The Hero of My Story
Whether I shall turn out to be the hero of my own life, or whether that station will be held by anybody else, these pages must show.
-the opening line of David Copperfield by Charles Dickens
What have we studied this year?
A discussion of Greek mythology led us into Homer's The Odyssey, and we discussed adaptation, remember? Then we thought about Joseph Campbell's idea of THE HERO JOURNEY, and applied it both to Odysseus and to the more modern heroes you know from books and movies. We're all on that hero journey, right?
We questioned whether Odysseus seems a hero to us at all, and made websites about genuine role models, and then delivered speeches about heroism. When we read Of Mice and Men, we put George on trial for murder, but mostly agreed that what he did was admirable, even if he turned out guilty in the eyes of the law.
Then we met Jody in The Red Pony, and watched him growing up, developing empathy. That's certainly an important value, isn't it?
After that we read and wrote books of poetry, and developed a vocabulary of literary analysis while we also expanded our on poetic voices.
Finally, we would have spent time in the world of Shakespeare's Julius Caesar, considering how argument works, and learning rhetorical analysis. We would have noticed that there were intense, life-threatening disagreements about values. What's honorable? What's admirable? Is Brutus a hero, after all? Marc Antony pays tribute to him at the end of the play: "This was the noblest Roman of them all," he says. "He only in general honest thought and common good to all" was one of the conspirators.
"His life was gentle, and the elements / So mixed in him that Nature might stand up / And say to all the world, 'This was a man!'"
Instead, we started this speech! Did you know that? Looking at the specifics of people you admire, characters you admire, decisions you have made, all of that has been pre-writing for THIS SPEECH!
Prepare and deliver a (FILMED*) 5-7 minute-long speech about what you've learned this academic year, in literature, in other classes, and/or in life. How are you growing, changing, becoming more like the hero of your own life? Think about what's important to you, what's admirable, what you aspire to.
*If you can't film it, for whatever reason, you may deliver it to us on Google Meet.
Use SPECIFIC DETAILS (from your life, your reading, your learning) to support the points you make.
- Tell us at least one anecdote (story, moment from your life or someone else's).
- Quote at least one piece of literature.
- Make at least one comparison (an epic simile, if you can!)
- Conclude with an idea that is profound and thoughtful.
- Don't be afraid to make us laugh.
Support your speech with visuals:
- You may speak as a voice-over to a series of video images, or you may hold images up in front of your camera, however you would like.