http://www.bartleby.com/156/ <-----------(Winesburg, Ohio Readings) The Book of the Grotesque |
What is “the grotesque” in this piece? Difficulty Rating (Based on length and clarity of the piece and its meaning(s)) 3.5 |
Clues: |
You should first look up the word “Grotesque” to get a clear dictionary definition. |
Observations we have made to previous pieces can be applied here: |
“The Road Not Taken” by Robert Frost – how might the roads be “truths”? At the end, is the traveler a grotesque or not? |
“Soldier’s Home” Ernest Hemingway – how might you argue that holding on to truths make some of the characters grotesques? |
Possible Tough One, but if you manage to wrestle with it, you can come up with some striking insights: |
Is J. Alfred Prufrock a grotesque? Read the poem carefully to figure out why or why not. |
Hands |
How is the Modern Man like Wing Biddlebaum? Difficulty Rating 3.5 |
Clues: |
How is Wing Biddlebaum’s dilemma like the one J. Alfred Prufrock is in? |
What correlations can you make between this story and Robert Frost’s “Mending Wall”? |
What correlations can you make between this story and the Emily Dickinson poem, “I am nobody, who are you?” |
How might the relationship between George Willard and Wing Biddlebaum be like the relationship between the narrator of “The Fall of the House of Usher” and Roderick Usher? |
Nobody Knows |
Why does George Willard want so badly “to talk to some man” at the end of “Nobody Knows,” and yet is afraid that Louise Trunnion will talk about what happened? Difficulty Rating 3.5 |
Clues: |
How is the relationship George Willard has with Louise Trunnion similar to relationships Krebs had with women in “Soldier’s Home” by Ernest Hemingway? |
How might Louise Trunnion’s grudging acceptance of George Willard’s lead be similar to that of Sarah Penn’s acceptance of Adoniram Penn’s lead? How might the way George Willard treats Louise be similar to the way Adoniram treats Sarah Penn? |
How might George Willard’s desire to keep Louise silenced be similar to John’s desire to keep the narrator of “The Yellow Wallpaper” silenced or Roderick Usher’s desire to keep his sister Madeline Usher silenced in “The Fall of the House of Usher”? |
Adventure |
Why does Alice Hindman struggle so much? Difficulty Rating 5.0 |
Clues: |
How might this story be a development of Shirley’s dilemma in Dreiser’s “The Second Choice”? |
How might Emily Dickinson’s poem “Wild Nights! Wild Nights!” shed light on the yearning in this poem? |
How do you think this story reacts to Emily Dickinson’s claim that “Success is Counted Sweetest – by those who ne’er Succeed” |
How is Alice’s situation similar to the narrator’s situation in the poem by Robert Frost entitled “Stopping By Woods on a Snowy Evening”? |
The Strength of God |
Why did Curtis Hartman feel liberated when he saw Kate Swift crying, naked, on her bed? Difficulty Rating 5.0 |
Clues: |
How might Curtis Hartman’s conduct at the church be similar to J. Alfred Prufrock’s conduct at parties in Eliot’s “The Lovesong of J. Alfred Prufrock”? (This next one may be tough) How is the end of the story, in a sense, the reverse of Prufrock’s despair at the end of the poem? |
What would Emerson think of the barriers Hartman puts between himself and Kate Swift early in the novel, thanks to Hartman’s view of the proper limits of spirituality? |
How might the reasons Jack Potter decided to get a wife in the east in “The Bride Comes to Yellow Sky” have something in common with Hartman’s desire for a woman outside the realm of a church? |
Voting Sheet (At the End of Class, You Will Fill This Out. I will make copies and give them to groups at the beginning of the next class – or when I get through them all, whichever comes first).
These feedback sheets will be graded and included in your After-Class quiz grade.
You will NOT be graded based on:
· Who you voted for (unless you vote for yourself, which will invalidate your entire After-Class quiz grade)
· How well your feedback matches up with my own preferences
You WILL be graded on
· The detail and thought that goes into your feedback
· Specific references that show you were listening to each groups presentation
Suggested Criteria:
How well did the group connect their answer to works we have discussed previously?
How convincing was their answer to the question?
How engaging was the team in giving their answer?
Team 1 Name. ________________________________________________________________
Positive Feedback
Constructive Criticism
Team 2 Name. ________________________________________________________________
Positive Feedback
Constructive Criticism
Team 3 Name. ________________________________________________________________
Positive Feedback
Constructive Criticism
Team 4 Name. ________________________________________________________________
Positive Feedback
Constructive Criticism
Team 5 Name. ________________________________________________________________
Positive Feedback
Constructive Criticism
The Best Team (besides yours, of course)______________________________________________
Additional Comments:
