Hey everyone,
I was wondering how much of Beowulf we should be reading by thursday. Half the book, or the first 100 lines; theres a pretty big difference. I'm sure some of you are having the same dilemma so comment so we could discuss it.
JORDAN!!

Minutes of the Meeting

We got our essays back and continued the Heroic Archetype lecture. Here are the notes, mind you I'm not the best note-taker, so you may want to stay after if you were absent.

Mythic Hero #6
-there is a guide
-once hero passes some sort of test or trial, the guide shows up
--usually revered but unlikely person
-things will be offered ambiguously, meaning not spelled out
-hero will not be warned of danger, obviously
-hero must use common sense and knowledge to grow and mature
-guides usually have some unknown connection to opposing forces
-guides tend to have great power, but they lack power to fight in their old age (guides are commonly older, more frail people)

Mythic Hero #7
-there is a "descent into darkness"

EXAMPLES OF DESCENTS:
Finn deciding to rescue Jim and risk going to hell
Pinocchio in the belly of the whale
Holden Caulfield coming out of the mummy crypt in the museum

--is always figurative, but can be literal
---always preys on fears of the hero
---hero must face this conflict alone
-victory of hero is symbolized by a return to the light, cleansed and reborn in a sense
-heroes don't tend to destroy evil, evil destroys evil
ie: Vader kills the emperor, not Luke
ie: Gollum throws the ring into the fires of Mt. Doom, not Frodo

Mythic Hero #8
-something is different about the hero after the journey
--hero possesses some sort of new wisdom or maturity that was not part of the original quest
--other characters don't fully understand new knowledge or that the original "goal" was just a symbol

Mythic Hero #9
-Hero suffers physical wound
-hero may be wounded or killed to achieve goal
ie: Beowulf
-suffering is not as important as new knowledge or greatness
ie: 300

Mythic Hero #10
-the new knowledge of the hero is brought back to the hero's community somehow so that the hero, if he or she survives, becomes the guide of the next generation's hero

That's about it. Like I said, not the best note-taker, so you may want to stay after and get some help from Mr. Lazarow with this stuff.

~Ken

Minutes for September 26

Mr. Lazarow was absent on friday so we continued the work we received on Thursday. The best thing to do would to continue reading Beowolf and answer the questions.
If you were also absent on Thursday the substitute told us if we knew all of the correct answers to the entire packet we would gaurentee an Ace on the final.
Sorry Mickey

Sean H

What did we do Friday?

Hey, does anyone know what we did on Friday?

Please tell me...

Mickey Gill

minutes from 9/25

today mr. laz was at the dodge poetry festival, so we had a very attractive, just kidding, substitute. he handed out a worksheet on Beowulf and said that if we complete the worksheet then we will pass the final because everything on that is on the final.

i think it would be a good idea for everyone to complete the worksheet, or at least review it with your book so you can get a good idea of what is on the test! but take your time, since we only just started reading the poem. maybe fill it out as you go along? whatever floats your boat.

so anyways, get the worksheet done! it seems important and is a good opportunity.

ellen hassinger

ideas about hero's more common today

today in class we talked about how mr. laz was saying that his pictures and examples of heros were a little outdated, soo im just wondering if you guys thought of any "modern" heros?

ellen hassinger

Heroism

As for heroism, I agree with Jordan partially. I do believe it's all about a person's perception. My heroes will be different then others because of the way I see the world or certain ideals. And that idea goes for everyone. I'm not personally going to call somebody a hero for being brave or courageous, but someone else may. 

-Ryan Grosso

Class Notes 9/24

Today we talked more about Archetypes. Mr. Lazarow presented a slideshow revealing the Myth Rules. We got through five of them and he gave us film examples of all of them such as Luke Skywalker, Frodo, and Angel.

He also talked about how hero stories unfold and how they're all the same. They usually have a friend or companion with them who eventually dies or is casted off so that the hero can make the ultimate decision. He also told us that the hero is lead into their quest, but at first rejects it. Something always happens that makes the hero start his journey. Finally, a hero always has a guide and it's usually an odd person or someone who is rejected in social life like Yoda, Ben Kanobi, or Gandolf who guides the hero or at times trains the hero into becoming stronger, faster, or at times wiser.

-Ryan Grosso

Class Minutes: 9/23

Today in class we defined what heroism meant. We then talked about archetype. That's really all we did in class today.

