Lessons for Monday Dec. 1- Friday Dec. 4

LESSON 1

AIM: Is Mary Shelley a Rationalist or a Romantic?

DO NOW: QUOTE IDENTIFICATION #1

“Did I request thee, Maker, from my clay
To Mould me Man, did I solicit thee
From darkness to promote me?”
~from the Title page

MINI-LESSON:
What conflicts have already been introduced in the novel?

Elicit from the students: Nature v. Science, Man v. God, Human Will v. Elements, etc.

These conflicts are at the core of the conflict between Romanticism and Rationalism.

If I were to tell you that Mary Shelley was a Romantic writer, what would that mean to you?

What could you infer about Romantics based on her book and the opinions she has already established? Science or Nature for Mary Shelley?

READ ALOUD: Letter 2 pgs. 22-25

WORK PERIOD:
RATIONALISM: The theory that the exercise of reason, rather than experience, authority, or spiritual revelation, provides the primary basis for knowledge.

If this is the definition of Rationalism, what would you infer is the definition of Romanticism?






ROMANTICISM

The Romantic Period emphasised the self, creativity, imagination and the value of art. This is in contrast to the Enlightenment emphasis on Rationalism and Empiricism.
It roots can be found in the work of Jean-Jacques Rousseau and Immanuel Kant. Philosophers and writers associated with the Romantic movement include Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749-1832), Freidrich Wilhelm Joseph von Schelling (1775-1854), and George Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel (1770-1831) in Germany; Samuel Taylor Coleridge (1772-1834) and William Wordsworth (1770-1850) in Britain.
Philosophically romanticism represents a shift from the objective to the subjective: Science claims to describe the objective world, the world understood from no particular viewpoint. Imagine three people looking at a landscape, one is a farmer, another a property developer and the third an artist. The farmer would see the potential for raising crops and livestock, the property developer the chance to build houses and the artist at the shades and subtleties of colour and form. None of these individuals is seeing the landscape objectively; they are seeing it from a particular or subjective viewpoint.
The move from the objective to the subjective is a result of Kant's idea that human beings do not see the world directly, but through a number of categories. We do not directly see "things-in-themselves"; we only understand the world through our human point of view. If we agree with Kant that we can never know things-in-themselves, we may as well discard them. This leads to Idealism; the belief that what we call the "external world" is somehow created by our minds.
The Enlightenment's emphasis on the empirical deterministic universe left little room for the freedom and creativity of the human spirit. The romantic emphasis on art and imagination is a direct critical reaction to the mechanical view of some Enlightenment figures.
The romantic emphasis on the individual was reflected in ideas of self-realisation and nature. Wordsworth thought that the individual could directly understand nature without the need for society and social artifice, salvation is achieved by the solitary individual rather than through political movements.







LESSON 2

AIM: How do Walton’s letters illustrate the tension between 18th century Rationalism & 19th century Romanticism? Part 1

DO NOW: Quote ID #2
“What may not be expected in a country of eternal light?”
~ pg. 18
READ ALOUD: Pgs. 33-37

MINI-LESSON:
Review definitions of Romanticism & Rationalism
Elicit students to give their own definitions of the terms

WORK PERIOD:
Split the class in half.

Instruct one half to search for evidence that proves Walton is a Rationalist. They must find direct quotes and explain how the quote is “Rational”

Instruct the other half to search for evidence that proves Walton is a Romantic. They must find direct quotes and explain how the quote is “Romantic”

Have each group create a large chart documenting their findings.
(THIS WILL GET LOUD!)

SHARE OUT: Compare charts.

LESSON 3

AIM: Does the character of Walton reflect Rationalist ideals or Romantic ideals?

WORK PERIOD: 20 MINUTE TIMED WRITE
Write an Expository Paragraph in which you respond to the aim. Develop a PTS. Create 3 clusters. Clinch it.

READ ALOUDS: Share student paragraph

WORK PERIOD 2:
Switch paragraphs and score on the 1-9 Rubric!

LESSON 4

AIM: What is a GOTHIC novel?

DO NOW: FREE ASSOCIATION:
What comes to mind when you hear the term “Goth”?

Earlier, we had to free ourselves from our original idea of “romantic”. Now we have to abandon our definition of “Goth,” too.

READ ALOUD: Handout Defining the Gothic Novel.

MINI-LESSON:
What films have we seen that demonstrate “gothic” qualities?

WORK PERIOD:
Independently, write a paragraph in which you establish Frankenstein as a Gothic novel.


CLOSING: Questions on the Homework...Ask now or forever hold your peace!

LESSON 5

AIM: HOW DO WE IMPROVE OUR MULTIPLE CHOICE SCORES?

DO NOW: Multiple Choice Quiz

MINI-LESSON: Strategies for Improving
1.) Underline any words you did not know. Look them up.
2.) Elicit from the students
3.) Elicit from the students

WORK PERIOD:
As a class. Grade the multiple choice quiz and discuss answers.