Socratic Seminar Reflection
In your reflection, you should discuss the following categories:
1. Specific ideas you found particularly interesting and why. Give specific examples and explain your reasoning. Please include who said the idea (this shows me you were listening carefully).
2. Unanswered questions or ideas you are still grappling with regarding the topic. Explain why you still have these questions or intellectual tensions.
3. The class’s overall participation and assessment of your chosen person– strengths and areas of improvement. Please provide specific examples supporting your point.
4. A link to something involving "The Cask of Amontillado," Poe or anything relating to one of the themes or ideas brought up in the discussion. After the link, please explain what the link describes and why you chose it. Explain the links's connection to the seminar discussion.
Destinee DelBonis
ReplyDeleteMrs. Colando
English 9 Honors/Period 6
12 December 2016
Cast of Amontillado Blog Reflection
There were many topics discussed in the Socratic Seminar, however, I found it particularly interesting when Nikolas commented that we truly never know what Fortunato did to make Montressor so angry. I think that Poe did this purposely to emphasize the suspense felt throughout the story. I also found it particularly interesting when Jessica P added that the way Montressor portrayed Fortunato is bias in that he wanted the reader to see it from his point of view. I never really had thought of that when reading the story, so I am glad she brought that up. I do agree with her in that the narrator is only allowing the reader to see it from “one side” of the story.
The one unanswered question I have from the seminar is whether revenge is justifiable or not. We discussed this thoroughly in my group and I came to the conclusion that revenge is something that is primarily based on your morals or how you live your life. It is not a text-dependent question, rather, it is opinion based. I do not think there is a right answer, per say, but I do not think that revenge should ever be justifiable.
I believe that the class overall had excellent participation. We all shared our thoughts and ideas and also added to each other's and encouraged one another to join the conversation. Each group stayed on topic and all had strong points of views which drove the discussions. For Jessica Panichas, I think she did a good job in speaking in the discussion. She had good ideas and evidence to support all of her claims. For example, when she tried to prove that Montressor did not feel remorse for murdering Fortunato, she added direct quotes from the story. However, I would have liked to her to have even more input in the discussion.
http://realmandsands.com/is-revenge-ever-justified/. This link leads to an article debating whether revenge is justifiable. I found it interesting how the website gave specific examples when talking about revenge. This relates to The Cast of Amontillado because one of the themes most prevalent to the story is whether revenge is acceptable.
Ronicka Yin
ReplyDeleteMrs. Colando
English 9
12 December 2016
The Cask of Amontillado Reflection
One thing that I found interesting was that at the end of the story, Montresor tells Fortunato to “Rest in Peace”. When he says this, he could’ve meant it unironically or sarcastically. It’s interesting because Montresor could have meant to say that either way. A few people have brought up this idea and it ties into if Montresor felt guilty or not getting revenge. Towards the end, he said “My heart grew sick…” though he still attempts to kill Fortunato. I felt as though he did feel some sort of guilt or regret not only at the end but many years later. In the beginning, he writes about his revenge on Fortunato which shows that that day is still lingering in his mind. After all those years, he still took the time to talk about it. Especially since he “punished with impunity”, he learns that it’s only him who knows the secret he kept all along. When he says rest in peace to Fortunato, I took it as an unsarcastic way because he’s the only person who knew of Fortunato’s death. Another interesting thing that was brought up is if revenge is ever justifiable. In my opinion, it depends on the situation whether if it’s the right thing to do. There could be many justifiable reasons why a person would want to seek revenge. But at times it isn’t reasonable for a person to get revenge.
An unanswered question I still have is if Fortunato really did insult Montresor badly that he had to go to an extent and kill him for the best or that he has some type of mental illness. But from reading the story, it shows that he had insanity in him during the time. Fortunato wasn’t described as a bad person in the story and it doesn’t seem like he would insult Montresor atrociously that he would want to murder Fortunato. Montresor probably took whatever insults were made seriously and decided to make a plan to bury him alive. Since he is narrating the story years after the death of Fortunato happened, I concluded that maybe he has gotten a little more sane and mentally stable over the years. During the end, it was that moment where he realized and looked back at what he did when he heard the cries and sounds.
I think the class as a whole had good participation and the groups in the inner circle brought up ideas and thoughts that made you really think. Everyone said everything that they wanted to say and some encouraged others to let out their own ideas in the discussion. For the partners I chose they both made good points and comments of the story but could’ve referred more back in the book for their claims. Overall, the 3 groups had an interesting topic to talk and think about.
http://www.biography.com/news/edgar-allan-poe-horror-stories-facts The link shows how Poe got his ideas and inspirations for his writing from his everyday life. We know that Poe’s poems and stories are dark, eerie, and mysterious and his life was like that too. It tells how he incorporated things happening in his life to the stories he wrote which explains the dark mood of the pieces.
