World lit for tenth graders?

[Alan Teasley]

Great topic for a group here! In North Carolina, tenth grade English (English II) focuses on "non-American, non-British" world literature in translation. Over the years we've noticed that English majors typically know a bunch about American literature and lots about British literature, but when you get beyond that, they usually have read some of the Big Classics (you know, Ms. Bovary, the K Brothers, Ibsen, Dante's Hell if not his Paradise)--only some of which are accessible to the average 15 year old.

Hence my personal quest: to discover works of literature "teachable" to a wide range of sophomores. To this end, for the past five or so years, I have directed a group "independent study" for my Duke MAT English students. Each student agrees to design two 3-week teaching units for a course in World Lit. We organize each unit around the same major "understandings" (using the Understanding By Design framework). Each student also assigns the rest of us one book-length work (or equivalent shorter works) for a bi-weekly book club.

Last year I designed a unit around fairy tales (Grimm, Andersen, Perrault, and modern revisionist stories), which I have attached. I'll post other titles we've found effective in a future post.

Also, if you are a member of this group, you need to join the "Foreign Film" group as well. After all, films are literature, in my humble opinion!

[Sean]

Agreed on film as literature!

What a fantastic unit! I never even thought to teach fairy tales in my World Lit course! You just gave me fantastic ideas! It will be great to link mythologies to fairy tales, like the little mermaid being derived from the Irish selkie myth. I also think world folk ballads are a great link to both! I especially like "Two Sisters" and all the variations of it from different cultures. Let the students try to figure out where the tune originates based on the culture and its myths and fairy tales.

[Ryan Goble]

Alan,

So I don't have any awesome units in my back pocket, but I do have some texts that would be worth having students check out. There is an interesting Norwegian book about a young boy who starts losing his hair called Herman that might be worth a gander - it is a classic in their schools.

Also Etgar Keret is a wacky Israeli author who often appears in the New Yorker, his collection of short stories is called The Nimrod Flipout. The kids would certainly need some short films to serve as background to the Israel Palestine conflict. I think this new film might be a great companion piece - The Lemon Tree coming out next week in NYC - it looks like it too be very teachable.

There are a lot of great books about africa and African themes that I can put together later. In the meantime, the short film Black Girl (1966) Dir: Ousmane Sembene is an adaptation of the short story "The Promised Land" by Ousmane Sembene collected in Tribal Scars and Other Stories. This is a short but powerful (and painful) look at the costs of French colonialism. The short story collection is available used but most university libraries have the collection - that's where I got my copy. As you probably know Sembene died last year and is considered the great African filmmaker - see his NYTimes obit.

Mary T. Christel does a lot of work with the plays of Athol Fugard and might be worth a query as she teaches a wonderful world lit class at SHS (I took it way back in '93).

I hope they make the FELA musical into a film as it deals with the incredible story of the Nigerian sax player Fela Kuti - an interesting, if problematic revolutionary/musical figure. Read the allmusic bio of him here.

Of course I love the idea of a world pop culture unit where they study print texts along with pop culture texts.

Thanks for sharing your units and thank you for getting this discussion started!

RRG

[Alan Teasley]

Great suggestions, Ryan! Concerning Nigerian lit, there's a wonderful novel called Purple Hibiscus by Chimamanda Adichie that one of my students assigned to our group last year. I think it would be very teachable. Protagonist is the teenage daughter of a prominent minister in Nigeria (and she listens to Fela on the radio, so the book has a ready-made soundtrack). The novel is both political and personal, and at the risk of fulfilling your prophecy about my taste in books, it deals with the girl's "coming of age." Yes. I said it.

I'll look into Black Girl and "The Promised Land." Those sound like a good combination.

Will get back to you on wacky Israeli novelist. As for films dealing with the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, I must have seen twenty documentaries on this topic in the past five years, none of which illuminated the issue for me. I'll look out for The Lemon Tree.

[Jennifer Lee]

I love the idea of a Fairy Tales unit as well - I remember Jim Henson did a series of shows called The Storyteller that combined live action with his Muppets to great affect. I recall most of these stories were from all over the world, including a different take on the Cinderella story. They were visually stunning, enough to really keep the high school set more interested then say the Disney versions. Also, on a different tangent, the book "The Uses of Enchantment: The Meaning and Importance of Fairy Tales" is great book for the psychological aspect.

