Monday (B)
- Quiz: Act 2 of The Importance of Being Earnest
- Recap: What have we read thus far in The Importance of Being Earnest? Students will provide a short summary of Act 2 before we continue performing the play.
- Perform and Discuss: The Importance of Being Earnest Act 3 (Gwendolen and Cecily as allies, Lady Bracknell’s arrival, pause before Dr. Chasuble returns – pg. 91-101)
- Note-taking: What is the difference between farce, lampoon, and a “comedy of manners”? We will discuss what each of these terms mean, how they can be applied to modern films and television, and how they apply to The Importance of Being Earnest.
- Watch Example of Farce: “Delta Farce Trailer”
- Watch Example of Comedy of Manners: “Borat at Lunch downright funny!!!”
- Watch Example of Lampoon: “Yankees Building New Vacation Stadium In The Hamptons”
- Closing Activity: Review Quack! Volume 8, Part 2 by viewing the words a second time.
- Homework: Quack! Quiz next class. Be sure to study your words!
Tuesday or Wednesday (A/B)
- Quiz: Quack! Quiz 8.2
- Perform and Discuss: The Importance of Being Earnest, Act 3 (pg. 101-end).
- Small Groups: Students will form groups of no more than four and come up with three examples of how The Importance of Being Earnest can fit into the categories of “farce,” “lampoon,” and “comedy of manners.” They will be required to refer to specific scenes to support their responses and be prepared to share with the class. We will briefly examine literary critic Richard Foster’s analysis (see below) as a class before students break into their groups.
- Type II Quick Write: Students will then return to their seats and respond to the following prompt:
o Into which category do you believe The Importance of Earnest most clearly fits? Use at least one specific example from the play to support your response.
- Watch and Compare: The Importance of Being Earnest (Miramax, 2002) Act 3
o Act 3 – Approx. 30 min.
o Begin part way through DVD Ch. 10 (1:05:00)
- Closing Activity: For the last few minutes of class, we will discuss the “Act 4” project for next class. Students will be asked to begin thinking about what they may want to write next block and with whom they would like to work.
Thursday or Friday (A/B)
- Act 4 of The Importance of Being Earnest: With partners, students will create a fourth act for the play. They will be required select any time in the characters’ futures. They will have to establish the setting through stage directions and include dialogue between the characters. Other guidelines for the project include:
o One use of chiasmus or wordplay in the scene
o Mimic Wildean dialogue and wit
o Due at the end of the block
· HAVE A GREAT SPRING BREAK!
