It's All Greek to Me: August 31, 2017

Focus: Why is Sophocles' interpretation of Oedipus Rex the one that still intrigues us?

1. Warming up with your partner: Creating a literary 3 x 3 for Oedipus Rex using one of Foster's archetypes, such as blindness, quests, violence, symbols, flights of season, sex, geography, seasons, or marks

OR

If you're not ready for that, it's okay! Create a family tree for the play and/or a map of what happens in different locations.



2. Offering you a few helpful background items on Oedipus Rex

• Check out what the Greek theater looked like (above).

• Role of the Chorus: To guide the readers in how they should be interpreting the play.

• Teiresias's story: Why is he blind and prophetic?

• Dramatic irony: The Greek audience would have known this myth quite well before seeing the play. They know exactly how what's going to happen to Oedipus even though he doesn't. Look for evidence of Sophocles playing with this irony.

• Catharsis: The process of releasing, and thereby providing relief from, strong or repressed emotions

3. Diving into our first Socratic seminar: Oedipus Rex

4. Wrapping up with epiphanies, questions, and kudos


HW:
1. Finish your first blog post before class on Tuesday (unpack your question, use it to explore Oedipus Rex, and make sure you click on the "Publish" button).

2. For Friday: Bring your laptop to class. I will offer you a 30-min College Essay Boot Camp!

3. For Wednesday:

• Read (and annotate) Chapters 1, 2, and 3 in East of Eden.

4. For next Friday:

• Read (and annotate) Chapters 4, 5, 6, and 7 in East of Eden.

5. Come in to see me for a conference on your college essay!