THE LIFE THAT'S FOUND IN LITERATURE....

"When masterful storytelling aligns perfectly with a humanitarian payload, the effects will be felt around the world, transcending genre or political agenda." (Tom Blunt)
What is it about a good book?  It can draw you right out of this world with all of its pressures, problems, demands and reality and into another time, place and existence, until you are immersed and all sense of the passage of real time seems to vanish.  Characters on the page become real, breathing entities - they are your dearest friends.  You are racing towards the end of the story, desperately seeking resolution, while at the same time terrified to see the whole experience come to an end.  What will you do without the experiences of these beloved characters to occupy your thoughts?  There have been many occasions when I have closed a book and desperately wondered how life dared to continue marching along as if nothing had just happened.  Now that I had read that book-experienced those pages-I would never be the same.  I was forever changed.  I am not too ashamed to admit that when I finished The Book Thief for the first time, I carried it around with me for a few days because I just wasn't ready to let go of that story - of that experience.  I couldn't even think about reading something new.  I wasn't ready.  For me, finishing a great book is like finishing a relationship:  you just need time to fully heal before starting a new one.

We have all heard about the benefits of reading.  It inspires creativity and imagination.  It makes us

better writers.  It allows us to see the world through different lenses.  But can reading great literature, fiction, in particular, actually help us be "more human?"  According to a recent article by Tom Blunt of Penguin Random House Publishing, those who regularly ingest good fiction tend to be able to empathize more with others; in other words, you may be be able to acknowledge and understand that other people have other points of view outside your own.  The reason?  Because when you read a great work of fiction, you see the world through another person's eyes, namely, the protagonist or main character.  You get a glimpse into their world and experiences, and are thus able to sympathize with their feelings, thoughts and beliefs!  Therefore, reading good fiction does more than build your imagination, it makes you better equipped to understand your fellow human beings in the real world, and accept varying points of view with more compassion.

Now, I personally didn't need another reason to read good fiction, but articles like this are kind of like those news bulletins that reveal that chocolate is actually GOOD for your health.  It just makes the whole pursuit of something you love a little sweeter!

Enjoy this article by Tom Blunt.  Read it carefully, then post your overall impression of the article. What did you like reading most?  What surprised you?  I would love to hear your thoughts.

And, if you have any great recommendations in fiction, well, go ahead and post those, too!

Link:  https://medium.com/@penguinrandomus/this-is-how-literary-fiction-teaches-us-to-be-human-53d468dba179#.5j3txg35e

 

THE SEARCH FOR TRUTH in an uncertain world...

"There is an eternal landscape, a geography of the soul.  We spend our entire lives looking for the outlines." ~Josephine Hart

Whether we are consciously aware of it or not, each one of us is on a quest for truth.  It is human nature to wonder--to seek--to fill the gaps of knowledge, and color in the spaces between the known and the unknown.  We are not satisfied to "let it be" and accept that perhaps some information is beyond our grasp.  It is what makes life frustrating and wonderful.  It is what makes us pathetic and extraordinary at the same time.

We are seekers.

And thank goodness we are.  If we weren't, polio would still plague us.  The world would be flat.  Lands and islands would remain undiscovered.  We want answers.  We want to be able to look into the looking glass and see not the murky image but the real one.  We are searching for the truth.

Whether it's the Truth with a capital T or the truth about something specific, it is the same general concept.  Every subject you take in school supports this search:  What really happened on December 7, 1941 and what were the events that led up to it?  What is the answer to this mathematical puzzle, or what steps did Einstein take to derive his theory of relativity?  What is the author really trying to tell us in this passage, and does this symbolize anything profoundly universal?  We want the answers, and we want them to make sense to us.  We want to know, once and for all.  

Schools seek to teach us not only how to uncover "truth," but how to recognize when something might be masquerading as truth.  It starts early--some might argue too early--in elementary grades when we try to identify the differences between facts and opinions.  We try to define both--put them into a neat little box--so we can easily and quickly recognize both and decipher their differences.  

But...that begs another question...can "truth" be characterized in this way?  Can opinions also be facts?  What about morals and ethics?  Are they facts?  According to many dictionary definitions, they are not. So if our notions of right and wrong cannot be characterized as truth, but merely opinion, then why was the world so outraged recently when a cartoonist was brutally murdered because someone did not like what he had to say?  What right do we have to point fingers if "Murder is wrong" is a moral opinion, not fact?

