DENOTATION & CONNOTATION

1. DENOTATION & CONNOTATION CONSIDER THE FOLLOWING PAIRS OF WORDS: GANGCLUB CULTPARISH TERRORISTPATRIOT WHAT RELATIONSHIP DO THE WORDS HAVE WITH EACH OTHER? WHY?

2. Now, let’s learn more about connotation… Over the next couple of classes, you will be asserting whether or not A DOLL’S HOUSE is an appropriate title for the play. Here’s a helpful hint: With what do you associate a “doll” or “doll’s house?” How might this relate to the play in some way? Please think critically. Photo contributed by jennifersprintables.com

3. You should be sure to do the following things: 1. First, as a topic statement, make a clear assertion as to whether or not the title is appropriate. Using one paraphrased or directly quoted piece of evidence from Act I or Act II, and two pieces from Act III, you should then support your assertion. 2. Create a “lead” for your evidence that serves as a good transition and incorporate the evidence. 3. Cite all of your evidence by using proper MLA citations. 4. Close your assertion with a “synthesis” by elaboratelyexplaining what kind of connotation (positive or negative) the title of the play assumes, based on the evidence.

4. For example… [1.] Clearly, A DOLL’S HOUSE is a very appropriate title for the play. One reason is because a “doll” is considered a toy or a play thing, and it can be argued that Nora is a kind of toy. Only, she’s not a toy in a sense that she’s having fun with children. She’s a toy in a sense that her husband, Torvald, toys with her. [2.] One can see this in Act I, when the audience is first introduced to the married couple. Torvald has numerous “terms of endearment” that might be considered playful. For instance, he calls her things like “skylark,” “squirrel,” and “squander bird” [3.] (Ibsen 113). [4.] Because some of these terms might be considered disrespectful it indicates that Torvald could be belittling his own wife, so perhaps the word “doll” in the play’s title might have a negative connotation. Now, I would create two more assertions like this: One for the second half of Act II, one for the first half of Act III.

5. The Previous Example Without the Process Being “Color Coded” Clearly, A DOLL’S HOUSE is a very appropriate title for the play. One reason is because a “doll” is considered a toy or a play thing, and it can be argued that Nora is a kind of toy. Only, she’s not a toy in a sense that she’s having fun with children. She’s a toy in a sense that her husband, Torvald, “toys” with her. One can see this in Act I, when the audience is first introduced to the married couple. Torvald has numerous “terms of endearment” that might be considered playful. For instance, he calls her things like “skylark,” “squirrel,” and “squander bird” (Ibsen 113). Because some of these terms might be considered disrespectful it indicates that Torvald could be belittling his own wife, so perhaps the word “doll” in the play’s title might have a negative connotation.