Celestina - Day One (Chapters 1 - 2)

Please answer at least two questions:

1. Analyze the opening scene in Melibea’s garden. Why a garden? What might a garden signify? How do you interpret the words of Calisto and Melibea? Why does Melibea react in this manner? Can we read these words as genuine?

2. Discuss Calisto and Sempronio’s conversation in Act I. How do you interpret Calisto’s illness? His discussion about Melibea? The discussion about women? What occurs here? Use quotes and specific examples for the text to support your answer.

3. What are our initial impressions of Celestina? What type of character is this? What does she say which influences your analysis? What about her later exchanges with Parmeno? (And this back history with Parmeno’s mother – what do you think happens here?)

4. Analyze Parmeno’s long speeches concerning Celestina. What is her history, profession, etc.? What do you think she represents within the text? How does the entire community view this woman? Why? Use specific examples from the text to support your answer.

5. Analyze the speech of these characters (you can point to specific examples to formulate your answer). What type of speech is this? Why?

The Decameron (Day Six)

Questions from Shanae and Chelsea:

9.2: How do the Abbess actions/ her physical appearance
change the outlook of the Nuns at the end of the story?

9.3: What is Boccaccio trying to show with the reoccurring
theme of women causing conflict and the physical abuse that
result from it?

9.5: On page 679-680 what’s the significance of Boccaccio
reversing the roles (earlier in the text we see Mona Tessa
being abuse by Calandrino and now we see the roles change).
Why do you think Boccaccio does this?

9.6: How does the idea of cleverness play out in the story?
What do you think Boccaccio is trying to say about a
woman’s ability to bend the truth? How does this coincide
with the tricky of the merchant’s wife in 7.5?

10.10: Compare the abuse between Mona Tessa and Calandrino
and Griselda and Gualleri. What is the difference between
the two? And do you think Gualleri actions towards Griselda
are acceptable or not?

The Decameron (Day Five)

Questions from Adam and Darien:

7.3 Question --- What is the central theme that drives the main characters’ actions in this story? What, if anything, does Bocaccio have to say about this theme? Use examples from the text to support your answer.

7:5 Question --- What do the narrator’s words in the prologue of the story tell us about how the society viewed the relationship between husband and wife? Has our society progressed from this viewpoint? Regressed?

8:3 Question --- How does Bocaccio accomplish the comedy in this vignette? Find two or three quotes and describe how and why the scene is comedic for the reader.

8:7 Question --- Whose side is the reader supposed to take in this story, Elena’s or Rinieri’s? How does Bocaccio create empathy in the reader for these characters?

8:7 Question --- What does this story say about the limits of intelligence? In what ways are intelligence used and abused in this story?

8:8 Question --- Passion is embraced and celebrated in this story. Is this theme still celebrated today? Make connections between specific examples in the text and modern cultural norms.

Alternatively, discuss prevalent themes in three of the stories. What is Bocaccio's stance on these themes? These themes certainly resonate with modern society, but does Bocaccio's attitude resonate as well?

Almodovar's "All About My Mother"

Please consider some of the topics below for a discussion of the film on your blog and in class.

1. The themes of : desire, desire to know about others, death, (re)birth. How does the film link them together?

2. The theme of communication or the lack thereof in the film. How does Almodovar emphasize this in the film, among which characters, and why?

3. The community of women the film establishes.

4. The 'range' of women in the film, including straight women, a pregnant HIV+ nun, transsexual prostitutes, lesbians. What do you think the film states about gender, femininity and sexuality?

5. Who is the "mother" of the film's title? Might there be more than one "mother"? (Also, who is the speaking "I" - 'my mother' - of the title?) Why and how?

6. A character study of Agrado (especially her speech - how can she claim to be "very authentic"?), Manuela, Huma, or Rosa.

7. Almodovar's dedication at the end of the film: "To all actresses who have played actresses. To all women who act. To men who act and become women. To all the people who want to be mothers. To my mother."

The Decameron (Day Four / 5.8, 5.9, 5.10, 6.7, 6.10)

Cynthia Ambrozej & Sarah Russell

Blog Questions

Choose two of the following questions to answer:

1) 5:8- Do you believe it is the women who have ‘power’ in this story, or the men? Explain using evidence from the text.

