During the past two weeks, reading The American Dream has greatly augmented my understanding of the text as well as my skills of reading a section closely and discretely. By being able to obtain the ideas of my group while annotating a specific section, I have been able to form a firmer grasp on the various connotations referred to by Albee in the novel. By attaining Albee's perspective on his work by watching a clip on Spruz and reading "Allegory in The American Dream", I have been able to form a different perspective towards the novel by incorporating different views about the underlying meanings portrayed by the author. The foil between Grandma and the Young Man has altered my perception of the two characters by prompting me to see them in a different light and leading me to relate that comparison to the world at large through the metamorphosis of The American Dream due to the passage of time. While in class, through the allocation of the analysis of two to three page sections to groups, I was able to add my group's thoughts to my own during discussions and enrich my reception of Albee's absurdist play.
Writing introductions and topic sentences for three different Open Prompts using The American Dream as the novel of choice has allowed me to analyze various different aspects of the novel. By looking for DIDLS evidence to support my thesis, my group was able to find some interesting instances that allowed greater analysis and induced greater understanding. I feel that being able to practice Open Prompts in class and gaining the different opinions of others will allow me to perform better on the AP exam by expanding my perception and analysis of a work of literature. Preliminary reading through the incorporation of various distinct opinions and perceptions will prepare me better for independent thinking in the future.
Rewriting the "Eros" prompt gave me an opportunity to reform my thesis by reflecting on the flaws in my reasoning and refining my perception of the two works. I was able to gain the correct interpretation of the novel from Ms. Holmes and incorporate her reasoning into me own. With regards to the blog posts, continuing practice with writing closed reading responses and open prompts has allowed me to refine my skills of writing to the point and supporting my thesis specifically with pertaining evidence. I have been able to gain the valuable skill of managing time while fulfilling the goals of the prompt. Furthermore, I have been successful at pulling many different works of literature from my past literature classes and highlighting them in a different light by applying higher level analysis. Over the weeks since the start of the AP Lit course, I have seen myself adapt to utilizing DIDLS in my analysis to a greater degree. I have learned to approach reading with a critical literary lens that is tolerant of radical as well as moderate interpretations and I believe that consistent straining of my mind due to persistent reading will eventually pay off by making me a more efficient reader.
I agree that the understanding of the American Dream was vastly improved after the close reading. The video provided by Ms. Holmes along with the reading were both very eye opening for me. I never would have picked up on the fact that Grandma is a manisfestation of the old american dream. Without knowing this fact my entire interprestion of grandma and the young man were completely different and not really meaningful. Overall I can agree with your idea that the critical interpretation of these texts will benefit you far after the AP exam. These really are techniques that are useful in real life, whether for pleasure or trying to understand the subtle aspects of writing. DIDLS is still a bit odd for me to employ well, especially when annotating, but I agree that the use of it is making it much easier.
ReplyDeleteI also found close reading to be very helpful in understanding the play as a whole. I thought the perspective showed to us by Albee in the video could be much more informative if the person interviewing him knew more about the play.
ReplyDeleteI also feel like I'll become a much more efficient reader after this class.
Going over the American Dream in class has definitely augmented, as you say, my understanding of the play. In a play where almost nothing happens on the surface, it's frustrating when I understand little of whats happening under the surface. Our class discussions have been tremendously helpful.
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