Hero's Journey: Research and Narrative

Research the Hero and Tell the Story

English 12

OReilly

The Hero's Journey: Not Quite a Research Paper, But Quite an Epic Journey

Your next assignment is something quite unusual, you will write elements of a research paper: the opening and topic sentences, but the bulk of the paper will be a narrative—your imagination at work within the structure of the hero's journey. You will write a the story of a hero passing through the three major acts of the hero's journey: Departure, Initiation, and Return. You may create this paper alone or with up to two other people. If you decide to work as a group, you must include three self-created illustrations in any medium including collage, or, keeping your cited topic sentences and opening, you may write this assignment as a play and perform it for the class.

10 points______ Your paper is three to eight pages long. You have a story of a hero going through Campbell's Acts and Stages. Your paper is divided into the following parts: (1) a one paragraph essay-like introduction as described below, (2) three chapter/acts describing the journey of a hero, and (3) chapter/act titles as described below.

Introduction Paragraph:

15 points______

Your opening paragraph will:

• introduce the concept of Joseph Campbell's model of the hero's journey (blue/background)
• introduce your hero and his three part journey (green/topic sentence and plan).

• Cite the source of your information about Campbell using one of the cites below.

• Keep your opening and introduction BRIEF, no more than six sentences.

In his online article "Classical Heroes in Modern Movies: Mythological Patterns of the Superhero," by William Indick, Ph.D, Indick describes the three act journey taken by heroes in American film: The Departure, The Initiation, and The Return. These three acts are broken down into "seventeen specific stages." He goes on to explain how such a hero in modern movies captures the imagination of the viewer because the hero expresses the viewer's individual dreams and aspirations while, simultaneously, expressing the values and hopes of the culture. The following story follows this mythic paradigm; the hero of this tale leaves home, a departure, experiences a variety of challenges culminating in a confrontation with a father figure; and, ultimately, returns home and settles down in a secret identity in which he can both have a quotidian existence and also fight crime.

Three (3) Chapter/ Act Titles

15 points______

• The body of your essay/story will have three act titles—one sentence—no more— which will introduce the act and the stages the hero is passing through and cite the source of your information on the hero's acts and stages.

Example: Title for Act 1: The Departure:

According to the Maricopa Center for Learning and Instruction website article, "The Hero's Journey: A Summary of the Steps," the hero's journey begins with a "Departure," in which the hero passes through distinct stages including the "Refusal of the Call," Supernatural Aid," and "The Belly of the Whale."

Your hero story in three chapter/acts:

30 points (10 points a piece)______

• After each title, tell your story for that act: The Acts will be The Departure, The Initiation, and The Return

• For each chapter or act include at least three stages, i.e.: for Act One Departure, you might use The Call to Adventure, Refusal of the Call, and The Belly of the Whale.

• Please! Now is your opportunity to use all the literary devices on your Nice Glossary and more. Be aware of comedy, action, pacing, plot turns, alliteration, literary or Biblical allusion, dialogue, simile, metaphor, imagery, personification, foils, and motifs—repeating images that tie your story together and give it coherency. All these literary devices make your writing a pleasure to read. These paper are long, so please make them fun for me to read! This may be written as a first person narrative from your point of view or a third person narrative from your hero's point of view.

Citing Sources, Works Cited, and Bibliography, Formatting, Style

10 points_____ You will cite your Works Cited at least four times, in the opening and in the three act/chapter titles. In the course of your paper, make sure you cite all three of the sources in your Works Cited.

• Since you have three sources in your Works Cited you will have to cite one source twice. The second time you use your source, you need not introduce it again, simply quote or paraphrase, and put the author's name in parenthesis after the quote or paraphrase.

• There might not be an author: whatever is the first word in your Works Cited entry, put that word or short title in the parenthesis after the quote or paraphrase.

Chapter/ Act title example:

In Act Three of the hero's journey, "The Return," the hero passes through the following stages: "The Refusal of the Return," "The Rescue from Without," and "The Freedom to Live" (Warren).

Here is your Works Cited entry for the citation above. See how the word in the parenthesis is the first word to appear in the Works Cited entry?

Sources for your Works Cited and Bibliography

Works Cited

10 points_______Create a properly formatted Works Cited with three (3) entries, the following, or if you like, other sources you uncover. Staple to the end of your story. You should already have this part done:

Summary of Campbell's Hero's Journey

http://www.mcli.dist.maricopa.edu/smc/journey/ref/summary.html

The original article we read in class outlining how the movie Spiderman follow's Campbell's pattern of the heroic journey:

http://www.calstatela.edu/faculty/sfischo/ClassicalHeroes.html

Another website outlining the heroic journey:

http://www.cerritos.edu/fquaas/resources/english102/HeroNotes.htm

Bibliography

5 points _______ Construct a properly formatted Bibliography with two (2) entries:

• Use any book or website on mythology that you read but do not use in your paper.

• The Wikipedia summary, quite good, but Wikipedia should be used for background information only (Bibiliography, not Works Cited) as it is not a reliable source:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monomyth

Other points to consider

Negative Points

You will lose half a point for glaring punctuation, style, and formatting errors. Have a proper heading and header please. Play performers lose one point for forgotten lines or breaking character. Characters must be in costume. (-10 points)

If you turn this into a play, please make me a copy of your script and arrange a day to perform your piece for the class. (-10 points)

Time line:

Week 1: Opening paragraph/ act 1 outline completed/ act 1 completed

Week 2: Act 2 outline completed/Act 2 completed

Week 3: Act 3 outline completed/Act 3 title completed

Due December 14th

Avatar Extra Credit

Avatar Extra Credit

Write a tasty paragraph describing how the protagonist of the movie, Avatar, is passing through the stages of the heroic journey as described by Joseph Campbell.

