The Nightingale and the Rose

Vocabulary:
1. wretched (adj): terrible
2. heed (v): to give attention to
3. grove (n): small wood or group of trees
4. frankincense (n): a gum resin obtained from various Arabian and African trees used in perfumes and as incense
5. pang (n): sudden, sharp, brief pain
6. girdle (n): something that surrounds or encircles
7. reeds (n): tall, slender grass
8. chamberlain (n): high official in certain royal courts
9. crimson (adj): deep red
10. reel (n): a frame on which you spool a material

Symbols
a) Student:
The student respresents naiveté and cynicism.
b) Nightingale:
The nightingale represents sacrifice, compassion, goodness, love and purity.
c) Oaktree:
The oaktree represents wisdom.
d) Girl:
The girl represents materialism and superficiality.
e) Red rose:
The red rose represents the price for love, hope, and an unimaginably precious gift.

Images
personification: "the red rose heard it"
simile: "as white as the foam of the sea"
metaphor: "the cold crystal Moon"
alliteration: "the secret of the Student's sorrow"
assonance: "Bitter and bitter was the pain; wilder and wilder grew her song"
consonance: "you must build it out of music by moonlight"

Two paragraphs about the Nightingale's story
"The Nightingale and the Rose" by Oscar Wilde is a very sad story, since it is not only dramatic, but also ironic. First, the fact that the story ends badly makes it dramatic. At the beginning, we really hope that the student, who seems such a passionate lover will find a red rose to give to the girl he loves, and dance with her. Unfortunatly, as the story goes on, we realize that it is the nightingale who looks for the rose, and that she is going to give her life to have it, while the student weeps alone, doing nothing. In the end, the passionate lover that we thought the student was turns out to be a young intellectual boy who was more in love with the idea of being in love than with the girl herself. At this point, we are disappointed with both the student and the selfish and materialistic girl. The only one we keep admiring is the nightingale who, in the end, sacrified her life for nothing.
Also, there is a lot of irony in "The Nightingale and the Rose". What makes this story so ironic is that the student thinks the nightingale is selfish because he doesn't know that she gave her life for his rose. What makes it even more ironic is that the girl says the rose is worth less than jewels. Of course, she doesn't know about the sacrifice of the little nightingale either. In conclusion, Oscar Wilde's story is really sad, because it is both dramatic and ironic.

An Occurence at Owl Creek Bridge

Images :
1. "The sentinels, facing the banks of the stream, might have been statues to adorn the bridge."
2. "Death is a dignitary who when he comes announced is to be received with formal manifestations of respect, even by those most familiar with him."
3. "Its recurrence was regular, but as slow as the tolling of a death knell."
4. "They hurt his ear like the thrust of a knife"
5. "he swung through unthinkable arcs of oscillation, like a vast pendulun."

Vocabulary words:
1. acclivity (n): an upward slope of ground
2. adorn (v): to be an ornement to
3. hemp (n): the fiber used to make rope
4. driftwood (n): wood drifting in the water
5. chafed (v): to become vexed our irritated
6. inglorious (adj): shameful, disgraceful
7. periodicity (n): tendency of recurring at regular intervals
8. noose (n): the loop formed in a rope
9. keen (adj): sharp and quick
10. giddy (adj): dizzy, unsteady

Sentence Patterns

A background : the sentence
- sentence = complete idea (s,v)(simple, complex = 2 ICs)
Ex: CSL (s) has (v) 3200 talented (m) students (do) in many different programs (p), which are really interesting (dc).
- phrase = incomplete idea (no v)
- clause
IC (independent clause) = complete idea (s,v)
DC (dependent clause) = incomplete idea (s or v)

Terms :
s = subject
v = verb
p = prepositional phrase
m = modifier (adjective)
do = direct object
id = indirect object
; = semi-colon
, = comma
: = colon
- = hyphen
-- = dash: used to insert a comment
"" = quotation marks
CA = conjunctive adverb (therefore, consequently, accordingly, however, hence, thus, then, moreover)
CC = coordinating conjuntion

Pattern 1: IC;IC
Ex: Hardwork is only one side of the equation; talent is the other.
Some people dream of being something; others stay awake and are.
Most of us choose our fate; some let others decide.
The narrator in "The Tell-Tale Heart" claimd he was sane; the police thought otherwise.

Pattern 1A: IC;CA,IC
Ex: The story was not very interesting; therefore (CA), it is not worth reading.
E. A. Poe had a very unsusual life; thus he wrote many bizarre stories.
The princess was very cunning and manipulative; consequently, she was able to discover the secret of the two doors.

Pattern 1B: IC;IC,CC
Ex: The old man had always been nice to me; however, his glasse eye bothered me, and this is why I had to get rid of him.
F. Stockton started out as a woodcarver; he later became a driver, for it was something that he loved.

Speaking Criteria

1. Delivery : loudness, pace (speed), pronunciation, enthusiasm, movement (body, hand, arm, eye)
2. Content : introduction (give overview, ask a question, give a statistic, anecdote/joke, quotation), pick your words carefully, visual devices (powerpoint, board, picture)
3. Organisation : markers, transitional words, sequencing (first, second, then, finally), summarize (conclusion)
4. Language : vocabulary, grammar

The Lady or the Tiger?