To tie Fairy Tales and World Lit. - The first thing that jumped to mind was Journey to the West, a collection of tales from China. Some things have been extracted to Western media (The Jackie Chan/Jet Li movie "The Forbidden Kingdom" used stories from this as well as an old NBC mini-series "The Lost Kingdom".). Perhaps this is too juvenile for High School sophomores?

[Lauren Fardig]

I've been taking a look at African and Caribbean coming-of-age lit, which I know is probably not the only theme you're looking for, but I find it a good entry point for my 9th graders... and I just finished Tsitsi Dangarembga's "Nervous Conditions" and really enjoyed it, so I'm considering that one, also Edwidge Danticat's ("Breath Eyes Memory" is my favorite but "Krik? Krak!" is more often found in curricula) works are really powerful... Jumping over to Southeast Asia, I also really like Jhumpa Lahiri's "Interpreter of Maladies", which are short stories from contemporary India Also, if you can excerpt, Rohinton Mistry's "A Fine Balance" has really good sections about loss of civil liberties in India and how the caste system gets experienced in daily life, but it's LONG. Also, one of my favorite books to read in high school was Sei Shonagon's "Pillowbook", and there has been a film made from that story, but I've never attempted to teach it... there's some risque-ness involved in that one, but still teachable.

I am constantly struggling to find "boy books" outside of "Things Fall Apart", so I was trying out sections of Sun Tzu's "The Art of War" this year, which was difficult for my 9th graders to access. Though I just ordered a few books by Christopher Okigbo, so I'll update folks about that personal quest of mine. I tend to excerpt a lot in my 9th grade ELA class, which we have been trying to align with global studies, so I use a lot of mythology, short stories and little chunks, lots of film and media.... I'll keep thinking about this question, though and I'm sure I'll weigh in on this from time to time as I find things!

[Alan Teasley]

Back in 2002 (yikes!), I put together a list of the "Ten Best Films for English II (World Lit)" with my friend and colleague Ann Wilder. Here are those films, with annotations. Honestly, I haven't checked to see if they are currently available on DVD, but they were available on video at one time. All of them have been used successfully with tenth graders and as "whole film" units (though excerpts would certainly work as well). Usually teachers connected them to literature from the same country or area of the world or to a theme (such as "Heroes," "Quests," or "Coming of Age."
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Ten Great Films for World Literature Courses

Au Revoir les Enfants (France, Louis Malle, 1987, PG, 104 min., in French)
During World War II, two French schoolboys in a Catholic boarding school become friends. The conflict arises when it becomes apparent that one of the boys is a Jewish student who is being hidden in the school to protect him from the Nazis. Noteworthy in this film are the strong friendship between Jean and Julien and the character of the priest who works to save Jewish children.

Gallipoli (Australia, Peter Weir, 1981, PG, 111 min.)
In 1915 two young Australian runners go from rivalry to friendship as they set off together to join the Australian army in its fight against the Turks at Gallipoli. One of the young men, Archie Hamilton, has defied his parents and lied about his age to join the prestigious Light Horse Cavalry. The film follows the two soldiers through basic training in Cairo to the trenches of Gallipoli, where the harsh reality of war replaces their dreams of glory.

The Gods Must Be Crazy (Botswana, Jamie Uys, 1981, PG, 108 min.)
When a Coke bottle falls from the sky, it brings turmoil to a peaceful tribe of Bushmen. The leaders of the tribe commission one of its members to take the evil object to the edge of the world and give it back to the gods. Though technically not an adolescent, the protagonist undertakes a quest that is both poignant and comical.

Grave of the Fireflies (Japan, Isao Takahata, 1988, NR, 88 min.)
This unusual example of Japanese animé tells the story of a teenager and his younger sister in the last days of WWII as bombers attack Japan. It provides a moving depiction of the war from “the other side,” including depiction of the aftermath of the nuclear bomb. It won first prize as Best Animated Feature at the 1994 Chicago International Children's Film Festival.

Little Buddha (Bernardo Bertolucci, 1993, PG, 123 min.)
This film has two stories. In the contemporary story, a Tibetan lama comes to Seattle in search of the next incarnation of a Buddhist holy man. As he interviews the parents and child, someone reads the boy a book about how Lord Siddhartha (played by Keanu Reeves!) became the Buddha. It’s a great companion film for studying Herman Hesse’s Siddhartha.

