As the final week of the marking period, the class worked on final drafts of creative writing essays and end of the marking period projects. Every other day, we work on creative writing for 15 -20 minutes. Being someone who plans on majoring in writing and literature in college, this is one of my favourite parts of class. Sometimes Schoenborn gives us college application essay prompts to write to. But we have the option to write about anything else we want to, so long as we just continue to write.
Our end of marking period project technically isn’t actually due at the exact end of the marking period. Nonetheless, we’ve been taking a lot of time to work on it. The project is What is literature - and How do you write about it? Groups choose two elements of literature and 3 short stories and analyze how those elements of literature are used in the stories. My group chose characterization and symbolism. I like being able to analyze these specific elements because they are both familiar and unfamiliar to me. I learned about both of them last year but there is still more to learn about them. They help me as not only a reader but also a writer. I know they will help me analyze literature in the long run and help my ability to understand it better and they will also add to my writing skills in writing stories.
Today, we are working on our Free Response Essays about our SSR books. I chose the prompt, “In a literary work, a minor character, often known as a foil, possesses traits that emphasize, by contrast or comparison, the distinctive characteristics and qualities of the main character. For example, the ideas of behavior of the minor character might be used to highlight the weaknesses or strengths of the main character. Choose a novel in which a minor character serves as a foil to a main character. Then write an essay in which you analyze how the relationship between the minor character and the major character illuminates the meaning of the work.” I chose this because in the SSR book I am reading, The Color Purple by Alice Walker, there are two distinct characters who have contradicting personalities to the main character that make the protagonist stand out.
Our end of marking period project technically isn’t actually due at the exact end of the marking period. Nonetheless, we’ve been taking a lot of time to work on it. The project is What is literature - and How do you write about it? Groups choose two elements of literature and 3 short stories and analyze how those elements of literature are used in the stories. My group chose characterization and symbolism. I like being able to analyze these specific elements because they are both familiar and unfamiliar to me. I learned about both of them last year but there is still more to learn about them. They help me as not only a reader but also a writer. I know they will help me analyze literature in the long run and help my ability to understand it better and they will also add to my writing skills in writing stories.
Today, we are working on our Free Response Essays about our SSR books. I chose the prompt, “In a literary work, a minor character, often known as a foil, possesses traits that emphasize, by contrast or comparison, the distinctive characteristics and qualities of the main character. For example, the ideas of behavior of the minor character might be used to highlight the weaknesses or strengths of the main character. Choose a novel in which a minor character serves as a foil to a main character. Then write an essay in which you analyze how the relationship between the minor character and the major character illuminates the meaning of the work.” I chose this because in the SSR book I am reading, The Color Purple by Alice Walker, there are two distinct characters who have contradicting personalities to the main character that make the protagonist stand out.