The Death of Conchobar

Today, we will continue to look at the overview of the class, and then begin reading the "Death of Conchobar".

Here is the link

Pre-reading

Break into groups of three and brainstorm the following:

1) What are the qualities of a warrior/hero (think of the Odyssey, the Iliad)?

2) What are the qualities of a good king?

3) What does a society with a king and warriors look like or act like? 

4) What do you expect from a story about heroes and kings?

5) What does Oral Tradition mean to you and how do you expect it to affect the story?

As we read

1)    Keep track of all the characters that appear.  Who is the protagonist?  The antagonist(s)-- (think type of conflict).

2)    What is the main theme of the story (what is the author trying to say about life).

3)    List at least two symbols in the story.  Why are these important?

4)    Try to outline the plot.

After we read

1)    What is up with the ending?  Why is it important?  Is this a Christian story or a Pagan story?  What clues (evidence) help you determine this?

2)    What does the story tell us about life in Ireland during this time period? 

3)    What do you think about Conchobhar?  Is he a good king?  What is his personality like?

4)    What do you think about Cet?  Is he a good warrior?  What inferences can you make about him?

5)    What other warriors appear in the story? 

6)    Summarize this story.

GROUP ACTIVITY (this is worth 20 points)

Rewrite the story in your own words and give your own telling of it.  This should be a script with characters (one of your characters can be a narrator).  You will act this out in front of class tomorrow.  Your acting/presentation should take 2-3 minutes and I will time it on a stopwatch.  Good luck.  

ocabulary #1: 

Obsolete

Philistine

Meticulous

Officious

Peruse

Mitigate

Perfidy

Morose