Module AttachmentsGrade 12, Q3, 3-5 Weeks

House of Purple Cedar and theTransformative Nature of Humankind

Module 1: Activate and Probe Prior Connections:

House of Purple Cedar by Tim Tingle

For each of the topics listed below, write down as much information as you can about that topic. If you don’t know anything, or it is completely new to you, state that.

Indian Removal Act

Manifest Destiny

Indian Agents

Choctaw Indians

Indian Boarding Schools

Trail of Tears

Walt Whitman

Spirit Guides

Module 2: Research and Summarize the Relevant Concepts and History

House of Purple Cedar by Tim Tingle

You will work in groups of four. Each group member will research two of the concepts listed. For each concept, you must find at least two reputable sources and synthesize your understanding of the concept into a 2-4 paragraph explanation. You will also create a PowerPoint slide for each concept, to be combined into a comprehensive presentation. For each summary/slide include your source, use proper grammar, put it in your own words, and include a visual that is representative of the concept. Discuss and present your findings to each other.

Indian Removal Act

Manifest Destiny

Indian Agents

Choctaw Indians

Indian Boarding Schools

Trail of Tears

Walt Whitman

Spirit Guides

Module 3: Walt Whitman Poetry Analysis: Steps to Help Understand Meaning

Part I: Analyze the Poem

1. Read the poems aloud. Poems are meant to be heard. Reading a poem more than once helps establish proper rhythm.

2. Identify the rhetorical stance (SOAPSTone)o Speaker o Occasiono Audienceo Purpose o Subjecto Tone

3. Paraphrase the poem by stanza. If you can put it in your own words it means you are beginning to understand it.4. Look up unfamiliar words. (Poems rely on brevity – not knowing meanings of words negatively impacts understanding of the poem.) 5. Identify sound devices, i.e., alliteration, assonance, consonance, etc.6. Identify any allusions.7. What details are focused on?8. Identify the imagery used. Look for repetition or extensions of images.9. Consider rhythm and meter. What impact does it have on the poem?

Part II: How to Write the Explication1. Meaning: Briefly summarize the poem, and include a statement about the meaning of the poem. This is your central idea. This is your opening paragraph.2. Considering the outline/analysis you did, which elements will you include in your analysis? Choose the elements most significant to meaning. These details will become the body paragraphs of your explication. For example: “The speaker begins by contrasting the circumstances of warfare with those of peace. …his speech reveals what is common and ordinary – a person, ‘one of the people – who enjoys drinking in a bar…”3. In each of the body paragraphs, you should be reinforcing your central idea about meaning.4. Conclusion: Restate your major idea and leave the reader with a sense of closure.

From “Song of Myself” (Section 10) by Walt Whitman

Alone far in the wilds and mountains I hunt,Wandering amazed at my own lightness and glee,In the late afternoon choosing a safe spot to pass the night,Kindling a fire and broiling the fresh-kill'd game,Falling asleep on the gather'd leaves with my dog and gun by my side.

The Yankee clipper is under her sky-sails, she cuts the sparkle and scud, My eyes settle the land, I bend at her prow or shout joyously from the deck.

The boatmen and clam-diggers arose early and stopt for me,I tuck'd my trowser-ends in my boots and went and had a good time; You should have been with us that day round the chowder-kettle.

I saw the marriage of the trapper in the open air in the far west, the bride was a red girl, Her father and his friends sat near cross-legged and dumbly         smoking, they had moccasins to their feet and large thick blankets hanging from their shoulders, On a bank lounged the trapper, he was drest mostly in skins, his         luxuriant beard and curls protected his neck, he held his bride by the hand, She had long eyelashes, her head was bare, her coarse straight         locks descended upon her voluptuous limbs and reach'd to her feet.

The runaway slave came to my house and stopt outside,I heard his motions crackling the twigs of the woodpile,Through the swung half-door of the kitchen I saw him limpsy and weak, And went where he sat on a log and led him in and assured him,And brought water and fill'd a tub for his sweated body and bruis'd feet, And gave him a room that enter'd from my own, and gave him some coarse clean clothes, And remember perfectly well his revolving eyes and his awkwardness,And remember putting plasters on the galls of his neck and ankles;He staid with me a week before he was recuperated and pass'd north, I had him sit next me at table, my fire-lock lean'd in the corner.

1891 edition on the Whitman Archive

America by Walt Whitman

Centre of equal daughters, equal sons,All, all alike endear’d, grown, ungrown, young or old,Strong, ample, fair, enduring, capable, rich,Perennial with the Earth, with Freedom, Law and Love,A grand, sane, towering, seated Mother,Chair’d in the adamant of Time.

