Act1 scene 2: WIIEEEWWW Macbeth!

Character:
Malcolm: son#1 of the king, most likely heir to throne.
Duncan: The King.
Donalbein: son#2 of the king. Less lovn' fo this foo.
MacBeth: Giant 18 year old super hero, very brave, cut through plenty with his giant sword, and liked the kings enemy (Macbeth is a knight).
Ross & Lennox: noble men, thane; hangers around the king.

Additional Notes: Macbeth just got a new title.

Act 1 scene 1: WIIEEEEW MACBETH!

Setting: In Shakespeare, weather mirrors characters emotions and tone of scene (pathetic fallacy) The thunder and lightning mentioned in this scene represents deserted and gives a more eery and suspenseful feel.

Character: Witch 1,2 and 3: evil woman of power, very threatening. Witches were real in the 1600's. Ugliness and malformation= evil. What would they have looked like? Warts, crooked nose, straggly hair, claw like hands. Perhaps they were ATTRACTIVE witches? May have been seen as too powerful or dangerous beauty; being able to manipulate men through looks.

REMEMBER: The king was obsessed with witch craft, because they are linked to weather, nature and spells; they can control. They are also linked in a medical way; with potions that effect health and body.

Vocabulary: *Hurley Burley- a big commotion; mainly in combat.

                    *Familiars- animals used/held by witches and servants of the dark; often cats, toads, snakes, etc.  

Additional notes: Back then, body from and physical attributions were linked with mental and emotional attributes. Some doctors did weird things to heal.. "Leeches". 

Witches will be a huge factor throughout the entire play-they set the scene off the top and have powers.

The charm or spell that ends the scene may set the entire play in motion and affect everything else that happens- what does this spell actually do? There is an inversion spell that turns good to evil and.  

viseversa.

Wing Chips

The setting in a story plays a very important role in this story. The setting in Wing Chips is an old french/Canadian community, and is very boring and plain. Because the story includes a second culture/language, the reader can easily predict that the story will contain conflict. As the reader continues to read Wing Chips they soon discover that there truly is conflict; being about weather the  sign should be in French rather than English. Without the understanding that they are in a small community where everybody knows everybody, and being in a French Canadian place; you wouldn't quite figure out why changing the language on the Wings Chips sign is such a dramatic change.

The Leap: mother characterization

The way the mother interacts with everything in a gentle way (paragraph 1&2), she's loving and caring towards others and objects around her. Her actions are also very graceful, this is shown by never loosing her balance and constantly being aware of her surroundings and current situations. In paragraph 2 the text states that she throws out all old pictures and things from the past, this action shows the reader that she is a woman who is 'in the now'. The author doesn't give a very vivid description of the mother, other than her being elderly. This gives the readers the imagery of the mother having stereotypical old lady features and qualities. i.e white hair, hunched back, glasses, etc. There are very few quotations of mentioning things that the mother has said throughout the story, though the few things that she does say are very wise and inspirational.

Power Word: serpent

Serpent
"Each dead child coiled, a white serpent"
Association:
The word serpent is an excellent use of association for when one generally thinks of a serpent, they think of a terrifying, slimy, cold hearted creatures. The contrast for the word "serpent" would be that they made it a metaphor, because people aren't usually compared to something such as a serpent unless used in negative terms.
Allusion:
There is a reference to another meaning outside of the poem, because the poem isn't about serpents they just used the serpent to compare the dead little children.
Imagery:
The imagery with the "serpent" would be that the poet is comparing these dead children to white serpents.

Stone Girl at Sanchi by Gary Snyder Analysis (power word)

Power words, flow, context, tone/mood, imagery.

The poem For a Stone Girl at Sanchi by Gary Snyder is a great poem. This is due to the brilliant combination of power words, flow, context, tone/mood and imagery.

Power words:

This poem is full of power words such as space, hollow, flesh, clung, dream, and forever. The context of the word "space" is used in a metaphoric way, along with the word "hollow". They are both being used as describing words for the reader to get a deeper meaning from the context (an empty feeling).

"Flesh" is a very powerful word because by using this word you can get a better sense that the writter was trying to be more eerie, and give a darker and scarier feeling to the poem.

The word "clung" is also powerful because when you read the poem it's a word that stands out being as the annunciation is very sharp and noticeable.

The words "dream" and "forever" are power words because the poem is all about a dream that the writter must have had and so to understand the poem more, you must be aware of the fact that it was all just a dream. "Forever" is used as a power world because forever is ongoing and it never ends, which is an important roll in the poem.

