Hypertext Response project

a. A quotation that shows the importance of place (setting) in the novel.

"By its light I could see that the remnant of standing masonry in which I was lying was all that was left of a church, or perhaps a school- anyhow a building of some size - and that I lay at the foot of a ruined tower."(page 68)

b. A quotation that shows the relationship between two characters.

"My lifelong involvement with Mrs. Dempster began at 5:58 o'clock p.m. on 27 December 1908, at which time I was ten years and seven months old."   (page 1)

c. A quotation that helps establish a metaphor explored in the novel.

''His cry was like the mew of a kitten'' (page13)

d. A quote of the novel, one passage or question that captures the essence, true meaning, of the novel of you.

"So I was alone with my guilt, and it tortured me.” (page 23)

Inquiry Question Guild

1.What is the author's cultural and personal background?
2.What about his author's background qualifies him/her to write this novel?
3. How does the author's personal and cultural background tie into the storyline?
4. How can the author's background tie into poetry and performance?

CREATE 10 QUESTIONS THAT SHOULD BE INCLUDED AS AN INQUIRY GUIDE FOR THIS NOVEL.

1.How does he connect his life to the novel?

2.What is his purpose of writing this novel?
3. How did the time periods influence him?
4. How did the time periods impact his novel?
5. What is the meaning of the title?
6. How does the author’s background relate to the novel?
7. What is the message author what to tell us?
8. What is the massage author what to tell that in the reality?
9. How does the author use his thought in the novel?
10. How does the author use his feelings to apply to the book?


1. What is the author's cultural and personal background?

    
     William Robertson Davies was born on August 28, 1913 in the village of Thamesville, Ontario, Canada. He came from a very old and prominent family.He was a Canadian novelist, playwright, critic, journalist, and professor. He was one of Canada's best-known and most popular authors. Davies was the founding Master of Massey College,a college that was closely associated with the University of Toronto. Davies was surrounded by books as a young boy and both his parents supported reading. Thus Davies caught his parent's love for reading and read everything he could. He also had a particular interest in drama since he participated in theatrical productions as a young child.


2.What about his author's background qualifies him/her to write this novel?


      The novel Fifth Business (1970) came from Davies' own interest in Jungian psychology which included his own in experiences, his love for myth and magic and his knowledge of small-town mores. In the book, the narrator, can somehow relate to Davies himself, as he is an immigrant of Canadian background, with a father who ran the town paper. The book's characters act in roles that roughly correspond to Jungian archetypes according to Davies' belief in the predominance of the spirit over the things of the world.


3. How does the author's personal and cultural background tie into the storyline?

      Davies allows the readers to peer in to his childhood by tying in his own life incidences through the character of Ramsey. In Fifth Business, he mentions accounts of his memories and more of his deeper life experiences. The character of Percy Boyd Staunton is an important reference to Davies’ real life. Some elements of Boy’s life story is drawn from one of his friends Vincent Massey. Both men became rich because of their father’s agricultural businesses. When Vincent Massey becomes the first Canadian- born Governor General, likewise Boy was appointed to be the Lieutenant- Governor of Ontario. The most convincing evidence is that that Boy becomes the Chair of the Board of Governor that runs the school Ramsay teaches at while Davies spent his career at the University of Toronto as the head Professor of Massey College. They were both involved in education purposes.



4. How can the author's background tie into poetry and performance?

      He also participated in theatrical productions as a child, where he developed a lifelong interest in drama.Davies' early life provided him with themes and material to which he would often return in his later work, including the theme of Canadians returning to England to finish their education, and the theatre.in 1916 he became editor of the Peterborough Examiner in the small city of Peterborough, Ontario, northeast of Toronto.Again he was able to mine his experiences here for many of the characters and situations which later appeared in his novels and plays.

