FINAL EXAM!

Your final exam will be, for the most part, a test on the Eastern lit unit we just completed. It will also include a cumulative time line and a review of major worldview terms.

TIMELINE: From Adam to Superman.

WORLDVIEW TERMS: *polytheism, *pantheism, *monotheism, *atheism, animism, agnosticism (*and be able to apply these terms to cultures we've studied this year)

EASTERN LIT SCOPE & TERMS:

Hinduism -- caste, dharma, karma, reincarnation, Brahma, Krishna, Pandava brothers, Arjuna, Mahabarata - Indian epic (Gita - holiest part)

Taoism -- the tao (the way), yin/yang, balance, pu, Tao te Ching, Lao Tzu (and Winnie the Pooh!)

Buddhism -- Zen, haiku, Noh drama, Atsumori, samurai, suffering (four noble truths), Tibetan singing bowl (the void), reincarnation, karma

The test will be on the lower and middle levels of Bloom -- I will not have time to grade essay responses on the upper level. You can count on our traditional time line format, fill-in-the-blank term ID's, possibly a worldview matching exercise, and some middle level questions that ask you to apply religious and literary analysis to your knowledge of the literature selections.

Final Book Club Questions!

1) Purpose, genre and audience of the book -- did it satisfy?

2) Literary merit... look at your popcorn books if necessary, and discuss at least 6 applicable terms

3) What cultural details about a non-Western society were portrayed in the book? Please identify the culture geographically and chronologically.

4) What religious point of view was portrayed in the book? Cite some religious details to back up your ID. Use terms such as pantheism, Hinduism, Zen, etc. Please be accurate and true to the author's intentions.

5) If the main character in the book were a Biblican Christian, what might have happened differently, if anything? How would you minister to this person as a Christian missionary? What BIblical message do the characters in the book most need to hear? Please be thoughtful and specific - don't just say "Jesus."

6) Did you like the book? Why/why not? Give the book a rating out of 5 stars.

Eastern Lit Assignments

1) Everyone owes me a blog on Hinduism and/or Taoism, due last week! However, I have not graded them yet, so there is some grace time... reflections on the Mahabarata and/or the Tao te Ching or The Tao of Pooh.

2) Haiku contest with free laptop prize!! Check out Scholastic. Also, thanks for your most interesting and lovely original haiku. Hope you enjoyed your Pocky prizes!

3) Your "Letter to the East" will be done in class on Friday. It will be addressed to any Eastern lit character (a Pandava brother, the Taoist master (female), Atsumori or the priest Kumagai. The first part will acknowledge similarities between your beliefs and the second point will explain a crucial difference while presenting the gospel.

Kirk's Guide for Electronic Research

Googling: Limit yourself to about 15 minutes of unsuccessful Googling before giving up the hunt. Try the library or a database, or consider altering your topic/thesis. The Internet simply doesn't have everything.

Scholarly sites: Your research source must be academically up to par, reliable, and reputable. Often, this will mean an "edu" suffix in the web address. Find the author, poster, sponsor, or publisher. Go to the home page. Minimize the http. Look for universities, scholarly institutes, PhD's, etc. In film, look for film institutes or critics who discuss the literary value of films.

Commercial sites: These are not scholarly. They are for making money. They generally represent the consensus of opinion on a topic and offer nothing new or special. Some teachers will bar these sites from serious research assignments: Sparknotes, enotes, Bookrags, etc. Beware of sites with a lot of ads or with information for purchase -- this excludes subscriptions to scholarly journals of course.

Unreliable sites: blogs, forums, consumer reviews, anything written by Joe Public, or Wikipedia - which is just a public domain encyclopedia.

Databases: Go through your school or library. Nearly everything you find there will be of acceptable quality.

Documentation: Don't forget the web address and date of access. Some sites, including databases, will provide doc form for you. Use an MLA guide.

Hero Research Paper!! -- Phase One

Topic: Select a hero (protagonist, in a hero cycle) from a story (not real life) who reveals something about humanity, culture, and/or worldview. Also, since this is essentially a literary topic -- we are studying stories -- you can expect to use literary terms in your discussion, for instance theme, symbolism, antagonist, character development, archetype, etc.

Sources: This being a literary topic, your sources will be literary critics. This week, we will learn where critical sources can be found in the SCS library, online, and in electronic databases. We will learn how to select valid sources and eliminate poor sources. You will find at least 2 sources on your selected topic by the end of the week.

Due: Friday 3/27 -- Phase One Thesis Worksheet

Book Clubs, 3rd Quarter

Your book club should be finishing up its "club choice" reading selection. For your meeting, please discuss the following items:

1) Purpose, genre and audience of the book -- did it satisfy?
2) Literary merit... look at your popcorn books if necessary, and discuss at least 6 applicable terms
3) What is the time/cultural/religious context of the book? For instance, The Iliad was Greek @ 800 B.C., polytheistic. What clues led you to this analysis?
4) Did you like the book? Why/why not? Give the book a rating out of 5 stars.