Jessica Panichas
ReplyDeleteMrs. Colando
English9
13 December 2016
Socratic Seminar Reflection
In the Socratic seminar, one idea that I mentioned that was interesting was that Poe wanted to tell the story in his point of view on purpose so that the reader sees how the revenge was okay. He made sure to mention all details that went to that advantage, such as that Fortunato caused him a thousand injuries. Or when he told the story so non- chalantly that maybe Fortunato really did deserve it. Fortunato was never there to defend his side of the story, or say what really happened. Therefore, it was a biased, one - sided story that we’ll, as readers, never know the real truth or all the details to.
What I still don't know is why if the motto was made up or not. I brought up at one point that Montresor’s family motto was made up on the spot as it went along to what was going on. If Montresor really got revenge on people before, why did Fortunato not catch on? One good point was that Fortunato was drunk, but was he drinks enough to not catch all the dead hints? Another good point was that maybe no one dare cross him because of that family motto. So the moment someone did, Montresor was so outraged he took his revenge to an extreme. I'm not sure and am still trying to process all of that.
The class’s overall participation was good. Everyone spoke atleast once in that short given amount of time. All of the topics were effective to thought provoking questions and everyone tried their best. The outer groups did a good job paying attention and taking notes. The person I followed was Destinee, and she did a good job making eye contact with the speaker and responding to others. In my notes she really made an effort to do both these things and succeeded tremendously. However, I would've liked to see her refer to the text more.
http://www.todayifoundout.com/index.php/2014/05/26-year-old-edgar-allan-poe-married-13-year-old-cousin/#comments
This is a link to Edgar Allen Poe’s disturbing marriage to his thirteen year old cousin. I find it interesting because why would a man so brilliant do something not - so - brilliant and not just commit insest, but pedophilia as well? This ties the Socratic seminar because just like the killer, both Poe and Montresor are a bit goofy in the head.
Ella Abbenante
ReplyDeleteMs. Colando
English 9 Honors
14 October 2016
Socratic Seminar Reflection “The Cask of Amontillado”
I found the second question on the board to be especially thought provoking. This has a lot to do with the fact that there does not appear to be a majority opinion to the question “Is it ever justifiable to seek revenge?”. In many of the questions asked throughout all three seminars there was one answer that most people in the group agreed with which made it somewhat difficult to thoroughly discuss. There were no disagreement or counterexamples brought to the discussion that would have lead to a more in depth analysis of the story in most of the questions. On the contrast, the question about revenge was one that could have been discussed and debated for a long time due to the inconsistent opinions of the group members. I believe that the morals of the speaker in the seminar ultimately determined their answer to this question. Destinee also stated this in her Socratic seminar, and she believes that revenge is not justifiable because the person who gets revenge is only sinking to the level of he who committed the initial sin. Cailyn disagreed and brought up the opposing opinion on the matter, that revenge is justifiable if the person deserves a consequence. In addition, I also found it interesting when Ariana added that those who believe in karma may tend to be against revenge because they believe that the universe will do it for them.
One question I am still grappling with relating to “The Cask of Amontillado” is whether Montresor felt remorse or not. I agree with Rachael’s opinion that we as humans tend to want to believe that this is true. I believe that because we know that we would react with extreme guilt, we assume this is the same for Montresor although it may not be. It is still unclear to whether he feels guilt at any moment in his plot of revenge. I think it is based on opinion and either side could be sufficiently argued.
Overall, I think our classes participation was excellent in all of the Socratic seminars. There were some people who struggled to let their opinion be heard by their classmates but for the most part it was an open and comfortable environment to discuss the literature. One peer that I assessed was Madison. Madison had many strengths and some areas of improvement. She was a very avid listener and was consistently referring back to the text when one of her group mates was pointing something out. This quality made her a good asset to the group. For example, towards the beginning of the seminar the group was discussing the cluelessness of Fortunado and what this said about his character. Maddie seemed to have noticed that her group mates may have forgotten that Fortunado was extremely intoxicated and that had a lot to do with his lack of response to the hints Montresor left for him so she added this to the conversation. However, she could have shared her opinion even more than she did. I feel as though because Madison was so obviously mentally engaged in the conversation, more of her thoughts would have benefited the group.
https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&cd=14&ved=0ahUKEwiSkuCxxfTQAhVXzmMKHXE3DkIQFgh6MA0&url=http%3A%2F%2Fpoestories.com%2Fbiography.php&usg=AFQjCNHIG_vDPZLpDaAmPSszQeu4l0_OCQ
ReplyDeleteThe link above is to a brief biography of Edgar Allen Poe. In my seminar discussion we talked about the reflection Poe’s traumatic life has on his work. This biography gives some background knowledge into the tragedies Poe had to overcome throughout his life. This can help explain the darkness and morbid mood in most of his poems and short stories. He has been referred to as the master of the detective story because his work introduced the element of mystery to which he is so famous for to this day. The deaths and alcohol abuse issues Poe had in his life come through in his work. I chose this link to give further examples of how unstable Poe’s personal life was and an explanation to why his work is so gruesome and creepy to most readers.