THE INCA'S DAUGHTER by Walt Whitman

Before the dark-brow'd sons of Spain,

A captive Indian maiden stood;

Imprison'd where the moon before

Her race as princes trod.

The rack had riven her frame that day—

But not a sigh or murmur broke

Forth from her breast; calmly she stood,

And sternly thus she spoke:—

"The glory of Peru is gone;

Her proudest warriors in the fight—

Her armies, and her Inca's power

Bend to the Spaniard's might.

"And I—a Daughter of the Sun—

Shall I ingloriously still live?

Shall a Peruvian monarch's child

Become the white lord's slave?

"No: I'd not meet my father's frown

In the free spirit's place of rest,

Nor seem a stranger midst the bands

Whom Manitou has blest."

Her snake-like eye, her cheek of fire,

Glowed with intenser, deeper hue;

She smiled in scorn, and from her robe

A poisoned arrow drew.

"Now, paleface see! the Indian girl

Can teach thee how to bravely die:

Hail! spirits of my kindred slain,

A sister ghost is nigh!"

Her hand was clenched and lifted high—

Each breath, and pulse, and limb was still'd;

An instant more the arrow fell:

Thus died the Inca's child.

Source: http://www.whitmanarchive.org/published/periodical/poems/per.00035

Module 4: Rhetorical Analysis Review

I. Read the speech by Andrew Jackson supporting the Indian Removal Act and the letter by Ralph Waldo Emerson against the Indian Removal Act. Be sure to pay attention to the rhetorical techniques that each author uses.

II. Comprehension Questionsa. What is the central claim of the piece?b. What details support this claim?c. How might the author change his claim for a different audience?d. What is the author’s goal in writing this speech?

III. Rhetorical Techniques and DevicesCite examples from the text where Jackson and Emerson use the following rhetorical techniques and devices to argue in favor of, or against, the Indian Removal Act.

IV. You will write a rhetorical analysis essay on the use of rhetorical devices in the two documents. Follow MLA formatting and your essay should be at least __________ words in length.

Essay Prompt:

The two passages given, one written by Andrew Jackson and the other written by Ralph Waldo Emerson, address the issue of Indian Removal in the 1800s. Read each document carefully then write an essay in which you analyze how each writer uses rhetorical language to advocate his position. Be sure to address which speaker more successfully uses rhetorical devices in his argument.

Rhetorical Devices

1. Ethos: the source's credibility, the speaker's/author's authority. How does the author establish credibility?

Jackson

Emerson

2. Logos: the logic used to support a claim (induction and deduction); can also be the facts and statistics used to help support the argument. Identify the logic used.

Jackson

Emerson

3. Pathos: the emotional or motivational appeals; vivid language, emotional language and numerous sensory details. Identify the emotion language.

Jackson

Emerson

4. Alliteration: repetition of the same sound beginning several words in a sequence

Jackson

Emerson

5. Anaphora: repetition of a word or phrase at the beginning of successive phrases, clauses or lines.

Jackson

Emerson

6. Anastrophe: transposition of normal word order

Jackson

Emerson

7. Antithesis: contrast of ideas or words in a parallel structure

Jackson

Emerson

8. Assonance: repetition of vowel sounds in non-rhyming words

Jackson

Emerson

9. Metaphor: implied comparison through a figurative, not literal, use of words

Jackson

Emerson

10. Parellelism: the arrangement of words, phrases, clauses, or larger structures placed side by side, making them similar in form

Jackson

Emerson

11. Paradox: a statement that seems self-contradictory, yet turns out to have a rational meaning

Jackson

Emerson

12. Repetition: a word or phrase used two or more times in close proximity

Jackson

Emerson

13. Using Emotion-Arousing Words

Jackson

Emerson

14. Using Fear

Jackson

Emerson

15. Using References to the Past

Jackson

Emerson

Andrew Jackson's Speech to Congress on Indian Removal "It gives me pleasure to announce to Congress that the benevolent policy of the Government, steadily pursued for nearly thirty years, in relation to the removal of the