-Mickey Gill

Heroism

I'm too lazy to crank out an elaborate essay of any sort, so I'll just say what I have to say. A hero has evolved from a noble warrior waving his sword about in the name of justice, to a person that does something without expecting anything in return, to a celebrity that we admire, back to that nice guy that does stuff for free, and... Well, it can be anything. Anyway, what I found that all these hero frames have in common is that they can all be identified as some sort of ideal role model. That brings me to the question, if heroism is simply being a good role model, then what is a good role model? Just a thought...

Nobody seems to be posting anything, so I thought I could spark something up for all you guys.

~Ken

Heroism

A hero is defined by dictionary.com as a man of distinguished courage or ability, admired for his brave deeds and noble qualities, but i don't necessarily agree with that. I do not agree with the fact that a hero has to have noble qualities. As a culture i think we've got past the all admirable, all noble heroes and have really started to accept the darker heroes. I know in movies I love to see the unlikely hero take the spotlight. Heroes can be defined differently; it's all about how you perceive them.
-Jordan Levy

Class Minutes: 9/22/08

Most of today was spent taking our quiz on the Toulmin Model of Argument. However, before we left for the day, Mr. Lazarow said to answer both on paper, and here on the blog in preparation for discussion the following question:
"How do we define heroism?"

--Celia Coltre

Heriosm

Hey guys, I sort of forget what the question was that Mr. Lazarow wanted us to think about for class tomorrow. Was it just what we think about heroism or was there more to it? I have stuff to say, I just don't want to screw up the question. haha

CLASS NOTES 9/19/08

-Today we went over the homework example Mr. Lazarow gave us.
-He also taught us that reservation is accepting fact's about the opposing view point but saying that it's wrong and giving a reason to crush that issue.
-Rebuttal cannot happen without counter arguments.
-When the warrant does not have an impact on the audience you are trying to reach use backing to back up the warrant to further explain your issue and convince the audience.
-Mr. Lazarow also told us that we could make index cards with the Toulmen Model on it because we will be having a quiz about the model on Monday.

-Piero Benites

Class Notes 9/17/08

-Today we reviewed Beowulf in class, and Mr. Lazarow briefly went over the benefits of the Seamus Heaney version that we might buy for ourselves instead of the book given in class (Introduction to Beowulf on p. 29).
-Mr. Lazarow then went ovre the way that he wants us to read Beowulf, to discuss it among ourselves, discuss inon the blog and utilize outside resources to better understand.
-stoll@rowan.edu "Literary Biographies" for the study of Rowan, may submit essay to research study.
-We then briefly discused the assignment turned in today with things like utilizing the Toulmin mode of argument, keeping the essay near 650 words, "thinking about thinking," and anything for our audience.
-We discussed how the attitude of approach affected the paper we wrote; if we set ourselves up for error, we may end up making those errors.
ERROR IS A REALITY

-Unlike other forms of writing, academic arguments include discussions of objective and counter-arguments.
-Take place where opposite thinking exists.
-Writers must be aware of what other people (audience) think.
-It is key for building, refining, interpreting arguments.
-It's often good to point out counter-arguments
-Demonstrates that author is aware of opposing views (seems more fair)
-Shows that the writer is thinking about how the audience responds.
-Spreads point of view to others.
- When a writer contrasts their position, they clarify their arguing position.

DEALING WITH COUNTER-ARGUMENTS
-Table 1: Strategic concession
-Accept some of the arguing position's correctness, but reject it overall

-Chris Balch

Class Minutes: 09/16/08

Mr. Lazarow started class today by answering any questions we had regarding our essays. He went over that the point of the essay is to convey to him how we look at ourselves as writers/readers. Mr. Lazarow then deliberately did not give an example because he does not want to set any grounds for less-individualistic responses. (Basically- he does not want every essay turned in to somewhat resemble the example he gave.)
THIS ESSAY IS DUE TOMORROW.
After he finished with our questions (there were few), Mr, Lazarow told us that we will start reading Beowulf tomorrow! He also reminded us that we should start blogging as soon as we finish our first reading assignment because it is not likely we will be interpreting everything correctly. So tomorrow night, start asking questions! Also note that Mr. Lazarow has seen all the movies and repeatedly stated that watching them is not a SUFFICIENT replacement for reading the poem. He also suggested that we go out and buy the book in order to take our own notes and mark our pages. This will later prove to be a better way to study - but it is NOT a requirement. For those buying it; the title is Beowulf and the version we are reading is translated by Seamus Heaney. It's relatively easy to find and you can probably buy it at Barnes and Noble.