Megan Anderson
ReplyDeleteMrs. Colando
English 9 Honors
12 December 2016
Cask of Amontillado Socratic Seminar Reflection
I personally believe that my performance in this Seminar on The Cask of Amontillado was a lot better than my performance in the Yellow Raft in Blue Water seminar. I believe this because I feel like I participated a lot more and really engaged myself in the discussion. I talked a lot more and responded to my fellow classmates more than last time. I also believe the class as a whole had a lot better participation. Everyone was able to express their ideas and feelings on the questions being asked. Overall, this Socratic Seminar was really good in all three groups.
One of my classmates I followed was Rachael and I personally believe she did phenomenal in this Seminar. One thing I found interesting that she said was when she brought up the wine sparkling in Fortunato’s could also be seen as a metaphor. I thought this was interesting because I really never thought of this personally until she said it. Another interesting thing she said was how Fortunato lacking basic common sense really led him to his death in the end. I liked this because I was thinking the same thing while reading the story. In this seminar, I’d give Rachael a solid 9/10 for a performance.
Some questions I’m still trying to understand are what did Fortunato do to Montresor to cause all of this in the first place? Was it really that bad? I mean, Montresor really felt the need to kill a man, so it had to be somewhat substantial. There really is no clues in the story to even give a hint to what he really did so I still wonder what happened to this day. The final question I still have is what would’ve happened if Montresor and Fortunato had not been intoxicated in the first place? Would the outcome be the same? Or would Fortunato’s lack of common sense ultimately lead to his death still?
https://www.cliffsnotes.com/literature/p/poes-short-stories/edgar-allan-poe-biography
The link above is to a biography on Edgar Allan Poe. I believe this website can help a person or reader come up with an explanation for Poe’s mysterious and death filled stories. He went through a lot of hardships during his life, most likely leading him to express his emotions through his writings.
Ethan Wu
ReplyDeleteMrs. Colando
English 9
14 December 2016
Socratic Seminar Reflection
In the Socratic Seminars there was many interesting ideas said and elaborated on. I particularly found it really interesting how Briana said that Montresor enjoys how gullible Fortunato is. I did not pick up on that, but now I can see why Briana said that. I personally thought that Fortunato was too intoxicated to realize where he is, so this made it even harder for him to focus on Montresor’s trickery.
One big question after reading this story is what did Fortunato do to Montresor to make him this angry to build an urge to kill Fortunato. Another question that is related is if this “incident” was that bad to drive a person mentally ill and want to kill the attacker. I still have this question because in the short story it was not addressed thoroughly on why and what Fortunato did. This information is really crucial when trying to answer the question that if revenge is justifiable. Since there was no such information the reader would have to use their own intuition and moral to elaborate on their reasons for their answer.
I think generally the whole class did an excellent job on participating in the Socratic Seminar. Everyone was prepared and had their questions answered and ready to do the seminar. Everyone at least added one or multiple thoughts of what the discussion was on. In this particular seminar there was an increase on the encouragement of others to join in the conversation/discussion. Briana did a good job on speaking and adding to other students’ ideas. For example, she added that Poe’s medical records were lost while the group was discussing about Edgar Allan Poe’s mysterious death. One thing I suggest Briana should improve is to refer to the text more with direct quotes that support her ideas.
http://www.eapoe.org/geninfo/poedeath.htm: This link is an article with different thories of how Poe could have died. This link is related to the discussion of the seminars because it shows how mysterious Poe’s death is. This could also lead to a discussion that some of the literature Poe writes could have been based of his life. Poe’s death is also ironic because it was mysterious and most of his literature has many elements of mystery.
After reading Cask of Amontialldo, our English class conducted a Socratic Seminar in which we discussed several throught provoking questions which required textual evidence, conclusive thoughts and opinions. Many factory's of the short story were brought to attention, but one that was the most interesting was said by Alexa Lombardi when discussing how verbal and dramatic irony built suspense in the story. She had said how the very fact he was intoxicated and clueless played a huge role in drawing out suspense through verbal and dramatic irony, and how the irony would not have been effective if not so. Due to his intoxication he has no clue what Montresor was saying or doing, and it left readers anticipating more. Another interesting fact said was by Megan; how she linked Of Mice and Men to Cask of Amontialldo, saying how sometimes things don't go the way you plan and how people can get killed so quickly without even knowing. I felt our conversation as a class was very interesting.
