8. Scrabble & Jezebel's

• Engels
• Upper Secondary (Key Stage 4)
• GCSE

Lesson objectives 

We will consider the focus on language in the novel 

We will explore the concepts and topics in Jezebel's 

We will look further at the narrative voice of Offred. 

Concepts: 

Power dynamics, oppression, patriarchy, identity, rebellion 

Concepts HL literature 

Using your understanding can you 'guess' the meaning of these words 

One extract from A Doll's House and one from The Handmaid's Tale. 

A global issue that links the two extracts.

You will explore in an essay response (at least 5 paragraphs) how the global issue is shown in the extracts. 

You will explore the techniques (authorial choices) used and their purposes in conveying the global issue. 

11th March comparative summative assessment

Why Scrabble? 

What concepts, ideas, topics and connections to other themes in the novel can you generate on the paper given to you? 

L

Larynx 

Valance

Quince 

Zygote

Limp

Gorge 

Prolix 

Quartz 

Sylph 

Rhythm 

Quandary 

Write down the words that Offred plays on your paper.

Make sure you understand and have a definition for these words.

How many points did Offred earn?

www.thekatespanos.com

Lesson objectives 

We will continue investigating the motif of Scrabble 

We will return to preparing for a comparative essay plan

We will construct an introduction for a comparative essay 

Comparative essay summative - The Handmaid's Tale & If This is a Man 15th May - 2 lessons 

Rate the word 1 to 4

1. I do not know the word, and I have never seen it before. 

2. I've heard or seen the word before, but I'm not sure what it means. 

3. I know the word and can recognise and understand it while reading, but I probably wouldn't feel comfortable using it in writing or speech. 

4. I know the word well and can use it correctly in writing or speech. 

Retrospective

Word of the day

 Retrospective (n) - a show of the work an artist has done in their life so far

Retrospective (adj) - relating to or thinking about the past

OUOSRTSUEICD

Recently a retrospective album of solo Freddie Mercury tracks was released. 

L

Larynx 

Valance

Quince 

Zygote

Limp

Gorge 

Prolix 

Quartz 

Sylph 

Rhythm 

Quandary 

Make up a story with as few sentences as possible, but using each one of these high scoring words from the Scrabble game. 

Read the article and then discuss the information in your groups.

Add any additional ideas to your mind map. 

Warning - some spoilers present 

The struggle agains injustice is a theme that speaks to readers. Compare the ways in which the authors of two literary works have depicted unjust worlds. 

Consider The Handmaid's Tale and If this is a Man

Make a mind map in your groups with unjust worlds in the centre of your paper What branches will you add? What similarities and differences do you see? Brainstorm ideas. 

Concepts: 

Power dynamics, oppression, patriarchy, identity, rebellion 

Concepts HL literature 

Concepts Literature HL

Concepts to consider in the memoir:

Identity, control, humanity, language and morality 

 

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Padlet link 

1. Use the link in discussions to post thematic links and examples around the theme of injustice. The digital versions of the two works are in MB files. 
   
2. Comment on other posts and find at least two to three links between the examples. 
   
3. Attach to one post of your choice an image that visualises the topic, concept or theme. All post should have an image attached - AI generated, image search, drawn, photo... 
   
4. Attach to the posts authorial choices (techniques) that the authors use to convey these ideas on injustice. 
   

Prose fiction 

Plot, genre, settings, themes, symbols, characters, mood, atmosphere. 

Narrative point of view - first-person 

Narrative voice = language, diction, register 

Unreliable narrator 

Physical appearance, actions, idiolect, attitude, importance, relationships with other characters, contrasts. 

Themes, motifs, symbols

Diction = connotations, imagery, metaphors, similes, personification, figurative language, onomatopoeia etc

Literary concepts Literature HL

Literary concepts to consider in the memoir:

Structure, tone, stylistic choices, rhetorical devices

 

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Lesson objectives 

We will construct an introduction for a comparative essay 

We will consider unreliable narrator and narrative techniques 

Comparative essay summative - The Handmaid's Tale & If This is a Man 15th May - 2 lessons 

Rate the word 1 to 4

1. I do not know the word, and I have never seen it before. 

2. I've heard or seen the word before, but I'm not sure what it means. 

3. I know the word and can recognise and understand it while reading, but I probably wouldn't feel comfortable using it in writing or speech. 

