This study maintains that the works of Carl Sandburg are a valuable asset in the teaching of English and should continue to be a staple item in the high school English curriculum. An overview of Sandburg's critical reputation is presented and 10 of Sandburg's most adaptable works for secondary school are surveyed and discussed at length, including…

In his plays, Shakespeare reveals a double view of life by repeatedly juxtaposing a representation of the comic spirit with the tragic protagonist. In the idiom of Shakespeare's world, heroic characters often embarrass or destroy themselves by confusing appearance with reality. Then, the comic characters or "mad men," functioning as…

The use of films in the classroom can help motivate students not only to write but also to consciously employ literary techniques. A film offers visual and audio parallels for conventions traditionally associated with writing, such as metaphor, plot, theme, point-of-view, dialect, satire, and imagery. Since these film conventions can be directly…

Reading is a very complex psycholinguistic process consummate with writing, and reading instruction aspires to develop the critical reader, whose skills and abilities empower him to comprehend, enjoy, and assess both expository and imaginative writing. Using a rich background of learning and experience, the reader must handle many frames of…

This selective bibliography, written as a guide to scholarship on Chaucer and related subjects, attempts to cover the major works and topics, with emphasis on work published in the 20th century. Omitted are school editions, short articles on minor points, popular and semi-popular books and articles, and unpublished doctoral dissertations. General…

The central theme of "To Kill a Mockingbird," one of the most widely taught novels in high school English classes, is frequently misinterpreted by well-meaning teachers. Although the cause of racial justice deserves classroom attention, the central theme and the focus of the four significant parts of the novel--the opening words, the…

The field of oral interpretation has been influenced by both the analytical approach to literature study, with significant emphasis on understanding the literary text, and the interpersonal approach. While oral reading may utilize various performance arts or media such as dance, music, or film, the most popular movement currently is Readers…

Although there has been a reluctance in the past on the part of journalism educators to criticize the news media openly, evidence now exists indicating that attempts to assess the performance of the press are taking place in the classroom, in the community, and within the media itself. Contents of this AEJ monograph include "The Journalism…

The major prerequisite to studying science fiction as literature is determining the criteria by which it is to be evaluated. A middle ground which recognizes both literary merit and the genre's uniqueness (scientific orientation, dominancy of idea, and interest of speculation) proves to be the most workable approach and stresses the versatility…

This book attempts to assess a half century of Afro-American poetry published from 1890 to 1940, focusing on the human experience--individual and collective--from which this poetry was produced. In analyzing the place of black poetry in the American literary domain, attention is given to historical, religious, sociological, and cultural…

This book is a collection of essays by the author on film criticism. An auteurist and historical approach is taken to the primarily American films discussed. The essays are organized by basic theme: "Critical Credos and Causes,""Personal Styles,""Genres,""Politics,""Odes and Obits," and "Arts and Letters." Each essay centers either on an important…

Designed to assess the level of thematic profundity of a reader's response to short stories, the Literary Profundity Test consists of four very short stories, each with four endings representing one of the five levels in the Literary Profundity Scale: physical, mental, moral, psychological, and philosophical. Nine experts have agreed that each…

Designed to measure maturity of reading interests, the Sophistication of Reading Interests Scale consists of 29 pairs of fictitious story synopses, one of the pair more sophisticated than the other. Three indicators of level of maturity, defined in order of sophistication, are the importance of plot, the importance of characters, and the…

Materials in this bibliography concerning rhetoric and public address appeared in publications on speech communication and contiguous areas during 1972 (unless otherwise indicated). Entries are divided into four categories: bibliography, ancient era (history and culture, theory, and practitioners and theorists), medieval and renaissance era…

Grouped together are four miscellaneous papers from the 1966 Dartmouth Seminar. The first by Alfred Grommon addresses the education of teachers of English, commenting on the current status of teachers and putting forth some proposals which reflect the changes in attitudes toward teacher education programs and a recognition of the social,…