Critical Encounters in High School English: Teaching Literary Theory to Adolescents (Language and Literacy Series (Teachers College Pr))

Rating:
Summary: Newest "Must Read" for English Teachers
Review: Book Review Appleman, Deborah. Critical Encounters in High School English: Teaching Literary Theory to Adolescents. New York: Teachers College Press, 2000. Deborah Appleman's book, Critical Encounters in High School English: Teaching Literary Theory to Adolescents, recently published by the National Council of Teachers of English and Teacher's College Press, is a MUST read for all English educators and all teachers of high school literature classes. Appleman not only envisions a new way of teaching high school literature, she shows the reader (with practical classroom activities) HOW this is possible. Appleman's first line, "I'm stubborn" (xiii), grabbed my immediate attention. As a friend of Deborah's, I agreed and read on. What I found was not a stubborn approach to teaching literature, but rather a wonderful, open-minded, newly articulated approach to the teaching of literary theory in high school. Granted, Appleman might need to stubbornly insist that naysayers, those who say it can't be done in high school, hear her out, but by mid-point in the book, even those people will be considering the possibilities. In Critical Encounters in High School English: Teaching Literary Theory to Adolescent Appleman defines reader response, Marxist and feminist criticism, and deconstruction theory in an understandable manner. Within each chapter Appleman weaves together, through classroom vignettes, literary theory and literature. Appleman explains how the application of literary theory in high school provides students with an interpretive repertoire which enlarges their view of the world. This approach empowers students to think "beyond the boundaries of their own comfortable world" (63) and to "foster a knowledge of others" (29). In addition to being impressed with the linkage of theory and practice in Appleman's book, I observed it in action when I visited Paige Shreeve's Senior-to-Sophomore literature class at Becker High School. Shreeve read Critical Encounters in High School English: Teaching Literary Theory to Adolescents the minute it was released. She then taught her class to apply these critical perspectives to the literature they read. The day I visited, the class discussed Frost's poetry. As I joined a small group discussion, I heard one student say, in reader response mode to "After Apple-Picking," "This tiredness is the way I feel after working a weekend at Subway." Another student, in keeping with a New Criticism approach, wanted to explore the symbolism of sleep. Yet another student, who apparently knew some background on Frost, told the group (using a psychological approach) that this poem was biographical and went on to explain why. These students were not directed by Shreeve to use literary theory; they had already internalized many aspects. Critical Encounters in High School English works. I suggest that you read and "try on" Deborah Appleman's new book. Chris Gordon English Education - St. Cloud State University

Rating:
Summary: Newest "Must Read" for English Teachers
Review: Book Review Appleman, Deborah. Critical Encounters in High School English: Teaching Literary Theory to Adolescents. New York: Teachers College Press, 2000. Deborah Appleman's book, Critical Encounters in High School English: Teaching Literary Theory to Adolescents, recently published by the National Council of Teachers of English and Teacher's College Press, is a MUST read for all English educators and all teachers of high school literature classes. Appleman not only envisions a new way of teaching high school literature, she shows the reader (with practical classroom activities) HOW this is possible. Appleman's first line, "I'm stubborn" (xiii), grabbed my immediate attention. As a friend of Deborah's, I agreed and read on. What I found was not a stubborn approach to teaching literature, but rather a wonderful, open-minded, newly articulated approach to the teaching of literary theory in high school. Granted, Appleman might need to stubbornly insist that naysayers, those who say it can't be done in high school, hear her out, but by mid-point in the book, even those people will be considering the possibilities. In Critical Encounters in High School English: Teaching Literary Theory to Adolescent Appleman defines reader response, Marxist and feminist criticism, and deconstruction theory in an understandable manner. Within each chapter Appleman weaves together, through classroom vignettes, literary theory and literature. Appleman explains how the application of literary theory in high school provides students with an interpretive repertoire which enlarges their view of the world. This approach empowers students to think "beyond the boundaries of their own comfortable world" (63) and to "foster a knowledge of others" (29). In addition to being impressed with the linkage of theory and practice in Appleman's book, I observed it in action when I visited Paige Shreeve's Senior-to-Sophomore literature class at Becker High School. Shreeve read Critical Encounters in High School English: Teaching Literary Theory to Adolescents the minute it was released. She then taught her class to apply these critical perspectives to the literature they read. The day I visited, the class discussed Frost's poetry. As I joined a small group discussion, I heard one student say, in reader response mode to "After Apple-Picking," "This tiredness is the way I feel after working a weekend at Subway." Another student, in keeping with a New Criticism approach, wanted to explore the symbolism of sleep. Yet another student, who apparently knew some background on Frost, told the group (using a psychological approach) that this poem was biographical and went on to explain why. These students were not directed by Shreeve to use literary theory; they had already internalized many aspects. Critical Encounters in High School English works. I suggest that you read and "try on" Deborah Appleman's new book. Chris Gordon English Education - St. Cloud State University