Character Sketch

                                                               My Best Friend
   As we grow up, there are many people who we have met during our life time. Each of them may have impact one’s life differently. Some of them might be people who pass your life who are not important to you but some of them may be special. There are many people who appeared in my life and one of them is still in my life today. I could say that this person is very special to me.


    Why is this person so special to me compared to other people in my life? It is because this person is the person who impacted me and helped me become the person I am today. Who is this person? She is my best friend and her name is Michelle. She is the ideal best friend because she is very caring and she will always be there for me.

    When my family moved to Canada from China, my life is already changed. The first day of school was the scariest thing to me because I am a new immigrant to Canada and I could not speak a word of English. I met Michelle first on the first day of school and I could still remember that Michelle was standing behind the window and walked towards me and started speaking to me. After that conversation, I realized that Michelle was a very nice person. We soon became friends and Michelle was the one who helped me with my homework. I would also teach her Chinese and she would help me with my English. I am very thankful to her, for everything she has done for me. My English speaking abilities would still be very poor if it wasn’t for her.

     Michelle is different to other friends I had. She is the one I can tell my secrets to and tell her about my stories when I was a little girl in China. She would always listen attentively to me whenever I have something to say. Whenever I had a problem, I would talk to her about it. If I did anything wrong she will tell me and let myself to find out the mistake and fix it for myself. That way I am learning for myself and not relying on her a lot. She would proofread my homework assignments and uses her own time to help me. She is very patient and would take the time to explain to me anything I do not understand. She is the person who influenced me to become who I am today. I have become more helpful and caring towards others because I want to become like Michelle and be helpful to others as well.

     In addition, Michelle is related to the character in the book I had read called Fifth Business. According to the quote “I don’t know why, but I have the responsibility to take care her.’’ Dunstan in the said in the novel, we can see Michelle and Dunstan, they both don’t have the responsibility. Whether Dunstan takes care of Mary or Michelle help me for the homework. But they both did no matter what; they think that is their responsible to do that.

     In conclusion, throughout our life, we will meet people who are just there but not have a true purpose other than just being there as a friend. However, there are people who are meant to be something special to you in your life. Michelle is the one who impacted me and lead me to who I am today. She is so special to me and will always be my best friend.

Extended Metaphor Poem

Cold as Snow
The guilt is as cold as ice

Eating away my insides

I cannot bear to lift my head up high

As I walk alone on this crowded path

I apologize for the times

When I did not have the courage

To tell the truth but instead

Ignore it and to cause you so much misery

And now as I sit, weary and lonesome

On a cold winter’s night

Trying to find an answer

But the falling snow

Still reminds me of my wrongs

By: Jia Jia Lin

Reference

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fifth_Business#Title

http://www.novalisentertainment.com/rdavies_bio.shtml
http://www.wordiq.com/definition/Robertson_Davies
http://www.poemsource.com/thank-you-poems.html
http://www.werner-saumweber.de/alzheime/poems/sifg.htm
http://www.poemhunter.com/poems/childhood/

Persuasive Essay

                                                           Childhood
     
        Childhood is an important moment in people's lifetime; it is one of the main guide lines which pull one towards the future. Things that happened in the childhood tend to have either positive or negative influences that will stay with them for the rest of their life. In the novel Fifth Business by Robertson Davies, childhood is the main fact that influences the characters in the novel. These characters were definitely influenced by childhood which tends to changed them that they are in the future. The evident that each character seems to run away due to the insecurities that they faced as children. However, childhood is a line that leads Dunstan Ramsey, Paul Dempster and Boy Staunton to their future.


