Wednesday, October 04, 2006

State two feelings that the speaker experienced.
Frightened/scared
Helpless,
confused/ lost
worried
[ any 2 of the 4 alternatives provided]

How was the speaker’s vision affected by the fog? Quote a line from the poem and explain how this line shows that his vision was affected.
His vision was blurred/ he could not see clearly or properly (1)
It made tall men of boys, And giants of tall men (1)
This shows that the fog distorted/ made boys and men seem taller than they actually were. (1)
Stanza 2:

It clutched my throat’ ( line 5) State what literary device is used here to describe the fog and explain what sensation the speaker felt.
- personification
- he felt like choking

What is the fog being compared to in this stanza?
An aggressor/ murderer/ someone who is cruel/ violent/ who wants to attack the speaker.

‘Nothing in my head
Except two heavy eyes
Like balls of burning lead’
State what literary device is being used in these lines and explain how these lines show that they affect the speaker.
Simile (1)
He feels giddy (1)
‘ like balls of burning lead’- he feels that the fog is burning him alive. (1)

Stanzas 3-4:

How did the fog affect the city and the speaker? List two examples
.
The cars stopped as they could not move.(1)
The speaker was blinded/ could not see as it was pitch black. (1)

Stanzas 5-6:

What kind of person do you think the blind man was? Give two characteristics and explain your answer fully.

Kind (1)- offered to help the man get out from the fog. (1)
Sympathetic/ understanding (1)- he knew that the speaker did not trust him and he had to make the speaker feel comfortable (1)
** any other reasonable alternative and explanation.

He rapped the stones in front’
Why do you think the blind man did this?
He knew the speaker could not see(1) and this was the best way to get his attention (1).

What tone did the blind man use in these stanzas when he spoke to the speaker?
Gentle/ comforting/ reassuring/ calm

I followed like a child’
A simile is used in this line. Why did the speaker compare himself to a child?
He was completely lost/ confused / unsure (1).
He trusted the blind man and therefore followed him closely. (1) Children also trust their parents and follow them wherever they go. (1)
** any 2 of the 3 reasons given

Why would the blind man be the best person to lead the man out of the fog? Explain your answer fully.
He could not see so even if there was fog, he would still have to rely on his walking stick and his other senses to help him.
Give another title to this poem and explain your reasons for this title.

the fog


The Fog

I saw the fog grow thick
Which soon made blind my ken;( view)
It made tall men of boys
And giants of tall men
- distorted vision . blur vision

It clutched my throat. I coughed; hard to breathe
Nothing was in my head
Except two heavy eyes -
sensation of heat)
Like balls of burning lead-
simile compare eyes to balls of lead (extremely hot/ so hot)- fog is stinging his eyes
Stanza 2: shows how the fog affects the speaker’s health)

And when it grew so black
That I could know no place
I lost all judgement then,
Of distance and of space.
Stanza 3: so dark he could not see ( like he was blind)

The street lamps and the lights
Upon the halted cars, (cars which stopped)
Could either be on earth
(lost/ helpless/- because you don’t know where you are- afraid/ scared)
Or be the heavenly stars

A man passed by me close,
I asked my way, he said,
“Come, follow me, my friend”
- the speaker is as good as blind, he cannot see – so that the speaker would trust him
I followed where he led
.- blind man was a guide to him/ guided him out of the fog

He rapped the stones in front, hitting the ground in front of them
“ Trust me,” he said, “ and come
”- assuring the speaker so that the speaker would trust him
I followed like a child
- children depend on their parents. The speaker had to depend on the the blind man, andtrust him.
A blind man led me home. - ironic, because the speaker has normal sight but can
not see due to the fog. But the blind man- best person to do so, because he could not see, thus the fog would not affect him.
- WH Davies
** ken- view

the fog


The Fog

I saw the fog grow thick
Which soon made blind my ken;( view)
It made tall men of boys
And giants of tall men
- distorted vision . blur vision

It clutched my throat. I coughed; hard to breathe
Nothing was in my head
Except two heavy eyes -
sensation of heat)
Like balls of burning lead-
simile compare eyes to balls of lead (extremely hot/ so hot)- fog is stinging his eyes
Stanza 2: shows how the fog affects the speaker’s health)

And when it grew so black
That I could know no place
I lost all judgement then,
Of distance and of space.
Stanza 3: so dark he could not see ( like he was blind)

