Summary of the English Course (c) 1999 Fabian M. Suchanek This is a summary of the AEC (Advanced/Ailing English Course) at the Marienschule in Lippstadt/Germany held by Renate Rosenkranz in 1999. By reading the following text, you accept that the author does not accept any responsibility for the correctness or completeness of this text. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- THE AMERICAN DREAM ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Benjamin Franklin, Advice to a young tradesman: * Money invested brings money * Pay back your credits punctually * _Appear_ to be a hard-working man * List your expenses and incomes * Work hard (industry) * Don't waste money (frugality) * ethic out of opportunism Success stories: * poor boy, no parents, poor education * upright, ambitious * works hard and becomes rich in the end * manages his life on his own * meets so. who helps him (patron) Criticism: * too optimistic * unrealistic relationships * eager for material success * always boys Mark Twains story of the "Good little Boy": * boy is always good * wants to be put in a sunday-school book * is to work as a cabin boy, but they don't want educated boys * wants to stop bad boys, is killed by teacher Rise from rag to riches; James T. Adams coined the term "American Dream"; Lee Iacocca (* 1924) * power man * lead Ford to success * plan time * also vacation * priorities But, today in the USA: * men earn more than women; * whites earn more than blacks; * there is poverty; Salesman ethic (Rustington slogans): * It all depends on me; * Every man is my superiour in some phase of life, and in that I will learn from him; * Make the most of your opportunities; * If you wanna pick faults, start with yourself; * Confidence in yourself; * Try, try, try ! ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- DEATH OF A SALESMAN ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- What is a drama ? * type: tragedy, comedy, tragic-comedy * monologues, dialogues, stage-directions * a classic drama consists of 5 parts * written for theatre * actors take the roles of characters * characters can be symbolic of special groups of society Intention: * criticism * representation of life and characters * entertainment Willy Loman: * over sixty, travelling salesman * dreams about the past * ambitions concerning his son Biff * works too much (overactive) * physically and mentally exhausted * needs his wife Linda * tension between Biff and Willy Linda: * admires Willy * is worried about him * cares for him * tries to excuse his behaviour * heart of the family, mediator Sons: * not as ambitious as Willy * in search of their aims and identity * criticise Willy's way of life * worried about Willy Flashbacks in Death Of A Salesman: * used at times of conflict as a protection, an escape * Willy's way to cope with the situation * give an insight into Willy's state of mind * make the reader|audience feel as confused as Willy Willy's ideal Ben: * personifies ideal success * a typical self-made man * self-confident, profit-oriented, egoistic, ambitious Willy's ideal Dave Singleman: * embodies success through personality * popular * code of human values (respect, gratitude, comradeship...) New production of Death Of A Salesman, different opinions; Watching a play: clothes, gestures, way of speaking, music, atmosphere; Reading a play: stage directions, concentration and imagination required, chance to re-read; Round, complex <> flat, simple characters; 1st person point of view: * tension * identify with narrator * understand feelings of narrator * create reliability Means of characterization: * behaviour * language * other's thoughts * opinions, thoughts (implicit, indirect) * description (explicit, direct) ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- MELTING POT ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Different images of American society: * Melting Pot * Quilt of Humanity * American Symphony * Potato Salad ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- SHAKESPEARE'S MACBETH ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- REM not for ABI Shakespeare: * born in 1564 * joins "The Lord's Chamberlain's men" in 1592 * TLCM become "The King's men" in 1599 * dies in 1616 Some of Shakespeare's plays: * Henry IV,V,VI,VIII * Romeo & Juliet * The Merchant of Venice * Hamlet * Othello * King Lear * Macbeth "The great chain of being": * There is an order in nature (among minerals, animals &c) * There is also an order among men (from king to beggar) * Disorder is unnatural Shakespeare today: * different effect on the audience * cannot find out or express Shakespeare's true intentions * some aspects (irony) get lost * use modern language, modern costumes ? Theaters: * Stage: * apron (Schuerze) shape * little scenary * different parts * dressing rooms behind|under the stage * hollow (hohle) main stage * access to the trap doors * main stage & swift stage * Building * open air theater * looked like an "O", "wooden O" * 3 galleries for wealthier people * "pit" (open yard) for groundlings (poor people) * capacity: 1000 to 2500 persons * origin: Church's search for more effective ways of spreading the word of god; * first theatres were inn-yards with a stage * Audience * all different classes of society * men and women * groundlings in the pit * showed positive and negative criticism * different prices * no reserved seats * set close to the stage * 13% of the population went to theateer every week * Actors * only (e-)male actors :-) * women's parts were played by men * leading actors could become partners * beautiful costumes * often invited by noblemen * did not earn enough money to live on * Performance * difficult to show the dead at the end of the play * methods to remove the deads * no curtains (Vorhaenge) * takes place in daylight * music and sound effects * audience participation is expected indulgence - Genusssucht greed - Gier carelessness - Traegheit syllable - Silbe to despire - verachten high-pitched - mit hoher Stimmlage Soliloqui: Monologue with private feelings. Superstition: * wide-spread in England * witches: good ones and bad ones Three unities: * unity of action * unity of time * unity of place (* Shakespeare's unity of atmosphere) Macbeth: (VOX abi,515 ff; abi,528.3) Macbeth: King of Scotland in 1040 Shakespeare's Macbeth: A tale of human evil and human goodness. Action: * Act 1: * Macbeth is told by 3 witches that he will become king * Lady Macbeth plans to persuade Macbeth to kill King Duncan * Duncan visits Macbeth's castle * Act 2: * Macbeth kills Duncan and servants * Duncan's sons Malcolm and Donalbain flee to England * Macbeth becomes king * Act 3: * Macbeth tells two murderers to kill his friend Banquo and the son Fleance who is said to become a king * Banquo is killed, Fleance escapes * Banquo's ghost enters during a banquet and shocks Macbeth * Act 4: * Macbeth goes to see the three witches again; they tell him to fear 1. Macduff 2. a man not born by women 3. the time when Birnam wood moves * Macbeth kills Macduffs family, Macduff himself has fled to England * at the English court, Malcolm finds out that Macduff is honest (Macduff does not want Malcolm to return to Scotland in case he is not able to) * the English army marches northward * Act 5: * Lady Macbeth becomes mad and incriminates herself while sleepwalking * Lady Macbeth dies * Macbeth fights against the English army * the English army camouflages itself with branches ("Birnam wood moves") and Macduff tells Macbeth that he was born by Caesarian section * Macbeth decides to rely on his own strength but is killed by Macduff Macbeth: between good and evil, weak against Lady Macbeth, tool of his wife, afraid, disturbed Lady Macbeth: cruel, eager, superstitious, infeminine, dominant, evil, practical arguments: manhood, courage, love, success Nature: Disorder in nature reflects disorder in human society ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- SHAKESPEARE TODAY ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Dramatic structure of tragedy: * exposition, introduction: Establish char's, place, time, actions; * rising action * crisis: The point at which the protagonist's success begins to change into failure; often also climax: The moment of greatest emotional interest * falling action * catastrophe: hero is destroyed; Shakespeare in TV: * Shakespeare's plays are modernized (Romeo & Julia) + leading the specators' view + continuity, unity + easier to show gestures &c + more possibilities (special effects) + Shakespeare for everyone - Shakespeare's language, stylistic devices &c get lost - Shakespeare's irony, allusions and tricks get lost - Shakespeare's intention may get lost + Human conflicts of Shakespeare's plays are still the same Shakespeare today: * he enriched the english language, his metaphors salted it, he coined a lot of terms and phrases still used today, the biggest source of quotations * relevance for each generation, problems still valid today * great language, great plots ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- TECHNOLOGY AND THE ENVIRONMENT ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Industrial Revolution + new articles can be fabricated + greater quantity of products + skilled work for everyone - soul-destroying work - negative effects on society - negative effects on nature The greenhouse effect: the gradual slight warming of the air surrounding the earth; energy radiated from the sun is trapped by the earth's atmosphere; caused by carbon dioxide; Acid rain is rain containing large amounts of acid-bearing chemicals; The tropical rain forest is a type of vegetation consisting of evergreen trees in warm, humid areas around the equator. It converts carbon dioxide gas into oxygen but is currently threatened by man, who exploits and destroys it. 1992 Rio Earth Summit; Kyoto: (11th December 1997) * "Kyoto summit" * "summit on Climate Change" * "Global warming Treaty in Kyoto" * demands cuts of greenhouse gas emissions to 15% below 1990 levels Kyoto in the USA: * everybody discontented * no chance for the Kyoto Protocol to become law * problems for cold states (Nebraska) with high energy use * coal industry--, energy prices++, inflation++, tax++, jobs-- * fear of economic hindrance * Clinton plans national "education" * the USA are responsible for a quarter of all greenhouse gas emissions; * Europe & Third World demand reforms for the USA * the USA are in massive economic boom * Clinton's aides are split India & China argue that the reduction of gas emission would slow their economic growth; Climate also fluctuates naturally, but 1990 was the warmest year since +1400; El Nino was not the only cause for global warming; The electricity generating capacy of Brazil, China, India, Indonesia and Russia will quadruple up to 2020; => use cleaner energy ! America's records stretch back to 1880; OECD: (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) * monitors trends and identifies practical policy options * develops guidelines * some progress has been made, but total global emissions are still increasing steadily * in 2020, CO2 emissions will be more than double the 1990 levels * waiting for better technologies would increase the magnitude of climate change * public awareness and education programs * international co-operation * break the link between economic growth and greenhouse gas emissions * search for new energies (bio-energy, solar-energy) * transfer of knowledge and technologies Smog and acid rain: * in 1988, save ozone levels were exceeded in 96 cities in the USA * in LA, almost half the days of the year exceed save ozone levels * smog becomes more and more accepted * laws and regulations are partially successful * 15E4 new cars per day in the USA * new cars produce just 4% as much pollution as 1970 models * contributors: * cars * sprays * oil-based paints * nearly half of all cars are driven in the USA * law makers cannot act against voters * carmakers _can_ adapt to higher standards -- if they have to * solutions: * parking fees++ * busses free * no single-occupant vehicles Good scientific texts: * give information and show possible consequences * make the reader think about the future * no scientific jargon * convincing examples * short sentences, not very complex * simple, clear structure, separate paragraphs * vivid, close to the reader * accessible to the average reader ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- SHORTSTORIES "VICTIMS OF FUTURE" ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- REM Not for ABI ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- THE BLUEST EYE ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- The blacks' problem of identifying in a white society; The problem of growing up and accepting oneself as an African-American girl in the North-American society with its prejudices and injustice based on white values and concepts; Interesting aspects: * social conflicts black<>white, rich<>poor * difference between black and not-so-black (racism, minority problem) * desire to have "the bluest eyes" (whites' ideals of beauty) * relationship between the characters This "novel of initiation" consists of 2 parts, which are mixed: 1. events in Ohio, 1940-1941; told from Claudia's point of view; introduced by a season; 2. Pecola's family background; omniscient, selective narrator; introduced by a meaningless extract from the Dick-&-Jane primer; each item of the primer text has its negative equivalent in Pecola's life; In a meeting with a white, each reaction of the white and the black creates more tension and the situation becomes more difficult; colour shock; Pecola's mother Pauline teaches her fear and white values and does not give her emotional warmth (denial of motherly love); "Coloured people" distinguish themselves from "niggers" and adopt white values. Discrimination and segregation continued even after the victory of the North; Components of identity construction: * family relatives * friends * people you do not really know * "enemies" (It is only through others that we can aquire an awareness of ourselves) * media * education * experiences * religion ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- SHORTSTORIES "ETHNIC MINORITIES IN GB" ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- (FROM: "Cultural...BKgrnd to Asian immigrants", 1999-01-11 REM: Wichtig) From 1960 on, thousands of Indians (from India) came to Britain to work in the growing industries of the midlands; Mostly young and poor workers with no future in India; Joint family system: * large families * the eldest male member is the authority * belongings are shared, orphans are cared for Family network protects members in the hostile and strange environment of Britain; Arranged weddings become less; Booker T. Washington: compromiser and accomodationist; W.E.B. DuBois: militant black leader; Prejudice: an opinion formed without enough knowledge; Stereotype: a fixed set of ideas about a person, which is (wrongly) believed to be true in all cases; Foreigner: person from another country (tourist); immigrant: someone who comes to live in another country; "Hostility to a member of an ethnic minority"; Immigrants adopt at least at a certain extend western life-style (assimilation, westernized person); 2nd generation immigrants' problems: * don't know where they belong to * have to please everybody * conflict between western and traditional life-style (clothes, language...); life in 2 worlds; clash between cultures * instable personality, split identity The stream of consciousness gives an insight into a character's mind: * free indirect style ("She would never...") * interior monologue ("But I cannot...") Scenic presentation: The reader can participate, detailed description; Panoramic presentation: Conveys information in a short period of time; ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- MEDIA ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Media World in 1945: * no TV * 2 BBC-stations * 9 morning newspapers * illustrated weekly news * books * cinema Soap [Opera]: TV-story about daily lives of the same group; Sitcom: = Soap Opera, but with artificial laughing in the background; Different newspapers: * quality, serious, heavy, broadsheet * formal, souber, matter-of-fact, highbrow * read by the educated, the ‚lite * reliable, objective, factual * more text * reports, accounts (Berichte) and expository texts * tabloid, popular, yellow * lower standards * photos and big headlines * sensational news, scandals, tendentious articles, "human interest", politically superficial * emotional, colloquial, informal, subjective * muck-raking => reflects gap between social classes Reading newspapers is traditional in GB; British press is unrestricted and called the "Forth Estate" (Estate = Staatsgewalt); Monopolistic tendencies in British press; "The Times" shifted to the right; "Good" literature: * both entertain and teach * make the reader think * expressive language * complex plot, tension * characters one can identify with, understand * catch the reader's attention * timeless themes * a deeper meaning, advice, message * use of interesting stylistic means * complex characters, no black- and white-pattern * convincing presentation of characters and dialogue * logic[al], convincing, realistic presentation of life * language fits to characters * shall not contradict basic values ------------------REM------------------------------ intimidated indifference ...the stage direction given in this scene... subordinate despair excerpt the members of audience to follow a strategy to stress linguistically colloquialisms ("Well" &c) antithetical position variety of linguistic devices ..to such an extend that... unjustified generalization ill-considered to conserve energy to refrain from producing... to draw a parallel to establish a connection, relationship affluent society element of humour vague expression bipartition to learn the lesson that