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Martha
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| Posted: July 30 2009 at 1:00pm | IP Logged
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You might want to look at Seton's course descriptions to see what they are doing.
I think when it comes to literature, what or how much is used is only a part of the equation. HOW it is used is a larger part. People say alot of things about Seton, but I've certainly never heard anyone say that it wasn't a rigorous program.
Some programs do read a LOT more (such as Kolbe for example), but they also go at lightening speed sometimes, which can make it hard to really dig deep into the meanings and background of a particuliar piece of literature.
We're doing Kolbe lit 9 for fun and kolbe history 9 for fun and in depth study. (ds is highly interested in all things Greek right now) And it is a LOT of really, really deep reading. Not a bad thing either. I love that they use primary sources too and the writing assignments for the history are well done. But I have to admit we both went kind of bug-eyed when the box arrived. LOL
But for this same son, Seton is better over-all I think. It's a combination of heavy in depth analysis of fewer selected reading material, and a less heavy study of many other works.
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lapazfarm
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re The Scarlet Letter: I'd definitely include it. True it is dark and the storyline involves adultery, but I certainly wouldn't see it as a feminist nightmare. Hester certainly suffers for her past sin and is not portrayed so much as a hero, but as simply a flawed yet sympathetic character shaped by her times and the actions/prejudices/condemnations, of others. She struggles because the letter is thrust upon her, but she is free to leave Boston and the letter behind yet chooses to stay and accept her punishment.
Her husband (the aptly named Chillingsworth) is not just a jerk but pretty much evil incarnate and her lover, the minister Dimmesdale, is a character with some serious internal conflict going on who punishes himself more harshly than the community punishes Hester. Hester, because she is able to admit and repent for her sins (even owning them as a part of herself) goes on to live a fairly virtuous life, while Dimmesdale suffers mightily and ends up dying because his sin goes publicly unacknowledged.
But..the reason I would definitely include the book in a lit study is that it is absolutely THE book to study to learn about many literary devices such as symbolism, foreshadowing,theme, etc. Practically every word is just chock full of "hidden" meaning and they are all pretty obvious and easy to spot and understand, so it is a great training ground for further literary analysis.
I did not very much enjoy reading the book in high school, but I have to admit I learned SO much by reading and analyzing it that it really opened my eyes to a whole new level of literature I had not even been aware of before hand. For that I have to rank it as one of all-time my top reads.
Just my 2 cents.
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Bookswithtea
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A very helpful review, Theresa. I'm glad to hear that it doesn't have to be interpreted with a Feminist viewpoint.
Martha, my oldest did English 10 last year so I am at least familiar with that program. I also purchased World Lit. but ended up sending it back because it wasn't what I was looking for as an addition to English 10. It relied more on the anthology than it did whole novels. Fwiw, I am not a fan of Seton's elementary English, but I thought English 10 wasn't unusually strenuous, as it is sometimes characterized. Its a decent course and I think ds learned a lot (particularly about the 5 paragraph essay). I would think that most students who have some experience writing and don't struggle with reading could do well with it. There is a lot of room to choose the difficulty level for some of the literature. Some are quite easy (Louis de Wohl) whereas others not so much (David Copperfield).
Natalia, come to think of it, my high school British Lit. course did involve studying time periods and eras and then sampling several from each. I am coming to the conclusion that Literature courses can be defined very broadly, and that that just may be ok. It does give me some comfort to know that if I'm choosing from among the many examples that are part of the Great Conversation, I can't really go wrong.
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hylabrook1
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Re: The Scarlet Letter - what Theresa said.
Peace,
Nancy
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Natalia
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For the record,
I would also include The Scarlet Letter even if my dd found it boring.
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vmalott
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lapazfarm wrote:
| But..the reason I would definitely include the book in a lit study is that it is absolutely THE book to study to learn about many literary devices such as symbolism, foreshadowing,theme, etc. |
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I see your point here, Theresa, but I think this could also be accomplished by reading some of Hawthorne's short stories, like "Young Goodman Brown." This might be an option for those of us with kids who might be reluctant readers of literature or who don't have the time to dedicate to a novel...or who would rather save the topic of adultery for a time when the student is a scad bit more mature.
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lapazfarm
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| Posted: Aug 05 2009 at 12:12pm | IP Logged
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vmalott wrote:
lapazfarm wrote:
| But..the reason I would definitely include the book in a lit study is that it is absolutely THE book to study to learn about many literary devices such as symbolism, foreshadowing,theme, etc. |
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I see your point here, Theresa, but I think this could also be accomplished by reading some of Hawthorne's short stories, like "Young Goodman Brown." This might be an option for those of us with kids who might be reluctant readers of literature or who don't have the time to dedicate to a novel...or who would rather save the topic of adultery for a time when the student is a scad bit more mature. |
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Oh, sure! I'm sure any number of short stories or novels would work just great, it's just that The Scarlet Letter is sort of iconic in that way. But it is far from the only thing to use. We all have to pick what works for us and our families, and if skipping the adultery angle is necessary, then there are a whole lot of other works out there to choose from.
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Theresa
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4Real Forums : High School Years and Beyond
Topic: High school lit.
