Please use one of the following lines and create a poem to perform.
Remember to use metaphor, simile, personification, allusion, repetition, alliteration, assonance, consonance, rhyme (if you wish), and figurative language to improve your imagery.
Prompts:
1. My poetry...
2. This poem...
3. I am writing a poem...
Wednesday, December 17, 2008
Save Somebody's Life NJ
Copy, paste and go to this video link:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KPd_YuXgjn4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KPd_YuXgjn4
Monday, December 15, 2008
Slam Poem - Assignment #2
Choose a line. Any line. Use this line as an anchor, a repetition of idea or theme.
Some sample lines might be:
I believe...
When I die, I want...
The world I live in...
This is for...
Tomorrow I will go...
or pick any other line starter you'd like.
Use metaphor or simile or allusion or personification to help explore your theme.
Some sample lines might be:
I believe...
When I die, I want...
The world I live in...
This is for...
Tomorrow I will go...
or pick any other line starter you'd like.
Use metaphor or simile or allusion or personification to help explore your theme.
Slam Nation
Slam poetry has become a "literary sport" in the past decade. Please view the film: Slamnation. As you watch this film consider the following:
Learn the history of the form. Where did it come from? Why? Who was involved?
Watch professional performance poets. Examine their technique and performance style. What do you notice? Which performers in your opinion are the best? Why?
What are the poets writing about? If you like any of the themes, try writing your own poems using similar themes.
Finally, after the film, please post a comment on the blog about what you thought of the movie and the sport "Slam".
Learn the history of the form. Where did it come from? Why? Who was involved?
Watch professional performance poets. Examine their technique and performance style. What do you notice? Which performers in your opinion are the best? Why?
What are the poets writing about? If you like any of the themes, try writing your own poems using similar themes.
Finally, after the film, please post a comment on the blog about what you thought of the movie and the sport "Slam".
Thursday, December 11, 2008
Slam Poetry - Intro
A Brief Guide to Slam Poetry
Taken from Poets.org.
"One of the most vital and energetic movements in poetry during the 1990s, slam has revitalized interest in poetry in performance. Poetry began as part of an oral tradition, and movements like the Beats and the poets of Negritude were devoted to the spoken and performed aspects of their poems. This interest was reborn through the rise of poetry slams across America; while many poets in academia found fault with the movement, slam was well received among young poets and poets of diverse backgrounds as a democratizing force. This generation of spoken word poetry is often highly politicized, drawing upon racial, economic, and gender injustices as well as current events for subject manner.
A slam itself is simply a poetry competition in which poets perform original work alone or in teams before an audience, which serves as judge. The work is judged as much on the manner and enthusiasm of its performance as its content or style, and many slam poems are not intended to be read silently from the page. The structure of the traditional slam was started by construction worker and poet Marc Smith in 1986 at a reading series in a Chicago jazz club. The competition quickly spread across the country, finding a notable home in New York City at the Nuyorican Poets Café."
Taken from Poets.org.
"One of the most vital and energetic movements in poetry during the 1990s, slam has revitalized interest in poetry in performance. Poetry began as part of an oral tradition, and movements like the Beats and the poets of Negritude were devoted to the spoken and performed aspects of their poems. This interest was reborn through the rise of poetry slams across America; while many poets in academia found fault with the movement, slam was well received among young poets and poets of diverse backgrounds as a democratizing force. This generation of spoken word poetry is often highly politicized, drawing upon racial, economic, and gender injustices as well as current events for subject manner.
A slam itself is simply a poetry competition in which poets perform original work alone or in teams before an audience, which serves as judge. The work is judged as much on the manner and enthusiasm of its performance as its content or style, and many slam poems are not intended to be read silently from the page. The structure of the traditional slam was started by construction worker and poet Marc Smith in 1986 at a reading series in a Chicago jazz club. The competition quickly spread across the country, finding a notable home in New York City at the Nuyorican Poets Café."
