Cyrano de Bergerac

RWLD #4: The Arthurian Legend



Image credit: Knight. Phillip Venturi; May, 2009

 The stories that surround King Arthur go back to nearly the time of Christ. The idea that there was a legendary warrior leader in Britton can be traced back to the early 500's during a time of conquest and upheaval. Stories began to spring from written histories in the 1100's and around the begining of the Rennaisance, the strory as we now know it was written and published in England.
"The Arthurian Legend", as it is called, has created a wealth of stories, films, literature and arwork. The ideas of a round table for knights who do noble deeds, and a court that inspires good and fights evil are the ones we remember. How did it all start?

This unit we will look at some of the historical root literature of the Arthurian legend, parts of the the most familiar text by Sir Thomas Mallory, and some recent works that reflect themes and aspects of the legend. Readings will span a time fram of almot 1,000 years.

Monday, November 1st:

Here are the notes from class in presenation form:



Thursday, November 4th:

Here is the link for King Arthur and His Knights (the reading packet assigned on Wednesday) This is the entire text - you are only reading the first two chapters. There are three links, and they all take you to the Guttenburg Project website

CLICK HERE FOR THE TEXT FILE This is strictly the text - nothing more. Easiest format to download and good for reprinting.

CLICK HERE FOR THE HTML FILE this is the websight format version. It includes illustrations and hyperlinks for easier navigation. This is good if you read from a laptop or any other computer.

CLICK HERE FOR KINDLE, EPUB, QiOO OR OTHER READER FORMAT FILES If you have an ereader such as Kindle, iPad, Nook, etc. this is the link you want. It is likely that there isn't a format for all readers as of yet, but it seems to be more inclusive at the time of this posting.

Monday, November 15th:

Here is the Chapter Summary Assignment for the final:

RWLD #3 - A Thousand Splendid Suns

Here is the course content specific to this unit over A Thousand Splendid Suns. Make sure you check this site frequently - all reading briefs and notes will be posted here as they are presented in class.

Thursday, September 29th

Here is the Character Brief assignment that is due at the end of the novel. Exact date will be determined later, but plan on having this done by the week of October 18th.

Monday, October 4th Here is the Reading Breif Assignment for Part One. Due on Wednesday, October 6th.

 Friday, October 8th

Here is Part one of the interview with Khaled Hoseini we viewed in class:



Here is Part Two:



Here is Part Three:



Monday, October 11th

Here is the Reading Brief assignment that is due on Wednesday, October 13th.



Thursday, October 14th

Here is the extra credit opportunity presented in class today:

Monday, October 18th

Here are the four themes that were presented in class today

RWLD #2: The Struggle Against Intolerance

 "The Soiling of Old Glory," Stanley Forman, Boston Herald American, 1977

Life isn't fair. It's something that we've all heard at one time or another, usually when we don't get our way. Perhaps we've even said it when we were at the other end of a good deal, or when we try to help our family or friends come to grips when things when they don't get their way. In the general scheme of things we as individuals probably get our ways as many times as we don't get our way - it's just that the times we don't get our way stand out in our mind. Sometimes it's because we are democratically outvoted; sometimes it's the law of statistical probability catching up with us; sometimes, the deck is stacked against us and we didn't have a chance to begin with. And then sometimes, it's because we are the victim of others who cannot tolerate what we are doing or what we represent. Intolerance.


The photo above is a graphic symbol from the 1976-77 desegregation protests in Boston against busing students to create more ethnically diverse schools. It created tension, then violence between the African American and white populations - exposing the intolerance that people had toward each other for nearly two centuries in explosive form. This is only one example of intolerance of people because of who they are, what they represent, where they come from or their ethnic background. Can you think of any other times during history where intolerance drove the debate or the conflict?


This week we will be reading A Doll's House, a play by Henrik Ibsen in 1879. Ibsen, from Norway, took on topics of social importance and create stories that depicted corruption, disillusionment, the disregard of traditional values and intolerance. A Doll's House is a play that took on the theme of the rights of women (which was controversial at that time) and the relationship between husband and wife. The intolerance that is shown by the husband in the play is one that is universally understood and often times debated or reenacted by societies and cultures around the world. The rights of women is an issue that is still a hot-button topic in many parts of the world today.


