Realism Unit Project

All of the details for the Unit Project are below the cut. You can choose to do this instead of a test. However, you must let me know what you're doing by February 3 (Friday). You will meet with me twice before test day to show me your progress on your project

If you decide to do a project, you cannot come on test day empty handed and take the test instead

.                                          Realism Unit Project

50 points total

No matter which project you choose to complete, your work must show your knowledge of both the elements of Realism and the literary terms we’ve studied throughout the unit. Remember, you are substituting this project for a test. Your project should be evidence of what you’ve learned, just as the test would be.

You will write a Justification paper (50% of your project grade) to show how you used elements of Realism and the literary terms in your project. You must address ALL of the elements and terms in this paper and explain specifically how and why you incorporated them into your project. When writing your justifications, use relevant details that give your reader information that goes beyond the obvious or predictable. Simply writing, “I used everyday speech patterns in my project” will not suffice as a justification. Show the reader how you used the elements and why you used them.

If you did not incorporate an element or term into your project, you must justify that choice as well. (An example of this would be: My character’s purpose in writing this postcard was to describe the horrors of the battle to his brother. The tone of the postcard was somber and serious, so I chose not to use satire in my postcard home from the First Battle of Bull Run. I did not feel that humor was appropriate in this instance.)

Elements of Realism: Rejection of the Romantic hero, detailed depiction of ordinary characters, emphasis on characters inn realistic events, emphasis on characters from cities and lower classes, avoidance of the exotic, sensational, and overly dramatic, use of everyday speech patterns to reveal class distinctions, focus of the ethical struggles and social issues of real-life situations.

Literary terms: purpose, point of view, metaphor, situational irony, verbal irony, satire, internal conflict, external conflict, motivation

 PROJECTS

1. Create postcards from a Battle Scene.

Make five postcards from various battles in the Civil War written by a fictional soldier. The images on your postcards should be ones that you’ve created (either by drawing, painting, or with a computer program like Photoshop). The messages you write should be in the style/language of the era and contain factual details from each battle. You will have to create a Works Cited page for your research sources.

2.   Compose a Found Poem.

Walt Whitman and Herman Melville both wrote poems in reaction to newspaper accounts of battles in the Civil War. Whitman saw the courage and patriotism he saw in the soldiers, but Melville saw the soldiers as reckless and naive. Using at least five actual historical accounts from the Civil War (letters, newspaper articles, etc) compose a found poem that either shows a sense of optimism or pessimism about the war. To write a found poem, you select words and phrases from other sources and rearrange them to create your own message. Hint: There are several letters, a set of diary entries, and an interview in your book that you can use for this. You will write either one three page poem or 3 one page poems as well as a Works Cited page.

3.   Naturalism Remix.

Naturalists write objectively about situations that would typically be highly emotional, scary, and traumatic. They believe that the universe is indifferent and their writing reflects that notion. Your task will be to take one of these objective scenes and write it from a different point of view that displays emotion or take an emotional scene and write about it objectively. (Examples: Rewrite a scene from “To Build a Fire” from the perspective of the man or the dog or Rewrite Mufasa’s death in The Lion King as a scientific observation that you might see on Animal Planet.) This will be at least 2 pages double spaced with Times New Roman 12 pt. You will also write a justification paper explaining the choices you made, elements of Realism that were included, and literary devices you used in your project.

4. Satirize.

Satires are usually exaggerated and hilarious, but true satirist does more than simply make the reader laugh. Create a humorous sketch on video (5 minutes or more). Use satire as a tool for social commentary to promote a change you’d like to see in your world. You will also write a justification paper explaining the choices you made, elements of Realism that were included, and literary devices you used in your project.

5.   Create Your Own Project.

Write a song. Give a speech. Create a board game. These are just a few ideas that don’t fit into the projects I’ve already outlined. Come up with a project that showcases both your unique skills and your knowledge of the Realism Unit. Your project proposal must be approved by me within a week of receiving this paper so I can give you requirements.

Justification Paper Rubric
Teacher Name: Ms. Moats			25 points
Student Name:     ________________________________________
CATEGORY	5	4	3	2
Grammar & Spelling (Conventions)	Writer makes no errors in grammar or spelling that distract the reader from the content.	Writer makes 1-2 errors in grammar or spelling that distract the reader from the content.	Writer makes 3-4 errors in grammar or spelling that distract the reader from the content.	Writer makes more than 4 errors in grammar or spelling that distract the reader from the content.
Inclusion of Elements and Terms	All of the elements of Realism and the literary terms are addressed and accurate.	All of the elements and terms are addressed, but justifications include little detail.	1-2 elements of Realism and literary terms are missing.	Several elements and/or justifications are missing in the paper.
Flow & Rhythm (Sentence Fluency)	All sentences sound natural and are easy-on-the-ear when read aloud. Each sentence is clear and has an obvious emphasis.	Almost all sentences sound natural and are easy-on-the-ear when read aloud, but 1 or 2 are stiff and awkward or difficult to understand.	Most sentences sound natural and are easy-on-the-ear when read aloud, but several are stiff and awkward or are difficult to understand.	The sentences are difficult to read aloud because they sound awkward, are distractingly repetitive, or difficult to understand.
Justifications and Support	Relevant, telling, quality details give the reader important information that goes beyond the obvious or predictable.	Supporting details and information are relevant, but one element or term is unsupported.	Supporting details and information are relevant, but several elements or terms are unsupported.	Supporting details and information are typically unclear or not related to the elements or terms.
Adding Personality (Voice)	The writer seems to be writing from knowledge or experience. The author has taken the ideas and made them "his own."	The writer seems to be drawing on knowledge or experience, but there is some lack of ownership of the topic.	The writer relates some of his own knowledge or experience, but it adds nothing to the discussion of the topic.	The writer has not tried to transform the information in a personal way. The ideas and the way they are expressed seem to belong to someone else.