Thailand Revolution- Red Shirts vs. Yellow Shirts

In 2005 the Thai Rak Thai (TRT) won the majority of the seats in parliament in Thailand.  The Democrats of Thailand has boycotted this election so instead of putting the TRT in power the military disbanded the government before it could take any action. Unfortunately the new TRT, called the People’s Power Party, took power when the country voted for parliament again in 2007. Eventually the PPP, or the yellow shirts, took over the prime minister’s position through “disqualifying” the two, then current prime ministers. Thailand is currently divided into the two radical groups: yellow shirts and red shirts. The yellow shirts are the wealthier members of society, or the aristocrats, and the red shirts are the lower class, or “urban” members of society. The two parties are currently at a stalemate and still fighting for majority rule and total rule over the country.

The major similarity between the revolution in Thailand and the French Revolution in A Tale of Two Cities, is that the groups are separated into the upper class, wealthy aristocrats, and the lower class, working men. While in A Tale of Two Cities, the revolution progresses to the point where the monarchy is out of rule and the common people have finally risen, in Thailand that has not occurred. Additionally, the reason behind revolution in both situations is because of unhappiness in the representation in the government. 

Website: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/17/opinion/17iht-edabuza.html?_r=1 

Egyptian Revolution

The Egyptian Revolution is similar to the French Revolution that took place during the story in A Tale of Two Cities in many ways. The first similarity is why they occurred. Both were put into action because the people in the area did not agree with and were not loyal to their leaders due to their lack of awareness and ability to fulfill their jobs. The French King and Queen during the revolution were oblivious to the starvation and pain of the lower class causing the feeling of unrest in society while in Egypt the regime that President Hosni Mubarak had put into action was disliked by all of the citizens. Another detail that led to the revolutions were revolutions that occurred before them that inspired the revolutions in France and the revolution in Egypt. For France, the American Revolution had recently occurred while in Egypt they were inspired by the Tunisian Revolution. One key difference was the social classes that participated in the revolts. In Egypt people from different religious backgrounds and people from different socio-economic classes joined together to act against their leader and the regime he created. Another common factor in each was the torture that occurred during or because of the result. In A Tale of Two Cities, many innocent people were being killed y the guillotine and a young child died by getting hit by the carriage. In the Egyptian revolution, torture was the result of the revolution because the emergency laws were put into action and because of the brutality of the police. These two revolutions show patterns that can be shown in most revolutions.

Lexie Arendt

Source: http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/international/countriesandterritories/egypt/index.html

Tunisian Revolution

The spark of the Tunisian Revolution is linked to a marketplace vendor in Sidi Bouzid. After pleading with a government official, this vendor got slapped in the face, and a stolen scale. The government practically shut down his only source of profit. Afterwards, he ran into town on a rampage and lit himself on fire. This vision was so horrible and so meaningful to the people of Tunisia, that they exploded in revolt. Like the French Revolution in ATTC, the Tunisian Revolution began due to government control. In France, the government took away their rights and their ability to earn profits, making them starve. Hungry people make angry people. Much like that in Tunisia, the lower class struggled to get permits to sell their goods. The only way the could was illegally. With only that job, no one would hire them. Without any source of money, or dignity, the lower class people of Tunisia recognized the inequality and a dire need for a revolt. 


Source: http://www.cbsnews.com/2100-18560_162-20033404.html

English Class Notes 9/10/12

                                    English Class Notes 9/10/12

Hi Ms. Coffey, we hope you feel better!!

What was Dickens mocking in both England and France?

·      Mocking the fact that both were supposed to be the “best” cities in the world.

o   Both part of great empires

o   Both cities are suppsed to be great- everything is not what it seems

·      Mocking the King and Queen of both countries- first page

·      We are all savages- especially during times of Revolution

·      Countries were only great to aristocrats- lower class probably hated it

·      Historically, France just finished helping the American Revolution

o   They are supposed to have all of this power from helping

o   England is the big power house of the world currently

o   They are all falling apart

o   Not living up to the image that they present themselves in

·      Mocks religion within both cities

o   Uses “Great Lord” when people commit bad actions-irony

·      Mocks absurdity of the circumstances- tries to exaggerate so the reader can understand how terrible the situations were

·      Use of oxymoron in the beginning reflects the many perceptions of the current time

o   Supplement to reoccurring theme of chaos

What was his biggest issue with England?