Rating:
Summary: Great book for beginning English teachers
Review: I'm going to be a first year teacher and ordered the paperback version of this book because I've heard Appleman talk about how useful literary "lenses" are to helping students interpret a text in many different ways. Like Eagleton says, every teacher does "theory", it's just a matter if they want to come clean about it or not. Having the students think about narrating the story from another perspective is what Appleman is all about. Using Appleman's "lenses" (feminist, marxist, etc) will definitely help give me more flexiblity in lessons and most importantly I won't be bored reading 150 papers all working from the same static interpretation. The poetry section of this book is incredible. When she discusses poetry, it's all about how all kids can have the same poem but things pop out different to tehm. You can use her methods to discuss what poetry really is. If you one of the many public high school English Lit teachers that has been teaching for many years and believes there is ONE and only ONE WAY to interpret a piece of literature, this book is not for you...but it OUGHTA BE!!

Rating:
Summary: Great book for beginning English teachers
Review: I'm going to be a first year teacher and ordered the paperback version of this book because I've heard Appleman talk about how useful literary "lenses" are to helping students interpret a text in many different ways. Like Eagleton says, every teacher does "theory", it's just a matter if they want to come clean about it or not. Having the students think about narrating the story from another perspective is what Appleman is all about. Using Appleman's "lenses" (feminist, marxist, etc) will definitely help give me more flexiblity in lessons and most importantly I won't be bored reading 150 papers all working from the same static interpretation. The poetry section of this book is incredible. When she discusses poetry, it's all about how all kids can have the same poem but things pop out different to tehm. You can use her methods to discuss what poetry really is. If you one of the many public high school English Lit teachers that has been teaching for many years and believes there is ONE and only ONE WAY to interpret a piece of literature, this book is not for you...but it OUGHTA BE!!

Rating:
Summary: It's Tuesday--This Must Be Deconstruction
Review: There is nothing wrong with encouraging students to encounter literature from a variety of viewpoints and any worthy English teacher of literature should be adept in reinforcing this skill. In this respect, Appleman's book shows merit. She outlines approaches for teaching the literary theories of Reader-Response, Marxism, Feminism, and Deconstruction, with (ad nauseum) student responses and sample handouts. And of course we walk in a world of categorization and theory, so writing about teaching literary theory is somewhat of a "no brainer" since our brain organizes information this way; without this skill, one could not survive. In short, she attempts to bring the theoretical world of the critics closer to younger students. Who can criticize that? Yet.... When I was reading her book, I kept thinking that this information might be handy for a certain teacher who lacks confidence in his or her own ability to respond directly to literature. Having the lenses is a great exercise, especially if one wants their students to show well on "Jeopardy." Yes, they are indispensible to know if one is in an English graduate program. Knowing them would also help one appear more erudite at a literary party. So teach the students literary theory. Then teach them to respond with their own hearts and minds; to read with passion, voraciously, discarding the inapplicable and acting with courage on the true. Teach them to underline their books (their OWN books, of course) simply because they found a beautiful sentence. Teach them to read the Introduction to the novel LAST, after they have had a chance to read and develop their OWN lense--their own viewpoints. This takes greater courage, I believe. Students need to THINK the page. Robert Frost once said that "education in English is properly a slow process of just staying around in the right company till you can speak and handle a book in the author's presence without setting his teeth on edge" (as quoted in George Anderson's "Bread Loaf School of English: The First Fifty Years, Middlebury: Middlebury Press, 1969, p. 33).