Who's your favourite anti-hero? What about anti-heroine?

Very interesting language and gender/Literature crossover article on anit-heroines from The Guardian that I picked up from Angelica's (A2) blog.

My fave anti-heroines are (totally co-incidentally) Morgaine in 'The Mists of Avalon' by (the late, great) Marion Zimmer Bradley (I have over 30 books of hers) and Morgaine in the series 'The Chronicles of Morgaine' by CJ Cherryh. I loved both of those at your age so maybe you would enjoy them too (the first is based on the legend of King Arthur, the second is world-spanning sci-fi (feels more like fantasy to me but is technically science fiction) but really grounded in the characters of Morgaine and Vanye, who are a brilliant odd couple).

What makes an anti-whatever? Can we use 'hero' for both like we do for 'actor', or is there a distinction in the qualities implied by the two terms (think about what 'actress' implies and why it has been dropped by many female actors and publications - even in my 20s, The Stage used to call for actors, male and female)? What would be the connotations for anti-hero and anti-heroine if you asked separately? There may be an investigation in there!

FANTASTIC OPPORTUNITY - Live internet speech and Q&A Thursday (Technology and Language Change)

This looks too good to miss: a talk by an expert on the 'future of connectivity'. St Brendan's is streaming it live in the theatre and the MD of Google (Eileen Naughton) will be speaking directly to us so you can ask questions after the speech - just rock up but be seated by 9am. I will look into whether you can access it from home but obviously without the interactivity. Edit - you can - use this link when signed into Google + (apparently):  https://plus.google.com/events/crblcubnbi82s4l39k9c0gi9q20

Hahahahaha A2 this is for you but AS will enjoy it - virtuous errors (and the occassional total win!)

http://imgur.com/a/hyQna

VITAL READING Investigation into web genres - useful for AS and A2

My AS group may have seen this yesterday in the extension work (alhtough you probably didn't have time). It is an investigation from 1997 into what were at that time 'emergent' (new/emerging) web genres. It is useful for both AS and A2 to look at some beautifully clear and straightforward investigation language (and use of conventions like sub-headings) and especially useful for AS, looking at Language and Technology, to see where some of the genres you are familiar with have grown out of the transition from paper to virtual documents. (That would actually be useful for A2 for Language Change too).

Don't try and read it all - get a feel for what it is exploring and dip into sections, looking analytically at the language used and how the exploration is constructed (focus on lexis and discourse). A2 will notice there is no PEE as it is not a Language investigation, so expect to include that in yours, but the 'feel' and structuring are right for the A2 coursework investigation.

Please comment when you have at least dipped into it so I know you have seen it and ask any questions or make any comments that are relevant.

AS Language speed poetry

Two minutes only were allowed to write speed poetry with the title 'internet communication' to tie into what we are studying (Language and Technology). Here are the results:

Internet communication speed poetry

3am and I haven't slept in two days,

It's only 11pm there for you.

My hand on my screen,

Yours mimics mine.

I can feel you.

I can't feel you...

Communicate,

Delegate,

Chit, chat and banter.

Freedom of speech,

Ability to teach,

Or simply escape

the internet is a great way to chat,

you don't have to waste much time,

as you can do it all online,

No need to write letters,

just type up a message.

Facebook and twitter are great,

even though they make you stay up late

From the internet we can

Talk anywhere, anytime

Post pictures on Instagram

Tweet nonsense with hashtags

And show Vines of people doing funny and stupid things

secret, hidden, anonymous,

rude, unfair, who are you?

harsh, cruel, how dare you

show yourself,let me see you,

the internet is a top way to chat

on Facebook and twitter and all that

it doesnt waste time

all you need to do is go online

Draw the curtains

Lock the door

It doesn't make a difference

They can still communicate with you.

Allowed to opinionate

Allowed to have a view

Allowed to do anything

Do you think this is true?

you can like, follow, comment, retweet

new friends are what you can meet

facebook, twitter, snapchat, text

what communication will be next?

Affordances of internet communication is very simple you see

keeping in contact has become as simple as A B C,

you just hit a key board and type a little note

im sure it would really float your boat.

Instagram and twitter and facebook are good always looking at other people stuff

keeping up with trends and common use of terms such as LOL and LMAO are good

times have changed and its easier you see

Camoflagued behind the screen,

Trolled comments make you want to scream,

A facebook profile with someone elses name,

Doesn't online communication drive you insane?

Twitter, Twitter,

How mean you are,

Bullying others with your selfish comments,

You get people down,

Oh, Twitter twitter,

How cruel you are.

Sat looking at the screen

Different colours

Bright light radiating of the machine.

Comments so positvie

You can say what you want,

chatting to friends over seas

commenting on blogs whilst walking through trees

sharing a post for the world to know

Sitting behind this screen I am king,

No one knows who I am and I am free,

To say what I like, to post what I like, to share what ever I need,

And after a long day of small talk,

I retreat to my castle to speak to the town-folk,

Of my loyal subscribers, followers, commenters and

AS Language 25/11/14 and links to Wait but Why

Super-wonderfulls,

you have considered the affordances of blogging (here’s a link to yesterday’s Wait but Why blog post and here is the procrastination one I mentioned in case you fancy reading it later) and started to evaluate which affordance(s) might be particularly useful so that you can point out these conventions in exams. Please comment on one of these at the bottom of this post.

