Tag Archives: chapter 3

2011 RinE, Research in English

Research in English (Linguistics) A session 11: July 1st, 2011

We read more of chapter 3, pages 37-39.

Final projects. Students will give a final presentation and also hand in a written paper on July 29th (or earlier). Choose ONE from the list of topics below (if you want to do something that is not on the list, please email me or talk to me in class). You can use Powerpoint, or make a poster or make handouts. The presentation should be about 10-12 minutes. The written paper should be about 4 pages of A4 (double-spaced, with a reference list 参照文献).

Who is the project for? For yourself, for your classmates, and for the students who will take this course next year. Make something that would be useful for them.

  1. A summary of each chapter, in both Japanese and English.
  2. New. A review of the book in Japanese and English, and post the reviews on Amazon Japan and Amazon UK.
  3. List the language theories mentioned in the book. Give a simple summary and analysis of each one (e.g. Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis, Universal Grammar, the Bow-wow Theory, etc.)
  4. List the people mentioned in the book. Give some basic biographical explanation and summary of their importance. Add illustrations or photos.
  5. List the languages mentioned in the book. Give help on pronouncing the names in English, the Japanese names and a map showing where they are spoken.
  6. Make a diagram or chart in both English and Japanese showing the Indo-European family of languages.
  7. List the non-English words mentioned in the book. Give a guide to their pronunciation, the meaning in Japanese and which language they come from.
  8. List the places mentioned in the book. Mark them on a map (or on several, separate, maps).
Writing Strategies

Writing Strategies 1, session 4: May 20th, 2011

Marble sarcophagus with the myth of Endymion
Marble sarcophagus with the myth of Endymion. Photo by peterjr1961 on Flickr. Click image to visit

 

  1. Quiz on LWW chapters 3
  2. Check Study Guide answers for Vocabulary and 1-4 (on pages 15 + 16)
  3. Personal interviews

Homework:

  1. Study Guide questions for chapters 3 and 4, questions 5-10 (pages 16-17). (“For discussion” and “Optional Writing Project” are both options. You get extra points if you do them, but you don’t have to.)
  2. By next (Friday May 27th): are there any publications in Japanese like the Spark Notes for “The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe”? (see handout). If so, where can they be found and/or bought? What are the contents like? Are they useful?
  3. By next (Friday May 27th), find 10 customer reviews in Japanese about “The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe” (for example on Amazon Japan), and choose the best one (in your opinion).
    1. The reviews can be about the original English book or the  Japanese translation, it doesn’t matter. Reviews of this book are OK, too.
    2. The 10 customer reviews should include both positive and negative reviews.
    3. Print out the best one and bring it to class.
    4. Be prepared to explain to the class why you think it is a good review.
  4. By the Friday after next (June 3rd): read a Greek, or Roman myth and summarise it
    1. in English (200-300 words).
    2. And write a short paragraph about the similarities to the Japanese myth you wrote about. What are the common characteristics?
    3. Please think about the following questions:
      1. What is a myth? Is a myth the same as a folk-tale (昔話）? Are they different? How are they different?
      2. Is a myth different from a fairy-story, or is it the same? How are they different? How are they the same?
      3. What is the difference between a myth and an epic poem such as Heike Monogatari?
      4. What is the difference between a myth and a novel such as the Tale of Genji?
      5. What is the difference between a myth and a legend, such as The One Inch Boy?
announcement

Writing Strategies II, Session #5: October 29th, 2010

Castle in the Sky
Image via Wikipedia

Today in class:

  1. There is no class next week, November 5th. There will be a makeup class in December, either 4th or 18th (Saturdays). Please tell me when you are and are not available on those two days. Next class will be November 12th.
    Update: Saturday Dec. 18th, 2nd period (11-12:30) was the most popular time.
  2. Write the details of our textbook, using the MLA format.
  3. Study Guide, p. 15, question 9: what does it mean to be narrow-minded? Uncle Andrew believes there are no absolutes, that there is no absolute right and wrong. This goes against the Christian view. Christians believe that there are absolutes; in particular, there is an absolute right and wrong. Christians are not the only ones who believe this. When we say “case by case”, we are saying there are no absolutes. When we say, “it depends” 場合によって　we are saying there are no absolutes. What do you think?
  4. Textbook page 20: “The moment I picked up that box I could tell by the pricking in my fingers that I held some great secret in my hands.” See also these famous lines from Shakespeare’s “Macbeth“: “By the pricking of my thumbs, Something wicked this way comes.” [Macbeth Act 4, scene 1, 44–49].
  5. Study Guide pages 20-21. We answered questions 5-11, and translated the Bible passages in questions 12, 14.
  6. Study Guide pages 24-5: we checked the meaning of the sentences that use Cockney dialect.
  7. Some points that came up in today’s class:
    1. the Deplorable Word is similar to a word of destruction used by the children in Miyazaki Hayao‘s movie “Castle in the Sky”.

Homework:

  1. Read chapters 6-7.
  2. Study Guide page 45-7, Summary Questions.  Choose a topic for a presentation November 12th. Tell me your choice by email as soon as possible (deadline 締め切り Friday Nov. 5th, 23:59).
    1. Story Structure (questions 1-4, p. 45)
    2. Characterization (questions 5-7, p. 46)
    3. Theme – how we treat other people (question 8, p. 47)
    4. Theme – curiosity (question 9, p. 47)
    5. Theme – the Deplorable Word (question 10, p. 48)
  3. Study Guide page 25-6, questions 1-9.

Cultural background.

Here are some photos of things that appear in “The Magician’s Nephew“. Click on the photos to see a bigger image. (All photos courtesy of Flickr.)

  1. dungeons
    "dungeons"
  2. torture chambers
    Torture Chamber
  3. banqueting hall
    Banquet-Hall
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2010 WS, Writing Strategies

Writing Strategies session #4: Friday, May 14th, 2010

3 Comments
  1. Discuss your homework answers with your neighbour.
  2. Hand in your homework.
  3. Chapter summaries. Your summaries are mostly too detailed. Give only the important information.
  4. Using the proper format, take in dictation sample summaries for chapters 1, 2 and 3.
  5. Chapter 4: read and translate. We read and translated up to page 39 (top paragraph).

Homework:

  1. For next week (May 21st): go to DWC library and list all the books – in both English and Japanese translations –  by C.S. Lewis. Divide your list into fiction and non-fiction titles.
  2. Borrow from the DWC library at least two books by C.S.Lewis in Japanese translation and begin reading them.
    1. You must read one book by C.S. Lewis in Japanese and write a report about it this semester.
    2. The book can be either fiction or non-fiction.
    3. Any title is OK except the two textbooks (“The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe” and “The Magician’s Nephew”).
    4. Choose your book by session #6, May 28th.
  3. Finish reading chapter 4 and write a short summary of it in English.
  4. Read and prepare chapter 5.
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2009 IW, Interactive Writing

Interactive Writing II Session #9: November 27th, 2009

  1. Mini-lecture on “Changing attitudes to children and the police in the U.K.”
    1. Write your notes in Japanese on your blog in 200 characters
  2. We read more of chapter 3 with individual students translating paragraphs. We read up to page the bottom of page 37.
  3. Homework: Write a summary of chapter 3 in Japanese in 200 characters, and post it to your blog by Wednesday December 2nd.