The street lamps and the lights
Upon the halted cars, (cars which stopped)
Could either be on earth
(lost/ helpless/- because you don’t know where you are- afraid/ scared)
Or be the heavenly stars

A man passed by me close,
I asked my way, he said,
“Come, follow me, my friend”
- the speaker is as good as blind, he cannot see – so that the speaker would trust him
I followed where he led
.- blind man was a guide to him/ guided him out of the fog

He rapped the stones in front, hitting the ground in front of them
“ Trust me,” he said, “ and come
”- assuring the speaker so that the speaker would trust him
I followed like a child
- children depend on their parents. The speaker had to depend on the the blind man, andtrust him.
A blind man led me home. - ironic, because the speaker has normal sight but can
not see due to the fog. But the blind man- best person to do so, because he could not see, thus the fog would not affect him.
- WH Davies
** ken- view

EXAM FORMAT AND REVISION

  • 2006 SA2
    PASSAGE BASED (STYLE IS LIKE CA 2)
    ESSAY QUESTION (ONE QUESTION)
    UNSEEN POEM (ESSAY)

    revision

  • Characterization (character traits)- kind/ loyal/ brave, etc… justify by referring to their actions, speech, thoughts, what other characters think of/ behave towards them/ refer to an incident which shows this character trait.
    major and minor characters


  • Revision (2)
    Impt events in the novel (plot)

  • Themes ( messages in the story)
    the power of friendship ( J&L)
    Family relationships:
    (Burkes& L) &( Aarons& Jess)
    Finding one’s identity ( Jess & how he found himself)


    the power of friendship ( J&L)
    The events which led to Jess and Leslie’s friendship/
    how they became friends-
    Why they became friends
    How ( in what way) their friendship changed them/ helped them
    Impt events which showed that their friendship was strong
    .

  • Finding one’s identity ( Jess & how he found himself)
    Jess before Leslie came into his life
    Jess after Leslie came in his life
    Important incidents which show that Jess is confident about himself / knows who he is.
  • Finding one’s identity ( Jess & how he found himself)
    Jess before Leslie came into his life
    Jess after Leslie came in his life
    Important incidents which show that Jess is confident about himself / knows who he i
    s.

EXAM FORMAT AND REVISION'

  • 2006 SA2
    PASSAGE BASED (STYLE IS LIKE CA 2)
    ESSAY QUESTION (ONE QUESTION)
    UNSEEN POEM (ESSAY)

    revision

  • Characterization (character traits)- kind/ loyal/ brave, etc… justify by referring to their actions, speech, thoughts, what other characters think of/ behave towards them/ refer to an incident which shows this character trait.
    major and minor characters


  • Revision (2)
    Impt events in the novel (plot)

  • Themes ( messages in the story)
    the power of friendship ( J&L)
    Family relationships:
    (Burkes& L) &( Aarons& Jess)
    Finding one’s identity ( Jess & how he found himself)


    the power of friendship ( J&L)
    The events which led to Jess and Leslie’s friendship/
    how they became friends-
    Why they became friends
    How ( in what way) their friendship changed them/ helped them
    Impt events which showed that their friendship was strong
    .

  • Finding one’s identity ( Jess & how he found himself)
    Jess before Leslie came into his life
    Jess after Leslie came in his life
    Important incidents which show that Jess is confident about himself / knows who he is.
  • Finding one’s identity ( Jess & how he found himself)
    Jess before Leslie came into his life
    Jess after Leslie came in his life
    Important incidents which show that Jess is confident about himself / knows who he i
    s.

BUILDING THE BRIDGE

The next morning Jess heads down to the creek.

Convinced that the magic has indeed departed forever, that Leslie's death

breaking of the rope- cemented his fate as an ordinary boy rather than a king for the rest of his life.

He has always felt somewhat at a loss without Leslie to guide him through the wonders of the kingdom.

She is always been the one who spoke so royally, who had most of the ideas, who really had a sense of how a magic kingdom should be.


Jess wants to recapture that, but he's not sure how. Eventually he decides to make a funeral wreath

BUT JESS REALISES THAT HE TOO IS ABLE TO CREATE 'MAGIC' /RECREATE THE BEAUTY OF TERABITHIA

  • He picks it up and slowly, at the head of a great procession, carries it to the grove of the spirits.
    Here he manages to find words, "Father, into thy hands I commend her spirit." (FORMAL, REGAL LIKE A KING)

    May Belle
    Loyal/ faithful

    confesses that she had wanted to help him so he would not be lonely, but that she got too scared.
    tries to cross to the other side of the creek on the branch, but she has gotten stuck halfway and is too terrified to move.


