1. “The Weary Blues” By Langston Hughes Mrs. Giannone English 10 4C October 1, 2014

2. About the poet (include their name)  Include 5-6 facts about the author’s life; when they were born, city, year etc. Address any obstacles they faced.  This may take 1-2 slides  Be sure to include a picture of your poet

3. Writing Career  Include 2-3 facts about their writing career how they got started or what influenced them.  Be sure to include at least one fact about the poem that you’re presenting  Address any awards and/or accomplishments associated with their writing career

4. Later Life  Retirement?  Death?  You can include another photo if you choose.

5. Poem Performance If you’re going to include pictures as part of your background for your poem performance, you can insert them here. If you are not going to use pictures, skip this slide and go straight to your poem analysis.

6. The Weary Blues Droning a drowsy syncopated tune, Rocking back and forth to a mellow croon, I heard a Negro play. Down on Lenox Avenue the other night By the pale dull pallor of an old gas light 5 He did a lazy sway.... To the tune o’ those Weary Blues. With his ebony hands on each ivory key He made that poor piano moan with melody. 10 O Blues! Swaying to and fro on his rickety stool He played that sad raggy tune like a musical fool. Sweet Blues! Coming from a black man’s soul. 15 O Blues! In a deep song voice with a melancholy tone I heard that Negro sing, that old piano moan— “Ain’t got nobody in all this world, Ain’t got nobody but ma self. 20 I’s gwine to quit ma frownin’ And put ma troubles on the shelf.” Thump, thump, thump, went his foot on the floor. He played a few chords then he sang some more— “I got the Weary Blues 25 And I can’t be satisfied. Got the Weary Blues And can’t be satisfied— I ain’t happy no mo’ And I wish that I had died.” 30 And far into the night he crooned that tune. The stars went out and so did the moon. The singer stopped playing and went to bed While the Weary Blues echoed through his head. He slept like a rock or a man that’s dead. 35 Provide your analysis of the poem to the right. You can color code stanzas, use inserted comments, or use transition slides or animations to break-up the stanzas. Do not make it too distracting. You will need to share your overall analysis of the poem, but you do not need to include the paragraph nor read it word for word. If your poem is lengthy you may need more than one slide for your poem analysis. The poem analysis should be written in your own words. Any group that plagiarizes will receive zero credit.

7. Works Cited  Include your works cited in proper MLA format.  Be sure to cite where you found the poet’s biography, any images of the poet, and/or any sources referenced for the poem analysis. Overall reminders:  No clip art  Limit your transitions and animations. Do not include too many as they may become distracting and take away from your performance.  Email a copy of your ppt to Mrs. Giannone before the start of class on Wednesday Oct. 1 st /Thursday Oct 2 nd.  Be sure to print out your ppt as a handout with six slides per page.