4. I know the word well and can use it correctly in writing or speech. 

Speculate 

Word of the day

 Speculate (v) - to guess possible answers to a question when you do not have enough information to be certain

Can you think of three synonyms? 

OUOSRTSUEICD

A spokesperson declined to speculate on the cause of the train crash

hypothesize, surmise, ruminate, wonder, guess, conjecture, suppose, suspect

The struggle agains injustice is a theme that speaks to readers. Compare the ways in which the authors of two literary works have depicted unjust worlds. 

Revisit the Padlet page and take out two aspects of an unjust world that you can compare and contrast from If this is a Man and The Handmaid's Tale. For the authorial choice consider overarching narrative structure to generate ideas - next slide 

Components of an introduction paper 2

1. Hook where you explore the TOPIC of the question  

2. Identify the two works and authors being used. Identify date of publication/ first performance and the original language. Remember to underline the titles of novels, memoirs or plays (quotation marks for titles of poems)

3. Brief summary of both works keeping an eye on the topic.

4. Use the wording of the question

5. Acknowledge the similarities and the differences

6. Make an argument and state the 'insightful idea' that you have using a clear comparative thesis statement.

Use this checklist to construct an introduction for this question. 

Thesis statement 

A good thesis statement offers a clear direction for your paper. It should: 

1. Identify the two works and authors being used

2. Use the wording of the question

3. Acknowledge the similarities and differences

4. Make an argument and share an insightful idea 

Thesis statement 

The struggle against injustice is a theme that speaks to readers. Compare the ways in which the authors of two literary works have depicted unjust worlds. 

Both Levi and Atwood create a visceral world that is thoroughly unjust. Although Atwood's setting is an imagined, dystopian world and Levi's is his reality experienced in Auschwitz, both authors use an investigation of loss of identity and language to convey how humans can profoundly mistreat those they consider as being 'other'.

Structuring the paper 

1. The Alternating Method: this is where you discuss one comparative point for texts A and B and then move on to your next comparative point for texts A and B and so on. You have clear comparisons running through all paragraphs. 

2. The Block Method: This is where you discuss your key comparative points for text A in subsequent paragraphs. Then you discuss the same comparative points in text B in several paragraphs with comparisons to text A. 

Lesson objectives 

Teacher questionnaire 

Colour coding comparative paragraphs 

Giving feedback to peers 

Rate the word 1 to 4

1. I do not know the word, and I have never seen it before. 

2. I've heard or seen the word before, but I'm not sure what it means. 

3. I know the word and can recognise and understand it while reading, but I probably wouldn't feel comfortable using it in writing or speech. 

4. I know the word well and can use it correctly in writing or speech. 

Spectate

Word of the day

 Spectate (v) - to watch an activity, especially a sports event, without taking part

OUOSRTSUEICD

Disabled people should have the opportunity not just to participate but to spectate.

AWL words 

acquire 

affect   

comment        

consequent 

deduce 

distinct 

evaluate 

                     

focus

maintain

strategy 

Write these down

Each time your use one of these words in speaking and in writing you can tick it off the list. 

AWL words 

approach                              indicate

occur                                          require

significant                                  similar

complex                                    

appropriate

feature 

impact

perceive 

relevant

Write these down

Each time your use one of these words in speaking and in writing you can tick it off the list. 

Give feedback BPs 

1. You will receive a body paragraph from a peer. 
2. Read their topic sentence. 
   
3. Colour code one body paragraph. 
4. What was missing? 
   
5. Give a WWW and EBI 
6.  Do not grade the work
   

Colour coding body paragraph

1. A clear topic sentence with the wording of the question and an insightful idea/rich idea. 

2. Clear textual references or evidence If quotations, they are embedded into your sentences.

3. Labelling of literary, dramatic or stylistic features and a discussion of their effects. 

4. Discussion of the author/audience(reader) relationship. 

4. Context.

5. Comparative language. 

Look at the example colour coded essay from the IB Guys. The grading is on the back, but don't read it until you have read the response.

