Thursday:
Hip-Hop Continued:
Goal: Explore how hip-hop artists manipulate tone and mood.
First Step: "Keep Ya Head Up" by Tupac
HW for Tuesday:
1. Finish Found Poems/Drawings if you need to.
2. Attempt to write a piece while being conscious of tone. Name your poem after an adjective.
Hint: You might want to choose a song, poem, piece of fiction, speech, play etc. that has strong tone and attempt to mimic its tone in your own work. Or, DYT, but be conscious of how words, phrases, sounds, and rhythm influence tone. Post to your blog.
Themes:
- "dissing"
- poverty
- sex, especially male, heterosexual sex
- money, raising yourself from poverty
- sexism
- African-American, Latino issues
- dancing/partying
- gang/prison life
- machismo, bravado
- authority (cops)
- aggression
- racial tension
- rebellion
- pride in where you come from
- being the best (better than other rappers, for example)
- shock value
- drugs
- dialect
- originality
- borrowing from each other (oral tradition)
Tone discussion (5 volunteers):
Tone is the speaker's attitude--how the speaker in a poem comes across to us. A speaker's tone influences an audiences mood. That is the difference.
Tone is the speaker's attitude--how the speaker in a poem comes across to us. A speaker's tone influences an audiences mood. That is the difference.
- "What are you doing?" (Activity)
- How do hip-hop artists manipulate tone? Diction, phrasing, persona, sound devices, rhythm.
Hip-Hop "Found Poems": Work by yourself or with a partner.
1. Choose on of the songs I've printed, or print a one-page version of a song of your own.
2. Read through the lyrics, attempting to pinpoint the words and phrases that influence tone the most. When you decide on which lyrics these are, highlight them by drawing a box around them.
3. When you've highlighted all the words you think you need to highlight, "cross out" the rest of the lyrics by making a drawing over the top of them. This drawing should reflect the tone of the song.
4. Turn in by the end of class!
Examples:
Tone/Mood Found Poems (link to examples)
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4/2/13
Goal: Discussion about Culture
A word about the Haiku tournament. Hiding behind a computer makes bullying even more cowardly.
What makes me the most frustrated is that, even though I spend inordinate amounts of time in here trying to make people feel comfortable, as soon as you got behind a computer or started talking through your phone you reverted to making fun of people who have chosen to take risks in this class. It makes me think you've heard nothing I've said in here.
Bullies called him porkchop...
1. Go to m.socrative.com on a laptop or smart phone.
or
2. If you Googled it, now click on "Socrative Student"
3. Go to Room # 833685
Hip-Hop Intro:
Hip-Hop Poetry:
"Most people ignore poetry because most poetry ignores most people." --Adrian Mitchell
"Rap is an oral poetry."
"The beat is rap's beginning." (There would really be no rap music without beat or rhyme)
What are common themes in rap music?
Sugarhill Gang: "Rapper's Delight" (1979)
Grandmaster Flash: "The Message" (1982)
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Extra stuff--don't read below unless you want to
1. Hip-hop tends to use heavy structure, rhythm, and rhyme. In other words, it does everything that scares most people about poetry.
2. Hip-hop tends to speak in code. In other words, it does the same thing that most people fear about poetry.
3.As happened with lots of "traditional" poetic forms, Hip-hop forms developed organically based on performances and sincere, honest writing.
Reading Poetry: Guidelines
1. Select a book. Don't worry too much about the choice. You can always put it back and get another one
2. Check out the cover, the back pages, the copyright date, and anything about the poet.
3. Begin reading. You might want to select individual poem titles, and you might want to begin at the beginning. Up to you.
4. Find three powerful poems or passages.
5. On a sheet of paper, write down the powerful passages. Reflect on each. Why are they powerful, confusing, reminiscent of an experience, though-provoking, etc? Writing and drawing are both fine--just be thoughtful.
6. Turn the reflection page in at the end of the reading period.
October 5, 2011
Writing Activity. "Lil' Homie What You Trippin' on."
Verses and refrain--the repeated line.
"Ain't nuthin' but a G Thang Baby..." (Snoop and Dre)
"I knew what I was feelin', but what was I thinkin'?" (Dierks Bentley)
"Ah ah ah ah ah ah ah ah ah!" (Iron Maiden)
"Jump around!" (House of Pain)
Come up with at least 2 verses and a refrain that repeats, either before or after the verses or both.
Example (Yes, I know there are grammatical mistakes. "I spoke the King's English but got a rash on my lips....")
"Spare can rhyme like a rocket he's in the cockpit
pullin' lyrics out his pocket his favorite topic
is rhymin' but he's too old to shop at Hot Topic
So please allow me to rock this, don't dis, resist, or reminisce.
Hey mama...
My teacher punked me; he sunk me.
I said the teacher punked me; he sunk me.
Spare can wreck a mic like Chicken of the Sea
his kids say please--and eat they peas, jeez
Dad by day MC by heart so if you start
to front he'll get the cart and haul you off for spare parts.
Hey mama...
My teacher punked me; he sunk me.
I said the teacher punked me; he sunk me."
Now try your own. Type it for homework. Remember: this is rap poetry. Rhyme and rhythm are paramount.
October 6, 2011
Workshop with our rap poetry. Remember--it's about the performance.
--watch the movie and complete the study guide, either today or bring it to class Monday.
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