Peer Revision for Things Fall Apart Essay

Peer Editing

Writer: Tell your responder what you need from them. (For example, “I am most concerned that my thesis isn’t strong.” “I don’t know if the explanations of my quotes are clear enough.” “I can’t think of an attention-getter.”)
Responder: Write down these questions or concerns at the top of the paper. Write your name beneath these comments.
Responder:
1. Read introductory paragraph. How does the author draw you in? Evaluate the strength of the attention-getter. Offer some ideas.
2. Put a Bracket around the thesis. Circle the two characters mentioned in the thesis and underline the theme statement in the thesis. Does the thesis assert an original idea? Evaluate.
3. Before continuing your reading, check the topic sentences of each body paragraph – does each correspond to an idea mentioned in the thesis? Draw a line between an idea in the thesis and a corresponding idea in the topic sentence. If you cannot do this - the topic sentences need revision.
4. Read the first body paragraph.
5. Identify the Points (P from PIE). Put a star by each P.
6. Identify the Illustrations. Underline each one.
7. Evaluate each Explanation – does the writer clearly explain how each illustration proves the topic sentence of the paragraph? Write + or - in the margin next to each E.
8. Repeat for each additional body paragraph. Offer at least one additional comment.
9. Read the conclusion. Circle the section wherein the author explains the “So what?” of her/his argument. Does the author show how this topic connects to life?
10. Go back to the essay to help the writer with her/his particular question or concern. Talk together about it, and come up with a plan for the writer.
11. Write down three specific areas for revision and have the writer sign beneath this list.

Drafting your Thesis: Questions to Consider

Consider the following questions as you are drafting your essays:

What is ironic about the last paragraph of the novel? What does this last paragraph tell us about the misunderstandings that occur between the colonists and the Igbo?

What are the primary causes or effects of cultural clash? (use the multi-flow to help you figure this out) Which are most important?

How do the characters actions lead to a message about cultural clash?

Who gets to decide what is civilized or uncivilized?

Who or what causes Okonkwo to kill himself? Why does he kill himself?

"He has put a knife on the things that hold us together and we have fallen apart" (Achebe 176).
What are the "things that hold us together"? Who is "he"? What are we reduced to when these"things" are taken away?

What are the 5 characteristics of Okonkwo's identity that are most vital to his sense of self?
Look back at your identity journal from the beginning of the novel- how did you answer this question? What is Okonkwo ultimately left with? How might some of these elements relate to the cultural clash that ensues?

Race
Ethnicity
Nationality
Gender
Socioeconomic status
Sexual orientation
Ability/disability
Religion
Life values/beliefs
Possessions

Numerology Stories

Here are a few of my favorites from the Numerology activity. Check out your creativity.

The Story of Four
by Jessie, Zoey, and David

The quadriped was drawing quadrangles while his friend used the quadratic formula. He was listening to a quartet when his wife went into labor and had quadruplets. So he went to the store and bought four pounds of cheese in the fourth isle. The cashier called him four-eyes. So he bought a quart of ice-cream to make him feel better.

The Story of One
by Emily A., Sam, Jon, and Zulema

The unicorn was wearing a monocle so he could see while he was riding his unicycle. the unicorn was very tall, you could say he was a monolith. He was also a singleton. His favorite number is one, as it is monosyllabic. He was riding his unicycle down a one-way street to buy a unitard while singing a solo. When he got to the unitard store there was only a single, small unitard left. He bought it for one-dollar and left at one o'clock. As he was leaving, he was killed by a monoraptor.

Upcoming Due Dates

Dates for upcoming assessments in English 10 include:

Final Test on Novel and vocabulary, including affixes/roots is on Tuesday, February 23.

First complete draft of essay due on Wednesday, February 24.

Final draft of essay due between Thursday, February 25 and Monday, March 1 at 3:10 p.m.

If you visit the Writer's Block and show evidence of the visit, you may submit your paper by Wednesday, March 3 with no penalty. Be sure to schedule a visit, as the writing center is going to get very busy in the upcoming week.

The first draft of your essay should reflect substantive thinking and hard work. This is not a finished product but there should be solid ideas at the core. Ask questions of me, your peers, and the writing center. Remember, we must often write to know more of what we think.

Passage Analysis PIE - A model

Finish the 3 PIEs that you started in class for homework tonight. Below is the model PIE that I showed in class today. Remember to reach into the passage and to discuss the effects of specific words and literary devices in the E of your PIE.

POINT - Achebe’s sensory imagery and personification portray the earth and the land as a living and often angry being in Igbo culture.