      Throughout the lives of these characters, childhood is one moment that causes the difference in Dunstan’s life. Dunstan lives in the shadow of Boy Staunton, because of guilty and responsibility as the result of a fight. During a fight with Percy Boyd Staunton, Percy threw a snowball that was aimed for Dunstan but instead hit the pregnant Mary Dempster. With this incident, the result was the premature birth of Mary Dempster’s son Paul Dempster. Dunstan felt responsible for what had happened to Paul because he was involved in the fight. He feels like he could drown in his guilt because of the ordeal but he never got the courage to tell the truth to Mary and endured many sleepless nights afterwards. For instance, the snowball incident and Dunstan's relationship with Boy, according to the novel is '' he is my best friend and also is my enemy'' which emphasizes that Dunstan hates Boy at some point because he lied about the snow ball and did not feel guilty at all. Dunstan’s childhood was affected deeply through each situation he faced as a young man, to a highly respected professor. He felt he was the center of all bad things, which occurred around him. Mrs. Demster’s accident was the main influence in his childhood and caused him to feel guilt and become responsible and more caring in his life.

       Childhood is important in Paul's life because it affects him as he gets older. Dunstan is very guilty of Paul’s premature birth and so drops by his house every day to take care of him. “I was perfectly sure; you see that the birth of Paul Dempster, so small, so feeble, and troublesome, was my fault. If I had not been so clever, so sly, so spiteful in hopping in front of the Dempsters just as Percy Boyd Staunton threw that snowball at me from behind, Mrs. Dempster would not have been struck.’’ He is satisfying his own time to take cares of Paul when he was young. When Dunstan is playing with cards one day and needs an audience, he decides to show a magic trick to Paul and he tells Paul stories about saints. He finds out Paul has the ability of magic and starts to teach him. ''But worse - much worse than that- I had taught the boy to cheat with the cards, to handle them like a smoking - car gambler, and also to play tricks with money.'' One day, Mr.Dempster found out that Paul is using the money on the table to do the trick, he believes that is the evil thing Paul is doing. He tells Dunstan never to come to his house again, but Dunstan comes to his house when Mr.Dempster is at work. Dunstan is continuously teaching Paul magic. When Paul gets older, Paul joins a travelling circus and he becomes a famous magician.

     In other hand, Mary who is his mother is the second facts that influence Paul life. Paul Dempster is overwhelmed with guilt, blaming himself for his mother's simple-mindedness and strange behavior. When Paul Dempster grows up and learns about his mother’s demise, he himself feels guilty. When he grows older and understands things clearer, he blamed himself for causing his mother’s illness, because he was told that his birth had caused it. His guilt is amplified when the residents in the town keep their distances from him. After his mother was caught with the tramp performing sexual acts and being discovered by the townsfolk, Paul gets taunted and teased by his schoolmates who make rude comments towards his mother. Later on in life he remembers about his mother but would repress the idea that she was his mother. He becomes a great success as his talents as a magician becomes well known near the end of Paul’s life.

        From Boy’s childhood, it is obvious that he has the stubborn attitude which would lead him to his adulthood. The thing happened in Boy’s childhood is opposite to Ramsey and Paul’s guilty feelings about what has happened to Mrs. Dempster. But reflects his attitude and continuous in his lifelong. Percy, who was the one who threw the snowball, feels absolutely no guilt at all. Throughout the story, readers can see that Percy is a cold-hearted person who is very self-less and only cares for himself and not others. He is ignorant of the pain that he inflicts on others and could hardly care less. ''No, I don't remember what is of no use to me, and I haven't been in Deptford since my father died.'' from that we can see his attitude. He only cares about himself and not guilt at all and live in his own world. At the end of the story, Ramsey reminds him by showing him the stone, which he kept during the years that passed. However Boy is still ignorant and forgot about the incident.

         When Boy married Leola, he eventually gets discovered that he was seeing other women. He treats her like an object rather than a person. He only did it for his own social status rather than his own good. Eventually Leola passes away and being the person who feels absolutely no guilt, he doesn’t bother to show up at her funeral. Later on in the story, Dunstan confronts Percy and reminds him of his responsibility for the dreadful event of Mrs. Dempster and the snowball. By that time Percy is around 60 and has completely forgotten about this incident. Dunstan reminds him by showing him the stone, which he kept during the years that passed which results in Percy’s anger. He does not feel sorry or showed any signs of guilt. If he had feelings of guilt, he would have been more sensitive and apologetic.

