Select one of the following prompts and answer it completely.  Then, write a question of your own that you think will help reveal something important about Blanche or Stella.  Finally, answer a classmate's question as a response.

1. Blanche has constructed an idealized self—an image of the person she thinks she ought to be. Blanche struggles to become that idealized self. She also rebels against her belief that she ought to become that self. What are the
characteristics of Blanche's idealized self? How does Blanche use clothing and other externals (perfume, for example, and the paper lantern) to induce others to perceive her as that self?

                                                                              - or -

2. Blanche is a guilt-ridden woman. In struggling with guilt, a person may seek relief by using love from another to counteract the self-hatred that rages inside; or a person may seek relief from guilt by self-purification, self-punishment, or self-nurturing.  Other strategies also exist. Why is Blanche tormented by guilt and how does she seek relief from guilt?

Stanley's character is both brutish and wise and can be puzzling at times. Consider in detail Stanley's behavior in Scene 3. 

Post a message responding to these questions:

     What does Stanley fear?
     How does Stanley act toward others to alleviate his fears?
     Ask a question of your own about Stanley’s character for your classmates to answer.

 As a follow-up posting, answer a classmate’s question about Stanley’s character.

What do you think of the characters in the play Hedda Gabler? Many people, for example, think Hedda is unethical, spoiled, and rude. Even so, Henrik Ibsen manages to create sympathy for her.

For this discussion, pick one of the major characters in Hedda Gabler and post a response to the following:

What do you like or dislike about this character?
What makes  this character interesting to you?
Select an interaction this character has with another character in the play. What does this interaction reveal about the character?

As a follow-up, post a question or comment about one of your classmates' postings. Do you agree or disagree with the interpretation of the character your classmate selected?

The poem seems to follow the same structure as a traditional sonnet.  However, there are differences.  Identify those differences and explain how they fit into the theme of the poem.

Both "To His Coy Mistress" and "My Last Duchess" express distinct attitudes toward women. Each possesses a unique speaker whose attitude powerfully shapes what the poem communicates.

Look carefully at the language of the two poems and answer one of the following questions:

• How does Browning's "My Last Duchess" reveal the Duke of Ferrara's attitude toward women?
• How might a female reader have trouble identifying with the speaker in both poems?

As a follow up, post a question or comment about one of your classmate's interpretations.

Robert Herrick's subtle poem, "Corrina's Going A-Maying," reveals much about conflicting human values.  It's also, in part, a poem about spring.  

Respond to one of the following questions through the online discussion, and then respond to one of your classmates.  Be sure to use textual evidence to support your claims.

• In the speaker's mind, what are the chief characteristics of spring?  Why is spring important to him?   
  
  
• What opportunities does spring provide?  Why are those opportunities important?
  
  
• What does the poem say about seizing the day and taking advantage of the abundant opportunities life affords?
  
  
• What shift occurs in the poem?  What purpose does this serve?
   
• Which allusions made by the author best promote the theme?  How?

In George Herbert's "The Collar," the speaker begins by voicing an intense resistance to divine authority. But by the end of the story the speaker has moved to a position of profound yielding. Post a message that responds to one or more of the following questions:

• In what ways does the symbol of the collar appropriately represent the relationship depicted in the poem?
• What is the paradox at the heart of the metaphor of the collar (the conceit)? How is the tension of the paradox resolved?
• What things constrain the speaker? What's the speaker's attitude toward these constraints? Is his attitude consistent throughout the poem?

As a follow-up posting, state whether you agree or disagree, and why, with a classmate's interpretation of the poem.

Understanding what motivates a narrator is key to interpreting a work of fiction. Post a message (by 6:00pm on Wednesday Sept. 5) that responds to one or more of the following questions about the narrator in James Joyce's short story "Araby":

• What striking images help you understand the narrator's feelings?
• What reveals the narrator's attitude toward his home?
• What do you know about the physical appearance of the narrator? What do you know about how he thinks?

As a follow-up posting, respond to a classmate's thoughts about the narrator in the story. Do you agree or disagree with their interpretations? Why?

Post your reaction paragraph as a comment. To respond to a classmates post, hit the 'reply' button after their post.