_________ Greens: Opening sentence names the movie and its director, and makes the claim that the protagonist is completing the hero's journey. Closing restates your argument and provides closure

_________ Yellows: Name three events from the movie that depict acts or stages from the hero's journey

_________ Reds: For each yellow have at least two reds that provide evidence and examples supporting your claim

_________ Properly format. Avoid errors in mechanics and punctuation. Color Code

Literary devices: definitions and examples

Poetry devices (a major sampling):

homoeoteleuton

Similar sound endings to words, phrases, or sentences. "Near Rhyme."

• "That’s why, darling, it’s incredible

  That someone so unforgettable

  Thinks I’m unforgettable too."

  ("Unforgettable," sung by Nat King Cole)







• "Loose lips sink ships."

  (public service ad during World War II)

• 
  

• Incredibly, wonderfully, sensually delightful. Full of love, the sky above, can't get enough, of these. What is this thing of which I speak that fills my heart with ease? I'll tell you now. It's from the cow...this lovely creamy cheese. (OReilly)







• "Crispety, crunchety, peanut-buttery Butterfinger."

  (advertising slogan for Butterfinger candy bar)

It is defined as "when several utterances (i.e., words) end in a similar fashion." The word, therefore, is larger than rhyme, but similar to it.

repetition of sound: alliteration repetition of a beginning consonant sound; assonance: the repetition of vowel sounds; consonance: the repetition of consonant sounds

Langston Hughes

Dream Deferred

What happens to a dream deferred?
Does it dry up
Like a raisin in the sun?
Or fester like a sore--
And then run?
Does it stink like rotten meat?
Or crust and sugar over--
like a syrupy sweet?
Maybe it just sags
like a heavy load.
Or does it explode?

Cha Cha Cha Changes with cheese, please, give it a squeeze...

So, so, very slimy, not sweet, sensually complete

A lust a trust I must repeat

I'm not complete, I can't go a week

without it to eat, my treat

need I repeat?

choice, cheddar, actual cheese.

ORiRi

http://www.lyricsfreak.com/d/david+bowie/changes_20036790.html

lyrics to Changes David Bowie

Parts by Tedd Arnold.

"I just don't know what's going on

Or why it has to be.

But every day it's something worse.

What's happening to me?

I think it was three days ago

I first became aware--

That in my comb were caught a couple

Pieces of my hair.

I stared at them, amazed, and more

Than just a bit appalled

To think that I was only five

And starting to go bald!"

allusion:

a casual reference to someone or something in history or literature that creates a mental picture. An allusion is like a hyperlink. Embedded in the poem is a link to another entire literary work, with all its meaning and insight. Here are more literary allusions: http://www.worsleyschool.net/socialarts/allusion/page

illusion: something unreal that one thinks is real (don't confuse)

"Siren Song"

by Margaret Atwood

This is the one song everyone

would like to learn:

the song

that is irresistible:

the song that forces men to leap overboard in squadrons

even though they see the beached skulls

the song nobody knows

because anyone who has heard it

is dead, and the others can't remember

Shall I tell you the secret

and if I do, will you get me

out of this bird suit?

I don't enjoy it here

squatting on this island

looking picturesque and mythical

with these two feathery maniacs,

I don't enjoy singing

this trio, fatal and valuable.

I will tell the secret to you ,to you, only to you.

Come closer. This song

is a cry for help: Help me!

Only you, only you can,

you are unique

At last. Alas

it is a boring song

but it works every time.

analogy or extended metaphor:

Both are comparisons. An analogy is more of an argument; in an analogy one is arguing that two things are the same, like comparing the Iraq War to the Vietnam War. An extended metaphor is a bit less argumentative, it just shows how things are related. The two terms are often casually used interchangeably.

FOG

Carl Sandburg

The fog comes
on little cat feet.

It sits looking
over harbor and city
on silent haunches
and then moves on.

Nothing Gold Can Stay
by
Robert Frost

Nature's first green is gold,
Her hardest hue to hold.
Her early leaf's a flower;
But only so an hour.
Then leaf subsides to leaf.
So Eden sank to grief,
So dawn goes down to day.
Nothing gold can stay.

caesura:

the pausing or stopping within a line of poetry caused by needed punctuation.

The punctuation within the lines (in this case, all commas) are the caesura, not the punctuation at the ends of the lines.

Miss Spider's Wedding by David Kirk

"They talked of all their dreams and hopes,

Of art and nature, love and fate.

They peered through toy kaleidoscopes

And murmured thoughts I shan't relate.

Then Holley held Miss Spider's hand...

I'll say no more, you understand.

For private moments between spiders

Should not be witnessed by outsiders."

I'M NOBODY! WHO ARE YOU?

Emily Dickenson

I'm nobody! Who are you?

Are you nobody, too?
Then there's a pair of us -- don't tell!
They'd advertise -- you know!

How dreary to be somebody!

How public like a frog

To tell one's name the livelong day

To an admiring bog!

enjambement:

the continuation of thought from one line of poetry to the next without punctuation needed at the end of the previous line(s).

Trees by Joyce Kilmer I think that I shall never see A poem lovely as a tree. A tree whose hungry mouth is prest Against the sweet earth's flowing breast; A tree that looks at God all day, And lifts her leafy arms to pray; A tree that may in summer wear A nest of robins in her hair; Upon whose bosom snow has lain; Who intimately lives with rain. Poems are made by fools like me, But only God can make a tree.

hyperbole:

extreme exaggeration for effect.

Hyperbole of My Dog
Little Girl is my dog. She sleeps like a log. She has a huge mouth, And eats like a hog In her excitement Her tail is a whip times ten. When she sees food Hers eyes start to spin.

metaphor:

the comparison of two unlike things by saying one is the other.

