Everything else in class we discussed wasn't nearly as interesting. I appreciated learning more about syntax though, and I think the more I learn about one of the DIDLS techniques the better I get with the rest. It really just takes practice. These prompts are flying right over my head, especially the ones involving plays, I really need to get familiar with "The American Dream" because I'm gonna make it my go to for theatrical open prompts, in case one appears on the AP.
Sunday, October 9, 2011
response to course material #2
Put simply, Edward Albee is the man. I had never truly enjoyed a play until we read "The American Dream". His ability to convey message with a small number of characters, simple sentences, and most impressively, comedy, is exceptional. This brings me to comedy. All those packets that were handed out were sort of overwhelming but once I read them they made sense. I've always been curious as to the mechanics of humor, whether in literature or in everyday life. I gathered from the packets that humor created when something or someone defies societal norms in a way that is laughable. For instance, it would be funny if I wore super short shorts to school that revealed my pasty white thighs to all passersby, because society expects me to wear pants to a certain length, one that it is considerably longer than my booty shorts. This leaves the door wide open for comedy, making it a powerful tool to analyze every societal norm. It also tends to give most comedy an expiration date, you must know societal norms in order to get the joke, so most of the humor from the 1940's wouldn't appeal much to me. But comedy is something I look forward to continually exploring.
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I completely agree with you! In every other lit class I've been in, we've focused more on just reading the book and understanding the content than its true meaning. It was surprising to me how much significance every detail and word choice that Albee included in this play turned out to be. Hopefully, the books we read in the future will be as interesting as this one was.
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The prompts about plays are also flying over my head! I always just stare at them like oh crap, I have no clue, so yeah I think we all need practice too. For me, I didn't really enjoy the American dream, I guess it just wasn't my kind of play, but hey I love musicals so maybe since there was dancing and singing, it wasn't my thing.
ReplyDeleteI agree with how you feel about Albee and his play. I'm also a fan of comedy, so learning about the different types was fun for me as well. I like how you say that the rest wasn't as interesting, but still useful, because it's completely true that while not everything we learn is super fun, it's always relevant to what we need to know for the exam and future English classes.
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