Indians beyond the white settlements is approaching to a happy consummation. Two important tribes have accepted the provision made for their removal at the last session of Congress, and it is believed that their example will induce the remaining tribes also to seek the same obvious advantages. The consequences of a speedy removal will be important to the United States, to individual States, and to the Indians themselves. The pecuniary advantages which it promises to the Government are the least of its recommendations. It puts an end to all possible danger of collision between the authorities of the General and State Governments on account of the Indians. It will place a dense and civilized population in large tracts of country now occupied by a few savage hunters. By opening the whole territory between Tennessee on the north and Louisiana on the south to the settlement of the whites it will incalculably strengthen the southwestern frontier and render the adjacent States strong enough to repel future invasions without remote aid. It will relieve the whole State of Mississippi and the western part of Alabama of Indian occupancy, and enable those States to advance rapidly in population, wealth, and power. It will separate the Indians from immediate contact with settlements of whites; free them from the power of the States; enable them to pursue happiness in their own way and under their own rude institutions; will retard the progress of decay, which is lessening their numbers, and perhaps cause them gradually, under the protection of the Government and through the influence of good counsels, to cast off their savage habits and become an interesting, civilized, and Christian community. What good man would prefer a country covered with forests and ranged by a few thousand savages to our extensive Republic, studded with cities, towns, and prosperous farms embellished with all the improvements which art can devise or industry execute, occupied by more than 12,000,000 happy people, and filled with all the blessings of liberty, civilization and religion? The present policy of the Government is but a continuation of the same progressive change by a milder process. The tribes which occupied the countries now constituting the Eastern States were annihilated or have melted away to make room for the whites. The waves of population and civilization are rolling to the westward, and we now propose to acquire the countries occupied by the red men of the South and West by a fair exchange, and, at the expense of the United States, to send them to land where their existence may be prolonged and perhaps made perpetual. Doubtless it will be painful to leave the graves of their fathers; but what do they more than our ancestors did or than our children are now doing? To better their condition in an unknown land our forefathers left all that was dear in earthly objects. Our children by thousands yearly leave the land of their birth to seek new homes in distant regions. Does Humanity weep at these painful separations from everything, animate and inanimate, with which the young heart has become entwined? Far from it. It is rather a source of joy that our country affords scope where our young population may range unconstrained in body or in mind, developing the power and facilities of man in their highest perfection. These remove hundreds and almost thousands of miles at their own expense, purchase the lands they occupy, and support themselves at their new homes from the moment of their arrival. Can it be cruel in this Government when, by events which it cannot control, the Indian is made discontented in his ancient home to purchase his lands, to give him a new and extensive territory, to pay the expense of his removal, and support him a year in his new abode? How many thousands of our own people would gladly embrace the opportunity of removing to the West on such conditions! If the offers made to the Indians were extended to them, they would be hailed with gratitude and joy.

And is it supposed that the wandering savage has a stronger attachment to his home than the settled, civilized Christian? Is it more afflicting to him to leave the graves of his fathers than it is to our brothers and children? Rightly considered, the policy of the General Government toward the red man is not only liberal, but generous. He is unwilling to submit to the laws of the States and mingle with their population. To save him from this alternative, or perhaps utter annihilation, the General Government kindly offers him a new home, and proposes to pay the whole expense of his removal and settlement." Citation: President Jackson's Message to Congress "On Indian Removal", December 6, 1830; Records of the United States Senate, 1789‐1990; Record Group 46; Records of the United States Senate, 1789‐1990; National Archives and Records Administration (NARA]

Ralph Waldo Emerson’s Letter to Martin Van Buren, President of the United States, 1836

Sir:

The seat you fill places you in a relation of credit and nearness to every citizen. By right and natural position, every citizen is your friend. Before any acts contrary to his own judgment or interest have repelled the affections of any man, each may look with trust and living anticipation to your government. Each has the highest right to call your attention to such subjects as are of a public nature, and properly belong to the chief magistrate; and the good magistrate will feel a joy in meeting such confidence. In this belief and at the instance of a few of my friends and neighbors, I crave of your patience a short hearing for their sentiments and my own: and the circumstances that my name will be utterly unknown to you will only give the fairer chance to your equitable construction of what I have to say.

Sir, my communication respects the sinister rumors that fill this part of the country concerning the Cherokee people. The interest always felt in the aboriginal population – an interest naturally growing as that decays – has been heightened in regard to this tribe. Even in our distant State some good rumor of their worth and civility has arrived. We have learned with joy their improvement in the social arts. We have read their newspapers. We have seen some of them in our schools and colleges. In common with the great body of the American people, we have witnessed with sympathy the painful labors of these red men to redeem their own race from the doom of eternal inferiority, and to borrow and domesticate in the tribe the arts and customs of the Caucasian race. And notwithstanding the unaccountable apathy with which of late years the Indians have been sometimes abandoned to their enemies, it is not to be doubted that it is the good pleasure and the understanding of all humane persons in the Republic, of the men and the matrons sitting in the thriving independent families all over the land, that they shall be duly cared for; that they shall taste justice and love from all to whom we have delegated the office of dealing with them.

