DOAS - Act One

<--- Impressionistic Set

1) Reminder - get your memoirs and late work in.

2) Discussion: Expectations - what are yours? What are your parents?

3) Finish reading: Act One of DOAS.

4) Writing Assignment - response to "It's Not About You."

Tuesday and Wednesday

Remember when we started this semester I told you that it was a very unusual one as I would be pulled away frequently for responsibilities outside of my class? Well, Tuesday and Wednesday I am away on a field trip... but this is it. No more days away.

To make things productive and enjoyable, I ask that you accomplish two things each day. There will be no homework as you are preparing for GRAD! :) (However, a little quiz on the play is coming up...)

1) Read Death of a Salesman out loud for half of the class. Stop an make sure you understand what is going on. I'll review the most essential lines when I return. Please let Ms. Rae know what page we are on.

2) For the last half of each day, watch the movie, Into the Wild. The film is based on a true story. After graduating from Emory University, top student and athlete Christopher McCandless abandoned his possessions, gave his entire $24,000 savings account to charity and hitchhiked to Alaska to live in the wilderness. His struggles with a dysfunctional family and a growing sense of disconnection lead him towards a journey of independence and extreme connection with nature. He is searching for his own version of happiness that has no relationship to money, family or traditional expectations of success (he is like Biff in some ways). Along the way, Christopher encounters a series of characters who shape his life. Ultimately, his personal legend is not one that inspires, instead his story becomes a cautionary tale.