Jess change in character

Jess is still in control, and the sense of strength that descended upon him in the sacred grove has not left him.
He rescues her, coaxing her across to the other side.

Jess assures her that everyone gets scared, and it is nothing to be ashamed of. They walk back to the house together.

in school,

Jess is sad that leslie died and nobody in school seems to care

But Mrs Myers surprises him.

  • expresses her sympathy, saying how extraordinary Leslie was and how much she will miss her. cannot imagine how much harder it must be for Jess.
    when her husband died, people were always telling her she would forget, but that she did not want to forget.
    She knows it is the same for Jess now, and she wants him to know that if she can ever help him through this in any way, he should let her know.

    Effect mrs myers has on jess

    à help him to see Mrs. Myers in a whole new light. Mrs Myers seemed human, kind, someone who could sympathise/ someone with feelings- not an old grumpy person
    à He appreciates knowing that he will never forget Leslie.
    à Touched that mrs myers would share a personal experience with him

  • thinks about how Leslie has changed him,
  • realizes that the only way to preserve both those changes and her memory is to preserve Terabithia.
    knows that Terabithia is not the ultimate destination in his life.
    Terabithia is a place of childhood,
    and that he must graduate from there to the real world.
    He is determined not to let Terabithia die when he leaves it for this new world pressing on him.
  • passes it on to May Belle , so that she can be strong, use her imagination

stranded

  • stranded

    Jess feels abandoned/Lonely/ HELPLESS
    Jess does not want to admit she is dead.
    Atmosphere: tense/ thick with grief/ sense of heaviness about it.

    Jess- slowly trying to accept leslie’s death ‘ it didn’t fit’
    Thinks about how his schoolmates will leave him alone.
    Hates everyone for crying. He thinks they are mad for doing so. ( i.e. her grandmother/ her father, etc…)

    VALUE OF FRIENDSHIP
    Thinks abt how people should remember leslie.
    i.e. the clothes she wears- ‘people might snicker at the blue jeans and he didn’t want that;
    Wants every one else to RESPECT LESLIE.

  • BILL'S ATTITUDE TOWARDS LESLIE'S DEATH
  • open about his grief-cries/ sobs openly about how sad he is about leslie’s death
    ‘voice broke completely’
    Hugs jess closely as if to comfort both himself and Jess
    ‘ body shaking’
    Accepts leslie’s death- makes plans for leslie to be cremated.
  • Jess attitude

    Numbness/ immune to the fact that leslie is dead
    Resistance to the idea that leslie is dead.
    So numb- cant understand why bill is crying
    Annoyed with people for crying over her death
    ‘cremated’- important realization that leslie’s death was real

    Jess’ bewilderment/ confusion /in denial- how he wishes Bill’s behaviour would stop.
    To his relief- bill let go – feels stifled by bill

    ‘He wanted to get out of the house. It was smothering him.’
    – jess felt that he couldn’t breathe/ it was too depressing.

    Also annoyance/ anger with leslie
    you think it’s so great to die and make everyone carry on? Well it ain’t.’

    Use of short sentences to highlight jess’ sadness-‘Cremated. Turned to ashes. Not even dead. Never.’ Shows jess’ thought process- fragmented and shows that he is distraught.


Anger with everyone for bringing about leslie’s death

and now he was never going to see her again and all they could do was cry’ – shows how irrational jess has become


  • blames bill and judy for bringing leslie to lark creek.‘ Sock Bill In The Face’ – shows how angry jess is towards leslie’s death

    Jess’ feelings towards leslie’s death

    Intense sadness mixed with anger/ Thinks she betrayed him- Leslie had failed him
    Thinks she went to terabithia to show him up.
    Jess attitude to leslie’s death


    STRANDED

    Jess's emotions have turned on again, with a vengeance. When he tears back to his house, May Belle wants to know if he had seen Leslie laid out.

    May Belle wants to know what a dead person looks like, but Jess just hits her, hard. --> to release frustration


    He gathers up the paint set that Leslie gave him for Christmas, runs back to the creek, and throws it in. --> too painful to be reminded of her/ angry with everyone.

better relationship between father and son

  • dad shows jess real concern here , listens to him, protects him and comforts him.
  • shows that he loves jess, unlike how he treated jess previously.
  • Jess's father approaches and tells him, "that was a damn fool thing to do."
  • Jess is sobbing and screaming still, so his father gathers him into his lap, stroking his hair and comforting him.