The Soul Selects Her Own Society

Emily Dickenson

The Soul selects her own Society —

Then — shuts the Door —

To her divine Majority —

Present no more —

Unmoved — she notes the Chariots — pausing —

At her low Gate —

Unmoved — an Emperor be kneeling

Upon her Mat —

I've known her — from an ample nation —

Choose One —

Then — close the Valves of her attention —

Like Stone —

THE BLUES

By Sierra Ceballos, age 8.

When you fall off a cliff and you get hit by a buffalo,

that's the blues.

When your chicken gets hit by a car and you're not that smart,

that's the blues.

When you fall in your chair and you lose all your hair and you lose your underwear,

that's the blues.

When you hit your head and your mom sends you to bed,

that's the blues.

metonymy:

onomatopoeia

oxymoron:

personification:

the giving of human traits to non-human things incapable of having those traits.

MASK FLING your red scarf faster and faster, dancer. It is summer and the sun loves a million green leaves, masses of green. Your red scarf flashes across them calling and a-calling. The silk and flare of it is a great soprano leading a chorus Carried along in a rouse of voices reaching for the heart of the world. Your toes are singing to meet the song of your arms: Let the red scarf go swifter. Summer and the sun command you.

symbol:

Other terms (not included in project or test):

elegy: a poem of lament (extreme sorrow, such as caused by death)

free verse: a poem without either a rhyme or a rhythm scheme, although rhyme may be used, just without a pattern.

blank verse: un-rhymed lines of iambic pentameter (ten syllables with all even numbered syllables accented)

imagery: the use of words to create a mental picture

mood: the emotional effect of a poem or a story

Understanding and using these devices and terms can help improve and strengthen poetry. Imagery is essential for vivid poetry, and devices help develop imagery.

The speaker: The speaker provides structure and uniformity to a poem. In this case the speakers point of view is first person point of view:

AZTEC MASK

I WANTED a man's face looking into the jaws and throat
of life
With something proud on his face, so proud no smash
of the jaws,
No gulp of the throat leaves the face in the end
With anything else than the old proud look:
Even to the finish, dumped in the dust,
Lost among the used-up cinders,
This face, men would say, is a flash,
Is laid on bones taken from the ribs of the earth,
Ready for the hammers of changing, changing years,
Ready for the sleeping, sleeping years of silence.
Ready for the dust and fire and wind.
I wanted this face and I saw it today in an Aztec mask.
A cry out of storm and dark, a red yell and a purple prayer,
A beaten shape of ashes
waiting the sunrise or night,
something or nothing,
proud-mouthed,
proud-eyed gambler.

Structure: The structure of the poems, changes its meaning.

Hiding in the Mask

By Ellen Bauer

(Dear reader:
This is a poem for two voices.
It is meant to be read with one voice reading the left side,
the other voice reading the right.
Whenever two sentences or words are on the same horizontal  level,
they are meant to be read at the same time.
When there is a blank on one side, that reader is quiet while the
other side reads, until there are words again.)

The masks we wear Hiding Ritual flames Eyes, in masks Are the only part That lives. Masks of Death Life Rain Summer Joy Fear Weeping Beneath the mask. Hiding Of the worshipped Bringing out Our hidden one. Some wear them From shame. Some wear them During joy, Celebration. But our masks, Bringing up Ancient Are ours. The masks we wear.

The masks we wear What? Reflecting in our eyes. Eyes, in masks Of our faces That lives. Life Death Summer Rain Fear Joy Hiding tears. Weeping Love, Of the worshipped Being. Bringing out Our soul. From shame. An ancient vow. During joy, A wedding Deep with mystery, Ancient Rituals, Are ours. The masks we wear.

Hamlet Reaing Activities

Hamlet Reading Activities Worksheet

English 12

OReilly

name_________________

date_________ period_______

The following are due the class after the end of each act (one of these worksheets per act). Please keep up on these, and do them as we go along.

Act ________

Themes:

action verses inaction (intellectualizing and over thinking versus putting on your Nikes and doing it)

revenge

religion

sexuality and incest

stability of the state/corruption of the state

death, decay, corruption

death, fragility of life, the cycle of life and death

misogyny (woman hating)

human flaws and frailty

reality verusus illusion/uncertainty

family relationship

sesession of power

some other theme that you see

1)Theme Tracking

As we read, take note of any diction that reflects the themes above. Try to stick with the same themes if you can. For every act, write two in the spaces below. Please cite as shown. Using excerpts from the lines you chose, please explain how the diction in both the quotes above reveal the themes.

Example

Theme : Action versus inaction

Quote: HAMLET: "To be or not to be; that is the question/Whether tis nobler in the mind to suffer..." (III.i.58-59).

Commentary:

Hamlet is contemplating whether he wishes to live or die, take action or remain inactive. He cannot decide if he wishes "to be or not to be" (III.1.58).