So much to sift through.  I would like to challenge you to read this opinion article recently submitted to the New York Times.  Not only is it an excellent  piece of persuasive writing, but it also challenges the way we define truth and differentiate truth from opinion.  After you read, please answer the following questions:  1.  What, if anything, is wrong with the current distinction between fact and opinion?  2.  Is there such thing as "moral truths" or does everything that is classified as a moral or belief indicate opinion only?  3.  Is there such a thing as truth?  How do we recognize it? 

http://mobile.nytimes.com/blogs/opinionator/2015/03/02/why-our-children-dont-think-there-are-moral-facts/?_r=0&referrer

Maybe the search for the truth will always remain just that:  a search.  As the quote indicates at the top of this post, maybe truth is eternal.  Therein lies the quandary:  

We are bound creatures searching for  something boundless....

THE PROFOUND, THE HEART GRIPPING, THE BOLD & THE BEAUTIFUL: INSPIRED WORDS FROM LITERATURE

 “One must be careful of books, and what is inside them, for words have the power to change us.” —Cassandra Clare, The Infernal Devices

From the immortal words of Shakespeare to the poetry of Yeats; the tragic romance of Wuthering Heights to the terrifying beauty of Dracula, words continue to make our hearts beat a little faster, our lungs breathe in a little deeper, and our eyes see a little more clearly of all the deeper meaning that lies in every single moment of life.  

In both year one and year two, we are exploring the power of language--the power of words.  A good writer is extremely powerful.  His or her ability to put ink on paper in such an order that our emotions are moved in several different directions--often in the very same page--as we sit in our favorite chair eagerly devouring the story is nothing short of miraculous.  Words nourish us, hurt us, build us up, tear us down, make our hearts swell with love and romance or puncture with the most gut wrenching pain; words can leave us empty, in a puddle of our own tears while bystanding family members stand in wonder and confused dismay.

I have finished books before and been left a complete wreck; I have looked around at the world and wondered, "How can everything continue on as normal, as if none of this story ever happened?  Why isn't everyone else as heartbroken as I am right now?  How can they smile?"  I have also been left by a book thinking that life is more beauteous and amazing and miraculous than I have ever managed to notice before; that language is the same thing as art and that pages of what I just finished reading should be framed, and hung on the walls of the Getty and Louvre.  

Marcus Zusak writes in The Book Thief in that special, gorgeous, metaphorical way of his that words are the keys to power.  We have all heard  "The pen is mightier than the sword."  This Buzz Feed author who wrote the article in the link I am sharing with you  knows it, too.  Here, she has compiled what she claims are 50 of the most beautiful lines of literature.  While I have no idea how anyone could narrow it down to 50, I have to agree that every one of these lines belongs on a list of this description.  As I read some of them, I stopped, closed my eyes, and drank in the words like some sort of liquid nirvana.  Does that sound crazy?  I know what you're thinking:  How does Mrs. Caraway get so excited about a specific arrangement of words in a sentence?

Maybe I am a literature geek.  If that's the label that means I am obsessed with words, their power, and a life-changing story, then I wear the label proudly.  One of my proudest moments in recent years was having the opportunity to direct my Will Power Troupe in Romeo and Juliet, a performance of the words that Shakespeare organized in a script to tell an ancient story of violence and feudal hatred that is shot through the very heart by a love that transcends time.  We can debate the historical fact about whether the story is completely true or not, but here is something I do know for a fact: The appeal of  Romeo and Juliet isn't necessarily that it is "real," but something about it is universal.  It is what, in our hearts, we truly believe love to be:  powerful, heartbreaking, beautiful.  It's timeless.  Every time I watched my cast perform, it was like I was watching it all for the first time.  The words of this story clutched my heart, and they always will.

Whether it's Shakespeare or Stroker,  Whitman or Wilde, the words of a skilled word artist will do that to us time and time again.  And you know what?  Thank goodness they do.  For when we are sitting in our favorite chair, drowning in a puddle of our own tears and torn hearts, cursing the writer for putting us in that condition while our family members look on bewildered and concerned, we know, in that moment, we are alive.  We are human.  We can feel the depths of sorrow and the limitlessness of joy.  As a writer and a reader, I celebrate that.

Read through this list, pick a quote or two that speaks the loudest to you, and reflect on it.  What does it mean?  How does it speak to your heart?  What do you love about it?  THEN, (you are not done yet!) share a quote NOT on this list from a favorite book and tell us why you love it.