It is important that you 1) identify useful conventions in any texts you see on the exam paper and 2) that you compare them with the affordances or constraints of other technological genres. So today we are going to make sure you have at least a couple of genres you can do that with. We have generated a range of ideas of technological genres in class today to get you started - in your pairs, identify 2-3 genres you would like to explore/analyse today, discuss and explore them together and then split the written anaylsis up so you each cover one or two. You will be posting your written analysis to your blog by 3:40 so we can feed back our findings (what you looked at and one useful affordance) after that.

Before you use the points below to help you structure your analysis, please open up an email to me in the background (HW@stbrn.ac.uk) for later, no subject needed.

Please also write the homework down now:

Make any final edits on your own post then read and comment on at least two people’s blog posts for Friday's lesson (28th).You could point out affordances or constraints that weren't mentioned, explain your use of those genres, link to great examples of the genre or make any other tactful comment you choose.

Support for analysing technological genres:

• Choose genres whose affordances you might not have considered
• Find a short example/extract of each to explore (it is easy to find blog posts, memes or online articles but much harder with some other genres; you may be able to find quotes from in-game chats, chatroom dialogues, facebook statuses etc. that are already published and therefore ethical to use. Otherwise, you could use data you have permission for from someone in the lesson, made anonymous if necessary).
• Work in your pairs to identify as many conventions as possible and which might be ideal affordances or significant constraints.
• When you have finished discussing (or have run out of time to discuss), divide up the written anaysis so you are each doing 1 or 2.
• Summarise what you have found, linking to the text or quoting an extract - try to use the conventions of blogging to create an appealing text and accessible information for this audience. Check that you have made it clear what the conventions of the genre are and which might be considered valuable affordances or significant constraints using quotes. Aim to finish by 3:40.
• If you fancy a challenge, you could use PEE to explore the conventions e.g. The creator of this version (see below) of the ‘one does not simply walk into Mordor’ meme has taken advantage of the fantasy links between 'Lord of the Rings' and 'Doctor Who' to create a shared appreciation of both texts which fantasy fans may enjoy. The image clearly presents (for those who have the appropriate pragmatic understanding and are, therefore, the target audience) the original speaker of the line in the film of 'Lord of the Rings' (Boromir) in the costume of Dr Who, next to the TARDIS, in Mordor. This is a witty clash between two franchises which works graphologically, but the caption adds to the humour: the dynamic verb “walk” is replaced by the phonological effect (of the TARDIS materialising in a new place) by phonetically representing the sound effect in a comic way (any spelling would look strange and be a cause for surprised laughter). An additional layer of humour is added by the image showing that The Doctor/Boromir clearly has done just that (‘vworped’ into Mordor), contradicting the text and creating irony.
•  An extension task is to read the piece in the caption below the exemplar meme to see how the conventions can be used in a variety of ways. Look also at Harry Potter memes, perhaps.

  

  http://knowyourmeme.com/memes/one-does-not-simply-walk-into-mordor

• For even more challenge, look at how some of the early technological conventions/affordances (1997)  are discussed in this academic article.
  

 

'Smug tax' satirical article and 'The Trews'

As opposed to The 'Trews' ('true news') Russell Brand purports to give us, here is News Toad doing the opposite - making a political point by reporting something that never happened (the 'distrews'?). What do you think the writer is suggesting about celebrity/finance/politics and what do you think the target readers feel about Klass and the politicians (and therefore what pragmatics is the writer playing on)? How are the two (The Trews and News Toad) similar?

Vape, overshare or photobomb

What's your Word of the Year?

Turnitin guide

Marvellousnesses,

Here's a link to the Turnitin guide. If that doesn't work, follow this path on Moodle to get to it:

my home>courses>college services>Moodle help students>Moodle activities>Turnitin assignments

Please read the information on plagiarism carefully.

Remember to post by midnight tonight, no excuses!

If you don't feel you can continue with your pieces until you have had them checked, please do wider reading from my blog and leave comments to prove you have read each article/video/post. Also read each others' blogs and leave a nice/constructive comment - you can also read the comments I have left on people's work as these will be applicable to many of you.

Woof woof bow wow yap yap

What do you say dogs say? Zach is making up words at the moment - I love his adjective 'scokerly' for a towel that hadn't been dried in the drier and had gone crispy. Crispy is not a good word for it - scokerly is a great one. So how do we make up words? This article suggests that our perception of sounds produced by animals around us plays a part, and our preference for particular sounds (and then spellings) influences how these come about (when you are not adapting existing morphemes). So dogs (cats, cockerels...) in other parts of the world may sound very similar to dogs in English-speaking countries and yet the words chosen to approximate that sound may appear quite different.

