Week+18+--+Shakespeare's+Titus+Andronicus


 * //9 February//**

//Silent reading -- homework check//

//Discuss questions.//

//Play Act1, sc.i to end of Aaron's soliloquy.//

//Act1sc.ii//

//Already dead (Alarbus, Mutius)//

//Where Aaron makes a plan and stops a fight and Demetrius and Chiron 'woo' Lavinia and kill a man (body count +1) and rape a woman and dump a body and Tamora hits on a man and gets it on and somebody walks in and Aaron digs a pit and writes a letter. And Quintus and Martius look for a panther. And Aaron buries the gold and frames the guys and goes away.//

//...and two more guys are going to die. Soon.//

//Read through...see how you make out. I would like to see you jotting down some notes on your scripts.//

//TO ME -- Danny re: document camera//


 * //8 February//**

//Silent reading//

//'We Got Scared'//

//Finish Act1 Sc.1//

//Questions due tomorrow.//

// Titus Sparknotes //


 * //7 February//**

//Silent reading -- 20. In this time, I would also like you to start your netbooks, as you will need to download the script and questions today.//

//Reduced Shakespeare Company//

//Reading 1i aloud with characters. Maybe in the caf.//

//Questions due tomorrow.//


 * //6 February//**

//Silent reading//

//In your notebook, **When is it ok to take revenge on somebody? Why do people seek to exact revenge? What IS revenge? Can revenge ever be a positive thing?**//

//Discussion//

//Discussion on themes in Titus.//

//IN ADDITION TO YOUR FINAL PROJECT, THE FOLLOWING ASSIGNMENT MUST BE COMPLETED. THIS WILL BE PRINTED AND HANDED IN ONE WEEK AFTER THE PLAY HAS BEEN COMPLETED. ACT/SC QUESTIONS WILL BE PART OF DAILY HOMEWORK.//

//This will not be printed out, but should be downloaded to your netbook.//

//Questions for Act1 sc.i due tomorrow.//

//Titus Andronicus 1:1//

The Emperor of Rome has just died. His two inexperienced yet proud sons, Saturninus and Bassanius, have the city in chaos, each competing for the right to rule in their father’s place. In the meantime, the Senate of Rome (which represents the people) intends to put someone else with proven reliability and experience in power.

Titus, a retiring general, is victoriously returning to Rome with his prisoners of war, Tamora, Queen of the Goths, and her two sons. Titus fought for Rome, and what it stands for, for most of his life. He is tired of war, and desperately wants to live out his old age in peace. By the end of the first scene, though, he has lost another son by his own hand, and has been betrayed by the ones that are still alive.

The Tomb of the Andronici appearing. The Tribunes and Senators aloft; and then enter Saturninus and his Followers at one door, and Bassianus and his Followers at the other, with drum and colours.

>>> · Saturninus is really angry at the whole thing and embarrassed. He decides he is mad at the Andronicus family and must get revenge. >>> · Sat takes Tamora as wife (duhn-duh-duuuuuh). >>> · Sat declares his love for Tamora. >>> · Titus asks for forgiveness; Sat says no >>> · Bass tells Sat to not be po’d at Titus…he was only following tradition. >>> · Tam convinces Sat to accept apology and forgive; then secretly tells him it is fake and that she wants to trick Titus for killing her sons. >>> · Lucius, Quintus, Martius plead w/ Titus to let them bury Mutius in the family tomb. T says no. >>> · They ask again and again. >>> · Sat, Tam and her kids are now in charge and really angry w/ Titus and Bassianus It’s on. It shall be brought’un
 * Saturninus and Bassianus appeal to the people of Rome to become their new Emperor.
 * Titus returns from battle; many sons have been killed.
 * According to Roman law, Titus must kill Tamora's eldest son; runs Alarbus through and burns him.
 * Marcus offers Titus the job as Emperor because he's awesome. Titus turns it down because he's old.
 * Titus feels the need to follow tradition and says that Emperor's oldest son should take the job. Saturninus becomes Emperor.
 * To honour Titus, Sat takes Lavinia (Titus' daughter) as his empress. BUT...Bassianus is in love with Lavinia.
 * Titus calls for the return of Lavinia, but it refused.
 * Sat calls for a love day. Titus organizes a hunt. TO THE WOODS!

