Dr. Laura L. Runge
2004, 2006-2009
Revised 11-13-09
(This document will be periodically updated. It is divided into pedagogical texts, websites and texts for the classroom. At the end is a brief list of journals related to the practice of teaching literature. Individual entries are authored by members of the classes, indicated by the initials following each entry.)
Pedagogical Texts – (texts that aid in the art of teaching literature)
Agathocleous, Tanya and Ann C. Dean. Teaching Literature: A Companion.
Palgrave-Macmillan:
This eclectic text identifies topics that are currently hot in literature, suggesting ways to link trends in scholarship to classroom instruction. Also, as a whole, the text invests in interdisciplinary approaches to teaching literature. Some of the topics explored in the part one of the text include: queering Chaucer, notions of authorship and publishing culture among Grub Street writers of the 18th century, transforming student knowledge of the canon or “desegregating the syllabus,” and teaching poetry in a prose culture. Highlights of part two of Teaching Literature include chapter 8, which suggests alternatives to traditional writing assignments, and chapter 12, which addresses the benefits and obstacles of teaching literature online. In sum, this text is a useful tool for new professors of literature and professors of literature who teach survey courses and are interested in current approaches to an array of literary periods. [NS]
Alderman. M. Kay. Motivation
for Achievement: Possibilities for Teaching and Learning. Chap 8.
Mahwah:
Chapter 8 focused on enhancing student motivation using a variety of techniques including “high engagement”, promoting ownership and higher levels of thinking. It helped reinforce my own learning preferences, but challenged me to more fully consider how such purposeful student behavior can be evaluated, while ensuring that they also thoroughly understood how the instructor would intimately evaluate their essays. [RG 06]
Aristodemou, Maria. Law and
Literature: Journeys from Her to Eternity
This is not an anthology because it is all by one author but it has the effect of one in that it demonstrates how it is possible to teach a variety of different texts from the legal angle. It is incredible that this one woman has covered so many texts and legal concepts. The articles are arranged in sections by legal concepts and then chapter by chapter by texts. Each article also contains what I would call an aspect of critical theory as well. There are no actual literary texts in this work, but an overwhelming number of analyses of them will guide anyone who wants to tackle such a project. It is not a "how to" as much as it is an explication of the legal aspects of the texts. The instructor would have to decide how to use this material on her/his own. Interdisciplinary Work:[LZ]
Bauer, Dale M. "Another F Word: Failure in the Classroom." Pedagogy 7.2 (Spring 2007): 158-170.
Bauer’s commentary examines the idea of failure in the classroom and “what that failure reveals about our hopes for our teaching lives” (159). She begins by detailing her experiences with feminist pedagogy in the classroom and how these failures led her to the idea of failure as pedagogy. Bauer includes several examples of instructors that design their courses to allow students to embrace ideas beyond them rather than dismiss them as impossible. One of the more beneficial examples she cites is taken from Mariolina Rizzi Salvatori and Patricia Donahue’s The Elements (and Pleasures) of Difficulty (2005) in which they advocate an assignment that requires students to write about what “confuses, surprises and mystifies them then exploring those things they know and do not know” (162). Bauer uses these examples to develop her argument for utilizing potential failure as a pedagogical tool. She also highlights her own efforts to combat plagiarism in the classroom through specifically designed assignments. While Bauer’s commentary at times suffers from too much emphasis on insignificant events, her arguments are thought provoking. She particularly strikes a chord when she discusses the topic of student gratitude in the classroom. Overall, Bauer’s acceptance of the inevitability of failure provides for instructors the option to adopt these failures as pedagogical strategy in order to incorporate “the individual will” (170) into the classroom community. [SB 07]
Berube, Michael. "Teaching to the Six." Pedagogy 2.1 (Winter 2001): 3-15.
Berube discusses the current state of affairs at large public universities and explains how certain conditions, including limited funding and heavy teaching responsibilities for humanities departments, inform his classroom pedagogy. Because students from all disciplines are required to take humanities courses, Berube claims that he has many non-English degree seeking students in his classes who are disengaged from the material and classroom discussion. Berube introduces his remedy of "teaching to the six," a concept that suggests accepting that many students do not need the skills of literary study in their future careers. When times are tough in the classroom, Berube finds comfort in teaching to the handful of students that are interested in pursuing literary study. Although this idea provides the main thrust of "Teaching to the Six," Berube comments on a number of related topics. Among other observations, Berube notes the importance of engaging student work through comments, as well as the positive effect that revising and editing one's own work has on engaging student writing. [PM 08]
Blackmore, Tim. “Play Your Cards Right: A Narrative of First-Year Students’ Reader-Responses.” The Journal of General Education 51.1 (2002): 43-67.
Blackmore’s article details his practice of collecting discussion questions from his students, written on index cards. These questions offer more than just discussion fodder on a Friday. Blackmore notes, “If the students generate their own topics based on texts of their choosing, if I can give the topics a few moments of time, if the students write out their thoughts about those topics in a limited (ideally focused) way, if I can assess those thoughts in a few hours each week, and if I can then discuss some of the cards with the class as a whole, then I am at least making some start at offering assessment” (46). The use of the cards also allows Blackmore to interact easily with students in a 150 - 300 student classroom. Having students write their questions also enables them to discover their authentic voice as opposed to an informal, academic tone. [CRJ 06]
Cahalan, James M. "Teaching Hometown Literature: A Pedagogy of Place" College English; Jan 2008; 70:3; ProQuest Direct Complete.
The author of this article makes a strong case for regionalism, bioregionalism, ecocriticism, and place studies in the teaching of literature. Cahalan describes his own classroom pedagogy; he sees the teaching of hometown literature as far more than simply learning the background of authors. Cahalan focuses the entire course on making "hometowns the focus of understanding authors' writings," and the final class objective is a project on authors from the students' hometowns(250). He believes that this approach aids students in the understanding of the connection between social context and "production of literature"(250). The author expands what has traditionally been included in regional study to include international home towns. Home town literature, he states, "should go global, or 'glocal,' reminding us that every place on the globe is also local"(251). He recognizes that the concept of home town may be complicated for a number of reasons: some students may not have had a place to call home, while others have been oppressed in personal/systematic ways which creates a negative image of home. He also recognizes that a sense of home doesn't necessarily reflect where the student was born. The author claims that there is no dearth of famous authors to be found in remote places and small towns, supporting this with examples, and he also has discovered that notions of hometown are very strong in other countries. Cahalan devotes a subsection of his article to the definition of terms, definitions that might be more helpful by being more thorough and by being introduced earlier in the work. The abundance of footnotes, and the titles of more basic texts in the works cited is useful to the reader who finds this piece interesting but needs more information on these four inter-connected but abstract terms. [ADT 08]
Cardozo, Karen M.
“At the
Building from the work of Gerald Graff, Cardozo argues that professors of literature should engage students as active participants of the subject instead of as mere spectators. She concurs that “the curriculum (and not only within English) provides little integrative space where students can make intellectual connections” (406). In her article, Cardozo explains how she sketched out an integrative space in her classroom by assigning her students to work in groups and compose syllabi for the course, Introduction to Literature. The objective of her syllabus project was to invite students to explore firsthand what professors do, which will demystify the profession for her students and allow her to re-envision her own practices. In theorizing the discipline together, Cardozo and her students moved away from seeing the syllabus as a “transparent window onto the discipline” (415). Cardozo cites Toni Morrison as saying, “It is as if I had been looking at [the fish]…and suddenly I saw the bowl” (415). Cardozo’s experiment allowed her students to see the bowl. The article is valuable for new professors and experienced professors of literature who are interesting in rethinking and (re)articulating what those in literature departments actually do and how the “syllabus itself constructs the discipline” (415). The article raises questions about teaching theory, the “canon wars,” and the “hidden curriculum.” [CG 07]
Cooks, Bridget R. “Confronting Terrorism: Teaching the History of Lynching through
Photography.” Pedagogy: Critical Approaches to Teaching Literature, Language, Composition, and Culture. 8.1 (2007): 135-45.
