Literature experts, educators, and a national cross-section of interested laymen were gathered by the National Assessment of Educational Progress to define major objectives in literature instruction, to suggest tasks to sample these objectives and exhibit the achievements, interests, and attitudes of those exposed to literature, and to describe…

To examine the effects of inductive and programmed instruction in the close reading of poetry, four control classes of urban 11th graders receiving inductive instruction in poetry were compared with four equivalent experimental classes using programmed textbooks. Both groups were given free response tests on two poems: one poem, included in…

The first purpose of this study was to discover and analyze the values in "The Red Badge of Courage,""Adventures of Huckleberry Finn,""The Catcher in the Rye," and "To Kill a Mockingbird." The values--conscious or unconscious motivators and justifiers of characters' actions and judgments--were classified according to H. S. Broudy's "Building a…

Comedy is the middle ground upon which the absurd and the serious meet. Concerned with illuminating pain, human imperfection, and man's failure to measure up to his own or the world's concept of perfection, comedy provides "an escape, not from truth but from despair." If tragedy says that some ideals are worth dying for, comedy asserts…

Intended for teachers-to-be at the undergraduate level as well as for teachers with experience, this book presents the premise that the short story--with its appropriate length and natural interest for students--is a unique teaching vehicle. Five parts comprise the volume: Part 1 discusses four teaching principles illustrated by actual short…

Articles contained in this publication are (1) "Criticism in Teaching Literature" by Wayne Booth; (2) "Criticism and Literature: A Reply" (to Booth's article) by Frederick J. Hoffman; (3) "Criticism in Context" by Helen C. White; (4) "Formalist Criticism and Shakespeare" by Kester Svendsen; (5) "Grammar, History, and Criticism" by Kenneth S.…

This book is an examination of the ideas of black writers in a variety of political, economic, social, and cultural contexts during the depression years, focusing on published writings of the most prominent writers of the era. Chapters include "Aged Race Men," which examines the clash that occurred in the 1930s between older black leaders and the…

The primary purpose of this article is to clarify the place of myth in literature and the English curriculum. Conceived of as symbolic form, myth underpins all human expression, as a way of organizing human response to reality. It holds a central place in literature and can make clear the intimate connections between history and literature because…

One of a series of works aimed at presenting contemporary critical opinion on major authors, this collection includes essays by Ronald Gray, Edwin Muir, Friedrich Beissner, R. O. C. Winkler, Johannes Pfeiffer, Caroline Gordon, Idris Parry, Edmund Wilson, Erich Heller, Austin Warren, Eliseo Vivas, Albert Camus, Martin Buber, and H. S. Reiss--all…

One of a series of works aimed at presenting contemporary critical opinion on major authors, this collection includes essays by Sherman Paul, William Butler Yeats, Lewis Mumford, Max Lerner, Stanley Edgar Hyman, Leo Stoller, F. O. Matthiessen, William Drake, R. W. B. Lewis, Heinz Eulau, Henry W. Wells, Edwin S. Fussell, Laurence Stapleton, and…

One of a series of works aimed at presenting contemporary critical opinion on major authors, this collection includes essays by John Unterecker, W. H. Auden, High Kenner, Giogio Melchiori, Frank Kermode, W. Y. Tindall, T. S. Eliot, R. P. Blackmur, Alex Zwerdling, Curtis Bradford, D. J. Gordon, Ian Fletcher, A. G. Stock, Allen Tate, and Richard…

Teachers of literature do not merely guide students; they also serve as critics. Teachers should remember that their classroom role as literary critics is to serve the needs of students who may not become future scholars of literature. Consequently, in deciphering the complexities of literature, teachers must focus on what the students need in…

The best literature dealing with the Holocaust assumes the worthwhileness and preciousness of human life. (JH)

Successful fantasies may either force us to look freshly at everyday things or expand our capacity to believe.

Creative writing assignments are described which prepare students better to apprehend and appreciate Shakespeare's art.