Please pick up book club cover sheets from the "paper table." Due for Book Club Forum in class March 31, the last day of the quarter.

Middle Ages Lit Test

Here is what the text will comprise:
1) history context (time line)
2) geography context
3) King Arthur legend
4) Christ figures in lit
5) Koran and Islam
6) 1001 Nights

Test date: Tuesday, St. Patrick's Day

Test will include:
lower level details from history and stories read
middle level lit term application/analysis
higher level questions of worldview significance

Assignment Update: Koran and Essays

Koran: Thank you for your excellent work in reading and thinking about the Koran this week. I hope you have learned some valuable perspectives. Please blog about what you, as a Christian, learned this week. I would especially like to hear if you have picked up on any concrete reasons why you find Christianity to be more reliable or appealing.

Essay: All of you who conferenced with me this past week owe me a final critical essay draft next Thursday, before the long "snow day" weekend. Those of you who will conference next week have until the following Monday, after the long weekend.

Camelot Assignment

Thank you for enduring this old-fashioned musical, actually my favorite movie of all time, Camelot. Your job is to look past the campy songs and 60's sensibility to see the depth of the human drama. Watch the actors' faces. The performances are emotionally RICH.

This movie is based on a 1950's novel, which in turn was based on a medieval book by Sir Thomas Mallory. It was, perhaps, the first real novel written in English. Indeed, the legends of King Arthur are some of the most enduring of Western culture. In class we will talk about how the legends got started and how they've changed over the years. Perhaps you have enjoyed retellings of the Arthurian legend in other films.

For your blog, please just comment on your reaction to Camelot. Talk about what you appreciated in the story and/or the performances. Talk about why the film has universal human appeal. Also, you might look for Christian significance -- what do you think the story has to say about human beings, sin, Jesus, salvation, hope, or forgiveness? Your response may be free-flowing, but it should be in reasonably good form (capitalization, etc.).

On Monday, we will likely finish up the movie and do a little creative response. I know how you love creative responses :)

Acts 17

In our final bit of Hellenistic lit, we've looked at Acts 17. Please note the references to the Epicureans and Stoics as well as allusions to two Greek writers:

1) Aratus, The Phaenomena, about the stars/astrology, in which he gives an opening invocation to Zeus, saying "for we are indeed his offspring."

2) Epimenides, Cretica, a poem in which the speaker addresses Zeus:

They fashioned a tomb for thee, O holy and high one—
The Cretans, always liars, evil beasts, idle bellies!
But thou art not dead: thou livest and abidest forever,
For in thee we live and move and have our being.

One final concept to note in this passage -- Paul uses rational logic to make his point. Here's a summary of his argument, after the philosophers ask him to explain his strange stories about the resurrected Jesus:

1) We both worship a deity

(PROOF= your idols, temples, and altar to an unknown god)

2) My deity, unlike yours, does not live in a temple or need your petty sacrifices

3) My deity, like yours, determines our fates

4) My deity, like yours, created "offspring" and "lives and moves" in us

(PROOF= two Greek poets who worshiped Zeus)

5) Therefore, if Point #4 is true, then the real deity could not be a statue in a temple

6) Therefore, my concept of a deity is much stronger, and you should listen up because He is no longer putting up with nonsense and will one day come to judge us all

Wasn't Paul an amazing evangelist? He was well-read, logical, sympathetic, observant, and bold. I hope you will study and remember this passage!

January Book Club Details

Book Club Discussion Guide - Christian Fiction

1) What would you say is the purpose and audience of this book? Do you think the book succeeded?

2) What about the book seems universal or archetypal? In other words, what aspects of the book might be relevant to ANY audience, not just a Christian or Western one?

3) How does this book depict classical Western themes? Here are some we've studied in our Greek and Roman literary selections: fate/providence, rationalism/logic, idealism/realism, democracy/order, etc.

4) Western culture has been profoundly influenced by Christendom. What Christian influences, ideals, or reactions do you detect in the book?

5) Consider your list of literary terms. Can you come up with a few literary observations relevant to the book? For instance, where was the climax of the story? Was there any use of symbol or motif? Last book club, everyone did climax and symbol -- this time, please branch out and use more terms! Consult your "popcorn" booklets.

6) What was the group's opinion of the book? Did you like it or not? Why? Defend your opinions.

For this Friday's book club forum, I will not talk as much as I did last time. All group members need to be prepared to do significant, meaningful talking about their book and the 6 questions. You are allowed to bring snacks to share with the class.

Marcus Aurelius, Meditations, and Stoicism

Please read the first book of Marcus Aurelius' Meditations.

In class, we will view an excerpt from Gladiator, in which Richard Harris portrays Aurelius. The movie's depiction of characters is roughly accurate, but the plot is a fabrication. Wikipedia has a page that explains the similarities and differences between the movie and actual historical record.

Extra credit for those bothering to read this post: Vote in the Stoic and Epicurean polls to the right and comment on this post so I know who voted. I am checking to see if you're making use of this site!!