I'll lead off:  my favorite quote on this list is #45 from The Kite Runner.  It absolutely transfixed me the first time I read it in that novel.  It was life changing--a perception of forgiveness that spoke right to my soul.  Another favorite (not on this list) is from a book we will read in year 2 very soon:  Markus Zusak's The Book Thief.   It is one I always go back to...not just because of the words, but because of what they mean now that I connect them to the story as a whole: "I have hated the words and I have loved them, and I hope I have made them right."  When you read the book, you'll see why.  

Now...it's your turn!  Quote away!  Feel the power of the words that tug on your heart!

Link:  http://pulptastic.com/50-beautiful-sentences-literature/

KNOW THYSELF - 2017

Communication break-down can occur at any time and in many different settings.  There's Group Project Anxiety: everyone has great ideas at discussion meetings, but you feel like the only one with a sense of urgency to get any actual work done.  There's Discussion Frustration:  whenever you engage in a discussion with your group, you feel as if your thoughts and ideas are not valued or brushed aside with no regard to your feelings.  And finally, there is just sheer information overload: why is it that after a full day of school, you feel completely zapped of energy, consumed by an overwhelming need to be where people are not?

We all realize that we are social creatures.  We seek out and thrive within interpersonal relationships. We long to be heard and appreciated, to create and explore.  This is probably not new information.  Rewarding as they may be, however, relationships of every type are complex and not without their

difficulties.  People are different.  Where we come from, our experiences, our beliefs, and our DNA all go into who we are, how we see and interpret the world, and how we communicate.

Many corporations have invested large sums of money on consultants with one goal in mind:  to improve inter-office communication and efficiency.  Where do you begin?  The communicators, themselves!  Knowing who you are helps you to better understand how and why you communicate the way that you do.  Knowing who your co-workers are can help you better understand how to communicate with them more effectively and efficiently.

So, as Aristotle taught centuries ago, we will begin by seeking the wisdom that comes from knowing ourselves.  Here is a link to a personality inventory:  http://www.16personalities.com/free-personality-test  Once you complete the test, you can have your results emailed to yourself and you can read all about your personality type: how you relate to others, how others see you, how you work, etc.

The test takes about 20 minutes, but it provides a wealth of information as it analyzes four distinct areas of personality and then adds a fifth area that analyzes overall identity.  It is created from a combination of the infamous Myers/Briggs and Carl Jung's Theory of Psychological Types.  The four areas are explained as follows:

1.  Introversion vs Extroversion: (I vs. E) This is more than just "shy" vs. "outgoing."  In fact, according to Jung, it is really not about that at all.  It has to do more with where you get your energy.  Do you find yourself getting energized when you are around others, or do you find that you need to be away from people to re-energize?
2.  Intuitive vs. Sensing: (N vs. S) Intuitives are creative, imaginative and curious individuals who are open-minded.  They tend to go with novelty over stability and see/feel possibilities.  They tend to have strong discernment in new situations.  Sensing or Observant individuals are practical, pragmatic and down to earth.  They tend to have strong habits and rather than going with their gut, they are more focused on what has happened or what is happening.

3.  Feeling vs. Thinking: (F vs. T) Feeling individuals are sensitive and emotionally expressive.  They are more empathetic and tend to be less competitive than T's.  They tend to focus on social harmony and cooperation.   Thinkers focus on objectivity and rationality, prioritizing logic over emotion.  They tend to hide their feelings and value efficiency over cooperation.

4.  Judging vs. Perceiving or Prospecting: (J vs. P)  Judging personalities are decisive, thorough and highly organized.  They value clarity, predictability and closure preferring structure and planning to spontaneity.  Perceiving individuals are good at improvising and spotting opportunities.  They are flexible, relaxed, non-conformists who prefer to keep their options open.

Identity Variables of Assertive vs. Turbulent: (A vs. T)  Assertive types are confident, self-assured and pretty resistant to stress.  They do not push themselves too hard.  The turbulent types are self-conscious and sensitive to stress.  They are perfectionistic types who experience a wide array of emotions.

So, test away, and then....
1.  IDENTIFY YOUR FOUR LETTER PERSONALITY, then put a dash, and A OR T.
2.  COMMENT ON ANY SURPRISES OR EXPECTATIONS.