     Childhood characteristics are evident in the characters of Dustan Ramsay, Percy Boyd Staunton and Paul Dempster. Their childhood is one major fact that impacted their life. It is a crucial time in which all three characters went through an ordeal that would affect their adulthood.

Re enactment Criteria Guide

1.What event of scene had the most action?
 
     The event that had the most action was Dunstan’s illusion which was the last chapter of the novel. Dunstan finally told the truth to Paul that he had hid in his heart many years ago. His granite paperweight was actually the stone from inside the snowball which Percy threw as a boy, the very snowball which led to the downfall of the Dempster family. I think this event had the most action in the novel because Dunstan threw the stone from his heart that he had deeply hidden for Boy. Now he is doing the thing that he will never done in real life, telling the truth to Paul, Boy was the one who threw the snowball to Mary. This showed the most action in the book.


2.What event made you laugh?

      The event that made me laugh was when Mr.Dempster found out Dunstan taught Paul about magic and told the stories of saint. One day Paul used the money on the table to play the tricks and Mr.Dempster thought that was an evil thing. So he told Dunstan never come to his house again, but Dunstan came to his house when he was at work and he told Mary everything that happened on the outside, since she was locked in the house by Mr. Dempster. I think is funny because Mr.Dempster never thought Dunstan would come to his house again and continue teaching Paul magic and telling the stories of saint.


3. What event gave you a lump in your throat?

       The event that gives me a lump in my throat was the death of Leola. Leola is a very beautiful woman who was Dunstan’s love but actually Dunstan never loved her. After Dunstan left the village, Leola married Boy. She thought Boy really loved her, but as Boy became a successful business man, he started not going home and treated her like an animal not as a human. Simply because she is not intelligent which can’t help him in the business, she was just a beautiful woman that he can bring out. When Dunstan returned to the village, Leola told everything to him because she thought Dunstan still loved her. Until she died, she did not realized that Dunstan and Boy had never really loved her. That is makes me feel sad about Leola’s life because I feel that she is living in an illusion that two men loved her.


4. What event shocked or surprised you?

    The event that shocked me the most was when Dunstan rejected the marriage of Diana. Dunstan was injured in the battle of Ypres and he was unconscious for a few months in a hospital in England. Dunstan was immediately attracted to the pretty nurse, Diana, who took care of him of his wounds. Diana renamed him Dunstan, after the saint, because she thought they had a lot in common. Both Dunstan Ramsay and St. Dunstan share a love for learning, and the disciplined ability to resist temptation. Dunstan resisted temptation by not marrying the lovely Diana. Although he loves her and will remember her to the end of his days, Dunstan was afraid that she, like his mother, will smother him with her love. That surprised me as Dunstan loved her, but he cannot face the thought that Diana had very similar traits that reminded him of his mother and so in the end they become friends instead.



5.What event do you select to write a poem for?  
   The event I select to write a poem for is when Dunstan rejects the mirage of Diana. A love poem is easy to write about and that can show the relationship between Dunstan and Diana. I will talk about how they love each other but they cannot be lovers.


6. write the poem

So Sorry that I Love You


I’m sorry that I love you

But cannot be with you

I’m sorry for all the times

That your tears fell

But I wasn’t able to wipe them away

I’m sorry for all the things you’ve done for me

But I cannot do anything for you

I apologize for the sadness you’ve endured

Even though I knew how much you longed for happiness

However, in the end, I feel that

It’s best that we stay friends

For I am not worthy to be your lover

I hope you will find someone

Who will give you the world

Because you deserve all the happiness in life

I will always remember you

And your kindness

I’m sorry that I love you

But cannot be with you  

BY:JIA JIA LIN

Novel/Poem Compare and Contrast Frame

1. Should I feel guilty?


Should I feel guilty for the care I give,
For helping my loved one in the life she lives?
Should I feel guilty for keeping her here,
For cleaning her messes, and wiping her tears?
Should I feel guilty for the things I do,
For one whose love for me was true?
Should I feel guilty for the choices I made,
Of caring for her as her life fades?
I sometimes wonder at the path life takes.
I know I'm not perfect, I've made mistakes.
But should I feel guilty? This much I know,
I'll answer with a resounding NO!
 Jerry Ham

Novel:
Dunstan is guilty even though he did not throw the snow ball.