Now you do it....

a.Theme_____________

Quote:

Commentary:

b.Theme____________

Quote:

Commentary: :

2) Character analysis

Using the same quotation format as shown above, quote two lines that reveal a character's inner thoughts. Then write commentary using excerpts from your quotes to briefly explain and analyze the character's frame of mind or personality trait. If your character analysis explores the same theme and the same character as in question one, so much the better.

a. Character and quote:

Commentary:

b. Character and quote:

Commentary:

3) Literary Devices: Using the quotation format shown in question one, present examples of quotations with examples of literary devices. In your commentary, briefly analyze how the literary devices help support tone (the speaker's or author's attitude) or theme. The following are some literary devises you may find:

foils

comparisons: simile, metaphor

diction and imagery (word choice)

irony, sarcasm

dramatic irony

Biblical or literary allusion

other

a. Literary devise and quotation:

Commentary:

b. Literary devise and quotation:

Commentary:

Archetype essay

Mythic Archetype Essay
English 12
OReilly
Use your tasty mythic archetype paragraph and expand it into an essay. Please do not exceed two
pages.
Opening paragraph
5 points_______Add background at the beginning. Let’s make the background anywhere from
1-4 lines. Background is general information—information that is general knowledge and
therefore requires no citing—that orients the reader, lets him know what the essay is about. Fully
introduce both Carol Pearson and her website, The Heroes Within, and also the archetype quiz which
is on the website, Avidtran.
Mention that you took the test and what the results were.
Example Background:
On the website, The Heroes Within, author Carol Pearson outlines twelve archetypes, the
underlying personality traits which can predominate in one’s personality. After taking the
archetype test on the website Avidtran, which determined which archetype is dominant in my
personality, I have to say, I disagree with the test's conclusion.
5 points_______ Use your paragraph topic sentence as your thesis, either a power statement, a
FANBOYS sentence, or a complex sentence.
5 points_______ Add a plan. The plan briefly outlines for the reader what you will be writing
about.
Thesis: My mythic archetype as defined by the test, the warrior, does correspond to my
personality in two very significant ways. Plan: I fit the archetype in that I can set boundaries and
achieve goals.
OR combine the plan with the thesis in one sentence:
My mythic archetype as defined by the test, the warrior, does correspond to my personality in
that I can set boundaries and achieve goals.
2 Body Paragraphs
5 points______Use your key ideas (yellows) from your paragraph to become the topic sentences
of your body paragraphs.
15 points _______ Keep your examples, explanations, and evidence (reds) from your paragraph
and add a few more. Once again, this is where you get creative: add very vivid vignettes,
dialogues, and stories from your life to make your evidence come alive.
10 points________ In each body paragraph, properly cite the text, see your MLA Quickie
Reference for how to integrate quotes.
Example topic sentence (yellow) integrating and citing a quote:
The warrior archetype is depicted as a person who can "set and achieve goals, overcome
obstacles, and persist in difficult times" (Pearson); however, I have never felt very effective in
that area.
Then refute in your reds.
Conclusion:
5 points______ Use your concluding sentence from your paragraph and add a few more
concluding sentences. Restate your main ideas with a different twist.
Works Cited and Bibliography
10 points_____Your Works Cited must have at least three sources that you actually cite in your
paper. Probably the three cites will be Avidran, Heroes Within, and Changing Minds, the three
websites you originally used to write your paragraph. Find them at :
http://avidtran.tripod.com/archetype.html
http://www.herowithin.com/arch101.html
http://changingminds.org/disciplines/storytelling/characters/pearson_archetypes.htm
Use Knight Cite and your MLA Quickie Reference form to properly format and cite:
http://www.calvin.edu/library/knightcite/
5 points______Your Bibliography must include at least one other website or text that you
research about mythology or archetypes. You could use your Parallel Myths text.

How to fix your archetype essay

The Archetype Essay Re-write

English 12

OReilly

OK you guys...many of you messed up on your Works Cited. That is not a big surprise. Very few of my students have mastered how to do a Works Cited and Bibliography on the first attempt.

So now, it's hardball time! You must all fix your flippin' essays, and this time get it right.

1) Watch me create your Works Cited and follow my every move with interest and alacrity—Be patient, listen, calm down. LEARN IT!!!

2)________ Re-construct your Works Cited (and Bibliography too if it is garbage)

3) ________Check your paper; every time you quote, check the following:

If it is the first time you use a source COMPLETELY introduce it. State if it is from a text—use the word text—or a website. State who the author is and if it is an article. Here are some examples:

Author Dixie Chixie in her online article "Dissin' the Prez," states that...

In the text, I Am a Cow, author Moocheese Hereford comments that.....

On the website Chasing the Impossible Dream, in an article titled "Cheese and Immortality," the author asserts that.....

The next time you use a source, if it is already introduced, simply quote it or paraphrase your information and follow with a parenthesis containing the first words of the Works Cited entry.

As an example: Look below at the Works Cited entry

"Pearson's Heroic Archetypes." ChangingMinds.Org N.p., n.d. Web. 8 Oct. 2009

.

What are the first words that make sense? That's right: "Pearson's Heroic Archetype." So put those words in the parenthesis after your quote. Since it is an article, put it in quotes. If it were a website or text, you would write it in italics within your parenthesis. If it were an author's name, you would merely write the author's last name.

________Fix any other errors I have noted on your paper. Highlight your changes ON BOTH THE FINAL DRAFT AND THE FIRST DRAFT. Staple with final draft on top and this rubric on the top.

