HSC Area of Study: Discovery Resource Portfolio Patrick Byrnes (309195802)
The Histrionic Wayfarer Tim Storrier
1. Annotations of The Tempest. Annotations should include a description of how the composer explores the concept of ‘discovery’ in the text, with an example analysis of an excerpt from the prescribed text. (600 words)
Suggested by many scholars to be William Shakespeare’s last completed play, The Tempest contains within it a wealth of complex characters, both comedic and dramatic plotting, as well as a broad spectrum of themes and ideas. Written in early 17th century England, the play remains current and relevant through these themes and ideas, especially those pertaining to the notion of ‘discovery’, the area of study for HSC students. The Tempest tells the story of Prospero, as wizened magician who resides on an island, stranded with his daughter Miranda. The play begins with Prospero shipwrecking his brother Antonio, who was passing close by the island on a ship, a feat he accomplishes with enslaved spirit Ariel. Meanwhile, Prospero’s daughter Miranda falls in love with the shipwrecked Ferdinand, Antonio and Sebastian conspire to usurp Alonso and Gonzalo through a murderous plot, and the enslaved monster Caliban tries to raise a rebellion against Prospero with the aide of Stephano and Trinculo. At the culmination of all this farcical plotting and varied plots, Shakespeare offers The Tempest as a story that is at its heart, is a peaceful ode to the beauty and grace of forgiveness. Prospero’s development as a character demonstrates that virtue that can only be learned through a journey of self-‐discovery. In what is perhaps the play’s most memorable lines, Prospero summarises at the play’s end that
Our revels now are ended. These our actors As I foretold you, were all spirits, and/are melted into air, into thin air; And, like the baseless fabric of this vision, The cloud-‐capped towers, the gorgeous palaces, The solemn tempest, the great globe itself, Yea, all which it inherit, shall dissolve And, like this insubstantial pageant faded Leave not a rack behind. We are such stuff As dreams are made on, and our little life Is rounded with a sleep.” (Act Four)
A distinct tone of reflection and bittersweet mournfulness characterises Prospero’s musings at this stage of the play. We see in this moment that Prospero has changed from a man focused on seeking and attaining revenge over his former enemies, to a man who is now suddenly aware of the folly of his actions. These sentiments are amplified and legitimised in the next Act, in which Prospero destroys his staff and announces his intentions to drown his beloved magic books. This is a significant moment in that the audience can bear witness to an act of self-‐discovery, in which a formerly stubborn man relinquishes his power (both physical and metaphorical) in favour of an existence that is much
more humane. Instead of trying to manipulate humanity, Prospero discovers the beauty of experiencing it. Miranda experiences a similarly moving act of discovery in the play. Until the events of the play, Miranda has not encountered another human in her life. Upon seeing Ferdinand, Miranda questions whether or not he is a spirit, before remarking “I might call him a thing divine, for nothing natural I ever saw so noble.” Shakespeare guides us towards admiring the act of self-‐discovery that occurs through the influence of discovering other people, especially through the transformative power of love. Perhaps the most interesting character in the slave, from a standpoint of the concept of ‘discovery,’ is the monstrous slave Caliban. Caliban’s anger stems from the fact that he believes Prospero took the island from him, saying “When thou camest first, thou strok’st me and madest much of me, wouldst give me water with berries in’t, and teach me how to name the bigger light and how the less, that burn by day and night. And then I loved thee and show’d thee all the qualities o’ th’ isle, the fresh springs, brine-‐pits barren place and fertile. Cursed be I did so!” Caliban’s anger moves him towards a plot of rebellion, which sees him pathetically fawn before Stephano, who he believes to a divine interloper. It is interesting to consider what Caliban discovers by the play’s otherwise happy ending; Caliban’s rebellion has failed, and is in no better position than the play’s beginning. The possibility for discussion with students on what Caliban has discovered is rich and complex.
Related Materials Episode 360: ‘Switched at Birth’ This American Life This is a piece of radio journalism by Jake Halpern. It tells the story of two baby girls who were accidentally switched at birth and went home with the wrong families. One of the mothers discovered the mistake almost immediately, but chose not to say anything. The episode deals with what happened when the remaining parties discovered the truth over 40 years later. This is a naturally compelling subject for students, who are beginning to discover their own identity, the nature of family, and history. The episode offers many perspectives, and contains within itself rich material for discussion and exploration. Heavenly Creatures Peter Jackson This New Zealand film set in 1950s Christchurch explores the true story of Juliet Hulme and Pauline Parker, two teenaged girls who bond over a shared love of fantasy and literature, and ultimately conspire to kill Pauline’s mother when the girls’ families attempt to end their intense relationship. The film attracts students with its dark but captivating subject matter, aided by the fact that it centres on school aged characters, as well as its antipodean origins. The film explores ‘discovery’ in a number of ways. One of these being the depiction of personal discovery that occurs through a deep and intimate connection with another person. Another aspect of ‘discovery’ occurs through the discovery prompted through an awakening of sexual identity (this point is contentious, and would provide the classroom with a great deal of fodder for discussion). A third (though certainly not final) avenue is the discovery of ‘other’ personal ‘worlds’ which and the effect they have on personal identity and our relationships to others – this would provide a nice point of comparison to The Tempest. Fatso Etgar Keret Keret is an Israeli born writer, whose short story (three pages) ‘Fatso’ comes from his collection ‘The Nimrod Flipout’ (2006). The story tells the story of a man who after dating a woman for a period of time discovers a secret about his girlfriend; at night she turns into a short, fat, hairy Argentinian man. This story is short but it contains within it a wealth of material for students to talk and think about. The absurd tone Keret employs is something many students have encountered very little of (not encountered at all), which makes the text
even more fascinating and humorous. Unlike ‘The Tempest’ (or a related text like ‘Heavenly Creatures’) the discovery in this text is quite explicit, and despite the surreal nature of the discovery, the text is devoted to exploring the consequences of what happens when we discovery something we may not want to find, how we deal with the discoveries we make, and how those discoveries can change us and the relationships we hold.
