Format: The format of a dialectical journal is specific. Make sure you follow this organization so you do not lose points on this assignment.

Transcription

1 Dialectical Journal The term Dialectic means the art or practice of arriving at the truth by using conversation involving question and answer. Think of your dialectical journal as a series of conversations meant to help you develop a better understanding of the texts we read. The purpose of the dialectical journal is to provide a platform for you to further develop your reading, writing, and critical thinking skills. As you complete the dialectical journal it will also become a very useful reference for completing additional assignments and participating in class discussions. It is expected that you will complete this journal as we read throughout the year. Format: The format of a dialectical journal is specific. Make sure you follow this organization so you do not lose points on this assignment. A. Use dual-column format (similar to Cornell Notes) B. Use the left column to excerpt a direct quotation from the text that can be used as evidence for evaluating literary techniques used by the author. 1. When citing commonly studied verse plays and poems, omit page numbers altogether and cite by division (act, scene, book etc.) with periods separating the various numbers. Use Arabic numbers unless instructed otherwise. So, line # 5 from Act I, Scene 1 of Romeo and Juliet would be cited as: (1.1.5) If you are citing multiple lines from Act I, Scene 5, cite them as: ( ) 2. If you need to write down more than two lines, you may use an ellipsis to delete some superfluous language/information, including the range of lines you are citing. C. Use the right column to draw evaluative conclusions from the text and to discuss how the author uses language to create deeper meaning in the story. Avoid plot summary! Instead, focus on literary elements such as tone, style, irony, metaphors, themes, symbols, point-of-view, setting characterization, motifs, etc. D. Include at least one entry for every two pages of text. There is no maximum number of entries- the more you can do, the better. E. You should hand-write your journal, but it needs to be coherent and legible, or points will be deducted. F. Use your own ideas- not from your friend s or classmate s homework, nor ideas copies from other sources (Cliffs Notes, Spark Notes, etc.) If you don t do your own thinking, you won t learn anything, and it will all be a waste of your time. If you are caught cheating, you will earn a zero for ALL dialectical journals for the given novel. How to Choose Quotations for Dialectical Reading Journals: Just use SQUIDS: Select a Quotation, Understand, Identify, and Describe its Significance. Select a Quotation: Choose a quote that stands out in the text for its effect; find quotes that are significant to the theme of the work; select quotes that affect you as a reader. Understand: Take some time to consider the quotation s relevance to the section of the work in which it is found and the work as a whole. Think about the sentence structure and its effect. Identify: Now begin writing; note the context of the quotation (where/when does it appear in the text?) and categorize its status as a literary device. Explain what is happening in and around the quote. Describe its Significance: Explain what makes this quote important. What makes you, the reader, take notice? Why does it matter in the context of the reading?

2 Sample Dialectical Journal Entry: Passage Tybalt: What, drawn and talk of peace? I hate the word/as I hate hell, all Montagues, and thee./ Have at thee, coward! ( ). My Thoughts This quote exemplifies the personality of the fiery Tybalt. This quote is significant because it establishes Tybalt's feelings for the rival house of Montague. Shakespeare emphasizes this feeling when Tybalt mocks Benvolio for talking of peace with his sword drawn. Most likely foreshadows future violence involving Tybalt because he seems very likely to break the Prince's edict of peace. **Use slash marks to indicate line breaks in the text. Parenthetical citations use Arabic numerals and periods. Look at the citation above 1--Act I, 1--scene 1, lines ***If a quote ends with an exclamation mark or question mark, the! or? goes inside the quotations and a period goes after the parenthetical citation. This is NOT the case if the quote ends with a period. Don t know what to write? Here are some sentence starters: I also... I never... This character makes me think of... This setting reminds me of... This is good because... This is hard because... This is confusing because... I like the part where... I don t like this part because... My favorite part so far is... I think that... Oh, I get... Now I understand Why did... This part about makes me wonder... How are these similar... How are these different... What would happen if... Why... Who is... This section about means... This reminds me of... This part is like... The character is like... This is similar to... The differences are...

3 Rubric for Dialectical Journal Critical Reader (detailed, elaborate responses) : -Extra effort is evident. -You include more than the minimal number of entries. -Your quotes are relevant, important, thought provoking, and representative of the themes of the novel. -You can read between the lines of the text (inference). -You consider meaning of the text in a universal sense. -You create new meaning through connections with your own experiences or other texts. -You carry on a dialogue with the writer. You question, agree, disagree, appreciate, and object. -Sentences are grammatically correct with correct spelling and punctuation. Connected Reader (detailed responses) 80-89: -A solid effort is evident. -You include the minimum number of legible entries. -Your quotes are relevant and connect to the themes of the novel. Entries exhibit insight and thoughtful analysis. -You construct a thoughtful interpretation of the text. -You show some ability to make meaning of what you read. -You create some new meaning through connections with your own experiences and the text. -You explain the general significance. -You raise interesting questions. -You explain why you agree or disagree with the text. Thoughtful Reader (somewhat detailed responses) 75-79: Literal Reader (simple, factual responses) 70-74: -You include an insufficient number of entries. -Sentences are mostly correct with a few careless spelling and grammatical errors. -You selected quotes that may be interesting to you, but that don t necessarily connect to the themes of the novel. -Entries exhibit insight and thoughtful analysis at times. You make connections, but explain with little detail. -You rarely make new meaning from the reading. -You ask simple questions of the text. -You may agree or disagree, but don t support your views. -You include few entries. -Entries exhibit limited insight or none at all. -You accept the text literally. -You are reluctant to create meaning from the text. -You make few connections which lack detail. -You are sometimes confused by unclear or difficult sections of the text. Limited Reader (perfunctory responses) below 70: -You include very few entries. -Very little effort is evident. -You find the text confusing, but make no attempt to figure it out. You create little or no meaning from the text. -You make an occasional connection to the text, and the ideas lack development. Sentences contain numerous grammatical and spelling errors.

