Play Dialectical Journal Instructions Layout: Your journal may be typed or handwritten in blue or black ink.

. Make a three-column chart. The heading for the left column is Text Quotation; the heading for the middle column is Critical, Analytical Response; the heading for the right column is Characterization. Choose 10 different quotes spaced throughout the book that you find important or unique. Choose your quotes from AT LEAST 3 different speakers (characters). For the Text Quotation column, put the quotethe whole quote you are considering. Yes, I said the whole quote that means all the words. Identify the act, scene, and line numbers. (Yes, I did say the WHOLE quote.) For the Critical, Analytical Response, analyze (using proper literary terms) the language (for example, diction, connotations, imagery), characterization, organization, and/or literary techniques (for example, irony, satire, symbolism) used by the author. Do NOT simply identify them. ANALYZE them. Explain how specific choices in the authors style/language set the tone. For the Characterization column, identify the speaker of the quote and explain how the language and content of the quote characterizes the speaker.

Confused? Dont be. Check out my example from Hamlet. Text Quotation
To be or not to be: that is the question: Whether tis nobler in the mind to suffer The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune, Or to take arms against a sea of troubles, And by opposing end them? Act 3, Scene 1, Lines 56-60

Critical, Analytical Response

Shakespeare uses dramatic imagery (arms against a sea of troubles) in this pivotal soliloquy spoken by Hamlet. The imagery emphasizes and magnifies the nature of Hamlets personal problems by describing them in terms of war (arms) and as a sea, diction which implies an endless and overwhelming amount. The use of juxtaposition (To be or not to be) creates an immediate sense of uncertainty and a tone of unease as Hamlet voices his suicidal thoughts.

Characterization
To be or not to be is representative of Hamlets character as he struggles with decision-making throughout the play. This quote shows that he is so overwhelmed with his revenge decision and the loss of his father that he cannot even decide whether to live or die. The overly dramatic imagery fits Hamlets overly dramatic personality. He is a spoiled prince and like many spoiled children often has the attitude that his problems are greater and more important that anyone elses.