We then continued to go over the Toulmin Model PowerPoint. The slide we started on was going over the dangers of using Causality as a main argumentative strategy (GASCAP.) Mr. Lazarow briefly went over the meaning of ETHOS again. ETHOS is someone's value or authority (credibility.) We continued to go through the rest of the strategies; authority and principle. We then moved on to the second triad! This consists of the backing, qualifier, and rebuttal.

The backing is not always necessary, but it provides justification for the warrant. So if your warrant is questionable then you probably should have backing. Backing is just more evidence to support the type of reasoning you have employed. Next is the qualifier. This states the probability attached to claim (how sure the arguer is about correctness.) It establishes conditionality when necessary. Reservation allows the arguer to say claim is incorrect in one aspect or another

EXAMPLE:

Claim: Hearing aids do no harm to ears.

Claim with reservation: Unless there is evidence to the contrary, hearing aids do no harm to ears.

We started on the rebuttal which acknowledges exceptions or limitations to the argument. It admits to times when the argument would not hold. And this completed the class period.

Good luck on your essays everyone!

-Emily Wallace

September 15th Class Notes.

Today, Mr. Lazarow began class with the Power Point on the Toulmin Model of Arguement. We first started talking about Examples. Examples come in 3 kinds of forms; Real World Examples, Hypothedical examples, and personal experiences. We then went on to talk about "True" facts. He said that evidence is based on assumptions, so therefore, can it be entirely true? Luckily the Toulmin model says that nothing has to be 100% accurate. We then proceded to Grounds, the evidence to support a claim.

This brought us to the WARRENT. a warrent is a way to link the grounds to the claim. The warrent is also not written it is implicit or unstated. The warrent is also a way to establish "trust" or common ground from the author to the audience. He told us that there are 6 main strategies for warrents, Generalizations, Analogies, Signs, Casuality, Authority, and Principle, or GASCAP.

We ended class on Casuality and I presume we will pick up with the Power Point on Authority tomorrow.
Courtesy of Mike Rudolph

Class Minutes 9/12

Here's the class minutes from Friday, September 12

He opened up the class by telling us that we will be working on are college essays soon. Then he said that if you have anything you're working on outside of class to bring it in if you want him to look it over for you. He will critcize your work if it is not good, so for you sensitive people out there don't forget your tissues.

We also continued the notes for the Toulman Model of Argument. He went over Grounds and the common types of support for your argument which are Facts, Opinions, and Examples. Facts are vivid, identifiable and verifiable information, of more or less objective nature. Kinds of facts are detailed reports of specific events, statistics, physical evidence and experimental results. Opinions are interpretations or reasoning of relevant factual information. Examples are illustrations of facts and opinions.

Then he started talking about referring an external, verifiable source, the arguer presents factual info in support of basic contention. Next he said that opinions do have a role in arguments, they give interpretations about facts. Where you use your opinion depends on where you are in the argument. He then said nothing stays a fact and nothing is a 100% all the time. Facts and opinions change all the time and opinions can't exist without facts. Finally he said that opinion has to be relied upon, the true challenge is choosing between the valid and invalid opinions. You can't just listen to just any opinion.
-Jimmy Rhoads

Toulmin Model of Argument

After discussing the Toulmin model of argument in class today I wanted to know how exactly he formulated this six-part formula to argument, and ultimately to be used in our class, writing a better essay. As Mr. Laz mentioned, Toulmin was both a philosopher and a logisist so he wanted to question the philosophical aspect of our current writing: one main thing that I pulled up was that Toulmin provided an alternative approach to the knowledge and truth that we often involuntarily accept. He makes a clear distinction between being reasonable and being rational often stating, as we may not have discussed, that there are two different kinds of people-the rational people-who are persuaded by solid logic and fact, and the reasonable people-who are often persuaded by negotiation-just wondering what you guys thought about this

-Chris Balch

9/11/08 minutes

Here are the minutes from Thurs. September 11, 2008.

In the first few minutes of class, a question was asked about the upcoming writing assignment and whether or not Mr. Lazarow can check our rough drafts before they are due. He said he will take the rough drafts and that he usually can check them over within a school day, depending on his workload. We were also shown more proof that this course will help us in college with a recent email from a student in college.

