The Art of the Novel

How do we reflect on the art and aesthetic of our victorian novels?

How do Wilde, Woolf, and Joyce reflect on the functioning of expression and perception?

Below are quotes from the authors and some critics on the writings of your respective authors.
Use them as a prompt to dissect the role of art and the artist in the context of history and the history of the novel.

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"Virginia Woolf's mature art concerns not the objects of vision in themselves but an investigation into the means of perception: the gap which intervenes between self and other, subject and object. To the Lighthouse looks at people in the act of looking. It examines the individual's eye-beam and reflects upon the colour of the personal light which leads one to interpret the self and the world in a certain way...When Virginia Woolf reinvented the novel, she was extending the boundaries of beauty... Abolishing chapter and verse, Virginia Woolf creates a rhythmic, wave-like form of undulating passage as in music, where the structure of parts within an individual movement is a continuous flow rather than a series of stops and starts. She identifies language itself as a volatile and indeterminate system of mirroring suggestions; reality as potentially unknowable, and the novel form as susceptible of radical transformation to accommodate these perspectives."
- from Virginia Woolf: To the Lighthouse, by Stevie Davies (London: Penguin, 1989).
http://oak.cats.ohiou.edu/~hartleyg/authors/modwoolf.html


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"The moral life of man forms part of the subject-matter of the artist, but the moralityof art consists in the perfect use of an imperfect medium.No artist desires to prove anything. Even things that are true can be proved. No artist has ethical sympathies. An ethical sympathy in an artist is an unpardonable mannerism of style.No artist is ever morbid. The artist can express everything.Thought and language are to the artist instruments of an art.Vice and virtue are to the artist materials for an art...All art is at once surface and symbol.Those who go beneath the surface do so at their peril.Those who read the symbol do so at their peril.It is the spectator, and not life, that art really mirrors. Diversity of opinion about a work of art shows that the workis new, complex, and vital. When critics disagree,the artist is in accord with himself. We can forgive a manfor making a useful thing as long as he does not admire it.The only excuse for making a useless thing is that oneadmires it intensely. All art is quite useless." - from preface
http://www.literaturecollection.com/a/wilde/doriangray/1/

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"Joyce's words, accurately described as having 'multiple roots,' shatter the linear unity of the word, even of language, only to posit a cyclic unity of the sentence, text, or knowledge."
- from A Thousand Plateaus by Gilles Deleuze and Felix Guattari

Focus on Theme

Goodmorning Scholars,

As you continue your reader responses online, begin to identify themes in the text.

If you are in need of a definition for "theme", check out this link:
http://wordnet.princeton.edu/perl/webwn?s=theme

You may collaborate with your literary salon members to advance your thinking and read deeply into these novels. If necessary, consult web resources on the matter.

**Remember, you are hoping to create original interpretations (as much as anything can be original), so don't make the mistake of relying too heavily on secondary sources and lofty online critics.**

A NOTE: You do have the option to research the history and impact of the novel in Victorian literature to deepend your contextual comprehension!

Happy blogging!

Literary Salon is On!

Student Blogs are Up!

You are now an interactive scholar in a LITERARY SALON.
What is a literary salon?
A virtual meeting place for language lovers!

As part of your literary salon requirements, you must provide opinionated commentary on literary matters. Besides posting daily blogs on your reading (including direct quotations with page numbers and analysis), you must comment on at least one of your classmates' blogs every day (more comments, more credit).

To Read Your Classmates' Blogs, check out the following links:

OSCAR WILDE - THE PICTURE OF DORIAN GRAY
Zack - http://zacksblogsiteyadigg.blogspot.com/
Rose - http://hinatarozyblog.blogspot.com/
Chris - http://oscarwilde32.blogspot.com/
Unique - http://wwwanimositychick.blogspot.com/
Shiza - http://yesididgokrayzee.blogspot.com/
Kadijah - http://bakasaiko.blogspot.com/
Jasmeen - http://thepictureofdoriangraybyoscarwilde.blogspot.com/
David - http://axewhipe.blogspot.com/
Daphne - http://poohbear2255.blogspot.com/
Howard, Shannon, Ivette, Kojo - http://wildecrew07.blogspot.com/

VIRGINIA WOOLF - TO THE LIGHTHOUSE
Laura - http://laviisthinkings.blogspot.com/
Danielle - http://winnie-madartist.blogspot.com/
Sophia - http://n3rdzattack2010.blogspot.com/

JAMES JOYCE - A PORTRAIT OF THE ARTIST AS A YOUNG MAN
Nahtahniel - http://portraitofartistasayoungman.blogspot.com/
Andrew and Saif - http://classactproductions.blogspot.com/
Alex - http://villainsst.blogspot.com/

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Response Rubric for Literature Journals

5
A Five Point Response
~ is in complete, well-written sentences that answer all aspects of the question~ shows understanding of both stated and unstated meanings of the text~ ideas are supported with many specific examples from the text~ response is extended by: making connections to other events or literature drawing conclusions generalizing or summarizing noting the author's style or point of view~ response is reflective, purposeful, shows critical thought and thoroughness

4
A Four Point Response
~ is in complete, well-written sentences that answer all aspects of the question~ shows understanding of both stated and unstated meanings of the text~ ideas are supported with several specific examples from the text~ response may be extended by: making connections to other events or literature drawing conclusions generalizing or summarizing noting the author's style or point of view ~ response is purposeful and shows thought and effort

3
A Three Point Response
~ is in complete sentences that answer all aspects of the question~ shows understanding of stated meanings of the text~ provides limited details to illustrate understanding~ ideas may be supported by an example from the text~ response shows casual thought and effort

2
A Two Point Response
~ is in complete sentences; some aspects of the question may be missing~ shows understanding of stated meanings of the text~ provides no details to illustrate understanding~ ideas are not supported by any examples from the text~ response shows little thought and minimal effort

1
A One Point Response
~ may be in complete sentence, but aspects of the question are missing or misinterpreted~ response is general and shows uncertain understanding of stated meaning~ provides no details to illustrate understanding~ ideas are not supported by any examples from the text~ response shows no thought or effort

Victorian Novel Study Groups: Virginia Woolf, James Joyce, Oscar Wilde

Welcome to Bishop's VICTORIAN NOVEL STUDY!

Students in this 10th grade Global Humanities Class are reading:

James Joyce - The Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man

Oscar Wilde - The Picture of Dorian Gray

Virginia Woolf - To The Lighthouse

Stay tuned for links to student reader-response blogs!