Romance Genre Study Questions And Links

Romance genre due 4/25/12.  It will be an essay test.

Click the book titles to upload free e-books.

9GT Romance 2009-2010

Romance:

1. Wild Irish Girl by Sidney Owenson, Lady Morgan I. (18th. c. Ireland)

2. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen E. (18th c. England)

3. Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte E. (ditto)

4. Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen E. (ditto)

1. Wild Irish Girl by Sidney Owenson, Lady Morgan I. (18th. c. Ireland)  (read the book online at http://www.sydneyowenson.com/TheWildIrishGirl.html )

http://www.irishhistorylinks.net/Irish_History_Timeline.html (read Ulster, Cromwell, and 18th Cent. timelines)

http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/state/nations/medieval_ireland_01.shtml

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sydney_Owenson

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nationalism (Intro., principles, ethnic, romantic, cultural)

1. Why does the novel end with a letter from Horatio's father rather than one from him?

2. The little we know about Horatio's London life before the story begins centres around his disgust with women: see e.g. pp.30-3, 67,82-4, 119, 165-7. What is the significance of this opposition between

Glorvina and metropolitan women of his former life? See especially the dream of the Gorgon at pp.61-2: what is going on here?  What makes him change his mind?  Is he sexist?  Does he become more modern in his thoughts or is it just hormones?

3. Is this a romance or is it more of a political novel (let my people go/viva Ireland)?  Which is the “real” story?

4. Why does the author have G. almost marry the dad at the end?  What’s the point of that?

5. Is Glorvina a good role model for girls at the time?

2. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen E. (18th c. England)

http://www.austen.com/costumes/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Regency_England

http://www.pemberley.com/janeinfo/pridprej.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nationalism (Intro., principles, ethnic, romantic, cultural)

http://janeaustensworld.wordpress.com/social-customs-and-the-regency-world/

1. How does this novel portray social class?  Why is it important for the girls to marry the “right” kind of men?  Why is it okay for an upper class man to marry a wealthy middle-class woman but not for a middle-class woman to marry a working class man?  Is this a type of prejudice?  Are there other types of prejudice in the story?

2.  According to Austen, what qualities should the idealwoman have?  The ideal man?

3. How is this story nationalist?  How is it pro-England?  What other parts of the world are looked down on in this book?

3. Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte E. (ditto)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emily_Bronte

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Regency_England

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wuthering_Heights

1. is the reader supposed to like any of the characters?  If so, which ones?  Why do Catherine E. and Heathcliff have to be so easy to hate in order for the plot to work?  Do you think their marriage would’ve been a happy one if they had married?

2. What is this books saying about race and class?  Heathcliff is probably a gypsy child, and certainly is not of the same socio-economic status as the Earnshaws and Lintons.  Is Bronte supporting the idea that he is nasty because of what he is by nature, or is she showing that how he is treated makes him nasty and evil?

3.  What is Bronte saying about the role of women?  How is a woman supposed to act?  Are any of these characters supposed to be good role models for young female readers?

4. Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen E. (ditto)

http://janeaustensworld.wordpress.com/social-customs-and-the-regency-world/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Regency_England

http://www.pemberley.com/janeinfo/pridprej.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parody (Intro)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Northanger_Abbey

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gothic_novel

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Mysteries_of_Udolpho

1. How is this book a parody?  What does it make fun of?

2. What is frustrating about Catherine?  How is she trapped by social manners and views of women at the time?  (Think of how modern girls would respond in her situations.)  What parts of the book have direct parallels in current times?

3. Does Austen want you to like Catherine or not?  How can you tell?

5. kind doesn’t?  Will Mary’s work or not?

Project Choices For Historical Fiction

1. Write an Elizabethan or Petrarchan sonnet based on the views/opinions of a MINOR character in the book. Have her/him

narrate the poem and comment on part or all of what has happened.

2. Design a brochure for a themed hotel room based on this book. Describe and draw/map out the room, give a price. Be

sure to use color. See http://www.anniversaryinn.com/ for some examples of themed hotel rooms.

Information On Concurrent Enrollment, Advanced Placement, And International Baccalaureate Programs

It will soon be time for 9th graders to register for high school.  Several important decisions are ahead of you right now.  Besides choosing which high school to attend and which classes to take, you must also decide among various special programs offered by the different schools.
As promised, here are some basics about three main types of programs offered at different schools.

Cyprus offers several concurrent enrollment classes through the Salt Lake Community College.  Basically, this means that you can take one course for both high school and community college credit at the same time, working toward your high school diploma AND your associate's degree simultaneously.  Also, concurrent enrollment classes should be more challenging than regular high school classes (although I am not sure if they are more challenging than honors or AP classes).
Here are some advantages to CE classes as listed at the SLCC website.

Why Take Concurrent Enrollment?

• Students get a head start on college courses.
• Duplication of classes is reduced, shortening the time necessary to earn a college degree.
• Students can develop study habits and critical thinking skills essential to college success.
• Courses facilitate transition from high school to college.
• Parents and students save money.New challenges are added to the senior year.
• Undecided students can determine if college is right for them.

