Look for your group # and respond to that question for the date indicated.
For Friday 4/1
Often Existential themes in literature and film appear in the form of characters experiencing and "existential crisis" of some type. These themes go way back, all the way back, to the earliest stories -- Gilgamesh when Enkidu dies; Achilles when he faces his own impending death; Hamlet when his father dies, his mother remarries, and he, himself, is denied the throne -- but they are even more prevalent in contemporary literature, and you'll quickly learn to see the influence in all kinds of pop culture, such as the darker versions of Batman, Daniel Craig's 007...anywhere, it would seem, where the protagonist is stripped of his or her most basic assumptions, faces the absurdity of existence, and asks "what's it all about?"
The following statements are from the packet. First tell whether you agree with the statement or not, then thoroughly explain why. (200-300 words--I'm giving you this word count because I know you did not have a lot of time to prepare for this and you have other homework tonight. You are welcome to write more than this, but hopefully, this helps ease your mind a bit.)
Period 5
Group 1: Whether or not God exists is irrelevant because of free will.
Group 2: Day to day existence is filled with anxiety and fear.
Group 3: Political philosophies, religious dogma, societal beliefs are irrelevant to me and do not define me.
Group 4: The idea that I am born into a particular time, place, family, and economic environment is absurd.
Group 5: Ultimately, I am alone in this world, alienated from everything that attempts to define me.
Period 7
Group 1: When I am born, I am undefined without any prior essence or preconceived personality or soul.
Group 2: In life, I must make choices regardless of what’s best for others. I can only choose what’s best for me.
Group 3: Society cultivates deception and hypocrisy.
Group 4: My most authentic moment in life is death.
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For Tuesday 4/5
Period 5
Group 1: In what ways can Sisyphus be seen as a universal figure?
Group 2: Camus uses the imperative, saying “We must imagine [Sisyphus] happy?” Why this word "must"? What implications does this suggest for human beings?
Group 3: Why does Camus ultimately opt for defiance over self-sacrifice? How is this stance noble, even heroic?
Group 4: How does man’s encounter with the absurd change his perspective?
Group 5: Why does Camus see philosophical suicide as undesirable, and can one possibly avoid it?
Period 7
Group 1: Camus uses the imperative, saying “We must imagine [Sisyphus] happy?” Why this word "must"? What implications does this suggest for human beings?
Group 2: Why does Camus ultimately opt for defiance over self-sacrifice? How is this stance noble, even heroic?
Group 3: Why does Camus see philosophical suicide as undesirable, and can one possibly avoid it?
Group 4: In what ways can Sisyphus be seen as a universal figure?
____________________________________________________________
For Thursday 4/7
Period 5
Group 1: Pick two characters, from Part 1, and discuss what are the various effects of isolation on these characters throughout this section?
Group 2: Weather and its effect on the motivations of characters or foreshadowing plot events in Part 1.
Group 3: What’s the difference between indifference and acceptance in Part 1 of the novel.
Group 4: We see several relationships dominate Part I. Pick ONE such relationship (Salamano & his dog; Marie & Mersault; Raymond & Mersault, etc.) What ties these individuals together? Do you think this relationship is true or valid?
Group 5: Absurdist philosophy—how does it play out in this portion of the novel? What other information from the "Founding Fathers of Existentialism" can you connect to the novel so far?
Period 7
Group 1: Pick two characters, from Part 1, and discuss what are the various effects of isolation on these characters throughout this section?
Group 2: Weather and its effect on the motivations of characters or foreshadowing plot events in Part 1.
Group 3: What’s the difference between indifference and acceptance in Part 1 of the novel.
Group 4: We see several relationships dominate Part I. Pick ONE such relationship (Salamano & his dog; Marie & Mersault; Raymond & Mersault, etc.) What ties these individuals together? Do you think this relationship is true or valid?
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For
Period 5
Group 1:
Group 2:
Group 3:
Group 4:
Group 5:
Period 7
Group 1:
Group 2:
Group 3:
Group 4:
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