Bridget
Cooks explains how she uses lynching photography as part of her pedagogy in
teaching about race relations in
Daly, Brenda. “Taking Whiteness Personally: Learning to Teach Testimonial Reading and Writing in the College Literature Classroom.” Pedagogy. 5.2 (2005): 213-246. Project Muse. 19 May 2008. <http://muse.jhu.edu.proxy.usf.edu/journals/pedagogy/v005/5.2daly.pdf>
Daly argues it is important for white teachers to confront their own racial privilege in order to teach multicultural literature (in her case, African American literature) effectively. She contends “empathy” is not enough and students must be taught to assume responsibility for social change by going beyond feeling guilty. Daly suggests, in order to achieve such a politically and socially motivated reading, students must be taught to read texts testimonially, a process in which white students don’t passively consume the emotional experience of what African American characters suffer, as expressed in the literature, but that they identify with victimized characters and assume responsibility for their ancestors’ actions in order to re-evaluate the privilege they have implicitly inherited. The first step begins with her own learning to read and write testimonially in order to re-examine her white privilege as an established academician. However, this article addresses only white teachers and white students. She does not address how effective testimonial reading and writing can be, if at all, for African American or Native American teachers and students. [MR 08]
Damrosch, David. "The Mirror and the Window: Reflections on Anthology Construction." Pedagogy 1.1 (Winter 2001): 207-214.
David Damrosch addresses the methods used to create literary anthologies for undergraduate English classes, and he argues that editors create anthologies based on a variety of criteria, such as student desires, classroom schedules, and ideological perspectives. Damrosch begins by disabusing his readers of any misconceptions they might have about the creation of anthologies. Anthologies are not assembled to scrupulously match the current research of professors or the current conception of the literary canon; to even attempt to correlate the two would be almost impossible because the canon’s evolution is so contested. Instead, Damrosch poses questions and introduces observations that show the futility of easily creating an anthology. For instance, he writes that “British, American, and world literature anthologies have crept up from around four thousand pages to their present heft of six thousand” (207). However, what is even more striking is “the extraordinary uniformity of the page boundary across all these fields” (207). He argues that editors must negotiate between the practical concerns of teachers, publishers, and students, while keeping in mind the overall objective of the editors. The article reinforces the point with such summations as, “Such institutional constraints mean that an anthology can never be a pure representation of its editors’ canonical (or anti-canonical) beliefs” (208) but then shifts to describe the historical evolution of the Longman and Norton anthologies. Generally, both anthologies are presented as slowly becoming more multi-cultural, non-linear, and democratic in their organization. The Longman’s changes are seen as much more dramatic and favorable. It should be noted that Damrosch, himself, is a co-editor of the Longman Anthology. Finally, the author theorizes on how editors and professors might work together to create coherent yet non-canonical literary collections that allow both for individual customization and professional collaboration. This text would be generally helpful to any instructor of an undergraduate literature class, but it would be especially beneficial to someone who needed to order books for an entire literary program. For instance, a departmental administrator at a junior college might benefit especially from this article’s discussion of anthologies. [QV 07]
Duffelmeyer, Barbara B. “Critical Work in First-Year Composition: Computers, Pedagogy, and Research.” Pedagogy 2.3 (2002): 357-374.
This article deals with the role of technology in First Year Composition programs. Duffelmeyer argues that proper use of technology, not just as a tool, but as a cultural artifact, can lead to critical literacy in composition students. “Thus, while we adopt more nuanced and complicated stances toward technology as scholars and practitioners, we must as teachers help our students achieve this balanced perspective as well” (357-358). Duffelmeyer suggests a pedagogy that requires students to look critically at the roles technology plays in their lives, society as a whole and the classroom setting. She also asks them to explore “ways that they might develop some agency within the parameters of that relationship” (358). Students in Duffelmeyer’s courses are asked to question all assumptions about technology in order to think critically about what weight those assumptions hold. The student’s position in relation to technology is also scrutinized in the writing assignments.
Duffelmeyer goes on to explain her entire course plan in detail. She argues for a research component in every essay by writing, “students . . .stand to gain considerably increased agency from the results of their inquiry” (360). She also sought to focus the students on “looking at rather than unproblematically through technology” (363, emphasis Duffelmeyer’s). She then has the students look critically at how their own ideas have grown and changed over the semester. In doing this, Duffelmeyer, in essence, provides her students with “proof” that they have advanced intellectually. More importantly, that “proof” comes from the students themselves. [JN 06]
Eggers, Walter. “Teaching Drama: A Manifesto.” Pedagogy 7.2 (Spring 2007): 271 – 4.
Eggers begins his article by commenting on the current state of drama studies in the university system. He argues that drama is often underprivileged and understudied in literature courses and even when dramatic texts are taught, it is usually in chronological order. Eggers also contends for qa broader definition of drama to include more popular forms of media, like movies and television. Thus, he offers several precepts for change, such as including a variety of texts, teaching plays thematically rather than chronologically, viewing performance as interpretation, and stressing the popular nature of drama. Based on these premises, Eggers predicts a shift in the current trends of drama studies, one whose changes will increase the popularity of teaching drama. [CHL 08]
Estrem, Heidi. “The Portfolio’s Shifting Self: Possibilities for Assessing Student Learning”. Pedadogy 4.1 (2004) 125-7.
Estrem acknowledges the widespread
acceptance of the portfolio as an effective tool for both “learning and
assessment in many
Farber, Jerry. "Teaching and Presence." Pedagogy: Critical Approaches to Teaching Literature, Language, Composition, and Culture 8.2 (2008): 215-225.
In his accessible 2008 article, "Teaching and Presence," Jerry Farber argues that teachers who indulge in the present moment while with their real and very-much living students prove more effective than those who simply go through the motions during face-to-face sessions in the classroom. He compares the latter to tour-guides whose routines are analogous to the mere playing of a video-taped recording. The author's lifetime of expert experiences in education, both as professor in his own classes and as an observer of others', divides instructors into two obvious modes of performers: teachers aware of their surroundings who incorporate an absolute presence into their actions, and those who conduct class without the immediacy and interaction which, as Farber posits, students so desperately need in the facilitation of their learning. Pupils must participate in their lessons and become more than passive spectators. Instructors, Farber concedes, cannot ensure presence will always grace their meetings; however, they can certainly guarantee it will not, namely by adhering to ancient and un-updated lecture notes, re-teaching identical syllabi again and again, or subscribing to predetermined lesson plans without ever welcoming spontaneity or allowing tangential discussions. Farber admits that "to be present is to be vulnerable," but encourages faculty to embrace the discomfort of uncertainty as a sacred tenet of the learning process, insisting that "the act of teaching is nothing we can lock up, nothing we can hold on to, nothing we can simply pull off the shelf and run. The very next time I walk into class, I will be, once again, somewhere I've never been" (223). By resisting the opportunity to engage students with a fully-present presenter, teachers inhibit their capacity for fostering learning in the unique venue with which we are blessed. [CA 08]
Felman, Jyl
Lynn. Never a Dull Moment: Teaching
and the Art of Performance.
Felman discusses performance teaching, specifically in the feminist classroom. Her guiding pedagogical philosophy is “teaching is performing and performing is teaching” (xvi). Performance teaching, similar to good theatre, engages students’ emotions and intellect. With this said, Felman’s classes are “up close and personal” (6-7). Her pedagogical approach differs significantly from traditional lecture-based approaches. In this text, Felman explores the reactions to her teaching style by both male and female students; included in each chapter are student comments regarding her teaching methods. The chapters focus on a wide range of issues such as professional dress and appearance, voice and projection, academic politics and the visiting professor, female eating disorders, as well as the isolation and marginalization of Women’s Studies departments across academia. [PMS 07]
Fletcher, Anne C., and Stephen T. Russell. “Incorporating Issues of Sexual Orientation in the
Classroom: Challenges and Solutions.” Family Relations 50.1(2002): 34-30.
This useful article provides practical solutions to instructors unsure of how to incorporate lgbt materials and teach lgbt issues in the classroom. The authors contend that instructors generally have limited exposure (both in a personal and academic sense) to the lgbt community. Similarly, many students’ understanding of lgbt identity is confined to family discussions and distorted media representations. In addition to the problem posed by lack of exposure, the article delineates six challenges faced by instructors who seek to include lgbt resources in their curriculum. The article offers helpful suggestions on how instructors can respond constructively to student homophobia. Furthermore, the authors discuss the vital necessity of making lgbt concerns relevant to non-lgbt students; the authors recommend role-playing exercises for this purpose. By stepping outside of their comfort zones and role-playing scenarios involving lgbt people, students gain a broader understanding of the difficulties faced by sexual minorities in a society that privileges heterosexuality. In sum, this article offers concrete solutions to the challenges posed by the incorporation of lgbt issues into a classroom environment. The authors effectively contribute to the ongoing struggle to make academia truly inclusive. [JG 08]
Freire, Paulo. Pedagogy of the
Oppressed. 30th Anniversary Edition. Trnsl. Myra B.
Ramos.
Keywords: pedagogy, oppressed, banking concept, problem-posing concept, dialogics, generative themes, (de)humanization, conscientizacao, revolution, necrophily,
praxis
Freire’s
Pedagogy of the Oppressed is a hand book for people who are interested
in linking education with social change.
