made me more comfortable with annotating.
      The most recent class essay went the most smoothly for me. I tried to worry less about structure and DIDLS and more about analyzing the poems and supporting my claims. Though it accomplished just about the same thing, the second mind set is familiar ground, a comfort with the time limit. Still, I missed the deeper level in the "Barred Owl;" I looked over the shift in connotations and even the contrast of inside and outside, something I feel I'd usually see right away. The poem seemed simple, and, with the time limit prominently in mind, I went with it.

      I hadn't learned much of the literary eras previously, so the presentations were interesting. My group researched Romanticism, which I had previously thought to be rather traditional.; the information I found was surprising and new.

Sherlock: A Study In Pink review

http://www.denofgeek.com/television/547082/sherlock_a_study_in_pink_review.html
     Brew is very positive about BBC's new take on Sherlock Holmes. He balances all his enthusiasm with a sophisticated tone, remaining reliable. He sees the show in an artistic light, and gives the actors, Moffat, and McGuigan much credit in an informative review.
      Brew starts the essay in establishing the difficulty: making the current audience "take notice" is a "very hard job." The next sentence is isolated, a lone paragraph accenting the final destination of the paper: Sherlock has "an awful lot" to offer. He establishes that it's "different," worthy of new attention, yet is quick to assure that it's also "faithful"- the perfect combination. Tone helps to establish Brew's credibility; he keeps just enough of a formal air to stay credible. He describes Moffat's script as being done "terrifically well," and McGuigan as a "brilliant, brilliant" choice. Cumberbatch being a "superb" choice and the film "rollicking" keeps, again, an interesting amount of distance while still being engaged.

      The review, in its positiveness, appears unbalanced. Brew seems hesitant to give criticism; every negative factor is quickly followed with a redeeming quality. The story is "not the most demonstrative," but "[that]," according to Brew, "[is] not a bad thing." The story, he later admits, didn't have "quite the sense of threat" the beginning promised, yet, again, "it helps is, if anything." 

      Still, he supports his claims, his details backing his legitimacy. He lists other movies that McGuigan and Martin Freeman worked on, and gives quotes from the show when his review calls for them. Noting McGuigan's frequent use of the rule of thirds adds to his artistic authority. It's a good observation. 

      He seems to have great confidence in the creators of the show. McGuigan "wisely" understands what the audience will want. Brew presents the show as an art form: it's specifically "Benedict Cumberbatch's Sherlock" that he's analyzing, a "portrayal" that "anchors" the show. 

      Brew's writing often reflects what he's trying to describe, creating more of an atmosphere for those readers who have not yet seen Sherlock. Sherlock being a "texting-mad, nicotine patch-wearing creation" captures his energy. The first episdoe is a "maiden story," a phrase which, though fitting, is unusual- again, a reflection of the show. Moffat's script "subtley crams," a juxtaposition which sounds like what it means. Throughout the review, Brew creates an energetic yet learned look on the new version of Sherlock Holmes.

1986 prompt

1986. Some works of literature use the element of time in a distinct way. The chronological sequence of events may be altered, or time may be suspended or accelerated. Choose a novel, an epic, or a play of recognized literary merit and show how the author's manipulation of time contributes to the effectiveness of the work as a whole. Do not merely summarize the plot.

      Memories are a kind of time travel. Miller's Death of a Salesman uses this to form a layered narrative of Willy's life. The play, in following Willy to the past and present, lets the audience sympathize with him. Because it's not realistic chronologically, Death of a Salesman leans toward emotion.

      Willy's conversations with Ben don't happen in the "present time" of the play, yet they contribute great meaning. He's haunted by the success that Ben achieved, and sees him as a role model. He frequently quotes how Ben "walked into the jungle" and walked out a rich man. It becomes a kind of fable for him, a legend; the world isn't working that way for him, but it worked for Ben, so he should keep hope! He returns to that memory when he's confused or overwhelmed, asking for advice. This pattern reveals his insecurities to the audience, and shows one of his motivations. Later, when he's talking over the possibility of suicide with an imaginary Ben, Ben already symbolizes someone who Willy trusts. This image helps portray the gravity of the scene. Ben, in being used as a memory, often in the same moment of time, helps to make Willy understandable.

      Willy's flashbacks carry the audience along closer to Willy's pace, suspending their understanding of the situation and its causes. Biff's epiphany is later in the play, after the conflict between him and Willy has been established. Knowing that it is not yet resolved makes the fall even more tragic. Without traveling with his memories, Willy alienated from the audience. His increasing tension is brought from the weight of the conflict in his memories as well as the memories' interactions with the present. He's disturbed whenever he sees Linda with stockings, and the connection between those stockings and the Woman's is understood through the twisting of time. By manipulating time, Miller helps the audience understand Willy and why he committed suicide.