Poetry Videos - A Multimedia Exercise
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Handouts: |
When we read closely to examine meaning, we should think about two things: what words mean and what words suggest. The meaning of a word (what we look up in a dictionary) is its denotation. The associations of a word (images we associate with words we see/hear) are its connotations. The right denotation gives text clarity; the right connotations give text power. Denotations (meanings) and connotations (associations) work together to convey and enrich meaning.
Think about these pairs of words (animal/beast; death/passing; plant/weed). Essentially, each pair means the same thing; however, the suggestions or associations of each word may be different. Which ones sound negative? Which ones sound positive? Why?
When we consider connotations, we should connect words with images, sounds, tastes, smells, and touch. Connotations therefore lead to imagery. Consider how we can enrich our understanding of text if we think about what words mean, what words suggest, and what images are produced because of them. These associations and images give us a deeper understanding of the black and white text on a page. Examine the Prologue to Shakespeare's famous tragedy Romeo and Juliet. Examine the imagery and diction in the text. Think about the connotations of the language.
Think about these pairs of words (animal/beast; death/passing; plant/weed). Essentially, each pair means the same thing; however, the suggestions or associations of each word may be different. Which ones sound negative? Which ones sound positive? Why?
When we consider connotations, we should connect words with images, sounds, tastes, smells, and touch. Connotations therefore lead to imagery. Consider how we can enrich our understanding of text if we think about what words mean, what words suggest, and what images are produced because of them. These associations and images give us a deeper understanding of the black and white text on a page. Examine the Prologue to Shakespeare's famous tragedy Romeo and Juliet. Examine the imagery and diction in the text. Think about the connotations of the language.
The Prologue to Romeo and Juliet
Two households, both alike in dignity,
In fair Verona, where we lay our scene,
From ancient grudge break to new mutiny,
Where civil blood makes civil hands unclean.
From forth the fatal loins of these two foes
A pair of star-cross'd lovers take their life;
Whose misadventured piteous overthrows
Do with their death bury their parents' strife.
The fearful passage of their death-mark'd love,
And the continuance of their parents' rage,
Which, but their children's end, nought could remove,
Is now the two hours' traffic of our stage;
The which if you with patient ears attend,
What here shall miss, our toil shall strive to mend.
Two households, both alike in dignity,
In fair Verona, where we lay our scene,
From ancient grudge break to new mutiny,
Where civil blood makes civil hands unclean.
From forth the fatal loins of these two foes
A pair of star-cross'd lovers take their life;
Whose misadventured piteous overthrows
Do with their death bury their parents' strife.
The fearful passage of their death-mark'd love,
And the continuance of their parents' rage,
Which, but their children's end, nought could remove,
Is now the two hours' traffic of our stage;
The which if you with patient ears attend,
What here shall miss, our toil shall strive to mend.
Your Task:
(should you choose to accept it, and you really have no choice):
Choose a poem that is vetted in the literary world. I would recommend using The Poetry Foundation's website or the POETRY app to find a poem of interest to you. Present the poem as a combination of text, images, audio, and/or video in a way that enhances the meaning of the text. Use the connotations and imagery in the text to design a multimedia representation.
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Project Requirements
- Choose a short poem of about 14 lines.
- Annotate the poem using both TP-CASTT and your own judgment about the diction – make notes about what it means (paraphrases) and what images (all five senses – not just sight) come to mind as you read it. This will be your “brainstorming” as you begin to collect other media. This should be completed in “text form” (typed or handwritten).
- Storyboard your video BEFORE you begin producing it. What effects, tone, images are you looking for? Base your storyboard on the notes you took as you completed the TP-CASTT analysis.
- Produce a multimedia representation of the poem using an iPad or computer resource of your choice that can be presented to the class. This is the “figure it out” part for you. Be creative! You can use Keynote, iMovie/MovieMaker, Animoto, Toon Doo, or any other multimedia tool. The last slide(s) MUST give your name, the date, and attribution to your text, sound(s), and images. Need help with iMovie? Check out the iMovie tutorials I've posted on the Links page.
- Write a brief (one to one and a half page) explanation of your poem, as well as the creative decisions you made to produce your video. It is not enough to tell what you did; you must explain why you made decisions based on the connotations, denotations, images, and other language devices at work in the poem. (And yes, this means that in the paper, you will be quoting from the poem to explain your decisions.) NOTES ABOUT FORMATTING AND SUBMISSION: The first paragraph of the essay should introduce the title and author and offer a brief explication of the poem. The remaining paragraphs (yes, that's plural) of the essay should offer a deeper analysis of parts of the poem that helped you understand the greater whole and the video decisions you made to translate the poem from the page to the screen. (You may use "I" in the essay when necessary; however, be critical of its use. The first paragraph does not need to contain this personal pronoun. ) This essay should be typed, double-spaced, and MLA formatted. You will need to provide a Works Cited page that includes the citation for the poem. Remember to use a backslash (/) to indicate line breaks when you pull quotes from poetry.
Sumbission
Please use my Dropittome link to submit your movie. The password is eagles.
Presentation
You will present your poetry video to the class. As part of your presentation, you will need to explain at least three of your creative decisions. Why did you choose to represent the language as you did? You will receive two minor grades for the TP-CASTT and the storyboard. You will receive two major grades for the video and the essay. I can’t wait to see them!
Example Videos from Former Students
Click the thumbnails of the videos below to view them.
Kendall:
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Quinn: "Love's Transgression" from Romeo and Juliet by William ShakespeareWhy, such is love’s transgression.
Griefs of mine own lie heavy in my breast, Which thou wilt propagate, to have it pressed With more of thine. This love that thou hast shown Doth add more grief to too much of mine own. Love is a smoke raised with the fume of sighs; Being purged, a fire sparkling in lovers' eyes; Being vexed, a sea nourished with loving tears. What is it else? A madness most discreet, A choking gall, and a preserving sweet. Farewell, my coz. |
Allie: "Pardon'd & Punished" from Romeo and Juliet by William ShakespeareThis letter doth make good the friar’s words,
Their course of love, the tidings of her death. And here he writes that he did buy a poison Of a poor 'pothecary, and therewithal Came to this vault to die and lie with Juliet. Where be these enemies?—Capulet! Montague! See what a scourge is laid upon your hate, That heaven finds means to kill your joys with love! And I, for winking at your discords, too Have lost a brace of kinsmen. All are punished.A glooming peace this morning with it brings. The sun, for sorrow, will not show his head. Go hence, to have more talk of these sad things. Some shall be pardoned, and some punishèd. For never was a story of more woe Than this of Juliet and her Romeo. |