3/18 Here's the podcast on the witch trials.
Continue working with Bradstreet’s poems, as we did in class today. Mark up each poem and work to understand the “plot.” Circle words you do not know and look them up. Underline images that stick out to you. Identify the three images in each that really strike you and write notes about why. Highlight lines that reveal Puritan ideals we’ve talked about. Identify the ideal next to those lines. Look at the titles for help. Square any ideas in the poem that you think might be surprising (or subversive) in Puritan culture. Make notes at the bottom of your three most important ideas for each poem. I’ll check the markups and give you an up or down grade.
for 3/12: Read the excerpt from John Winthrop's "A Model of Christian Charity." Mark it up and make sure to note where you have trouble understanding the speech. In the space below the speech, strive to make connections between Winthrop's ideas and the Puritan ideals we talked about in class today from Vowell's excerpt. These include: providence, predestination and the elect, work ethic, class structure, community and covenant.
for 3/11: Let's continue our discussion about "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among those are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness" on the 4x6 notecard tonight. On the front of the notecard, write about your historical understanding of these ideas and how we have lived up to them or not. On the back, react to Alex's ideas. Are all men created equal? Do you believe that or not? Is this still an important part of how we define ourselves as Americans? Do we believe in equality? In equal opportunity? Do we live up to it? Should we? Fill each side of the card.