EXAM Blogs
There is no better way to prepare for your exams than to write, write, write, so we are going to write as much as we can on our exam texts; we are going to exhibit our musings through blogs so that we can critique and learn from each other.
Go to Blogger and create a Blog. Email me the URL for your blog so I can link to this website, like a branch to a tree.
Every day, you will write. Every day, you will write. I wrote it twice to show the seriousness of my tone that can't be conveyed through type. Every day, you will write. Every day is two words, by the way.
You will be expected to comment on each others posts. University courses often operate through online forums, so this is good practice.
Before you begin, however, visit the blog that inspired this assignment:
This Blog is devoted entirely to The Wars -- yours will cover all exams text, so do not constrict your blog title to something war related, because it won't work when you start writing about Their Eyes Were Watching God, but you will hopefully write as eloquently and insightfully as this person.
Timothy Findley's The Wars Blog
Now that you are inspired, go forth and create. Your first post should be a comment on the following pre-reading document that I uncovered on the first google page after typing in The Wars.
The Wars by Timothy Findley:
Pre-Writing Notes by Guy Quenneville
Secondary Sources
“The Wars remains Findley’s most-discussed book. Based partly on the wartime
correspondence of his uncle, Thomas Irving Findley, and on family photos, he wrote the
novel in guise of a researcher trying to reconstruct the story of Robert Ross, a soldier of
the Great War. The book explores many of the obsessions that color all his writing:
violence, loneliness, a concern for animal rights, and the survival of the individual in a
world of madness. Findley believes that a writer has a responsibility to speak out about
what is wrong with society.” (National Library of Canada @ http://www.nlcbnc.
ca/3/8/t8-2008-e.html)
“In Timothy Findley's The Wars, one of the ways in which he conveys his feelings about
the war is through the mention of songs, works of literature and various works of art.
These aspects all help reinforce the romantic misinterpretations of war that are held by
the people that went to fight, as well as those people waiting for them upon their return.
The following is a list of some of these references, their page numbers as well as a
description of their significance to the story.” (Acadia University class website @
http://ace.acadiau.ca/english/rmorriso/findley/Findley2.htm)
“Prior to the writing of The Wars, it was unheard of for any writer who had not
experienced it first hand to write about "The War to End All Wars". However, Findley,
with his direct and shocking style, was able to surpass this barrier and create one of the
most acclaimed novels about World War I. With 'wars' being plural, it indicates that the
novel is not only about the Great War, but also about internal battles that Robert Ross is
fighting with himself as he struggles to adapt to a new way of life in the army and
without his sister who he loved very much.” (Acadia)
“Findley refers to the people prior to World War I as calm and shy, tending to stay away
from the public eye as much as possible. Photographs reveal that "everyone at first seems
timid - lost - irresolute. Boys and men stand squinting at the camera. Women turn away
suspicious. They still maintain a public reticence." (Findley, p. 11) However, the war causes
an upheaval in the lives of everyone, not just the soldiers and their families, and makes
people's opinions in different areas make a complete reversal. For example, you get praise
and for killing people, and more people are desperate to get into the view of the public.”
(Weiss, p. 93) [Acadia]
On the coyote:
“Robert learns from this run, that a hunter kills when it has to survive, but is generous
when it is not a hunter.” (Acadia)
“Never that which is shall die.”
EURIPIDES
*******************************************************************
AND for those of you that love those journal articles!!! Here is one for you!
JOURNAL ARTICLE on POSTMODERN WAR FICTION: The WARS
Go to Blogger and create a Blog. Email me the URL for your blog so I can link to this website, like a branch to a tree.
Every day, you will write. Every day, you will write. I wrote it twice to show the seriousness of my tone that can't be conveyed through type. Every day, you will write. Every day is two words, by the way.
You will be expected to comment on each others posts. University courses often operate through online forums, so this is good practice.
Before you begin, however, visit the blog that inspired this assignment:
This Blog is devoted entirely to The Wars -- yours will cover all exams text, so do not constrict your blog title to something war related, because it won't work when you start writing about Their Eyes Were Watching God, but you will hopefully write as eloquently and insightfully as this person.
Timothy Findley's The Wars Blog
Now that you are inspired, go forth and create. Your first post should be a comment on the following pre-reading document that I uncovered on the first google page after typing in The Wars.
The Wars by Timothy Findley:
Pre-Writing Notes by Guy Quenneville
Secondary Sources
“The Wars remains Findley’s most-discussed book. Based partly on the wartime
correspondence of his uncle, Thomas Irving Findley, and on family photos, he wrote the
novel in guise of a researcher trying to reconstruct the story of Robert Ross, a soldier of
the Great War. The book explores many of the obsessions that color all his writing:
violence, loneliness, a concern for animal rights, and the survival of the individual in a
world of madness. Findley believes that a writer has a responsibility to speak out about
what is wrong with society.” (National Library of Canada @ http://www.nlcbnc.
ca/3/8/t8-2008-e.html)
“In Timothy Findley's The Wars, one of the ways in which he conveys his feelings about
the war is through the mention of songs, works of literature and various works of art.
