Introduction
Literature (fiction, drama, poetry, (auto)biography, memoir, etc.) invites us to become acquainted with ourselves, to become self-aware, to observe human nature and human character through the illumination of that nature and character in the lives, language, motives, and actions of the human beings authors bring to life in their works.
Literature shows us the humanness of our experiences, and the universality of those experiences. The details may be different (gender, time period, locale, even language) but human character, literature has repeatedly and relentlessly shown us for millennia, has not fundamentally changed.
In this webquest you will learn about American literature, British literature and World literature. We will explore a variety of genres in each area including diverse literature, multicultural literature, young adult literature, and literature authored by women.
Essential Question:
How does American, British and World Literature affect our lives now and which genre should HS seniors study in-depth before graduating and preparing for college?
Task
In this task you will compare and contrast American, British and World Literature. You will decide which of these areas would be the most beneficial for seniors to study as they transition from high school to college.
You and your team will present your findings by creating a keynote or power point presentation that includes your summary as well as the graphic organizers you have chosen to disseminate the information you have gathered throughout this assignment.
Process
1. You have been assigned to a team of 3 students.
2. Each of you will choose a section to define and research throughout this assignment.
3. You will then put your findings into a graphic organizer that will lend itself to the final task of comparing and contrasting American, British and World Literature.
4. Determine what you and your group agree is the most important genre of English Literature for seniors to leave high school with an in-depth knowledge of before moving on to college level literature.
5. Decide which section each team member will research. Each individual is expected to provide a thorough definition of their genre. Put these into one slide when you present. Compare and contrast the three genres. What do they have in common? How do the differ? Why would each genre be important for students to study? Which one does your group believe should be the priority as seniors prepare to graduate and enter college level literature?
6. Each member must research the novels listed and determine together which genre of literature each novel belongs in.
7. Once you have determined and agreed which genre each novel belongs in then decide which genre you will define individually.
8. Each member will create a synopsis for each novel in their section. Identify how the author and each novel influences literature and infer why that particular novel was chosen to represent the genre.
9. Include the following in your presentation:
A. Define each of the genres you studied.
B. Place each novel into the genre it belongs in and give a synopsis of each title.
C. Using a graphic organizer, compare and contrast American, British and World Literature
D. Summarize which genre your group believes would be the most beneficial for HS seniors to study before graduating and moving forward in their education to college level literature.
Literature/Authors/Novels
-Louise Erdrich, The Round House
-Toni Morrison, Beloved
-Junot Diaz, The Brief and Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao
-Tony Kushner, Angels in America: A Gay Fantasia on National Themes
-John Connolly, The Book of Lost Things
-Mark Haddon, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time
-Kazuo Ishiguro, Never Let Me Go
-Art Spiegelman, MAUS Volumes 1 & 2
-Sherman Alexie, The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian
-Sylvia Plath, The Bell Jar
Evaluation
4-Advanced 3-Proficient 2-Basic 1-Below Basic
13-16 Advanced
9-12 Proficient
5-8 Basic
0-4 Below Basic
Conclusion
You have reached the end of this web quest. I hope your group was able to complete the task set forth and that you were able to follow the guidelines in the process section. You should have a clear and working definition of American, British and World literature at the completion of this task. You should now a reprotoire of novels in each area as well as multicultural and novels written by women.
Please view the teacher's page for internet sources to peruse as you complete your task and to check your placement of the novels and to be sure your synopsis was on track and each was placed into the correct genre.
One thing for sure: there is not enough time in the world to teach all the literature worth reading. There is not even enough time to read all the literature worth reading. The best we can do is remember the dictum of that great teacher, Socrates (or at least attributed to him): “Education is the kindling of a flame, not the filling of a vessel.”
Teacher Page
Here are some sources you may use as you research and complete your web quest. Feel free to use these as well as explore your own.
Internet Resources:
1. http://www.library.rochester.edu/subject/web-resources
2. http://encyclopedia2.thefreedictionary.com/American+literature
3. http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-british-literature.htm
4. http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/us/definition/american_english/world-…
5. http://study.com/academy/lesson/multicultural-literature-definition-boo…
Graphic Organizers:
1. http://www.brighthub.com/multimedia/publishing/articles/128209.aspx
2. http://www.studenthandouts.com/graphic-organizers/
American Lit:
-Louise Erdrich, The Round House (story of a boy searching for the man who raped his mother and destroyed his family. Deals with the oppressive judicial system that Native Americans have to navigate when Americans commit crimes on reservation lands. Prominent female Native American writer)
-Toni Morrison, Beloved (story of a former-slave who was forced to kill one of her own children to prevent them from being taken away and thrown into slavery themselves. Prominent female African American Writer)
-Junot Diaz, The Brief and Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao (story of a Dominican boy who grows up and moves to America to go to school. Not necessarily special in any way, but it's a good book and shows life in the DR vs America. Prominent Dominican American Writer)
-Tony Kushner, Angels in America: A Gay Fantasia on National Themes (Excellent play about a homosexual man struggling with judgment while also coming to terms with his AIDS diagnosis early on in the story)
British Lit:
-John Connolly, The Book of Lost Things (very interesting story about a boy who gets sucked into a Narnia-esque world that is formed around his imagination. The kid is constantly reading old, classic British Literature, so his world is filled with classic Literature references. Very cool melding of stories and themes and coming-of-age lessons)
-Mark Haddon, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time (Story told from the viewpoint of a severely autistic kid who is trying to solve the murder of his neighbor's dog. Very well-written and amazing storytelling - Haddon writes in a way that the audience knows what's happening even though the main character doesn't really understand. It's sad, but incredibly eye-opening)
-Kazuo Ishiguro, Never Let Me Go (Japanese-British writer, story about a group of kids who are raised to donate their body parts to rich elites later in life. Almost a dystopian-style world, but not quite as out of control)
Multicultural Lit:
-Art Spiegelman, MAUS Volumes 1 & 2 (a man interviewing his father about experiences in German Concentration camps. Written in comic form)
-Sherman Alexie, The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian (Semi-autobiographical story of a Native American boy leaving the reservation and going to a White school)
-Sylvia Plath, The Bell Jar (story of a woman having to deal with the social expectations placed on women in the 60's [not sure on the date]. She's a writer, but struggles with depression and anxiety and attempts suicide several times. Not for the faint of heart, but also important because Plath heavily influenced Literature at the time and even now)