Musashi Miyamoto (Samurai I) (Japan, Hiroshi Inagaki, 1954, NR, 92 min., in Japanese)
In first film of the Samurai trilogy, Takezo (later to become the famous samurai Musashi Miyamoto) is young, wild, and foolish. Taken in hand by a Buddhist priest who teaches him first discipline and then the way of the samurai, Takezo begins the training which eventually makes him one of the most respected men in medieval Japan. The second film (Duel at Ichijoji Temple, 1955, NR, 102 min.) follows Miyamoto as he continues to strive for the ideals of the samurai. Now a famous swordsman, Miyamoto is challenged to a duel by a young samurai eager to prove himself. The duel, fought in a rice paddy, is a vivid example of the skill of samurai warriors. In the final film of the trilogy (Duel at Ganryu Island, 1956, NR, 102 min.), Miyamoto longs to retire from fighting. Before he can lay down his swords and live a contemplative life, he must fight a duel with the skilled Sashi on Ganryu Island.

Not One Less (China, Yimou Zhang, 1999, G, 106 min., in Mandarin.)
Thirteen-year-old Minzhi Wei becomes the substitute teacher at the village school for a month while the regular teacher is away. In addition to her substitute pay, the teacher will give Wei a bonus if not one less student is enrolled in the school when he returns. When one of the boys leaves for the city, Wei sets out to find him and return him to school. This film has humorous classroom scenes that teachers will enjoy.

Pathfinder (Norway, Nils Gaup, 1988, NR, 88 min., in Lapp)
Set in Lapland in the tenth or eleventh century, this film tells the story of Aigin, a young man who witnesses his family’s murder by marauding thieves. He tries to warn a nearby village, but he is captured and forced to become the pathfinder for the thieves. This is truly a foreign film---in time, in location, and in language---but the story is a compelling one that demonstrates the sources of legends and the power of myth.

The Return of Martin Guerre (France, Daniel Vigne, 1982, NR, 111 min., in French)
In this film based on a famous court case from 16th century France, the unhappily married Martin leaves his wife Bertrande to go to war. When he returns years later, the villagers recognize him and Bertrande takes him back into her home, but the returned Martin is changed, noticeably more attentive and loving. A dispute over property leads some of the villagers to question whether he is in fact the real Martin. The recent American film Sommersby is a remake of this story.

Sugar Cane Alley (Martinique, Euzhan Palcy, 1983, NR, 100 min., in French)
José is a bright young boy growing up in the cane fields of Martinique. His grandmother recognizes his gifts and is determined that he become educated and leave Sugar Cane Alley and the hard life of the cane cutters. The special relationship between José and his grandmother is a highlight of this film.

A World Apart (Chris Menges, 1988, PG, 135 min.)
Molly Roth is a white teenager living in Johannesburg, South Africa, in 1963. Her parents are active in the black Africans’ struggle for independence from Apartheid. When her father leaves suddenly to escape arrest and her mother risks her own freedom to continue the fight, Molly finds herself torn between love and loyalty to her parents and her own need for security.

[Jeana Rock]

I love to use Il Postino in April (Nat'l Poetry Month) and study Pablo Neruda poetry. I have students write love sonnets and odes to common objects.

I also love To Live. It is a Chinese film with great historical background of Communism. Gong Li stars in it and many kids remember her from Memoirs of a Geisha.

The Whale Rider is a great coming of age movie with some Maori legend.

[Jeana Rock]

An interesting short film from Spain which you can watch online is 7:25 in the Morning.
Very strange, but a good prompts interesting discussion.

[Jeana Rock]

I took on this same territory alone several years ago and have not regretted it. When I visited Russia and saw all the statues of Pushkin and had no idea who he was, I knew something had to change in what I taught.

I appreciate your additions to this class.

[Jeana Rock]

Using fairy tales is an easy approach to introduce critical theory to 10th graders.

[Arshi Saeed]

Another book, eventually made into a movie, is Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress by Dai Sijie. The movie focuses on young city boys who have been sent to the mountains for re-education during the Chinese cultural revolution. It brings up many topics such as censorship, freedom and "education". Another advantage of this work is that it introduces many non-American/British authors such as Balzac and Dostoevsky

[Jaimee Mirsky]

I think your unit and its goals are very interesting, but I wonder why you have not included any fairy tales from other parts of the world. Any thoughts on that?