ILLUSTRATION/ WITH PLOT CONTEXT - Achebe vividly describes the land of Mbanta shortly after Okonkwo’s banishment from Umuofia. “All the grass had long been scorched brown and the sands felt like live coals to the feet. Evergreen trees wore a dusty coat of brown. The birds were silenced in the forests, and the world lay panting under the live vibrating heat…[the earth] was angry, metallic, and thirsty” (Achebe 130).

EXPLANATION – The earth has turned from a lush, productive being to a withering and angry soul who is “panting” and gasping for air. The “scorched brown” color, “silence in the forests” and “vibrating heat” create images of earth as a place that resembles hell more than it does earth. The personified earth is also weary as it wears a “dusty coat of brown” and is “angry” and “thirsty.” Okonkwo and the earth meld into one person through these images; both beings are full of angst and hunger for the lush life that they once knew.

Classical Roots and Affixes- Things Fall Apart

You will be responsible for knowing the meanings of the following roots and affixes for the February 23rd test. We will keep adding to our taxonomy each Tuesday and Thursday. See your Numerology chart for definitions and examples of the number affixes.

•uni
•sol
•mono
•di
•bi
•du
•tri
•quad
•penta
•quint
•hex
•sex
•sept
•hept
•oct
•no
•dec

• mal - bad/evil ( as in malevolent)
• bene - good ( as in benevolent)
• vollen - will
• sym - together/ along with (as in sympathetic)
• path - feeling
• en/ em - in (as in empathetic)
• dyna - power/strength ( as in dynasty or dynamic)
• - ic - related to (makes a word an adjective)
  
  
  
  
  
  

Things Fall Apart Vocabulary List

The final test on Things Fall Apart, vocabulary and classical roots/affixes will happen on February 23rd.

gay (6)*
tragedy (9)*
uncanny (9)*
ultimate (11)
malevolent (13)
capricious (13)
anxiety (13)
malicious (21)
meager (22)*
sympathized (23)
brusqueness (26)
benevolent (26)*
atone (27)*
deftly (32)*
dynamic (34)
reveled (38)*
frenetic (47)
feign (52)*
espied (54)*
copiously (56)
audacity (76)*
inquire (77)
manifest (81)
submission (90)
forsook (95)*
notorious (95)
orator (97)*
vigor (104)
ominous (140)*
captivated (147)
persevered (148)*
impudent (150)
ostracize (159)*
sufficient (165)*
amends (172)*
abundantly (172)*
indignity (175)*
idolatrous (184)*
pacified (191)


You may need to practice your morphology to see the connection to the Flocabulary list.

* word appears on previous list

Original Proverbs Hours 2, 3, and 4

Here is what your creativity produced. The first two are Ms. B's.

The hornet who buzzes the loudest may gain attention but risks being squashed.

The giraffe who stretches his neck gains the best views and eats from the choicest leaves.

The teacher who assigns the most homework must do the most work correcting it.

When the giraffe comes the kiddies run.

The ant who scurries the fastest gets squished the fastest.

As years pass... you get older. Intriguing....

Sometimes the sheep needs to be pushed through the fence.

If humans were meant to smoke they would be flammable.

To enter the door of success there is never too much.

Don't waste a minute not being happy, if one window closes run to the next window or break down a door.

Failing derives findings.

An honest voice is louder than a crowd.

The dog who barks gets barked at.

Those who defriend their friend become friendless.

Question those who aught not be questioned. If you question you shall find you have questioned yourself.

The one who twists the system may succeed in the short run but will never end in success.

The dirtiest leaf often has the most exciting journey.

If one's head is not held up high, one is unseen.

Understanding the remedy for all ailing of intolerance.

Gossip is the murder to one's morals.

Your words are like dust in the wind.

Dare to care or dare to fail.

The stars light the path for the lost wanderer.

A cookie is only as good as the amount of care you put into making it.

The pirate with the wooden leg walks the plank. hmmmmmm....

An explorer's journey is only as smooth as the rapids he travels through.

Your teacher should not be your parent but your parents should be your teachers.

Empty words, empty voice.

Etymology and Study of Classical Roots: It's Good For You.

Ms. Roehl offered these ideas on her blog. I wanted to share them with you as well. Here is the reason behind our work today:

Etymology = The history of words.


When you were in elementary school, you learned to read by learning the phonics of the English language and how to decode words. That is, you broke down words into smaller parts to understand meaning. ( est, er, re, pre, sh, tion, ing etc.)

Now you need to keep working on your reading skills by learning to decode more complex words by learning classical roots and affixes (prefixes and suffixes). Often when people are trying to spell a difficult word they claim, "English is such a weird and crazy language." English is not crazy. It's just that English has influences from Anglo-Saxon, Latin, Greek, French, and other ethno-cultural words. Historically, England has been conquered by a variety of cultures, so the story of the language is just as diverse.

