Dorian Gray 15-16

Scribe 2/26

Scribe 2/26

We started class using the laptops. Everyone looked up their grades for the class on line, and then on a word document answered the questions:
What is your goal grade for this class this semester?
How do you plan on achieving that grade?

We then viewed an email from Dan Mass. In his email, he talked about how he is proud of us and that we are a mature class.

Next was the fishbowl, discussing chapters 13-14
Some questions asked were:
Is The Picture of Dorian Gray an immoral book? Why?
What are the connections between the quote in chapter 13 (Basil to Dorian), and the quote in the preface? Is Wilde trying to connect the two?
Dorian wishes to switch souls with the painting of him. Did he sell his soul to the devil? Is he regretting doing this later?
Does Wilde intend to represent the locking up and hiding of Dorian's sins, like Dorian hid and locked Basil's body in the schoolroom?
Why did Alan stop seeing Dorian so many years ago?
What is Alan blackmailing Dorian with?
What happened between Dorian and Alan?

Hopefully that helps anyone absent.

Homework for Wednesday: Read chapters 15-16, blog question over 13-14, quiz over 12-15

Posted by alexmu

Dorian Gray 13-14 question

A big part of our discussion today was about the difference between Wilde's society and today's society. Why is it that today this book is much more accepted? What has changed that would make turned this book from controversial to educational?

Dorian Gray 13-14

Scribe 2/23

Scribe 2/23

We took out a sheet of paper and wrote a reflection about what is going on with out life
What is going well in your life?
What are you struggling with?
How can Smith help you?
Our Fishbowl discussion went a little like this….
“For years, Dorian Gray could not free himself from the influence of this book. Or perhaps it would be accurate to say that he never sought to free himself from it. He produced from Paris no less than nine large-paper copies of the first edition, and had them bound in different colours, so that they might suit his various moods and the changing fancies of a nature over which he seemed, at times, to have almost entirely lost control.”……. Is this quote saying the yellow book is like a drug to Dorian? Is it like his Bible?
How some people live life is by the way of the bible
The more he reads it, the more corrupt he becomes.
What mood does yellow represent?
Yellow was compared to the Divine Comedy.
Yellow=cowardice/hatred/death
Cowardice shows how Dorian is afraid to show who he really is. Hides behind his own beauty.
Why does he need 9 books?
Keeps wanting more and more, he can never get enough
Related to the blog question posted for the 2/21 fishbowl group. Once you get what you seemingly can’t have you keep wanting more and more you can’t ever get enough. Dorian doesn’t know when to stop.
There is a quote in the 11th Chapter on page 112 in my book that this question is aimed toward… Who is Wilde talking to? What is he saying? Why is he addressing it now?
Wilde is talking to his readers
He addresses it now because it is seen as the turning point of the book.
He is using imagry to express his views
He is showing his dark side/ he’s coming clean/ and is showing his true self
“We” refers to people like him.
He chooses now to address this so that people can read his book and get interested. He is hoping to pull out the readers that are just like him
Wilde is concealing his “art”
What mystery do the senses reveal? What senses does Wilde use the most?
Using more emotion rather than senses
His change in sense seems to change the emotion of the book
Uses – sight, smell and hearing
Senses can be deceiving
Dorian is beautiful but does he really have a beautiful heart?
Wilde is using this as a defense so he can get the message out to not judge him.
Dorian doesn’t care about what other people think after sibyl, there is nothing sustaining in his life, he is only looking for the pursuit of pleasure
You can see bad people and how they’re bad as Basil looks at Dorian.
Basil sees only good and innocence in people
Henry sees flaws and tries to bring out their flaws
Basil is fooled by Dorian’s beauty
If Basil were to just look at Dorian everything would seem fine but once he talked to him you could tell something has changed.
It is hard for Basil to accept that Dorian is not as pure and innocent as he wants him to be and as he hopes he is.
Basil is finding out that Dorian is not the beauty he thought he was. Hard for Basil to handle
Is Basil going to be able to see the changes in the painting if he is only able to see innocence.
The point came up that Dorian will kill Basil because he is so obsessed with the painting and he’s getting sick of it so killing Basil will be the only way to get rid of it.
If Basil notices the changes Dorian can’t trust Basil will keep it to him self, so that is why Dorian will kill him.
Basil will “save” Dorian and bring him back from being corrupt. Basil remembers Dorian’s innocence and will bring him back to that. Basil had the patients to do so. He recognizes the evil but tries to bring out the good.
Basil = savior
Dorian = “Lucifer” more so now that Lord Henry.

11-12 Question

Oscar Wilde seems to emphasize the sense of sight most of any of the other senses. Why do you think that this sense is so important to Wilde? How does Wilde use his characters to emphasize this sense? Why is sight important to Dorian Gray, and how is it affecting his life (especially with the portrait), as well as the lives of those around him?

Dorian Gray 11-12

Scribe 2/21

We started out today with a quiz that we got to do with partners. We also had the usual Wednesday donuts provided by Kurt and myself.