As always, there are some disadvantages, too.  The greatest disadvantage is that the credit is only for the community college and MAY NOT be transferrable to other community colleges or to some universities.  (I have had several former students bewail the lack of transfer credits to me.)  Also, as cool as it is to earn an associate's degree, one must remember that it is not the same as a bachelor's degree.
Really, it depends on what you want.  Planning on being an electrician?  This may be exactly what you need.  (Check with your counselor.)  Going into international business?  This might not be the best for you.  (Again, check with your counselor.)

Advanced Placement courses are offered in most local high schools, although not every course is offered in every school.  AP classes are basically what would be covered in one semester of a university undergrad course ( i.e. a student working on her/his BA or BS degree) stretched over a full year of high school.  Taking the AP course does not automatically give the student university credit; the student must take a test at the end of the year and receive a score.  Most local universities accept scores of 3, 4, and 5 for university credit.  Some community colleges or other small colleges will accept a 2.  Large, famous, prestigious universities often will not accept below a 5 for credit.  Some universities in the UK will even accept these test scores for credit!  (Not all of Oxford, though.)
Advantages of taking AP classes are myriad.  The student is challenged with university level work, has the chance to earn credit that is widely accepted and transferrable, with the credit counting toward a BA or a BS, not just a 2-year degree.  Many subjects are offered, and a student may choose one or several.  (One of my former students carried 7 AP classes her senior year at Cyprus.)  It is even possible to work out a curriculum of self-study and take a test not offered at one's own school, although this way does not give high school credit to the student.  (My nephew worked out his own studying for AP Asian history two years ago and earned a 5 on the exam, although he had to take the test at a high school other than his own.)  It is possible with AP credits to take up to 3 semesters off of one's university years by doing the courses in high school.
Naturally, there are some disadvantages as well.  One is cost.  EACH test costs around $90 now.  (I don't know the exact cost, but I know these aren't cheap.)  However, this is still MUCH cheaper than paying for university credit hours.  Another disadvantage for high level learners is that there is no screening process to get into an AP class.  Anyone can take them, and that can mean that a serious student may be surrounded by not-so-serious ones.
Here are some websites where you can learn more about AP classes: wikipedia, Good Schools' Guide International, and, of course, the AP website itself.

The International Baccalaureate program is a third option.  It is currently offered at Skyline High School in Granite District and at Highland and West in Salt Lake District.
The IB program was created a few decades ago to "provide an internationally acceptable university admissions qualification suitable for the growing mobile population of young people whose parents were part of the world of diplomacy, international and multi-national organizations." (click here for citation)  In other words, diplomats' kids traveling from country to country needed (and still need) some kind of transfer credits as they went from school to school.  It wasn't long, however, before someone realized that kids who stayed in one country for all their schooling could benefit from this program as well.  The idea of IB is that it is rigorous, accepted in many universities world-wide (not just in the US), and that it is international.  So, if a student takes AP courses for English credits, s/he's likely to study almost entirely British and American literature.  The IB student may study authors from the US and the UK, but also from Columbia or Korea or South Africa or Germany.  (I have neighbors who are in the IB program at West and two former students in the Skyline IB program.  I've seen their reading lists, which are EXTENSIVE and international in scope.)
The advantages of IB are numerous: rigor in the curriculum, classmates who are serious about their studies, world-wide acceptance of the curricula, and preparation for work in a global society.
The disadvantages are that there are no schools near Magna that have this program and there has been a fair amount of rumor and bad press against IB program after Utah Sen. Margaret Dayton from Orem in 2008 equated the global nature of IB with being somehow unpatriotic and called it "anti-American." (Here's your citation.)
Your best bet is, of course, to decide for yourself.  If you are planning to live, work, or study outside the US, you should probably have a serious look at IB (although, there were no IB programs in Utah when I was in high school, but that didn't stop me from doing my MSc degree outside the US).  Here are some sites where you can learn more: wikipedia and  the IB website.


Also, keep in mind that, depending on your high school, it is possible to mix and match courses from 2 or even 3 of these programs as you choose classes to help you on your educational and career paths.

There you go, folks.  I hope this helps you (as it took me over an hour to compile and type all this for you!).

Project For The Drama Unit -- Due January 25, 2012

Here are your options for the drama project, which is due on Jan. 25.



Drama (see book list for titles)
1. Design a theme park based on the play.  Draw a map and include descriptions of all rides and attractions (including food courts, gardens, etc.).  Don’t forget location and prices.  See http://www.universalorlando.com/harrypotter/ to get some ideas if you need any.  (Or take a trip to Disneyland...)
2. Compose an original song based on the play and perform it either in advisory or on a DVD to hand in.  The song may or may not have lyrics.  Include a written explanation of the themes in your piece and all symbolism.  For an example, find recordings of Mendolssohn’s “Wedding March From A Midsummer Night’s Dream”  (try http://cantorion.org/music/641/A_Midsummer_Night%27s_Dream_Wedding_March) .
3. Use a digital camera to photograph your family/friends/neighbors/unsuspecting victims posed in scenes from the play (don’t foget costumes and settings!).  Then create a power point (with a soundtrack and descriptions or captions) to show during advisory.  You must include at least 10 photos, including the beginning and the ending of the play. For photo ideas, have a look at: http://www.bard.org/news/photos.html