//Start play together...assign roles. Get costumes.//


 * //2 February//**

//Silent reading of your own book.//

//Review ideas from yesterday -- Globe, life and times of Will.//





//Hand out package. Have them read silently through the themes portion and highlight important points. Do this via screen as well for demo.//


 * //Discussion point for writing: When is revenge ok? Is it ever ok?//**

//5 minutes for writing then discuss.//


 * //9 February//**

//Silent reading...sign up sheet to go around. Use these for name tags / invites.//

//Check notes. Heads up that there will be a quiz on the life of Shakespeare and TA basics on Monday. You will be allowed to bring whatever notes you have written.//

//Movie...//


 * //4 February//**

//Silent writing//

//Review / intro yesterday and discuss The Globe//

//Handout character sheet and tragedy notes//

//Discuss the characters and themes://

//* customs / tradition vs. virtue... especially in Rome// //* the role of the parent// //* Revenge//

//Discussion question -- When is it ok to take revenge on somebody?//

//Titus Andronicus 1:1// >>> · Saturninus is really angry at the whole thing and embarrassed. He decides he is mad at the Andronicus family and must get revenge. >>> · Sat takes Tamora as wife (duhn-duh-duuuuuh). >>> · Sat declares his love for Tamora. >>> · Titus asks for forgiveness; Sat says no >>> · Bass tells Sat to not be po’d at Titus…he was only following tradition. >>> · Tam convinces Sat to accept apology and forgive; then secretly tells him it is fake and that she wants to trick Titus for killing her sons. >>> · Lucius, Quintus, Martius plead w/ Titus to let them bury Mutius in the family tomb. T says no. >>> · They ask again and again. >>> · Sat, Tam and her kids are now in charge and really angry w/ Titus and Bassianus It’s on. It shall be brought’un
 * Saturninus and Bassianus appeal to the people of Rome to become their new Emperor.
 * Titus returns from battle; many sons have been killed.
 * According to Roman law, Titus must kill Tamora's eldest son; runs Alarbus through and burns him.
 * Marcus offers Titus the job as Emperor because he's awesome. Titus turns it down because he's old.
 * Titus feels the need to follow tradition and says that Emperor's oldest son should take the job. Saturninus becomes Emperor.
 * To honour Titus, Sat takes Lavinia (Titus' daughter) as his empress. BUT...Bassianus is in love with Lavinia.
 * Titus calls for the return of Lavinia, but it refused.
 * Sat calls for a love day. Titus organizes a hunt. TO THE WOODS!

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; margin: 0.5em 0px 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 3em; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">ACT 2

Away from the hunting party, Aaron buries a bag of gold under a tree. Tamora finds him and urges him to make love to her. However, Aaron is ruled by vengeance and asks her to deliver a letter to Saturninus. The couple is spotted in their physical intimacy by Bassianus and Lavinia, who proceed to roundly insult Tamora, with Lavinia being surprisingly coarse. Chiron and Demetrius enter and stab Bassianus to death in defense of their mother's honor. When Tamora wants to stab Lavinia too, her sons stop her, wishing to keep her alive until they have satisfied their lust on her. Tamora assents, ignoring Lavinia's heartrending request that Tamora kill her immediately instead. >>> Aaron leads Titus's sons Quintus and Martius to where he claims a panther is asleep. They both fall into the pit where Chiron and Demetrius left Bassianus's body. Aaron then leads Saturninus to the pit, where Tamora hands him the letter Aaron had previously written, and which incriminates Quintus and Martius as Bassianus's murderers. The bag of gold that Aaron buried is conveniently uncovered and taken as proof that Titus's sons were going to pay a huntsman to do the deed. Titus tries to free his sons to no avail; they are taken away by Saturninus to await execution.
 * Aaron rejoices that Tamora is now the empress. As her lover, he anticipates better opportunities for himself. His thoughts are interrupted by a brawl between Chiron and Demetrius, who argue over which of them deserves Lavinia's love. Aaron counsels them to stop arguing and instead to catch her the next day during the hunt and to both rape her. When Titus, Titus's sons, Saturninus, Tamora, Bassianus, Lavinia, and Marcus gather the next day for the hunt, Chiron and Demetrius reaffirm their intention "to pluck a dainty doe to ground" (II.ii.26).
 * [[image:http://s0.2mdn.net/viewad/817-grey.gif caption="Click here to find out more!" link="@http://ad.doubleclick.net/click;h=v8/3aa8/0/0/%2a/y;44306;0-0;0;53000885;4307-300/250;0/0/0;;~okv=;page=notes;title=titus;edu=college;sz=300x250;pos=top;tile=4;~sscs=%3f"]]

-discuss the opening scene of the funerary march - how Romans and Greeks believed death was unstoppable and you might as well live for the moment because the afterlife was a grey, dusty, horrible place. Mention how the dead were escorted to the afterlife to remind them they have no place amongst the living.

-discuss the reasoning Titus uses to sacrifice Tamora's son, Alarbus. It is to appease the "shades" (ghosts) of Titus' 21 dead sons who died in the war, so that they will retire to the afterlife and not haunt his family. It is a tradition based on the Roman need for blood sacrifice to keep the gods happy. Tamora's pleas for Alarbus' life, beforehand, are not so distantly related to Portia's "The qualities of Mercy are not strained" in "The Merchant of Venice." A little compassion from Titus, who is too absorbed in religion, honor and tradition, could have avoided the whole conflict.