We will start our study of classical roots with numerology because many of you already know the number prefixes of uni, bi, tri, quad, pent, etc. Now throughout the semester we'll keep building our A to Z Taxonomy of classical roots and affixes to improve your decoding skills while reading.

If you ever want to look up the etymology (the word's history) of a word, a great resource is this etymology online dictionary.

Besides the number roots, we will add male (badly), mal (bad), bene (good) and volle (will) so that you could decode malevolent, malicious, and benevolent.

Proverb Activity

Here is the list of proverbs and the activity that we began in class today. Finish for homework what you did not complete in class. I'll look forward to hearing your original proverbs in class tomorrow.

List of proverbs from Things Fall Apart

“The sun will shine on those who stand before it shines on those who kneel under them” (Achebe 8).
“If a child washed his hands he could eat with kings” (8).
“Let the kite perch and let the eagle perch too. If one says no to the other, let his wing break” (19).
“A man who pays respect to the great paves the way for his own greatness” (19).
“A toad does not run in the daytime for nothing” (20).
“An old woman is always uneasy when dry bones are mentioned in a proverb.” (21).
“The lizard that jumped from the high iroko tree to the ground said he would praise himself if no one else did” (21).
“Eneke the bird says that since men have learned to shoot without missing, he has learned to fly without perching” (22).
“Looking at a king’s mouth, one would think he never sucked at his mother’s breast” (26).
“Those whose palm-kernels were cracked for them by a benevolent spirit should not forget to be humble” (26).
“When a man says yes his chi says yes also” (27).
“ When mother cow is chewing grass its young ones watch its mouth” (71).
“A chick that can grow into a cock can be spotted the day it hatches” (67).

Activity to be written in your notebook:

Proverb Study

Pick three proverbs to study more closely For each proverb:

1. Write the meaning of the proverb (explain it using your own words)
2. Write the relevance to the novel (how it is used, why it is used)
3. Consider its relevance or irrelevance to today’s world. Can you think of a time when the wisdom of the proverb was applied to a modern situation? Can you think of a time when the wisdom of the proverb should have been applied and wasn’t?

Write Your Own:

Try to write some proverbs of your own.
Suggested Topics:

• Edina High School
• Life as a teenager
• Adults/teachers

We’ll share the best ones. Have fun. Be creative. Be smart.

Proverbs and Literary Devices

A Proverb...

1. is a simple and concrete saying popularly known and repeated
2. designed to enliven or enchant
3. expresses a truth that the listener must decode
4. is based on common sense or the practical experience of humanity
5. is often metaphorical
6. may also be know as a maxim.

Literary Devices most often used in Proverbs include:

Alliteration: (Forgive and forget) - repetition of initial consonant sounds
Parallelism: (Nothing ventured, nothing gained) -elements of equal importance offered in similar construction.
Rhyme: (When the cat is away, the mice will play)- repetition of like sounds
Ellipsis: (Once bitten, twice shy) - omission or suppression of parts of words or sentences
Hyperbole: (All is fair in love and war)-exaggeration
Paradox: (For there to be peace there must first be war) -contradictory but insightful statements
Personification (Hunger is the best cook)- attributing human characteristics to inanimate objects

• To make the respective statement more general most proverbs are based on a metaphor
• Typical features of the proverb are its shortness (average: seven words), and the fact that its author is generally unknown (otherwise it would be a quotation).

Things Fall Apart Literary Analysis Essay

In “An African Voice” by Katie Bacon of Atlantic Unbound Chinua Achebe is described as “the founding father of African literature in the English Language” because Things Fall Apart “was one of the first books to tell the story of European colonization from an African perspective.” In Things Fall Apart, not only does Chinua Achebe incorporate Igbo words, proverbs and stories to bring an African perspective, but also he develops central messages or themes that emerge from the clash of the Igbo and British cultures from an Igbo perspective.

Essay Prompt:

In a well-organized and polished essay, explain what lesson about life (theme) is revealed by examining the cultural clash in Achebe’s Things Fall Apart.