 For example:  I am an INFJ - T.   This was absolutely no surprise to me, but a big surprise to those who know me, as I come across as an extrovert (SO not true!)   I think this is because I am a people pleaser, a trait I am working hard on to mellow.  I am also a J, but BARELY.  I need to feel organized in my environment, but DO NOT open any drawers!  They show my true, right-brained, messy creativity!  Now, it's your turn!

YOU ARE LITERALLY WELCOMED!

Many of us have asked over the years this key question of our instructors with regards to their course of study:  Why is this important?  When am I ever going to use this?  OR Why do I need this in life?

I am pleased to offer you an answer.  It may not be THE answer, but it is an answer, just the same. Every course of study offers you a perspective: a glimpse into the secrets of the world and life all around you.  Every course of study is, therefore, in and of itself, a form of LANGUAGE!

Math is the language of creation and design.  Everything you see, touch, smell, taste and hear out there involves some type of calculation, proportion and energy.

We observe what these things are made of and how they interact and correspond to one another, and the conclusions we make about what we see may fall under the realms of science and/or art.

When we, ourselves speak or write about all that we see, feel and hear within the world, offering our explanations and reflections, or tell stories about our existence in this world and our relationships with one another, we are using our skills of language and literature.

Finally, as we move through our life's journey, observing, explaining, telling and reflecting, we, in turn, affect the world and those in it in a way that is unique and significant.  We are, in turn, affected by the words, actions and choices of others around us, as well as the acts of nature in our world. These interactions down through time become a study of history.

So, as you can see, the question really isn't why is any course of study important, but rather, how does this detail add to the grand picture of everything in and around me?  Why do you need these courses of study?  Because they are literally a part of you and your life:  all that is, that was, and is to be!

As we get ready to begin our year, I would love to hear about you!  What are you most looking forward to?  What are your fears?  What are your goals and hopes for this year...in ANY course of study?  What would you like me to know about you as a scholar and individual?  (You may include special talents and/or interests that you have, as well!)

Thank you, and here is to a BRILLIANT YEAR....in all of our courses of study!

BEFORE YOU GO....A Final Reflection

The final days of the 2015-2016 school year are rapidly approaching.  For some of us, it will mark the beginning of another well deserved and highly anticipated summer break that will rejuvenate our spirits before our final year of high school.  But for others, it will mark the end of something very significant and the beginning of a whole new chapter in our lives..

It can be an exhilarating and terrifying time.  What are we going to do?  Who will we become?  What is our passion?  What are the dreams we're going to chase?

If you are like most people your age, you don't know.

Maybe you have a few ideas or notions about who you would like to be "when you grow up," but the pressure of choosing your career--your ultimate destiny-- can be quite dizzying to say the least.  How do you go about narrowing the field?  Have you chosen your major?  Is there some kind of magic formula that helps you make the right choice?  Everyone talks about finding your passion--your purpose--your calling.  Do you know what that is?  Do you know and are you  just afraid to admit it to yourself or are you whole-heartedly in the dark?

I do not, unfortunately, have a magic formula to help you determine what it is you were created to do.  I also, very regrettably, do not have a crystal ball to look into and tell you whether or not you will be successful in achieving your dreams.  I can tell you that often times, the journey is the best part, but so many people do not realize that in time to fully enjoy it...

You will have many opportunities cross your path, and there will be, consequently, many decisions to make. Whether you are graduating next month or a year from next month, your end here at high school is really just one of many new beginnings you will experience in your life going forward into adulthood: each risk and choice will open up new possibilities.  So while you may be a bit wistful about leaving your high school years behind you, remember that these years you have had were more of the jumping off place - a time to prepare, play, study, and learn- so that you would develop the tools you will need to begin and forge your way.

So...no matter what your purpose, passion or calling, the only thing I CAN promise you with great

confidence is that you will find it.  Keep looking, search your heart, try new things, explore new places, travel and adventure.  Take risks, embrace challenges, and enjoy the journey as you navigate your way towards ultimate discovery!  Keep a diary of the things you learn and realize, set goals, meet them, and set some more. Decide where you would like to go and what you would like to do, and then go there...make those things happen.  Be a mover and a shaker, but take the time you need to stop and reflect, too, and you will find it.

While trying to conceptualize this, our final blog of the school year, I came across this very interesting TED talk video.  It poses the fill in the blank question:  Before I die, I want to....  Watch the video, think about the project this young artist began, and then ask the question with your own explanation.  The whole world is waiting --your life is out there for you to discover and determine.  When you stop and think of all the ages and eras that have already gone by on this earth, each of us are only here for a blink of an eye.  How will you make the very most of that time?