As you read A Doll's House, think about the following questions:
Where do you find intolerance today
How was the role of women changed since Ibsen's day?
How do we deal with financial misrepresentation today?

Watch here for notes, slides and other supporting media for this week's material.

Thursday, September 9th:
Here is a video example of the tarentella dance that Nora in A Doll's House is to dance at the ball. The costumes worn are likely similar to what Nora would wear. The video is about three an a half minutes long

Friday, September 10th:

Here is the response questions that is due at the end of the hour on Friday, September 10th. (See Mr. Lammers if you need more time or an extension.

Tuesday, September 21st

View the TEDTalks video of Karen Armstrong persuading the global embrace of "The Golden Rule."



Thursday, September 23rd
Here are the questions for the written assignment over the film Life is Beautiful.

Tuesday, September 27th 
Here is an interview with author Khaled Hosseini about A Thousand Splendid Suns

Thursday, September 29th

Here is the Character Brief assignment that is due at the end of the novel. Exact date will be determined later, but plan on having this done by the week of October 18th.

Monday, October 4th Here is the Reading Breif Assignment for Part One. Due on Wednesday, October 6th.

 Friday, October 8th

Here is Part one of the interview with Khaled Hoseini we viewed in class:



Here is Part Two:



Here is Part Three:



Monday, October 11th

Here is the Reading Brief assignment that is due on Wednesday, October 13th.



Thursday, October 14th

Here is the extra credit opportunity presented in class today:

RWLD - What is it?

Photo Credit: "4th of July Fireworks at Miller Outdoor Theater," 07/04/2009,  AlphaTangoBravo / Adam Baker

Welcome to Mr. Lammers' World Humanities class. Periodically this site will be updated to include information that we use in class such as notes from the smart board, handouts, reading assignments, or links to information that will be helpful to you for completing assignments. Please look at this space on a regular basis.


We will use a format called RWLD - Readings, Watchings, Listenings and Doings. During the term, you will be (of course) doing a lot of reading, most of which will come from our textbook. We will also include films, short videos, and other visual media to watch, podcasts, interviews and recordings to listen to, and projects and activities to do and write about.


My goal for the RWLD is not to necessarily to introduce new information that you won't get in class, but to provide some additional material that will accentuate what we do in class. It will also be a place you can go to get notes or handouts that we covered in class, to view or review presentations that we use in class, and perhaps a few surprise items that relate to the material that we're studying but not necessarily required reading/watching/listening/or doing. 


Technically this is a blog site, but we'll treat it as a website. If you have a Google account, you can link to or follow this site easily; you can also use an RSS link to your email, blog or website to this site. You can post comments to the site - even ask questions if you wish - but just remember that it is a public site, and the guidelines for acceptable student behavior apply. This is a tool to help you as students. Comments/questions will be cleared on a regular basis and either answered in class or replied to via email (assuming you provide me with an email address you access on a regular basis)


It is my hope that RWLDs will be updated either on Friday or the following Monday - but they will likely be edited as the week goes along. I will let your class know when this happens, and if anything needs clarifying.


Here is your first watching for the term: legendary college basketball coach John Wooden talks about what true success is - some food for thought as you start the new school year. See you in class!!




Lammers

NOTES/SLIDES FROM CLASS:
Tuesday, August 31st

Wednesday, September 1st

Thursday, September 2nd


Friday, September 3rd:

Game developer Jane McGonigal speaks at a TED Talks conference in 2010 regarding the role of gamers in learning heroic characteristics that can be applied to solving pressing world issues. Listen for her use of the word "epic" and how she applies it in her talk.



Links to the games referenced in Jane McGonigal's video
World Without Oil
Evoke

Videos related to themes, motifs or symbols studied in class this week:
Artist and photographer Dana Gluckstein speaks about different kind of quest:




Adam Savage from the Discovery Channel's Mythbusters series describes how his quest to acquire one thing led him on another quest for something entirely different. Listen carefully to his final comment.