Complete with revolutionary theory and personal narratives, Freire defines the roles of the oppressor and the oppressed
in an attempt to humanize the world.
According to Freire, in order for the
oppressed to receive absolute freedom, they must design their own pedagogy
whereby they present their social experiences as themes for critical
analysis. Freire
asserts that the current banking concept of education wherein information is
deposited into students does nothing to help them think for themselves;
instead, the banking concept forces oppressed students to adopt the oppressors’
ideals, and therefore, the problem-posing concept of education should be
incorporated into the classroom as an instrument for liberation. Freire also claims
that dialogics is the essence of education as the
practice of freedom. “Without dialogue,”
says Freire, “there is no communication, and without
communication there can be no true education” (92-93). [KB 08]
Foertsch, Jacqueline. "Books as Broccoli?
Images as Ice Cream? Providing
a Healthy Menu in the College English Classroom." Pedagogy 6.2 (Spring 2006): 209-30.
Foertsch's article is a
polemic against contemporary pedagogical stances that welcome visual media -
movies and internet resources, in particular - into the literary classroom as
instructional aids or texts to be read and
analyzed. It argues that technology and
film are forcing printed text from the literary education, and gives a litany
of reasons why this usurpation is occurring.
From the idea that the internet reinforces poor writing skills to the
claim that teachers simply cave to the whims of their visually-obsessed
students, Foertsch attempts to describe a discipline
in decline. She concludes that film and
internet resources should be relegated to a place of "dessert," a
reward for reading print text, or, barring the ability of a teacher to utilize
such resources as an "unhealthy" treat, dismissed from the literature
classroom entirely. There is no position
of compromise within the article: in teaching undergraduates, the internet and
film can never be used as more than a meaningless "snack"; no
allowances for any possible positive utilization are granted.
While
the majority of the argument tends to be myopic, unsubstantiated, and poorly
supported, it does raise questions about the value of technology and film in a
profession that has, traditionally, been centered upon print material. Are English teachers at the collegiate level
too obsessed with utilizing new technologies in the classroom? Are literature teachers using the internet
and film in ways which will benefit the project of producing critical
readers? Why can contemporary
undergraduate students connect so easily with visual media, and what does that
mean? These are all pertinent, engaging
questions which Foertsch could have explored but did
not. Her article is, therefore, not
particularly useful as a pedagogical prescription, but as a springboard into
more reasonable, more focused, and more pressing educational concerns. [Kurt F.
09]
Fox,
Catherine. “The Race to Truth: Disarticulating Critical Thinking from
Whiteliness.” Pedagogy 2.2 (2002): 197-212.
Fox argues that the attempt to teach critical thinking often functions as a form of revolution rather than transformation where one dominant ideology is replaced with another. “Critical thinking,” Fox writes is “too often conflated with feminist, and critical ideologies; seductively entrenched in whitely judgementalism, righteousness, and Truth; and therefore is complicitious with systems of power, privilege, and knowledge” (198). The tendency to champion critical thinking as “undoubtedly good” without questioning HOW critical thinking enables educators to enact transformation allows us to lose sight of our primary goal (198). To further articulate her concerns, Fox looks to the metaphor of whiteliness as described by Minnie Bruce Pratt and Marilynn Frye. Pratt explains that her white identity taught her to judge in accordance to her ethical system, to be a martyr by taking all responsibility for change, to be a peacemaker by negotiating between opposing sides, and to be a preacher by pointing out what others ought to do (qtd in Fox 200). Frye expands on these characteristics to discuss her own lessons from whiteliness and concludes that it is “based on integrity, dignity, and respectability, which whitely women use as levers to raise themselves to the levers of whitely men” (203). Looking to the thoughts of Frye and Pratt, Fox reasons that when we teach students how to analyze, “we often assume that we are being principled, ethical, and morally appropriate because we are following the rules of reason as they have been established during the long history of Western intellectualism” (203). Because educators tend to define critical thinking as reaching a particular point of arrival, Fox worries that we are ultimately urging students to race to the truths that we have discovered; and, in doing so, “we manifest and reproduce whitely ways of being in the world” (203). Therefore, Fox urges educators to consider critical thinking as a pragmatic exercise rather than presupposing that critical thinking simply means for reaching the “right answer.” This pragmatic approach depends upon an examination of the consequences of our choices or beliefs. Fox explains that “if we could question the consequences of our actions … we might see new ways of being that move past revolution, past replacing old truths with feminist or critical ideological truths, and into moments of transformation” (205). This examination of consequence requires the inclusion of many perspectives, which is crucial to the kind of critical thinking that Fox advocates. [JM 08]
Gallagher, Susan Van Zanten. “Contingencies and Intersections: The Formations of Pedagogical Canons. Pedagogy 1.1 (2001) 53-67.
Susan Van Zanten Gallagher argues that the focus of the academic debate should not be the imaginary canon (works “scholars and critics have argued are ‘great’), but should be the pedagogical canon (the list of works of the syllabus – those read and taught in the class) (53). Therefore, as the pedagogical canon changes so too does the imaginary canon, which is an ongoing construction.
How then are pedagogical canons formed? There is no one precise way a text makes its way into the pedagogical canon. It is a matter of who publishes the manuscript, when it is published, and how that text is brought to the instructor’s attention. Then, if that text is teachable because of its “ideology and aesthetics or thematic usefulness,” it is implemented into the curriculum (56). After its adoption by numerous instructors, that work may find itself included into the imaginary canon.
Gallagher
then illustrates a work’s inclusion through the case study of Zimbabwean Tsitsi Dangarembga’s novel Nervous
Conditions. This African novel was
not published through regular channels, the Heinemann African Writer’s series:
rather, it was published by a feminist publishing house in
Gellis, Mark. “Grading with an Attitude”. Pedadogy 2.3 (2002) 416-9.
A short but relatively thoughtful article focused on the anxiety of grading student papers. Based on his research, Gellis concludes that student get more value from one-on-one conferences versus detailed instructor notes. Rather than hoping that students show up to personal conferences, Gellis requires them to sign up and attend the sessions. He also encourages “just in time grading” (418), scoring papers as close to the student conference as possible, thereby enhancing his ability to recall the details of the paper in order to provide effective feedback. Gellis claims that he has saved a great deal of time “responding to papers, identifying their major strengths and weaknesses, and determining the letter grades” in favor of “productive discussions with my students in conferences” (419). This article was helpful in that it reinforced my own preference for mandatory student conferences, but provided little help in determining how to best ensure that students were sufficiently aware of how they would be evaluated. [RB 06]
Graff, Gerald and James Phelan. “Why Study Critical
Controversies?” Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain: A Case Study
in Critical Controversy. 2d ed. By
Graff and Phelan.
Gerald Graff and James Phelan address students directly in “Why Study Critical Controversies?” pointing out the frequent discomfort many experience when called upon to discuss literary texts without prior familiarity with the “language” that other students, critics and professors seem to know inherently (1-2). Although professors may be concerned with the potential for overwhelming students with conflicting viewpoints, Graff and Phelan believe that “teaching through controversy” can in fact help students to read and think critically as they “gain control over initially mysterious conventions (2; 12-13). Moreover, when students encounter a variety of possible interpretations, they realize they are not alone in their struggle to grasp “the meaning of the novel,” and by responding to what others have written, learn to engage with the text in ways that reading the story for pleasure or by itself cannot offer (6-9; 11). While some scholars have argued that critics can “problematize” discussion of Huckleberry Finn by deviating from what the text actually suggests--what Huck himself would call “‘stretchers,’” Graff and Phelan argue that even “far-fetched” interpretations are valuable, for learning through controversy is “not the opposite of reaching resolution but a precondition of doing so” (qtd. in Graff and Phelan 4-5; 12). I strongly recommend “Why Study Critical Controversies?” not only as a valuable springboard for discussion, but as an inviting entry point to the careful selection of diverse critical responses that follow in Graff and Phelan’s Case Study. Not only do the authors provide essential historical and social realities about the reception, and subsequent banning, of an important literary work, but also an inviting opportunity for students to actively participate in an ongoing critical debate. [AS 08]
Green, Andrew. “A Desk and a Pile of Books: Considering Independent Study.” Pedagogy 7.3 (2007): 427-52.