Procedure:

• Create a multi-flow map that analyzes the causes and effects of a specific conflict between one British character and one Igbo character to represent the overall clash of cultures. What causes these two characters and two worlds to collide? What emotional and physical effects result from this clash?
• Then, carefully consider how the characters and the settings function in the novel. What incites humor? What introduces conflict? How do characters reveal themselves and/or grow and change? How does conflict resolve?
• A thesis may follow this format: In Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart, ___________ and ____________clash in order to reveal/prove/illuminate ____(thematic statement)__________.
• Then, write at least two body paragraphs. Each body paragraph will include at least two PIEs. In the Explanation of each PIE, you’ll discuss how one literary device such as imagery (similes, metaphors, etc.) or word choice in the quotation selected furthers your argument. In other words, each Illustration should contain a literary device that furthers your thesis on theme.

Evaluation: Your essay will be assessed according to these criteria

Ideas:
• Thesis statement reflects deep thinking about theme.
• Topic sentences are analytical and clearly connect to thesis statement.
• Each body paragraph contains at least two PIEs with quotes smoothly integrated.
• Explanations contain analysis of literary devices.
• Essay reflects original, independent and creative thinking. Do not visit the Internet for ideas!!! Those ideas may find their way into your paper which is not only plagiarism if not properly cited, but also those ideas do not display independent and original thinking.

Organization:
• Introduction is engaging.
• Each body paragraph has a topic sentence and a concluding sentence
• Transitions are used between paragraphs and between PIEs.
• Closing paragraph makes a relevant connection to your essay reader’s life.
• The author addresses how the ideas have evolved during the essay, and may include connections to other pieces of literature or real life.

Conventions:
• Errors in mechanics, grammar, or usage do not detract from the meaning of the essay.
• Careful word choice enhances the meaning of the essay, as well as the enjoyment of the reader.
• Proper MLA format is followed throughout including document design, direct quotation citations, and a works cited entry for Things Fall Apart.
• Sentences flow nicely because the writer has varied sentence types and openings.
• Essay reflects hard work in editing and polishing.

**The Writing Center can help you at any stage in your process! Please visit The Writing Center, as they are prepared to offer extensive one-on-one support. They will not grade your essay; however, they will conference with you to discuss your questions regarding ideas, organization, and usage. Students who have visited The Writing Center have reported that they feel it helped.

Due Dates

• Rough Draft: Wednesday, Feb. 24 (peer review day)

• Final Essay Window: Thursday, Feb. 25 to Monday, March 1 at 3:10 p.m.

• Papers turned in on Tuesday, March 2 will receive a one-grade deduction. However, if you have visited The Writing Center at any time during the writing process, you may turn in your paper on Tuesday, March 2 or Wednesday, March 3 without any point deduction. Just make sure that you have Ms. Gonzales or Ms. Mohs sign your rough draft to show that you visited The Writing Center.

• Papers turned in on March 4 or later will only receive half credit.

Words and Definitions in Things Fall Apart

Here is the list of words, with definitions, that we used in our opening List-Group-Label activity. Knowledge of these words will help you to better understand and connect with the text.

Kola nut - caffeine laced nut offered as a gesture of hospitality
Calabash (dried gourd) full of Palm wine
Proverbs—short saying that expresses some obvious truth
Foo-foo – pounded yam and cassava
Ogbanje—a child who keeps dying and returning
Oracle—a person or place believed to be in communication with a god
Cassava—a tuber used in tapioca
Harmattan—dusty wind from the Sahara that blows along the coast of Africa
Hymns—worship songs
Gospels—new testament books that tell the story of Jesus’s life
Palm oil—oil (sap) from the Palm tree
Bride-price - converse of dowry
Egwugwu—a masquerader who impersonates an ancestral spirit
Heaven—the “good” place you go after you die
Chi – personal spirit
Anglicanism—Christianity practiced by Church of England
Jesu Kristi (Jesus Christ)—Christians believe he is the son of god
Holy Communion—literal or symbolic consumption of the body and blood of Christ
Fetish—object believed to have magical powers
Caste—class distinction based on birth
Chukwu—leading god in Ibo hierarchy of gods
Share-cropping—a farming system where part of the profits go to the landowner
Plantain—a banana-like fruit

Things Fall Apart Reading Schedule

Things Fall Apart
by Chinua Achebe
Reading Due Dates:

Feb. 4: pp. 1-15, Chaps 1-2
Feb. 8: pp. 16-45, Chapters 3-5
Feb. 9: pp. 46-62, Chapters 6-7
Feb. 10: pp. 63-86, Chapters 8-9
Feb. 11: pp. 87-109, Chaps 10-11
Feb. 16: pp. 110-142, Chaps 12-15
Feb. 17: pp. 143-161, Chaps 16-18
Feb. 18: pp. 162-177, Chaps 19-20
Feb. 22: pp. 178-209, Chaps 21-25

"Among the Ibo the art of conversation is regarded very highly, and proverbs are the palm-oil with which words are eaten" (Achebe 7).