    Eventually Jess calms down enough to ask his father whether he thinks that God damns non-Christians to hell.
  • His father is surprised by the question, and replies that Jess has no need to worry about Leslie, that God would not send a little girl to hell.
  • Jess is soothed.

    When they go back to the house, Jess is closer to feeling like himself than he has been all day.
  • He is still in greiving, is incredibly tired and cannot seem to focus on the outside world.
  • He is calmer and is able to accept later that leslie died.

    Later on, Bill comes by and asks Jess to take care of Prince Terrien while he and his wife go on a trip to Pennsylvania.

    Jess agrees, and sleeps with Prince Terrien that night, and he is comforted by the warm body of the dog Leslie had loved.

pressing on him.

NO!

No!
Title- tells us about jess denial
His anger/ guilt at indirectly causing Leslie’s death

Jess- imagines conversation with leslie for a few reasons.
guilt and remorse ( that he did not invite leslie to the gallery
does not want to admit leslie is dead.
Family relationships
Brenda and ellie- highly insensitive- make Jess feel worse about Leslie’s death by asking him why he isn’t crying or sad.
Brenda- ‘ if XX died.. I’d be crying my eyes out.
Ellie- more sensitive- asks if it is normal for him not to cry.

Family relationships (2)
Mother – makes pancakes for him to help him get over the death
Father does chores for him
To show that they care for him
Mother even stands up for jess and tells brenda to shut up.
Jess relationship with his father
Father has to go out and get him when he runs away.
Carries him like a baby= protecting him/ taking care of him like a young child
The one who tries his best to tell jess that leslie is dead.
Touches jess’ hand

JESS REFUSES TO ACCEPT LESLIE IS DEAD.
Concentrates on eating pancakes to distract himself from reality.
Stubbornly asks- what girl when father reminds him that leslie is dead.

only may belle is excited about going to the wake.
Too young to realize the seriousness of the situation.
Jess on the other hand, understands.

Monday, September 25, 2006

the golden room - the perfect day

The golden room


Important points:
Difference in Leslie’s background and upbringing
Difference in Leslie’s relationship with her parents and Jess’ relationship with his parents
What Jess learns
How leslie’s father makes Jess proud of himself
Janice avery’s secret

Leslie’s upbringing
- mother is a poet and father is a political writer- so it is no wonder leslie is an imaginative and talented writer,
- No TV, but they listen to classical music, reading widely and having discussions
- Spirit of openness and exchange of learning in her home- parents learn the song miss Edwards teaches Leslie and Jess and leslie and Jess learn songs from Bill.
-
à thus, Leslie is cultured, intellectual and imaginative and is able to appreciate stories.

Golden room-
- Filled with happy and wonderful experiences
- Burkes- introduce Jess to a new world
- Jess learns how to appreciate poetry and classical music

Leslie’s relationship with her father
Calls parents Bill and Judy- Shows that they are equals,
Relationship is closer to being friends.
Places importance on spending time together ( bonding time)- leslie ‘understands her father’

What does this show about Jess’ relationship with his parents?
his discomfort with Leslie's relationship with her father shows that he is unaware of how a good parent-child relationship ought to be.
does not know any families where the parents are friends with the children because
at home his parents don’t spend time with him and only ask him to do his chores.

Bill’s kindness to jess
Gets jess to help him to renovate the room
he gives Jesse a SENSE OF ACHIEVEMENT,
unlike when jess spends time at home- he is only ever asked to do chores.
What do we learn which is new about Janice Avery?
- vulnerable/ to be pitied- as she is abused- beaten regularly by her father
- has no true friends- her friends told all the 7th graders her secret
- our feelings change from dislike/ disgust to pity/ sympathy
>> now we see Janice- the bully turned victim.
à WHAT DOES THIS SHOW? Characters in literature not perfect BUT NOT completely mean/ cruel etc..- have their flaws and their strengths/ weaknesses.

Characters:


Leslie: brave/ cannot resist a challenge- speaks to janice in the toilet even though she has offended her before because Jess challenged her.
- Kind- listens to Janice’s worries and offers good advice by telling her not to bother about what her friends say and relates her own experience
- Sensitive/observant she realises that jess is jealous of their friendship and she ensures that she does not reveal their secret hideout, terabithia.

Jess: Soft-hearted/ sensitive to other people’s feelings- feels sorry for Janice when she cries, even though he disliked her for what she did to May Belle.
Childish/ petty- not able to understand that Leslie’s friendship with her father is not the same as her friendship with him.