Wednesday, December 3, 2008
Zoo Story - Play project
Read and follow the steps below to complete this project:
1. Plays are meant to be performed by live actors (the dead ones are not as animate).
2. Playwrights (play wright, as in wheel wright or crafter) craft their plays around intense CONFLICT.
3. As stated previously, there are four types of conflict:
a. Person versus Person
b. Person versus Self
c. Person versus Nature
d. Person versus Society or God (a force larger than themselves)
4. The best plays include conflict type A and D. Types B & C are common, but type C is not as effectual in a play script. Type B is also used frequently and can be very effective. Usually, characters who are in conflict with themselves struggle with their own morals or beliefs about a situation, trying to work it out verbally in the presence of other characters. But they must speak! At different times in the play, The Zoo Story includes many conflict types: A, B, and D, specifically.
5. You are going to create your own short play following the standard playwriting format. The standard playwriting format is the following:
a. Stage directions are usually italicized and enclosed in (parenthesis).
b. A character who speaks a line has their name in CAPITAL LETTERS.
c. The character’s name is centered on the page.
d. Lines that are spoken (dialogue) are NOT centered.
e. A directional comment is placed in italics and parenthesis next to the name of the character speaking, if relevant. Many playwrights try to avoid these unless the dialogue is cryptic. Technically, the dialogue needs to indicate the emotion, not the stage direction.
f. Short actions or stage directions that indicate physical activity are enclosed in parenthesis and italicized when the action occurs during the spoken line (usually the beginning).
g. Long or complex actions that include technical information can either be off-set as its own stage direction (in parenthesis and italicized) or embedded in the line of dialogue.
h. Scripts are NOT double spaced. There is always a skipped blank line (one of these only) between lines of dialogue.
If you get lost or confused, take a look at the format in the book you are reading. Being observant helps.
6. Your “play” should be fewer than 10 pages and longer than 4. (7-8 is preferable.)
7. You should set your play in one setting only. Do not change scenes yet.
8. Pick a setting that reflects your characters, their motivation or what they want or desire, the conflict (see #3), or the mood of your scene.
9. Include no more than four (4) characters.
10. For each character you add, give a short description about them in the beginning of the script. See pg. 11 as an example.
11. Describe the initial action and situation of the play. What is happening when the lights go up or the curtain rises? Again an example of this can be found on page 11-12.
12. Your play MUST include at least one monologue. Monologues are effective in developing characters. For a good example of this, see the story of Jerry and the Dog (pages 36-44).
13. Due date is set for Tuesday, Dec.9.
Homework: Please go ahead and read The Death of Bessie Smith and the Sandbox as other examples of absurdist theatre.
The purpose of absurdist theatre is to metaphorically or figuratively comment on some aspect of the human condition in symbolic terms. Often, in absurd plays, the meaning reflects the existential philosophy of the playwright (which can be bleak sometimes). Part of the fun of Absurdism is the dream-like quality of the story (which doesn’t always make sense at the moment). After reading these two plays, respond to them as a reader and writer. Consider what surprised or pleased you, what frustrated you with the style or characters, what you would do differently, what you understood and got out of the play, etc. Your response will be due also on Tuesday, Dec. 9.
1. Plays are meant to be performed by live actors (the dead ones are not as animate).
2. Playwrights (play wright, as in wheel wright or crafter) craft their plays around intense CONFLICT.
3. As stated previously, there are four types of conflict:
a. Person versus Person
b. Person versus Self
c. Person versus Nature
d. Person versus Society or God (a force larger than themselves)
4. The best plays include conflict type A and D. Types B & C are common, but type C is not as effectual in a play script. Type B is also used frequently and can be very effective. Usually, characters who are in conflict with themselves struggle with their own morals or beliefs about a situation, trying to work it out verbally in the presence of other characters. But they must speak! At different times in the play, The Zoo Story includes many conflict types: A, B, and D, specifically.
5. You are going to create your own short play following the standard playwriting format. The standard playwriting format is the following:
a. Stage directions are usually italicized and enclosed in (parenthesis).
b. A character who speaks a line has their name in CAPITAL LETTERS.
c. The character’s name is centered on the page.
d. Lines that are spoken (dialogue) are NOT centered.
e. A directional comment is placed in italics and parenthesis next to the name of the character speaking, if relevant. Many playwrights try to avoid these unless the dialogue is cryptic. Technically, the dialogue needs to indicate the emotion, not the stage direction.
f. Short actions or stage directions that indicate physical activity are enclosed in parenthesis and italicized when the action occurs during the spoken line (usually the beginning).
g. Long or complex actions that include technical information can either be off-set as its own stage direction (in parenthesis and italicized) or embedded in the line of dialogue.
h. Scripts are NOT double spaced. There is always a skipped blank line (one of these only) between lines of dialogue.