Creative Writing Activity One ‘The Mysteries of Harris Burdick’ by Chris Van Allsburg is an appropriate creative writing resource to use when examining the concept of identity. The book/portfolio imagines the yet-‐to-‐be-‐completed work by fictional author Harris Burdick (for the purposes of teaching, the fact that Burdick is a work of fiction can be left to be revealed later, a discovery that could perhaps inspire a future activity). The detailed drawings/captions/titles are evocative and each conjures the concept of discovery by hinting at an imaginative world beyond the realms of possibility. Another, more meta layer of discovery – behind the idea that the students are supposedly ‘discovering’ the unfinished work of this author. As a creative writing exercise, the teacher would give individual students the choice of drawings/captions/titles – or a combination of either, if the student should so wish -‐ and compose a short piece of writing around this stimulus. Activity Two To be used as a pre-‐reading activity before examining ‘The Tempest.’ Inspired by titular storm that begins the play, the teacher would request students close their eyes as they play a minute long soundscape; an audio piece that captures the action in the middle of a storm. Students would then be instructed to write a short piece of creative writing inspired by the audio soundscape. This could be from any point of view, and could encompass any aspect of the ‘storm’ audio that was played, though some suggestions might be made to assist more tentative or reluctant students. Teachers might like to use the student written pieces as a point of comparison to the text of ‘The Tempest’ once it has begun. What elements of discovery does Shakespeare explore through the storm? Are there any elements of discovery in my own piece of creative writing? What might the storm represent? What is its purpose? Activity Three Another activity inspired by The Tempest, but one more appropriate for students to attempt after having read the entirety of the text. Teachers would instruct students to think about the character of Ariel at the play’s end. Students would then brainstorm what they think would become of Ariel after he is set free at the play’s end. After this is completed, students compose a piece of writing in the form of their choosing – short story, poem, or (suggested) a song akin to the songs that Ariel sings throughout the course of the play, elaborating on what they had previously brainstormed.
HSC Questions When annotating exam questions, there are a number of elements that it is important to pay attention to. Students need to be equipped with the proper skills to analyse what sort of question it is, an ability to engage with any statement or quotation, to identify any key terms within the question, trigger words, intent of question, as well as the quantity and purpose of related texts. Teachers similarly need to be able to make connections between question and detailed exam rubrics, syllabus rubrics, and syllabus specified outcomes. Section III – 2013 An individual’s sense of belonging is determined not only by their own choices but also by the attitudes of others. How accurately does this statement reflect the ideas represented in your prescribed text and ONE other related text of your own choosing? This question is asking students to incorporate the ideas present in the given statement (‘an individual’s sense of belonging is determined…) with the prescribed text and related material. It is important to note that students do not necessarily have to agree with the statement given that the question is asking ‘How accurately’ the statement reflects the students’ own ideas. As I teacher I would encourage students to not be afraid of engaging in a question critically, and would remind all students that a question like this would need some sort of evaluative statement to answer exactly ‘how accurately’ they believe the statement is. Further, as a teacher I would encourage the selection of appropriate related material, especially material that fits thematically with the prescribed text, but has enough malleability to adapt to a question such as this. Also, it would be wise to have multiple related texts prepared so that the text most suited to the question could be applied. On this note, providing well chosen and detailed textual evidence to support a line of argument is essential to writing a higher level essay, and this could be supported in class with close readings of key moments of the text. Inspired by the HSC markers’ comments, another important skill that I would need to help students develop is the ability to structure an argument so that it did not lose focus of the thesis and maintained an explicit engagement with the question. Section III – 2012 An individual’s perceptions of belonging evolve in response to the passage of time and interaction with their world.
In what ways is this view of belonging represented in your prescribed text and at least ONE other related text of your own choosing? Questions such as these are a reminder of the importance of teaching the importance of trigger words. In this instance, the words students would need to pay particular attention to are ‘perceptions of belonging’, ‘evolve’, ‘time’ and interaction.’ � With regards to this question, HSC markers reported on the need for students to use their essays to build a strong line of argument through a critical and nuanced thesis, and the need to balance textual analysis with this thesis. Essay writing is difficult precisely because of this balance; arguably, best way to improve this skill is through constant practice, and exposure to exemplar responses. Without this, students can fall into common traps such as; not engaging with the entirety of the question, recounting or paraphrasing aspects of their texts, not making clear and explicitly connections between texts, not explaining the effect of features, or simply listing techniques. �
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