Resources for Henrik Ibsen's "Ghosts"

A synopsis of the play:

The play is set on a mist-obscured fjord in western Norway in the home of Helen Alving. She is a widow and about to open an orphanage in honor of her late husband. Her son, Oswald, an artist who lives in Paris, has returned home for the event. As the play begins, we see Mrs. Alving talking with Manders, the parish pastor. He is depicted as a narrow-minded, hypocritical prig, upbraiding Mrs. Alving for her "modern ideas" and trying to shame her with remembrances of her youth, when she had left her husband. Mrs. Alving, a woman of strength and independence, tells Manders that her husband was an alcoholic and a profligate, and that their life together was misery. She had also left her husband hoping to be welcomed by Manders, whom she truly loved; he seems as unable to acknowledge this as he is to accept the truth about her life with her husband. She had sent Oswald away as a young boy to spare him from his father, and yet has spent the years since her husband's death creating an image of a great man for her son; now they are preparing to commemorate his life with an orphanage. Yet the truth will emerge, and the "ghosts" of the title, both the presence of the dead among the living and the "dead ideas" that haunt the characters, begin to appear.

Two recurrent themes in Ibsen's work are evidenced in this drama. His condemnation of the hypocrisy of society is evident in his mocking portrayal of Manders, the representative of staid, middle-class morality. Ibsen often explored the factor of heredity in determining the personality and fate of the individual. Here, we get a glimpse of the presence of these "ghosts" when Mrs. Alving sees Oswald making sexual advances to the maid, Regina. Years before, she had caught her husband and the maid Joanna in the same situation, and the union had resulted in Regina. Mrs. Alving had quickly found a husband for Joanna and had raised Regina as a servant. When Oswald makes it clear that he wishes to marry Regina, Mrs. Alving is forced to reveal the truth to them. But Oswald's "inheritance" from his father goes farther: he is going mad, a congenital condition acquired through his father. He entreats his mother to help him to commit suicide when his next attack comes; she is horrified at the prospect. As the play closes, the sun has at last broken through the mist, yet the light has come into Oswald's life too late, and he appears lost to the darkness of his mental state. The play is noted for its harsh social criticism and its straight-forward presentation of such controversial topics as adultery, syphilis, and incest, which created of storm of protest when the play first appeared. The symbolism which later dominated Ibsen's work is evident here in the recurrent images of light and darkness.

Full Text: COPYRIGHT 2003 Gale.

A video of Lesley Manville performing a scene from the play.

http://www.nytimes.com/video/theater/100000003624433/in-performance-lesley-manville.html?action=click&pgtype=Homepage&version=timesvideo-heading&module=watch-in-times-video&region=video-player-region&WT.nav=video-player-region

An article about the play's themes:

http://www.bam.org/education/2015/study-guide/ghosts/context

Work for Students Who MISSED Class on March 31

Read both sections and answer all questions and the summary.

Read from Act I, sc 4 line 43 (starts on page 51) through the end of
the scene. (Parts: Hamlet, Horatio, Marcellus)

1. Wherefore means “why.” What are three questions Hamlet wants to
ask the ghost?
2. Why does Horatio ask Hamlet not to go? Use text to defend your
answer.
3. Horatio says, “He waxes desperate with imagination.” How does that
reflect on Hamlet’s character? Should we believe Horatio?
4. BONUS: Interpret the line “Something is rotten in the state of
Denmark.” What’s rotten? Explain.

Read Act I, sc v line 99 (starts on page 61) through the end of the
scene. (Parts: Hamlet, Horatio, Marcellus, Ghost)

1. What does Hamlet mean “thy commandment all alone shall live/Within
the book and volume of my brain…”?
2. Horatio says, “These are but wild and whirling words, my lord.” How
does that reflect on Hamlet’s character? Should we believe Horatio?
3. Starting on line 186, what does Hamlet ask his friends never to do?
4. BONUS: Interpret the line “The time is out of joint.” Explain.

SUMMARY:  Does Hamlet have a reasonable reaction to the ghost?  Use at least two pieces of textual evidence.

Hamlet Act I, sc i Homework

Summary: How does the characters’ lack of knowledge contribute to the mood already established by details about the setting or plot?

OPTIONAL TEMPLATE: The characters’ lack of knowledge creates a mood of _______. For example… This mood is also established through other details such as…. 

Hamlet, full text

Speech Responding to Bush's "Duty of Hope" Speech

Write a one-page speech for Gore to deliver in response to Bush's speech. Be sure to include:

- A Developed Counterclaim (What was good about Bush's idea?)

- A Convincing Critique (What are two or three questions or ideas that will make voters doubt Bush's idea?)

- Correct grammar, an appropriate tone, and effective transitions to help your audience follow your thinking.


For BONUS credit, practice using some of the rhetorical techniques you saw in Bush's speech in your own speech.  You could also use the texhniques we saw SInger use: analogies, anecdotes and questions and rebuttals.

"The Duty of Hope" Questions - Due Monday, March 3

After reading, answer the following questions.

1.       Bush describes himself as an “economic conservative.”  Based on the beginning of his speech, what does he seem to mean by this?  What limitation does he see to that approach?

2.       What purpose does the example of Big Brothers/Big Sisters serve?  What point is Bush trying to make?  What anecdote does Bush use to develop this point? Explain.

3.       Bush refers at one point to previous attempts by government to wage “war on poverty” and says that those efforts were frustrated.  What new idea does he have?

4.       What are the two mindsets about government that Bush says we need to get past?  How does his plan avoid these two mindsets? 

BONUS:  What rhetorical strategies does Bush use to persuade his audience?  Consider appeals to our emotion, figurative language, allusions to history or to religion…

EXTRA BONUS:  For Monday, you will be writing a response to this speech from the perspective of his political opponent.  Think about what points you might bring up to make people question Bush's point of view.  Do some research to find evidence to support your point!

Classwork from November 25

Read pages 346 to 350 (stop at "...and really means it.")  Answer the following questions on a separate sheet of paper:

1. How is Achilles expressing his anger? Support your answer with textual evidence.

2. What point does Apollo make about anger to the gods? Support your answer with textual evidence.

3. What is Achilles doing when Thetis finds him? What does that tell us about Achilles anger?

4. What is one other example of anger from the book so far? Find a quote from a previous day's reading that pertains to anger.

Homework - Due Weds 12/12

1.  Read pages 128-132 to the line "He's cracked."  Answer the following question:

What is the mood at the beginning of this chapter?  What is the mood at the end?  Why does it change?  Use T.E.A. to construct your answer.

2.  Read pages 56 and 57.  Then, read the end of 132 and the first two lines of 133.  Compare the description of the setting in both these passages.  What meaning do you think Golding is developing through his description of setting?  Use textual evidence to defend your claims.