was, the drunken Doug Engle replied, “In-A-Gadda-Da Vida”. Point out how many students may have come close to this version simply by connecting the title with the historical screen (the stoner culture of the sixties). Note the religious allusions, as well as the literary and psychological symbols ("take my hand”, “please”, etc.) Also note that the song later took on the meaning of “in the garden of life”, which also can be discussed in terms of screened symbolism.
- From a plot mapping perspective, ask if students feel this song is complete. Why does it seem like a fragment? Lead students into a discussion of our Western notion of literary completion (from the introduction-body-conclusion style to the exposition-rising action-climax-falling action-resolution model). This linear way of thinking is not universal, as other cultures ascribe value to circular thinking. (For example, Native American culture values the circle or hoop as the symbol of life and unity, so oral or written literature may not have the beginning/end lineage that most students are used to.)
- Going back to the notion of dreams, ask students to reflect on how their dreams are not usually linear in that it is difficult to pinpoint an exact introduction/ body/conclusion to them. In fact, they may seem incomplete or fragmented, or even illogical in Western terms.
- Tie in the concept of imagination to dreams as a way of exploring the potentially illogical side of these nocturnal visions. Is imagination, as in dreams, the mind playing tricks on the logic? Or is it more than that? How does this relate to the concept of imagination in the Romantic era? Note what The Oxford Illustrated History of English Literature defines as Romantic imagination: “a faculty for reordering former sense impressions: the perceiving mind and the perceived object are separate” (290). How does that play against what we think of as dreams? Ask students to discuss this notion.
- Ask students to think about what fosters and promotes imagination. List responses on the board or overhead as students share. (If students haven’t listed “drugs” or alcohol, be sure to add those.) Point out how their examples connect to the four screens of interpretation.
- Segue into the homework assignment for the next class period--reading about Samuel Coleridge, the Romantic writer synonymous with imagination. Students should read the biographical information on Coleridge in their textbooks. (In McDougal, Littell Literature: English Literature, this is found on page 453.)
- Ask student to respond in writing to the following prompt:
Write about the importance and/or size of your imagination. How has it changed since you were a kid? What has influenced it? Be sure to discuss things such as imaginary friends, monsters, superheroes, lying, etc.
- Play “Just My Imagination” by the Temptations while students write.
- Following writing, ask students to call out the five senses while you write them on the board or overhead: hearing, sight, touch, taste, and smell.
- In partner groups, ask students to write down examples of sensory images used while the partner reads his/her prompt. Repeat for the other partner. (two minutes).
- At the end of the two minutes, ask who found five, four, three, two, or one example of sensory images by the partner? Ask the partners how this affected the “picture” the writer created of his/her imagination. Be sure to note how these sensory perceptions create great imagery for the reader or listener, allowing him/her to vicariously relive the author’s/narrator’s experience.
- Put the lyrics to the Who’s “See Me, Feel Me, Touch Me” up on the overhead. Ask students to note examples of the senses while the song is being played.
- Invite volunteers to share their findings on sensory images in the Who’s song. Underline them on the overhead and identify the respective sense as students respond. Be sure to remind students of the mental pictures these images create.
- Now try this imagery hunt with “Xanadu” by Rush, a song inspired by Samuel Coleridge’s classic poem “Xanadu.” Rernind students w