Tuesday, October 10, 2006

Reactions to the Henry IV unit

  1. What person in the play do you know best?
  2. With whom do you identify?
  3. What did you learn about yourself in doing Henry IV, Part 1?
  4. What do you think of this play in comparison with other Shakespeare plays you have read?
  5. What did you think of the way we studied this play?
  6. What did you think of doing the reading journal on the blog? (Keep in mind that you still would have done a reading journal if we hadn’t used the blog – you just would have done it on paper.)
  7. What suggestions would you make for this unit?

4 Comments:

Blogger nathan said...

In Henry IV, I feel like I know Falstaff the best because of his predictably dishonest behavior. However, I identified most with Hal because of his well-defined sense of honor at the end of the play. I've never thought of myself as a real rebel, but I admired Hal's selflessness in war. I learned that I am prone to accepting actions of they're done for honor's sake. Hotspur did everything for the sake of honor, but in the end Hal came out on top so I think it's good to keep in mind that there's always a bigger picture. I enjoyed this play more than I have most other Shakespeare plays. This one wasn't depressing and the main characters actually survived the ending. The way we studied Henry IV was really good; I liked how we read it so slowly and divided it up into parts which helped me focus on individual scenes more. The reading journal on the blog was a good idea, especially because it substituted a paper journal. Because I knew other people would read my ideas, it forced me to put more time and thought into it. For this unit, although I enjoyed the acting, I don't think it provided additional insight into the play. It seemed to just be a time filler. I would have liked an alternative to the acting part of the unit.

4:11 PM  
Blogger The Katie said...

Of the characters in the play, I would say most including myself would know Falstaff or Hal best. In my case, when choosing, I understand Hal better with his sensibility which Shakespeare conveys in every soliloquy, monologue, or action he plays in Henry IV, Part 1. He truly is understandable. Speaking of understandable though, I would have to say that I identify most with Hotspur. Despite everyone's constant criticism of his person with his impulsiveness and fierce recklessness, I really think he is an embodiment of passion a lot of teenagers and people feel. He has ambition and wants to do so much but just doesn't see the clear path to reaching his goal nor sees what he has right in front of him. I struggle with issues like that. Hopefully, I don't die from blindness though even if my vision is bad.
I am not really sure what exactly I learned from Henry the IV. In the play many archetypes/stereotypes were involved to have a point come across that might have actually existed in the persons which Shakespeare researched in order to create this play. I think I learned most that rebellion is a great conflict on a scale from one's mind to a full-scale battle and everywhere in-between. It's tough, ruthless, dirty, confusing and causes you to think outside the box or perish as a result.
This was a very interesting play to me. Not as beautiful in verse as some of the others, but funny and brilliantly scripted. I really want to read Part 2.
How we studied the play was okay. I really liked dividing into groups and becoming accustomed to working with the same people but in various ways as we exchanged rolls. However, I always found the discussion after the end of a scene to be rather choppy and distracting as I moved from the idea of watching a performance to think back on analysis. I wish we had kept that more divided even if the actual performance was fresh in my mind.
Blogs were really convenient and easy. I like paper, but sometimes typing makes it easier to express myself quickly. On the other hand, it's frustrating when people don't post when I have time and I have to wait for that obscure moment to react and actually have some quasi-intelligent thing to say.
A suggestion? Do it again and encourage people to have fun and go crazy. The more creative people were whether they were brilliant actors made things awesome. I loved when people used props and just tried to really be involved. I'm not sure how to encourage people exactly to do that, but that'd be sweet.
P.S. Sorry I took up so much space.

4:49 PM  
Blogger haley said...

I think I know Hal the best. I think we talked about him more than anyone else in the play, which really helped me understand his entire personality and motives. I think I am a mix of Hotspur and Hal. I'm similar to Hotspur because I am very ambitious and I am competitive, but I'm definitely not as "loud" about it as he is. I'm like Hal because I really honor my friendships and my family, and I am a very committed person (like Hal is at the end). Studying this play helped me realize the faults and strengths I see in myself that I also saw in the characters. I really liked this play. I normally hate Shakespeare, but I actually understood this play. I also really like history, so that might have also been why I was really interested in it. The characters also seemed more relateable and similar to us than Shakespeare's other characters, like Hamlet and Romeo and Juliet. I wasn't crazy about the acting, but I liked the discussions we had in class. I also really liked blogging. It was nice to be able to read other people's comments and ideas about what was happening, and it really made me understand the play a lot better.

9:42 PM  
Blogger Anonymous said...

Of all the characters in Henry IV I think I know Hal the best just because he was the major character in the play and Shakespeare focused on him mostly and his progress through the play. I identify with Hal the best because he was a teenager rebelling agaisnt the wishes of his father and trying to find himself in the world.
I didn't really learn anything directly about myself except that I'm not a very good Shakespearean actor..
I liked other Shakespeares I have read more than this play. I just like the drama and action Shakespeare includes in the tragedies, especially Hamlet, and this one just wasn't like them.
I think the way we studied this play is probably as effective as it could have been; having us act them out makes us be creative and understand it better. It would have been nice if we could have seen parts of it on a movie but I guess there isn't one.
I liked the blogging because it's a tecnological, new way to share ideas and is more organized than paper responses. And you can see other people's ideas, not only in our class.
The only suggestion I have is the movie idea, just because I've seen Shakespeare movies before and the actors put a lot of emotion into the acting so it puts a new light on Shakespearen language, which can look so overwelming when you're staring into a book.
Or maybe we could see it live? Field trip!

2:57 PM  

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