RL: 2 Spring Marigolds: Discussion & Analysis of Voice
Aim: How does a writer create effects through the connotationsof words and images?
Do Now: Describe an event in your life that at first seemed like fun, yet after the incident concluded you were ashamed or disappointed with yourself. Why do you believe you felt that way? 
During the Do Now, many people were eager to participate. Fiona had responded to it by mentioning how she watched a prank video, and as a result of it, put salt in her mother’s water. She went on to explain how she felt ashamed of herself once the prank was over, and her mother had drinken the water. Natalie had also given a response that was similar, she explained how she did a bunch of pranks on her younger brother, and later felt awful for doing them. Mrs. Peterson also shared an experience with the class, she explained how her mother and aunt had taken their eyes off of her for a few minutes when she was 3, and she had managed to break the container where the flour was located. While her mother and aunt were cleaning the mess up, she got out of their sight again, and put pink nail polish on her mother’s beautiful black lacquered piano. She had to live with the guilt every time she saw the piano for years.
Marigolds Kahoot Quiz:
Once we were done discussing the Do Now, we did a short brief reading quiz about the Marigolds, so that Mrs. Peterson could assure that we had all read the short story. The reading quiz was composed of 15 questions that were all very simple and easy if you had read the short story and annotated it. Many of the questions on the quiz were on the literary elements of Marigolds. Literary elements to always keep in mind and look into when reading and annotating short stories or books in the future are:
- The setting of the story
- The main characters & narrator of the story
- The many themes that are introduced
- Symbolism of important, repetitive components of a story
- The point of view of different characters
- The plot and conflict of the story
- The mood and tone of the story
If you would like to learn about these literary elements in depth, here is a video that is very helpful: Literary Elements
Team Collaboration:
After completing the Marigolds Kahoot Quiz, we were given the following directions: Please answer the following questions COLLABORATIVELYwith your TEAM, based on your annotations from the story. Additionally, rephrase ALL questions as part of your answers, and make sure to fully develop ALL responses by answering ALL components of each question.
Working with others in a group can be very difficult for many different reasons. If you are unsure on how to be a helpful team member, feel free to visit this link: Qualities of an Effective Team Member. Working with others can also be extremely scary as well, if you are shy and in need of some motivation and tips to help you open up with your teammates, this is a very helpful link: Overcoming Shyness in Classroom. They offer great tips in order to feel more comfortable talking with others!
Once we had all returned from our breakout rooms, we discussed each question and had an opportunity to earn points for our team as well. The questions and responses that we were given were:
- In Paragraph 22, why are the marigolds so important to Miss Lottie, and why do the children hate them?
a. What stands out about the imagery in paragraphs 22 and 27?
For this question, Jerry was the one to participate and he explained how the marigolds were so important to Miss Lottie due to the fact that everything in her life was broken and dull, and the marigolds brought some light and beauty to her dull life. He also explained that the children hated them because they felt that they made no sense and didn’t match with Miss Lottie’s house and the quality of it. Jerry also went on to mention that the imagery that stands out in paragraphs 22 and 27 is the picture of a dusty, broken down house, with bright yellow marigolds being the only thing standing out.
2. Describe the internal conflict occurring for the narrator, Lizabeth. Find “textual evidence” to support your statement.
This question was answered by me. I mentioned how the internal conflict that was occuring for Lizabeth was still wanting to be a child and have fun, while also realizing that she is growing up and maturing. I mentioned a quote from paragraph 34 that stated, “Suddenly I was ashamed, and I did not like being ashamed. The child in me sulked and said it was all in fun, but the woman in me flinched at the thought of the malicious attack that I had led.” I then explained how this quote portrayed how the child in Lizabeth thought that what she had done did not matter and it was all for fun, whereas the woman in her was extremely disappointed in herself, and felt an overwhelming amount of guilt.
3. Lizabeth overhears her parents’ conversation. How does it make her feel? What is the consequence of her hearing this conversation?
Terrence responded to this question. He explained that Lizabeth overhearing her parents’ conversation made her feel extremely shocked and confused because she had always thought of her father as the rock of the family and her mother, the one who would worry. He also went on to say that the consequence of Lizabeth hearing this conversation was her finding out that her parents were not the people she thought they were. Their roles had reversed completely and they were a lot different than she had thought.
4. What can you inferfrom the text as to Lizabeth’s reasons for her final act of destruction?
Marooha gave her input for this question. She talked about how she could infer that Lizabeth’s reason for her final act of destruction came from overhearing her parents’ conversation. Marooha went on to explain that Lizabeth had already been extremely overwhelmed for most of the summer because she was always neglected and faced problems growing up. Lizabeth hearing her father cry was the tip of the iceberg.
5. Paragraphs 57 & 60 are especially rich in Juxtaposition.
Juxtaposition: (pronounced juhk-stuh-puh--zish--uh-n) is the placement of two or more things side by side, often in order to bring out their differences. Imagine a man walking a well-groomed dog on a pink leash on one hand and a rough Rottweiler on a spiked collar on the other hand. The juxtaposition could be shocking, humorous, or just plain strange. Regardless, this literary term calls attention to two distinctly different things by placing them right beside one another, or juxtaposingthem.
· Examine the dictionand imagery and show your understanding of juxtaposition by identifying two images or words set up for comparison.\
This question was answered by Vallerie. She began by stating a quote from paragraph 60, “...and that was the moment when childhood faded and womanhood began. That violent, crazy act was the last act of childhood.” She explained how the sentences compare childhood to the beginning of womanhood, and how they are not capable of occurring at the same time, which portrays the difference between those images.
6. Consider the last sentence of the story… “And I too have planted marigolds.” ...and make inferences about whether the narrator is speaking literally, figuratively, or both.
The answer to this last question was given by Katrina. She went on to say that she feels that the narrator is talking both literally and figuratively. Katrina felt this way because the narrator explained how she had missed the marigolds and had wanted to see them again. Likewise, marigolds also symbolize the beauty in a dark situation, which the narrator also seems to incorporate in her life now.
Individual Activity:
Once all the questions had been discussed, we then finished off the period with a short individual activity. The directions of the individual activity were:
Brainstorm here! Try to describe the narrator’s voice.
- Think of ways to explain how the writer’s diction and imagery create this voice.
- You might also mention other literary elements, such as juxtaposition, that contribute to the narrator’s voice or point of view.
This closing activity was able to connect every component of this lesson very well. The aim consisted of talking about using connotations of words and images to create effects. The teamwork was then all about studying the way the narrator of Marigolds had spoken and the effects those words and images had on the story. This closing activity was a way for us to notice that connection clearly, as well as summarizing the narrator’s voice through the connotation she had used. On the right, is a very helpful image of connotation and the images it creates.
Reflection:
From this lesson, I learned to look closely at a narrator’s voice by studying their connotation, and the effects of their connotation. I learned this because there are many instances where an author has a deeper meaning and image to a story that they want the readers to figure out, but they don’t always make that deeper meaning too obvious. Instead they use connotation to illustrate the images that they want the reader to visualize. I will use what I learned by keeping a close eye on a narrator’s voice and connotation, and alway keeping an open mind to decipher if they are trying to get the reader to figure out something deeper. I will also make sure to use connotation in my own writing in the future, because it would make my piece a lot more stronger as well.
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