The newspapers now inform us that, in December, 1835, a treaty contracting for the exchange of all the Cherokee territory was pretended to be made by an agent on the part of the United States with some persons appearing on the part of the Cherokees; that the fact afterwards transpired that these deputies did by no means represent the will of the nation; and that, out of eighteen thousand souls composing the nation, fifteen thousand six hundred and sixty-eight have protested against the so-called treaty. It now appears that the government of the United States choose to hold the Cherokees to this sham treaty, and are proceeding to execute the same. Almost the entire Cherokee Nation stand up and say, “This is not our act. Behold us. Here are we. Do not mistake that handful of deserters for us;” and the American President and the Cabinet, the Senate and the House of Representatives, neither hear these men nor see them, and are contracting to put this active nation into carts and boats, and to drag them over mountains and rivers to a wilderness at a vast distance beyond the Mississippi. As a paper purporting to be an army order fixes a month from this

day as the hour for this doleful removal.

In the name of God, sir, we ask you if this be so. Do the newspapers rightly inform us? Man and women with pale and perplexed faces meet one another in the streets and churches here, and ask if this be so. We have inquired if this be a gross misrepresentation from the party opposed to the government and anxious to blacken it with the people. We have looked at the newspapers of different parties and find a horrid confirmation of the tale. We are slow to believe it. We hoped the Indians were misinformed, and that their remonstrance was premature, and will turn out to be a needless act of terror.

The piety, the principle that is left in the United States, if only in its coarsest form, a regard to the speech of men, forbid us to entertain it as a fact. Such a dereliction of all faith and virtue, such a denial of justice, and such deafness to screams for mercy were never heard of in times of peace and in the dealing of a nation with its own allies and wards, since the earth was made. Sir, does this government think that the people of the United States are become savage and mad? From their mind are the sentiments of love and a good nature wiped clean out? The soul of man, the justice, the mercy that is the heart in all men from Maine to Georgia, does abhor this business.

In speaking thus the sentiments of my neighbors and my own, perhaps I overstep the bounds of decorum. But would it not be a higher indecorum coldly to argue a matter like this? We only state the fact that a crime is projected that confounds our understanding by its magnitude, a crime that really deprives us as well as the Cherokees of a country for how could we call the conspiracy that should crush these poor Indians our government, or the land that was cursed by their parting and dying imprecations our country, any more? You, sir, will bring down that renowned chair in which you sit into infamy if your seal is set to this instrument of perfidy; and the name of this nation, hitherto the sweet omen of religion and liberty, will stink to the world.

You will not do us the injustice of connecting this remonstrance with any sectional and party feeling. It is in our hearts the simplest commandment of brotherly love. We will not have this great and solemn claim upon national and human justice huddled aside under the flimsy plea of its being a party act. Sir, to us the questions upon which the government and the people have been agitated during the past year, touching the prostration of the currency and of trade, seem but motes in comparison. These hard times, it is true, have brought the discussion home to every farmhouse and poor man’s house in this town; but it is the chirping of grasshoppers beside the immortal question whether justice shall be done by the race of civilized to the race of savage man, whether all the attributes of reason, of civility, of justice, and even of mercy, shall be put off by the American people, and so vast an outrage upon the Cherokee Nation and upon human nature shall be consummated.

One circumstance lessens the reluctance with which I intrude at this time on your attention my conviction that the government ought to be admonished of a new historical fact, which

the discussion of this question has disclosed, namely, that there exists in a great part of the Northern people a gloomy diffidence in the moral character of the government.

On the broaching of this question, a general expression of despondency, of disbelief that any good will accrue from a remonstrance on an act of fraud and robbery, appeared in those men to whom we naturally turn for aid and counsel. Will the American government steal? Will it lie? Will it kill? – We ask triumphantly. Our counselors and old statesmen here say that ten years ago they would have staked their lives on the affirmation that the proposed Indian measures could not be executed; that the unanimous country would put them down. And now the steps of this crime follow each other so fast, at such fatally quick time, that the millions of virtuous citizens, whose agents the government are, have no place to interpose, and must shut their eyes until the last howl and wailing of these tormented villages and tribes shall afflict the ear of the world.

