Theodore Taylor's "The Cay" received a great deal of criticism upon its publication in 1969 for its racism, yet it has remained in American public school curricula for over fifty years. Defenders of the novel have argued that it advocates for color-blindness, a position that has helped entrench it in schools. Meanwhile, few critics have…

Suggests that Jane Smiley's "A Thousand Acres" is a faithful and a "profoundly subversive" revision of Shakespeare's "King Lear." Argues that the terms in which the novel have been most frequently praised, no less than the case made for banning it, raise important questions about the relationship between the novel's…

The legal history of censorship in general in the United States as well as the legal context in particular of the censorship of novels from schools is discussed. This thesis deals with four novels which have aroused substantial controversy when taught in the schools. The novels are: "The Catcher in the Rye," by J. D. Salinger, "The Adventures of…

A discussion of Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn's novels, The First Circle" and One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich," and a recommendation for their inclusion in the English curriculum. (RD)

Presented at the Broward County Library (Florida) on September 11, 1984, to coincide with Banned Books Week and to mark the centennial of the "Adventures of Huckleberry Finn," the address in this booklet reviews the reasons why this classic book has always been in trouble with the censors. Drawing upon the Pulitzer Prize winning…

Details some of the current critical arguments concerning Mark Twain's depiction of the runaway slave Jim in the novel "Huckleberry Finn." Describes classroom experiences teaching the novel and how a reader's cultural background influences reactions to it. Provides principles and caveats for teaching the novel. Lists works about slavery…

An examination of the omnipresent problem of censorship, especially as it affects public high school literature programs, emphasizes the need for book selection policies and formal procedures for handling a complaint against a book. This study concerning censorship of "The Catcher in the Rye" may prove useful to school personnel in…

The social, cultural, and historical documents and commentary in this casebook illuminate the reading of "The Catcher in the Rye," a novel that has become an important rite of passage for many young adults. In addition to a literary analysis, the casebook acquaints students with the larger world in which Holden Caulfield, the…

This book provides new and traditional activities that are aimed at developing students' personal responses to literature in ways that improve their other language skills. The introductory chapter discusses organizing literature for study, and other chapters focus on specific literary genres, including drama, short story, novel, poetry, nonfiction…

Outlines a student-conducted literature course that uses several classic novels ("My Antonia,""The Pearl," etc.) as the basis for group discussion, writing, and oral performance activities--all directed toward extracting "meaning" from the books selected. (NKA)

Written to help a viewer watch a motion picture perceptively, this book explains the characteristics of the film as an art form and examines the role of motion pictures in the English curriculum. Specific topics covered include (1) the technical aspects of the production of films (the order of "shots," camera angle, and point of view), (2) the…