2) 5:9- What is your interpretation of the quote, “…I would much rather have a man who lacks money than money that lacks a man”? (pg. 431)

3) 5:10- How do the following quotes tie in to gender and gender reversal?

“I took him as my husband and brought him a big, fat dowry, thinking he was a man and believing he was fond of what men are fond of what men are and should be fond of, and if I had any idea that he was not a man, I would never have married him.” (pg. 433)

“And what the devil are we women good for hen we are old anyway…?” “It’s not the same with men…” (pg. 434)

4) 6:7- How does this story show an example of how women have power and how they stand up for their rights?

5) 6:10- Explain how Brother Cipolla uses wit to his advantage to escape a tough situation? Use contextual evidence.

OR

Give an example for two of the three based on any of the stories read (5:8 5:9 5:10 6:7 6:10) and explain how you think they were used for good or evil:

1.) Wit employed to escape harm
2.) Wit employed for entertainment
3.) Wit employed for retaliation

The Decameron (Day Three / 3.3, 3.6, 3.9, 4.3, 4.9)

Questions from Sarah Lawes and Domenic DeLuca for MONDAY:

3.3- What is this story saying about trickery? What does
this story say about lying and the deception of words?
Explain your answer with support from the text.

3.6- What is this story saying about jealousy? How does the
main character play off a woman's insecurities? Explain your
answer with support from the text.

3.9- What are the implications of Giletta's occupation? How
does she use this to her advantage? Explain your answer
with support from the text.

4.3- What does this story have to say about the facade of
love? How is perceived love different from actual love?
Explain your answer with support from the text.

4.9- Explain how revenge plays out in this story differently
from other stories. Do not just plot summarize. Explain
your answer with support from the text.

Note: All of these stories have common themes of deception,
trickery, love, and jealousy. Keep these themes, and others
you can think of, in mind, so you can be able to relate
these themes to modern day examples in class.

The Decameron (Day Two / 2.5, 2.6, 2.7, 2.9, 3.1)

Answer at least two questions or come up with your own analysis of the stories.

1. Story 2.5: Analyze the educative process that occurs with Andreuccio (do NOT simply recount the events of the story). Do you see any repetition occurring here? How do you read this repetition? How does this contribute to his education? What does he learn here? What might the message be for a wider audience? Use specific examples from the text to support your analysis.

2. Story 2.6: What does this story have to say about humanity (especially considering that the central character becomes a kind of ‘wild-woman’)? How might this view of humanity influence the story of a whole? Use specific examples from the text to support your analysis.

3. Story 2.7: What do you think this story has to say about femininity? Gender? Desire? Lust? What might the message be for a wider audience? Use specific examples from the story to support your analysis.

4. Story 2.9: What does this story have to say about crossing ‘borders,’ especially that between female / male? (This is not the first time we have seen this in the Decameron). What might this have to say about gender and our ideas concerning gender identity in a larger sense? Use specific examples from the text to support your analysis.

5. Story 3.1: In story 2.7 we read about a ‘mute’ woman who does not speak because nobody speaks her language. Here we read a story about a ‘mute’ man in a convent. What are the differences / similarities here? How do you read this ‘muteness’? How might this play into a politics of gender, power, etc. that may or may not be related to speech? Use specific examples from the story to support your analysis.

The Decameron (Day One / 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, 1.4, 2.3)

I would like you to choose one quotation that interests you from three different stories. Why does this draw your interest? How do you "read" this quotation (the "analysis" or "interpretation" question)? What does this quotation have to say about themes within the tale? About the tale as a whole?

Be creative. Your answers should be more than a couple of sentence. I would like to see serious thought in your posting.

Dates of Student-Led Discussions

10/17 Sarah L. and Domenic

10/19 Sarah R. and Cynthia

10/26 Adam and Darien

10/28 Shanae and Chelsea

11/2 Bernie and John

11/4 Devon and Julian

11/7 Zeke and Andrew

11/18 Natalia and Kailee