Green’s article discusses the importance of teaching
college students how to study on their own outside of the classroom. Although
his information is modeled on the school system in the
Gregory,
Gregory’s article aims to address the discrepancy between curriculum and instruction in university classrooms. He is insightful in his argument that many professors spend hours developing curriculum yet teach like “barnstormers, flying by the seat of their pants.” He argues that many professors rely on “method” and rules of pedagogical technique and forget the importance of passing on their passion for the subject; this passion, Gregory claims, is what truly educates students. He focuses on developing classroom persona and creating relationships with students, both of which are intended to facilitate the transmission of passion for the subject matter and instigate students’ engagement with the material. While this is inspiring and helpful for considering (or reconsidering) one’s overall goals for a particular course, what it lacks is practical advice on how to integrate these concepts into the classroom itself. [AC 06]
Hunter, J. Paul.
“The Future of the Past: Teaching Older Texts in a Postmodern World.”
In this article, J. Paul Hunter engages in a conversation about “the future” and particularly what the future means for teachers and scholars of “older literature” (Hunter uses this generic term to apply to a whole host of periods ranging from ancient and medieval to 18th century literature, his own area of expertise). Hunter explores the “presentist” tendencies of our postmodern age, broadly, and the same tendencies in young students, specifically. Noting the relevance of “the past” for contemporary students, Hunter asserts that the past affords an opportunity to engage in a critical and probing gaze, not merely blind admiration for older periods and outmoded social and political paradigms. All who love knowledge, according to Hunter, will eventually look to older literature, and that analysis will be more profitable if we might understand the relevance of older texts for the twentieth and twentieth-first century. Once we have enticed students to study the past (a difficult prospect in its own right), we as teachers need to express both the similarity and the difference of past traditions. Hunter argues, quite persuasively, that scholars of older literature can borrow the critical methodologies of those engaged in contemporary cultural studies. Students can thus approach the “strangeness” of older literature and the past in the same way that they might engage with contemporary works written by “others” from different racial, ethnic, national, sexual or religious backgrounds. The key, in both instances, is interesting students in the lives of individuals whose experiences may be vastly different from their own. Practically speaking, Hunter argues that we can use the familiar aspects of older texts (while carefully avoiding convenient essentialism) to move backwards to the more unfamiliar features of the periods and texts. [RE 08]
Jones, Virginia Pompei. “Teaching Elements of Literature through Art: Romanticism, Realism, and Culture.” Pedagogy 7.2 (Spring 2007): 264-70.
Addressing instructors of literature at the university level, Jones advocates a pedagogical approach that uses paintings to illustrate elements of a genre common to both the visual and written art forms. She argues that incorporating visual art speaks to the “the importance of diversification and multiple intelligences in arousing students’ interest and in enhancing the learning process” (270). The article focuses on realism and includes examples of realistic paintings and fiction. While her basic idea is a good one and the article might be considered a starting place, she could develop her ideas further. Teachers could show students how one form of art influenced another and, in addition to painting, incorporate music, architecture, or film into their literature courses as well. [DM 08]
Joseph,
Joseph presents an effective argument for metacognition, “the mental process of analyzing our own thinking, to advance intellectually and personally” (109). Her experience has caused her to conclude that many students do not use metacognitive knowledge, illustrated by assignments infused with “shortsighted thinking and an inability to move beyond literal comprehension to the more challenging elements of interpretation and application” (110). She also provides specific suggestions to promote more critical thinking by encouraging students to allow sufficient time to reflect on their work, and displays her personal rewriting and editing decisions. She also promotes prewriting as essential towards promoting essays that demonstrated more critical thinking and reflection. [RG 06]
Kazan, Tina S. “Dancing Bodies in the Classroom: Moving toward an Embodied Pedagogy.” Pedagogy 5.3 (2005): 379-408.
Levine, George. “The Two Nations.” Pedagogy 1 (2001): 7-19.
In “The Two Nations” George Levine examines the great divide
in university English departments across the country between teaching, the job
that faculty are hired to do, and literary scholarship, the work that is the
primary focus of faculty attention and professional incentives. A result of the
basic devaluation of teaching at the university level, this divide only
succeeds in perpetuating the problem since English faculty often become
unaccustomed to (and often even averse to) teaching lower-level courses. The unfortunate
results of this divide, for Levine, are an ever-increasing graduate population
competing for ever- decreasing job opportunities to teach upper-level
literature courses. Though Levine’s hope for any substantive change in the
current system is limited to reveling in “utopian” dreams, his very
acknowledgment of the division between literary study and pedagogy and his
explanation of its origins does perhaps offer a direction for change and a
possible path to compromise and integration. [ST 07]
Linkon, Sherry. “The Reader’s Apprentice: Making Critical Cultural Reading Visible.” Pedagogy 5.2 (2005): 247-273. Project Muse. U of South Florida Library. 5 June 2007 http://www.projectmuse.com.
In this article, Linkon argues that “if we want our students to develop the ability to read, research, and analyze cultural texts, we need to employ more strategic, deliberate methods of teaching” (248). She describes the theory, methodology, and practice of a course designed to accomplish this goal. Linkon utilizes the cultural studies approach to reading theory which Kathleen McCormick calls “critical cultural reading” to interrogate the source of student difficulties in attaining a higher level of critical engagement with texts, as well as to develop pedagogical practices that she believes might alleviate these difficulties and facilitate learning. Her focus is on recursive reading, reading and developing inquiry slowly and over a long period, modeling and coaching, and opportunities for students to practice. She emphasizes the need that these activities need to be built into the curriculum in an active and interactive manner, rather than merely discussed. [KW 07]
McGann, Jerome. “Reading Fiction/
Teaching Fiction: A Pedagogical Experiment.”
Pedagogy 1 (2001): 143-65.
In his article “Reading Fiction/Teaching Fiction: A Pedagogical Experiment,”
Jerome McGann describes an experiment in teaching
fiction conducted at the
McMahon, Robert. Thinking About Literature: New Ideas for High School Teachers.
Although Thinking About Literature primarily focuses on teaching high school students, the basic concept of this text is applicable to first and second-year college students as well. The author states, “Literary works, especially stories and plays, are a laboratory for understanding the thoughts and feelings, characters, and acts of human beings”(1). As a result, the author’s ideas are also useful at the college level. McMahon’s approach to teaching literature centers on stimulating students by using evaluative questioning and imaginative exercises that foster motivation and promote creativity. His methods allow students to explore language, characters, and plot. By using their knowledge and experience, students are able to form opinions and create judgments. In short, McMahon’s methods are designed to get students to think. The organization of the text begins with a Summary of Basic Questions designed to explore motives for human behavior. McMahon suggests analyzing motive by dividing a human act into five components, as follows: “In a given context (Situation), a person (Agent) does or says something (Act) in a certain manner (Attitude) in order to achieve some end (Purpose) (1). These related components generate powerful questions that allow the reader to reflect on the work, providing a view of character behavior. McMahon states that skilled readers automatically question and answer while reading, proving to be very useful for “teaching less experienced readers how to read more intelligently”(3). Also included in the Summary are questions that may be applied to any work for the purpose of Association, Conflict, Sequence, or Transformation. This section ends with a group of evaluative questions designed to identify moral character, and consider the agent’s intentions and consequences of an act. The book’s five chapters are comprised of 18 different Provocations, or imaginative exercises, designed to help students connect with the relationships in a story, heighten imagination, and understand the style of the writer. Some example assignments given by the author include having students transpose setting to a different time period, or transpose point of view from one character to another. In Chapter 4, McMahon demonstrates methods for teaching character and motives within a novel, using The Great Gatsby as an example of how Summary questions are applied to the work. McMahon feels that both English teachers and college professors alike do not fully assist students with understanding plot structure (112). One solution the author provides requires noting specific events, for the purpose of identifying progression and sequence, making it easier for students to reflect, analyze, and discuss the text (112-113).
Thinking About Literature may be viewed as a valuable practical resource for educators to consult, especially used in combination with other sources specifically designed for the college instructor. The interpretive assignments and questions in the text are easily adapted for individual preference, and aim at creating a deeper, more meaningful understanding of literature, by providing the foundation for engaging students and teaching them to understand, reflect, and apply literature to their own lives. [RP 06]
Mills, Dan. “Mind the Gap: Teaching Othello through Creative
Responses.” Pedagogy 8 (2008):
154-159.
Playing off of the directions in the
Ritter, Kelly. “Professional Writers/Writing Professionals: Revamping Teacher Training in Creative Writing Ph. D. Programs.” College English 64.2 (2001): 205-227.
In this article writer pleads with the colleges that offer a
Ph. D. in Creative Writing to adopt a pedagogical strategy that includes
teacher training akin to that of composition programs throughout
Rosenberg, Roberta. “The Importance of Storytelling: Students and Teachers Respond to September 11.” Pedagogy 8.1 (2008): 145-154.
