Journal 16 September 2013

1. Journal 16 September 2013 • What does Characterization mean? Have you ever heard of this before? Break the word apart…character-ization.. Does that help?

2. Characterization

3. Characterization • The techniques writers use to develop characters: including the characters thoughts, actions, appearance, and other’s thoughts of characters. • Characters and audience may have a different point of view

4. Character Types • Main: are the center of the story • Minor: areless important characters • Protagonist: (main) is the central character or hero • Antagonist: (Main) is opposing the protagonist, usually seen as the villain. May also be seen as a force of nature or circumstance. • Foil: (main) contains opposite trait compared to main characters traits. (Usually is the antagonist) • Dynamic: (usually main) character changes as a result to events in the story. • Static: (usually minor) characters thatremain unchanged in the story. • Confidante- (main or minor) someone whom the central character (protagonist) confides in. Does not need to be a person • Flat – (Usually minor and static) a character with a simple personality • Stock – (minor) a special kind of flat character who is instantly recognizable to most readers. • Round – (usually main and dynamic) that has a complex and realistic personality

5. Characterization continued… • Direct: the author is directly telling the audience how the character is. • Giving descriptive words like quiet, shy, loud, pretty, tall (think adjectives) • The little girl was very shy towards the boy. • Indirect:how the personality of the character is given by details • STEAL • Speech: What does the character say? • Thoughts: What information is given from the character’s feelings or thoughts? • Effect of others toward the character: How do other characters feel about the main character? What information is give about how the main character treats other characters. • Actions: What does the character do? + or - behavior • Looks: What does the character look like? This includes physical attributes, clothing, and appearance.

6. Character Traits • part of a character’s personality (Not emotions or feelings) • EXAMPLES Brave Loyal Smart Kind Honest

7. Character motives • Strong feelings, needs, wants, or desires that move characters to action • EXAMPLES Hunger Fear Revenge

8. Let’s think back to chapter one of Bad Boy • Who were the characters in the story? • What details were given about the characters? Traits or motives? • What thoughts or feelings did they have? • What actions did the characters take part in? • Who was telling this story? Did he/she have a different point of view?

9. Reading Reflection (Chapter 5) Bad Boy • What characters come back into Walter’s Life? What type of characters are they? How are they described? • Why do you think this chapter is titled Bad Boy? Who is the bad boy? What traits about this character lead him to be a bad boy? • What new thing does Walter discover he loves to do? How does he discover this?

10. Journal 17 September 2013 • What does plot mean when referring to a story? • Are there different stages/levels to the plot of a story? If so what are the stages?

11. Plot

12. What is a plot? • The pattern of events in a narrative or drama. • Do not confuse with summary!! • A summary is a shortened version of the text that states its key point (condensed version of the plot)

13. What a plot does… • It introduces you to the people you’ve never met • It puts them in interesting or problematic situations • It makes them move around to different locations • It makes them question their own thoughts or actions • And in the end it makes them better people

15. What do these mean in a plot map? They are the sequence of related events that make up a story • Exposition (Beginning):introduces the characters, setting, and conflicts. • Characters: Who is in the story • Setting: where the story is taking place (time and place or location) • Conflict: the issues happening in the story • Rising action: characters engage in conflict • Climax:the turning point to where major conflicts erupt • Falling action:Things happening after climax orconsequences after the conflicts erupts • Resolution (End):part of the plot that occurs when conflicts are resolved and loose ends are tied up. The closure to the story.

16. Whoa! New Background! • I just did this to make you notice something about plot maps. Regardless of what anyone else tells you, you have to keep in mind that plot maps are about more than just putting the character into weird situations and making things happen around them. • The plot is important in revealing character. • Without the plot moving around, we’d never know the people in our stories. Therefore plot, in a weird way, is actually about character.

17. Example please… • Jack and Jillhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=soxiM-QD63E • Aladdin http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ffAOkGg2Lr4&feature=related

18. First:  shows the action through the eyes of one of the characters. This character, the narrator uses the pronouns I, me, my our, and us. Second: has a narrator who uses the pronoun you to address the reader directly. Third:has a narrator who does not take part in the action of the story and who uses the pronouns he, she, him, her, they and them when describing the characters. Point of View

19. Reading Reflection (Ch 6) Mr. Irwin Lasher • Draw a plot map in your Bad Boy section of your notebook. Thoroughly complete the Exposition for the plot map. • You must include setting, conflict and all characters listed below!!! You also must include a trait about each character. Walter, George Myers, Florence Dean, Herbert Dean, William Dean, Mary Dolly Green, Aunt Nancy, Mr. Harrison, Mrs. Dworkin, Mrs. Dodson, Viola, Frank Law, Mickey, Mrs.Conway, and Mr. Lasher.

20. Journal 18 September 2013 • What is author’s style? • Describe Walter Dean Myers’ style in Bad Boy? • What do you think his purpose was to write Bad Boy?

21. Author’s Style • How something is said or written(not what is said) • When thinking about style, first consider the clothes people wear, like we looked at with labels. Whatever they wear, people choose clothes to express themselves and their individual "style." • Authors have style, too, but it's called literary style or the writer's voice. Writers express their ideas in specific ways by using just the right word and putting it in just the right place. A literary style reflects the author's personality and the purpose for the writing (that is, the idea to be expressed). http://www.cliffsnotes.com/cliffsnotes/writing/what-is-the-author-s-style-of-a-book

22. Style • How something is said or written(not what is said) • Word choice • Sentence length • Figurative language • Tone

23. Author’s Purpose • An author’s purpose is the reason an author decides to write about a specific topic. • To inform • Persuade • Entertain • Explain (gives ideas to the reader)

24. Narrative Fiction and Nonfiction • Narrative: writing that tells a story, fiction or nonfiction, by sequencing key events. It usually tells who, what, when, why, where and how. • Fiction: imaginative writing (made up) • Nonfiction: facts and reality writing (truths)

25. Reading Reflection (Ch 7)I Am Not the Center of the Universe • Why do you think Walter Dean Myers wrote this book? What purpose did he have? • What is his style in this book? • Who is Mr. Lasher? What reason did he follow Walter home after school? • Why did Walter lie about his bruises? • Would you done the same thing? What does this tell you about Walter’s personality?