Make sure you read my "Expectations for Reading Responses"prior to getting started on your assignment.
"Perseus offers to save Andromeda" (663-705)
"Perseus defeats a sea serpent" (706-52)
"Perseus tells the story of Medusa" (753-803)
| 1. In "Perseus offers to save Andromeda," readers bear witness to the first meeting between Perseus and Andromeda. In this particular meeting, what is significant about both characters' behaviors? What general impressions are we provided about Perseus, Andromeda, and the gender relations posited between them? |
| 2. What makes Perseus heroic? Does he represent the classic archetype of the hero? What do you think are particularly heroic qualities? Does Perseus personify those qualities? |
3. In "Perseus tells the story of Medusa," Ovid reveals that Perseus was able to escape the fate of being turned into a statue because he was able to see her [Medusa's] image . . . reflected in the shield of bronze our hero bore in his left hand" (IV). What is significant about this detail, with regard to the symbolism of mirrors? If she were sleeping, why would he need to turn away from Medusa in general? |
| 4. Later in the narrative, the dinner guests are even more fascinated by Perseus' tale. Before Medusa became a "monster," what details about her previous life are significant? What was Medusa's essential crime against the gods? |
| 5. One of the keys to the entire myth is Medusa's ability to turn animals and men into stone. Why is this ability significant? What makes Medusa horrifying, in general? |
| 6. Additional comments and points you'd like to make. |
| 7. Extra-credit: Who is Minerva? Why is her punishing Medusa significant? |
Expectations for Reading Responses
In general, any teacher will tell you that what they are looking for is insightful, often original commentary that 1) cuts to the core of the piece read; 2) answers questions deftly rather than swiftly; 3) provides quotable evidence; 4) offers insightful analysis of those quotes. Ideally, a good response usually has 3 things that are completely related to basic PIE structure: a general claim, evidence supporting that claim, and analysis of that evidence.
As such, here is a sample of strong analysis based on a seven-line poem that I use in my English 100 class. The poem is Gwendolyn Brooks' "We Real Cool."
"WE REAL COOL"
--Gwendolyn Brooks
The Pool Players.
Seven at the Golden Shovel.
We Real Cool. We
Left school. We
Lurk Late. We
Strike straight. We
Sing sin. We
Thin gin. We
Jazz June. We
Die soon. (642)
Sample Question: Why is the setting of this poem important?
Sample Answer: The setting of the Golden Shovel not only typifies the type of activities that go on at the pool hall, but also foreshadow the early deaths of the seven pool players. While there is no clear indication of a physical setting in terms of climate or geographical location, Brooks' decision to call the pool hall the Golden Shovel is a symbolic act. Most pool halls might give their establishments "cooler" names; even in Hawai'i, pool halls have cool names such as Hawaiian Brian's or Velvets; these names accentuate the fun or supposed grandeur of the activity. A shovel, golden or not, typically serves one purpose: it is used to dig a hole. Treasure-seekers or gravediggers use it as their most important tool. The narrators seem to be simultaneously living out the dual nature of the shovel's use: they seek hedonistic excess, and at the same time, are brought to dig their own graves because of that search. The word "Golden" implies that the pursuit for sensuality in this piece is valuable and worthwhile for these players, even though their lives may be at stake.
Commentary: The author has tried to employ what is known as "quote recycling" to set forward the juiciest and tastiest bits of quotes so as to comment on them strongly.
And here's an example of a response that is a rush-job, which usually results in a less than stellar grade.
Sample Question: Why is the setting of this poem important?
Sample Answer: The Golden Shovel is a bar. Bars usually attract drunks. That's why it's important. These kids are drunks.
The student, it can be argued, has made a strong assertion. Lacking quotable evidence, however, the student's claims cannot be significantly made legitimate in the reader's mind.