The struggle against injustice is a theme that speaks to readers. Compare the ways in which the authors of two literary works have depicted unjust worlds. 

Revisit the Padlet page and take out two aspects of an unjust world that you can compare and contrast from If this is a Man and The Handmaid's Tale. For the authorial choice consider overarching narrative structure to generate ideas - next slide 

Both authors meticulously examine the topic of injustice through a nuanced consideration of how language can be wielded as a tool of oppression and societal delineation. In The Handmaid’s Tale, Atwood subverts the connotations associated with certain specific terms to reveal the sinister mechanisms by which the authorities in Gilead exert control their inhabitants. Within this theocratic dystopian setting the terms for various societal factions often bears associations with Christian religion. Terms such as “Angels”, “Marthas”, “Handmaids” and “Eyes” are employed ironically by the author to invert initial positive connotations, thereby foregrounding to the reader the extent to which this imagined America has transformed, while simultaneously rooting these changes in the religious fanaticism of the 1980s. The Handmaids are named patronymically by adopting the name of the Commander to whom they are assigned prefixed by the preposition ‘of’. Atwood reflects here on the legal requirement in the 1980s that mandated a woman to relinquish her maiden name upon marriage. Additionally, she invites the reader to contemplate historical loss of slaves’ names and the tradition requiring that a slave should bear the surname of their master. Furthermore, the prohibition of reading and writing for the Handmaids restricts knowledge and impedes communication with Handmaids or revolutionaries. In the rare instances of direct dialogue between the Handmaids, Atwood highlights that only certain acceptable, religiously infused phrases may be uttered. Thus, Atwood constructs a framework of unjust limitation within which she illustrates a fundamental conflict between the freedom to speak and write without constraints and the oppressive setting of Gilead where all forms of communication are severely curtailed. 

Similarly, Levi contemplates the ramifications of linguistic limitations and misunderstandings in fostering injustice and discrimination. Within the harrowing context of Auschwitz, it becomes evident from the outset that an inability to communicate with the Kapos can significantly diminish one’s chances of survival. The camp’s Inhabitants who come from diverse regions in Europe, are compelled to communicate with fellow inmates exclusively through the language of the oppressor: German. Levi illustrates how this language functions as a form of punishment drawing an allusion to The Tower of Babel. In this biblical moral tale, humanity is punished for its hubris in attempting to construct a tower reaching heaven. Levi parallels this tale with the audacity of the Nazis who wield absolute power of the lives of the prisoners. Throughout his memoir Levi deliberately retains certain significant phrases in their original German form, thereby confronting the reader with the confusion experienced by inmates and further emphasising the oppressor’s power to control the channels of communication. The profound injustice of the concentration camps and the prisoners or “Häftling’s” experiences of bewilderment and discrimination are consistently conveyed through Levi’s objective and unembellished tone.  

Lesson objectives 

Using AWL and editing your comparative response 

Considering the section "Jezebel's" 

We will look at the reliability of our narrator 

We will focus on the anti-hero and narrative choices in chapters Forty to Forty-one 

Rate the word 1 to 4

1. I do not know the word, and I have never seen it before. 

2. I've heard or seen the word before, but I'm not sure what it means. 

3. I know the word and can recognise and understand it while reading, but I probably wouldn't feel comfortable using it in writing or speech. 

4. I know the word well and can use it correctly in writing or speech. 

Perspicacious

Word of the day

 Perspicacious (adj)- quick in noticing, understanding, or judging things accurately

synonym = insightful (look at) 

spic is a variant or spect in root and meaning 

OUOSRTSUEICD

The critic made some perspicacious observations about the film.

AWL words 

acquire 

affect   

comment        

consequent 

deduce 

distinct 

evaluate 

                     

focus

maintain

strategy 

replace or add four of these words to your comparative paragraphs. 