We then moved into the Fishbowl for Chapters 9 & 10

Some of the questions that we pondered and discussed were:

Did Dorian “sell” his soul to the devil in favor of pleasure?
Is it too late for him to turn the deal around?
Is Dorian blind to the fact that Lord Henry dominates his thinking?
If Dorian did not have the portrait would he behave the same way that he is? (Living only for pleasure and not caring about the consequences)
Is the picture that Basil painted Dorian’s soul or his conscience?
Is Dorian’s paranoia about someone discovering the picture reasonable or is he just obsessed with the picture and overtaken by it?
What is the significance of the upper room that Dorian puts the picture in? Why that room out of all the others in the house?
Does Dorian “bury” the picture by putting it under a blanket used to cover caskets and by locking it away in a dark room so no one can ever see it?
Is Dorian’s putting the picture in the room (closet) symbolizing that he is “in the closet” and is homosexual?

Hopefully that helps anyone that was gone for the fishbowl.

Homework for Friday: Read Ch11-12, Blog question on 9-10, and Semester Project

Chapter 9-10 Question

On page 113 Dorian tells Basil, "And you are awfully unjust, Basil. You come down here to console me. That is charming of you. You find me consoled, and you are furious." Don't we all want what we do not have or can not have? Once we get what we do not have, we are still not satisfied. What are some examples from the book or from your own lives that portray this concept? Why is it that we want more and are not satisfied once we recieve these once desired things?

Scribe 12/16

Scribe 2/16
Syllabus
-hand 3-5 quizes back
-Fishbowl 7-8
-Hw: read 9-10, blog, semester project
Next week
-Monday: no school
-Wednesday: 9-10 fishbowl, quiz on ch. 6-10, hw: read 11-12 (smith says this is tedious- allow extra time)
-Friday: Fishbowl 11-12, worksheet 9-11, Hw: read 13-14
Some of the topics we covered in the fishbowl:
-There are three main relationships
-Art and Life
-Contemplation and Action
-Beauty and Ethics
-Basil is more ethical.
-Dorian uses beauty to explain ethics.
-Lord Henry is all action and no contemplation.
-Are people always contemplating?
-For Sybil, does Life=art?
-Dorian falls in love with Sybil's acting, he falls in love with her "picture", not who she truely is
-For Lord Henry, art is more important than life- he is more concerned with the pursuit of aestheticism.
-Lord Henry's control over Dorian is even larger than Dorian's love for Sybil.
-People pursue different types of beauty to varying degrees.
-When people want something, the pursuit of that thing is more enjoyable than actually having it.
-Sybil is "caged"- Dorian releases her but her family wants to protect her.
-When Sybil is free, she can't handle it
-How will James (her brother) react to the situation?
-Connection between James and Laertes?
-Comparing Sybil to Basil
-Basil can put himself into his artwork.
-Sybil can not- she is only acting -Is Sybil too melodramatic?
-Is Sybil the only real person?
-Dorian is in love with Sybil's acting
-Dorian values art over love.
-Sybil values love over art.
-Dorian needs the painting to realize he's wrong. It's like his conscience.
-Dorian is the number one person in his own life.
-Does the painting actually change?
-Can only Dorian see the changes?
-Dorian wants to see what happens to the painting- he is experimenting.
-Basil=Society
-Society can "paint" a bad picture of you if you are a bad person- reputations
-Society can find things that are corrupt in Wilde's art (his book) -In this way, Wilde is Dorian.
-The picture is like mankind- It was perfect (like eden/ adam and eve) but now it has imperfections, marks.
-Dorian doesn't care/ mankind doesn't care- they just want to see what will happen, don't care about the consequenses.
-Hw: read 9-10, blog, semester project for wednesday.

Blog Question 7-8

After reading chapters 7-8, what do you think the significance of Sibyl's death is? How is her death symbolic? How will it affect or foreshadow coming events in the book? How does her death relate to Dorian's picture and what does the change in the picture symbolize?

Dorian Gray 9-10

Dorian Gray Reaction Question 5-6

A QUOTE FROM CHAPTER FIVE, PAGE 70 (might be different depending on the book)
“Children begin by loving their parents; as they grow older they judge them; sometimes they forgive them.”
What’s your opinion about this quote? Is it true in reality?

Dorian Gray 5-6

Ch 3-4?

If Basil is the creator of beauty and art, Lord Henry is the corruptor, and Dorian is caught in the middle. Does that make Basil God, Lord Henry the devil, and Dorian mankind? If so why do they fit these positions?

