Syllabus


 * EAST HARTFORD ADULT EDUCATION **  ** The Graphic Novel Syllabus **   ** Spring 2012 **

4:00-4:15 – Introduction Activity (Name Game); write out expectations of course, teacher, self, e-mail addresses and phone numbers (on colored index cards that instructor keeps and re-addresses the day of Final Exam) 4:15-4:30 – Laptop set-up and flash drives 4:30-4:00 – Introduction to the Graphic Novel: 4:00-4:25 – Introduction to Persepolis 4:25-4:30 – Exit Slip: Name one thing that was the most interesting about today’s class
 * // Day 1 //**
 * “The Graphic Novel” PowerPoint presentation
 * “Persepolis” PowerPoint presentation

4:00-4:05 – Laptop set-up, review Exit Slips, pass out syllabus, pass out journals 4:05-4:15 – KWL: Iran; show map on SmartBoard 4:15-4:30 – Look up Google Images about Iran and write down five (5) to (10) recurring images; what portrayal do you get about Iran from the images? 4:30-5:25 – Rick Steves’ Iran documentary; share KWLs 5:25-5:30 – Exit Slip: Name one thing about Iran that you did not know before HW: Read The New York Time’s //Iran: An Overview// and compare to Rick Steves’ documentary
 * // Day 2 //**

4:00-4:05 – Laptop set-up 4:05-5:00 – Vocabulary Group Research (imperialism, radicalize, fanaticism, fundamentalism, revolution, Westernization, Marxism, Republic, conscience, dialectic, proletariat, regime) 5:00-5:30 – Vocabulary Game
 * // Day 3 //**

4:00-4:15 – Anticipation Guide 4:15-6:30 – Essential Questions Carousel 6:30-6:45 – Read “The Veil” (pp1-10) 6:45-5:25 – Read “The Bicycle” (pp 10-17) 5:25-5:30 – Exit Slip: At the end of the chapter, Marjane asks to demonstrate against the government. Would you let your child demonstrate and be “a part of history” or would you make her stay at home for safety’s sake?
 * // Day 4 //**
 * The character of the 8-year-old Marjane and how it reflects (or does not reflect) what was going on in Iran
 * Why is the veil so disliked? What does it represent to the children who have to wear them?
 * What represented the “cultural revolution?”
 * How does Marjane present the issue of social class?
 * How does Marjane’s believing to be a prophet reflect her religious upbringing?
 * Notice the clothing changes on page 9 at the bottom. What do you think this represents? Why does Marjane use this change?
 * Who are Fidel Castro, Che Guevara and Trotsky?
 * What is the novel saying so far about education? about Marjane’s education?
 * How is the connection of religion and politics evident in the novel? How is it conflicting? (p16)
 * What does the burning of the movie theater say about the revolution? What does the movie theater and those inside symbolize?

4:00-4:15 – J: What do you think the following quote means: “The revolution is like a bicycle. When the wheels don’t turn, it falls” (//Persepolis// 10) 4:15-4:30 – Read “The Water Cell” (pp 18-25) 4:30-5:25 – “Graphic Novel Terms;” ReadWriteThink: Improving Comprehension (Sessions 1 & 2)
 * // Day 5 //**
 * What does Marjane learn about religion and politics?
 * What does she learn about her own family? How might this influence Marjane’s parents in demonstrating as well?

5:25-5:30 – Exit Slip: By learning about the graphic novel as a form of art, analyzing its elements, do you feel that you have a better appreciation of the novel, or has it become more confusing to you? Explain your answer.

6:00-6:15 – J: How would you describe the child Marji to whom we’re introduced at the beginning of //Persepolis//? To what extent is she like children anywhere? To what extent is she different from the child that you were or the children that you grew up with? 6:15-7:00 – “Graphic Elements” 7:00-7:25 – Read “Persepolis” (pp26-32) 7:25-7:30 – Exit Slip: How do you like the graphic novel so far? What is the best part of it? What is the worst part?
 * // Day 6 //**
 * How does Marjane react to the truth about her mother’s poverty? Why do you think she reacts this way?
 * What angers Marjane the most: the realization that the Shah is not such a great leader as she had come to believe, or that no one will talk to her about her grandfather? Why do you think so?
 * What message is the author offering in the scene about the martyrs? Why doesn’t Marjane understand?

6:00-6:15 – J: Why do you think Satrapi called her book //Persepolis// instead of something like //Growing Up in Iran//? 6:15-6:30 – Read “The Letter” (pp 33-39) 6:30-6:45 – Read “The Party” (pp 40-46) 6:45-7:00 – Read “The Heroes” (pp47-53) 7:00-7:25 – Explain Binaries then have students choose which binaries have been addressed already in the novel and show evidence of it (group work) 7:25-7:30 – Exit Slip: What do you think about the Prezi presentation? Is it better than a PPT presentation? HW: Pass out Midterm Exam Review
 * // Day 7 //**
 * What is Marjane’s social class and why was she ashamed of it?
 * Are there social classes in America? What are they?
 * What social class are you in? Why do you think this?
 * What important event happened in this chapter? How is this both a major event and a conflicting one for the Satrapi?
 * Analyzing the graphics of the novel []
 * On page 51, the question is raised about what should be done to the torturers. What do you think should be done to those who torture- should they be forgiven or punished? Why?
 * What do you think Marji’s mother means when she says, “Bad people are dangerous, but forgiving them is too” (p 53)?

6:00-6:15 – J: Is knowing one’s family history important to knowing oneself better? Why or why not? 6:15-6:30 – Read “Moscow” (pp 54-64) 6:30-6:45 – Read “The Sheep” (pp 62-71) 6:45-7:00 – Read “The Trip” (pp 72-79) 7:00-7:15 – Read “The F-14s” (pp 80-86) 7:25-7:30 – Exit Slip: Have you studied for the midterm exam? How?
 * // Day 8 //**
 * What is dialectic materialism? ( It proposes that every economic order grows to a state of maximum efficiency, while simultaneously developing internal contradictions and weaknesses that contribute to its systemic decay)
 * How does Marji’s childlike curiosity contribute to her early maturity?
 * Was Marji’s uncle Anoosh correct in retelling the story of the family to Marji?
 * What is Marji’s definition of hero? Compare her feelings for her father as a hero versus her feelings for her uncle Anoosh as a hero.
 * So far in the novel, the idea of leaving Iran had not occurred. Why does it come up in this chapter?
 * How does Satrapi graphically show Anoosh’s loss of belief in the revolution?
 * While the boundary between politics and religion seems to blend further in Iran, it suffers a great severing in this chapter. How do we know this?
 * What does the panel on p 71 reveal about Marji’s development?
 * In what ways are Marji’s dreams in jeopardy?
 * What does p 74 reveal about the climate toward women in Iran? Is it fair for us as Americans to judge all Iranians for this climate change toward women?
 * How does the graphic of Marji’s mom on page 76 (3rd panel) reflect her change?
 * How does this chapter reveal the disconnect between the Iranian people and the Iranian government?
 * What do you think about Paradisse’s comment that she wish her father were alive and in jail rather than dead and a hero?