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fandomhigh2008-11-06 06:15 am
clevermsbennet.livejournal.com) wrote in fandomhigh2008-11-06 06:15 am
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Literature, Class 9: Period 3, Thursday, November 6
"I was once accused," Eliza said, greeting her class with a smile, "of being a great lover of books, who had took little delight in anything else. The situation was thus: I was a guest in another's home who had been invited to a friendly game of cards, one which I politely declined, choosing instead to sit on a divan and read. The statement was a teasing one, and I need hardly bother condemning it, but I shall. What I said at the time was simple: I deserve neither such praise nor such censure."
"However lightly I may have said it, that much is true," she continued. "I have great passion for literature, as all of you have seen here in class, but it is hardly the only subject which moves me. I would not wish it to be the case. I fear if all that ever spoke to me were words upon a page, that I would be missing a large amount of what makes this world of ours so rich. I would also presumably be frightfully dull. I am neither an enlightened, ascetic scholar who sacrifices all other things to devote herself to the study of knowledge nor a socialite who finds such things to be tedious. I would imagine the same could be said for all of you: that you deserve neither that praise nor that censure, of being a great reader who cares for little else. I do intend that statement as a compliment, I assure you.
"Having said that, I am not the professor of well-roundedness; I am the professor of literature. Therefore. What I wish to discuss today is literature, as always, but perhaps a broader view. I wish to look at the study of literature as a whole. Or perhaps the view is narrower, if looked at in another way: I wish to speak with each of you, individually, and all of you, collectively, about how you feel this class has gone, and where it should go henceforth. What mistakes I have made, for I am certain to have made them, and conversely, what I have gotten right, as I must be allowed to hope that I have done at least one thing well, even if by accident. A stopped clock is still correct twice a day.
"I know that each of you have come to this class from your own paths, and that you each find something different in literature. Sokka, last week, expressed that he felt the mood and tone of poetry far outweighed the meaning of the words themselves. Sokka is hardly the only poetry devotee, as Romeo has spoke of how stirring he finds works of faith and devotion. Chad finds poetry to be enhanced when it is set to another media entirely, that of music. Rodney's passion is for literature which addresses scientific possibilities and the subsequent effects on humanity; Worf favors the writings of a great Klingon hero who taught his people of honor and courage in battle. I have heard some of you wax eloquent on the subject of Shakespeare, while others confess that, in your view, he is overrated. We discussed in detail the striking differences between Jane Austen's characters of Fern and Amelia; some of you favored Fern over Amelia, while others the reverse, still others neither, and a few, even, cherishing both. I confess, I feel as though I learn more from seeing these works from your collective, disparate eyes than I ever would in a hundred years of reading and studying the works myself. I am humbled by all of you.
"I realize that this is perhaps unfair of me, to ask you for your insights yet again. After all, we started this class with me asking you about your own experiences with regards to literature. Having said that: we did not have examinations in the middle of the semester, as I have learned that classes are wont to do, and so I am inclined to think myself less heartless than you might.
"Finally, I encourage all of you to be honest and forthright with me. If you wish to tell me that this class bores you, you may do so, but you must do so constructively. Explain to me what I have not done that I should, or what I have done that I should not. I insist that your criticisms be detailed; displeasure is acceptable, but apathy on the matter is not."
She hesitated before smiling one last time and adding, "And a small confession, to those who might be curious. I declined to join that card game, but not because I lack fondness for cards. The truth of the matter is that their notion of a 'friendly game' had higher stakes than those with which I am comfortable playing."
"However lightly I may have said it, that much is true," she continued. "I have great passion for literature, as all of you have seen here in class, but it is hardly the only subject which moves me. I would not wish it to be the case. I fear if all that ever spoke to me were words upon a page, that I would be missing a large amount of what makes this world of ours so rich. I would also presumably be frightfully dull. I am neither an enlightened, ascetic scholar who sacrifices all other things to devote herself to the study of knowledge nor a socialite who finds such things to be tedious. I would imagine the same could be said for all of you: that you deserve neither that praise nor that censure, of being a great reader who cares for little else. I do intend that statement as a compliment, I assure you.
"Having said that, I am not the professor of well-roundedness; I am the professor of literature. Therefore. What I wish to discuss today is literature, as always, but perhaps a broader view. I wish to look at the study of literature as a whole. Or perhaps the view is narrower, if looked at in another way: I wish to speak with each of you, individually, and all of you, collectively, about how you feel this class has gone, and where it should go henceforth. What mistakes I have made, for I am certain to have made them, and conversely, what I have gotten right, as I must be allowed to hope that I have done at least one thing well, even if by accident. A stopped clock is still correct twice a day.
"I know that each of you have come to this class from your own paths, and that you each find something different in literature. Sokka, last week, expressed that he felt the mood and tone of poetry far outweighed the meaning of the words themselves. Sokka is hardly the only poetry devotee, as Romeo has spoke of how stirring he finds works of faith and devotion. Chad finds poetry to be enhanced when it is set to another media entirely, that of music. Rodney's passion is for literature which addresses scientific possibilities and the subsequent effects on humanity; Worf favors the writings of a great Klingon hero who taught his people of honor and courage in battle. I have heard some of you wax eloquent on the subject of Shakespeare, while others confess that, in your view, he is overrated. We discussed in detail the striking differences between Jane Austen's characters of Fern and Amelia; some of you favored Fern over Amelia, while others the reverse, still others neither, and a few, even, cherishing both. I confess, I feel as though I learn more from seeing these works from your collective, disparate eyes than I ever would in a hundred years of reading and studying the works myself. I am humbled by all of you.
"I realize that this is perhaps unfair of me, to ask you for your insights yet again. After all, we started this class with me asking you about your own experiences with regards to literature. Having said that: we did not have examinations in the middle of the semester, as I have learned that classes are wont to do, and so I am inclined to think myself less heartless than you might.
"Finally, I encourage all of you to be honest and forthright with me. If you wish to tell me that this class bores you, you may do so, but you must do so constructively. Explain to me what I have not done that I should, or what I have done that I should not. I insist that your criticisms be detailed; displeasure is acceptable, but apathy on the matter is not."
She hesitated before smiling one last time and adding, "And a small confession, to those who might be curious. I declined to join that card game, but not because I lack fondness for cards. The truth of the matter is that their notion of a 'friendly game' had higher stakes than those with which I am comfortable playing."
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