Poem:
He don’t know if he needs to feel guilty for the care and love he gives and for all the things he did for her.

Both:
They both are not responsible for the incidences but they both feel that they are.


2. I Feel Guilty

It's amazing
That even though
I've realized
That it wasn't
My fault
I still have
This desire
To blame myself
For what you did
For the things
I couldn't control
For the words
You always said
And the hurt
You created
For some reason
I can't stop
Having nightmares
I can't keep feeling
Deep inside me
Frightened
Destroyed
Broken
And even though I know
It wasn't my fault
Or her fault
But yours
Some part of me
Still feels quilty
not leaving
For not stopping you
For not standing up
For myself
For letting you
Break me down
Piece by little piece
And it hurts
Because you
Were supposed to be
The person I could lean on
The one I could depend on
The one to love me till you died
But you never were
And still aren't
I feel guilty
For not realizing earlier
For not protesting
For not screaming at the top of my lungs
For not telling everyone I knew
About your dangers
I feel guilty
For still loving you
As a daughter should

By: Ranmshu Cangius
Novel:
Dunstan is guilty to the Dempster family for the premature birth of Paul.

Poem:
The writer of the poem is guilty to her parents because she could not understand why her parents changed for the worst.

Both:
They both feel guilty.


3.True Friend

Friend gives you smile
But true friend gives you happiness
Friend will lie about you
But true friend won’t tell your weakness
Friend knives your back
But true friend will slog your face
Thousands friends come when you’re happy
But only one true friend comes when you cry
Friend comes when he needs you
But true friend comes when you need him
Friend leaves when everybody does
But true friend comes when everybody leaves
Friend comes and leaves
But true friend is yours forever

Novel:
Boy to Dunstan is considered as a friend but as well an enemy because although they are friends, Boy did not confess that he was the one who threw the snowball and Dunstan had the feeling that he was responsible.

Poem:
The poem is talking about a true friend who will be there for you no matter what.

Both:
The friends in these two poems have been there for each other.

4. I can't remember

I can't remember,
Skipping rocks on the pond,
My childhood forever gone,
My Childhoods lost,
Going to the lake,
Sitting on the beach,
Playing with friends,
And dancing in the streets,

I can't remember,
The talk I had with dad,
My childhood forever gone,
My childhood was lost,
I still can't remember,
How it is gone,
My childhood forever gone,
My childhood's lost!

By: Demarcus Reynolds

Novel:
Ramsey’s childhood is not that good. He didn’t have time to play after school because he needs to take care of Paul.

Poem:
The childhood in the poem relates to a young child referring to his/her parents.

Both:
Both childhoods have painful moments and only becomes a sad memory later on.


5. For All You Do

Thank you so much for all you do;
You're truly a delight;
When my life overwhelms and does me in,
You make everything all right.

By: Karl and Joanna Fuchs

Novel:
Dunstan is very helpful to the Dempster family by taking care of Paul when his parents were out working however Mr. Dempster does not know that he is helping him take care of his son. As well, Dunstan hid Boy’s secret for throwing the ball at Mrs. Dempster.

Poem:
The author of the poem is very thankful and grateful for his/her friend who helped them in their problems.

Both:
For both parties in the novel and the poem, helpfulness is similar.

