comparative 2013

roxychix

just wondering has anyone chosen there comparative texts for the class for next year. doing up plans etc now. i know the exciting times of the summer holidays. i am teaching all boys higher level class. so just want to see if anyone else ideas maybe before i set out my choice give me better idea. thanks

born2bwild

How about 1984, Children of Men and Translations - theme/issue - conflict between public and private?
What thoughts have you had?

born2bwild

Here's another: Sive, Emma, Wuthering Heights - Gender Roles/Marriage (either as theme/issue or cultural context).
I'd quite like to do one on literary genre:
Gatsby, The Road, Circle of Friends - the rise and fall of the novel?

implausible

I'm looking forward to doing Gatsby, just as soon as I get around to reading it again:o It'd be great with Casablanca and Sive for the cultural context. The power of money would be a good theme, but I'll probably be doing a lot of scribbling before I settle on one. The narrator of Gatsby would make LG really interesting.

sarahbrite

Hey!
I get accepted a job teaching English/Irish for the coming year and am very happy with myself. Have started into a bit of English prep and am reading both My Sister's Keeper and The Great Gatsby which are on the school's L.C booklist. Any tips on linking these two texts for the comparative!? A bit daunted by starting from scratch...any adivce would be appreciated!

Thanks

implausible

sarahbrite wrote: »

Hey!
I get accepted a job teaching English/Irish for the coming year and am very happy with myself. Have started into a bit of English prep and am reading both My Sister's Keeper and The Great Gatsby which are on the school's L.C booklist. Any tips on linking these two texts for the comparative!? A bit daunted by starting from scratch...any adivce would be appreciated!

Thanks

First of all - congratulations! Secondly, I personally avoid doing two novels for the comparative for several reasons - doing a play, novel and film keeps it a bit more interesting for the students, and if I'm honest, for myself:). If you have a mixed class who 'hate' reading, a play or film can appeal to them more and for 2013, three types of text will make the Literary Genre mode a bit more interesting too. However, if you have a good, interested class, go with what you enjoy.

CC should be good for these two - the different eras, role of money, family, gender, values. A theme could be sacrifice or you could keep it more general and go with the theme of love. And with the role of the narrator in Gatsby and the changing narrative in MSK, Lit Genre would be very interesting.

The best tip I could offer would be having a skeleton or plan for the comparative i.e. know what the shape of the final essays on each mode should be. This keeps you from getting bogged down in detail and keeps you and the class focused. The diary is a good idea too, but avoid huge detail as it is the key moments that are ....well...key:D

sarahbrite

Thanks for that advice... will definitely include either a film/play in my comparative work. The two novels I mentioned previously as set in stone by the school's English Dept so will begin with those! Do you think it's necessary to cover all 3 questions from the comparative section or focus on doing two well? I know theme is very straight-forward for the students, from my experience Literary Genre is a bit of a stumbling block? Any ways to make this question more accessible for them?

Stewie Griffin

Theme is straightforward enough. Literary Genre is difficult to break into at first, but it's actually nice enough when they crack it.

Use your film extensively here- camerawork, sfx, music, point of view, characterisation, flashbacks, dialogue, setting etc- there's no limit and the students do love it. You can link these topics back to the novels quite easily too.

implausible

I never cover all three modes, as it's a waste of time and to be honest, tends to confuse the weaker students, while bogging down the stronger ones who start to forget that it's only worth 70/400. I actually find Literary Genre handy enough. I divide it into discussing the actual genre, chronology (e.g. flashback), narration, character creation, use of dialogue, setting and other headings I can't remember:o. When teaching any mode of the comparative, I use the headings throughout, even getting students to divide their copies/notes that way. It makes life so much simpler when they have to tie it all together coming up to the LC.

sarahbrite

Stewie Griffin wrote: »

Theme is straightforward enough. Literary Genre is difficult to break into at first, but it's actually nice enough when they crack it.

Use your film extensively here- camerawork, sfx, music, point of view, characterisation, flashbacks, dialogue, setting etc- there's no limit and the students do love it. You can link these topics back to the novels quite easily too.

That's great - thanks. When I was doing my own LC we were limited to 3 novels which was quick the yawn and VERY time consuming. I can see how literary genre can easily be linked to film - a good starting off point! Gatsby and Sister's Keeper should be enjoyable enough reads for the students - now to decide on a film to keep them happy!

sarahbrite

I definitely think headings like those are SO necessary! I'm going to be filing system crazy coz it's the accumulation of the notes that'll get them there at the end of the day! Only I hope I don't crack under the newbie teacher pressure! :P

kirwanco

I'm just looking through the 2013 list of texts myself, and if you have an all boys class, I think that Children of Men would be a good choice - lots of action, great camera work and stuff that will grab their attention more easily. It could make an interesting accompaniment to 1984 what with similar themes and story lines but with the ultimate difference of the message of hope in Children of Men.

My Sister's Keeper would also link really well with these texts - though if you wanted to avoid two novels it may not be the way to go. Sive may be a good alternative, and make up somewhat for the lack of Irish literature on the course. As well, if you're covering LG, then it would be nice that they have two very visual texts (if you get the opportunity to take them to Sive).