"To Kill a Mockingbird Film--Is the Movie True to the Text?"
When we talk about literature, we use the phrase "infer meaning from the text." What does this mean?
Characterization:
1.What he says
2. How he acts and interacts
3. What others say about him
4. Narrator tells us
In a film, what does this mean? What is the text of a movie?
Instead of words on a page, we have other clues that lead us to the meaning of the "book" and help us understand what the characters are like.
What is the text of a movie?
"Textual" clues include:
1. Body language (position of body, frowning, clenching, tilting, facial expression)
2. What the character says
3. Delivery of the line (how he says it--emotion, speed, pauses, what word is stressed)
4. Director "tells us" by the way the scene is filmed
- How the characters are positioned in the frame
- Lighting
- camera angle; lens length
Start by memorizing the most important quote of the movie. Copy it on your paper:
You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view […] until you climb into his skin and walk around in it."
To Kill a Mockingbird Vocabulary for Tuesday--"subpoena" to "acquit"
As you watch the movie, I want you to write down three very specific examples from the film that show just what kind of person Atticus is. Focus on the acting of Gregory Peck, who plays Atticus.
How actors create their character:
Body language
Delivery of dialogue (slows down for dramatic pause, etc.)
The way he interacts with others
The emotion they're trying to express
-- concern
--inner turmoil
-- excitement
-- etc. (you pick)
Now you have to ask yourself the question: "Is the actor's portrayal of the character true to the text?"
HOMEWORK: Read To Kill a Mockingbird to at least page 88.
By Friday, be on page 99
By Monday, be on page 127
For those of you who were not here, do the following assignment and turn it in at the first of the period tomorrow:
Journal:
"First of all," he said, "if you can learn a simple trick, Scout, you'll get along a lot better with all kinds of folks. You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view […] until you climb into his skin and walk around in it."
1.Give an example of a time when someone doesn't "consider things from [another person's] point of view." Write a paragraph summarizing the example. It has to be specific.
2. Then tell me what advice Atticus would give that person. This will be another paragraph.
(1/2-3/4 page. Due tomorrow at the first of the period). Remember, he is giving advice to the person who doesn't understand someone else. Also, Atticus would most likely explain what it means to walk around in someone else's skin.
Sparknotes for To Kill a Mockingbird
Chapters 7-8
