Extension updates

I have added material to www.e-rudite.net on some of the Extension electives:

Reading lists for Life Writing, Crime Writing and Science Fiction

A page for After The Bomb with an extensive related materials section.

All feedback is appreciated.

Judy

Ext 1 After the Bomb related material

Q: Following your recommendations for surrealist artwork, I find myself in a rut regarding my analyses of any such paintings.
If you could recommend any other text types as related material for Waiting for Godot, preferably ones which reflect an existentialist outlook and/or a rebellion from traditional pre-bomb conventions, it would be much appreciated.

A: You could look at Camus, The Outsider (but he is French. Check that a translated text is OK.)
Alan Ginsberg’s poem ‘Howl’ is also a graphic novel now.
Jack Kerouac, On The Road
J D Salinger, Catcher in the Rye

Advanced Module C: History and memory

Q: I’ve moved onto Module C of the 2u English course, and my elective is “history and memory” with a core text, Fiftieth Gate, by Mark Raphael Baker. I’m looking for two related texts, preferably one that is holocaust-related and another that is unrelated to the holocaust.
Any help would be very much appreciated.

A: You could look at Clint Eastwood’s ‘The Flags of Our Fathers’ (film), which is tied to real events. Documentaries like ‘The Fog of War’ and ‘Forbidden Lies’ would also work. There’s an old episode of ‘Four Corners’ that look at refugees and people overboard that might also work. ABC website is a good resource. See what you think?

Q: If I could possibly ask for a holocaust related text, for the sake of integration with Fiftieth Gate, it would be much appreciated. Autobiographical accounts/poetry I have found on the internet seem inadequate.

A: Auden’s ‘Refugee Blues’, a poem is one to try. Art Speigleman’s Maus is a graphic novel and a different text type to try. Schindler’s List directed by Seven Spielberg is a film. And Roman Polanski’s film, The Pianist.

Advanced Module C: History and Memory

Q:
I’m currently doing Module C: History and Memory with The Fiftieth Gate by Mark Baker as my core text and am having difficulty synthesising it with my related text Shoah by Claude Lanzmann. I’m unsure whether I should analyse it as a whole with an analysis of one testimony in depth or three for comparison.

Also, for an upcoming assessment, we are required to integrate another text, as heard on the day, into our essay. I’m uncertain about what types of techniques I should be searching for.

A: I’d make it easier for yourself and find areas where there is common ground. You can be guided by looking for people, places and/or events. You can go either way. I’d prepare two throughly so that you have the material to use. Your primary focus in History and Memory is the prescribed text. The related material needs to be studied so that it supports what you want to say about the prescribed text.

the texts you use can’t be compared for techniques. Ideas may have common ground and so may content but composers will use different techniques to make their own meaning. What your teachers want you to do is recognise the techniques of an audio text in making meaning in relation to History and memory. Common audio techniques are pitch, volume, pause, pace, silence etc.

Ext 1 After The Bomb

Q: I have an upcoming assessment for Ext1 English, and was wondering if you could recommend a related text that would work well with my core text, Hiroshima. The topic is “After the Bomb” and I’m looking for something that fits within the timeframe 1945-1988 or something that reflects ‘attitudes and values’ of that time.

A: Have you thought of anime and manga to show the opposing perspective:
Barefoot Gen was originally manga but was adapted into anime. Graveyard of the Fireflies is a very touching examination of the Japanese position through children.
There’s an American doco, Atomic Cafe. Maybe hard to access. Very pointed in it’s depiction of naivete.
You can look at other post war literature.

Q: The anime and manga don’t really interest me, however, I will have a look in my local library for some of your recommendations. I found Atomic Cafe quite interesting, though I feel it would be difficult to analyse because it is a collage of authentic video clips. Apart from that, could you perhaps recommend some films, short stories or novels? The topic is really ‘texts and ways of thinking’ so I feel that anything within the timeframe would be appropriate, regarding the bomb or otherwise. Later on, I plan to use Hiroshima and ‘Waiting for Godot’ as my two core texts, so a Japan-centric text is not necessary for one of the related texts.

A: These are not the commonplace examples. Atomic Cafe using editing as an important technique to present it’s argument and to generate an ironic tone, a sophisticated technique. It’s not just a collection of clips. There is also the process of selection in order to make meaning.
Alan Ginsberg’s poem , Howl, now an animation. Jack Kerouac, On the Road. British ‘angry young man’ theatre eg John Osborne. Richard Attenborough’s Oh What A Lovely War! Vonnegut’s Slaughterhouse 5. Just to suggest a few.

Scope of HSC questions

Q: I was just wondering, is it possible for the Board of Studies to specify particular poems or chapters for a question? This is in reference to all the modules of English Advanced 2010.

I understand that they need to ensure the level of difficulty is the same across all the electives and choices of texts within any one elective, but is there anywhere which states that they can or cannot specify?

A: It is always a possibility with poetry, but chapters of a novel or non-fiction work (unless specified for study) are highly unlikely because it is too specific when a text can be several hundred pages. It is also unlikely with a play to specify an act and scene because of the length of the text and the nature of the usual study of the text. When you study 6 – 7 poems it is not such a big ask and you should know the poems well enough to be able to rise to the occasion. In this Syllabus where the question can apply to a range of texts, the question needs to be generic which also makes specific reference a little less likely. But have a look at past papers if you can.

It seems that parity is achieved by a common form to the question with a change to a word or phrase to make it refer to a specific question. I don’t think there is anything explicit about the matter; certainly not to my knowledge. The best approach is to know your stuff as thoroughly as you can. That is always the best preparation.

At this stage of the HSC game, I wouldn’t stress yourself with this issue. Just make sure you know your work. Take a deep breath on the day, read the questions, plan and, if a question is trickier than you expected, do another one first.

Some more reassurance: when you’re paper is marked, the markers look for what is right, not what is wrong. Keep the faith,

English Extension 2

Q: I’m starting my yr 12 HSC course now, and in a week I’ll have to definitively choose my subjects; I’m thinking of choosing 4u English and have realised that the first task is a ‘Viva Voce addressing the proposal for major work.’ I’m thinking of doing a textual analysis as I’m not confident with creative writing; perhaps Orwell’s Nineteen Eighty-Four but am afraid that it’s too generic. I know it’s not very specific of me, but could you perhaps recommend to me any texts exploring something of a similar nature? i.e., anything 20th Century politics-ish. Any help you could give me would be greatly appreciated.

A: Just make sure whatever you choose with 4 Unit that you are not locked into it for the whole year. However, a great choice for a bright and dedicated student.
Gosh! a curly one:
Orwell is satire as is Huxley’s Brave New World. A more modern futuristic variant (but not satire) would be Kazuo Ishiguro’s Never Let Me Go. Future worlds. Gattaca (A Niccol) is a film that would fit in as would the satirical film, Brazil (Terry Gilliam).
I hope that helps. It’s what you do with the text that takes it away from the generic and Orwell is classic – that’s an understatement.