Lesson 8

Lesson Goals

Texts

Core

• • 1984, George Orwell, Signet Classics, 1949

• • “Research Tips for Fiction Writers: Where to Find Information and How to Use It Effectively,” Sherryl Clark, The Startup, 2019

Materials

Tools

• 1984: Literature Circle Protocol Handout

Question Sets

• 1984: Research Guide

• 1984: Section 3 Question Set

Editable Google Docs

• 1984: Research Guide

• 1984: Section 3 Question Set

Activity 1: Read – Discuss – Write

We will meet with our literature circles to discuss chapters 7–8 from part 2 of 1984.

Meet with your literature circle to discuss Chapters 7-8 from Part 2 of 1984. Begin the discussion by responding to the following question:

1. What does Winston mean when he says to Julia, "The proles are human beings…. We are not human"?

Use your annotations, open-ended questions, and literary analysis to guide the literature discussion circle. Be sure to include evidence from the text in your discussion. Take notes on the interesting ideas of others.

Activity 2: Read – Discuss – Write

We will examine Orwell’s use of allusion, foreshadowing, and mystery in chapter 8.

Read the following excerpt from Part 2, Chapter 8:

Winston looked up at him. "In the place where there is no darkness?" he said hesitantly.

O’Brien nodded without appearance of surprise. "In the place where there is no darkness," he said, as though he had recognized the allusion."

An allusion is a brief, indirect reference to something. Foreshadowing is a hint within the beginning of the story about events that will happen.

Orwell foreshadowed this allusion in Part 1, Chapter 2.

Winston had never been able to feel sure—even after this morning’s flash of the eyes it was still impossible to be sure—whether O'Brien was a friend or an enemy. Nor did it even seem to matter greatly. There was a link of understanding between them, more important than affection or partisanship. "We shall meet in the place where there is no darkness," he had said. Winston did not know what it meant, only that in some way or another it would come true.

Discuss the following questions with your literature circle:

1. What effect did the allusion have on you in Chapter 2 of Part 1?

2. What effect does the allusion have on you in Chapter 8 of Part 2?

3. How and why is the effect different? What is Orwell trying to do?

4. What do you think the phrase "the place where there is no darkness" means?

Foreshadowing can be an effective tool in narrative writing, and you might use it in your narrative story. Jot down some notes in your Learning Log on foreshadowing as a reminder for when you are working on your narrative story.

Activity 3: Read – Discuss – Write

We will examine Orwell’s use of semicolons in an excerpt from part 2, chapter 7.

Read the final two sentences of Chapter 7 from Part 2 of 1984.

They could not alter your feelings; for that matter you could not alter them yourself, even if you wanted to. They could lay bare in the utmost detail everything that you had done or said or thought; but the inner heart, whose workings were mysterious even to yourself, remained impregnable.

What is interesting about the conventions in these two sentences? They both use semicolons.

Semicolons (;) help to connect closely related ideas and can be used to make your writing more sophisticated. Like the colon, semicolons are most commonly used after an independent clause. Instead of introducing a list or clarifying information, however, the semicolon indicates that the following independent clause is closely related to the first.

• A semicolon follows an independent clause.

• A semicolon links together two independent clauses.

Exchange your literary analysis of Chapters 7-8 with a partner. Read your partner’s response and ask yourself the following questions:

1. Is there a place where my partner used a semicolon? Did they use it accurately? Provide written reinforcing feedback.

2. Is there a place where my partner could use a semicolon? Provide written constructive feedback.

Return drafts. Review your partner’s feedback and use it to make revisions to your response, if necessary.

Activity 4: Read – Discuss – Write

We will read and annotate chapter 9 from part 2 of 1984 and prepare for the next lesson’s literature circle.

Read and annotate Chapter 9 from Part 2 of 1984. Use the following questions to guide your annotations:

1. According to the book, how is war peace?

2. How is ignorance strength?

3. What other surprising things about the goals and motivations of the Party are revealed in the book?

Select one passage from the chapter that you found significant. Select a passage as a mentor text for one of your selected narrative techniques.

Draft a brief literary analysis of the passage. Be sure to use textual evidence to support your analysis. Be prepared to share your analysis with your literature circle in the next lesson.

Write two open-ended, thought-provoking questions to drive discussion during the literature circle.

Refer to the Literature Circle Protocol Handout for more information on how to write a brief literary analysis and open-ended, thought-provoking questions.

Activity 5: Read – Write

We will conduct research to make our vignette more plausible and vivid for the reader.

For the Section 3 Diagnostic, you will need to submit an annotated bibliography with at least six sources. In your annotations, you will make explicit connections to how you plan to use the information in the source in your narrative story. You can do the following:

• build upon the sources you researched for the Section 2 Diagnostic

• build upon the sources your peers researched for the Section 2 Diagnostic

• start fresh and research all new sources

Because you will need to stick with the same topic for your vignette and narrative story, you must finalize your research in Section 3.

Use this time to conduct research for your vignette.

Refer to your notes on the text "Research Tips for Fiction Writers: Where to Find Information and How to Use It Effectively" and the 1984 Research Guide for additional guidance.

Activity 6: Write

We will work on drafting a short vignette of our narrative story.

A vignette is a short scene or episode that captures a single moment or a defining detail about an element of the story. Vignettes are mostly descriptive and not plot focused.

For your vignette, choose one or two aspects from your narrative story outline to focus on. Possible ideas include the following:

• using imagery to introduce the setting

• using mystery to create suspense

• introducing the main character through the following:

  • description of the character’s external appearance or actions

  • description of the character’s internal thoughts, feelings, or motivations

  • interactions or dialogue with other characters

  • the character’s expressed thoughts, self-description, comments, or views

  • other characters’ views or descriptions of the character

• describing the moment the main character discovers something surprising or makes a difficult decision

• describing a flashback that reveals important background information for the reader

Remember, your goal as a narrative writer is to show, not tell.

Continue drafting your vignette.