Teaching the Classics

There is a controversy which has been brewing among English teachers for a while about what literature to teach in high schools.  Others involved in the discussion include other district officials, parents, community members, and university faculty.  The question is - should teachers use current young adult (YA) fiction in their classrooms, or should they teach the classics? 

Some definitions may be in order.  "Classics" usually refers to works written anywhere from 50 to 2000 years ago and includes names such as Shakespeare, Hawthorne, Austen, the Brontes, Hemingway, Steinbeck, Fitzgerald, Faulkner, Poe, and the list could go on.  YA literature for the most part, is mostly less than 30 years old, with many popular titles sporting publishing dates in the last 10 years.  Classics were mostly written for adults and have adult themes, characters, and situations.  YA fiction, on the other hand, is written for teens, with teen characters and situations. 

As a high school English teacher for nearly 25 years now, I have to say that I'm solidly on the side of the fence with those who purport that use of YA fiction should far outweigh use of the classics.  So many teens are alliterate - they can read but they choose not to - and I believe an issue is that they are not able to find a foothold in stories where the vocabulary looks like a foreign language, the situations are in no recognizeable way similar to their situations, and they cannot relate to the characters.  These hindrances are even more serious for those readers whose skills are below average.

Are there lessons to be learned from the classics?  Of course.  Should they be abandoned altogether?  Certainly not.  But the way classics are taught in high school English classes can go far toward either turning students off or helping them become engaged.  And since so many students will not (and probably cannot) read classics on their own, they need to know that there are many good books out there that will draw them in and keep them interested.  Books where they can see themselves in the characters.  Books where their situations are mirrored in the plots.  Books that can transport them to new worlds.

I tend to teach classics by using excerpts and tying the themes from those classics into current YA literature that my students can then take and read independently.  They seem to love this arrangement.  They get some background in our literary heritage while learning they can actually enjoy reading for pleasure.  The conversations are rich and deep.  So don't come into my classroom expecting to be beaten repeatedly over the head with a volume of Romeo and Juliet that is being analyzed to death.  Instead, expect to see us read some scenes from R & J paired with recommendations of YA "classics" that explore family relationships such as Jacob Have I Loved or Hope Was Here that students may then select for themselves. 

On a personal note - I knew I was going to be an English teacher before I reached high school.  I was a good student who tried hard and loved to read.  But I left high school with a list of classics I had "read" but didn't understand or enjoy (or remember anything about 10 years later).  I went back to read many of them as an adult and from that perspective often had to wonder "What was my teacher thinking having us read this in 10th grade?"    I believe YA fiction, much of which is powerful, covers important issues, and is beautifully written, holds the key for helping secondary students find the joy of reading again as well as improve their reading skills. 

If you are interested in reading more about this debate between the classics and YA fiction in school, this commentary might get you started:
www.squeetus.com/stage/shannon_ramblings.html


Speaking of YA classics, novels that have stood the test of time for 30 years or even longer, here are three of my favorites:

Killing Mr. Griffin by Lois Duncan  (1976)

What happens when students decide to get revenge on their English teacher and it goes wrong - terribly wrong?  Mr. Griffin is an extremely tough teacher.  He cares about his students and wants to bring out their best by making them work hard.  But some of his students don't like they way he tries to help them realize their potential.  Several students decide to pull a prank to teach their hard-nosed teacher a lesson, but unfortunately, it doesn't go as planned.  Now the students are in a situation they never expected and from which they can't escape. 

Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry by Mildred Taylor  (1976)
This novel was one of my first experiences with YA literature, and Mildred Taylor became one of my favorite authors when I read it.  The Logan family lives in Mississippi, and they're black.  Told from the point of view of nine-year-old Cassie Logan (her character voices this story in a way that is way beyond her nine years), the family's struggles with the Wallaces, a white family who owns much of the business in their community, introduces readers to the pre-Civil Rights deep south in a way that is vivid and powerful. 

Homecoming by Cynthia Voigt  (1981)
Dicey Tillerman is 13-years-old when her mother abandons her and her three younger siblings at a Connecticut shopping mall.  With no choice but to try to get to their family, whom they've never met, the little family sets out on foot to find first the aunt that their mother had mentioned, and later their grandmother.  The children face many dangers as they try to reach their destination.  The trip they make keeps readers on the edge of their seats with anticipation and suspense as Dicey does her best to shepherd the group to safety.  It is almost impossible not to put yourself in Dicey's place and wonder what you would do if you suddenly found yourself alone at 13 and in charge of three little ones who had no one to depend on but you.