Oedipus the King

Click here for a readers' theater version of the play, courtesy of PBS.  It's only 11 pages, and it's a fair introduction of the story.  Please read this in preparation for our class work.

Here is a translation of the complete play.

Here is a fun and intelligent. website that contains some thought-provoking stuff about Oedipus and some other long-dead Greeks.

If you're game, there is a version of the play available on YouTube in 14 parts.  This version stars the brilliant Canadian actor Christopher Plummer.

Chinua Achebe: Resources

'Repairing the Damage'
Through his fiction and non-fiction works, Nigerian author Chinua Achebe has sought to repair the damage done to the continent of Africa and its people as a result of European colonization. This is best exemplified in his most famous novel "Things Fall Apart," one of the first African novels written in English to achieve national acclaim. Set in the 1890s, the novel deals with the impact of British colonialism on the traditional Igbo society in Nigeria. Published in 1958 – just two years before the end of a century of British rule in Nigeria – the novel celebrates its 50th anniversary of publication this year.

Library of Congress, 9/24/08

Things Fall Apart

Things Fall Apart tells the story of Okonkwo, a leader in an Igbo village in Nigeria in the 1890s, as he deals with his own personal struggles as well as the impact of British colonialism. The book describes the rich culture and complexities of Igbo society, articulating an insider’s sense of the African experience.

Library of Congress, 12/08

Achebe's Favorite Passage
The author reads to the Library of Congress on his 78th birthday here.

Information about Nigeria
This link to PBS includes demographic information about the African nation as well as information about Chinua Achebe.

Author Video
'An Evening with Chinua Achebe'

National Endowment for the Humanities resources are here. Excellent background to Things Fall Apart:

An Introduction to Nigerian Culture from L.J. Perales on Vimeo.

Sundiata

Sundiata Click here to learn more about Mali.  The CIA will tell you what you need to know.

Selections from Genesis

February 4, 2012

Gilgamesh Resources

Read here to learn about the discovery of the tablets telling the story of Gilgamesh.

Here's a plot summary of the epic.

Here it is as poetry.

What you might want to know about ancient Sumeria is here. 

 "The Battle with Humbaba" (Double click the image to open the album.)

The Battle with Humbaba

The Death of Enkidu:

The Death of Enkidu

The Flood:

The Story of the Flood

The Return:

January 31, 2012

20 Questions to get to Know you as a Reader

Reading Survey

1. If you had to guess…
How many books would you say there are in your house? _____
How many books would you say you’ve read in the last twelve months? _____
2. How did you learn to read?
3. Why do people read? List as many reasons as you can think of.
4. What does someone have to do or know in order to be a good reader?
5. What kinds of books do you like to read? Why?
6. How do you decide which books you’ll read? How do you find these books?
7. Who are your favorite authors? (List as many as you’d like.)
8. Have you ever reread a book? _____ If so, can you name it/them here?
9. How often do you read at home?
10. When you are asked to read something for school (like a chapter in a book or a
packet of information), where and when do you usually read it? Why?

Getting To Know Yourself as a Reader

1. How long can you read at one sitting? What do you have to do to make it longer?
2. What do you have to do to remember what you read?
3. What kind of place can you study in?
4. What do you need to do while reading to help yourself make sense of what you read?
5. If you write while you read, what kinds of written signs do you use to help yourself understand
what you read? (Color codes? Stars? Underlining? Arrows?)
6. What do you have to do when you are sleepy while you are studying?
7. What kinds of reading are easy for you? What kinds are hard?
8. Do you read differently for one subject than another? If so, how is it different?
9. What are the best times for you to read?
10. What else do you know about yourself as a reader?

'Cultural Significance'

Students in English II read, discuss, and write about both classical and contemporary world literature (excluding British and American authors) through which students will identify cultural significance. They will examine pieces of world literature in a cultural context to appreciate the diversity and complexity of world issues and to connect global ideas to their own experiences. Students will continue to explore language for expressive, informational/explanatory, critical, argumentative and literary purposes, although emphasis will be placed on explanatory contexts. In addition to literature study, students will:

• Examine non-literary texts related to cultural studies.
• Research material to use primarily in clarifying their own explanatory responses to situations and literary-based issues.
• Critically interpret and evaluate experiences, literature, language, and ideas.
• Use standard grammatical conventions and select features of language appropriate to purpose, audience, and context of the work.

--Public Schools of North Carolina

'I Believe in You'