Sample Mythic Essay

Dian Student
Teacher OReilly
English 12
Date Period

Oh, Oh, Oh...It's Magic

On the website, The Heroes Within, author Carol Pearson outlines twelve archetypes, the underlying personality traits which predominate in one’s personality. After taking the archetype test on the website Avidtran, which determines which archetype is dominant in my personality, I have to say, I agree with the test's conclusion. As defined by the test, my mythic archetype, the magician, does correspond to my personality in two very significant ways. I fit the archetype in that I can tell stories and transform my world.
The Magician archetype "has the power of naming" (Pearson); this is the power to re-tell or re-create an experience to give it new meaning. I do have the desire to continually relate the stories from my life, to somehow make what I have experienced more understandable. For instance, I would like to talk about what I did today. It was a simple day, but quite a lovely one. It is fall, and so the air was warm and rich with the sense that summer has ended. It is nostalgic, sweetly nostalgic to know that winter is coming. It reminds me that I am fifty three and in the autumn of my life, and all day, as I made an effort to let the sun fall on my face to get the last little bit of October sun, I kept thinking of the shortness of life. And Michael and I hiked to this silly pioneer day on the top of a mountain in New Almaden. There were many long boring speeches about what used to be on that site: a mine, a map house, cows grazing, a school house. But now there is nothing but ruins, dry grass, and shrubs. I didn't listen to the speeches. I was staring at the long thumbs on a very old man. His thumbs were so long, I wanted to ask him if he had loved to hitchhike in his youth. His thumbs were delicate, like fingers. I longed to look at his toes to see if they were so lovely. And I stared at a girl with Down's Syndrome. I stared and stared, but she had no notion of my staring. She did not have those perceptions. She ate with rectitude, concentration, and passion throughout the entire affair. I noticed her parents were quite old to be parents of so young a girl, and I wondered if her mother had an ultra sound and knew she was having a Downs Syndrome child. I wondered who would care for the girl after they died. We hiked down the mountain afterward with a Mexican couple, so I got to practice my Spanish, and given the opportunity to speak the truth in her own tongue, the woman, struggling in her Payless heels on that rocky trail, admitted that, despite the opportunidades aqui, she would rather be in Mexico where it was warmer, the food was better, and she didn't have to make rent. She didn't want to get old in this country. I wondered at how lucky I was to have this warm day, a nice boyfriend, sane and moral children. And I wondered how I would die. It was a beautiful, but short day, a short day because it is fall. Summer is over. As I write this, I see that I transformed my day into a meditation on the brevity of life.
"Magicians move into altered states, and then explore these realities," declares Pearson on her website The Heroes Within, and I too have explored different modes of being. I have the idea that if I live as cleanly as possible in my food, exercise, and habits, my state of mind will continue to evolve to a more ecstatic place. Sometimes I include Yoga or meditation to my regimen. Playing music or creating art also changes my frame of mind. I sometimes go through phases where I get up early and write down my dreams. It opens up my mind. Life becomes crisper, more vivid, funnier. During a time in my life when I was practicing the discipline of rising early and writing I had an unusual experience: it was Thanksgiving and I had a delicious meal with my family. Then I went home and read a very lush fairy tale to my children. As I ws reading, I became aware that the story and the illustrations were extremely lyrical, poetic, and exquisite. After the story, I played with my children. They were about five or six and quite hyper, but I had infinite patience and love for them. We played and tumbled on the floor, laughing, tickling, singing, and they went to bed with no effort. I just sang them to sleep. My mood became increasingly jubilant, yet relaxed. I began to get a sense that everything around me was energy, particles, and reality seemed to be in tiny swirling pieces, like a Van Gogh painting, but more particulate. My husband described his Phd Physics thesis to me: how laser beams hit micron sized particles and cause them to spin, and I could see it in my mind's eye, and I understood the math. It was visionary, and I peaked in the early hours of morning when I felt like I was melting in the colors swirling around me. I asked my brother, punk that he is, if he had slipped some LSD into my tea, but he denied it and looked at me like I was crazy. The feeling from that day and night has never completely left me. I always know there's got to be another world.
The website Changing Minds claims that "the Magician's quest is not to 'do magic' but to transform or change something or someone in some way." Yes, I see my life as an energetic river, and I constantly seek to "transform reality" as a way to keep moving forward, and that appears to be the role of the magician archetype ("Pearson'e Heroic Archetype"). I always feel I am on the verge of another reality.

The Nice Glossary: What works in Your Writing

The Nice Glossary


NAC/NCR




A set of acronyms defining what works in your writing


Nice Abstract Concept: Creative, a different way of thinking. You had an idea

NAL


Nice ALliteration: So Sweet the sound of first letters softly synchopating.

NE


Nice Ending: A Resolution, a denouement. I wasn't left hanging. Or if I was, it worked

NDT


Nice Detail: A correctly chosen word or phrase can paint an entire picture.

ND


Nice Dialogue: Dialogue can capture a situation or an idea. Funny, typical, to the point lines...they bring writing alive: "Here's looking at yah, kid."

NF


Nice Funny: Thank you. I laughed.

NI


Nice Imagery: The trees, yellow silver in the falling light. The wind smells of fall and apples. The summer feels like life never ends. The slanted light of fall reminds us that we all die, but somehow, like ripened apples, the taste of fall is sweet.

NN


Nice names: Dimsdale is dim. Chillingworth is scary (chilly) Romeo is romantic. Names mean something

NO


Nice Opening; A good opening says a lot. It's the first impression. Make it tasty.

NOn


Nice Onemonapeia: Doink, whoosh, ribbit, boing,

NP


Nice Phrasing: You turned a phrase. The words caught in a lovely congruence.

NPT


Nice Plot Turn: This is not boring. The plot is interesting, and the story is going somewhere. Good pacing.

NPer


Nice Personification: The wind knows you are a good writer, and the sun loves your writing. The stones sing your songs. The trees whisper your words.

NV


Nice Voice: Perhaps the most abstract yet powerful element to effective writing. Your particular style and stamp, your personality, your very soul's passion coming through in your writing.

Tasty Mythic Archetype Paragraph

Tasty Mythic Archetype Paragraph
English 12
OReilly

If you haven't already, take the archetype test:
http://avidtran.tripod.com/archetype.html
Study your archetype on these two sites:
http://www.herowithin.com/arch101.html
http://changingminds.org/disciplines/storytelling/characters/pearson_archetypes.htm

Write a tasty paragraph about your mythic archetype. Agree and/or disagree with the results of the quiz.