Schuster, Edgar H. Breaking
the Rules: Liberating Writers through Innovative Grammar Instruction.
Heinemann:
As its title makes explicit, this book expounds non-traditional approaches to teaching grammar, punctuation, and writing. Schuster foregrounds the difficulties and contradictions that come with conveying, learning and applying these skills. He provides a variety of samples of published writing, from literary to journalistic, to illuminate gaps between writing rules in the abstract and writing rules in practice. The student exercises interspersed throughout Breaking the Rules are helpful for teaching high school or first year college students. In all, this text is a useful tool for both teachers and students. Schuster’s language is simple, but not simplistic, and his examples of “writing myths” may lead one to reconsider the validity of his or her most staunch writing pet-peeves. [NS]
Showalter, Elaine. Teaching Literature.
Blackwell Publishing:
This reader friendly text covers a range of topics that confront professors of literature. It is judged here, however, for its comments on grading student work. Showalter titles this portion of the book “The Business of Teaching:” “grading” and “housekeeping.” She defends the frequency with which A’s are given on today’s college campuses, urging that this be seen as a sign of effective teaching, rather than easiness or leniency. Showalter prefers the modish term “evaluating” over grading, arguing that the latter term is a “peculiarly academic hang-up.” She also recommends a text on this topic which she found personally useful: Assessing Student Learning in Higher Education by George Brown with Joanna Bull and Malcolm Pendlebury (Routledge 1997). [NS]
Sommers, Nancy. "Responding to Student Writing." CCC 33.2 (1982): 148-56
Instructors are her audience, but she links the instructors
wants with the student when she states, “[a]s writers we need and want
thoughtful commentary to show us when we have communicated our ideas and when
not, raising questions from a reader’s point of view that may not have occurred
to us as writers” (148). She then
correlates this with the pedagogical perspective of helping students realize
their audience “to gain control of their writing”; since this is what she feels
is most difficult for students (148).
This idea about comments led Sommers and two
of her colleagues, Lil Brannon and Cyril Knoblach, to
conduct a study to see which comments are most helpful to students by comparing
the comments to actual revisions made by students at
Srikanth, Rajini. “Overwhelmed by the World: Teaching Literature and the Difference of
Nations.” Pedagogy. 7:1 (2007): 192-206
The goal of Srikanth’s piece is to “infuse pedagogy with politics” and introduce both students and future teachers to the differences and connections across nations and cultures. She writes that there is a great deal of ignorance and narcissism in the university today, and she wants to question the preconceptions and judgments that the students make and have (how they were acquired? how they are supported?). In immersing and introducing students to unfamiliar cultures, Srikanth aims to “release students from their paralysis.” Srikanth also addresses the instructor’s possible paralysis in questioning their authority to teach a subject and presents some “difficulties associated with speaking and writing of the other who is distant from oneself – racially, culturally, nationally.” To Srikanth, the distance that she has culturally from the material she is teaching allows her to illustrate to her students “how one goes about responsibly acquiring knowledge of places, peoples, and histories that one is not likely to experience in depth and firsthand” (203). She raises the issue of being an “outsider” and teaching literature of a culture other than the one you grew up in: “feeling guilty of trying to interpret attitude and experiences that are not mine and that perhaps I cannot represent authentically.” As advice to self-conscious teachers, she rejects the binary of ignorance and omniscience when it comes to instruction. Instead, the key is to “make transparent one’s labor of journeying along the continuum between the polarities” (204). Srikanth also questions the source of knowledge about a culture (especially when it comes from an authority) and suggests not to pay attention to the interpretations and experiences of a single group within that culture. The metaphor Srikanth uses is that the professor needs “to hunt with the hounds and run with the hare.” To her, it is imperative that we identify the players and equip ourselves with the arguments of those both with and without power so that we might assess how we wish to use the material. [PM 07]
Totten, Samuel, Ed. Teaching Holocaust
Literature.
This is a guide to teaching Holocaust through literature at all levels as an
alternative to teaching the Holocaust some other way, that is, purely
historically or politically. It is not a book for students to use in the
classroom but rather a handbook for teachers to use for specific texts. These
texts, except for a poem or two, are not included, and there is a special
section on not teaching The Diary
of Anne Frank by itself. This anthology contains many resources and
suggests many texts, some of which are other media such as film, along with
suggestions about how to teach the history of the Holocaust itself. It is
amazing how little is known about this catastrophe and the editor and
contributors are anxious to provide context to students. I was amazed at the
amount of Holocaust literature and wish I could teach it, but I don't embody
the discourse. I mention this because the issue came up in the classroom.
Students were dumbfounded that a gentile found the Holocaust at all
interesting. Interdisciplinary Work [LZ]
Ulmer, Gregory L. Heuretics:
The Logic of Invention.
Summary
Ulmer’s Heuretics is both a progression and examination of critical theory in regard to writing as well as technology. Heuretics is organized into two parts: Part One discusses the history of the heuretic method, beginning at the incorporation of classical rhetoric and progressing to postmodernism (with particular interest paid to poststructuralism), and Part Two illustrates Ulmer’s apparatus and applies the critical theories previously discussed with the goal of inventing a rhetoric for technological literacy and writing. Heuretics would best be suited for scholars, devotees of Composition theory, or those interested with the inclusion of technology in education. Ulmer succinctly addresses the incorporation of different kinds of technology and media (their applications, possibilities, and ramifications) and combines them with an examination of the “writerly” and generative process.
The text offers highly detailed presentation and analysis as well as a creative application of many of the theoretical concepts. Much of the philosophy behind the book involves generation, the act of creating a new work rather than re-inscribing knowledge through time-tested methods, and this philosophy can be quite liberating (for the instructor and the student). However, Ulmer proceeds on his creative reworking of established theories with the assumption that the reader is already familiar with them. An above-average grasp of poststructuralist theory is certainly required to make sense of much of what the book is attempting to accomplish. The text also develops a specific vocabulary to relate to its new exercises and procedures and is sometimes prone to lapsing into jargon-filled explanations.
On the whole, Heuretics is a very useful book in principle, taking the best of Composition theory and reworking it into generative exercises that can be applied into any field of study (especially in writing about literature). [WT]
Vernooy-Epp, Dawn M. "Teaching Mary Darby Robinson's Reading List: Romanticism,
Recovery Work, and Reconsidering Anthologies." Pedagogy. 9:1 (2009): 14-34.
Dawn Vernooy-Epp's article addresses questions of canon formation, recovery of marginalized voices, and the unintended consequences of anthologies in the classroom. Vernooy-Epp points out that one of the dilemmas that the recovery of overlooked, and forgotten figures poses to the instructor of literature has to do with the unification of literary subject matter across courses, departments, and institutions. This theoretical problem becomes wholly practical when students face such external measures of knowledge as the GRE and the Praxis. What pedagogical relationship should today's instructors (and anthologists for that matter) have towards the various versions of the canon? This dilemma leads her to a pedagogical model wherein she tries to emphasize metacognition (to borrow our course's watchword) in order to "make students aware of the various models of canonization, and the ways in which we can learn how to question the value of the canon--old or new" (15). Vernooy-Epp's project relies not on an anthology, but rather on a historically placed document, Mary Robinson's Letter to the Women of England. She views this work as "one that reconfigures the criteria for membership [in the canon] but still participates in the canon-making tradition" (15). Robinson's Letter itself is a worthwhile piece for discussion of canon-formation, in particular for making students aware of alternative models and pointing to the presupposition that underlie these judgments.The second part of Vernooy-Epp's project turns it into an active assignment wherein students become "experts" (26) on a particular author from the letter, enacting the work of recovery themselves. [JW 09]
Zimmet, Nancy. “Engaging the Disaffected: Collaborative Writing across the Curriculum Projects.” English Journal 90.1 (2000): 102-106.
Zimmet’s article deals with a “writing across the curriculum” project that had some unique aspects. First, the teachers that implemented the plan conferred with university professors in their respective fields to become more acquainted with current scholarship and to secure an array of interesting guest speakers for the program. Second, the teachers made collaborative lesson plans so that they mimicked each other’s goals to the students. This focus on collaboration was also passed on to the students, “Integral to our assignments was teaching our students how they could help one another to learn and improve their writing” (102). Zimmet states that one of the key principles of the program was that, “We adapted composition and learning theories that stress noncompetitive learning to encourage our students to work with one another” (103).