After that, we started the major lesson for the next few days, a 60 slide power point titled "The Toulmin Model of Argument: The Path to Writing Better Essays". The overall idea of the powerpoint is to teach us the "Toulmin Model of Argument" for when we write essays, instead of the old, basic 5 paragraph essay formula. A few key points in the presentation made about essay writing was that the thesis was the foundation to a good essay and that an essay could not be plugged into a simple formula. Instead it is necessary to understand the mechanics of an essay and how they work. Another point made was that all speech is essentially persuasive, therefore the Toulmin model is constructed for the reality of argumentation.

In the next part of the powerpoint we got into the details of the Toulmin model, specifically the 6 parts of the model: Claim, Grounds, Warrants, Backing, Qualifiers, and Rebuttals. Then we began to talk more specifically about the first triad-Claims, Grounds, and Warrants. Then we got into detail about The Claim part of the Toulmin model. The Claim answers the question "What is the author trying to prove? What is the bottom line?" and is, to put it simply, the statement being argued. Next the three types of Claims were discussed: Claims of Fact, Claims of Judgement/Value, and Claims of Policy. Nearing the end of class we began to talk about The Grounds part of the Toulmin model. We defined The Grounds as the basis of real persuasion- the evidence, reasons, and opinions. I think I covered basically everything that we talked about today.

Andrew Burke

Response to Text Messaging and Instant Messaging Post

Jordan, I think you bring up a very interesting discussion. I know for many of people in school, including myself, constantly have to remind themselves to write properly in school after texting and instant messaging in abbreviations. I used to have a lot of difficulty when I would right an essay because I would do things like using numbers instead words. It would take me forever to write an essay because I was constantly having to delete words because I would abbreviate them. Now, I've learned to text and instant message with proper English. It makes the transition from texting to writing an essay pretty easy. However, I do agree that texting, emailing, and instant messaging help get teens' ideas flowing more quickly. I can write an in-class essay pretty easily because the ideas come to me because I spend a fair amount of time writing in texts and instant messages. This was a really interesting topic to bring up and it really got me thinking about it.
Sarah Mercer

Does the internet and texting affect our writing?

Hey guys!
While our class was discussing our recent writing assignment Mr.Laz mentioned one of the purposes for writing it was for research. From what i recall, it was being done by a professor at Rowan and was focused on students attitudes towards writing. This got me thinking about students(including myself) in our school that moan and groan everytime a writing assignment is assigned. So I went online to investigate a little and try to find out some information for myself. Obviously I didn't find any statistics about the number of students that hate writing, but i did find some interesting stuff.

I found an article online called "Instant Messaging: Friend or Foe of Student Writing?" that explored the effects of instant messaging and texting on students writing. The aticle itself had pro and con arguments, but there were a few that caught my attention:

PRO- "Instant messaging and e-mail are creating a new generation of teenage writers, accustomed to translating their every thought and feeling into words. They write more than any generation has since the days when telephone calls were rare and the mailman rounded more than once a day" (Helderman, 2003).

CON-"This was also a problem for Carl Sharp, whose 15-year old son's summer job application read 'i want 2 b a counselor because i love 2 work with kids"' (Friess, 2003)

I agree with the author when she mentions that students need to learn to when to use the appropraite language. It would pretty awkward if i walked into a college interview and said, "Yo whatup bro." I would probably get an "X" through my name very quickly. I would have to say I think that instant messaging and texting gets students writing more and and gets their ideas out of there head and onto paper much easier, BUT while it maybe be easier to get out their ideas they need to know how to refine and edit those ideas into appropraite language for professional settings.

Just a Thought.

-Jordan Levy

Literary Narrative Essay

Does anyone have any good ideas for how to start the conclusion for an essay like the one Laz assigned us today? I always get stuck on the intro and conclusion and I never know what to talk about...mainly for the conclusion. Usually I write what I'm going to be talking about in my intro.

--John Leskow

September 10, 2008 Class Minutes

Hey everybody! Here's the Wednesday 9/10/08 class minutes.