A2 coursework lesson 17/11/14

Dear splendids,

please work on your intros and don't forget to make at least one comment on my blog this week. In the last ten minutes of this lesson, please comment on this post to let me know you are still working. Thanks.

Sorry I can't be there - there was a fire on the site of the nursery Zachy was in. He's ok but has to come home so I am on my laptop now.

Halla

Language and Power - writing powerfully

My A2s got to listen to Dulce et Decorum Est by Wilfred Owen prior to the two-minute silence today and consider its power. Here is another person touched by 'The Great War' and his passion for the soldiers to be remembered as people who were treated as less than human, and for them to be remembered with great compassion and respect, rather than treated as political currency, is vivid in this piece.

Feel his anger here.

AS Coursework lesson 11/11/14 - planning

Lovelinesses,

today's task is to plan and start writing your pieces.

Remember that your plans go into your coursework folder. They can be handwritten or typed and can be as scruffy as you like - they are working documents! Don't copy them out again! They are to show the thinking that has gone in and that the pieces are your own work.

The plan should show:

• the conventions you will use (maybe with an indication or diagram of the layout)
• the techniques you will use that your style model taught you (and where/how you will integrate them and adapt them for your content) and any other techniques you plan to use
• the content that you are planning to cover (and an indication of the discourse structure you will use to do so)
• any other considerations including audience, purpose, tone, register, pace etc.

It is vital that you use ALL of the conventions for your form/genre that are appropriate - the ones your SM uses.

It is also vital that you keep a bibliography (using Harvard referencing) to go into your coursework folder - your SM does not need to go in that (because you are including it in the coursework folder) but anything else that you use for research or that has influenced your writing must be in your bibliography.

I will be available to answer any questions.

The deadline for writing the first 500 words(ish) of pieces 1&2 and uploading them in a single Word file to Turnitin is 11.59 Tuesday (18th November) night. You will have next week's computer room lesson before then but you must find time to ensure it is the best possible work - don't just use the time in class! You can always use next week's computer room time to carry on developing your pieces further.

A2 coursework lesson 10/11/14

Clevernesses,

today we will be working on your introduction. Briefly, the introduction should (in an engaging but formal way) lay out why you have chosen the topic/data, what some of the key conceptual/theoretical issues are (and what you have chosen to focus on), and what your hypotheses are and how you will test them (techniques/frameworks).

Use the bullet points on the support sheet I gave you a few weeks ago (the one that breaks down all the sections) to help you. Some of the aspects you wrote about in your methodology could move into this section.

Here is a sample first draft of an introduction - what does it do well and what is still needed? Is there anything that belongs in another section?  It is probably a little long at 491 words!

Introduction

 The myriad theories regarding possible differences between male and female speech is a daunting but fascinating area of Language theory. Over time, it appears that the shift has been from distinctive differences percieved during the Dominance/Difference/Deficit research of the 1970s/80s (Zimmerman and West, Tannen, Lakoff) to a focus on the biological aspects [citation needed] and, more crucially, on the context that language is used in rather than by which gender (Cameron: "your genes don't determine your jeans"*1). Although Cameron's point is convincing, while our physical gender may not determine our language, particularly in a college where many feel the need to fit in and/or find their niche, society does appear to have some expectations of what is masculine or feminine speech; we may (even subconsciously) choose to conform to this. I am interested to see if this is the case.

I chose to examine the language of my peers but not those who shared my friendship group so that I could remain objective. I wanted to record people participating in a task and, when not asking friends who might give their time generously, I decided on students who regularly participate in group tasks to gain a better chance of them agreeing. I could have chosen Sports students, but since I wanted verbal responses rather than predominantly physical participation in my tasks, I decided that Drama students would give wholehearted participation and (I predicted) be confident enough to retain their individuality in a group task. I know that accommodation would be something worth looking at, but in the time frame of this investigation, I decided that differences would be more practical to explore within a limited data sample.

I needed to set tasks that would provide the participants with opportunities to use a range of language, so I decided on one discussion task, one problem-solving task and one solo interview (with the same questions and delivery for each participant - I practised this in advance).

Each of the six participants (three female and three male) would take part in each activity and, using the Dominance/Difference/Deficit theories, I could determine how far the language they used was in line with those gender expectations.

Hypotheses:

• According to Zimmerman and West, males will interrupt more in mixed-sex conversations (the discussion, the problem-solving and potentially in their interview with me).
• Males and females will predominantly correspond to the traits described in Tannen's Difference theory pairings (I will focus on status versus support in the discussion, competition vesus co-operation in the problem-solving task and report verus rapport in the interview).
• The language of females will be deficient in comparison to that of the males (I will look for Lakoff's 'deficient' techniques in both males and females and evaluate their use in context).

Rather than key frameworks, I will use theory headings, however the exploration will necessarily focus on discourse (for interruptions, back-channel agreement, length of turn etc.) and grammar for sentence moods, syntax analysis, word-classes etc.

Sexy Dads - apparently this is a new language and gender issue: DILF

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