6. Style

This week I want you to look specifically at the STYLE of your novel.

1. Identify and define one poetic device used within your narration to add interest to the writing. You will have to consult your poetic devices hand out to do this.

2. Then, include the text excerpt that contains the poetic technique and include a properly formatted citation.

3. Finally, explain the purpose of this device to the scene, character or theme of the novel. (This AGAIN is related to significance.)

For example:

In the Hunger Games series, there is a good use of symbol. A symbol is an object or item that represents something more than its physical state. In the Hunger Games, Rue's flowers symbolize much more than Katniss' sadness at the loss of a friend.

After the death of her ally Rue, Katniss covers the body of the young girl with flowers as a symbol of Rue's humanity and a tribute to her short life. By calling attention to the sacrifice that Rue made during the Hunger Games, Katniss challenges the idea that Hunger Games – and the people who play them – are mere entertainment for the audiences back in the Capitol. For Katniss, Rue isn't simply a character on a television show. She is a human being who is worthy of respect, admiration, and mourning.

As Katniss says: "I want to do something, right here, right now, to shame them, to make them accountable, to show the Capitol that whatever they do or force us to do that there is a part of every tribute they can't own. That Rue was more than a piece in their Games. And so am I." (Collins, The Hunger Games 145)

Covering Rue with flowers is an intense act of rebellion against the Capitol. The experience of witnessing Rue's death inspires Katniss to go on and win the Games – and to prove to the Capitol that they can't strip the tributes of their humanity, however they might try; the symbolism of the flowers is not lost on the Capitol.

5. Social issues

One of the forms of poems we have been examining in class during our poetry unit is DIDACTIC. A Didactic poem's purpose is to teach or inform its audience about a social issue, while helping to (by requiring the reader to reflect upon their role within the larger issue) correct the issue.

"Snake" by D.H. Lawrence is about man's relationship, and ultimate control over nature; the guilt felt by the boy at the end of the poem reveals this: "And so, I missed my chance with one of the lords / Of life./ And I have something to expiate:/ A pettiness." (71-74). As well, the author is able to present a commentary about what our education system is teaching us in terms of what it means to be a man: "The voice of my education said to me / He must be killed" (23-24), "And voices in me said, If you were a man / You would take a stick and break him now, and finish him off" (27-28). The guilt felt by the speaker, upon reflection of his act of violence towards the snake, reveals to us that we must act according to our own conscience, rather than the teachings of society sometimes.

This week you will be examining: What social issues are present in the novel you have been most recently reading? (ie. poverty, justice, inequality, crime, discrimination, human rights, disrespect, moral or value struggles, misuse of power etc.) and What purpose do these social issue serve in the novel itself?

INSTRUCTIONS:
In your blog post this week, describe ONE social issue present in your current novel, prove it exists with direct reference to the text and then explain its purpose to the story.

NOTE: To satisfy the last requirement of this week's post, you will need to return to your lessons on SIGNIFICANCE as you are really answering, "Why has this social issue been presented in your novel?".

Comment on a peer's blogs - take two

Each of you should have FOUR blog posts complete as of today. If you do not have this done, it needs to become a priority over the weekend to get caught up!!

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This week, instead of creating your own blog post, you will again be writing comments on four of your peers' blogs. Everyone will write one comment on each of the two posts written most recently by their classmates this week (4 peers x 2 posts = 8 comments in total).

WHOSE BLOGS?: Select the blogs that belong to the four students whose names are listed ABOVE your name on the CLASS BLOGS list found in the sidebar to your right.

HOW DO I DO THIS?: You need to comment on what the person has said in the blog post you are commenting on selected. Read the rules below before proceeding......

Do not be rude.
Do not be sarcastic.
Do not just tell the blogger they are awesome or that it is the best blog post you have ever read. Do not make an inside joke.
Do not insult or otherwise demean the writer.

DO. . .
Genuinely look at what they have said about their books and respond accordingly.

Make an intelligent comment on the book, the topic or the ideas presented by the blogger.

Extend the blogger's thinking by linking their ideas to something else (another text, your personal experiences or the world).

Ask the blogger a question about what they have read or what they have said.

Offer a suggestion for another book they might like based on what they have read and the themes and ideas presented in the blog post.

Give the blogger tips for improvement based upon the expectations for each post (using quotations; checking for punctuation, spelling or sentence structure; adding length through further description or support; organization of elements on the blog).

You may also comment on the style or form of the blog itself (the design of it; the visual elements: colour, organization, font style and size; use of gadgets; readability; title and description etc.).

As a blogger, you should read these comments and respond accordingly to what your peers have posted. Fix what they have suggested, start a dialogue.