Scribe 2/12

Today in class we started out with the usual talk of homework and the rest of this week, then we got started pretty quick with the fishbowl on chapters 3-4. We didn't have laptops, so Smith gave those of us in the outer circle the choice of doing either a journal - where we respond to people's comments in writing - or a "T-note" format - where we write a question that was asked within the fishbowl in one column, then respond to that question in writing in another column. I assume that this is how we will participate in the outer circle during fishbowls if the laptops aren't available. Some of the questions and ideas we discussed in the fishbowl were:


- Why does Wilde view the Hellenic period of history as embodying true freedom?
* Very individualistic society, where people could pursue their own pleasures.
- Why does Lord Henry talk to his uncle about Dorian?
* Obsession over Dorian.
* Henry is "studying" Dorian, almost like an experiment; wants to know everything about him.
- Why does Lord Henry continue to influence Dorian even though in chapter 2 he basically says that influencing someone is immoral?
* He might not realize his influence; he might just think his ideas are simply the truth.
* He might not believe his own talk about morallity, and enjoys seeing his own effects on Dorian
- Why does Lord Henry talk so much of Hedonism?
* Wilde is possibly using Lord Henry to defend his own views.
* Wilde may have put different parts of himself into his different characters.
- What benefit does Lord Henry seek with his pursuit of Dorian?
* Again, he sees Dorian as a subject for study; Dorian represents something Lord Henry has yet to study, and he wants to know everything about him.
* Lord Henry wants to "dominate" Dorian's world; he is excited about having such a profound impact on someone so beautiful, especially since he so admires beauty.


There will be a quiz on Wednesday on chapters 3-5 (Smith might have meant 3-6..?)

Homework: Read 5-6, Blog on 3-4 question, semester project, Blog for Mr. Maas at: blogs.littletonpublicschools.net

Dorian 1-2 Blog Question

Basil really looks up to Dorian and is completely amazed with him. Do you have a Dorian figure in your life? If so, who is it? What qualities make them your Dorian?

Scribe 2/7

In class we started with a quiz over chapters 1 and 2 of Dorian Gray and the background packet.

We had a fishbowl for about 30 minutes over chapters 1 and 2 and the outside circle live blogged.

Some of the topics were:
-relationships between Basil, Dorian, and Lord Henry
-influence Lord Henry has on Dorian
-Dorian's youth and beauty and how he perceives himself
-the different names that are used for the three characters and why they are used
-Wilde's use of sexual themes and motives in the characters
-how the painting of Dorian by Basil affects Dorian
-the fight over Dorian by Lord Henry and Basil
-is Oscar Wilde portraying himself in one or more of the characters

On Friday Dan Maas, the head of a Principal's organization, will come to talk to us about blogging, live blogging, the fishbowl, etc. to get ideas and opinions about those things. We may not have the fishbowl over chapters 3 and 4 on Friday but be ready just in case.

We got our reaction to the Preface papers back today as well.

Homework:
Blog, read ch. 3-4, self-portrait project due Fri., semester project.

Whoever brought the donuts, they were good.

Dorian Gray 1-2

Scribe 2/5

SCRIBE 2-5

-Today in class we turned in our typed one-page response on The Picture of Dorian Gray.
-We circled up and discussed the meaning of the preface and what struck us personally about what Oscar Wilde wrote. We discussed what he said about art and its meaning, that he seemed to contradict himself in his writing, and that he could have written the preface to justify the immorality he writes about in the novel. Point=Who is Oscar Wilde and what is he all about?
-We also signed up for fishbowl discussers and leaders for The Picture of Dorian Gray. We formed groups of three or four and you must discuss once and lead once. You cannot be a discusser and a leader on the same day. Some days we will have the laptops for the outer circle, but some of the days we will either take notes or jump in the inner circle to get points for the day. If you didn’t get to sign up to be a discusser, stop by Smith’s on an off hour to schedule a time that works for you. DO NOT SCHEDULE YOURSELF IF YOU WILL NOT BE AT SCHOOL THAT DAY!

H.W.
-finish reading chapters 1 and 2 in The Picture of Dorian Gray
-quiz over chapters 1 and 2 on Wednesday
-Self-portrait project= 2 parts (1. Somehow show how society views you. 2. Somehow show how you perceive yourself) This project needs to be put on the same side so you can visually see the contrast between both perceptions. It can be drawn, magazine clippings, collage, etc. This is due on Friday.

Psted by Amy King

Scribe 2/2

First off we turned in the "Fall of Satan" packet we were working on during Wednesday's class.

After reading through the blogs we discussed the question from Wednesday that asked for us to "Apply Milton's philosophy (p. 435) "human beings have been given the freedom; ability to choose" to Paradise Lost, and to your own lives." A few points and new questions that came up were:

• Does God know what you will choose before the time you do it?
• If God does know ahead of time why did he question Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden? Were the questions just to make them confess or was he surprised by their actions?
• If God set out a plan for us, do we have a choice in following that plan?

The sub then gave us a question to think about while reading The Picture of Dorian Gray, which we were supposed to bring to class today. If you could do something and not get caught for it, would you do it? There are two parts to this:

• Legally: Would you break traffic laws, steal something, etc.

Here the answer was a general yes.

• Morally: Would you cheat on your girl/boyfriend?

Here the answer was a resounding No.

For the remainder of class we read and highlighted in small groups either a handout, detailing the background of Oscar Wilde, or the preface of The Picture of Dorian Gray, which is the beginning of our homework.

HW:

• Type a one page response about what intrigues you from the preface. Why does it strike your fancy?
• Blog (This may not be true, no one had heard of a topic so check and make sure)
• Scribe
• Work on Semester Project