Slaughterhouse-Five

Chapter 3 Study guide

-At the very beginning of Ch. 3, there are descriptions of a German Shepherd, a 15 year old boy, and Adam and Eve. What common link do all 3 of these things share? What could Vonnegut’s point be?

-No matter what time Billy is in, what keeps going on around him? What do you make of the description of daily events in the 1960’s compared to the description of events during the war, and of death? Does Billy’s demeanor ever really seem to change? Does he have emotions?

-What is the point of the former hobo that Billy meets on the prison train? What does his message about their present circumstances have to do with life?

-Pay specific attention to the way things are described. Why does Vonnegut exclude any emotion or feeling, no matter what he is describing? How is Billy’s life, and Vonnegut’s view on war and life, reflected in his writing style? How are these things illustrated by the prayer on the wall of Billy’s office?

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FFN check in moved to Monday due to the poetry slam today.  SH5 as well.

10-McNichols
Hope everyone enjoyed the poetry slam today, if you were not here you certainly missed out. Remember that your social media posts for Holden are due on Monday, May 2nd. If you have any missing work or tests from this semester talk to me asap! Next week is my last week with you, it will be your last chance to turn in any of the work that I gave you. Have a good weekend.

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Slaughterhouse-Five
Ch. 2
-Explain the literal explanation of the Tralfamadorian view on life and death. What could Vonnegut be using the Tralfamadorians and their views as an explanation for?

-Describe Roland Weary physically, mentally, and emotionally. What kind of person is he? Why is he in the Army? What is his job in the Army and why do you think he has it? What does he hate more than anything? Juxtapose his view of their situation in Ch. 2 with that of Billy and the Scouts.

-Some say that Billy is crazy and hallucinating; some say that his time travels could be his life flashing before his eyes. What explanation can you give for Billy’s time travel? Why do people, in general, choose to reflect and remember things about their lives at certain times?

-At the very end of the chapter, Roland Weary and Billy Pilgrim have an incident. Describe what happens and describe the irony in Roland Weary’s statement to Billy when he says “You shouldn’t even be in the Army!” What could Vonnegut’s greater message/question be in this statement?

Think about how you would finish each of the following statements:
War is...
War is fought by...
War is fought because...
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Wed/Thurs: Vocab/Essay.  Fast Food Nation check in on Friday.

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Slaughterhouse-5

Guiding Questions: Chapter 1

-In the first chapter, the book blurs the line between fiction and non-fiction. The author never gives his name, and we do not know just how real of an account this is. Why is this style important? (Think about Vonnegut and his personality/style)

-The author uses a version of a style known as “stream of consciousness” in his narration which basically means writing the way we think. Random thoughts pop into our heads, etc. We see this in his repetition of the Yon Yonson song and some of the other stories he tells. Why does Vonnegut do this in the introductory chapter?

-Knowing what we know about the Dresden firebombing, why could the author be having so much trouble writing his book about it?

-What is the significance of O’hare’s wife’s rant about the men just being babies during the war? What is her point?

-Writing an "anti-glacier" book

-Pillar of salt/Lot's wife allusion?

-Children’s crusades?

-Author’s apology at end of Ch. 1


10-McNichols

Today we began our “Holden on Social Media” project. All instructions and a template for a facebook page is on the google classroom. If you have any questions at all that you did not ask during class or you were absent please email or come see me asap. Our project is due Monday, May 2nd. Tomorrow and Thursday you will be taking vocabulary test 14 then working on our projects. Be prepared!

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Slaughterhouse Five introductions.  Kurt Vonnegut and Dresden background information.  Calendar for the rest of the year.

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New Vocabulary: adept, encompass, eminent, eradicate, homogeneous, presumptuous, sordid, adulation, stint, stringent

Fast Food Nation was handed out.  Focus on the ends of chapters and the main point made in the conclusion of each.  We used the last paragraph of the Introduction on pg. 10 to model this strategy.

LOF Essay is posted on G-Class.  Turn it in through that link.

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Following this you will find the prompt for the written portion of your LOF test.  Just to even things out, you will have a significant amount of time in class on Wed/Thurs.  Rather than making it due specifically on those days, I will leave it open until Friday to allow both Wed block and Crystal Bridges attendees time to focus and not rush.  There will be a Google Classroom Assignment for submission.  This should be short and sweet.  I would recommend setting a 45 minute timer (AP time limit) so you do not write a book.  I picture this as a 3-4 paragraph essay, including intro and conclusion.  If you find yourself writing and writing and writing, you need to self edit, or find someone else to work with.  Focus on the essential.  Make a point, make it relevant, support it, explain it, leave it with something bigger than the book/character/you.

Choose one of the following characters (Ralph, Jack, Piggy, Simon, Roger, the Littluns) and explain who they symbolize as a member of society. In other words, who are the Simons, the Jacks, the Ralphs, etc. of the world? You should address both their place in society as well as their personality type. Make sure your evidence is specific.

10-McNichols

Today we had our quiz over chapters five through seven, if you missed be sure to get a pass from me to make up the quiz. We also went over themes in the novel that can be found on the google classroom. Make sure you are taking note when you see one or more occur in the novel. How many phonies have you counted so far?

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LOF Objective Test will be tomorrow Tuesday 4/19.  You will also get your LOF essay prompt.  You will have time to work on it in class on Wed/Thurs but must turn it in before you leave class on the block day.  If you are going on the Crystal Bridges field trip on Thurs and are in hours 4 or 6, LOF essay is due Friday.