These aspects all help reinforce the romantic misinterpretations of war that are held by
the people that went to fight, as well as those people waiting for them upon their return.
The following is a list of some of these references, their page numbers as well as a
description of their significance to the story.” (Acadia University class website @
http://ace.acadiau.ca/english/rmorriso/findley/Findley2.htm)
“Prior to the writing of The Wars, it was unheard of for any writer who had not
experienced it first hand to write about "The War to End All Wars". However, Findley,
with his direct and shocking style, was able to surpass this barrier and create one of the
most acclaimed novels about World War I. With 'wars' being plural, it indicates that the
novel is not only about the Great War, but also about internal battles that Robert Ross is
fighting with himself as he struggles to adapt to a new way of life in the army and
without his sister who he loved very much.” (Acadia)
“Findley refers to the people prior to World War I as calm and shy, tending to stay away
from the public eye as much as possible. Photographs reveal that "everyone at first seems
timid - lost - irresolute. Boys and men stand squinting at the camera. Women turn away
suspicious. They still maintain a public reticence." (Findley, p. 11) However, the war causes
an upheaval in the lives of everyone, not just the soldiers and their families, and makes
people's opinions in different areas make a complete reversal. For example, you get praise
and for killing people, and more people are desperate to get into the view of the public.”
(Weiss, p. 93) [Acadia]
On the coyote:
“Robert learns from this run, that a hunter kills when it has to survive, but is generous
when it is not a hunter.” (Acadia)
“Never that which is shall die.”
EURIPIDES
*******************************************************************
AND for those of you that love those journal articles!!! Here is one for you!
JOURNAL ARTICLE on POSTMODERN WAR FICTION: The WARS
Useful Links
You may consult the following links to help you create your posts:
A very brief outline of Findley's personal information and writings.
A more detailed biography on Timothy Findley.
Timothy Findley discusses his views on fiction. (Stone Orchard what he called his home)
The Importance of The Wars.
This article states a few reasons why "The Wars" is so important in Canadian literature. Firstly, the state of the publishing industry in Canada--the book was published by Clarke, Irwin which normally existed as a textbook publisher. When fiction was published it was usually discreet, however "The Wars" was far from discreet. Therefore Clarke, Irwin's publishing of "The Wars" was both "a gamble and an investment" for the company. Secondly, the light it casts on the state of reviewing in Canada. Donald Jack was chosen to review "The Wars" because both his novel and Findley's novel were based on World War I. However, Jack is a humorist and "The Wars" is a tragic novel, therefore Jack found Findley's novel an "unacceptable distortion". The novel itself is the third reason for its importance. It was written by a serious writer (serious writers are becoming rare in Canadian novels). It is "gripping reading" and Findley uses interesting devices to hold the novel together, such as the character Findley calls "you". The article claims that for these three main reasons, Timothy Findley's novel "The Wars" is a major literary event.
William Whitehead (Findley's partner) on how Timothy Findley's love of animals came out in his fiction and his life.
Timothy Findley Obituary on CBC. Lots of interesting facts and links to interviews.
The use of photomontage in The Wars - An essay.
A very brief outline of Findley's personal information and writings.
A more detailed biography on Timothy Findley.
Timothy Findley discusses his views on fiction. (Stone Orchard what he called his home)
The Importance of The Wars.
This article states a few reasons why "The Wars" is so important in Canadian literature. Firstly, the state of the publishing industry in Canada--the book was published by Clarke, Irwin which normally existed as a textbook publisher. When fiction was published it was usually discreet, however "The Wars" was far from discreet. Therefore Clarke, Irwin's publishing of "The Wars" was both "a gamble and an investment" for the company. Secondly, the light it casts on the state of reviewing in Canada. Donald Jack was chosen to review "The Wars" because both his novel and Findley's novel were based on World War I. However, Jack is a humorist and "The Wars" is a tragic novel, therefore Jack found Findley's novel an "unacceptable distortion". The novel itself is the third reason for its importance. It was written by a serious writer (serious writers are becoming rare in Canadian novels). It is "gripping reading" and Findley uses interesting devices to hold the novel together, such as the character Findley calls "you". The article claims that for these three main reasons, Timothy Findley's novel "The Wars" is a major literary event.
William Whitehead (Findley's partner) on how Timothy Findley's love of animals came out in his fiction and his life.
Timothy Findley Obituary on CBC. Lots of interesting facts and links to interviews.
The use of photomontage in The Wars - An essay.