Chap. 7-EASTER

Impt points:
- Jess’ father being laid off work- family now very poor
- Jess invites Leslie to go to church with him for Easter
- Leslie acting ‘like a girl’, wearing dresses, unlike her usual attire of boyish clothes- shows respect for Mrs Aarons
- Leslie shows that she can be dainty and polite- calling Mrs Aarons Ma’m (Madam)
- Mrs Aaron’s secret fear that leslie despises them
- Leslie understanding the meaning of easter and the beauty of the bible story- calls it a ‘beautiful story’ even though she is not Christian.
- But Jesse- not a believer/does not even know what he believes in
- May Belle- childlike/ trusting- believes that if they do not read the bible , they will go to hell

http://terabithia-bridge.blogspot.com/


THE EVIL SPELL

Refers to the flood that fills terabithia-
Mood/ atmosphere: gloomy/ominous

à serves as a hint/clue that something terrible will happen later in terabithia. ( foreshadowing)
this event is leslie _falling___________ in the __river_______ during the ___flood_____ and _drowning________.

It also shows us that Leslie’s mother is rather liberal/ unconventional ( not your average mother, does things out of the ordinary) she allows Leslie to go out despite it being a heavy downpour. She herself remebers the time she walked in the rain.

Characters: pp.103-104
Leslie- adventurous/ independent- shows that when she wants to do something, like crossing the creek despite the rain- nothing stops her.
- motivated/ takes her responsibilities seriously- In Terabithia____________, she speaks like a queen and Jess feels guilty for not acting like a king. ( pp105)
- p.105-106-> leslie acts like a queen, she speaks as if she is saying a prayer

Jess:
- ‘ cautious/ careful- recognizes the danger of the creek
- ‘fear of the crossing rose with the rise of the creek’
- ‘dread lay on Jess’ stomach like a hunk of undigested donut’ ( he was fearful of the flood)

- faces his own fears: he knows that he is quite timid/ cowardly-‘ he minded being afraid’, ‘ no guts’, ‘ how was he going to be king of terabithia’
- again no self-confidence but is aware of his shortcomings- ‘made with one piece missing’-- courage

as he would be happier at home than in the rain especially since it is so dangerous in the creek.

THE PERFECT DAY
à ironic- started out as a wonderful day but had a tragic end
impt points:
Miss Edmunds takes Jess to gallery in Washington
Her generosity and tact-buying him lunch as he is too poor to afford it. jokes that she is a ‘liberated lady’ and thus flatters Jess instead of making him feel bad about being poor.
Jess learns to appreciate art and the various great artists
Tragic- as Jess did not ask Leslie to join them and Leslie drowned as a result.
First time we see that his mother and father actually care for Jess
All at dinner table
worried/ anxious and sure that Jess died in the flood.

Tuesday, August 01, 2006

questions for chapters 4-5

Chapter Four--Rulers of Terabithia

How did terabithia make jess and leslie feel? Explain with reference to the language they use, the way they behave in terabithia and any names they call themselves.
include page references and lines/ phrases in your answer.


in this chapter, what do YOU learn about Leslie?

answer with reference to

a) the school she came from and the kind of education she used to receive.
b) her family and the reasons why they moved to lark creek.
c) any interesting character traits about her- i.e. when she makes up stories about terabithia, etc.....

chapter 4 is also significant because of the change in Jess and leslie's friendship after the incident on the bus.

what happened on the bus?

' his heart was knocking at his adam's apple'- this is an example of personificiation-
what does this tell you about how Jess feels.

how did this change Jess and Leslie's friendship?


what is your impression of Jess here? ( what character traits do you think Jess possesses)


chapter 5- the giant killers

a) Who was the "real" giant in their lives?

b)What did the council of war discuss at Terabithia that afternoon?

c) What plan of action to they decide on to pay back Janice Avery?

d) What was the hardest part of the plan to get Janice Avery?

e) How does Leslie prevent Mrs. Myers from discovering Jess in the classroom?

f) Do you think Leslie and Jess were wise to reveal the truth to May Bell about who wrote the letter to Janice Avery?


Thursday, October 06, 2005

uploading of answers into project folder.

dear girls

sorry the uploading of the image failed. i have uploaded the answer key into the project folder.

if you have any problems pls email me at dot04@yahoo.com.

you can also make a photocopy of the SA2 answers.

:) ms koh