In 1996, I read E. Hotchner’s book, Papa Hemingway: A Personal Memoir. It was one of those books that changed me. The book has an opening epigraph, a quote of Hemingway’s, that I memorized after reading the book and have used at the beginning of every freshman composition class I taught. The quotation reminds us of the work required to produce good writing and how Father Time must be paid before quality writing can be produced. Here are Hemingway’s words: There are some things which cannot be learned quickly, and time, which is all we have, must be paid heavily for their acquiring. They are the very simplest things, and because it takes man’s life to know them the little new that each man gets from life is very costly and the only heritage he has to leave. –Ernest Hemingway
Teaching Shakespeare to High School Students
A Shakespeare Festival for a high school can be a richly rewarding and enjoyable cultural experience for junior high or high school students. You can involve many students in this event and teach them much more than they intend to learn. An event like this requires a good bit of preparation, so allow yourself plenty of time.
After you have prepared your shortened version of your Shakespeare play, (see yesterday’s blog entry) you must select your cast and crew. In addition to actors, you will need someone for the curtains, someone to organize and run props, someone to control sound effects/music/microphones etc., a publicity crew, photographer, and a historian. You will also need some students to distribute playbills, set up chairs, serve refreshments (if offered) and work on costumes and the set. Depending upon how many students you involve, some will likely be multitasking. You, the teacher, certainly will be!
A Shakespare production or festival can be a wonderful experience for secondary gifted students. It is a perfect opportunity for them to utilize their creativity, and believe me, they can and will surprise you.
Teaching Romeo and Juliet to High School Students
When I taught gifted reading at Lee Junior High in Monroe, I discovered a means to teach Romeo and Juliet to students quickly and efficiently (and I also used this technique with other Shakespeare plays). When I taught there, we held our own Shakespeare Festival, and the production went over well with students, teachers, and parents. The North Monroe community noticed the event, and we received good press on it. At Lee, my gifted classes did a 30-40 minute production of Julius Caesar (a tragedy that my junior high thespians turned into a comedy!) and Midsummer Night’s Dream, which turned out exceptionally well.
My two freshman honors classes have just started Romeo and Juliet, and they are excited and already know the play. I personally think every educated person should know this greatest of love stories, and I wanted to share a means of teaching it that has worked well for me. Here’s all it requires:
1. Buy enough of the Dover Classic editions of Romeo and Juliet for all of your students. Windows: A Bookshop here in Monroe gives me a 20% discounts if I order 20 copies or more of a book. Here is a link to Windows Bookshop site: http://www.windowsabookshop.com/ As I’m sure you know, Dover Publications is the closest company (at least that I know of) to those who used to produce the dime novels. You can build, or help your children to have a collection of almost all the great classics of literature for just a few bucks. Each book costs only one or two dollars. Find out more about Dover here: http://store.doverpublications.com/
2. Equip each student with a highlighter. The teacher will then direct the students to highlight “only” what he/she reads aloud. To end up with a thirty or forty minute play requires a good deal of cutting. The trick is to cut lines and dialogues, compacting the play to its essence, but to do so without losing the story. As the teacher goes through the text, he or she can teach vocabulary, explain in summary what is being left out and why it is left out, and help the students with pronunciation. (Those of us who were raised on the King James Bible definitely have an advantage when studying Shakespeare). In this phase, the students only hear the teacher read. A small digression here: This is really good classroom work to help develop “skim and scan” technique, a skill they will need on (ugh) standardized tests. A little aside here. I heard a good thought yesterday: The only children left behind with the No Child Left Behind Act are the gifted ones.
3. After the editing process is complete, you can have some read alouds, first to time the play. The reading time needs of course to be less than the time alloted for the play, for you must allow time for scene changes, action, etc. After the read alouds, you can audition students for the parts. Warning: Competition will be fierce for Juliet! I’d require memorization for anyone auditioning for Juliet’s role. This weeds out the ones who just want the role. Juliet suffered, so must they if they want to be her.
4. I allowed my students to memorize their parts using their Dover book. You may want to type out the script, or have a student or all of them type out their own script. This is a great way to introduce students to the world of theatre. In another post, I’ll talk about what else is necessary for a high school production of Shakespeare.
Mobile, Alabama
I’ve been doing more research on Mobile, Alabama. It seemed like such a romantic city that it inspired me to write this song-poem. It’s hard for me to write songs: I don’t know whether to write the melody or the lyrics first. In this case, the lyrics came first. Here they are.
