Homework - Write a letter

1. Homework - Write a letter • Write a letter home, describing a particular school day. • Use the language of narration, the notes we are taking down today.

2. Homework – take it out and hand it up. • As President, you want to work with a celebrity to help a charity. • Write a report conveying information about this activity. • This should include information on the charity, the celebrity and what you hope to do. (One Page) • I also heard that you’re not having a Christmas test, that your homework each week is part of your grade. Guess what?

3. Describe what you see in detail - adjectives

4. Today’s Heading The Language of Narration

5. The objective of this class is: • To examine the language of narration. • To read several stories as to highlight plot, setting and characterisation. • To increase your descriptive skills.

6. Definition • Narration literally means to tell a story. Plot, setting & characterization = 3 key elements. • Target audience – those who read for pleasure. • Purpose – to give a connected account of events. (Used in letters, diaries, articles and essays)

7. Reading short story • The story of Sinead.

8. 1. Plot • Beginning / Introduction – Where are we and who is there? • The middle / Event – What happens and why? • The end / resolution - How does the character feel? What does she do? What questions are we left with?

9. Setting • Clearly describing your setting allows the reader to imagine being in that place. • The details you convey can set the tone or mood of the setting.

10. 2. Setting • Use vivid imagery – describe every detail of the image. • Use many adverbs and adjectives – show off your description vocabulary. • He read to the children’ vs ‘He read loudly to the demonic children’.

11. Describe what you see – 5 details (use adjectives and adverbs)

12. Characterisation • Readers get to know a character’s personality through: • what they say • what they do • how they look • and from other people’s opinions & attitudes towards this character.

13. 3. Characterisation • Characterisation – achieved by describing what people say, do, look like and think. • Similes and Metaphors – An image says a thousand words. Making comparisons really helps. • He rushed me like a bull • She was a princess, an angel, a star before my eyes. • Jack believed that Gavin was a right maggot. • (The following paragraph is from Herman Melville’s ‘Moby Dick’.)

14. "Landlord!" said I, "what sort of chap is he -- does he always keep such late hours?" It was now hard upon twelve o'clock. The landlord chuckled again with his lean chuckle, and seemed to be mightily tickled at something beyond my comprehension. "No," he answered, "generally he's an early bird -- airley to bed and airley to rise -- yea, he's the bird what catches the worm. -- But to-night he went out a peddling, you see, and I don't see what on airth keeps him so late, unless, may be, he can't sell his head.""Can't sell his head? -- What sort of a bamboozingly story is this you are telling me?" getting into a towering rage. "Do you pretend to say, landlord, that this harpooneer is actually engaged this blessed Saturday night, or rather Sunday morning, in peddling his head around this town?“ (Head means body)

15. Question • The captain calls Queequeg an early bird. What does this comparison, between a man and bird, tell us about Queequeg? (5 or 6 lines please)

16. 3. Characterisation • Only have one or two characters in your story to avoid confusion. • Base them on real people or other characters. • Try and make the reader feel something for the character.

17. Final bit of advise • Tenses - Pick a tense and stick with it. Past is easier than present. • Use the five senses to describe things. Rather than keep saying what things look like, say how they smell, what they sound like, etc. • You cannot copy a well known story but you can be inspired by it.

18. Story – can you guess the title? • Now you have all read a bit of Twilight. • Write a diary entry of you having entered a new town. • Remember: • Plot – beginning, middle, end • Setting – vivid imagery, adverbs, adjectives • Characterisation – simile and metaphor

19. Write a letter • Write a letter home, describing a particular school day. • Use the language of narration, the notes we were taking down today.