Misc
Midterm
Thursday after break (Oct. 11).
You’ll have the whole class period.
Mostly short-answer questions about writing practices (e.g., judging the quality of thesis statements or research questions), substitution ciphers, and maybe “The Gold Bug” or the first part of “Enigma.”
Also expect one longer essay question.
Expect 4 to 6 questions total.
Open book, notes, and computer for reference or writing purposes; closed person.
You can either hand-write answers or write them on a computer and share/email the results. Google docs should be shared only with me and be edited only by you.
Questions?
Enigma
Chapters 2 and 3.
Questions, Observations, Etc.
“Blackout” refers to periods when Bletchley wasn’t able to break an Enigma cipher (in this case the one used for “Shark”). There are 2 blackouts relevant to this story, one through most of 1942 due to Germany switching to 4-wheel Enigmas for their submarines, and another in March 1943 due to a change in the German weather codes.
Synopsis
Claire: there seems to be some mystery about her breakup with Jericho, and emerging suspicion that she might be a spy.
Meanwhile, Britain and the US are negotiating over who has access to intercepted submarine radio messages, since the Americans can build and deploy more bombes than Britain can. This potentially threatens Bletchley Park as a code-breaking headquarters.
New characters who might be important:
- Puck aka Pukowski, a Polish cryptographer
- Skynner, bureaucrat, director of naval section
- Kramer, US navy liaison
Research Questions
What Are They?
Questions to focus your thinking and research.
The answer you find becomes, or at least shapes, your thesis.
What Makes a Good One?
Reasonably specific, but not too much so.
Fits into a larger research process.
Answerable, and answer leads to a defensible but arguable thesis.
Brainstorm Some
In small groups, talk about areas and questions you might like to address in the Enigma essay. Be prepared to report back on your ideas.
- How did women’s work at Bletchley Park compare to men’s and to its portrayal in Enigma?
- How does Jericho’s process for breaking Enigma compare to real life?
- How did Enigma work compared to prior cipher systems?
- How did tradecraft impact cracking Enigma? (This is a big question, but there are good refinements)
- Was information captured from U-boats as important as portrayed in the novel?
- How important was the technical/mechanical process based on cribs and bombes?
- What counter-espionage and security measures were used?
- Were there cases of mental illness or stress-related illness at Bletchley Park?
- How was stress-related mental illness treated at Bletchley Park?
- Were spies prevalent during this time period?
Next
Library research methods and tools.
By Jonathan Grunert, instructional librarian.
Here in our normal classroom.
Bring your computer!