Argues that the problem of deficiency in cultural literacy addressed by E. D. Hirsch can be solved by combining the two areas of writing skills and literary interpretation in the English classroom. (SR)

Explains the biblical reference in the title of Toni Morrison's novel, "Song of Solomon," as pointing to the book's form and political implications. Connects the title with the traditional pastoral mode and analyzes the novel as pastoral. (HB)

Argues for the use of poems by other poets alluding to plays by William Shakespeare when those plays are studied. Gives four examples of poems and explains how the poems relate to the plays. (HB)

Argues that literature by Caribbean women writers of the 20th century offers two-year college students models for surmounting obstacles, resisting oppression, and holding life in fragile equilibrium. Discusses various Caribbean women authors and the influences upon them. Describes numerous ways that specific Caribbean works could be used in the…

Argues that when introductory activities to the classics begin with background information, it can upstage or confine the life of the story, and shows little faith in the students as readers or in the literature itself. Suggests sometimes letting the literature begin, and then helping students make sense of it. Discusses examples from "To Kill a…

This article discusses the author's experience of teaching Edgar Allan Poe as part of the American literature survey at Elmira College in Elmira, New York. While his specialty is Mark Twain, his students would be much happier if they could skip the colonial and national period, and move directly to studying Poe. In this article, the author…

Analyzes the growth, development, and change that occurred in Wallace Stevens' poetry, basing the argument on poems selected from different periods with special emphasis on "The Idea of Order at Key West." (RB)

Suggests using Marvell's "To His Coy Mistress" as a way of overcoming students' initial fears of Eliot's "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock." (RB)

Developed for college English courses, this book presents selections of poetry, short stories, and commentary intended to invite different ways of reading and interpreting literature. An introduction provides an overview of the book's content, as well as a discussion of how to read. The first section, "Entering a Language," considers the…

Outlines eleven specific methods by which poetry can be taught so that the intrinsic questions are raised and the essential experience of the poem achieved. (RB)

Cautions teachers not to introduce an adult view of the world to students at too young an age. (RB)

Argues the need for teaching drama in the classroom and exposing students to dramatic performances to provide them with a variety of literary experiences. (RB)

Suggests techniques for teaching poetry which require student involvement as a way of developing poetry appreciation. (RB)

Argues that enjoyment rather than instruction should be the basis for a critical evaluation of literature and that only a class-structuredsociety perceives a need to rank literature in a hierarchal order from high art to popular art. (RB)