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"No bird soars too high, if it soars with its own wings."
Romantics 5 - His own Wings - William Blake's "Proverbs of Hell": I love this assignment for many reasons. First, it challenges the students to try and figure things (Blake's Proverbs) out completely on their own (well - with a partner). Next, the students LOVE these little aphorisms - and some of them they've heard before. From the beginning of the year, a poster of Michael Jordan with his arms spread like wings, with Blake's proverb: "No bird soars too high, if it soars with its own wings" has been in the front and center of our classroom. And now - they get to see where those words come from. I'd like to think that so much of what we do in our classroom is like that - with the ultimate goal to convince the students that this old stuff really does have something to say to us. The students will work with a partner (or by themselves if they choose - everyone writes) and decipher a number of Blake's Proverbs. Some of the more important and/or more well known proverbs will be required - and in order to cover a wider cross-section of the text - beyond the required ones, students will choose from the others based on their last name.
Lesson Overview
Lesson Overview
Quiz / Test
Quiz / Test
No quiz today. The students were quizzed in the previous section for the Intro to Blake and the poems that were included in their textbook. They will be looking at these Proverbs cold (except for the ones that they know) - which is a great thing given the nature of the lesson.
A Note of Caution for the teacher
A Note of Caution for the teacher
These Proverbs of Hell were taken (originally) from the oldest textbook (students used to have 2 - the newer (1988) and older (1970's). Even those (the original textbook) Proverbs were censored, so I recompiled them myself - these (on the handout) are UNCENSORED - so make sure you look through them to make sure that your students (and your administration/district) are mature enough to handle them.
A Reminder
A Reminder
Because I always forget to mention it - there is a reminder at the top of the handout that Blake wrote the epigraph for Grendel - all the way back at the beginning of the year!
The Handout & Partner Work
The Handout & Partner Work
There are seventy Proverbs and the students can't possibly look at all of them in one class period. With that in mind - on their handout - I have put in bold the ones that everyone (set of partners) are to look at and interpret. But even with those they only need to choose 10. I really like that this lesson gives the students choice - as different Proverbs will undoubtedly appeal to different students. Beyond those 10 - the students are to choose 5 more within a range based on their last names - which means they should choose a partner that falls in the same alphabetical range. They will interpret a total of 15 of the Proverbs. They should work until the bell rings - and finish, if they didn't already, the rest for homework on their own. Here are the students instructions:
You and your partner are to do a close examination of the attached “Proverbs of Hell.” Check the chart below; you will be assigned a certain range of proverbs (based on your last name) to cover in addition to the boldfaced. Find a partner in the same range or just do the boldfaced together and chart one separately. You may work with a partner on this until the bell rings – after that you are on your own. The following Proverbs: (1,3,6,15,18,21,26,28,33,36,40,45,47,52,56,58,60,62,66,69,70) everyone must look at. [There is then a chart with the Proverb Number matched to their Last Name - ie A-D has Proverbs 1-10]
Choose 10 of these bold faced proverbs and 5 of your assigned proverbs and fill in the chart below. You are to come up with a paraphrase of the proverb followed by any general comment that your group cares to make. This general comment could be a connection with something else we have studied, a connection between your own life and the proverb, or anything else you wish to comment on. After you fill in the chart, answer the following 2 questions.
1. Do any of Blake’s proverbs seem to be “tongue in cheek?” In other words are all of them to be taken seriously as lessons of life (proverbs)? Explain you answer with specifics.
2. How do these proverbs challenge many of the philosophies of the Age of Reason (enlightenment) while championing the Romantic Era’s philosophies? Use your notes, the introduction to both periods (from your new text), and the proverbs in answering the question. Even though Blake was not generally thought of as being especially enamored of Nature (he lived in London his entire life) – can you find examples of proverbs that belie (look it up) that view?
3. Given how cool, popular (there is a Michael Jordan poster with one of these proverbs – and I heard one of these quotes on a tv show recently),and current ( hopefully a lot of “to know we’re not alone moments” while you were reading these proverbs) – why do you think they no longer appear (a censored version did make an appearance in an older text book) in high school British Literature Text books?
Blake's "Proverbs of Hell" Handout
Blake's "Proverbs of Hell" Handout
This two-page handout has on the first page the actual Proverbs (along with some that are required viewing in bold face) and the instructions for the students, a chart to write down their interpretations (and comments) and finally Three Critical Thinking Questions for them to answer when they are done with the chart.
BlakeArtandMusic.m4vYou Were Not Mad - Blake in Art & Music video
You Were Not Mad - Blake in Art & Music video
I am pretty proud of this video - it uses a wonderful and very 1980s song about Blake with as much artwork of Blakes as I could put in a four minute video. After watching it, the students were always amazed at how incredible a visual artist Blake was - and how modern his art (and his poems) truly are.
Lou Reed's "Dirty Boulevard"
Lou Reed's "Dirty Boulevard"
This song goes with the two "The Chimney Sweeper" poems. WARNING: This YouTube version contains explicit language that is not suitable for younger listeners. There are two instances that need to be cut out - and I did for my classes for some 32 years - and I let them know I did - though it's pretty obvious from the gaps in the song. The lyrics that the students have on their handout reflect the excised sections. Even with that - it is a remarkable connection between two centuries - and belies the modern teaching myth that only recent literature can speak to our students.
Remote Enhancements
Remote Enhancements
This exercise works GREAT remotely - and I used it that way for two years.
Romantics 5 - Dancing with the Daffodils - The Poems of William Wordsworth:
I know that the school year is getting close to its end when we reach this lesson. The timing is perfect - daffodil flowers are in season (I give one to each student) and that last Wordsworth poem that we look at today, "I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud" (aka the Daffodil Poem) is a perfect precursor for the last class's reading of Wordsworth's Tintern Abbey. We also go on a little field trip to the bridge that connects our Academic & Arts builiding and that over looks Downtown Chicago, so that we can try to experience a little bit of what Wordsworth did when he looked at London, early in the morning - when the pollution had yet become oppresive - and in that great city he could see an echo of the nature's beauty.
WHAT CAME BEFORE:
WHAT CAME BEFORE:
Thoughts on the Lesson
Thoughts on the Lesson
As I said with the previous lesson - students are always amazed by the modernity of William Blake. In my classroom, the poster with Michael Jordan's extended arms and the Blake quote (see the banner above) was always front center - and now the students got a chance to see where it came from. I once had the opportunity to have Michael Jordan sign the poster (one of my students was connected to his son) but turned it down - I knew if I did, I could no longer put the poster up in my room - and that was far too high a cost to pay.
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