How teachers can use such materials as parallel-text editions, graphic novels, and film adaptations to increase students' understanding of and interest in Shakespeare was the impetus for a classroom action research project that examined the effects of teaching methods on student comprehension and engagement. The author of this article…

One reason zombie films are so frightening, and perhaps so popular, is because zombies represent a unique type of monster. Rather than frightening people because they are so alien to the world as people understand it, zombies are horrifying in how closely they resemble people. Zombies are people and represent the potential of zombie…

Presents two articles in which teachers describe how film can be used in the language arts classroom to accomplish many of the same things that books can. Shows, in particular, how film facilitates the teaching of literary terms and devices and how it heightens interest in the student research paper without detracting from the basic lessons of the…

Proposes a study of "Citizen Kane" in high school using a somewhat simplified version of post-modern literary critical theory. Chooses this film because of its familiarity and accessibility and because the ambiguity and indeterminacy of its text allow room for exploration by students. (NKA)

Makes a case for asking students to produce their own film version of Shakespeare's "A Midsummer Night's Dream." Explains how to manage student filming projects logistically; how to teach students about filming techniques through the study of modern movies; and how filming becomes a lesson in the interpretation of Shakespeare. (TB)

Explains how the movie "The Lion King" may be used to elucidate Shakespeare's "Hamlet," a play about a prince who does not always seem heroic to modern audiences. Gives specific points of comparison between the two works concerning heroes, characters, conflicts, themes, ending scenes, and archetypal patterns. (TB)

Contrasts the complaints of a class of gifted students about Dickens' novel "A Tale of Two Cities" with their teacher's discomfort at sitting through the long and tedious movie "Brazil." (NKA)

Discusses the issues of finding a current film acceptable to local standards and justifying it as literature. Gives teaching suggestions for dealing with the setting, characters, themes, ending scenes, and visual poetry using the films "Places in the Heart" and "To Kill a Mockingbird." (EL)

Suggests that the movie "E.T.: The Extra Terrestrial:" is a classic because it touches a mythic nerve--every person's impulse to find a home within an alien environment. Proposes that E.T.'s story, with its New Testament parallels, can be used to teach literary allusion. (MM)

Argues that Fritz Lang's film "Metropolis" deserves exploration and analysis because of its outlandish plot, dazzling visual and technical elements, and its reflection of the closing days of Weimar Germany. Presents a brief study guide designed to stimulate student curiosity and facilitate further interest in the film. (RS)

Describes the difficulties in finding a balance between the masculine and feminine within one's self and the world. (CRH)

Compares selected aspects of Arthur C. Clarke's 2001: A Space Odyssey" with Homer's The Odyssey." (SW)

Compares Roman Polanski's film adaptation of "Tess of the D'Urbervilles" with the original novel by Thomas Hardy. Suggests that a comparative analysis of the two works enhances students' awareness of Hardy's artistry and sharpens their ability to respond critically to literature. (MM)

Suggests that films can enrich students' understanding of the literature on which they are based and can strengthen the same academic competencies students are expected to develop through reading. (MM)

Suggests ways to get students interested in talking seriously about comedy. (RL)