Thursday, February 9, 2012

Thurs, Feb. 9

 In class on Monday, students completed Journal Entry #6 on the following topic (traveling students must also complete):

From early childhood, we are encouraged--pressured, even--to be in the company of others: we are urged to belong to this or that group, to join this or that club, to spend time with this or that friend. People do everything to avoid being by themselves, treating solitude as though it were the equivalent of loneliness. And yet it is only when people are by themselves that they can truly achieve their most important goals.


Is solitude--spending time alone--necessary for people to achieve their most important goals? Plan and write an essay in which you develop your point of view on this issue.

We will discuss this question in class on Monday, Feb. 13.

HW due Monday, Feb. 13: Students should finish reading The Stranger and must come to class prepared with written answers to the following questions:


1) What do you think of Meursault’s relationship with his mother? Did he love her or care about her?  Does it or should it matter to the trial?

2) For what crime do you believe Meursault is on trial?

3) What evidence is there for Meursault and against him? How do the characters judge him?

4) Is Meursault really a threat to his society? Does he deserve the death penalty? Is he more or less dangerous than a criminal who commits a crime with clear motive?

5) What are his last thoughts?

No comments:

Post a Comment