I will not hide from you, as an indication of the alarming distrust, that a letter addressed as mine is, and suggesting to the mind of the Executive the plain obligations of man, has a burlesque character in the apprehensions of some of my friends. I, sir, will not beforehand treat you with the contumely of this distrust. I will at least state to you this fact, and show you how plain and humane people, whose love would be honor, regard the policy of the government, and what injurious inferences they draw as to the minds of the governors. A man with your experience in affairs must have seen cause to appreciate the futility of opposition to the moral sentiment. However feeble the sufferer and however great the oppressor, it is in the nature of things that the blow should recoil upon the aggressor. For God is in the sentiment, and it cannot be withstood. The potentate and the people perish before it; but with it, and its executor, they are omnipotent.

I write thus, sir, to inform you of the state of mind these Indian tidings have awakened here, and to pray with one voice more that you, whose hands are strong with the delegated power of fifteen millions of men, will avert with that might the terrific injury which threatens the Cherokee tribe.

With great respect, sir, I am your fellow citizen,

Ralph Waldo EmersonSource: http://www.cherokee.org/AboutTheNation/History/TrailofTears/RalphWaldoEmersonsLetter.aspx

Module 5: Writing Argumentative Essays

TITLE: This should be something catchy or thoughtful. Don’t just say “Argumentative Essay.” That’s lame.

1. INTRODUCTION: Start with an attention-getter, then narrow to your thesis (must be arguable, must state your position, should be concise, should control your paper with most important points going in your last body paragraph).

2. BODYBody Paragraph #1Topic sentence (main argument of the paragraph)Specific examples to support the topic sentenceBody Paragraph #2As you continue your paper, do the same thing that you did for body paragraph one. Present evidence in support of your arguments in all of your body paragraphs.

3. REFUTE THE OTHER SIDE. Sometimes it’s a good idea to refute the main points in opposition to your argument. This will depend on the assignment and the teacher’s wishes. If you do this, however, be sure that you actually refute what the other side says. Don’t just give the opposite side’s reasons and then not address/disqualify them.

3. CONCLUSION: Write a quick summary of your thesis but use different words – don’t just copy and paste what you have in your introductory paragraph. Finish the paragraph with thoughts on your main point, or a call to action, or a thought for the reader to focus on. At the very least, don’t introduce any new topics or evidence.

Essay Prompts: Choose one of the following.

Are humans strengthened more by their spiritual connections or their life experiences? Using House of Purple Cedar as your authoritative text, explain which is the biggest catalyst of change: spirituality (in any form) or life itself. You can consider this from the position of more than one character.

Humankind is made up of both good and evil. Consider the characters of Marshall Hardwicke, Amafo, Agent Taylor, and Oda Mae Hardwicke in House of Purple Cedar. Are these characters accurately representative of the characteristics of man? Take a position and explain it, using the novel as your source.

Many of the characters in House of Purple Cedar must adapt to adversity. Which characters adapt the most successfully? Prove your assertion with specific textual references.

Module 6: Poetry Analysis: Steps to Help Understand Meaning

Part I: Analyze the Poem

1. Read the poems aloud. Poems are meant to be heard. Reading a poem more than once helps establish proper rhythm.

2. Identify the rhetorical stance (SOAPSTone)o Speaker o Occasiono Audienceo Purpose o Subjecto Tone

3. Paraphrase the poem by stanza. If you can put it in your own words it means you are beginning to understand it.4. Look up unfamiliar words. (Poems rely on brevity – not knowing meanings of words negatively impacts understanding of the poem.) 5. Identify sound devices, i.e., alliteration, assonance, consonance, etc.6. Identify any allusions.7. What details are focused on?8. Identify the imagery used. Look for repetition or extensions of images.9. Consider rhythm and meter. What impact does it have on the poem?

Read the poem, analyze it, and determine its meaning and message. Once you have determined the meaning and tone of Whitman’s “America,” below, you must write an original poem in Whitman’s style that reflects what America means to you. You will share your poem with the class and explain what the poem means.

America by Walt Whitman

Centre of equal daughters, equal sons,All, all alike endear’d, grown, ungrown, young or old,Strong, ample, fair, enduring, capable, rich,Perennial with the Earth, with Freedom, Law and Love,A grand, sane, towering, seated Mother,Chair’d in the adamant of Time.

MODULE 7: DIALECTICAL/READER RESPONSE JOURNALS

Reader-Response Criticism

Summary: This resource will help you begin the process of understanding literary theory and schools of criticism and how they are used in the academy.

Contributors: Allen Brizee, J. Case Tompkins, Libby Chernouski, Elizabeth BoyleLast Edited: 2015-08-17 03:05:36

What Do You Think?

