Literary Fiction; Focus on Hemingway; Hemingway Draft #1

Please go to the library and pick up Snows of Kilimanjaro by Ernest Hemingway. Conduct some research and complete the notes on Hemingway in your physical journal.

Please consult this website and read about Hemingway. Watch the video (it's 4 minutes long), then read the article about Hemingway. After reading and taking notes, we'll do a quick "think-pair-share" exercise.

Now. A diversion concerning procrastination. Let's take a look together, slackers...

Hemingway Project Draft #1: Begin writing a narrative scene where you only provide the dialogue (i.e., you do not need to describe a lot of the setting, but indicate the setting through the dialogue of your characters).

Here are the rules:

• Your dialogue should be between at least two characters. You may have more than two characters in the scene if you wish--but you must keep track of each character you add. 
• To start, if you need help, think about WHERE your characters are (pick a specific setting), WHO (who is here in this setting--your "characters"), and WHAT (what are the characters physically doing--also often the conflict, plot, and theme). 
• The genre is completely up to you.
• Try to write at least a page (double-spaced) or as much as you can during our writing time in class. If you need a break, stop and read one of the short stories in the collection. Then go back to it.

Avoid unnecessary distractions!

Do not be the self-serving jerk who distracts others!

Then we'll read "A Clean, Well Lighted Place" (the second story in the collection) and discuss the author's style and use of stream of consciousness. 

Consider these key narrative concepts: (write notes in your physical journal...)

Stream of consciousness: a narrative device or technique a writer uses to develop character (characterization). The writer does this by presenting the THOUGHTS of a character as they would occur in the mind. It is similar to an internal monologue that a character has about his/her situation in the narrative of the story. The character is speaking to him/herself in stream of consciousness. This technique is unique to fiction or poetry. It is similar to the voice over (VO) in film or the soliloquy in plays. It is useful to:

• Provide characterization or develop character
• Explains the attitude or POV of the character's mind or thought process

Flashback: a narrative technique useful in plotting. Usually, stories are written in chronological time (i.e., a story is told from the beginning to the end of an event). A flashback, however, allows the writer to insert a scene that takes the narrative back in time from the current point (present). Flashbacks are used to:

• Provide important background or story details
• Develop details about a character (characterization)
• It helps to develop setting
• It can be used to create suspense

HOMEWORK: Finish the first story in the collection: "The Snows of Kilimanjaro", "A Day's Wait", "The Gambler, The Nun, And the Radio" and "Fathers and Sons." As you read, consider how the stories reflect what you have learned about Hemingway from your research. We will take a quiz on these stories and discuss their use of flashback, stream-of-consciousness, and POV next class.

Also: many of you are very far behind in turning in work. Please use this weekend to get caught up. No excuses! Your grade, frankly, is at stake.