Flow:

The poem has amazing flow because the words sound good together and it has perfect examples of alliteration "on a wobbling speck, smaller than stars, space, the size of a seed, hollow as bird skulls." By reading this poem aloud we can clearly hear that some of the words flow together perfectly which makes the poem easier to enjoy.

Context:

The contet in this poem could be the environment or situation which would be the dream that the writer has had. It talks about the time of day, "night rain flicking the maples". It talks about where he is and how he's feeling, "half asleep on the cold grass". The time and place can be very important details to the poem in order to understand what is happening in this dream. Since this poem is about a dream, there are no limitations on what could happen. Due to the fact that they are talking about unrealistic happenings the reader might assume that it's about a dream or just a non-fiction fantasy.

Tone/Mood:

I think that the writers attitude (tone) towards the reader would be a serious attitude because the writer is gong into quite a bit of detail about his dream. Dreams can be personal sometimes so I think that also makes the poem seem like it was written in a serious manner. And the feeling (mood) of the poem would be peaceful because the way he describes everything is in a calm and peaceful way. He uses words such as "loving" and "touching".

Imagery:

The imagery in this poem is very strong because as you read, you can imagine what everything looks like, "a big rock weatherd funny, old tree trunks turnd stone,
split rocks and find clams". 

Creative writing: setting/actually looking

Trying to give off imagery and a certain feel without telling the readers of the where abouts:

The Stranger 

It was an off black night; I could just barely see my hands in front of my face. The air echoed with nothing but the shivering sounds of creaking bark. Every step forward was a struggle, leaping over twined roots and dodging the broken off dead branches. Suddenly, the midnight sky's dark exterior morphed into the most odd shade of green I have ever seen. With each look upon the sky, it was as though I was gazing into the evil pupil of a cats eye. Because of the eery shift of the night skys colour, my sight was once again existent. Determined to get out of the hellish maze, I ran like Forest Gump; never looking back, never second guessing myself. I finally reached the end of this strange, terrifying trail, only to find an odd figure before me. In hopes of this just being my imagination, I ran towards it, hoping for my life it was my way out, or my sanity once again. Unfortunately, it was anything but. The stranger from my nightmares had returned, and I knew then and there that I needed to go back into the forest of no where. 

Music or 'sound' that helps you feel the mood of the paragraph.

Sound/music for this paragraph:

Imagery:

Forest of no where.^

Man from my nightmares^ (marble hornets youtube series slender man)

Characterization of the father from The Boat.

Introduction:

         In the story The Boat by Alistair MacLeod, the author did a great job on creating/portraying the father character. For a short story with little time to truly represent a character, all of the elements (appearance, actions, interactions, dialogue, and thoughts and feelings) were included.   

Appearance:

Within the first mentioning of the father in the story, the text states that he has shaggy white hair, and wears red-soled rubber boots daily. He wore the rubber boots daily because he was always working on a boat. The long days of working on the boat could have also played a role in the aging of his hair. In the same paragraph of the first mentioning of the father, it also states that he has a ‘stubble’ beard, which smells of saltwater. The clothing he wears are based upon comfort and warmth because he sometime works in extreme weather conditions. On page 264-265, the narrator describes the clothes his father wears while he is undressing, I.e. Heavy wool sweaters, mittens, woolen doeskin shirts, etc. 

Actions:

 From the actions of the father mentioned in this story, we know that he was a very simple man, who enjoyed routine. For starters, he worked on the boat practically all his life, and came home each day being asked nearly the same questions, with the same replies (page 262). We can also tell from the decisions he made that he wasn't 'dad of the year'. At one point in the story, the father put his own feelings before his sons, wanting his son to work on the boat with him instead of going to school like the son wanted. 

Interactions:

The father has a very interesting way with interacting with others. He gives of an almost intimidating feeling, so others feel uncomfortable approaching him (his son). He also has a stern way of communication. For example, when the son told the father that he made his final decision on not working on the boat, the father replied with "That's no way to make a decision, and if you are satisfied I am not" (page 272, 4th paragraph).

Dialogue:

         The father says very little in the story, this tells the reader that the father is ‘keep to himself kind’ of person. However, when he does speak he gets his message across, almost in a blunt manner. On page 275, the text states that the son nearly spilt his heart out to his father, saying very resolutely and very powerfully that he would remain with his father as long as he lived, and his fathers only response was “I hope you will remember what you said”. 

Thinks and Feels:

The father thinks that his son should be just like him, and be interested in all of the same things, especially the boat. The father probably feels disappointed that he can’t bond with his own son due to the fact that they have no similarities. This makes it hard for both the son and the father, and since they never really had a close relationship; they can’t talk to one another about the boat. The tension between the two makes the father feel uncomfortable because things are so awkward. He seems as if he is almost confused as to why his son can’t just take interest in the boat. The father almost turns to the mother for support on the fact that their son is an outcast in the family, which leaves the son with nobody really to turn to. The father probably feels more superior and thinks he doesn’t have to give his son very much attention. The whole story shows how awkward things are between the father and the son.