At its most basic level, reader response criticism considers readers' reactions to literature as vital to interpreting the meaning of the text. However, reader-response criticism can take a number of different approaches. A critic deploying reader-response theory can use a psychoanalytic lens, a feminist lens, or even a structuralist lens. What these different lenses have in common when using a reader response approach is they maintain "...that what a text is cannot be separated from what it does" (Tyson 154).

Tyson explains that "...reader-response theorists share two beliefs: 1) that the role of the reader cannot be omitted from our understanding of literature and 2) that readers do not passively consume the meaning presented to them by an objective literary text; rather they actively make the meaning they find in literature" (154).

Source: https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/722/06/

Journal Assignment

You are going to take a reader response approach to dialectical journals. Dialect is “the art or practice of arriving at the truth by using conversation involving question and answer,” so your responsibility is to respond to the novel. This will include (but is not limited to) revealing your ideas about meaning, asking and answering questions you have as you read, making predictions about plot or characterization, writing reflections on the story or about a specific passage in a larger context, and forming evaluations/judgments about characters, actions, or author’s purpose.

Procedure

Active reading involves questioning, making connections, predictions, reflections, and judgments about the story and its elements. Your responses will reflect this active reading.

1. Respond to a part of the text: Once you have read a specific amount of pages, you will think about the reading and respond to it. Your response can explain questions you have and why, reveal a connection you have to the story, predict what will happen, reflect on meaning, or judge an element of the story. In the left column, give a short plot summary. In the middle, write the page numbers and type of response it is (see chart below), and in the column on the right, write your response.

2. The second option is to address a specific quote that is meaningful in some way. The procedure is the same – but instead of addressing a large part of the story, you are responding to one significant quote. Do the same thing, but instead of plot summary write the exact quote and provide a page number.

o Question o Connection o Prediction o Reflection o Judgment

You need a minimum of __________ journal entries for the book you are reading, and each response must be a minimum of 100 words. Put the word count at the bottom of the response.

Sample Dialectical Journal Entry

Summary/Direct Quote Page NumbersType of Response

Reader Response

In one of the early chapters, there is a fire in the girls’ boarding school, and as a result of the fire a deaf child burns to death. Her body is found and handed to her mother. The quote, “A mother should not have to bury her child” is the only words the child’s mother speaks.

Page 22Connection

As a mother myself, the image of a dead child is haunting. Though I have thankfully never experienced this tragedy, I completely understand her sentiment – in fact, it speaks to me. The idea of never having to bury a child is universal and speaks to all people. It is not limited by cultural group, age group, or parental status for that matter. Everybody can agree with this idea and understand it. I can completely sympathize with the dead child’s mother and feel an emotional connection to her, even though her role in the story is not significant. She is not the protagonist, yet I will remember her for that one line.(Word Count: 111)

The best responses will not be superficial. Try higher level responses, such as looking at literary devices, or differences between characters. Write about imagery or make suggestions about how the story could be improved or made more effective if told from a different perspective or point of view. Don’t limit yourself to “I like that…” or “I don’t like this because…” Write thoughtful responses that reveal your deep understanding of the story and its elements.

Module 8: Reading Informational Text: 12 th Grade

Part I: Read, outline and summarize the text, following the outline below. (Do this on another sheet of paper.)

I. Title/Subject of article goes herea. Sub-headings go here

i. Write a 2-3 sentence summary of each paragraph in this section.ii. Do this for every paragraph.

b. Another sub-heading would go here.i. Same things as above. Do you see a pattern? You should.

ii. Same as above.c. Sub-heading if there is one goes here.

i. Same as aboveii. Same as above. Keep doing this until your final paragraph is done.

d. Conclusion: State it in a sentence or two.

Part II: 1. What are the central ideas of the text? Write at least 3 sentences that support your claim.

Cite evidence to support your answers (a direct quote from the text).

2. What is the author’s point of view? State it in a few sentences, and cite specific evidence from the text.

3. What is the author’s purpose? State it in a few sentences, and cite specific evidence from the text.

4. How does the author’s word choice help develop the point of view? Cite specific evidence (direct quotes) to prove your claim.

5. How does the author’s word choice help develop his or her argument? Cite specific evidence.

Module 9: Response to Walt Whitman’s Poetry Assignment

Response poetry is what it sounds like – you write a poem in response to another poem. “The Passionate Shepherd to His Love” by Christopher Marlowe and “The Nymph’s Reply to the Shepherd” by Sir Walter Ralegh are a perfect example of a poem and a response poem. However, response poetry can also imitate form or replicate a controlling metaphor from the initial poem. The goal of response poetry is to change the perspective and write something original that helps to transform the initial poem. If you need additional information, a simple explanation of response poetry can be found at http://faculty.gvsu.edu/kanekot/coursedocs/responsepoem.htm

Though Walt Whitman is considered by many to be one of America’s most important poets, not everybody agrees that his portrayals of non-white Americans are accurate in their descriptions. In fact, many people find his portrayals naïve at best, racist at worse.

