The last poet on our list, the world’s most famous goth with whom we’re ending this poetic journey down history, is the father of Gothic and detective fiction – Edgar Allan Poe. We’re going to focus on his work for the majority of this week (leaving Friday for you to focus on your projects). Hopefully, if you don’t like dark and suspenseful (*napetu) fiction already, you’ll GROW to love it (*zavoljet ćete). So, who was this Edgar Allan Poe, an orphan, an alcoholic, who mysteriously dropped dead at the age of 40? (Rabies, syphilis, alcohol abuse, murder, poison or brain tumor are just some of the theories surrounding his death.) Watch the video below to find out more…if you dare! As you might already know, Poe’s poem The Raven – a poem about love, loss, being haunted (*proganjan, opsjednut) by sad memories – is quite a popular read around Halloween, but a glorious one at any time of year, with a compelling rhythm and fantastic story that will send shivers down your spine. The poem can be read on many levels; on your first reading you may want to try to understand the literal meaning of the poem, rather than getting all the nuances (*nijanse) of symbolism or trying to define every individual word. Be sure to download the annotated poem below so you can follow this musical adaptation of the poem. The vocab work has already been done for you. !!! Remember that “RAPPING” in the poem means KNOCKING and QUOTH means to SAY. Hopefully, you could understand the gist of the poem. The narrator is haunted (*proganjan) by grief and memory of a girl named Lenore. He allegedly wants to forget about her for a moment, put his mind to rest, but this annoying bird won't let him. The Raven won't let him forget about her, that she is no more. Moreover, the raven won't provide comfort or hope that the two might meet again in the afterlife. There are of course certain elements of the supernatural (*nadnaravno) but we can always provide an explanation that the narrator is going mad. !!! ASSIGNMENT (for everybody) !!! Deadline : 12 MAY For this week, your only assignment is: (1) to invest some time in studying The Raven (it'll come in handy even for your Croatian Matura exam) and (2) to complete this GForm that checks your understanding of this poetic masterpiece. If English is not one of your strongest suits, you can always complement (*nadopunit) the original in English with the Croatian translation (provided for you in the document attached below). --To consolidate your understanding of the poem and before submitting the GForm assignment, I'd advise watching this neat little summary. !! Guidelines if you decide to do a project on THE RAVEN !! Option 4/4 As you should know by know, the deadline for submitting your project assignments is this Friday (8.5.) It's a bit last notice and cutting it close, but if you wish, as the final option (IV) for your project assignment, you can write your own ending to “The Raven.” 1. By taking off the last few stanzas (*uzimajući za polazište zadnjih par strofa), rewrite the poem to have an alternate ending and/or a different story line. Try to use the same rhyme scheme and practice using different poetry techniques (that you already know from Croatian classes) including, but not limited to, alliteration, onomatopoeia, repetition, and personification. 2. Try to get creative! You could even try to make it creepier, if that’s possible! (Think about why/how Lenore died. Perhaps she’s not even dead…we can only speculate). Is the narrator reliable? He is after all talking to birds about a dead girl. 3. You could write a poem (as a response to the narrator’s perspective) from the viewpoint of the raven, or the tragically deceased Lenore, or give voice to some inanimate (*neživi) object in the narrator’s chamber (room*). Perhaps, Poe is vising YOU from beyond the grave or Lenore wants you to tell her side of the story. Or, you are the narrator's psychologist/psychiatrist helping him to address his unhealthy obsession with this bird (that is, you're treating his inability to let go of his grief). 4. Your written part of the assignment has to consist of at least 180 words. There’s one part that makes this project assignment easier than the other three. You just need to include text and image (no voice needed). I suggest that you visualize your story by making a STORY BOARD. You’ll need to plan ahead upon making this project. You have to familiarize yourself with the features offered on this platform. You can choose another online platform which allows you to make a storyboard - this is just a suggestion. Ideally, you’d write your story/poem beforehand keeping in mind the visual imaginary with which you’d like to accompany your writing. Here’s an example of a modern take on Poe. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Archives
December 2023
Categories
All
|