Bell Ringer: Tuesday, January 10th Copy down the word for today: Satire (noun) Definition: a literary genre used to ridicule or make fun of human vice or weakness, often with the intent of correcting or changing the subject of the satiric attack. Sentence: In his lifetime, Mark Twain wrote many pieces of satire. When you are finished, create an ACT-style THESIS statement for the prompt we were working on yesterday (ACT writing – is it fair or not?). Your goal is to make your thesis COMPLEX. Incorporate 1 or both of the following into your thesis: A counterargument that your opponents might give The big examples you plan to expound on in your paper. If you finish this, you can start working on an outline for how you’d write on this prompt.

Advice to Youth… Congratulations! You have been hired to speak at your old elementary school on Friday. The teachers are looking for someone to give some general advice to their students. They picked you because it’s been quite a few years since you’ve stepped in that building, and they believe you’ve experienced a lot and gained wisdom since then! Obviously, you need to brainstorm and write up a really engaging piece of writing. For the next 4 minutes, write down some ideas for topics that you’d discuss with the children. For example, you might say something like: Always do your homework. It might not seem fun, but it will help reinforce ideas so that school is easier when you get older.

Advice that Ben Franklin Offered to/about Youth… To be humble to superiors is duty, to equals courtesy, to inferiors nobleness. Virtue and a trade are a child’s best portion. The honest man takes pains and then enjoys pleasures; The knave takes pleasures and then suffers pains. Teach your child to hold his tongue, he’ll learn fast enough to speak. Educate your children to self-control, to the habit of holding passion and prejudice and evil tendencies subject to an upright and reasoning will, and you have done much to abolish misery from their future and crimes from society.

Horatio Alger 19th century writer who wrote about protagonists who overcame adversity, worked hard, respected others, and eventually became successful due to their virtuous traits.

Twain’s “Advice to Youth” Written in 1882 It’s SATIRE! The best way to understand satire is to see it in action. Understand…Twain is trying to be funny! As we read the essay… In each paragraph, identify the tried and true virtue or belief that Twain is making fun of. Think…HOW does Twain make fun of the virtue/belief? Why is it funny? Remember, in satire, the author is often trying to CHANGE the subject that he/she is making fun of. At the end of the essay, I will ask you…what’s the big picture? What is Twain trying to say about the way that we teach children to live/behave? Be thinking about this!