1.  THE SUMMARY BODY PARAGRAPH
   • Includes a topic sentence that identifies how the character changes or deals with conflict over the course of the novel in order to support your claim/thesis.
   • Summarizes events
   • Connects summaries with time/order transitions (First, initially, Next, Then, Finally, After, Before, Previously, Later etc.).
   • Explain how the list of events connect to one another and explain the claim.
   • EXAMPLE (claim is “the power of love is worth the pain of suffering)
     • Jonas goes from accepting the ordered, emotionless life his Elders have created, to questioning it, to finally rejecting it all together.  At first, Jonas willingly takes his medication to curb his “Stirrings” accepting that is for the best that he not experience emotions.  Later, when the Giver explains that the Elders want to protect people from their emotions, Jonas begins to feel angry.  Finally, as he leaves the society, we see his total rejection of this ordered life.  To him, life is not worth living unless it includes love.  Although he is forced to endure pain, he is happy to have found what he was looking for: love.
2. THE EXTENDED EXAMPLE BODY PARAGRAPH
   1. Includes a topic sentence that includes a key turning point or a key internal event for the character in the story.  THIS EVENT MUST SUPPORT THE CLAIM.
   2. Needs to use exact words from the text (lift a key phrase, sentence or short passage)
   3. Briefly summarize the context for this moment in the story.
   4. Explain/interpret how the line is connected to the other details in the moment to illustrate the claim.
   5. Repeat key words from the topic sentence to connect and explain important moments.
   6. EXAMPLE (claim is “the power of love is worth the pain of suffering)
      • When Jonas flees on his bicycle to save Gabriel from “release” and himself from a solitary and burdened life, he is met with overwhelming obstacles.  He is exhausted from riding his bike every night and hiding Gabriel during the day.  He has little food and lacks proper clothing for the elements he is finding on his way.  Jonas is starvig, freezing and lonely, but none of this is as iportant ans his love for Gabriel.  “He wept because he was afraid now that he could not save Gabriel.  He no longer cared for himself” (173).  The physical and psychological hardships are less meaningful than the love Jonas feels.  The obstacles he faces as he takes flight on the bike are the price he pays for love.
3. CONNECTED EXAMPLES PARAGRAPH
   1. Topic sentence that connects 2-3 events/details from across the text that support the claim.  Look for moments that show how the characters change or the story shifts.
   2. Use exact words from the text.  (Lift a phrase or a sentence).
   3. Determine the relationship of the examples (comparison/contrast or cause/effect).  Use transitional words to connect the examples and/or indicate sequence of the events.
      1. Cause effect transitions include
         • Because, As a result, so, since…
      2. Comparison-contrast transtions include
         • On the other hand, but, however, both, each, either, neither.
   4. EXAMPLE (claim is “the power of love is worth the pain of suffering)
      • From the time Jonas first learns about love from the Giver to the end, where he looks onto a home where a family’s holiday is being clebrated,  Jonas’ attitude about love changes drastically.  Originally, Jonas likes the feeling of love, but reluctantly agrees that his Elders are probably right to keep people away from it.  “I like the feeling of love,” he confessed.  “Of course, he added quickly, ‘I do understand that it wouldn’t work very well.  And that it’s much better to be organized the way we are now.  I can see that it was a dangerous way to live'”(126).  However, by the end, he sees no reason for his society’s lack of love.  At the end of his journey, he recognizes a place “where families created and kept memores, where they clebrated love” (178).  He knows “with certainty and joy” they are waiting for Gabriel and him.  The need for love becomes obvious to Jonas as he learns to see its power

LEARNING TARGETS: by the end of class, you should be able to explain what elements should go into your thesis paragraph.

A Thesis paragraph/intro should include the following

• Text Reference: Title and author (blue)
• Plot Summary: brief review of what the story is about (green)
• Claim or Thesis (yellow)
• Evidence: how you will prove the claim. (red)

Copy the following to a google doc.  Highlight each element.

Order.  Rules. Structure. These words describe the futuristic society found in Lois Lowry’s novel The Giver. At first, we see that the society runs smoothly.  But, we soon learn that the people have little individuality or say in their own lives.  Members of the society willingly accept the jobs, spouses, and even children that the Elders select for them.  Adults take medication to suppress any emotions that might lead them to question their controlled existence.  Jonas, the main character has the unique role of receiving the memories of humanity.  He suffers pain that the others do not, but, has the unique role of receiving the memories of humanity.  Through a series of events,  he also learns about the beauty and power of love.  He proves that the power of love is worth the cost of pain and suffering.

LEARNING TARGETS:  As a result of today’s class you should be able to

• Explain each of the four essay prompt options IN YOUR OWN WORDS.
• Answer the following questions about the end of Gatsby(all are in your packet)
  • From Ch. 8/9:
    • What do the eyes of Dr. TJ Eckleburg symbolize to George Wilson? Does that have any symbolic meaning for the novel as a whole?
    • At the end of the book, Nick imagines what the continent must have looked like when first seen by Dutch sailors.  How does this contrast with the environments described in the Novel?
    • What does the green light symbolize at the end of the novel.
  • From the novel as a whole
    • Discuss Nick Carraway’s character.  What aspects of his character make him an effective narrator?  Why is first person an effective and appropriate way of telling this story?
    • Why do you think Fitzgerald titled the book “THE GREAT GATSBY”, especially given the novel’s ending?
    • How does Fitzgerald use the parties to make a satirical point about the 1920s?
    • Gatsby’s tragedy is that he chooses the wrong dream.  Has he been corrupted by society or is his choice evidence that he is a part of the corruption?
    • How do you see evidence of Fitzgerald’s personal experience with wealth and the wealthy played out through the novel? What does that say about money and class?  Does that still ring true today?
    • Examine the juxtaposition of characters.  How does this connect to the Midwest and the East coast?  What is Fitzgerald saying about the morality of the different culturess?