Contents

1.Name that Chapter
2.Novel/Poem Compare and Contrast Frame
3.Character Sketch
4.Inquiry Question Guild
5.Hypertext Response Project
6.Extended Metaphor Poem
7.Re enactment Criteria Guide
8.Persuasive Essay
9.Reference

Name that Chapter

1. Create your own title for each chapter
2. Summarized the chapter in less than five sentences
3. Create a reasonable hypotheses about what the chapter is about, symbolically and metaphorically.

Chapter 1
Guilty And Responsibility

Summary:
Dunstan Ramsay is guilty of the snowball incident and that caused the premature birth of Mary Dempster's son Paul. Even when he did not throw the snowball at Mary Dempster but he still takes care of Paul when he was young. Duanstand teach Paul how to play magic when he babysat him. Also, he thought he loves Mrs.Dempster, because she is saint, who serves his brother.

Hypotheses: 
Dunstan Ramsay may have done some thing wrong and that cause something to happen. After this event he felt guilty and responsible for that. Maybe this thing will be brought up along with the story.

Chapter 2
Time In England

Summary:
Dunstan Ramsay was injured in the battle of Ypres, when he wakes up in England in November and the Nurse who takes care of him is named Diana Marfleet. Diana wants to marry Dunstan but he rejects her because he only wants to be friends with her and she reminds him of his mother. then he decided go back to Canada.

Hypotheses:
The character in the book introduces his life in England, how he lives and who he met there. Maybe the things that happened in England is important to him and may affect his life.

Chapter 3
Finding The Answer

Summary:
Dunstan looks for Mary Dempster in Weston, and begins making regular visits to her and her aunt Bertha. Dunstan completes his degree at the University of Toronto and begins teaching at Colborne College. Boy now becomes a successful business man and helps Dunstan invest to earn the profit. He spends a great deal of time researching the saints, and makes an annual trip to Europe for this purpose.

Hypotheses:
The character is finding the answer that bother him a lot, which is about the saint, and during the time he might meet his old friend or new people in this time and help him to find out the answer.

Chapter 4
"Fifth Business''

Summary: Dunstan becomes a close friend of Boy, Leola, and their growing family and embarks on his role as Boy's lifelong confidant. When her maiden aunt Bertha dies, leaving him responsible for Mary's care, but with no money to accomplish this, Dunstan is forced to put Mary into a public hospital for the insane, where he visits her every two weeks, for many years. Dunstan begins to believe that Mary is herself a saint when he learns of her third miracle.

Hypotheses:
This chapter maybe can mostly represents what the meaning of fifth business and from this chapter we can clearly see what is the meaning of that and what is author's message or a hint, he is trying to give us.

Chapter 5
 Intelligent Woman

Summary:
Dunstan discovers Paul, by pure serendipity, on one of his trips to research saints. Now named Magnus Eisengrim, Paul has his own magic show. Dunstan joins Eisengrim's company, where he meets a remarkably ugly but intelligent woman named Liesl. Liesl is Eisengrim's business partner, and it is she who proposes Dunstan to write a fictional autobiography of Eisengrim. Through Liesl, Dunstan discovers his creative imagination and at long last shakes off the moral tyranny of his upbringing.

Hypotheses:
This woman might be important in the main character's life, and this women will be special to him, because she is described as ugly, but she is an intelligent woman.

Chapter 6
Final Fantasy

Summary:
After Mary's death he learns the powerful effect that telling a secret can have on one's psyche. In the presence of Paul Dempster, Dunstan at last reveals the secret he has kept all these years. His granite paperweight is actually the stone from inside the snowball which Percy threw as a boy, the very snowball which led to the downfall of the Dempster family. Boy's body is found the next day, although no killer is ever named. Yet Dunstan knows it was Paul who killed Percy, and he knows and accepts that he himself engineered the death by the timely revelation of the snowball secret.

Hypotheses:
Some of the thing happened in the last chapter maybe is his own thought that what he want exist in the real world, unfortunately this is appeals in Dunstan's dream. However he dreams of that, it is because he might not have change to achieve those things in his life.