Read the two Whitman poems that are attached to this assignment. Choose one and write a response poem from the perspective of one of the main characters in House of Purple Cedar, such as Amafo or Rose. Your response poem should be written in the same style as the poem you have chosen to respond to.

From “Song of Myself” (Section 10) by Walt Whitman

Alone far in the wilds and mountains I hunt,Wandering amazed at my own lightness and glee,In the late afternoon choosing a safe spot to pass the night,Kindling a fire and broiling the fresh-kill'd game,Falling asleep on the gather'd leaves with my dog and gun by my side.

The Yankee clipper is under her sky-sails, she cuts the sparkle and scud, My eyes settle the land, I bend at her prow or shout joyously from the deck.

The boatmen and clam-diggers arose early and stopt for me,I tuck'd my trowser-ends in my boots and went and had a good time; You should have been with us that day round the chowder-kettle.

I saw the marriage of the trapper in the open air in the far west, the bride was a red girl, Her father and his friends sat near cross-legged and dumbly         smoking, they had moccasins to their feet and large thick blankets hanging from their shoulders, On a bank lounged the trapper, he was drest mostly in skins, his         luxuriant beard and curls protected his neck, he held his bride by the hand, She had long eyelashes, her head was bare, her coarse straight         locks descended upon her voluptuous limbs and reach'd to her feet.

The runaway slave came to my house and stopt outside,I heard his motions crackling the twigs of the woodpile,Through the swung half-door of the kitchen I saw him limpsy and weak, And went where he sat on a log and led him in and assured him,And brought water and fill'd a tub for his sweated body and bruis'd feet, And gave him a room that enter'd from my own, and gave him some coarse clean clothes, And remember perfectly well his revolving eyes and his awkwardness,And remember putting plasters on the galls of his neck and ankles;He staid with me a week before he was recuperated and pass'd north, I had him sit next me at table, my fire-lock lean'd in the corner.

1891 edition on the Whitman Archive

THE INCA'S DAUGHTER by Walt Whitman

Before the dark-brow'd sons of Spain,A captive Indian maiden stood;

Imprison'd where the moon beforeHer race as princes trod.

The rack had riven her frame that day—But not a sigh or murmur broke

Forth from her breast; calmly she stood,And sternly thus she spoke:—

"The glory of Peru is gone;Her proudest warriors in the fight—

Her armies, and her Inca's powerBend to the Spaniard's might.

"And I—a Daughter of the Sun—Shall I ingloriously still live?

Shall a Peruvian monarch's childBecome the white lord's slave?

"No: I'd not meet my father's frownIn the free spirit's place of rest,

Nor seem a stranger midst the bandsWhom Manitou has blest."

Her snake-like eye, her cheek of fire,Glowed with intenser, deeper hue;

She smiled in scorn, and from her robeA poisoned arrow drew.

"Now, paleface see! the Indian girlCan teach thee how to bravely die:

Hail! spirits of my kindred slain,A sister ghost is nigh!"

Her hand was clenched and lifted high—Each breath, and pulse, and limb was still'd;

An instant more the arrow fell:Thus died the Inca's child.

Source: http://www.whitmanarchive.org/published/periodical/poems/per.00035

Module 10: Cultural Exploration Research and Presentation Project

Your job is to research various cultural and social justice issues related to Native Americans (and more specifically Choctaw Indians) that are represented in the novel House of Purple Cedar, a short story by Sherman Alexie, a poem by Walt Whitman, and your own personal research, and present a “museum” display of your findings. Your research will include a close reading of the novel, the short story, the poem, and academic online sources.   The categories of issues relevant to your research are listed below. You must address each category as it revealed in the various sources. Not all issues will be represented in each source. Consider the essential questions for each issue and, in your answer/response, address the essential question with references to the texts and your outside research. You will present your findings to the class. Your presentation options are below. (Be sure to include a Works Cited page for your online sources, following MLA formatting.)

In a nutshell, you will read the texts, write about the topics, respond to the questions, use pictorial/visual representations to illustrate the topics, and present your ideas/knowledge to the class.

Equity and Justice

Where is inequity or injustice or prejudice revealed in the novel, the short story, the poem, and the history of Choctaw Indians?

Explain the injustice that exists and the impact that it has on people and society.  

