Omniscient Narrator Book Groups

Please read the descriptions of the possible titles for the Omniscient Narrator unit.  Then, use the form to select the book you would like to read.

Descriptions


Form

Catcher in the Rye: Journal Prompts

1. How are you different now than you were in third grade? Middle school?
2. What are the things you look forward to about getting older? What bothers you about getting older?
3. What do you like most and least about high school?
4. What do you like most and least about the groups listed below?
1. adults in general?
2. your parents?
3. siblings?
4. your peers?

Questions Ch 1-4

1. What bothers Holden so much about his interaction with Mr. Spencer? Come up with at least three distinct points and a quotation to back up each point.

2. How would you describe Ackley? Find two direct quotations that characterize him well.

3. How would you characterize Stradlater? Find two direct quotations that characterize him well.

4. What do we learn about Holden from the way he reacts to others? Consider how he interacts with Mr. Spencer, Ackley, and Stradlater. Remember to distinguish between his thoughts and his words/actions.

5. What can you infer about Holden's relationship with Jane Gallagher? Find one line that is suggestive of something significant about their relationship.

6. Identify a tangent/aside that Holden goes off on. What function does this tangent serve?

7. What are a few key phrases that you have noticed that Holden uses a lot?

8. What, if anything, have you noticed about his thought or speech patterns? In other words, how does he talk and/or think?

Catcher in the Rye - Responding to a quote

The following are examples of how you might respond to a quote from the story.

"People never notice anything" (9).

Holden says this, or rather thinks this, when he is over at Mr. Spencer's house getting reprimanded for failing out of school.  It seems to really bother him when someone doesn't see the truth in something, and I think that is what he is referring to here.  For example, he talks a lot about people being phony and how much this bothers him.  I think that the fact that people don't notice things bothers him for the same reason, because people only see what they want to see and don't see the whole, actual truth.  

"I had to sit there and listen to that crap.  It certainly was a dirty trick" (11).

Holden has this thought as Mr. Spencer reads a passage aloud from Holden's exam.  This indicates to me that Holden is embarrassed by his writing.  He refers to it as "that crap", which clearly indicates that he doesn't hold it in high regard.  The fact that he calls it a "dirty trick" seems to indicate that he is upset with Spencer for making him listen to his own writing, which perhaps indicates that he is embarrassed by the quality of what he wrote.  This shame suggests to me that he is capable of better writing, because otherwise he wouldn't feel ashamed.  It also suggests to me that he values Spencer's opinion of him and doesn't want to think about the fact that he turned in such "crap" to a teacher whose opinion is important to him.

Q1 Grammar Summative: Review and Practice

Review the following document and complete the practice.

New York Times Article

Please read the following article from the New York Times on delayed adulthood.

Short Story Practice

Answer the following questions about "Sweetness" as practice for the assessment.

1. In paragraph 1, Sweetness says, "You might think she's a throwback, but a throwback to what?"
Explain what she means by "throwback."


2. In paragraph 2, Sweetness describes her parents with a tone of
a. neutrality
b. condescension
c. pride
d. indifference

3. In paragraph 3, when Sweetness uses the term "pickaninny", the surrounding sentences suggest that she probably does so with a tone of
a. disdain
b. affection
c. confusion
d. rage

4. Which of the following sentences best summarizes paragraph 5, which begins, "I never did convince..."
a. Sweetness's husband Louis never let go of the idea that she had cheated on him.
b. Sweetness was discriminated against by landlords for having such a dark skinned daughter.
c. Life at the time was unfair for dark skinned people.
d. Mr. Leigh was a decent landlord despite the racism of the time.
e. Sweetness suffered a variety of hardships due to Lula Ann's dark skin color.

5. When Sweetness describes how she asked Lula Ann to call her Sweetness rather than "Mother" or "Mama" because, "It was safer," the word "safer" is suggestive of what?
a. the emotional distance Sweetness wanted to establish between her and Lula Ann
b. the fact that Sweetness doesn't want to think of herself as being Lula Ann's mother
c. the fact that Sweetness wants to protect herself from the judgement of other people
d. the fact that Sweetness is vain about her age
e. all of the above
f. a, b, and c

Micro-Narrative Examples

Here is a document with some examples of the portfolio pieces.

"Sweetness" Activities

Pick one of the following writing activities:

• Using a brief section of the story as inspiration, compose a dialogue of at least twenty lines between Sweetness and Lula Ann.
• Rewrite a paragraph from Lula Ann’s perspective.
• Rewrite a paragraph about Sweetness from an omniscient narrator’s perspective.
• Describe the setting (Winston House) from an omniscient narrator’s perspective.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Jigsaw Activity:
  
  
  1. Did Sweetness do “the best for [Lula Ann] under the circumstances” as she suggests?  What specific evidence from the story supports your answer?  Look for direct quotations/lines.
  
  
  2. In the paragraph about Winston House, Sweetness says that she is too young “for pasture.”  Explain what this metaphor means. Look for another example of figurative language in the story and explain its effect.
  
  
  3. How does Sweetness feel about Lula Ann’s refusal to speak to her now?  Is she understanding or resentful?  Find a direct quote that supports your position.
  
  
  4. In the paragraph that begins, “Oh, yeah,” reflect on the significance of the flashback.  
  
  
  5. Is Sweetness correct in saying that “Lula Ann was a burden”?  Explain/justify your answer with evidence from the story.
  
  
  6. How would you describe Sweetness’s tone at the end of the story?  Identify three lines throughout the story that are examples of how her tone shifts throughout the story.
  
  
  7. Find one passage that you feel best exemplifies a theme of the story. Explain in your own words what this theme is and how it is developed in the story.

Vocabulary Lesson 10 Practice

Here is a practice document to use with vocabulary lesson 10.

Micro-Narrative Portfolio

Here is the product descriptor for the Micro-Narrative Portfolio

Understanding Allusions

J.D. Salinger's "A Perfect Day for Bananafish" makes a number of allusions that contribute to the tone and mood of the story.

-He references the German poet Rilke.
-He quotes a line from T.S. Eliot's "The Waste Land" - "mixing memory and desire" - when he and Sybil are discussing Sharon Lipshutz.
-He mentions the story Little Black Sambo.
-The name Sybil is also an allusion.  Look up what a sybil is and think about how this may connect with the story and Sybil's character.


Here is the first line from "The Waste Land" that contains the line Salinger alludes to.  Consider how this line may connect with the story as a whole.  Why do you think Salinger may have included it?  In what ways is the world in which Seymour lives a type of wasteland?

The Waste Land

I. THE BURIAL OF THE DEAD APRIL is the cruellest month, breeding
Lilacs out of the dead land, mixing
Memory and desire, stirring
Dull roots with spring rain.
Winter kept us warm, covering	5
Earth in forgetful snow, feeding
A little life with dried tubers.
Summer surprised us, coming over the Starnbergersee
With a shower of rain; we stopped in the colonnade,
And went on in sunlight, into the Hofgarten,	10
And drank coffee, and talked for an hour.
Bin gar keine Russin, stamm’ aus Litauen, echt deutsch.
And when we were children, staying at the archduke’s,
My cousin’s, he took me out on a sled,
And I was frightened. He said, Marie,	15
Marie, hold on tight. And down we went.
In the mountains, there you feel free.
I read, much of the night, and go south in the winter. Practicing with allusions:  Think of yourself as a character in a real life situation that you have been in in the past week.  Then, think of a song, poem, book, or movie that relates in some way to the situation you were in.  Try making an allusion by weaving in a line from this work in the same way that Salinger does in "Bananafish."