Class: Tuesday, March 29th

1. We are going to go over the Canterbury Tales presentation assignment today.
2. You are expected to have The Wife of Bath's Prologue done for Wednesday, March 30th/ Thursday, March 31st.  Start working on the Wife's Prologue study questions (found under links). Both the study questions for the Wife's Prologue and Tale will be due Monday, April 4th. 

Quiz over the Prologue and Tale will be on APRIL 4th.. 

The Canterbury Tales Presentation Assignment

In the next few weeks we will be preparing for presenting on The Canterbury Tales.
The assignment sheet is located here: The Canterbury Tales Presentation

The scoring guide is located here: Oral Presentation Scoring Guide

Please review the presentation links found on the left-hand margin.

REMEMBER- We will be finishing the Wife of Bath's Prologue and Tale this week AND starting Hamlet next week. You will need to manage your time, well.

Class today: March 18th

EXEMPLUM: 
A rhetorical device that is defined as a short tale, anecdote, or narrative used in literary pieces and speeches to explain the doctrine or emphasize a moral point. They are generally used in the form of fables, folk tales, or legends

http://literarydevices.net/exemplum/

EXEMPLUM (plural: exempla): The term exemplum can be used in two general ways. (1) In medieval literature, an exemplum is a short narrative or reference that serves to teach by way of example--especially a short story embedded in a longer sermon. An exemplum teaches by providing an exemplar, a model of behavior that the reader should imitate, or by providing an example of bad behavior that the reader should avoid. In medieval argumentation, a writer might use biblical stories and historical allusions as exempla. Often an entire medieval argument might consist of two individuals asserting exempla to prove their arguments, and the one who comes up with the most exempla is the default winner. We see samples of this type of debate in "The Wife of Bath's Prologue," in which Jankin provides long lists of wicked women to put the Wife in her place, and in "The Nun's Priest's Tale," in which Chauntecleer proves that dreams have significance by asserting a long list of cases in which oneiromantic visions predicted the future. (2) In classical rhetoric, an exemplum is simply any example that serves to prove a point whether the example is couched in story-form or not. In this sense, exemplawork in a variety of persuasive ways in addition to providing a model of behavior. They can, like medieval exempla, provide a model for a reader to imitate, they can demonstrate the reality of a problem, they can serve a pedagogical function by providing illustrative examples or they can demonstrate subtle differences in categorization, and so on, and so on. https://web.cn.edu/kwheeler/lit_terms_E.html

How does The Pardoner's Tale function as an exemplum? Why is Chaucer utilizing this genre for this specific Pilgrim? How does it work in conjunction with the apologia?  Provide examples of this genre and its purpose from the text.

Class today: March 16/17th

1. Finish the Pardoner's Prologue and Tale, if you have not done so already.
2. Read the Apologia notes found under the CT links. Take notes.
3. Add the apologia genre to the discussion notes of the first three genres discussed on Tuesday (Estate satire, fabliaux, frame narrative). Make sure these notes are complete from Tuesday on the first three genres. As you add in apologia, examine the Pardoner's Prologue and Tale. 
4. For Friday, you need to read the seminal article by George Kittredge on the Pardoner and his tale. (Found under CT links). Take thorough notes. This will help you process the Tale and Prologue in a larger analytical argument.
5. Start work on the Pardoner's Prologue and Tale discussion questions (hand out in class). These are due March 29th at the beginning of class.

You will be receiving your Canterbury Tales presentation assignment on Friday, March 18th. Presentations will take place on April 13th, 14th, and 15th.

FYI- You will receive Hamlet on April 4th.

Class today: March 15th

We are examining three major genres found in The Canterbury Tales (so far). 
1. Estate Satire
2. Frame
3. Fabliaux

Examining "The Miller's Tale" and "The General Prologue", we are going to look at how these genres are utilized by Chaucer. How does he use each type of genre to reveal more about his characters and overall purpose for writing the Tales? In the "MT", how does the pilgrim telling the tale contrast from the style of genre that his tale is delivered? What is Chaucer saying with this choice. When examining the individual Tales, you need to be able to differentiate the layers of Chaucer the Author, Chaucer the Pilgrim, the individual Pilgrim, and the characters within the tale told by the pilgrim.

In your notes, you will be examining how we see each genre structure in the Tales. 

Due: March 15th

1. You will need to read and take notes on the Harvard Fabliaux Notes link found under The Canterbury Tales links. We will be examining the genre of the "Miller's Tale", as we did with the General Prologue, as an estate satire.

2. Read and take notes on Robert Lewis' "The English Fabliau Tradition and the Miller's Tale" for class on Tuesday. Be ready to discuss your findings. This essay is also found under the CT links.

REMINDERS for this week:

• You will be turning in your film questions from The Knight's Tale on Tuesday. 
• The Pardoner's Tale is due on Wednesday/Thursday. 
• You need to sign up to present the M.E. 18 lines of the GP on Friday. Sign ups are found on Google Classroom. 
• Presentation of the first 18 lines will be at the beginning of class on Friday. 

A reminder going into 4th Quarter

Michael Phelps- Rule Yourself












It's what you do in the dark that puts you in the light.

Class: March 8th

1. Review the three class periods of rankings of the pilgrims. What do you notice? What similarities? What glaring differences? What do you personally disagree with in the rankings? What errors were made and why do you think so? You will put your reflections on Google Classroom. This is due by the end of the hour.

2. You will need to read "The Literary Form of the Prologue to 'The Canterbury Tales'". You will be taking notes on a Google Document. Pay attention to what is the major argument/thesis? What evidence is significant? What details are significant? What information is new and noteworthy? Your notes will be an "outlining" of the article. You will submit your notes to Google Classroom when you are done. This is due by your next class period

The Literary Form of the Prologue- Essay

3. Read "The Miller's Tale". Due Friday.

Class Pilgrims Rankings

1st Hour

3rd Hour

6th Hour

Make up Beowulf Exams

We will make up the Beowulf exam on Thursday, March 10th during 7th hour, or during class on Wednesday, March 9th or Thursday, March 10th. If you plan on taking it during class, you will be responsible for making up the work missed during this time.

Due: Monday, March 7th

Your Google Slide presentations on the General Prologue moral/ethical ranking of the pilgrims is due by class time on Monday. Upload presentations to Google Classroom.

Due: March 2nd and March 3rd

By class on Wednesday, make sure that you have gone through the pilgrims in the General Prologue. Examine their characterization by Chaucer. What significant details does he include? How does the type of details change depending on the specific pilgrim? Why are some names mentioned, and some not? What do you think the rationale is in creating them in this manner?

Read through the handout on the GP as an Estate Satire... there are some significant questions that can aid in your examination of the pilgrims...

You will also be thinking about the use of the Estate Satire... what are the goals of this structure? What are the benefits for Chaucer's purpose?  How do the pilgrims aid in this?

Think about the following questions:
1. To what Estate does each pilgrim belong?
2. What physical descriptions does Chaucer include? Why do some have physical descriptions, and some are limited?
3. What clothing description does Chaucer provide? Clothing is important to Chaucer. Study it carefully.
4. What tone does Chaucer take with each Pilgrim?
5. How does the Pilgrim play to archetype? Against it?

Extra Credit opportunity: Recite by memory the first 18 lines of the General Prologue... IN MIDDLE ENGLISH. The M.E. form and the pronunciation can be found under "CT links". You will also find a Youtube video with the audio of the pronunciation. This is totally doable. If you can sing and 1D song or Taylor Swift song by heart... 18 lines is cake. 

Presentation of the 18 lines will be during class on MARCH 18th. Let me know if you are going to do it. Serious attempts, only.