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Lesson 1

We will review various rhetorical strategies as a means for analyzing Frankenstein in preparation for our Section Diagnostic.

Lesson Goals

  • Can I use print or digital resources to clarify and validate understanding of multiple meanings of advanced vocabulary from Chapter 20?

  • Can I analyze the effects of rhetorical devices on the way Frankenstein is read and understood?

Texts

Core

  • Tradebook
    • Frankenstein, Mary Shelley, Signet Classics, 1831

Materials

Tools

Reference Guides

Question Sets

Editable Google Docs

Activity 1: Read – Discuss

As a class, we will read and discuss the task for the Section Diagnostic.

Step 1

Access the Section 4 Diagnostic Checklist and read the question and task you will be responding to:

Read Charlotte Gordon’s "Dr. Frankenstein’s Three Mistakes: What Artificial Intelligence Researchers Can Learn from Frankenstein." Write a well-developed rhetorical analysis that answers the following questions:

  1. What is the central claim of Charlotte Gordon’s article? What evidence does she use to support it?

  2. What is her primary purpose in writing the article?

  3. What rhetorical appeals and devices does she use to achieve her purpose?

  4. Is her argument effective? Why or why not?

Be sure to do the following:

  • Support your claim with strong textual evidence from "Dr. Frankenstein’s Three Mistakes: What Artificial Intelligence Researchers Can Learn from Frankenstein."

  • Properly cite the textual evidence.

  • Use content and academic vocabulary to support your response where appropriate.

Step 2

Review your Frankenstein Big Ideas Big Ideas Note-Taking Tool with a partner and make any additional notes you think might be relevant.

Activity 2: Read – Write – Discuss

We will review rhetorical devices necessary for considering the effectiveness of an argument.

Step 1

The next few slides will include important information. Please record notes as you read in your Learning Log.

Step 2

An argument is a formal and organized set of evidence-based claims that asserts a position on an issue.

Rhetoric is the artful use of argumentative techniques.

Rhetorical analysis is the study of how authors use rhetoric in their arguments.

Step 3

When conducting rhetorical analysis, first consider the following:

  • Claim: What does the author want to convey?

  • Audience: Who is the author primarily addressing?

  • Purpose: What does the author want to achieve?

Step 4

Authors use rhetorical devices to convince their audience of their claim in order to achieve their purpose.

You are probably familiar with many rhetorical devices. Review the list below with a partner and write down possible examples in your Learning Log. If you and your partner are not familiar with a device, look it up or ask your teacher.

  • allusion

  • diction

  • juxtaposition

  • parallelism

  • repetition

  • rhetorical question

Activity 3: Read – Discuss

We will review a portion of the creature’s argument with victor and conduct rhetorical analysis in pairs.

Step 1

Reread the paragraph beginning with "He easily eluded me" on page 105 in Chapter 10 in Frankenstein.

Step 2

With a partner, review the text and discuss the following questions:

  1. What is the creature’s claim?

  2. What does the creature want to achieve?

  3. In what ways does he tailor his argument for his specific audience?

  4. What rhetorical devices does the creature utilize? What is the intended impact of each of the rhetorical devices?

Activity 4: Read – Write

We will use our Vocabulary Journal to learn words from the Vocabulary List for chapter 20.

Work with a partner to record the words and definitions for the following words from Chapter 20 in your Vocabulary Journal. The following words can also be found in the unit’s Vocabulary List:

  • atrocious

  • debility

  • fortitude

  • inexorable

  • insuperable

  • politic

  • propagated

  • reverie

  • sophisms

For each word, identify the vocabulary strategy (e.g., context, morphology, reference resource) you used to determine its meaning.

Activity 5: Discuss

We will work with a partner or group to respond to vocabulary exercises.

Using your Vocabulary Journal, work with a partner or a group to respond to the vocabulary exercises as directed by your teacher.

Activity 6: Read – Write

For homework, we will read chapters 20–21 of Frankenstein and answer guiding questions in our Learning Logs.

For homework, read and annotate Chapters 20-21 of Frankenstein. Please respond in your Learning Log to the following questions:

  1. Why does Frankenstein decide to destroy the creature’s mate? In what ways might his reasoning reflect a cultural bias of the early 19th century?

  2. Identify rhetorical devices in the following citation: "You have destroyed the work which you began; what is it that you intend? Do you dare to break your promise? I have endured toil and misery; I left Switzerland with you; I crept along the shores of the Rhine, among its willow islands and over the summits of its hills. I have dwelt many months in the heaths of England and among the deserts of Scotland. I have endured incalculable fatigue, and cold, and hunger; do you dare destroy my hopes?” (p. 181)

  3. Considering the example above, does the creature’s use of rhetoric make him more or less human? Explain your thinking.

  4. Describe how Shelley depicts Victor’s health. What might his changing health symbolize?

Record in your Vocabulary Journal new or interesting words you encounter. Consult the Vocabulary List as a resource.