Questions for chapters 5-11

You should answer these as you read. For those going on trips, you need to read chapters 5-8.

Good luck! Email me if you have questions.


Huck Discussion Questions: V - XI

1. Pap: "I won't have it. I'll lay for you, my smarty; and if I catch you about that school I'll tan you good. First you know you'll get religion. I never seen such a son." Discuss the meaning and irony.
2. How does the refusal of the court to grant custody of Huck to the Widow Douglas and Judge Thatcher reflect on society?
3. Even though Huck is regularly beaten, he prefers to stay at the shanty. Why? How does this reflect one of the major themes?
4. Comment on Pap's drunken tirade over the "govment." What message is Twain sending?
5. What major theme is reflected by Huck's escape from his father and his discovery of Jim?
6. What is ironic about Huck wishing Tom were there to help plan the escape? How do you think the plan would have developed had Tom been there? Would it have been successful?
7. Discuss the irony in Huck's finding bread to eat. He also seems to modify his position on prayer. Discuss.
8. Discuss Jim' actions after meeting Huck.
9. Discuss how running into Jim represents Huck's rebirth. Discuss the resulting conflict in Huck's mind.
10. Significance: "People would call me a lowdown Abolitionist and despise me for keeping mum."
11. Even though Jim seems to rely on superstition, many of his predictions are rooted in knowledge.
Explain the significance.
12. Discuss the trick that Huck plays on Jim. It that typical of Huck's character? What does he learn?

13. What do we learn about Huck's character from his trip to shore?
14. When Mrs. Loftus discusses the money that Tom had found, a common human trait emerges. Discuss.
15. Discuss the satire revealed in the amounts of the rewards.

Huckleberry Finn THEMES

Major Themes: Mark Twain described the major theme of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn as an irony: "A sound heart and a deformed conscience come into collision and conscience suffers defeat." We can define the "deformed conscience" as a conscience influenced by the laws of society and a sense of duty toward those laws. The laws of society at the time of Huck's journey considered people of African descent as property and, therefore, less than human. Huck's struggle with his "deformed conscience" represents a major conflict in the novel. Furthermore, the novel is rich in common themes, themes that we will discover in many other pieces of literature.

1. The conflict between the individual and society - Huck's struggle with his "deformed conscience"
2. The conflict between the emotional and the rational
3. Appearance vs. reality - hypocrisy and "phoniness"
4. Superstition - as a method of explaining and understanding
5. Tolerance vs. prejudice
6. Dehumanization - dehumanizing human beings to oppress them
7. Death and rebirth
8. Coming of age - the hero's journey
9. The role of the outsider
10. The nature and significance of the following human traits: gullibility, ignorance and naivete

Other significant themes include: the feeling of loneliness and isolation; the quest for freedom; romantic vs. real; implied vs. literal; the role of women; the concept of family.

Huckleberry Finn and that Damned Human Race

Picarsque Novel: Usually a satirical novel which depicts in realistic detail the adventures of a roguish hero of low social class who survives by his or her wits in a corrupt society.

Bildungsroman: A novel whose principal subject is the moral, psychological and intellectual development of a youthful main character.

Episodic Plot: A structure that features distinct episodes or a series of stories linked together by the same character. Huck Finn can be broken up into 8 or 9 episodes.

Romanticism:
Work of literature that deal with imagination, that represent ideals of life, these works often include fantastic adventure stories, spiritual connections with nature, gothic stories of the fantastic. Authors include: Sir Walter Scott, Fenimore Cooper, Poe.

Realism:
Works of literature that depict life and people as they really appear. Hence Realistic.
Themes include corruption of society as a whole, racism.

Anithero:
A protagonist who doesn't fit the traditional description of a hero.

Persona:
An assumed identity or character.

Satire:
A work of literature that uses irony and hyperbole to attack and mock some aspect of society as a way to promote social change.

Thesis Statements

Thesis Statements are due TODAY!



Thesis Statement

Your thesis statement directs all of the ideas, quote selection, and commentary in your essay. Therefore, a muddled or imprecise thesis statement will lead to an unclear or meaningless essay.

A thesis statement is NOT:

1. An abstract concept. For example, “Greed” is not a thesis statement.

2. A general “universal” truth. For example, the following sentence is not a thesis statement: “For thousands of years, man has been greedy.”

A thesis statement IS a statement that provides direction for the analysis of a theme or idea presented by a particular text. Therefore, in order to construct an effective thesis statement, you must first determine what a text is suggesting about an abstract concept (like greed, for example).
Your thesis statement will address an abstract concept PLUS the evaluation of that concept through a particular text.

A thesis statement for “The Pardoner’s Tale” might address the abstract concept of greed as it is handled in the story. The first two examples are NOT thesis statements. The third one is a complete thesis statement:

a. Greed is something that man has struggled with for centuries, as demonstrated in “The Pardoner’s Tale” by Chaucer. (Abstract Concept Only)

b. “The Pardoner’s Tale,” written by Chaucer, is a story about how three men kill one another while looking for Death. (Plot Summary)

c. “The Pardoner’s Tale,” written by Chaucer, suggests that the “deadly” sin of greed is stronger than any oath of friendship, and will ultimately lead those who give into its allure to their own destruction.

DUE DATES:

Dialectical Journals are due on Wednesday 11/16.
Vocabulary Quiz on Friday 11/18.
Critical Essays on the SCARLET LETTER are due on 11/23.


Analysis Essay:

In 2-3 papers students will need to analysis some aspect of The Scarlet Letter and connected it to a theme. Things that can be explored include symbolism, tone, diction, characters and events. I expect students to use their didactical journals for focus on examples. I also expect all students to choose something small to concentrate on. I would rather you spend three pages examining one paragraph in relation to a theme, than to try and examine something like Pearl’s role as Savior and Chillingworth’s role as the devil (unless you view these roles from looking at one paragraph or one page). This would be too large. You couldn’t examine it in enough detail in three pages. Remember I’m looking for precise thesis statements and evidence that is analyzed.

GRADE: Essay grade with 100 points.

Due Date: Monday November 15th.
Note: If you are traveling you better turn it in on Monday.

Scarlet Letter Vocabulary # 2

Loquacity
Importunate
Chirurgical
Physiognomy
Ignominy
Misanthropy
Invigorated
Irrefragable
Galliard
Sombre