4 Dialectical Journal Guide: The following are the prompts of what you are expected to address in your dialectical journal. These are NOT optional. If you would like to respond to more of the play, you may. Act 1 Scene 1 -Purpose of lines 1-60? -Foils -Prince s speech (lines ) -Where has Romeo been? -oxymorons ( ) -allusion (206) - couplets exit the scene -What is Romeo s problem & what does Benvolio advise? Act 1, Scene 2 - Capulet's speech (13-34) - servant's role (38-44) - dramatic irony (80-82) - Benvolio's advice to Romeo & Romeo's response (98-103) Act 1, Scene 3 -Foils? -Monologue? - Purpose of nurse? - Lady Capulet s speech (79-94) Act 1, scene 4 - Romeo's attitude - Friends: Benvolio & Mercutio - dreams are reality or illusion (51-52) - pun (41) Act 1 Scene 5 - Capulet's monologue (16-33) - Romeo's "infatuation/love at first sight" (44-53) - Tybalt vs. Capulet about Romeo - foreshadowing (89-92) - sonnet (93-106) - inciting incident: who reveals the problem to R & J? Act 2, Scene 1 - Chorus states sonnet - Where is Romeo and what is he thinking? - What are Benvolio and Mercutio doing? - Dramatic irony (17) Act 2, Scene 2 - Romeo's soliloquy ( ) - aside (37) - Dialogue (52...) - bird imagery - practical vs. reckless - engagement/ plans (127, , 169) - hard time parting - foreshadowing (184) Act 2, Scene 3 - Soliloquy (1-30) - Foreshadow (23) - dramatic irony (44) - tragic flaw (65-68) - end the feud (90-92) Act 2, Scene 4 - dramatic irony (4-5) - Mercutio's characterization - Match of wits, Romeo and Mercutio - Mocks the nurse (96-101) - plans for marriage ( ) - plans for marriage night ( ) Act 2, Scene 5 - Soliloquy (1-17) - Nurse as comic relief Act 2, Scene 6 - foreshadowing (9) - flaw (14-15) - marriage occurs after scene ends

5 Act 3, Scene 1 -- CLIMAX - Significance of Benvolio's lines Foils (Benvolio & Mercutio) (16) - Romeo's speech (60-63) - Dramatic irony (66-67) - Verbal irony (90-91) - Summarize the external conflict / plot in scene 1 - who dies and how? - Prince's ruling on the fight ( ) Act 3, Scene 2 - Juliet's soliloquy (1-34) -- love poem, dramatic irony - dramatic tension & dramatic irony in dialogue between Juliet & Nurse - foreshadowing (60) - truth revealed (69-70) - oxymorons (73+) -Who is Juliet loyal to? (Tybalt or Romeo) -What is she sending to Romeo? Act 3, Scene 3 - Where is Romeo hidden? - How does Romeo bear the news of his punishment? How is that different than the way the Friar views it? - Banished (lines 29+) - Romeo's emotions - Friar's monologue (109) -What is Romeo going to do next? Act 3, Scene 4 - New agreement about marriage - dramatic irony Act 4, Scene 1-- Falling Action - opens in the middle of a dialogue - aside (16) - double meaning/playing with words (26+) - irony (36) - how does Juliet feel about Paris and he about her? - Juliet threatens to... (54) - What is friar's "remedy" for this problem? (89-120) - Does Juliet agree to the plan? Act 4, Scene 2 - Scene 1 vs. Scene 2 (death vs. life) - What does Juliet say to her father? (17-22) - Irony (35, 46-47) Act 4, Scene 3 - Juliet's soliloquy (14-58) *what concerns does she have about *what she's about to do? * what does she do in the end? Act 4, Scene 4 - How does this scene contrast with scene 3? - Who is Angelica? - irony & suspense (23-28) Act 5, Scene 1- Resolution - irony (1-2) - foreshadow (6) - flaw (34) - setting through words (38-47) - Who is the Apothecary and why does Romeo go to him? - verbal irony (85) Act 4, Scene 5 - What does the Nurse discover? (14) - personification (36-40) - dramatic irony - comic scene (96+) - word play & exchange of wits ( ) Act 5- Scene 2 - Why didn't Friar John deliver the message to Romeo in Mantua? - What complications will now result? - foreshadow (18-19) -How is Friar Lawrence going to try to fix the situation (23-29) Act 5- Scene 3 - Why is Paris at the Capulet tomb? - aside (10-11) - Why is Romeo at the Capulet tomb? - Who is Balthasar? - aside (43-44) - How has Romeo changed since Act 3, Scene 1? (shown in 58-67) - External conflict (70-71) - Soliloquy (74-120) - foreshadow ( ) - Where does Friar want to take Juliet? ( ) - What happens to Juliet and why? (170) - What does Montague reveal? ( ) - Verbal irony (229) - Who reveals truth? - How does the play conclude?