·      Setting

o   Old Bailey

§  Positive

o   Tellson’s

o   Lucie’s house

·      Slow paced

·      Too controlled?

·      Dickens portrays England as great, but is he biased?

o   England had a lot of crime during the time but he does not depict that in the novel

·      Socialism- larger scale government, no voice of people

·      Court system in England works better

·      English people are biased to people that have connections with France

o   Darnay was almost prosecuted

o   His likeness to Carton, of England, saved him

·      His issue with England is their lack of passion and that they have too much pride. English Exceptionalism. People of England are extremely prententious.

What was his biggest issue with France?

·      Swift, fast paced

·      Chaos

·      No control

o   Ex. Madame Defarge?

·      Too much law

o   Do a bad thing- straight to the guillotine

·      Bureaucracy- smaller scale government, common people control things now, need a larger scale government.

·      French crowd= sea of people, darkness

o   This wave is not permanent- waves have to crash eventually.

o   He belittles the French Revolution by saying this

·      Dickens hates the chaos and turmoil caused by the hunger. Their motives are not reasonable. They think for the here and the now instead of for the future.

·      Chaos- everything leading up to it, everything resulting from it

Homework 9/10/12

·      Write about revolutions that have occurred within the last 10 years. Post on blog.

·      Revolts (these are examples):

o   Arab Spring

o   Tunisia

o   Libya

o   Sudan

o   Iran

o   Egypt

o   Thailand (red shirts)

Bring in Writing Workshop on character Sketch

Class Notes 9-7-2012

Middle

·      A Plea

·      Has trouble expressing love

Being social meant coming over and chatting.

·      Carton still wants to be a part of her family

·      Takes backseat

·      He is first person Little Lucie likes/holds out her arms to

o   He cares about Little Lucie/Little Lucie cares about him

·      Lucie defends Carton b/c Darnay think’s it’s weird

·      He’s changing; not a bum; has attachment

o   Reaches out

·      Foreshadows sympathy (not pity) for Carton

End

·      Footsteps Die Out Forever

o   The seamstress: another person to be loved/loves him (equal need)

o   Take away fear of dying

o   Changed demeanor

o   Real action. He goes and does things.

o   PRIDE – he comes knowing what he’s about to do.

o   Little bit of love goes a long way

Ms. Coffey reads critic.

·      One man is condemned by society, and one man is condemned by himself. (Darnay vs. Carton)

·      Two sides of the same coin.

·      Though Darnay is held responsible for the rape, but Carton dies for it.

·      Guillotine is feminine.

o   Shadows of Lucie and the guillotine

           Charles gets one woman, Sydney gets the other…

·      “Sydney has been able to calculate himself out of the maze because he understands it. He understands the Terror…Sydney retrieves his life by giving it.”

o   Sydney understands the hate, the terror, and the rage because he is internally angry at himself.

o   No one else could understand, but Carton.

Carton is Jesus

o   Paradox

o   His life is remembered and loved

o   Resolves other people’s sins

o   Other people’s pasts haunt him

England vs. France Conversation

·      Burglaries/robberies/riot (before a revolution in England)

·      France: cynical, sarcastic, brutal

·      England: also sarcastic, corrupt

o   New parallels upon second read

o   Not as opposite as we think

·      Almost like people…female

English Notes 9/6

Receive Assignment sheet for the rest of the chapter/unit.