Another important concept that Zimmet’s group embraced was that of free writing, “We use informal assignments to help students focus on lectures, learn how to take notes, participate in class discussions, and understand readings” (103). She explains how students were asked to prepare questions for guest lectures three days ahead of time. Then, at the mid-lecture break, they were asked to prepare another set (103). According to Zimmet, this preparation helped shy students to get involved because they had prewritten the questions. Therefore, there was no pressure to articulate a question “out of thin air” (104).
One of Zimmet’s significant observations was that the teaching conglomerate found it more useful to plan mini-units than entire courses. This type of short-term planning allowed for speedy adjustments to student needs (105). The article exhibits the fact that collaborative course planning of this sort can have positive effects on both student and subject. [JN 06]
WEBSITES: for cross-curricular teaching. (Compiled by Leah Cassorla.)
While most of these are for K-12 cross-curricular work, they can be “tweaked” for college level cross-curricular learning.
|
Other Websites:
Darling, Charles. “Guide to Grammar
and Writing.”
Felluga, Dino. Introductory Guide to Critical Theory. 28 November 2003. Purdue U. 7 June 2007. <http://www.cla.purdue.edu/academic/engl/theory/index.html>
Although he calls it an introduction, Felluga designed his web site to be an aid to instructors of undergraduate and high school courses. The site has six subsections: Gender and Sex, Marxism, Narratology, New Historicism, Postmodernism, and Psychoanalysis. Using a tree structure as an organizing system, Felluga then divides each of these schools of theory into six subsections: a general introduction, terms and concepts, sample applications, lesson plans, modules, and links. The sample essays apply six theoretical models to two of Spenser’s sonnets and to a visual image from Sebastian Brant's Narrenschiff (1494), while the lesson plans employ tools from other parts of the site—the modules, essays, and terms. Felluga’s project offers useful ideas for integrating theory into the literature classroom and gives the instructors many of the tools she or he would need to do so. The sample essays would be especially helpful if one happens to be teaching Spenser, but could be applied in a poetry class or other introductory class. His application of literary theory to the image from Narrenschiff would be useful for illustrating the idea that many things can be read as a text. Unfortunately, the site has not been updated since 2003. There are broken links and incomplete pages. The terms and concepts pages, for example, often say “coming soon” after naming the relevant term. Still, the list of terms that pertain to a school of theory can be useful even without the definitions. Fellluga says he wrote his site for instructors, but advanced undergraduate students could benefit from it as well, and the author includes citation information as an aid to students. [AB 07]
The Poetry Archive. Ed. Esther Morgan, Andrew Bailey, and Helen Ivory. 2005. The Poetry Archive. 19 June 2006. <http://www.poetryarchive.org/poetryarchive/home.do>
The Poetry Archive is an invaluable resource which celebrates poetry as an oral (and aural) art form. Including hundreds of recordings, the Archive’s goal is to create a catalog of major poets reading their own work, including historical recordings of poets who are dead in addition to creating new recordings of living poets. The archive can be searched by poet, poem, region, poetic form, theme, and recordings that include an introduction to the poem by the poet. The sections titled “Tips for Listening” and “We’ve Listened, Now What?” (ideas for classroom activities) are intended for grades K-12 but do contain ideas that can be adapted for the college classroom. [AC 07]
PoetrySoup: The FREE International Poetry Community. Poetry Soup, Marietta Georgia. 01 June 2006 <http://www.poetrysoup.com>.
Poetry Soup is a website that promotes the art and craft of poetry, both professional and amateur. Anyone may join the online community and post their work for comment by other members and visitors to the site. There are currently 8062 members on the site, and a total of 59,494 individual poems. There is a quarterly poetry contest that recognizes outstanding previously unpublished poetry, as well as a weekly list of featured poems. For teaching purposes, there is an extensive list of well-known poets throughout history with biographical information and photos, a section of poems by these authors, a list of poetry terminology, and a rhyming dictionary. There is also a section that describes many forms of poetry, which might be helpful for introducing literature students to the conventions of traditional verse. Many members participate in an online forum, which often raises relevant issues and questions about poetry, both as readers and writers. There are also articles about the craft of poetry, and an active blogging community. Although this is not intended to be an academic website, there are many features that might be used effectively in an introductory poetry class. It is also a low-pressure, low-stakes way for aspiring student poets to get their work read and receive constructive feedback. [GW 07]
Virtual Seminars for Teaching Literature. Ed. Paul Groves and Stuart Lee. 11 September 2007. JTAP Virtual Seminars Project. 12 June 2008. http://www.oucs.ox.ac.uk/ltg/projects/jtap/
Although titled “Virtual Seminars for Teaching Literature,”
Literary
Anthologies and Primary Texts for the classroom:
Birenbaum, Harvey. The Happy Critic: A Serious but Not
Solemn Guide to Thinking and Writing About Literature.
This is the only book I could find that directly deals with teaching critical thinking and writing about literature at the undergraduate level. Birenbaum uses humor to draw the reader in. He introduces academic terms, but always defines them. Though he deals with some concepts that I would have thought were too elementary for college students, I think they probably aren’t, but regardless of how elementary a term is, Birenbaum is never condescending. It is highly unfortunate that this book is out of print. [LC]
Bronte, Emily.
This is one
of the Wuthering Heights editions I brought to class during our textual
criticism discussion. The edition has the pencil drawing of a bleak fir tree by
Emily Bronte on the cover, which captures the haunting landscape of the
Yorkshire Moors rendered all the more foreboding by the blue ink coloring. (A
lighter, more festive drawing by Emily of a ring “ouzel” appears on the
backside.) The text begins with a
“Preface to the Third Edition,” explaining the various editorial and other
changes that have occurred, and the original “Preface to the First Edition.”
Following the standard format of the Norton series, the text is presented next,
followed by textual commentary written by the editors. The “Backgrounds”
section appears next, which contextualizes the work with “Poems from the 1850
“The Contemporary Reception”
follows as usual, which is less critical and represents the positive and
negative reviews of the work at or around the original date of publication.
These are generally limited and narrow-minded, specific to the nation in which
the work appeared, and instructive for gauging a sense of the patently biased
literary sensibility of the time. (It is interesting to note, however, that the
Norton Critical Edition of Moby-Dick presents both American and British
reviews in the “Contemporary Reception” section. Surely
So far, nothing
new or unexpected. And this is precisely why this is the right text of
And, of course, to follow on the
heels of our class discussion, the textual commentary is invaluable. We
understand from this source the substantive and other editorial changes that
have been made to the text and the rationale for choosing the text in this
edition. The editorial choices appear to be intelligent and informed. In brief,
what more can one ask of a relatively inexpensive
paperbound edition of the text? The only thing lacking is a “visual essay” of
family portraits and other photographs, such as we reviewed in the anomalous
Washington Square Press edition of the text I passed around in class. (Again,
the Norton Critical Edition of Moby-Dick has one, so why not
The iDeal Reader. Prentice Hall, 2004. <www.mhhe.com/idealreader>
This CD and website allow teachers to construct custom readers for their classes. Though the CD is a composition and literature oriented disk, the website includes selections from other fields as well. This tool would allow teachers building a cross-curricular course to create a text that works within the specific framework of the course they are designing. In addition, because the course can then use a single text, students would save money (besides which the books themselves, are relatively inexpensive). Unfortunately, the questions available for the texts are, well, inane. This is likely to be part of a trend which will allow teachers to shop their custom reader to different publishers—let’s hope it does. [LC]
Lawall, Sarah
and Maynard Mack. The Norton Anthology of World Literature, 2nd Edition,
volumes D-F.
Overview
Organization: Chronological by literary movement
Emphasis: 1650 to today; strong focus on Western Canon
Approach: Literary trends; history of globalization
Features: Maps, Timelines, pronunciation guides, foot notes, and Norton’s usual high-quality introductions; full-texts of numerous longer works.
Comments: Norton’s wisest move with this massive anthology was to first select the most important literary movements before picking out specific texts. This ensured that, even with a global scope, the most important ideas would be covered even when all the most important authors could not be. But because of this emphasis on literary movements, the first five volumes deal largely with canonical works. A truly global feel is not achieved until the final volume, which is arranged homogeneously without subdivisions. The size of the anthology is both a weakness and a strength. All six volumes weigh in at 3,100+ pages, making the anthology an small library on its own, but presenting far too much material to serve as the text for any one course. [GH]
Lothe, Jakob.
Narrative in Fiction and Film: An Introduction.
Lothe’s Narrative is a text that examines, illustrates, and tests the theories of narrative theory and its tenets in literature and film. The text is divided into two parts – Part One discusses concepts associated with narrative theory and its application within literature and films (with separate subject headings for each term and/or examination), and Part Two demonstrates the potential of analysis through narrative theory with four essays combining works of literature and film. The text would be most appropriate for advanced undergraduates, given its focus on synthesis of literature and film and the presentation and examination of a specific critical theory.