-discuss the rights/expectations of Lavinia and Bassanius in being "betrothed," and Saturninus stealing Lavinia from Bassanius. The double pain of the fact that Lavinia and Bassanius truly do love each other - not so common in arranged engagements.

-discuss the right vs. wrong dilemma with Bassanius stealing Lavinia back from Saturnine when he is the "emperor" and absolute dictator in Rome. Who should your loyalty be to? Family or country?

-discuss the sexual innuendos in the knife fight between Chiron and Demetrius. So much talk of rapiers, and knowing what to do with them, and where to put them!

-discuss the same in the scene in the woods with Tamora and Aaron, but with animal references instead of swords, and the true meaning of veneral (//archaic meaning in Oxford//) as being a "hunting."

-discuss Titus' long service to Rome (and his belief that Rome is worth protecting to the end) and his conflict with loyalty to his family vs. Rome as he is pushed aside by Satuninus and becomes a plaything for Aaron.

-Titus is a man of honor - will he keep his promises to his family to "right their wrongs?"

-discuss Titus' switch in loyalty as he sees what is being done to his family.

-discuss, compare, and contrast Tamora and Titus'methods of eliminting the enemy. Titus' experience as a very successful Roman general, and his patient, deceptive tactics and drive for revenge once he has a target. How do you win wars and battles? Why has Titus been so successful in war? Why might Tamora have failed?

Who is the real monster in the play?


 * //3 February//**

//Silent reading...reminder that tomorrow will begin with 20 minute writing session.//

//INTRO TO SHAKESPEARE...//

//On looseleaf, write every idea, concept, love, fear, hope and dream you have about Shakespeare. Concentrate on these questions:// //* Who was he?// //* What did he write?// //* How popular was he? Why?// //* Where did he live? What was his life like?// //* Why do we study him?// //* Love him? Like him? Hate him?//

//Group together in 3 or 4 to combine ideas. Organize your thoughts into general sections.//

//Intro concept of note-taking skills...not easy, but develops quickly.// //Shakespeare Brief and Naughty -- I would like you to try and make your own notes on this. This is a skill we will be working on this term. I will play it a couple of times and we can discuss. Basically, I would like you to know the basics of Shakespeare's life, where he lived and what life in London was like at the time.//

//After viewing the video, revisit your work. Make additions to your answers.//

//Discuss as a group...intro our / my approach to Shakespeare.//

//Handout play and package.//

//Homework -- read through the package for general knowledge. Surprise quiz tomorrow on what constitutes a tragedy.//

//Titus trailer// //Titus vs Demetrius and Chiron -- start at 8:25 to end// //Titus vs Demetrius and Chiron -- to 'Prepare your throats'.....restart at 2:31// //Read and discuss the summary (in handout package)//

//FROM HERE, MOVE AHEAD WITH MOVIE FIRST.// //PLAY -- SELECTED ACTS AND SCENES//


 * //2 February//**
 * //A note to parents... My approach to Shakespeare at this level is a little different than the way we learned it in high school. You might hear your kids come home and the only thing they remember from my class that day was that William Shakespeare got an older lady pregnant and then cheated on her. I promise there is more to it than that, and there is a method to my madness. I am attaching a copy of my rough notes so that there will be no surprises and I welcome you to check back and see that we are, indeed, looking at him in a critical and educated manner. It will take a lot of brain power, but your kids WILL be able to talk Shakespeare with you before March break.//**

//Silent reading -- This returns today. Again, this will be marked on a daily basis. Some of you have already lost class marks on this.//

//Silent writing -- We will be doing this roughly 2-3 times per week. It would be a good idea to create a topic for creative writing. You can use your in-class time to make this a work in progress. Your writing will count toward a final portfolio mark. Those who cannot come up with a topic may use the random prompt generator.//

//This term will focus on 'larger' concepts. We will still be doing writing, reading, etc (whew!), but we will also be tackling the following:// //* Shakespeare!// //* Poetry / Performance poetry / Hip hop poetry ... the list goes on. You will enjoy this. Express yourself! Discover beauty! Pick up chicks!// //* Drama, script writing and (hopefully) video production// //* Resistant texts// //* Debating//

//Wow...that's a lot. Let's get started!//

//Directed silent writing: How do you feel about the topics we will be looking at this term? Do you see any areas of personal strength or weakness in what we will be doing? Which are you most / least excited about? Are there any skills you hope to develop over the next 4.2 months?//

//PERFORMANCES -- SELECTED ACTS AND SCENES// //POTENTIAL FINAL PROJECT -- DIVIDING PLAY INTO SECTIONS, ASSIGNING GROUPS TO CREATE INTERPRETATION OF THAT SECTION.// //-- COULD GO MULTIMEDIA, PERFORMANCE-BASED, SONGWRITING, VIDEO PRODUCTION (TITUS AS CSI, TITUS AS COOKING SHOW, TITUS FEAT. ANIMALS)//