If you get lost or confused, take a look at the format in the book you are reading. Being observant helps.
6. Your “play” should be fewer than 10 pages and longer than 4. (7-8 is preferable.)
7. You should set your play in one setting only. Do not change scenes yet.
8. Pick a setting that reflects your characters, their motivation or what they want or desire, the conflict (see #3), or the mood of your scene.
9. Include no more than four (4) characters.
10. For each character you add, give a short description about them in the beginning of the script. See pg. 11 as an example.
11. Describe the initial action and situation of the play. What is happening when the lights go up or the curtain rises? Again an example of this can be found on page 11-12.
12. Your play MUST include at least one monologue. Monologues are effective in developing characters. For a good example of this, see the story of Jerry and the Dog (pages 36-44).
13. Due date is set for Tuesday, Dec.9.
Homework: Please go ahead and read The Death of Bessie Smith and the Sandbox as other examples of absurdist theatre.
The purpose of absurdist theatre is to metaphorically or figuratively comment on some aspect of the human condition in symbolic terms. Often, in absurd plays, the meaning reflects the existential philosophy of the playwright (which can be bleak sometimes). Part of the fun of Absurdism is the dream-like quality of the story (which doesn’t always make sense at the moment). After reading these two plays, respond to them as a reader and writer. Consider what surprised or pleased you, what frustrated you with the style or characters, what you would do differently, what you understood and got out of the play, etc. Your response will be due also on Tuesday, Dec. 9.
Monday, December 1, 2008
The Zoo Story
1. Research Edward Albee. Take brief notes about his career and style of writing.
2. Go the library and check out the play: Zoo Story by Edward Albee.
3. Get together in the following reading groups:
a. Adeline, Alex, Brianna
b. Monica, Jerry, Zach
c. Justice, Alaina, Whitney
d. Khari, Tashae, Kennethea
e. Nautica, Victoria, Wade
f. Aubrey, Shayla, Valerie
g. Jenee, Nancy, Lawrence, Marissa
4. Read “The Zoo Story” together in your groups. Assign parts as follows:
a. 3 students: one play Jerry, one play Peter, one read the stage directions where appropriate (only the longer directions).
b. 2 students: one play Jerry, the other play Peter, read the stage directions silently.
c. If you are alone, you may either join a group of your choice or read alone.
5. Answer the following questions – discuss first with your group, then individually write down:
a. Plays are based on conflict. Conflict can come in 4 “flavors”:
i. Person vs. Person
ii. Person vs. Self
iii. Person vs. Nature
iv. Person vs. Society or God
Largely, what kind of conflict does Albee use in this play?
Are there other kinds of conflict that occur within the story? If so, where are they found?
6. What seems to be the significance of Jerry’s story of the dog?
7. What might be symbolic about the Zoo? Why do you think Albee called his play “The Zoo Story”?
2. Go the library and check out the play: Zoo Story by Edward Albee.
3. Get together in the following reading groups:
a. Adeline, Alex, Brianna
b. Monica, Jerry, Zach
c. Justice, Alaina, Whitney
d. Khari, Tashae, Kennethea
e. Nautica, Victoria, Wade
f. Aubrey, Shayla, Valerie
g. Jenee, Nancy, Lawrence, Marissa
4. Read “The Zoo Story” together in your groups. Assign parts as follows:
a. 3 students: one play Jerry, one play Peter, one read the stage directions where appropriate (only the longer directions).
b. 2 students: one play Jerry, the other play Peter, read the stage directions silently.
c. If you are alone, you may either join a group of your choice or read alone.
5. Answer the following questions – discuss first with your group, then individually write down:
a. Plays are based on conflict. Conflict can come in 4 “flavors”:
i. Person vs. Person
ii. Person vs. Self
iii. Person vs. Nature
iv. Person vs. Society or God
Largely, what kind of conflict does Albee use in this play?
Are there other kinds of conflict that occur within the story? If so, where are they found?
6. What seems to be the significance of Jerry’s story of the dog?
7. What might be symbolic about the Zoo? Why do you think Albee called his play “The Zoo Story”?
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