Crystal Bridges Field Trip is Thursday, April 21st.  If you are going, you need to do the following:
-Bring money, food, or both if you want to eat more than a brown bag lunch
-Dress for the weather and for the walking.  Bentonville, Arkansas is the destination city.
-BE IN FRONT OF SOUTH'S MAIN ENTRANCE AT 6:45 THURSDAY MORNING TO GET ON THE BUS
-Make sure you have a ride arranged that is flexible.  We anticipate a 6 pm return, but it could be on either side of that.

10-McNichols
Today we discussed Catcher in the Rye being banned in high schools and the different reasons why. We also took a quiz over chapters 3 and 4, if you were absent be sure to make it up as soon as possible. Your homework is to read chapters 5-7 by tomorrow.

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Had a medical issue come up so sorry I haven't gotten vocab/essays recorded and returned or finalized details for the LOF test.  I will figure it out over the weekend and post, but I haven't been able to work at a computer for more than about 5 minutes at a time for the past couple days.  I have spent lots of time laying on the floor in my living room because that seems to be about the only place/position that doesn't send shooting pain up my neck.  Hopefully I'll be ready to go on Monday.  Time for the final push.

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The final wordwright of the year is today.  I know there are a number of people who will be absent today and tomorrow, especially later in the day.  Make sure you stay on top of that.  For tomorrow's vocab/essay, this Stephen King essay will be a major component of your writing.  Below you will also find the remaining LOF guiding questions.  If you have not finished the book and don't want to know how it ends, do not read the last few guiding questions.



Ch. 10


Pg. 155: 2nd main paragraph- “Ralph climbed on to the platform carefully…” Explain the significance of the imagery in this paragraph. What about diction and syntax?


Pg. 156- 157: The acknowledgement of Simon’s death and its significance.


Pg. 159: The symbolism of the balanced rock in relation to both its intended purpose and its relevance to society


Pg. 160: How Jack uses Simon’s death to his advantage


Pg. 162: The duality of the fire as both a rescue signal and as a comforting element


Pg. 166-168: The raid and how it is perceived by each faction. Also, the significance of the theft of the glasses


Ch.11


Pg. 169: Piggy’s blindness and what it symbolizes in regard to the boys’ connection to civilization


Pg. 171: Piggy’s rant about what is happening. The acknowledgement of death and his last ditch effort at preserving civilized morality


Pg. 180-181: What it represents both immediately to the boys and in the arc of violence that has taken place over the course of the story. (Disappearance of the littlun in fire, Harming a pig, Killing a pig for food, Harming a boy, Killing a pig and making a ceremony out of it, Killing Simon as a group with a mob mentality, An individual killing an individual in cold blood and for pleasure)


Ch. 12


The big hunt and Ralph’s transition from bystander, to hunter, to prey


Ending spoiler questions below.


Don't scroll down if you don't want the spoiler!!!!!!!!!






















The irony of the island fire. Jack’s role as savior/hero in that he gets them rescued, and he uses Ralph’s method to do it while trying to kill Ralph.

The irony of who rescues them and what he says to them (last page).

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Word wright tomorrow. Vocab Wed/Thurs.

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LOF Mid-Way Test is posted on G-Class.  You may turn it in individually or as a group of your choice.  Due by 3:15 on Friday, April 8.  I have given you 8 passages.  You must choose 4 of them to analyze.  You should write a stand-alone paragraph for each passage. We have spent time in class looking at the problems with humanity, group dynamics, individual character symbolism, good vs. evil, etc.  These should be the types of "things we have discussed in class" that I am referring to.  If you were not active in class discussions over the past two weeks, you are going to have to do your best with what you have.

10-McNichols
This week during class we have been taking Kansas assessments every day, this will continue through tomorrow also. Vocabulary words are on the classroom for you to find the definitions on your own. If we have time Friday we will go over them, if not we will do so on Monday.

Due to the "quirks" of the testing system, our time was severely limited this week other than Monday.  Continue to read LOF and I will continue to post guiding questions.  It would be beneficial to set up some kind of discussion forum regarding the questions as we simply will not have the time to address them in class to the degree I would like.  The LOF mid-way assessment will be posted on G-Class later today along with instructions.  The Problem With the Problem of Evil will be in discussion for Monday, or possibly Friday depending on assessment time needed.  Below you will find the words for our final Wordwright.  We will take it on Tuesday, April 12.  Your next vocabulary list is also below.  This will remain as scheduled for the block days next week.  LOF final will be pushed to the week of April 18-22 (not sure on which day yet) due to next Friday being a no-school day.  Fast Food Nation will be distributed in the next week.

Wordwright Words
From the essay: threnody, uniformity, mantra, smitten, tutorial, oblivious, amorous, exhortatory, shrill, banana republic, guffaw, archetypal, prodigious, insidious, evanescent, emancipation, trope, benediction, dissipate, singularity
From the questions: internal rhyme, irreverent, fervor, understatement, disdainful, assonance, grandiosity, normative, colloquial, self-deprecating, aggrandize, unwarranted, syntactic/syntax, periodic sentence

Vocabulary List 6 Semester 2

1.  connoisseur
2.  conspiracy
3.  contrite
4.  distraught
5.  germane
6.  lucid
7.  plight
8.  superficial
9.  symmetrical
10.  verbose

Change of plans for the rest of the week:  We will be finishing our assessment testing this week and it will take the majority of the rest of our time.  Tuesday and Friday will be full days.  Wed/Thurs will take 30 minutes approximately, the rest of the time will be class as usual.

10 McNichols
Today your final drafts on your Julius Caesar essays were do. If you have yet to turn it in please do so as soon as possible.

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G-Class response to The Problem with the Problem of Evil. Class discussion of LOF Guiding ?'s for Ch. 1-4.

False alarm, but I do still need Elena's.Red Alert!!!!! 
Jackson, Elena, Abby, Shannon, Ashley L: Money and permission slip for Crystal Bridges before I leave today or you will be bumped.