A Day In The Journey

All right. So, back to my teacher posts. My lit classes are going well, I think. We took last week off for Thanksgiving. This caused some consternation for my English Lit students since they took a test the class before and would have to wait 2 weeks for their grades. Note to any students who read this: harrassing and begging your teacher when you see them outside of class will not encourage them to grade tests any faster than they had already planned. Keep that in mind. At any rate, they all did fine. Yesterday was World Lit test day. I haven't graded those yet, but they should be good, too. After the test, we read Oedipus Rex aloud. It worked out perfectly--with me, there are four of us in the class, so we had just enough people to read. I switched them up every scene and read the chorus lines myself. It was really fun. We did get a bit of a giggle when the two girls were reading the argument between Oedipus and Kreon--they don't ever get to argue, is what I was told, so getting to argue and use ugly names in the argument was a big riot. At any rate, we all enjoyed it. My personal philosophy is to read dramas aloud in class whenever possible. It conveys so much better. That seems kind of basic, but I've debated with people who state that "Unless you read Shakespeare, you don't get the full effect." My response is aways " But Shakespeare wrote the plays to be acted, not read, so it seems to me the full impact is in watching or hearing it." I feel the same with just about all drama. I mean, I enjoy reading plays, but seeing them or hearing them is the best way for students to absorb the themes and conflicts. I will say, though, that Iokaste's line that many men dream about sleeping with their mothers and so Oedipus shouldn't be so concerned about the oracle (said to divert him from pursuing the truth) caused some titters--especially from my sister who was reading Iokaste at the time opposite of the only boy in the class who was reading Oedipus. I got a big kick out of it. But then I am slightly evil. ;) I would like to get my hands on the Tyrone Guthrie version of the play--the staging is in the Greek style--and show it to them. I think I'm also going to use this as an opportunity to teach them how to write an analysis paper, using Aristotle's Poetics to evaluate the tragic elements of Oedipus. Should be interesting. Okay, I have to end this entry because I have cockatiel on my hand and it's very hard to type.