Jane K. Marshall
This section of the unit is composed of three parts which roughly correlate to the way the short story should be read. The first part promotes a “good” first reading which will enable students to feel the impact of each story. The next part is concerned with a second reading, and encourages students to perceive the “way” or structure of the short story, and thus, its art. The third section seeks to involve students in a personal reaction to reading and thinking. It seems to me that this step-by-step approach to experiencing the short story will encourage understanding, appreciation, and possibly a personal interest in the form.
LEVEL I (FIRST READING)—for all stories
Many of us have assigned short story reading for homework, and have been disappointed with the results the next day. Some students refuse to read at all. “Nonreaders” who are concerned about their grades often skim or “get through” the reading missing the point of the assignment and/or the story. Out of frustration, the teacher sometimes does the student’s assignment (for him) in explaining the basic plot of the story. This, in fact, kills the story for the student. Important details of a story should emerge from the story itself; they should not be simplified in a teacher’s explanation. The student apathy problem as regards reading has long been frustrating for me, but I believe I have found a solution.
Thanks to Karl Marsh, Sandy Reynolds, and the Reading for the Blind Program of the Branford Public Library, students will be initially exposed to a tape-recorded reading of each story. They will listen and also read along in their texts. This will provide the much needed bridge between student passivity and activity. I believe that the tapes will “hook” students in a way that nothing else could. I hope they will remember this experience as an enjoyable one, and somewhere along the line will pick up a book on their own.
Following the taped first reading of each story, the teacher should encourage students to recall the story’s plot and its impact. This will insure student understanding of each story as well as provide a starting point for discussion. I have provided sample questions below
(Level I Questions)
1. Who is involved? (list of characters)
2. Where/when does this happen? (description of setting)
3. What happens? (major action of the plot)
4. Why does this happen? (motivation)
5. What is the final result? (outcome or denouement)
Students can be asked to recall the plot of each story either orally or in a written assignment in response to the above questions. (Such an assignment might also provide a means of teaching students the basics of summary writing, as the questions provide an outline of sorts.)
LEVEL II (ELEMENTS OF THE SHORT STORY)
—to follow the second reading of each story
By this point, the impact of the story has reached students. It is time to provide “distance” for two reasons. First, students may need psychological distancing if a particular story happens to “hit too close to home”. Second, students need to step back and take notice of the writer’s craft in order to fully understand and appreciate the art form (and the story itself). The following questions are concerned with the elements of the short story. Students should be provided with a list of key elements and their definitions beforehand.
(Level II Questions) Sample: from “The Almost
White Boy”
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1. State the primary conflict of the story. When is the reader made aware of this conflict?
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2. List the flashback memories of the first three pages of the story. What purpose do they serve?
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3. What is the author “saying” through his story of Jim and Cora?
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4. Why does Cora behave the way she does?
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5. Were you surprised when Cora left Jim?
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____
Why/why not? Explain.
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6. How does the meaning of “people are just people” change during the course of the story? Explain.
LEVEL III (CREATIVE WRITING)—to follow short story readings of both themes
I initially thought that students could be guided through the writing of a short story through exercises involving the elements of the short story. I soon realized, however, that such an overt method (which I would be orchestrating) would destroy students’ spontaneous creative impulses, and possibly the emergence of feelings that they might want to get down on paper. It seems to me that writing which affords the writer pleasure must simply “happen”. A single thought, memory, or insight, might provide the impetus to write. Often, for me, this leads to the creation of something I didn’t realize I “knew”. The final product seems to have come from nowhere or everywhere; in a sense, it has a life of its own.
The writing process, then, teaches the writer something about himself; or , quite simply, through writing we are often able to communicate with ourselves. This communication may be comforting or instructive.
Therefore, given all of the above, I must step way back and allow my students to “discover” this experience in their own way. (After all, this is supposed to be the student-generated portion of the unit.) The following ideas provide possible ways for getting students to start writing. They are warm-up exercises which will serve to lessen student anxiety as regards writing. (Students should not be graded on these attempts.)
(Level III Projects)
A. “Stream of Consciousness Writing”
Simply ask students to write about anything that pops into their heads for a ten minute writing period. Caution them not to stop, reread or rewrite.
B. “Conversation Writing”
Ask students to make up a conversation between two or more people. This writing should consist of direct dialogue only. They should not stop to correct or rewrite.
C. “Memory Writing”
Ask students to recall a particularly vivid memory of the past. Encourage them to describe this memory fully. Then ask them to figure out (and write down) the reason for their “choosing” to remember this particular occurrence. At this point students may be encouraged to correct or rewrite should they feel this is necessary.
D. “Short Story Writing”
Ask students to read through their preliminary writings (A, B, C) to find something they want to write about in short story form. Give only one “pointer”; suggest that they think of endings to their stories first. (They will then know where they are headed, and hopefully will write toward the ending.) Provide class time to enable students to “get started”. Encourage students to share their work with you, particularly if they seem “stuck”. Have the class share finished stories with one another. Students might look for elements of the short story in one another’s writing. (Many will be surprised to learn that they have, in fact, written short stories.) Submit all of the stories to the school literary magazine.
RETROSPECTION
At this point I think it is important to admit to readers of this unit that I chose the short story seminar for one particular reason: I knew I was not a short story reader by choice. Though I taught short stories, and appreciated the form intellectually, I rarely read short stories for recreation. I preferred the novel for many reasons. Well, that has changed. Through the seminar, and interactions with Professor Snead and my colleagues, I have come to accept the short story as something with which I can become immersed. The English teacher
has
to teach the short story. It will be a relief (for me) to be able to do so more “honestly”. The Institute program provides time and an opportunity for communication with professors who are committed to their subjects. The excitement “rubs off”. The (public school) teacher’s growth may often be of a personal nature, and therefore intangible for others. Yet, it is the realization of this growth that enables one to enter the classroom
happily
in the fall. Perhaps that is what this whole thing is all about.