Conclusion:

So by reading “The Boat” you find out about a young boy whos family owns a boat. But this isn’t just any boat, it was a boat that symbolically tied their family together. “They repeated ‘the boat’ at the end of all their questions and I knew it must be very important to everyone.” (page 262)The problem with the boat, and their family was that the young boy didn’t take interest in the boat like the rest of his family. His parents were very disappointed in him, which was the main reason for all the conflict in the story. This story has a tragic ending leaving the characters torn apart and going in their separate ways. “It’s not an easy thing to know that your mother lives alone on an inadequate insurance policy and that she is too proud to accept any other aid.” “But neither is it easy to know that your father was found on November twenty-eighth, ten miles to the north and wedged between two boulders at the bas of the rock-strewn cliffs where he has been hurled and slammed so many many times.” (page 277)

The Boat: questions

The Boat - pg. 261-278

2a)  Although the narrator loves his father he does not idolize his way of life. He himself wishes for his life to be based upon "the boat" and wishes to be happy. In paragraph 4 on page 265, the text gives examples of his fathers unhealthy behaviour when he's at home. The narrator's relationship with his father reflects his main conflict in life by his father trying to make him more so like himself, by working on the boat. But the narrator, wishes to go to school and get an education and doesn't want to be like his father (page 272).

3a)  The symbolism of a boat in this story almost means the opposite of  "the journey through life". In the story The Boat, the author clearly states that the family's daily routine revolves around the boat, and how it's practically the same day in-day out. In the second last paragraph on page 262, the narrator states that the boat is the only thing they can talk about or have in common; there's no depth.

Describe the change that the narrator undergoes through this story. What does he learn? How does he learn it? How does the end of the story leave him? 

Throughout the story, the narrator learns independence, and undergoes becoming his own person by dishonouring his parents and not following his fathers footsteps. During the beginning, the narrators life revolved around his parents decisions, never thinking for himself. After realizing what he wanted in life, and how unhappy he was, he progressed as a person, and began to think for himself. Near the end of the story, the narrator leaves to go to school. By doing so, he left his mother home alone, due to his fathers death from the tragedy of the boat accident. The story sort of has a sympathetic irony to it, because in order him to be truly happy, his parents must give up their happiness. 

Examples of powerful imagery/description used in The Boat: 

The Boat has a lot of powerful imagery used which really gives the reader a good picture of what is going on in the story. For example, the narrator briefly describes his father (paragraph 1 - pg. 262) and his mother. The boat was described very well (last paragraph on pg. 262) so the reader has a good idea of what the boat looks like, which makes reading The Boat more enjoyable.

 Next, the narrator describes his house (paragraph 2 and 3- pg. 263) which is helpful because it proves that they don't care near as much about their house as they do about their boat. The house description goes into deep detail and you get an understanding that even though it's not the boat, they still have "odd fish hooks", "map of the marine area" and "bits of twine" including a huge window overlooking the sea.

 The narrator described what the father looked like and acted like when he wasn't on the boat, which made you get a really good image about how depressed his father was when he was without the boat, for example: "When he was not in the boat, my father spent most of his time lying on the bed in his socks, the top two buttons of his trousers undone, his discarded shirt on the ever-ready chair and the sleeves of the woollen Stanfield underwear, which he wore both summer and winter, drawn half way up to his elbows." (last paragraph-pg. 265) 

This story describes how the narrators parents are both disappointed in him because he doesn't want the lifestyle that his parents have given him, he would rather be his own person. You can imagine how upset the parents would be because the narrator describes how he feels about not living up to his parents expectations, and the letdown that their parents feel. At the end of the story the narrator talks about his father growing old, and how he doesn't interact with the family hardly anymore, for example: "Then during the winter that I was fifteen he seemed to grow old and ill all at once. Most of January he lay upon the bed, smoking and reading and listening to the radio while the wind howled about the house and the needle-like snow blistered off the ice-covered harbour and the doors flew out of people's hands if they did not cling to them like death." (paragraph 4- pg. 271) 

The narrator describes the day of the boat crash very well because the death of his father is a huge part of the story and so in order to really understand what's going on, the narrator needed to go into deep detail about how awful the weather was that day and how tragic the death of his father was.

 Overall, I think that the imagery in this story are very powerful and very helpful because this story itself is very moving and deep and by going into the great amount of description that they did, helped make the story connect with the reader.