Greens
5 points______One topic sentence of the type listed below:
A power topic sentence
My mythic archetype, the warrior, does correspond to my personality in two very significant ways.
OR
A FANBOYS sentence: The online quiz to determine one's mythic archetype defined my archetype as the warrior, and this is accurate in some ways but not in others.
OR
A complex sentence: Although the online mythic archetype quiz defines my personality archetype as the warrior, I clearly do not match with that archetype.

Yellows
10 points______Include at least two key ideas--reasons, details, or facts-- that clearly state why or why not the archetype matches your personality.
"Carol Pearson's website Heroes Within describes the warrior archetype as a person who can "set and achieve goals, overcome obstacles, and persist in difficult times"; however, I have never felt very effective in that arena."

10 points_____In either your reds or your yellows, quote the website as shown above. Introduce it as shown and directly quote. Integrate the quote directly into your writing. The name of the website must be in italics. Then refute. You must do at least twice, once for each yellow.

Reds
10 points______Red: Have at least two reds that specifically provide examples, explanations, or evidence to support your key idea. OK...this is where creativity comes in: be specific, be bold, use vivid imagery, or include dialogue. Remember events and recreate them for your reader and for yourself. Reframe your experience! You can't say a lot here. Be brief, but really let me see it.

For example, I once started a masters program in psychology to become a Licensed Marriage and Child Counselor. However, I gradually began to feel that the people in the program were so crazy that it was unhealthy for me to be around them. They were angry people, and during mock group psychology sessions, they would begin to attack each other viciously calling each other vulgar names and ethnic slurs. The day after a woman with a Mohawk and a tattoo of the devil eating a baby called me a bitch, I quit the program.

Green Conclusion:
5 points______
A one sentence conclusion that restates your main idea with a different twist. Do not parrot your topic sentence.

10 points _____Type, properly format, Effective title, punctuate properly. Include this rubric stapled to the top. Avoid 2PV, VPR, NC, comma errors, WCL, SW. Color Code.

My archetype: Response to the online quiz

My Archetype
English 12
OReilly

name_______________
Date____________ per_______________

Go to Library Instruction on the Soquel High Library website, and under my name--OReilly---find in the Hamlet folder three websites on archtetypes. One of the links has a personality quiz. Please take the quiz. The other two websites have brief (too brief, I think) descriptions of each archetype. Find two ways in which you are like or unlike your archetype at this point in your life.

1) Which archetype are you (according to this highly unscientific test)?



2) State two traits which define this archetype.





3) Do you match these traits? State why you are like or unlike these two traits.

My Personal Writing History

My Personal Writing History
English 12
OReilly

Describe your history as a writer. How have teachers you have had, assignments you have been given, or experiences you have had writing changed your life?

The minimum:
________ Write a 1-2 page paper outlining your history as a writer.
________ Include incidents, papers, teachers, experiences, or insights that changed your writing, either negatively or positively
________ Include any feelings you have toward writing and how the feelings have changed over the years.
________ Properly format and type: Times New Roman, 12 point font, double space, 1" margins, proper heading


Bonus Points
________ Explain how your writing/assignments/teachers have influenced your development, changed your life, made you who you are.
________ Use your experiences as a writer to reveal aspects of your character that would make you an asset to any college to which you apply.
_________ The subject of writing is merely the springboard. The paper is about you and who you are.

English 12 SAT words

 

1. abase

(v.)

to humiliate, degrade

(After being overthrown and abased, the deposed

leader offered to bow down to his conqueror.)

2. abduct

(v.)

to kidnap, take by force

(The evildoers abducted the fairy princess from her

happy home.)

3. aberration

(n.)

something that differs from the norm

(In 1918, the Boston Red Sox won

the World Series, but the success turned out to be an aberration, and the Red Sox

have not won a World Series since.)

4. abhor

(v.)

to hate, detest

(Because he always wound up kicking himself in the head

when he tried to play soccer, Oswald began to abhor the sport.)

5. abide

 (v.)

to put up with

(Though he did not agree with the decision, Chuck decided

to abide by it.)

6. abject

(adj.)

wretched, pitiful

(After losing all her money, falling into a puddle, and

breaking her ankle, Eloise was abject.)

7. abridge

(v.)

to cut down, shorten

(The publisher thought the dictionary was too long

and abridged it.)

8. absolution

(n.)

freedom from blame, guilt, sin

(Once all the facts were known, the jury

gave Angela absolution by giving a verdict of not guilty.)

9. abstain

(v.)

to freely choose not to commit an action

(Everyone demanded that Angus

put on the kilt, but he did not want to do it and abstained.)

10. abstruse

(adj.)

hard to comprehend

(Everyone else in the class understood geometry

easily, but John found the subject abstruse.)

11. accentuate

(v.)

to stress, highlight

(Psychologists agree that those people who are

happiest accentuate the positive in life.)

12. accolade

(n.)

high praise, special distinction

(Everyone offered accolades to Sam after

he won the Noble Prize.)

13. accost

(v.)

to confront verbally

(Though Antoinette was normally quite calm, when the

waiter spilled soup on her for the fourth time in 15 minutes she stood up and accosted

the man.)

14. acerbic

(adj.)

biting, bitter in tone or taste

(Jill became extremely acerbic and began to

cruelly make fun of all her friends.)

15. acquiesce

(v.)

to agree without protesting

(Though Mr. Correlli wanted to stay outside

and work in his garage, when his wife told him that he had better come in to dinner,

he acquiesced to her demands.)

16. acrimony

(n.)

bitterness, discord

(Though they vowed that no girl would ever come

between them, Biff and Trevor could not keep acrimony from overwhelming their

friendship after they both fell in love with the lovely Teresa.)