The first thing we discussed in class today was this blog and the purpose of the blog. We are supposed to use this blog to discuss and ask questions about any text we are reading. Also, we can use the blog to ask our peers about any of our writing. Mr. Lazarow also explained that we will take turns writing the class minutes each day. Tomorrow is Jimmy's turn (just a reminder!).
The next thing we discussed in class was the new writing assignment. It is to be a personal narrative about the experiences that shaped us as readers/writers. This narrative is supposed not only tell the reader how we became the readers/writers we are today, but also for us to learn how we became those readers/writers. The handout we received in class has information about the different ways to organize the essay. Also, there are questions that we can ask ourselves that would be helpful when getting started. Mr. Lazarow also made it very clear that we should not just use the answers to the questions as our essay, but that we should pick out the questions most important to us. There is no specific audience that we have to write and we can choose who our audience is. However, once we choose our audience, we should use that information when we decide how to write the essay that would give the audience the best understanding of us as readers/writers. The essay should be in standard MLA format with 1" margins, 12 pt. font, double-spaced, and the font should be clean and legible. The essay should be 650 words or right around it, and is due next Wednesday 9/17/08.
Lastly, Mr. Lazarow discussed what we will be doing over the next several days. We learned today that there is no 5 paragraph essay. Over the past 5 years, we have been learning how to write based on the same 5 paragraph, topic sentence model. We should be using the form of essay writing to fit our goals and only using the number of paragraphs that we need to use. Over the next several days, we will learn a new way to get started when writing an essay.
I think that is the basic idea of what we discussed today. See you tomorrow!
Sarah Mercer

Welcome to your English IV.11 class blog!

Welcome, MHS Class of '09! It's a great pleasure to welcome you to your home on the web--your class blogsite.

Ever since we first began using online bulletin boards as a way to converse about literature and writing (all the way back in the early '90's, and please don't feel the need to comment about how long ago that was, or how old you were then), it was always my intent to do the same in my classroom. Admittedly, it took a little longer than I thought, but here we are.

I have put this space together for the benefit of your academic pursuit--to expand your ability to converse about the texts we will be discussing. This space is essentially yours to post relevant--and presumably intelligent--comments and questions regarding our readings. At the moment, that will shortly consist of Seamus Heaney's translation of the Old English epic poem "Beowulf." No doubt you have many question to pose--you can be certain that I did, when I first read it.

Please note the following rules:

1. ONLY students enrolled in MHS English IV Pd. 3 may post comments here. This is not a discussion board intended for the world--or any other MHS students, including my other senior class. They have their own blogsite--and you are similarly not welcome there.

2. Anyone who posts must do so with their REAL first name. Any posts found to be made using names other than real (for example, posting using another student's name) will be dealt with according to school disciplinary policy. And what's more, you won't receive due credit if your name isn't linked with your post (that happens often--don't forget to sign your name!).

3. All discussion will proceed in respectful, scholarly manner.

4. To ensure that #3 is obeyed, I will personally monitor all discussions on this blog. It's not that I don't trust teenagers to behave in responsible ways. . .oh, wait--yes, it is. I don't. (Don't take it personally.)

5. Do not expect me to comment on every posting, even if a question has been directly asked of me by one of you. I am much more interested to see whether your fellow scholars are capable of suggesting viable answers and explanations. I reserve the right to comment when and if I deem it necessary. Frequently, I will allow a discussion thread to continue unabated, in order to bring that thread into class for further investigation.

6. From time to time, if the mood strikes me, I may make a comment or pose a question, or refer you to some additional reading I've discovered. Just because I've done that does not make you obligated to respond. . .at least, not yet.

7. Just in case you haven't been told this yet--or you have, but forgot--please remember: this course is designed to prepare you for the traditional Composition class required of all college freshmen. Reconcile yourself to the gravity of that reality right now, and be prepared to handle the work that will reasonably emerge for you this year--if you must, remind yourself that the work you do now will pay larger dividends wherever you find yourself next year. Conduct yourself with that level of academic responsibility in mind.

8. Oh--and, yes, the blog will be a required element of your grade each marking period, so make it a part of your daily online ritual. Check it frequently, and post or comment consistently. The concept of "participation" is now no longer restricted to the classroom walls!

9. When you decide you have something to say on the blog, consider whether it is something NEW that has yet to be discussed (and thus merits a POST) or whether it is a continuation or comment upon something that has already been posted (in which case it should be written as a COMMENT attached to the appropriate post. In this manner, we will develop discussion "threads," which can be read and followed as a coherent conversation, even by those who are not directly involved in it.

That's all I can think of at the moment, but I also reserve the right to change/adjust/modify/ invent as we go along. Because I can, that's why.

I look forward to hearing your thoughts, and seeing you all in in class each day.

MR. LAZ