Interact!!!

No, this is not the club!

Those of you who are part of the 9B1 Google Group have been added as Authors. Have fun... but be careful about what you write and your vocabulary - as the blog can be viewed by anyone.

I look forward to reading some great stuff.

[Ah, Ayush, I heard that question - Does it have to be about DOS, you asked. No, of course not... ]

What about Biff, then?

Biff, "built like Adonis", the most popular young boy in high school, the captain... a commanding presence, a born leader...

What, Willy wonders, happened to him?

The promise of the young Biff who could order his friends to clean up the cellar [and they listened to him!] seems to have come to nothing. Oh yes, he had this slightly bad habit of "borrowing" things, but really, even his coach did not seem to mind.

What did he say he wanted to do, that is REALLY do? He wanted to be out in the fields with his shirt off, working on a farm. That was definitely not the way to get rich. Was this the only reason that Willy was disappointed in him?

Linda says that Biff is trying to "find himself". Therefore, he must have lost himself somewhere. When we meet the young Biff, he does not seem lost at all. Where and when and how did he lose himself?

Let's put our thoughts down and see how accurately we can predict the revelations about Biff that are to follow.

In Willy's Shoes

What makes an empathic answer worthwhile... that is, the reader, a.k.a. the hapless Cathy who has to plough through pages and pages of your delightful  scribbles wondering, often, where you were during the lesson :).


First of all, take off your shoes [hold your nose in case they stink, and definitely don't do this in my room - this is why it is given to you as HOMEwork].


As observed by Noor, "How can Linda take Willy's shoes off, ewwwww!" Well, as long as they are off, sieze the opportunity and put them on!


Metaphorically speaking, that's what an empathic answer is all about - getting into a character's shoes. This is, as you know, an expression which means you can thereafter, hopefully, experience life as s/he experiences it. Of course, under any circumstances, this is a difficult task. However, it should not be daunting. In order to be able to think and feel like a character, you could do the following:

1. Make a careful note of the VOCABULARY the character uses - would Willy use the term "piss off", asked Chirag - well, read through the selected portion and keep a look-out if he does or not. Otherwise you are slipping from Willy to Chirag.

2. Refer to EVENTS that are mentioned in the extract.

3. Refer to OTHER CHARACTERS in the extract - this should reflect the attitude of the character that you are writing as towards the other characters. For example, Willy's mixture of irritation, love, guilt and gratitude towards Linda is very evident. His pride in Biff as well as the deep disappointment comes through quite clearly.

4. Use a TONE that is appropriate to the character. Willy, as is evident, is losing his mind - so the narrative you write does not need to follow a logical or chronological sequence.


Have a look at the rubric below: (C) IGCSE

P.S. Leave a comment if you have a query.
The googlegroup should be ready as soon as everyone sends me their email ids.

BTW: This assignment was due YESTERDAY!!!!