ReplyDeleteAlthough many questions were brought up and answered, one question I am still grappling with is the author's purpose. After I read Cask of Amontialldo I originally had thought Poe was trying to make a point with revenge of how it sometimes is not right by displaying the irrationality and twisted inhumane murder this man does. Yet when I spoke to my group members, they thought other wise and know I am debating on whether which is correct. One had said that Poe wrote this sick and twisted revenge story for his own sense of pleasure and for a thrill to the audience, which certainly refuted my previous opinion. Or was Poe stating what the person felt in order to get the reader to decide for himself? And which side is he personally on? Also, I am still debating on whether Montresor felt guilt after he killed Fortunato. Was it natural human conscience? Was it real guilt or just a misunderstanding to the readers? Since the group brought up points it opened up my views and now I am unsure.These questions have yet to be answered but hopefully with time they will be.
I felt as though the class did very well overall in participation and interpretation of the text. Everyone had participated frequently during the seminar and input thoughts that stirred discussion. Lexi, for example, did very well in her seminar,with more strengths than weaknesses. Some things Lexi did well with was starting up another topic of discussion by asking new questions, had excellent eye contact, and it was evident she thought deeply into the questions and shared her ideas with the group. Another good attribute Alexa had was dominating the conversation and how she encouraged other participants to speak
by asking them if they had anything to say or add. Lexi however could work on not interrupting others due to excitement and maybe speaking a little less, but there was hardly anything to critique. Lexi's effort was evident in the seminar and she did an outstanding job in analyzing Cask of Amontialldo, and the true is same for most of the class.
https://www.enotes.com/homework-help/montresor-feels-guilt-when-he-killed-fortunado-92273
Finally, this link provides yet another opinion on if Montresor felt guilt, and feels as though he was. The topic on his guilt is related back to Poe's "The Tell Tale Heart" where it was obvious the murderer felt guilt, but does he in this story? Also, the guilt spectrum comes from one of the final lines about how his "heart grew sick...it was the niter that made it so" which sparked the idea in many that that was a line of guilt, yet I'm still unsure (Poe 10). I bet this article would back up some of the thoughts brought up from many students in their groups and help them out.
I had never thought about the author's purpose of the story before reading your reflection, however I feel as though the story was written for the author's pleasure and to get his thoughts and emotions down on paper. However, I can also see how someone would think Poe wrote this story for a deeper meaning, to discuss the topic of revenge.
DeleteThe idea that was discussed during the course of the socratic seminars was the topic of whether it was acceptable to seek revenge. Many good points were brought up throughout the discussion that addressed this question. I found Destinee’s opinion particularly intriguing. She said that your answer to the question “Is it ever justifiable to seek revenge” is answered more or less dependent upon your own morals. There are many ways to interpret the story to fit just about all of the different possible answers to the question, so the way that you choose to use the information to answer the story shows your true morals and how you would react in such a situation. I think Poe was quite mysterious with this, giving the reader little context to answer this question, guiding you to come to your own conclusion. This is very fitting for a man whose death, was also unresolved, a mystery, letting you form your own oppinion on what happened to him. Another point was brought up by Rachael, of whether or not Montresor would feel any guilt after murdering Fortunato. As most humans naturally wind up feeling some form of guilt after hurting a person (physically or mentally), so it is not foreign for us to think that Montresor feels a similar guilt. Yet, he may not feel this same way as we have no real examples of Montresor showing any remorse at the end of the section.
ReplyDeleteOne question that is still lingering in the back of my mind is why Montresor kept giving hints throughout the text that he is going to kill Fortunato. As Ella had said during the discussion, Montresor just doesn’t seem like the kind of person that would hint about an impending murder, wanting to keep it stark with an element of surprise. I agree with this, which is why I was skeptical and decided to examine why Montresor would do this. I think this is because he was so nervous with the built up anticipation to kill Fortunato that accumulated as the two wandered deeper and deeper into the catacomb, that he could not help but let little clues out just to keep his sanity while he laid in wait to take his revenge.
All and all I would say that our class had a very good participation rate in the socratic seminars. Many students did a good job thinking on their feet to keep the conversation going from topic to topic while still thoroughly discussing the topic. During the discussions one person I observed was Destinee. She did an extremely good job vocalizing her own opinions and conclusions while respecting the opinions of the others in her group, listening carefully, and letting those opinions alter hers as well. On several occasions Destinee was also able to encouraged the other members of her group to share their thoughts on the discussion. Through this Destinee was able to know her group well, and change the topic of discussion if the conversation surrounding it began to die down. This was able to ensure the group covered a wide range of subjects. This link, http://www.biography.com/people/edgar-allan-poe-9443160#mysterious-death, addresses the topic of Poe’s mysterious and plain creepy death that leads you to draw your own conclusions. His sudden death under unknown circumstances really does fit with the disturbed and odd components that he inserts into his stories. For example, Poe not telling us what these terrible things Fortunato supposedly did to Montresor to drive him to murder was, he encourages your mind to wander to its own conclusion, similar to his death.
