1. The Bell Jar–Read and annotate Chapters 11 and 12.

Keep in mind: Feminist criticism is concerned with “…the ways in which literature (and other cultural productions) reinforce or undermine the economic, political, social, and psychological oppression of women” (Tyson). This school of theory looks at how aspects of our culture are inherently patriarchal (male dominated) and “…this critique strives to expose the explicit and implicit misogyny in male writing about women” (Richter 1346).

Remember, Plath illustrates economic, social, and psychological oppression of Esther (and perhaps others). Where do we see this in the novel? How does she illustrate these dynamics? Over the next couple of periods, we will continue to discuss the novel through this lens. As we discuss, I am paying particular attention to who refers to the text during discussion.

The Bell Jar essay is just around the bend, so you should begin thinking about argumentative positions on the text. I strongly encourage you to consider how the feminist lens questions can give shape to a thesis.

2. Vocab Quiz next Monday (instead of Thursday). We will talk about expectations for the quiz.

3. Personal Vocab–At the end of this week, you should have a total of 20 words.

1. The Bell Jar–Read and annotate Chapters 9 and 10. Tomorrow, we will continue to discuss Buddy in connection with the weekend’s reading as well as a focus on Esther’s developing psychology. Focus your annotations on these subjects. Most of the period will be dedicated to a discussion of the novel!

2. Class Forum–10H, you must post your thesis and topic sentences by midnight tonight.

3. Class Forum–I love…no really, I LOVE spotify! Moving ahead, as we get deeper into the writing process gearing up for our first essay on The Bell Jar, we will have longer workshop/editing sessions in class. At times, I will play music as we work. So…I will build class playlists for these times. Post one song (song title and artist) that you would like to add to the playlist. Ideally, one of your favorite songs OF ALL TIME! This is totally optional so no worries if you do not post.

REMINDER: You must bring printed copies of all forum responses into class. 

1. The Bell Jar–Read and annotate Chapters 7-8.

2. Class Forum (Due 10/18 for 10H)–Post your final thesis and accompanying topic sentences onto the class forum. Again, bring a printed copy of this response into class.

3. Class Vocab–Print and familiarize yourself with the first class vocab list.

4. Confessional Poetry–The linked reading is quite brief, yet gives us a sense of the nature of confessional poetry. Monday, we will talk about our own confessional poems!

Requirements:

• Honest and Authentic
• Free verse is fine
• You must use stanzaic form
• Pay attention to sound as you write
• You must employ “painterly language” and literary devices (i.e. vivid imagery, metaphor, symbolism, motifs, etc)
• Write from the inside out

1. (Due 10/5 for 10H and 10/6 for 10B) The Bell Jar–read and annotate the first three chapters (focus your annotations on Esther’s characterization). As we move on, continued emphasis will be placed on referring to the text to illustrate your insight. In addition to characterization, allow your annotations to be guided by the following feminist criticism questions (You should keep the feminist lens in mind throughout the novel):

• How is the relationship between men and women portrayed?
• What are the power relationships between men and women (or characters assuming male/female roles)?
• How are male and female roles defined?
• What constitutes masculinity and femininity?
• How do characters embody these traits?
• Do characters take on traits from opposite genders? How so? How does this change others’ reactions to them?
• What does the work reveal about the operations (economically, politically, socially, or psychologically) of patriarchy?
• What does the work imply about the possibilities of sisterhood as a mode of resisting patriarchy?
• What does the work say about women’s creativity?

2. (Due 10/6 for 10H and 10/7 for 10B) The Bell Jar–Read and annotate Chapters 4-6 (that includes Chapter 6).

3. (Due 10/11) Class Forum–Post to the YOUR class forum.

4. (Due 10/11) Class Vocab–Post one of your vocab words to the thread on the class forum. Follow the proper format! At this point you should have at least a total of 10 vocab words in your personal vocab section. You do not have to add five words next week. Click the

5. Upcoming!  Confessional Poetry–The linked reading is quite brief, yet gives us a sense of the nature of confessional poetry. Soon, we will write our own!

Requirements:

• Honest and Authentic
• Free verse is fine
• You must use stanzaic form
• Pay attention to sound as you write
• You must employ “painterly language” and literary devices (i.e. vivid imagery, metaphor, symbolism, motifs, etc)
• Write from the inside out