Asserts that Asian American kids are looking for Asian American characters with a style that commands attention and respect in terms they can understand. Only in the works of Taro Yashima and Lawrence Yep are the literary sensibility, language and vision of Asian and Asian American culture. We need a body of Asian American myth to form and express…

This paper analyzes the interesting narrative structure of the hero-quest myth contained within the 1999 film, "The Matrix," and explicates the implications of this message upon the audience. Initially, the relevance of myth to movies and the format of Joseph Campbell's hero-quest is illustrated. This format is then applied to "The…

Based on Fyodor Dostoevsky's novel "Crime and Punishment," this lesson plan presents activities designed to help students understand that: a close study of the characters of a literary classic will yield important clues to an understanding of the work as a whole; an effective analysis of stylistic devices depends upon selection and interpretation…

Discusses the genre of writing labeled "New Journalism" for useful writing styles, devices, techniques, and formats that could be applied to discover and effectively convey what happens in schools. (Author/MLF)

The author analyzes the series form of television program, particularly the qualities and functions of the continuing characters and their relationship to the plot. He discusses the reassuring psychological effects of a TV series on the audience and the implications of a decline in this type of programing. (SJL)

Examines the movie "White Man's Burden" and, by its reversing of social ideologies and stereotypes, the questions arising from it about race relations in America. The author addresses the movie's shortcomings in dealing with race relations in part because it leaves intact ideologies and moralities based on class without defining…

This descriptive study analyzed the portrayal of females as protagonists in adolescent literature published 1989-1993. A review of literature showed that 85 percent of main characters in stories for young children were male and that sexism still existed in books for young people. For this study the literature survey instrument used in the initial…

Adults must be willing to accept attitudes of criticism and rebellion as serious and valuable components of children's literature, but they should also expect a good children's book to make some sort of moral evaluation of those attitudes. For example, while one may respect the candor with which "Hansel and Gretel" depicts the struggle of children…

To find out whether the portrayal of mothers in young adult novels reflects real-life mothers and the many social and political changes of the past 20 years, a study examined 33 books selected from Booklist. The books had to have realistic and contemporary settings and include a characterization of a mother. They were examined for attributes that…

Intended to help teachers who want to offer their students the best native American literature, this paper analyzes a selection of books written by and about native Americans, in particular the Navajo Indians. The criteria used to select materials for the paper include historical accuracy, cultural accuracy, idealism versus realism, and reader…

The literature of Polish, Greek and Italian American women has been largely neglected in the American literary tradition. Through an analysis of female characters in a number of white ethnic autobiographical novels, this paper stresses the importance of an awareness of women's struggles which coincide with immigration history. It also points out…

The purpose of this study was to develop teaching strategies that are designed to enable elementary pupils to form literary concepts through inductive processes. This research has four phases in its design. In the planning phase, a theoretical base for designing the strategies is developed from a synthesis of four areas of research and theory:…

In his plays, Shakespeare reveals a double view of life by repeatedly juxtaposing a representation of the comic spirit with the tragic protagonist. In the idiom of Shakespeare's world, heroic characters often embarrass or destroy themselves by confusing appearance with reality. Then, the comic characters or "mad men," functioning as…