Chapter 1 - Digital Cultures
Cooperative Activities
In a digital world and information-sharing age, it can sometimes be hard to understand where privacy ends.
In groups of 3-4 persons, take turns in defining what privacy means to you, and discuss how social media has changed our perception of privacy.
Chapter 2 - Gangs, Drugs and Prostitution
IT Activities
Watch the interview with Bret Easton Ellis, the author of Less Than Zero.
Take notes while you listen and answer the questions below. Hand in the answers to your teacher.
- During the interview Bret Easton Ellis (BEE) reveals that he is depressed/sad. Why is he depressed/sad?
- BEE claims that he has often been attacked for ignoring the interviewer. Does he ignore the Alan Brough during the interview?
- In what way is BEE's Australien booktour similar to the US?
- Why is Ramona Koval "pissed" at BEE?
- Why did BEE freeze when being interviewed by Ramona Koval?
- What was BEE's answer to Ramona Koval's first question?
- BEE claims that his booktour is an illusion. Explain.
- What possessed BEE to write Imperial Bedrooms?
- Where does novels come from according to BEE?
- What does BEE refer to when he talks about empire and post empire?
- In what way is BEE a better dramatist?
- Why does BEE give the advice; "Never date a writer"?
- Which novel and author inspired BEE to write Less Than Zero?
- What was BEE's number one moment in his career?
- Why is BEE disappointed with how the movie The Informers turned out?
- What attracted BEE to work on the film The Golden Suicides?
- What is BEE's opinion of American Psycho II?
- Why do you think that the "idea" of the novel is changing?
Chapter 3 - Relationships
IT Activities
Watch the below TV Show about interracial dating and write an essay of 300-400 words in which you discuss why interracial dating is still an issue in the US. Hand in your essay to your teacher.
Chapter 4 - New York, Fear and Lies
Cooperative Activities
Get together in pairs and fill out the missing words in the text. All the missing words are in the box below.
New York is a city that ________ many sights a tourist can see. The Statue of Liberty is probably the most famous of them. It is situated on a ___________ on Liberty Island, which you can only __________ by
________. Visitors can go up to the __________ deck in the ________ but cannot move up to the ___________ itself. The Statue of Liberty was a _______ that France gave to the U.S.A. over hundred years ago.
Times square is a place that is full of ___________. Millions of people see it on TV every New Year's eve when a big celebreation is held. It got its name because The New York Times was first_________ there.
Today you can see many ________ billboards and signs, and movie theatres surround the __________.
The Empire State building is New York's most famous ________. It was built in the 1930s, and was New York's tallest building for a long time. It has been a star in many_________, like "King Kong" and "Superman".
Central Park lies in the __________ of Manhattan. It is about 4 kilometres long and serves as the green lung of New York. The park has many play grounds, lakes and _________. When it was created 150 years ago, it was in the middle of a ____________ area.
Brooklyn Bridge connects ____________ with Brooklyn, New York's most __________ borough. It ________ East river, and one of the best known bridges in the city.
reach spans offer torch ferry skyscraper published observation electronic Manhattan wet square films middle life pedestal present crown populous fountains
Chapter 5 - Subcultures
IT Activities
Research the answers to the following questions regarding the Emo subculture. Hand in the answers to your teacher.
- When, where and in which social, political and economic contexts did the Emo subculture start?
- Do they have a distinctive style in terms of clothing?
- Which musical style is the Emo subculture associated with?
- Why do young people associate themselves with this subculture?
- How do they define themselves?
- Have this subculture change over the years? Explain.
Chapter 6 - India
IT Activities
Watch the interview with Salman Rushie about storytelling, and write a summary of 150-200 words. Hand in your summary to your teacher.
Cooperative Activities
Get together in pairs and identify the verbs in the two paragraphs below from The Free Radio and conjugate them from the past tense to present tense. For example; I knew= I know
I knew those cronies of his. They all wore the armbands of the new Youth Movement. This was the time of the State of Emergency, and these friends were not peaceful persons, there were stories of beating-up, so I sat quietly under my tree. Ramani wore no armband but he went with them because they impressed him, the fool.
He did not come for one day, then for two, and I learned afterwards that he had not wished to seem greedy; he didn’t want the health officer to think he was desperate for the radio. Besides, he was half hoping they would come over and give it to him at his place, perhaps with some kind of small, formal presentation ceremony. A fool is a fool and there is no accounting for his notions.