17. ambivalent (adj.) having opposing feelings (My feelings about Calvin are ambivalent

because on one hand he is a loyal friend, but on the other, he is a cruel and vicious

thief.)

18. banal (adj.) dull, commonplace (The client rejected our proposal because they found

our presentation banal and unimpressive.)

19. beguile (v.) to trick, deceive (The thief beguiled his partners into surrendering all of

their money to him.)

20. behemoth (n.) something of tremendous power or size (The new aircraft carrier is

among several behemoths that the Air Force has added to its fleet.)

21 berate (v.) to scold vehemently (The angry boss berated his employees for failing to

meet their deadline.)

22. bereft (adj.) devoid of, without (His family was bereft of food and shelter following the

tornado.)

23. bilk (v.) cheat, defraud (The lawyer discovered that this firm had bilked several clients

out of thousands of dollars.)

24. bombastic (adj.) excessively confident, pompous (The singer’s bombastic performance

disgusted the crowd.)

25. cacophony (n.) tremendous noise, disharmonious sound (The elementary school

orchestra created a cacophony at the recital.)

26. cadence (n.) a rhythm, progression of sound (The pianist used the foot pedal to

emphasize the cadence of the sonata.)

27. cajole (v.) to urge, coax (Fred’s buddies cajoled him into attending the bachelor party.)

28. capitulate (v.) to surrender (The army finally capitulated after fighting a long costly

battle.)

29. capricious (adj.) subject to whim, fickle (The young girl’s capricious tendencies made it

difficult for her to focus on achieving her goals.)

30. carp (v.) to annoy, pester (The husband divorced his wife after listening to her carping

voice for decades.)

 

31. cavort (v.) to leap about, behave boisterously (The adults ate their dinners on the patio,

while the children cavorted around the pool.)

32. catalyze (v.) to charge, inspire (The president’s speech catalyzed the nation and

resuscitated the economy.)

33. cerebral (adj.) related to the intellect (The books we read in this class are too cerebral—

they don’t engage my emotions at all.)

34. chaos (n.) absolute disorder (Mr. Thornton’s sudden departure for the lavatory

plunged his classroom into chaos.)

35. chastise (v.) to criticize severely (After being chastised by her peers for mimicking

Britney Spears, Miranda dyed her hair black and affected a Gothic style.)

36. coerce (v.) to make somebody do something by force or threat (The court decided that

Vanilla Ice did not have to honor the contract because he had been coerced into

signing it.)

37. cogent (adj.) intellectually convincing (Irene’s arguments in favor of abstinence were so

cogent that I could not resist them.)

38. cognizant (adj.) aware, mindful (Jake avoided speaking to women in bars because he

was cognizant of the fact that drinking impairs his judgment.)

39. coherent (adj.) logically consistent, intelligible (Renee could not figure out what

Monroe had seen because he was too distraught to deliver a coherent statement.)

40. colloquial (adj.) characteristic of informal conversation (Adam’s essay on sexual

response in primates was marked down because it contained too many colloquial

expressions.)

41. colossus (n.) a gigantic statue or thing (For 56 years, the ancient city of Rhodes featured

a colossus standing astride its harbor.)

42. compelling (adj.) forceful, demanding attention (Eliot’s speech was so compelling that

Lenore accepted his proposal on the spot.)

43. conciliatory (adj.) friendly, agreeable (I took Amanda’s invitation to dinner as a very

conciliatory gesture.)

44. concoct (v.) to fabricate, make up (She concocted the most ridiculous story to explain her

absence.)

45. condone (v.) to pardon, deliberately overlook (He refused to condone his brother’s

crime.)

46. consummate (v.) to complete a deal; to complete a marriage ceremony through sexual

intercourse (Erica and Donald consummated their agreement in the executive

boardroom.)

47. conundrum (n.) puzzle, problem (Interpreting Jane’s behavior was a constant

conundrum.)

48. dearth (n.) a lack, scarcity (An eager reader, she was dismayed by the dearth of classic

books at the library.)

49. debauch (v.) to corrupt by means of sensual pleasures (An endless amount of good wine

and cheese debauched the traveler

50. defile (v.) to make unclean, impure (She defiled the calm of the religious building by

playing her banjo.)

)51. debunk (v.) to expose the falseness of something (He debunked her claim to be the

world’s greatest chess player by defeating her in 18 consecutive matches.)

52. corpulence (adj.)extreme fatness (Henry’s corpulence did not make him any less

attractive to his charming, svelte wife.)

53. demagogue (n.) a leader who appeals to a people’s prejudices (The demagogue

strengthened his hold over his people by blaming immigrants for the lack of jobs.)

54. demure (adj.) quiet, modest, reserved (Though everyone else at the party was dancing

and going crazy, she remained demure.)

55. depravity (n.) wickedness (Rumors of the ogre’s depravity made the children afraid to

enter the forest.)

56. deprecate (v.) to belittle, depreciate (Always over-modest, he deprecated his

contribution to the local charity.)

57. devious (adj.) not straightforward, deceitful (Not wanting to be punished, the devious

girl blamed the broken vase on the cat.)

58. diaphanous (adj.) light, airy, transparent (Sunlight poured in through the diaphanous

curtains, brightening the room.)

59. didactic 1. (adj.) intended to instruct (She wrote up a didactic document showing new

employees how to handle the company’s customers.) 2. (adj.) overly moralistic (His

didactic style of teaching made it seem like he wanted to persuade his students not to

understand history fully, but to understand it from only one point of view.)

60. disaffected (adj.) rebellious, resentful of authority (Dismayed by Bobby’s poor

behavior, the parents sent their disaffected son to a military academy to be

disciplined.)

