CLASS: SENIOR TWO
COURSE CONTENTS
UNIT I: KEY ASPECTS OF PROSE
UNIT II: SUBJECT, THEMES AND MESSAGES
UNIT III: LITERARY DEVICES AND AUDIENCE
UNIT IV: BALLADS
UNIT V: POETIC DEVICES
UNIT VI: SUBJECT, THEME AND CONTEXT
UNIT VII: DRAMATIC TECHNIQUES
UNIT VIII: SUBJECT MATTER, THEME AND MESSAGE
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- Who is the story about?
- Where is the story taking place?
- What is the main problem of the story?
Context refers to the whole situation, background or environment relevant to a particular event. It also refers to the social, cultural, and historical circumstances and setting at which the author is writing. Therefore, context refers to the background information surrounding a subject.
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- A theme is an opinion expressed on the subject.
- It is what a poet is saying about a certain subject.
- It is the central/ main idea of the story.
- It is the poet’s opinion or perspective about a certain issue in society.
- It is the controlling idea which is continuously developed throughout the story.
Minor theme: It is an idea that appears in a story briefly or an idea that appears once in a while in a story.
Major theme: It refers to an idea that a writer repeats in his/her work making it the most significant idea in a literary work.
A message can be explained as follow:
- A message refers to the lesson the writer wishes to convey to the society through his/her story.
- A message is what an author wants the society to learn from his/her literary work.
- It is the kind of a lesson that the reader learns after reading the story.
- It is the moral in the story.
- It is something the story aims to teach the reader.
- It is the lesson the writer wishes the society to learn from his/her poem.
Messages can be about respecting elders, not fighting, caring for your loved ones,…
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- Simile
- Metaphor
- Personification
- Audience is the number of people or particular group of people who watch, read or listen to the same thing.
- It is also the group of people who have gathered to watch or listen to something (a play, a concert, somebody speaking…)
- For books, audience refers to people who read that book.
- Target audience
- Intended audience
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An ode: It is a poem that speaks to a person or thing or celebrates a special event.
It is a kind of poem devoted to praise a person, an animal or thing.
An epic: A long poem about the actions of great men, women or about a nation’s history.
An elegy: – It is a poem or a song composed especially as a lament for a deceased person.
–It is a poem/song that expresses sadness especially for someone who has died.
– It is also a mournful or funeral song or a poem of lamentation.
A duet: It is a poem with two lines in each stanza.
A sonnet: It is a poem of fourteen lines using any number of formal rhyme scheme and has ten syllables per line.
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-Notes from the playwright: The playwright might state clearly the setting.
Ex: The action takes place in a coastal town in southern Norway.
-Through the characters’ dialogues, costumes and behaviours.
-The stage sets: This is what the set designer arranges on stage.
Ex: The set may suggest that the characters are poor, or that is a palace or that it is a sea shore. During the performance, the set may also include props and stage lighting.
-Through the stage directions:The playwright may use stage directions to let the readers or audience know where the action is taking place.
– makes a play enjoyable and lively.
-gives insight into a character’s current motivation and emotional state. It makes the audience understood why a character behaves in a particular manner.
The similarities between an aside and soliloquy is that a single character speaks directly to himself or audience and no other character can hear the speech.
The difference between them is that an aside is shorter while a soliloquy is a longer speech . An aside reveals hidden secrets or judgments whereas the soliloquy reveals motives, inner thoughts or internal struggles going on in the mind of the character.
a. Round character
b. Flat character
c. Stock character
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- A theme is an opinion expressed on the subject.
- It is what a playwright is saying about a certain subject.
- It is the central/ main idea of the play.
- It is the playwright’s opinion or perspective about a certain issue in society.
- It is the controlling idea which is continuously developed throughout the play.
a. Minor theme: It is an idea that appears in a story briefly or an idea that appears once in a while in a story.
b. Major theme: It is the idea that appears repeatedly from the beginning to the end of a play. It refers to an idea that a writer repeats in his/her work making it the most significant idea in a literary work.
-Ask yourself, the most important moment in the work?
A message can also be explained as follows:
- A message is what a playwright wants the society to learn from his/her literary work.
- It is the kind of a lesson that the reader learns after reading the story.
- It is the moral in the play.
- It is something the story aims to teach the reader.
See also Senior One notes and Senior Three notes.
REFERENCES
- Achievers Literature in English for Rwandan Schools -Senior 1
- An Introduction to Literature in English for Rwandan Schools -Senior 1
- Achievers Literature in English for Rwandan Schools -Senior 2
- Literature in English for Rwandan Schools -Senior 3
INTERNET: (Various websites)
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