Under The Hood

I use Google Chrome as my internet browser, and it works wonderfully. It's fast, it's easy, it's uncluttered. But last week I found myself, in Google-speak, needing to do something "under the hood." I can use Chrome easily without having the least clue how it works, but if I want to get the most out of it, I should check out the settings and options "under the hood." 

This struck me as an apt analogy for the study of literature. Today I asked my brand-new junior high Intro to Lit students why we should bother to study literature - why not just read and enjoy a book and let that be that? They gave some fantastic answers, one of which was that we study literature to "see how it works" and be able to understand and appreciate other books even more.

We talked about how reading the book through for entertainment is like using Google Chrome, but learning about antagonists, protagonists, characterization, climax, conflict, connotation, dialogue, figurative language, flashbacks, foreshadowing, genre, plot, point of view, resolution, setting, style, symbol, theme, is like opening the hood to another dimension. You learn how to recognize the skill of an author and see how they are using various elements to produce a reaction in you. The reading experience becomes richer and fuller - you're getting more out of the book. 

Today we were discussing The Westing Game, a mind-bending puzzle-type mystery. The character who read the clues properly and deduced the answer was nicknamed Turtle. I told my students that as they read they are detectives looking "under the hood," deciphering clues, putting together circumstances, statements, and actions to get to the bottom of why characters are the way they are and why they do what they do. I said I wanted them to be Turtles. They laughed at that (some protesting the nickname). But it inspired one student to send me the following image tonight: Behold our Mascot!

 

Comments

[Chrissie]

Looks like you're off to a good start!

[Lynne]

I love the mascot!