61. disdain 1. (v.) to scorn, hold in low esteem (Insecure about their jobs, the older

employees disdained the recently hired ones, who were young and capable.) 2. (n.)

scorn, low esteem (After learning of his immoral actions, Justine held Lawrence in

disdain.)

62. dubious (adj.) doubtful, of uncertain quality (Suspicious that he was only trying to get a

raise, she found his praise dubious.)

63. duress (n.) hardship, threat (It was only under intense duress that he, who was

normally against killing, fired his gun.)

64. effulgent (adj.) radiant, splendorous (The golden palace was effulgent.)

65. egregious (adj.) extremely bad (The student who threw sloppy joes across the cafeteria

was punished for his egregious behavior.)

66. elated (adj.) overjoyed, thrilled (When she found out she had won the lottery, the

writer was elated.)

67. emote (v.) to express emotion (The director told the actor he had to emote, or else the

audience would have no idea what his character was going through.)

68. enamor (v.) to fill with love, fascinate, usually used in passive form followed by “of” or

“with” (I grew enamored of that boy when he quoted my favorite love poem.)

69. epistolary (adj.) relating to or contained in letters (Some people call me “Auntie’s boy,”

because my aunt and I have such a close epistolary relationship that we write each

other every day.)

70. equivocal (adj.) ambiguous, uncertain, undecided (His intentions were so equivocal

that I didn’t know whether he was being chivalrous or sleazy.)

71. evince (v.) to show, reveal (Christopher’s hand-wringing and nail-biting evince how

nervous he is about the upcoming English test.)

72. exculpate (v.) to free from guilt or blame, exonerate (My discovery of the ring behind

the dresser exculpated me from the charge of having stolen it.)

73. expiate (v.) to make amends for, atone (To expiate my selfishness, I gave all my profits to

Charity

74. extol (v.) to praise, revere (Violet extolled the virtues of a vegetarian diet to her meatloving

brother.)

75. facile 1. (adj.) easy, requiring little effort (This game is so facile that even a four-yearold

can master it.) 2. (adj.) superficial, achieved with minimal thought or care,

insincere (The business was in such shambles that any solution seemed facile at best;

nothing could really helpit in the long-run.)

76. fathom (v.) to understand, comprehend (I cannot fathom why you like that crabby and

mean-spirited neighbor of ours.)

77. fecund (adj.) fruitful, fertile (The fecund tree bore enough apples to last us through the

entire season.)

78. feral (adj.) wild, savage (That beast looks so feral that I would fear being alone with it.)

79. fetid (adj.) having a foul odor (I can tell from the fetid smell in your refrigerator that

your milk has spoiled.)

80. figurative (adj.) symbolic (Using figurative language, Jane likened the storm to an

angry bull.)

81. fortuitous (adj.) happening by chance, often lucky or fortunate (After looking for

Manuel and not finding him at home, Harriet had a fortuitous encounter with him

at the post office.

)82. fractious (adj.) troublesome or irritable (Although the child insisted he wasn’t tired, his

fractious behavior—especially his decision to crush his cheese and crackers all over

the floor—convinced everyone present that it was time to put him to bed.)

83. garish (adj.) gaudy, in bad taste (Mrs. Watson has poor taste and covers every object in

her house with a garish gold lamé.)

84. gourmand (n.) overindulgence in food or drink (Ada’s fried chicken tastes so divine, I

don’t know how anyone can call gluttony a sin.)

85. gluttony (n.) overindulgence in food or drink (Ada’s fried chicken tastes so divine, I

don’t know how anyone can call gluttony a sin.)

86. hackneyed (adj.) unoriginal, trite (A girl can only hear “I love you” so many times

before it begins to sound hackneyed and meaningless.)

87. harangue 1. (n.) a ranting speech (Everyone had heard the teacher’s harangue about

gum chewing in class before.) 2. (v.) to give such a speech (But this time the teacher

harangued the class about the importance of brushing your teeth after chewing

gum.)

88. hedonist (n.) one who believes pleasure should be the primary pursuit of humans

(Because he’s such a hedonist, I knew Murray would appreciate the 11 cases of wine

89. I bought him for his birthday.)

89. hegemony (n.) domination over others (Britain’s hegemony over its colonies was

90. heinous (adj.) shockingly wicked, repugnant (The killings were made all the more

heinous by the fact that the murderer first tortured his victims for three days.)

91. hiatus (n.) a break or gap in duration or continuity (The hiatus in service should last

two or three months—until the cable lines are repaired .)

92. iconoclast (n.) one who attacks common beliefs or institutions (Jane goes to one protest

after another, but she seems to be an iconoclast rather than an activist with a

progressive agenda.)

93. ignominious (adj.) humiliating, disgracing (It was really ignominious to be kicked out of

the dorm for having an illegal gas stove in my room.)

94. illicit (adj.) forbidden, not permitted (The fourth-grader learned many illicit words

from a pamphlet that was being passed around school.)

95. immutable (adj.) not changeable (The laws of physics are immutable and constant.)

96. incarnate 1. (adj.) existing in the flesh, embodied (In the church pageant, I play the role

of greed incarnate.) 2. (v.) to give human form to (The alien evaded detection by

incarnating himself in a human form.)

97. inchoate (adj.) unformed or formless, in a beginning stage (The country’s government

is still inchoate and, because it has no great tradition, quite unstable.)

98. indigent (adj.) very poor, impoverished (I would rather donate money to help the

indigent population than to the park sculpture fund.)

99. ineffable (adj.) unspeakable, incapable of being expressed through words (It is said

that the experience of playing with a dolphin is ineffable and can only be understood

through direct encounter.)

100. inexorable (adj.) incapable of being persuaded or placated (Although I begged for

hours, Mom was inexorable and refused to let me stay out all night after the prom.)