I agree that out of nervousness Montresor gave away his plan to kill Fortunato many times before the actual event. He opens the story saying how he is going to get the ultimate revenge on Fortunato, leading the reader to think the worst from the start.
DeleteBriana Cipolla
ReplyDeleteIn class we read the Cask of Amontillado and answered ten discussion questions on the reading, Using those questions, we did socratic seminars. I was absent for most of the socratic seminars. I, however, was in class for the last seminar. I participated in the inner circle for the last seminar. My group was the last group, so there was not many things to talk about, that was not already talked about in class. We discussed if we felt like Edgar Allan Poe believed if what Montresor did was right or wrong. I personally believe that he did not have an opinion on it. Poe's writings were very mysterious and dark, therefore I believe it was just his style of writing and what he enjoyed to write. Poe is a very descriptive writer, but left the reader to ponder about what exactly happened or why it happened. In the story, I strongly believe that Montresor enjoyed how gullible Fortunato was in the story. He continued to through hints and Fortunato did not pick up on them. His intoxication also played a role on this. We also discussed if we believed that Montresor did not have a good reason to kill Fortunato or not. I feel like Poe did not state exactly what Fortunato did to Montresor for him to kill me because he wanted the reader to wonder. He wanted to use this mysterious element to get the reader to continue to reader and ponder. Like many, this still leaves me wondering. I really would like to know what Fortunato did to Montresor for him to kill him. The seminar made me wonder if Montresor was mentally ill or crazy and he was making thing up. I believe he might have been crazy, but I do not think he was making things up. However, it still remains a unanswered question for me. The following link is an article on who Edgar Allan Poe is. https://www.poemuseum.org/who-was-edgar-allan-poe I believe before reading Poe’s pieces you need to understand who Poe is and how is life was. His life affected his writing and how he portrayed certain characters.
Isabella Machado
ReplyDeleteMrs. Colando
Period 6
14 December 2016
Socratic Seminar Reflection
During “The Cask of Amontillado” socratic seminar, it was interesting when Rachael said Montresor being nice to Fortunato before he kills him creates an eerie mood. This is interesting because the readers know Montresor being nice is an act and is planning to get revenge on Fortunato while fortunato doesn't know that. Fortunato not knowing he is about to die creates an eerie mood. This is an example of dramatic irony. Poe used this literary device to establish the mood in this story. I also found it interesting that Cailyn felt that should seek revenge but not to the extent of killing someone. This is interesting because other people disagreed with that. There is no right or wrong answer. People have different opinions because of their morals. After reading this book I still wonder what Fortunato did exactly for Montresor to get revenge on him by killing him. The only clue was in the beginning of the book Montresor says Fortunato “injures” him and insults him. It says Fortunato insults Montresor but why was it so bad Montresor had to get revenge. I believe the groups did a good job participating in this discussion. Each group picked questions to discuss and did a good job debating them. People encourages their group mates to speak and let everyone get a turn to say their opinion. There was no engagement in side conversation. Everyone was respectful. They did not interrupt someone or dominate the conversation. Cailyn did a good job referring back to the text to find evidence and asked a new or follow up question. She also did a good job paraphrasing and responding to another speaker.
http://www.debate.org/opinions/is-revenge-ever-the-same-thing-as-justice
This is a link to a debate about whether revenge is the same thing as justice or not. On the website it is almost 50/50 for whether or not people think revenge is justice or not. I picked this quote because people debated about whether is was right for Montresor to get revenge on Fortunato or not. People had different opinions based on their morals. This is connected to the socratic seminar because it was discussed during them.
Alexander Men
ReplyDeleteMrs. Colando
English 9 honors
14 december 2016
Cask of Amontillado reflection
The idea I found very interesting was said by Jessica P. It was that Montresor’s family motto was completely made up because fortunato would have been more cautious around montresor if he had known that was his family motto. This is an interesting idea, but i can not agree with this. Montresor was very passionate about his revenge and would most likely not make something like that up. Fortunato was probably just very oblivious.
The question I still have unanswered is what did Fortunato do to make Montresor so angry? Montresor says he insulted him, but why would you kill someone for that reason? Also Fortunato doesn’t seem like the type of person who can do something so bad to someone to the point where they kill him. Fortunato probably said something to offend him, and he took it way too far and ended up killing him.
The overall class participation was very good. Everyone had good questions to fuel discussion in the outer circle and inner circle. The person i was following, Jessica P. did a very good job speaking, making eye contact and building upon her group’s ideas. The thing she needed to work on was pulling specific quotes from the text as evidence. She did use evidence, but she should have had more for the amount she was speaking.
https://www.enotes.com/homework-help/what-may-insult-that-fortunato-did-montresor-41029 This link is a discussion about what Fortunato most likely said so Montresor to make him get revenge. They are saying how fortunato most likely insulted his family, and he unknowingly was insulting his family in the catacombs saying how montresor’s family was once great, implying how they are no longer as great. Others are saying how fortunato obviously thought as montresor as a friend and had no idea what Montresor actually thought about him. This furthers the idea of Fortunato unknowingly insulting him.