A full moon tonight in Mobile Bay,
You’ve only been gone a single day,
I hope you’re happy there,
That your heart is free of care,
That it’s the city you need,
That you’ll think of me
When you see the moon in Mobile Bay.
In Mobile Bay the moon is full,
Can you feel like me its sad pull?
The moon’s veiled with her own doubt,
By a thin, sheer, gray sheet of cloud.
But love shines through the scrim,
Though you’re there with him,
With the full moon in Mobile Bay.
My ghost walks the old brick streets,
Where history was made and memories sleep,
Beneath the canopies of live oak trees,
I hear you breathe while you sleep,
I think of your kisses sweet,
Of the next time we’ll meet,
And the full moon in Mobile Bay.
Second Night of Battlefield Louisiana
Tonight was the second night in the series I’m facilatating for the Louisiana Endowments for the Arts and the Winnsboro, Louisiana library. The book we reviewed and discussed was The Louisiana Native Guards: The Black Military Experience During the Civil War. The discussion was lively and interesting. (These adults pay so much better attention than my high school students, and they’ve actually read the book!) The library fed us a great meal and we had a bigger crowd than even last week, which was a record crowd. After my presentation, I had a brief visit with my friend and international fighting champion, Bob Allan, who has a Karate studio in Winnsboro.
Driving home, I was in one of the sad and introspective moods writers can get into, and what do I do? I make it worse by listening to an Evanescence song–over and over. I’m a writer, so I’ve a right to be sad once in a while, even though I know I don’t have a reason to. I’ve had some email requests to post some more of their lyrics. So, here are some. These lyrics came from http://endor.org/evanescence/lyrics.asp?Submit=View+Lyrics&AlbumID=4&SongID=31, the unofficial site of Evanescence.
My Immortal
i’m so tired of being here
suppressed by all of my childish fears
and if you have to leave
i wish that you would just leave
because your presence still lingers here
and it won’t leave me alone
these wounds won’t seem to heal
this pain is just too real
there’s just too much that time cannot erase
when you cried i’d wipe away all of your tears
when you’d scream i’d fight away all of your fears
and i’ve held your hand through all of these years
but you still have all of me
you used to captivate me
by your resonating light
but now i’m bound by the life you left behind
your face it haunts my once pleasant dreams
your voice it chased away all the sanity in me
these wounds won’t seem to heal
this pain is just too real
there’s just too much that time cannot erase
when you cried i’d wipe away all of your tears
when you’d scream i’d fight away all of your fears
and i’ve held your hand through all of these years
but you still have all of me
i’ve tried so hard to tell myself that you’re gone
and though you’re still with me
i’ve been alone all along
Southern Cities
As I’ve mentioned several times in this blog, I love living in the South. There are several Southern cities I absolutely adore. My favorites are all along the coast: Charleston, SC; Savannah, GA; and Mobile, AL. These cities are not only beautiful, but they have retained Southern history and the charm of Southern culture better than many others.
Let’s look at Mobile, for example. Money Magazine included it in the 300 Best Places in the nation to live list. It has the beautiful bay, museums, a rich culture, and a strong economy. I think it’s the third largest city in Alabama. I intend on doing some exploring there some time.
Charleston is the city I know the best, Savannah the least. I’ve had several posts on Charleston in the past, and will likely have more. The city of Mobile has an official and well-designed site: http://www.cityofmobile.org/ If you like Southern cities like I do, spend some time checking it out.
Ready for Summer
I’m officially ready for summer. I’m officially weary of wet and cold. I know spring is coming. I can hear a difference in the morning song birds, the very air itself feels different, I can see weeds (and some grass) sprouting in my yard, I can feel romance stirring in my blood. I am ready for flip-flops and shorts, ready to feel the warmth of the sun. Much work comes with the spring when you own a house, but that is just part of the deal. There will be the annual repair of the air conditioner, I still have some screens for my carpenter friend to construct for my windows, I have landscaping, and I have other chores. The good thing about spring is that it leads me into summer. I need to do some research on how my favorite writers were affected by summer and how they viewed them.
Though I know summers are becoming increasingly shorter for teachers, I intend for this to be my most productive summer ever. Pelican will publish my children’s book, Jim Limber Davis: A Black Orphan in the Confederate White House, sometime in May. When it comes out, I will pack my schedule and burn up the roads doing signings and readings and children’s programs, etc. I need to start working on my calendar now. Wish me luck.