Do these types of injustice still exist in our society or the society of Native Americans?   What should be the response to current acts of injustice against a cultural group?  Cite your sources for your research on the current issues.

Positive Role Models

In the face of injustice, humans can respond with strength and dignity.   What role models exist in the novel, short story, poems, and history?  What role models exist today?  How do those role models increase our understanding of Choctaw/Native American culture?

Social Differences

“At bottom every man knows well enough that he is a unique being, only once on this earth; and by no extraordinary chance will such a marvelously picturesque piece of diversity in unity as he is, ever be put together a second time.” ― Friedrich Nietzsche

A review of different social groups reveals many social differences.  One difference that is revealed in the novel is that of spirituality.  Though the religion is similar in many ways to Christianity, there are differences, such as Rose and Amafo being able to “see” dead people.  Or that Pokoni’s spirit animal after her death is a panther.  What do these differences reveal about Choctaw culture?  How is spirituality revealed in the novel, short story, poem, and history?  How do the religious/spiritual aspects in the story differ from other religions?

Social SimilaritiesDespite our diversity, different cultural groups have many similarities.   What similarities are there in the cultural group represented in the novel, the short story, the poem, and your personal cultural group?  Explain with specific references.

Prejudice/Discrimination/Lack of Awareness

Throughout history, different cultural groups have faced prejudice, discrimination, and societal lack of cultural awareness.  How is this revealed in the novel, short story, poem, and history of the Choctaw Indians?  What is the impact of this prejudice on people?

In what ways does prejudice/discrimination/lack of awareness of social groups still manifest itself today?  What cultural groups still face these issues?  Explain.

Social IssuesDifferent social groups experience similar social issues.  Issues such as domestic violence, police/govt. brutality, and alcoholism are not limited to specific cultures.   For example, domestic violence occurs as an element of teen culture and American culture and many (perhaps all) other cultures.  How are these social issues revealed in the novel, short story, and history of the Choctaw people?  How are these social issues revealed in other cultures and time periods?  What is the impact of these social issues on society?

Presentation IdeasPowerPointPreziWebsiteVideoWritten documentPodcast (which would obviously not include pictures, but would require more writing)

SourcesHouse of Purple CedarShort Story “Because My Father Always Said he Was the Only Indian Who Say Jimi Hendrix Play ‘The Star-Spangled Banner’ at Woodstock” from Blasphemy by Sherman AlexiePoems: Choose One“Song of Myself” by Walt Whitman“The Inca’s Daughter” by Walt Whitman“America” by Walt WhitmanOnline sources

Module 11: House of Purple Cedar Figurative Language

There are many types of figurative language: allegory, irony, metonymy, simile, metaphor, hyperbole, etc. For the purposes of this exercise, we will focus on the following figures of speech:

metaphor - a comparison between two seemingly unlike objects simile - a comparison of objects using “like” or “as” (and similar comparison words) personification - giving human qualities or characteristics to inhuman objects imagery – using words/language in a way that represents objects or ideas that appeals

to our physical senses Paradox - a seemingly absurd or self-contradictory statement or proposition that when

investigated or explained may prove to be well founded or true.

Directions: As you read the story, find and write down ________ examples of each figurative device listed above, then analyze the example and explain its significance (to the story, characterization, etc.). An example has been done for you. (Cite page numbers.)

Example:

Paradox: “On walks in the woods you would find them frozen dead, their mouths open and crying for something to stop this burning ice” (15).

Analysis: In the opening chapter, Rose reveals her fear of death by ice. The speaker is able to reveal the true extent of her fear as something that is painful, “burning,” yet is not typically associated with “ice.” Fire was “nothing to fear” but the painful association of burning to her fear of “death by ice” is revealed in the paradox.

Module 12: Vocabulary Worksheet

In reading literature, you will often come across words with which you are unfamiliar. While reading the novel House of Purple Cedar, identify at least _______ words that are new to you. For each word, write the word and part of speech in the column on the left, the definition and the sentence in which it is used (include page number) in the middle column, and draw a visual representation of the word in the column on the right. A sample has been done for you. When you have completed all ____ words, write an original sentence that shows the proper use of each word.

Word and Part of Speech

Definition and sentence it is used in. Picture/Memory Cue

Nahullo(also: na hullo)noun

Def. – the Choctaw term for a European (white) man/person“But once we were alive, all of us, and when good people, Choctaw and Nahullo both, step over our Skullyville graves, we sing as best we can, we sing those old hymns and songs, for they are everything to us” (7).

Word and Part of Speech

Definition and sentence it is used in Picture/Memory Cue