Alexa Lombardi
ReplyDeleteMrs. Colando
English 9 Honors
14 December 2016
Socratic Seminar Reflection
Throughout each of the Mini Socratic Seminars, there were many ideas I found interesting and would not have thought of on my own. Collaborating with other students helped me better understand different parts of the story and identify new information I had not noticed previously. I found it particularly interesting when Madison and Ella mentioned that Fortunato was drunk when the story took place. Before they had mentioned this I felt like Fortunato was clueless, because he did not take advantage of his opportunity to leave, nor did he understand Montresor’s true intentions. However, when Madison and Ella helped me realize Fortunato was drunk, it helped me to understand that he had very little control over himself throughout the story. Another idea I found interesting was when Destinee commented how wine could be symbolic for vulnerability. This was particularly interesting, because drinking too much wine leaves one with little control over themselves or their decisions. Another way to describe this would be, as Destinee mentioned, vulnerable. This idea was something I had thought of while reading the story, but I could not find the right words during my seminar to verbalize it. I think Poe chose to make wine symbolic for vulnerability, and I think he tried to show this through Fortunato’s poor decisions throughout the story. Each of these ideas were interesting to me, because they helped me put the pieces of the story together and better understand the overall story.
After reading through the story twice, collaborating with my group, and listening to the other groups, I still have one unanswered question. My confusion involves Montresor’s quote “May he rest in peace” shortly after killing Fortunato. I am unsure whether Montresor is showing regret or if he is acting sarcastic. Almost immediately after finding out Fortunato was dead, Montresor says his heart began to grow sick, and the dampness in the catacombs was what made him feel this way. This makes me feel like Montresor does feel some regret, and he tries to cover it up by making it seem like his sickness was from the damp surroundings. It also makes me think that maybe Montresor only killed Fortunato to fulfill his family motto, and he truly regretted it. However, throughout the story, Montresor seems prepared to get revenge, and he seems excited about the upcoming encounter. Overall, Montresor’s actions leave me unsure whether or not he was excited to kill Fortunato or actually feeling regret.
Overall, our classes participation was excellent throughout the Socratic Seminars. Each student was very respectful and allowed for a comfortable environment for everyone to express their thoughts. When students seemed reluctant to share, the group welcomed them and asked if they had any questions or specific ideas. The class did a great job answering all of the questions while referring to the text. One of the students who I followed was Ariana Pimental. Ariana did a outstanding job of sharing her thoughts, making eye contact, and responding to the thoughts of other students. Ariana was focused throughout the discussion and noticed some thought provoking ideas that most other students missed. For example, Ariana explained how many people may not want to get revenge on others if they believed in karma. These people would most likely be the bigger person in the situation and allow karma to take its course. As Ariana explained, Montresor does not appear to be a believer in karma, because he shows that he wants to be the person to get revenge. Ariana’s ability to listen and share her thought provoking ideas made her an asset to her group and the class as a whole. However, she does have some opportunities for improvement. Ariana needed to back up her information with evidence from the text. In the future, if Ariana focuses on backing up her thought provoking statements with evidence she will do an even better job during the socratic seminar.
I feel as though the last line in the story was meant sarcastically. I think this because throughout the rest of the story, Montresor is very cynical and for this phrase to be meant sarcastically would not be a stretch for his character.
Deletehttps://www.enotes.com/homework-help/do-you-find-montresor-reliable-narrator-345172
ReplyDeleteThe link that I chose describes someone’s opinion on the reliability of Montresor as a narrator and his true feelings as he goes through the story. I chose this link because my group had a healthy debate about whether Montresor was reliable or if Poe chose to make him unreliable to keep the story a mystery. This link discusses Montresor’s ideas throughout the story and then more specifically at the end of the story. This link directly relates to the Cask of Amontillado. It discusses one of the more important topics that my group also discussed, namely when Montresor shows hesitation after realizing Fortunato was dead. Overall, this link was interesting to me, because it discusses some thoughts that I was also considering while reading the story.
Kasie Loeum
ReplyDeleteMrs.Colando
English 9
12 December 2016
In this socratic seminar one of the most interesting topics we discussed was whether or not Montresor felt any guilt or hesitation after trapping Fortunato. What was interesting was that everyone had their own own interpretations of the ending. Some of us thought that Montresor was guilty or almost regretful of what he had done, while others thought that he was being sarcastic or is just insane. Another topic I found intriguing was Poe’s opinion on revenge. The real answer isn’t clear and can be interpreted in many ways. I personally think that he enjoys the concept of revenge because he wrote about Montresor taunting and having fun with Fortunato being oblivious to what is happening.
