A brief course in the teaching process

by George D. Strayer

III. The Teaching of Literature

1. General Problems.

1. Can literature be taught? Or can pupils “be taught through literature”? Examples of such educational use of literature.

2. Present aims in teaching literature: entertainment, portrayal of life, acquaintance with the world of thought and feeling as presented in books, cultivation of imagination and sense of beauty.

3. True interpretation implies grasping the central purpose, idea, or feeling of the piece.

4. Various types of literature demand various treatment. Necessity of adapting the treatment to the class.

5. Taste (sense of beauty) developed mainly by contact with good models. Instruction plays a minor part. The love of good reading fostered by judicious selection of material, and by example and influence.

6. How can the habit of good reading be cultivated?

2. Material.