End of Week Two- Scroll to the end for new topics!

An amazing week! Spring is intensifying:  if you go into the bush now the beautiful pink Wax Flowers (Eriostomon Australis) are pumping out their colour

Here they are intermingling with the remnants of the Boronias which were out so strongly last week: And and along with sprays of pink these the little dark buds of Gompholobium Latifolium (look at the little black buds in this next picture!) Have this weekend suddenly  are finally bursting out with their wonderful, sensuous, flapping yellow lips- Oh the name Gompholobium says it all!! Roll that word around in your mouth and taste the sensuous richness of these glorious yellow lips: GOMPH- O- LOB- IUM!!! which comes from the Greek meaning belly, pod, pouch….. 

These and other delights are awaiting all who wonder into the bush this weekend.

For me, I am heading for the City to Surf 14 km run with son and grandson… hope to skite with some pictures on Sunday!

So let’s get back to what was happening in literature this week?

In Oz Lit we started that incredible exploration of the nature of language, its creative power in That Dead Man Dance.  We saw how Bobby Wabalanginy, through his artistry in words and in dance, is able to bring understanding and change to the complex world in which he lives. He has something of the power of these indigenous dancers: [Click Image to Make it Move!]

In 20^th Century Lit (Modernism etc.) we leapt into Heart of Darkness, or should it be called Heart of Light??? And why might I say that??? This novel has to be one of the bravest attempts to point to the heart of what was deeply wrong with Western Civilization at the turn of the century, one and half decades before the First World War started. Coppola’s Apocalypse Now dared to show how despite Conrad’s deep insight, the world continues to push forward with its imperialist efforts wherever an opportunity arises. Click on the image to see the opening scenes of this devastating movie:

In The Visionary Imagination we are exploring the idea that there ways of seeing that transcend mere vision, that it is possible to see both with the eye (materially), but also “Thro” the eye- to quote Billy Blake. And what does this mean? Something perhaps indicated by Blake’s sentences in a letter to John Trussler (August 23, 1799): “The tree which moves some to tears of joy is in the Eyes of others only a Green thing that stands in the way.” I am sure that Joseph Conrad would have deeply resonated with this idea too, in the way he talks about the kind of “seeing” that he hopes his fiction will produce in his readers.

And so now for a few additional Blog questions to keep your creative juices flowing (and remember you are permitted to create your own topics!).  Remember that your very first Blog is due tonight at 11.59 pm ( you can chose from either last week’s or this week’s topics for your first blog) and that you must also post your URL into the Google Docs space that you will find through LEO. You will also need to do at least one short peer review and copy and paste this as an additional entry into your own blog. And if you haven’t had a look at “WordPress.com  Essential Training” at http://lynda.acu.edu.au then please do so…. it is a great help.

Here are your topics.

The Visionaries: you already have your topic….

The Modernists:

Creative Topic: Take a line or two from Conrad’s writing (either his essay or his novella) and use this as a starting point for your own description of an event or situation in your own life. Try to stay close to Conrad’s style of writing.

Critical Topic: In your own words and based on your reading of the “Preface to The Nigger of Narcissus  explain to a friend what you think Conrad is trying to say about the need for “art” in the world today.

The Oz-Litters

Creative Topic: Take a single sentence from Kim Scott’s novel and use this as a starting point for writing a paragraph in the style of Kim Scott. Base this on your own experience.

Critical Topics: Explain how Kim Scott’s play on words in the opening page of his novel prepares the reader for a rich and complex experience.

Enjoy!!!

MG