One question I still have is what Fortunato did to upset Montresor so badly. The reader is given no indication to what he had done and that leaves out a large and important part of the story that we need to fully understand the situation. Although it is very unlikely, Fortunato could have hurt or killed someone Montresor knew, which could have affected Montresor in such a way that made him go insane. However, Poe depicts Fortunato as a jolly person who doesn’t seem to have anything against Montresor, which makes the situation more confusing.
I think that everyone did well in their second seminar. Since we had already had one, it was easier to talk through and the topic was easier to talk about. Everyone said what they had to and tried to think of new ideas that kept the conversations going. One person I had followed in a seminar was Lexi. I think that she did a great job of speaking and adding new topics for the discussion. She also encouraged other students to speak and responded to others whenever she could. Something interesting that she said was that the phrase “punish with impunity” was used several times as a way to foreshadow Montresor’s plan to trap Fortunato.
While looking for something about Edgar Allan Poe, I had found this article: http://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/still-mysterious-death-edgar-allan-poe-180952936/.
This article describes how Poe’s death was, and still is, a complete mystery. The author writes that his death seems like something that would come from his own work and it is the most fitting for someone like him. It also states that Poe died from delirium, going insane from hallucinations and dreams. This ties into how Poe writes “The Cask of Amontillado” and his other stories. He was always different in terms of thought and wrote stories like this one that makes the reader feel scared or uneasy. Also, the fact that possibility that he could have been murdered and that the murderer was never caught can be compared to how Montresor killed Fortunato while getting away with it.
Rachael Perrotta
ReplyDeleteMrs. Colando
English 9 Honors
14 December 2016
Blog #3 - “A Cask of Amontillado” Socratic Seminar Reflection
While many thought-provoking ideas and statements were made throughout the multiple seminars, one of the most interesting ones in my opinion, was said by Ella Abbannante. She talked about how she did not think Montresor felt remorse at the end of “A Cask of Amontillado.” This statement contrasted with most of the other opinions in each group, and is partially why it was interesting. I also happened to agree with Ella’s statement. In my opinion, I think the reader tends to want to think Montresor feels guilty, as an immediate reaction to the clash of morals. To most readers, a person feeling no guilt after killing another person is absurd; therefore, their brains search for any signs of remorse they can find. Another comment I found interesting was said by Niko Montaquila. He discussed how “A Cask of Amontillado” is one sided and the reader does not know for sure what Fortunato did to Montresor. Therefore, it is impossible to judge if Montresor’s actions were justifiable. This was interesting to me because Niko looked past the specifications of the story and looked at the bigger picture. In this way, he was able to realize that the other side of the story was missing. I had not realized this before Niko mentioned it, and found this an interesting alternative viewpoint.
One of the major questions I still have regarding “A Cask of Amontillado” was sparked by Niko’s comment of how the story is one sided. After he mentioned this, I began to wonder what really happened that led to Montresor’s plot against Fortunato. Throughout the story, Montresor proves himself to not be a trustworthy narrator. He conveys this through his misleading manner towards Fortunato and his apparent overreaction to an undisclosed event involving Fortunato, which causes him to plot to kill him. Due to Montresor’s shady characteristics and lack of crucial parts of the story, I question what really happened. While this question cannot be answered, it is interesting to think about how the story might have changed if it was told in whole or partially from Fortunato’s perspective.
In my opinion, the discussions that were had in our class’s previous socratic seminar (on the top of A Yellow Raft in Blue Water) were more actively participated in. I believe this was due to the less structured questions posed in the first seminar compared to this seminar. The restrictions on the discussions were very evident through this questions and it seemed as though students were wary to stray far from the questions, and therefore did not speak as much to avoid repeating information. However, for the most part, given the circumstances, the class as a whole participated as actively as they could. I followed Ella Abbennante and Megan Anderson, who were in the two seminars I was not in. Ella participated slightly more than Megan did, speaking more than twenty times throughout the fifteen minute period. However, she managed to make relevant points and not repeat herself, which can be a challenge when speaking so often. On the other hand, Megan spoke about fifteen times, still an adequate amount for such a short period of time allowed. Megan tended to add on to others’ ideas rather than spark a new thought, as Ella did. Despite their different speaking tactics, both students participated and contributed their thoughts to their group in a respectful and appropriate manner and with comments relevant to the discussion.
Rachael Perrotta
ReplyDeleteAfter reading “A Cask of Amontillado” I did some more research on the Paris catacombs to gain a better sense of the setting of the story. Never having been to Paris myself, I wasn’t as familiar with the story’s location as I would have liked. The website I used, (http://www.ancient-origins.net/ancient-places-europe/dark-underworld-paris-catacombs-002834) not only described and gave background knowledge on the catacombs, but also had many pictures that cleared up my confusion. This also helped me to gain a better understanding of discussion questions eight and ten. Both of these questions have to do with the last scene of the story, where Montresor builds an eleven tier wall around Fortunato and Fortuanto eventually dies (not due to Montresor’s efforts however). By reading this article and seeing real pictures of the Paris catacombs, I was able to understand “A Cask of Amontillado” as well as the socratic seminars much more than I would have, having not read the article.