Frank Stockton was born on April 5, 1834, and died on April 20, 1902. He was an american writer and humorist, famous for his fairy tales. His most famous fable is "The Lady or the Tiger?", written in 1882.
He lived right through the Victorian Era, and liked to make fun of the Queen and her Empire in his stories.
"The Lady or the Tiger?" takes place in the Barbaric or Roman times, probably in the Mediterranean area. The story begins with a semi-barbaric king who has a singular way of administrating justice; he sends the accused to an arena where there are two doors. Behind one of the doors, there is a fierce tiger and behind the other, a beautiful lady. If the accused opens the door with the lady, we is considered innocent, and will be married to her. If he opens the door with the tiger, he is found guilty, and will be devoured by the tiger. The princess had a lover that her father, the king, did not approve of. The king decided to judge this man in his arena. The princess found out which door hid the lady and which the tiger. The whole intrigue is based on which door she will tell her lover to open. Will she let him live with another woman in order to save his life or will she sacrify her lover, but keep him to herself forever? The answer is left to the reader.

Vocabulary :
-will (n): particular desire, pleasure, choice.
-valour (n): boldness or determination in facing great danger
-poetic justice (n): the ideal justice - proper distributin of rewards and punishments
-wails (v): a wailing cry, as of grief, pain, or despair
-mourners (n): a person who attends a funeral to express sorrow for the deceased
-dire (adj): causing or involving great fear or suffering
-fate (n): something that unavoidably befalls a person, destiny
-fair (adj): pleasing in appearance
-choristers (n): members of a choir
-maidens (n): young unmarried women
-the apple of his eye (n): someone cherished above others
-unsurpassed (adj): unequaled, matchless
-startling (adj): creating sudden alarm, surprise, or wonder
-damsels (n): pretty women
-glances (v): to look quickly or briefly
-mazes (n): labyrinths
-fangs (n): long and sharp teeth of an animal
-gnashed (v): grind
-shriek (v): to cry out sharply in a high voice
-anguished (adj): tormented

Question : What advice would you give the lover boy and why?
The fact that the narrator insists on how the king and the princess are barbaric indicates that probably, the princess will choose the tiger. She'd rather see her lover eaten by a tiger than married to her worst ennemy. The advice I would give to the lover boy is not to go to the door the princess tells him to go to.

Student Profile

Life is unpredictable. It's an obvious fact, but every time I think about how things around me have changed in an unexpected way, I'm amazed.

I was born in November 1991, in the little city of Princeton, New Jersey. My father was studying at Princeton University while my mother was working as an architect. I grew up happily in Montreal with my parents and my little brother. My parents divorced when I was six years old; it was a rather hard experience, even though I feel now that it was for the best.

My childhood was, on the whole, pretty happy. I experienced my adolescence in a very different way. I didn't have many fights with my parents. Instead, I was fighting with myself, inside. Changes were occuring in my mind. It's as if disappointing evidences about life were striking me from time to time, leaving me with a sens of hopelessness. My adolescence is aslo a very happy part of my life, mostly because I met some of my best and lasting friends.

Every year, I have a rough idea of what is going to happen during the next months, but in the end, it' just unbelievable how different things actually turn out. I have noticed that usually reality is much greater than fiction. I really must stay confident about my future, because I know, from my experience, that wonderful things can happen.

I don't think that I can say for sure that I am becoming happier every year, bt I can affirm without hesitation that as time goes on, it seems to go faster and I seem to know myself better.

How is my life going to evolve? It's a mystery!

Wiki-Quiz

1. What is the Learning Express Library (LEL)?

The Learning Express Library is where you can do self-learning exercises online through the site of the Grande Bibliotheque in order to improve your English.


2. Where is Mr. B's office?

C-150


3. What percentage of the course is writing and speaking worth?

50% both


4. How many items are on the "Writing Correction Code"?

2: thesis statement and topic sentence


5. What are Mr. B's office hours?
Monday : from 12:00 to 4:00
Thursday : from 4:00 to 5:00



6. What is the 48 hour rule?

If you miss an evaluation, you will get a zero if you don't reach the teacher by phone, by mail or in person within the following 48 hours, to re-do the evaluation.


7. What is the first assignment?
The first assignment was to do the wiki-quiz, to read Tell-Tale Heart, and to write about someone in the class, but since I was absent, I wrote about myself.



8. How many references are made to "thesis statement"?

There are seven.


9. How can I reach Mr. B through this Wiki?

Through the discussions


10. Do you have to go to the Grande Bibiliotheque to register?

No, you can register online.


11. How many short stories are we going to read?

We're going to read seven short stories.


12. How many pages on the site refer to "grammar"?
Six pages on the site refer to grammar.



13. How many items are listed in the Student Agreement?

Ten items are listed in the Student Agreement.


14. What are the summative writing assignments?
Book Review, Mid-Term Test, 2 LEL tests, and a final writing test.



15. Write down two questions you have about the course?

I can't think of any questions right now, but I will write them down when I can.

Tell-Tale Heart

1. Point of view
The point of view of this story is first person central, because the narrator tells his own story and actions.

2. Style
2.1 Imagery
"A watch's minute hand moves more quickly than did mine"
2.2 Metaphor
"He had the eye of a vulture"
2.3 Simile
"It increased my fury, as the beating of a drum stimulates the soldier into courage"
2.4 Personification
"Death, in approaching him had stalked with his black shadow before him, and enveloped the victim"
2.5 Irony
It is ironic that the main character tries so hard to make the perfect crime, and that, in the end he confesses everything to the police whereas he could have gotten away with it.