AWL words 

approach                              indicate

occur                                          require

significant                                  similar

complex                                    

appropriate

feature 

impact

perceive 

relevant

Write these down

Each time your use one of these words in speaking and in writing you can tick it off the list. 

Concepts generated: 

Power dynamics, oppression, patriarchy, identity, rebellion 

Concepts HL literature 

• You will explore the similarities between The Handmaid's Tale and If This is a Man through an essay prompt. 
  
• You will receive 4 prompts and you will choose one to respond to. 
  
• You will write a comparative essay containing an introduction, two body paragraphs and a conclusion. 
  
• You will have 75 minutes to complete (90 minutes extra time) 
• You will explore the techniques (authorial choices) used and their purposes in answering the question.  
  
• We will take a (supported) formative comparative on 8th May 

Thursday 15th May comparative summative assessment paper 2 style 

Jezebel in the Bible 

According to the Books of Kings in the Hebrew Bible (Old Testament), Jezebel incited her husband King Ahab to abandon the worship of Yahweh and encourage worship of the deities Baal and Asherah instead. Jezebel persecuted the prophets of Yahweh, and fabricated evidence of blasphemy against an innocent landowner who refused to sell his property to King Ahab, causing the landowner to be put to death. ​

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For these transgressions against the God and people of Israel, Jezebel met a gruesome death—thrown out of a window by members of her own court retinue, and the flesh of her corpse eaten by stray dogs.​

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In the biblical story, Jezebel became associated with false prophets. In some interpretations, her dressing in finery and putting on makeup led to the association of the use of cosmetics with "painted women" or prostitutes.​

​Adapted: Wikipedia 

" Well, he says, what do you think of our little club [...]

 It solves a lot of problems, he says without a twitch." 

Chapter thirty-seven pg 236 - 237

1. What is the hypocrisy at the heart of Gilead’s society? ​

2. What political and satirical comment could Atwood be making about Western society in the 1980s?​

3. How is the concept gender explored in this passage?

What adjectives would you use to describe these animals? 

How easy are they to catch? 

Discuss the use of zoomorphism in the comparison of women to rabbits and birds. pg 239 pg 230, 231

This is what she says, whispers, more or less. I can’t remember exactly, because I had no way of writing it down. I’ve filled it out for her as much as I can: we didn’t have much time so she just gave the outlines. Also she told me this in two sessions, we managed a second break together. I’ve tried to make it sound as much like her as I can. It’s a way of keeping her alive. (pg 243 - 244)

Chapter thirty-eight  pg 243

Note how Offred draws attention to her role as an unreliable narrator. 

What character types do we see here? 

A character whose qualities or actions serve to emphasize those of the protagonist (or of some other character) by providing a strong contrast with them. 

Source: Oxford literary reference 

What character type do we see here? 

The double or the doppelgänger (often found in the genre of Gothic literature). 

One person appears to be a duplicate of or a close parallel to another. 

source: mantex.co.uk

“Moira,” I say. “You don’t mean that.” She is frightening me now, because what I hear in her voice is indifference, a lack of volition. Have they really done it to her then, taken away something – what? – that used to be so central to her? But how can I expect her to go on, with my idea of her courage, live it through, act it out, when I myself do not?​

​    I don’t want her to be like me. Give in, go along, save her skin. That is what it comes down to. I want gallantry from her, swashbuckling, heroism, single-handed combat. Something I lack[.​..]

​Here is what I’d like to tell. I’d like to tell a story about how Moira escaped, for good this time. Or if I couldn’t tell that, I’d like to say she blew up Jezebel’s, with fifty Commanders inside it. I’d like her to end with something daring and spectacular, some outrage, something that would befit her. But as far as I know that didn’t happen. I don’t know how she ended, or even if she did, because I never saw her again. (249 - 250) 

Chapter thirty-eight  pg 249 - 250

Is Moira a foil or a double to Offred? 

Using evidence, write a response to this question in your exercise book. .