Tolkien
Grade: 7 - 12 Min: 4 Max: 15 (3 seats remaining)
Min Assistants: 1 Max Assistants: 1 (Assistant Max Reached)
J.R.R. Tolkien wrote the story that made the Fantasy genre what it is today. Where did such a story come from? In the first several weeks of class, we will be introduced to Tolkien the man and dive into some of the works that shaped his imagination, like the Anglo-Saxon poems 'The Wanderer,' and 'Beowulf.' The rest of the year will be spent reading all three volumes of the Lord of the Rings, with an occasional essay or short story thrown in. My hope is that you leave the class loving Lord of the Rings more than when you signed up, and that you develop an appreciation for Tolkien's belief in the ability of art to bring glory to our Creator. I hope you join us!
Homework will be written narrations of the assigned weekly readings and a comparative essay at the end of each volume of Lord of the Rings.
Mid year project: The entire class will memorize the Lord's Prayer in Old English. We will start class with a time of group recitation by week 4. End of the year project: this is a creative project chosen by the student to highlight or interact with the story in some way. Details will be in the syllabus.
Beowulf by Burton Raffel * The Lord of the Rings, vol. 1-3 * Notebook or loose-leaf paper for narrations.
$10 first semester for copies, $5 second semester for copies. Any unused portion will be returned at the end of the year.
Listening, reading at a upper middle school level, willingness to discuss what we read
Please read (or re-read) The Hobbit before the start of the school year.