ReplyDeleteErin Rapoza
One specific topic that I found interesting was if we thought Montresor's revenge was necessary to get back for what Fortunato has done. I think that Poe lets the reader pick if they think this is reasonable because he doesn’t tell us what Fortunato has done. Another topic that I found interesting was when we discussed if we thought Montresor was guilty or not. I do think he felt a little guilty because he hesitated to kill Fortunato, and he also said his heart dropped when he didn’t hear Fortunato respond to him.
A question that I still had after the discussion is do you think Montresor was giving Fortunato hints that he was going to kill him to waste time before killing him? I have this question because I do not understand why he would give him hints if he wanted to be successful with his plans. If Fortunato did catch on, Montresor would not be successful with his plan.
I think the class did very well in these discussions. One of the people that I followed was Maddie. She did a great job at adding on to other people’s questions and also asking questions. She also gave the speaker eye contact.
https://www.enotes.com/homework-help/giving-two-reasons-do-you-believe-montresor-cask-384078.
I chose this link because it goes along with the topic of do you think it was necessary for Montresor to kill Fortunato. This link discusses if Fortunato really did something that bad where Montresor had to kill him or was Montresor just insane. I do think that he is insane because I do not think it is right to kill someone, especially just to get revenge. Also in the beginning, Montresor said Fortunato gave him one thousand injuries which is most likely an exaggeration.
Madison Drezek
ReplyDeleteMrs. Colando
English 9 Honors
14 December 2016
Socratic Seminar Reflection
In my opinion I think that our socratic seminar on The Cask of Amontillado went better than our first seminar at the beginning of the year on A Yellow Raft In Blue Water. In this seminar more people discussed and shared their opinions and people knew what to do better. Some Ideas in the seminar that i found interesting was when Ella mentioned that Montresor seemed like he wouldn’t give hints as to killing Fortunato but he ended up almost being sarcastic towards Fortunato and giving him hints. I thought his was interesting because i had never thought about Montresor hinting at Fortunato’s death and this made me realize that he actually did hint at it.
One unanswered question I have is why did Montresor want to get revenge on Fortunato? Montresor says that Fortunato has insulted him in the beginning of the story but he never stated what he did. This made me think that the insults had happened a while back but maybe Montresor was getting revenge on Fortunato from a long time ago. Another question i have is that even though Fortunato was drunk how did he not notice that Montresor was building a wall around him? This stumped me because it seems like a person would know when a wal was being built around them or when a person is chaining them up even if they are drunk.
I think that everyone did well in their seminars. The two people that I followed were Destinee and Ella. One of Destinee’s strengths was speaking her opinions on the questions and then referring back to the text with evidence. One area of improvement could be asking more questions in the group. In the second seminar I followed Ella. One of her strengths is Speaking in the discussion and asking the group questions on what they think about a certain topic. One area that could be improved is encouraging others to join the conversation and referring back to the text with evidence on her thoughts.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=utOm0Pw9pe4
This is a link to a video summary on the Cask of Amontillado. This video helped me understand the story a bit better because it simplified the story in easier context than the book and left out the background details. This video also has drawings that go along with it to help you visualize the story while it is being summarized.
Cailyn Cardente
ReplyDeleteMrs. Colando
English 9 Honors: Period 6
12 December 2016
Cask of Amontillado Blog Reflection
During the socratic seminar a topic I found very interesting was everyones opinion on seeking revenge. My specific group no one fully agreed with my point of view of it being okay to seek revenge but only within limits. Destinee believed that a person should not seek revenge but that karma will ‘come around’ to get back at that person. I thought this was interesting because I had not been thinking about karama at all, I personally believe that matters should be taken into one's hands; but obviously not to the extent that Montresor took it.
A concept that I am still wondering about afterwards is if Montresor felt remorse after his act of killing Fortunato. Although there were moments were he paused and reflected of what he had done and was going to do he did not stop. Also, at the end when he says “rest in peace” it is not know if he is saying it sarcastically or if he truly means it because of his regret afterwards.
I feel as if the majority of the class participated well in the center circle and in the outer circle, everyone shared their own opinion on all events that happen. The people I followed were Rachael Perrotta and Jessica Sullivan, both of them did very well during the Socratic Seminars during theirs and others. Jess and Rachael both asked questions that weren't structured to the group and I found that very interesting because it opened my eyes to something I had not thought of.
http://poestories.com/biography.php
This article about Poe’s background gave me a dropper understanding of what he went through and why he wrote such eerie and dark stories.