IN CLASS TODAY: Finished Gatsby Film

Here’s another neat resource

TODAY:  Independent Reading Day.

TASK: FINISH THE GREAT GATSBY BY MONDAY!

If you are already finished and have headphones (I have some you can borrow on the counter), I suggest watching this video series: Author John Green on the Great Gatsby.

Here is part 1.  I suspect you can find the other parts!

Learning Targets: By the end of class you should be able to

1. Discuss how Fitzgerald adds to his use of symbols: particularly the eyes of Dr. TJ, Cars and Weather.
2. Discuss what you think about the characters after Chapter 7 and if your feelings have changed.

In class today: we took and discussed a CHAPTER 7 QUIZ

Reviewed big thematic ideas in preparation for the end of the book.

1. Revisit Symbols
2. Think about role/meaning of characters
3. Fitzgerald’s feelings about the rich

Option One: Fitzgerald once wrote, “Show me a hero, and I will write you a tragedy.” How is Jay Gatsby a hero? How is The Great Gatsby a tragedy? In a well written essay, explore the many ways this comment plays out through the development of Gatsby and throughout the course of the novel.

• Define “tragedy” – in a literary sense
• Identify elements of the novel (plot & characters) that fulfill your chosen definition of tragedy
• Identify the novel’s theme AND analyze how this connects to theme (the overall purpose of the novel as a whole

Option Two: How does Fitzgerald’s use of literary devices help to develop the theme of the novel? In a well written essay, identify a theme and analyze how the author’s use of literary devices such as (irony, symbolism, setting, juxtaposition, point of view, characterization, etc…) are used to establish theme.

• Identify literary devices used:
  • Irony – what are some specific ironies of the novel AND how do these moments connect to theme?
  • Symbolism – identify some of the symbols Fitzgerald employs in the novel (symbols are literally present but also have some greater figurative significance attached to them as well). How are these symbols used to help develop the theme?
  • Setting – when and where does the story take place? How is the time period significant to theme? The various different locations?
  • Juxtaposition – look for things that are referenced in close context to one another to show CONTRAST (differences). How does Fitzgerald use the juxtaposition of these things (characters, settings, relationships, etc.) to establish theme?
  • Point of View – from what point of view is the story told? How does Fitzgerald’s choice of narration impact readers’ understanding of the text? How does this impact theme?
  • Characterization – examine the different characters who are pertinent to the plot as a whole. How does the development of these characters help develop the theme of the novel as a whole?

Option Three: Consider this quote from a letter of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s in 1938: “That was always my experience— a poor boy in a rich town; a poor boy in a rich boy’s school; a poor boy in a rich man’s club at Princeton…. However, I have never been able to forgive the rich for being rich, and it has colored my entire life and works.” In a well-written essay, paraphrase this quote and develop a response that clearly demonstrates how this attitude has “colored” The Great Gatsby.

• Relate this quote to a central theme or character.
• Use these questions to get yourself started: Who in the novel is a poor boy in a rich town? A rich boy’s school? A rich man’s club? Is the author assuming that the rich and poor are different? Is it possible to cross class boundaries and still fit in?
• Relate specific evidence from the text to the quote. Where in these chapters do issues of class, wealth, and privilege play a role? How is the concept developed from the beginning to the end of the book?
• How do Fitzgerald’s inability “to forgive the rich for being rich” play out in this particular novel? Look at characters, plot, and most importantly, theme.

Option Four: Magicians are often referred to as The Great …. (i.e. The Great Houdini). In a well-written essay, consider this aspect of the word great. Analyze how is the title The Great Gatsby an appropriate title? How is Gatsby great? Focus on more than Gatsby’s new identity, but you certainly should bring that in as a point.

• What does it mean to be “great”?
• How is Gatsby “great”?
• How does the title and Gatsby’s “greatness” help to bring about the theme?

Monday: Quiz Ch. 5 (weekend reading).  Then started reading Ch. 6 together.  LONG TERM ASSIGNMENT: READ 7 by THURSDAY.

Tuesday finished 6 in class.  Caught up with Movie Version

Wed.  finished catching up with movie version.  Reading time.

TODAY’S TASK

1. Update your character scouting reports (Assignment and Instructions on Classroom).  Now that you’ve put three chapters behind you since last week, what do you still agree with.  What would you add?  What would you change?
2. Homework for Monday
   1. Read. Ch. 5
   2. If you want to do a rewrite of your OM&M paper, due Monday.  See instructions/requirements on earlier Blog Post.

LEARNING TARGETS:  By the end of today, you should be able to

A) Make a guess as to how Gatsby made his fortune

B) Explain why Gatsby came to West Egg.

C) Compare/Contrast Gatsby’s personal/professional life.

In class: read Ch. 4 and discussed.

Watched Gatsby film–stopped after Chapter 3.  (So we’ve watched and read the same amount).