The text provides an excellent and comprehensive breakdown and analysis of the concepts of narrative theory. Lothe also explicitly illustrates these concepts at work in both text and cinema. The essays included in Part Two illustrate some interesting choices of film while still operating within the “canon” of writers familiar to Literature departments (Conrad, Joyce, Woolf). However, the focus on the critical analysis by Barthes and Propp may dominate the methods and analysis performed by the students (not a bad thing in itself considering the critics, but their authority on the subject presented in the text may be overwhelming for the student). Further, the strict focus on narrative theory may limit the inclusion of any alternate analytical possibilities. This is, of course, less a fault of the book (due to its obvious stated focus), but it is a concern for the instructor in regard to the progression and focus of the course to incorporate the text.
On the whole, Narrative is a useful text, but its specific focus on narrative theory defines its level of use for the literature course. To use it in a basic literature course with no film component would prove unsatisfying from the attention to film, and the same applies for any film studies class. The synthesis of literature and film is ably presented, but the level of that synthesis prevents use of the text in classes with a single focus. [WT]
Lim, Shirley Geok-lin and Norman A.
Spencer. One World of Literature.
Overview
Organization: Geographic Region (alphabetical by continent & country) plus thematic table of contents
Emphasis: Twentieth century works (largely) written in English by world authors.
Approach: Socio-cultural
Features: Geographical essays summarize history and literary contributions of each major continent; brief guide to analyzing literature at the end.
Comments:
Lim and Spencer were striving for contemporary, not canonical. The texts selected here may be viewed as a cultural survey, not necessarily of native cultures, but of global settings impacted by the dynamism of Western Civilization and, particularly, Americanism. The fact that many of the included authors write in English attests to that. Yet the editors were not blind to the fact that this book’s audience would be American college students, so their approach serves as an excellent starting point for contextualizing cultures and allowing students to navigate the global intellectual landscape without severing their tethers with the familiar altogether. Allowing students to survey global cultures in context, juxtaposed over Western influences, is particularly useful for encouraging thinking about worldviews other than one’s own, creating contrasts that can move readers out of comfort zones and into a better understanding of their role in a global society. [GH]
Maasik, Sonia and Jack Solomon, eds. Signs of Life
in the
I first used this textbook for Composition II. courses (English 200 rather) at
The second time I used the textbook was here at USF this semester. I pulled excerpts from this textbook, obtained copyright clearances, and collated the excerpts in a course packet. We used the course packet for the same basic purpose: to orient and enhance class discussion, and to develop a topic for the students’ third writing project (“Writing about a Cultural Text”). However, we utilized Signs of Life in this second instance for supplementary readings, not as the primary textbook; and we used it for less than half the semester rather than for the entire semester. This made sense because for my Composition II. course at USF, writing about a cultural “text” was only one writing assignment out of four instead of being the exclusive writing assignment.
I thought you might find my personal background and use of the textbook relevant to understanding why I chose this textbook to annotate. Simply put, I have taught it (or parts of it) for two semesters, and it comes highly recommended. The textbook is designed for any introductory media/cultural studies, film, Popular Culture, or even Sociology course that foregrounds discussions of gender, ethnicity and race. The Fourth Edition is greatly improved from a rather shabby forebear.
The reader (meaning textbook) begins with a standard Preface, this time addressed to instructors instead of students, and then proceeds with the Contents. Besides photographs, including a depressing retrospective of 9/11 photos, a colorful portfolio of recent advertisements, and a cartoon, the textbook presents academic essays or articles on Popular Culture. Some of the essays are more academic (and I mean really academic, to such an extent that even I, the instructor, had a difficult time following the argument), and others less so, appealing generally to an audience of students between 18-35-years- old. The Contents are annotated: the thesis or main claim of the article appears under the author’s name, title of the article, and corresponding page numbers, which is excellent if a student wants to recall quickly what is the article’s central position or argument.
The general Introduction by the editors appears first, which includes a salutary section on “Writing About Popular Culture” for those new to this experience (probably just about everyone, including the instructor), and a sample student paper written on a Pop Culture text (in this particular instance, the television show “Star Trek”). I like the Introduction in the book because it lucidly explains the Semiotics approach to writing about Popular Culture (reading the “signs” or messages in Popular Culture “texts” such as: advertisements, games, toys, clothing, television, popular music, musical videos, popular cinema, architectural design of buildings, sports, gender and racial codes, etc.). The Introduction also includes a Semiotics reading of a familiar “sign” that many students can relate to, the Volkswagen beetle. The Introduction traces the historical origin, development, and cultural significance of the Volkswagen Beetle, placing the car within a particular sign system by means of association (comparison and differentiation).
The reader’s chapters are arranged in
two parts according to the following content areas. Part One: Cultural Productions:
“Chapter 1: Consuming Passions: The Culture of American Consumption,”
“Chapter 2: Brought to You B{u}y: The Signs of
Advertising,” “Chapter 3: Video Dreams: Television, Music and Cultural Forms,”
“Chapter Four: The
“Chapter 5: Popular Spaces: Interpreting the Built
Environment,” “Chapter 6: We’ve Come a Long Way, Maybe: Gender Codes in
American Culture,” “Chapter 7: “Constructing Race:
Each chapter has “Reading the Signs” discussion or writing topic questions at the end in addition to “Reading the Text” comprehension questions. Finally, the “Instructor’s Edition” contains “Editor’s Notes” at the end that helps the instructor develop discussion and classroom activities, as well as to design the semester around particular themes. As you can see, these chapters cover major social (and political) issues or concerns in American popular culture; the diversity, range, and depth of coverage of the issues is startling. Moreover, the chapters are interrelated and linked; for example, it’s possible to read an article in Chapter 6 on gender codes that has a lot to do with analyzing and interpreting American television in Chapter 3. Or, it’s possible to carry over your class discussion from Chapter 4 on popular cinema to Chapter 7, which deals with constructing race.
The chapter titles are sometimes humorous or ambivalent. Each chapter has an excellent introduction written by the editors that not only introduces the chapter but is a thoughtful, thought-provoking essay in its own right. No matter what your pedagogical method, associated theoretical or critical school, gender, race, or class background, it would be difficult to find nothing in these chapters and this textbook that captures your interest. I mean, of course, your academic interest as an active participant, member, and consumer-producer of American Popular Culture, not merely as a Composition or Literature instructor.
I have found in using this textbook that I become very interested in the class discussion, so much so that some of the possible writing topics I would enjoy tackling myself (hmmm…dissertation ideas?). The textbook is careful not to offend. In the event a discussion becomes too animated or heated, there are useful tips for “detouring” the discussion or deflating emotion. But the textbook is not interested in stirring up emotions; it approaches the study of Popular Culture in a critical way. Judgments about whether a student “likes” or “dislikes” a text are immaterial; what is emphasized is reading the messages of texts (intentional or otherwise) using our critical thinking faculties. Rather than attempting to change one’s values and beliefs, which would after all be deleterious and damning for a textbook, this book does what an ideal textbook should: it encourages everyone, both students and instructor, in an intelligent and insightful way, to think deeply about their values and beliefs, about the ideology, “signs” and messages of American Popular Culture.
I’ll end this annotation with an excerpted paragraph from the Introduction to the textbook, which pretty much sums up the value, objective, and significance of this innovative reader. I hope you will consider using or at least consulting this textbook in your future courses.
A cultural mythology or value system, then, is a kind of lens that governs the way we view our world. Think of it this way: Say you were born with rose-tinted lenses permanently attached over your eyes, but you didn’t know they were there. Because the world would look rose-colored to you, you would presume that it is rose-colored. You wouldn’t wonder whether the world might look otherwise through different lenses. But in the world there are other kinds of lenses, and reality does look different to those who wear them. Those lenses are cultural mythologies, and no culture can claim to have the one set of lenses that sees things as they really are. (15) [KC]
Stanford, Judith A. Responding to Literature: Stories Poems, Plays, and Essays. 4th ed.