I so look forward to reading your posts, but more than that, I look forward to seeing what YOU will do out there in the years to come with the time you have been given!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uebxlIrosiM

CREATING THE CHARACTER, TUNING THE TENSION, AND RIVETING THE READER: The Mad, Marvelous Mission of the Author

The job of any great author is simply to begin with a premise, devise a setting, people it with characters (a protagonist or two, an antagonist or two, and several secondaries to move scenes along), give his characters an agenda, and then repeatedly, through an intricate series of twists and turns, deny them immediate gratification.  Then, voila, through trials and tribulations resulting from these twists, the protagonist emerges, better from the battle in some big way, and then, having sacrificed him/herself for the greater good OR celebrating in triumph, he resurrects some greater hope for happiness.

There is only one thing wrong with the above description:  and that is the word simply.  There is nothing simple about writing a story, for it is nothing short of creating a whole, wide world where just a blank page used to be.

All stories have a basic foundation in common.  They begin with an introduction and a bit of backstory, usually thrusting the reader "in medias res:" into the middle of the action.   We discover as the character moves towards and into the conflict that he/she is flawed--often terribly--but it is up to the artful skill of the writer to connect us to him/her so that it is somehow because of these flaws that these connections happen.  We can forgive and even embrace them because they are relatable.

Next, a decision is made to face and endure the conflict, whether inner or outer, and our plucky protagonist is forced through what is often referenced as "the door of no return," that leads up the slope of rising action towards the climactic moment that will determine the ultimate fate of not only our hero, but possibly, the very world in which he/she resides.

It is what happens along this  journey that keeps us, the reader, deeply engaged as we are urged along by the hand of a skillful writer.  How does the author create this so-called rising action that is so brilliantly fraught with the electrical currents of tension, suspense and uncertainty?  What are the conditions and situations laid forth on the page that will push our protagonist (and subsequently us, the readers) through that door of no return?

No matter what the genre in fiction, the magical ingredients of the twisting-turning plot that holds us captive are:  tension (often romantic), suspense, and uncertainty.  A great writer knows that if he/she truly wants to make his/her characters especially captivating, he/she must deny them their deepest longings and desires...prolong the successful achievement of his/her ultimate goals.

If the author has wielded his/her magic well, the reader, right along with the protagonist, will feel the frustration and enmity towards the antagonist external, and the struggle and vexation against the antagonist internal.  We will often, as I have indicated in class, wish to hurl our  book--the world of the story, itself--against the wall and curse the author for ever hauling us into this convolution of complex contention in the first place.  Of course, shortly thereafter, the deeper connections we have for our protagonist will win, and we will pick up the book once again.  Why?  because the frustrating ingredients of these twisty, turny works of fiction are often quite real: they mirror the struggles and denials we, ourselves face in our own, real worlds.

How is this tension created?  How do authors go about twisting the plot and our gut in suspense and uncertainty?  That is what we, the critical readers in IB/DP part 4 of the course must readily determine.  I have, below, included a link to a Writer's Digest article that offers a description as to how authors tighten tension and raise the stakes, along with another link to three scenarios from a novel which contain some of the tension and suspense indicated that twist the plots and deny our protagonist a ready victory.

YOUR POST DIRECTIONS:
1. First, read the article, and identify three key skills involved in creating and tightening tension and suspense.

2. Then, choose one of the three scenes, read it, and explain how it sets up romantic tension, suspense and uncertainty.  It may be something as expansive as a sweeping description of setting or an inner monologue, or something as small in detail as diction: the selection of a single word that pushes it right up to the cliff's edge.  Find it and explain.

3. Finally, it's your turn.  Find a sample of text OR share one YOU have created which tightens the tone of tension, raises the stakes, and creates suspense or twists our guts with uncertainty.  I cannot WAIT to read these!

This blog will help get your creative juices flowing in preparation for our Socratic Seminar next week in which we will discuss how writers hold us captive--willingly, delightfully, and frustratingly so--and keep us agonizing along with the protagonist, no matter how flawed, until the bitter (or beautiful) end.

Batten down the hatches, and let us bravely acquiesce through the doors of no return...here, and everywhere!

http://www.writersdigest.com/writing-articles/by-writing-goal/beat-writers-block/how-to-build-tension-to-heighten-the-stakes

Samples:
odyprepportals.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/Samples_1-3.pdf