• Date of test is Tuesday September 18 (day before inner quest)

Writing Workshop Review

• basic rules- need folder, make appointments with her early in the writing process, papers to be read must be in RIGHT FOLDER ONLY
• Revisions are graded and then final grade is averaged
• If you are doing revisions HIGHLIGHT ALL REVISIONS in revised copy
• If absent on Writing Workshop day you must give it to Ms. Coffey the next day
• All papers due at beginning of class- after that 5% is taken every day it’s late and you may not do revisions
• If you don’t have your draft in Writing Workshop (a FULL draft) 5% will be taken off and you may not do revisions

Email list given out

Review of 9/5 Class Notes

• Foil: complete opposite for purposes of enhancing characters#
• Doppleganger: similar in one aspect/ different in another. Mirror images
• Goes to groups formed from yesterday- discussions of Carton

Sympathetic- designed to have reader take pity on, feel connected to, relate/understand motives

Unsympathetic- designed to not make us feel for, or to dislike

Carton Discussion

• Fellow of No Delicacy (chapter 13)- title is ironic, also points to foil’s. Carton/Stryver. Stryver thinks of himself as the “Delicacy”
• “never be better”
• self-loathing, doesn’t find good in himself
• Carton-Darnay- dopplegangers, both in love with Lucie
• dinner
• Carton- smart alec, in charge of conversation. from smarty-pants to cry-baby
• Page 85- “Do you particularly like the man?...You hate the fellow.”-
• moment of difference- Carton realizes that he is alone in the world and that Darnay is what he wants to be.

Sept 5 Class Notes ATTC Plot Notes

Sept 5 Class Notes

To Do:

• Wrap up plot/ characters
• subplots
• connect choices to theme
  → Writing Workshop
  - guidelines
  - troubleshooting
  -workshop

Homework: Look for Carton in:

Group 1: Book 2, Chapters 1-16

Group 2: Book 2, Chapters 17-24

Group 3: Book 3, Chapters All

See interactions, similarities, differences, attributes between him and other characters. 

Doppelganger: look alike, contrasting personality, mirror image/twin. Feeling and Thinking, Good and evil

Foil: Total Opposites for the purpose of highlighting key attributes. Two opposites together.  

Plot Notes:

• A lot of exposition is ripped out and placed later on, for example: Who Darnay is, Why Manette was in the Bastille. 

• What does he gain? He gains subplots reaching climax at the same time, because he wrote the book in installments he was able to maintain suspense.
• Secrecy is a motif and is a method used by Dickens.
• Reciprocity, Opposites in terms of characters and plot. He doubles in the plot by resolutions vs. conflicts, and switching between classes. Golden Thread vs. Yarn
• There are facts that could flip you, and change your direction, you can be recalled. 
• How does he arrange plot events? Mirrors plot events (Court scenes, Manette and Darnay).

• Elongation/ Compression of time, Pace
• Swiftness of French plot/ Quick to act, Lack of Thinking vs.  Longer, Slower, Wordier, Lack of Action pace of England plot, like Trial at Old Bailey.
• Perversion of time- how quickly things can change.
• Flipping time, so readers are on their toes
• Now vs. Past, First plot point- release from the past, recalled to life. Past is more important, you can be re-birthed. He shows this through plot, puts Manette's going to jail in the middle and we open with hope.  
• Every character has a haunting past. No characters are perfectly innocent, besides Lucie. Defarge lost everyone to Evremondes, she is a vengeful force. 
• Lucie is the golden thread who weaves all the plot together. Thread pulls people out, recalls to life. 
• People can flip from Earth to Heaven

• Narrators Flip

Symbols: Image that stands for something else

Motif or Thematic Indicator: Reoccurring idea/ image/ word/ phrase

Theme: Full sentence, Abstract meaning of the whole work.

The Root of The Revolution of the Book is the Rape of a Woman, women's role. Women as moral compass. 

Lucie: touches almost every single character

Carton: makes one major connection, makes a big difference. 

Characters:

Character Sketch Paper (Creative):

Take a place in the novel where your character is not described, write a one page description on your Character's thoughts. It should be able to be put in the book. Character Sketch and Analysis: Ready on Wednesday Sept 12