Responding to Literature first asks why we read literature. The editorial and canonical position of the text is established right away by the use of Frost’s “The Road Not Taken” as a sample for student responses in “Why Read Literature?”. The choice is telling: Frost is considered a great American poet and this, his best-known poem. Yet he is a popular mid-twentieth century poet and hardly considered canonical by traditionalists. Indeed, the exemplary authors for the next several chapters all fall into the questionably canonical category, among them Patricia Grace, Langston Hughes, Wendy Wasserstein, E.B. White, Margaret Atwood, and Dylan Thomas. After a lengthy (4 chapters; 160 pages) introduction to literature, more canonical authors are included (Joyce, Shakespeare, Hawthorne, Donne, Marlowe, Sappho, Hemingway, Chopin and Dickenson, for example), but they are given equal weight to less traditionally included authors such as Elizabeth Kübler-Ross, Harvey Fierstein, Kyoshi, Sylvia Plath and Paula Gunn Allen, representing diverse viewpoints and disciplinary backgrounds. The chapters, are divided by topics: “Innocence and Experience;” “Crime and Punishment;” “Roots, Identity and Culture;” “Men and Women;” “Families;” “Nature;” “War and Power;” and “Death.” Each includes Fiction, Poetry, Drama and Essays, every exemplary piece followed by “Considerations” and every chapter closing with paper suggestions connecting thematic content within the themed chapters, between themes, and ideas for collaborative projects. Most useful in this collection, however, are the introductory four chapters, the first of which I have already described. Chapter 2, “Joining the Conversation: Ways of Talking About Literature” provides a basic vocabulary for analysing and discussing literature and its devices, grouped usefully under the subheadings of Actions and Events; People; Places and Times; Words, Images, Sounds and Patterns; and Ideas. Notably, this proceeds without the fancy new terms or nonsensical presentations that have become popular in a number of recent writing texts. This text provides students with the standard terminology—the tools—that will help them communicate with other readers of literature. Chapter 3, “Continuing the Conversation: Considering Genre and Listening to Other Voices” introduces the four genres to be addressed throughout the text, short fiction, poetry, drama, and non-fiction. These are in turn subdivided into the genres that will be represented in the chapters to follow. This chapter alone offers more than the briefest historical contextualisation, differentiating between historical generic forms and more recent genres. Also included in this chapter is an introduction to five critical modes, Formalist, Reader-Response, Sociological, Psychoanalytic, and New Historicist. Chapter 4 is called “Writing About Literature,” and introduces (to my great pleasure) the concepts of understanding the assignment and considering the assignment before undertaking the paper. The rest of this chapter offers strategies subdivided by the rhetorical modes of comparison, analysis, explication, evaluation and research. The chapter concludes with some notes on writing such as audience and revision. All in all, this is an excellent undergraduate teaching text for an introduction to literature. Because the work presented spans centuries and numerous genres, it might not be appropriate for upper level surveys, but it seems ideal for not only an 1102-style course, but also for certain exit requirements which for all intents and purposes may be seen as extensions or continuations of 1102. Certainly under a heading of World Literature this would be a serviceable text, and the first four chapters would be a useful addition to any literature class for undergraduates. [SN]
Ulmer, Gregory L. Internet Invention: From Literacy to Electracy.
II is a self-described “next generation textbook,” incorporating traditional writing, critical theory, and online/technological design and methods. The text is an extension of Heuretics, Ulmer’s previous theoretical work, and class experimentation and applications in his subsequent instruction of classes (undergraduate and graduate) with these methods.
II is organized into five parts, with two chapters each. Each part progresses through significant portions of Ulmer’s theory, while the chapters illustrate, guide, and instruct the student through each concept and methods used within the concept. II can be considered a primary text for Composition courses with its focus on writing and generation, but many of the chapters and methods can also apply to literature courses. The text can be very helpful but primarily in the task of writing on literature, rather than a presentation of literature analysis.
II would best fit advanced undergraduate students or perhaps even an introductory level graduate course, considering the amount of concepts and applications at work within the text. The text operates as both a reader and a workbook, allowing for exercises that immediately and concisely illustrate Ulmer’s concepts. Many of the exercises are generative ones, so that students may become more immediately and personally involved in the process. However, many of the concepts and practices in the text are highly technical and specialized. Because of the experimental and fluid nature of the work described in the text, Ulmer creates a specialized vocabulary to describe the functions and concepts. Further, the text literally abounds with jargon, mostly in terms of the theoretical concepts described. The methods of writing (and creating) endorsed by the book may not mesh well with an established department pedagogy (traditional or firmly enforced, at least).
On the whole, II is indeed useful but only if the instructor is intensely familiar with the material presented in Heuretics. Many of the book’s exercises and strategies came from Heuretics, and they complement each other as expected. For the literature class, the writing methods and projects described may be quite useful, but a definite “reconfiguration” of the course content and methods would be required to incorporate this text. [WT]
Westling, Louise, et
al. The World of
Literature.
NJ: Prentice-Hall, 1999.
Overview
Organization: Chronological by major divisions (Ancient, Middle, & Modern) roughly 750 pages each. Subdivided by region.
Emphasis: World Classics & Religious Scriptures beginning 3000 BC.
Approach: Religious/Historical.
Features: Reaches back to the very beginning of written language, strongly emphasizing Asian & Middle Eastern sacred texts. Surveys of original languages & challenges of translating them (namely Cuneiform & Greek).
Comments:
The World of Literature would be equally appropriate as a companion text for a Western Civilization course, a World Religions study, or a World Literature class. Rather than selecting passages on grounds of literary criteria, the editors chose to focus on classics of world thought: works that have literally shaped all of human society. The result is an amazing assortment of hugely influential texts across the Humanities: literature, philosophy, religion, and history. While its sections are symmetrically balanced and the wisdom of its selections are difficult to debate (who could argue the propriety of the Old Testament, The Iliad, or The Qu’ran?), the book nearly suffocates under its own weight (literally and ideologically). It is an ambitious work, hugely broad in chronology, crossing multiple curricular boundaries. Yet the emphasis on ancient Asian texts, its broad definition of Modern (beginning 1650), and its de-emphasis of contemporary texts are not in fashion. The book went out of print after the first edition. [GH]
Wood, Nancy. Perspectives on Argument.
Though this book is designed and would be perfect for a year-long course in composition at the freshman level, it does include a section on reading, thinking and writing about literature. In concert with the rest of the book—a primer on critical thinking and rhetoric, the book would be useful in learning to write about literature. This, however, is not a luxury literature teachers have, nor is it a responsibility they should have to have. The book can be useful in parts to the literature teacher both because of the literature section and because of its in depth treatment of research and how to write an annotated bibliography. [LC]
Journals & Periodical Resources
for English Teachers: (Compiled by Greg Hartley)
The CEA Forum.
The Forum is the official newsletter of the College English Association. Issues, available online <http://www.as.ysu.edu/~english/cea/forum1.htm> provide industry updates for English teachers as well as a few articles on classroom practice and book reviews.
Classroom Notes Plus: A Quarterly of Teaching Ideas.
A slim periodical of methods ideas authored solely by teachers in high school and middle school classrooms. While some methods are often content-specific, the creative flow of ideas is inspiring. Many ideas often include reproducible handouts. Each issue includes a special section on writing.
NCTE’s college journal aimed at English, Composition, and Literature instructors at the four-year college level. Articles are usually highly specific blends of pedagogy and/or criticism. Less for the practitioner than the researcher. Full text available through ProjectMUSE.
English Journal: The Journal of the Secondary Section of
the National Council of
Teachers of English.
The high school counterpart to College English. The Journal is based more towards practitioners seeking current trends in the field. Articles in issues are often themed around a relevant topic, and various features provide book reviews, opinions, and methods ideas. Lots of classroom storytelling.
Ideas Plus: Practical Classroom
Ideas by Teachers for Teachers.
An annual compilation of teaching ideas from Classroom Notes Plus. Volume is divided into Prewriting and Writing, Literature, and Explorations.
The Journal of Higher Education.
A journal of academic life at the higher education level. Provides in-depth examinations of general classroom and administrative issue for the college faculty. Especially good source of dialogue for important issues such as faculty shortages, tenure issues, and classroom environments. Full text available through ProjectMUSE.
Pedagogy.
A journal dedicated to pedagogical practices within the higher education English content area (including graduate studies). Articles discuss the rigors of academic life, literary theory, and classroom methodology. A Roundtable feature allows individual ideas to be examined by numerous authors. Full text available through ProjectMUSE.
Thought and Action. National
Education Association Higher Education Publications:
Thought & Action maintains the highest circulation of any refereed journal in higher education, with a readership of nearly 100,000. The title of the National Education Association's journal, Thought & Action, clearly communicates its purpose and scope. That is, Thought & Action seeks to provide its readership with theoretical and practical information on issues in higher education that are important to faculty and staff. Submissions are blind-reviewed by eight NEA members in higher education, appointed to a Review Panel for three-year terms. Contents of some current and past issues are available in PDF from their website: http://www.nea.org/he/heta04/index.html . [Added by LR.]
(Updated June 30, 2008)