Tomorrow, I’ll be in Winnsboro in Franklin Parish for my second presentation for Battlefield Louisiana: The Civil War in Louisiana. This week we’re evaluating the book about the Louisiana Native Guards and the black experience during the Civil War. Today, back to the salt mine of public education.
The Tudors
Coming soon to Showtime will be a series I’ve looked forward to for some time–The Tudors. As a high school English teacher, I find the subject matter absolutely fascinating. I’m sure it will drive me and my more diligent students into all kinds of research. I especially do hope that my college students will watch the show. The preview information on the Tudor site says this of the series:
Lover. Warrior. Rebel. King. Jonathan Rhys Meyers is Henry VIII as never seen before. THE TUDORS is the epic new Showtime Original Series that reveals the scandalous life of the stunning young monarch, who ruled his kingdom with ruthless abandon. With a lust for power and an appetite for love, Henry’s affair with Anne Boleyn – and obsession with producing a male heir – changed the institution of marriage, and the world, forever. THE TUDORS is the untold story of Henry VIII, the beloved tyrant whose reign was marked by treachery, betrayal and intrigue.
Cast: Jonathan Rhys Meyers is King Henry VIII
Starring: Sam Neill, Callum Blue, Henry Cavill, Henry Czerny, Natalie Dormer and Jeremy Northam
I plan on watching every episode, and will comment on them on this blog. If you want to see pics, go to this link: http://assets.m80im.com/webmasters/thetudors/thetudors.html#about
If you’d like to see a good preview video, go here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0w0aNWHLUOU
Evanescence: Amy Lee’s Moving and Haunting Voice
I’ve been on an Evanescence kick lately, listening to the mesmerizing voice of Amy Lee while driving in my Toyota truck.
My friend E.B. requested I post the words of “Bring Me to Life.” Here they are, retrieved from http://endor.org/evanescence/lyrics.asp?Submit=View+Lyrics&AlbumID=4&SongID=29 This is the unofficial Evanescence Web site, full of lyrics and good stuff about the band, Evanescence.
Bring Me to Life
how can you see into my eyes like open doors
leading you down into my core
where i’ve become so numb
without a soul my spirit sleeping somewhere cold
until you find it there and lead it back home
wake me up inside
wake me up inside
call my name and save me from the dark
bid my blood to run
before i come undone
save me from the nothing i’ve become
now that i know what i’m without
you can’t just leave me
breathe into me and make me real
bring me to life
wake me up inside
wake me up inside
call my name and save me from the dark
bid my blood to run
before i come undone
save me from the nothing i’ve become
bring me to life
frozen inside without your touch
without your love darling
only you are the life among the dead
all this time i can’t believe i couldn’t see
kept in the dark but you were there in front of me
i’ve been sleeping a thousand years it seems
got to open my eyes to everything
without a thought without a voice without a soul
don’t let me die here
there must be something more
bring me to life
Lazy Writers
I’ve decided to preach to my writing self a little bit. I realized that my strict religious upbringing gave me some good knowledge of life and people, as well as some nightmares. There’s even some Bible verses that are relevant to writers. This morning, I thought of a couple of verses thare are relevant to writers, both of them from Ecclesiastes. One is Ecclesiastes 10:18 that has the phrase, “through idleness of the hands the house droppeth through.” A writer cannot afford to be lazy. Our chosen avocation (perhaps vocation if we’re lucky) is a brutal one. I read every biography I can find of writers I admire. They are generally men and women of discipline, who have worked hard for their success, much harder than their admiring readers realize.
Another verse writers can use is Ecclesiastes 11:6. “In the morning sow thy seed, and in the evening withhold ot thine hand: for thou knowest not whether shall prosper, either this or that, or whether they both shall be alike good.” This advice is practical for writers, not only in the writing itself, but also in the areas of marketing and promoting their books.
I’m on my way now to the coffee shop, my favorite writing place. I could and do write at home, but I am usually too distracted seeing all the things there is to do around my house, and as a consequence, I do not write diligently. I’ve got an important editing project I must finish soon. I want to get it behind me so I can return to my own work.
I’m tired though. I went to Enoch’s last night with my Scottish friends. Never trust a Scotsman when he says he wants to go get “one” beer. I don’t think they can count. Anyway, I lost count. The evening makes me think of Willie Nelson’s song that says something like, “I’ve got to get drunk tonight and I sure do regret it.” We heard Jeffrey Phillips, a fun and very competent Irish singer. I returned home after 11 p.m. and after the long day fell asleep quickly and slept late. I’ve had my coffee though, so I’m ready to get to work. I don’t want the rafters of my writing house to fall in.