Teaching World Literatures of the Twentieth Century Abstracts

Adolescent Immigration To America Before 1920 

Audra Arwood 

This world literature unit will focus upon adolescents who migrated to America (US) from England, Mexico, Russia, Austria, Ireland, Africa, China, and Poland before 1920.  Many students have grandparents, parents, or other family members who immigrated.  The students will become aware of some of the hardships early immigrants faced and some of the reasons why the earlier generations migrated to America. World literature can help the students become more aware of the immigrants struggles through high interest adolescent literature. World literature is a component of language arts and can be easily integrated into interdisciplinary components within the curriculum.  

     The unit will explore the differences in religion, language, and economic survival, while pointing to commonalities of the immigrants’ experience. These lessons will use the Dear America book series. The students will read and experience activities that assist them in relating to the culture in the book. Language arts, social studies and National Geographic themes/standards will be employed in the lessons. Teachers can help further their students’ reading practices through literature that applies to their lives/interest. A student that reads is a student who can succeed in other subject areas. 

 

 Using World Literature to Build Character in a Global Context 

Cecilie Bodman 

World Literature provides a rich source of selections to choose from that motivate the student to learn about himself, demonstrate social responsibility, and accept responsibility for his own actions.  

Centering on Leslie Marmon Silko’s Humaweepi, the Warrior Priest and supplementing with Japanese and Chinese writing and poetry, the unit explores how universal themes in world literature are a reflection of human issues and experiences everywhere.  The major themes underlying the selections are: change is required for growth, honoring our past and being true to our values. The writings were selected to demonstrate ethnic differences as well as the similarities we, as humans, all share. 

          The primary objective of the unit is to engage students in meaningful thought and action through reading, discussing, writing, and action.  Through this interaction the intent is to help students make appropriate decisions that lead to a happy and self-actualized individual capable of contributing to our society.

The East and the Beat Generation

Anya Cornelius
 

This unit is designed for the eleventh grade American literature course.  My objective in this unit is to present eleventh graders with an overview and a taste of the influences of the Eastern world on the authors and their works of the Beat Generation.  This unit will cover the key authors of the time and the influences of the Eastern world.  One of these great influences was Buddhism, which the students and I will delve into by reading the story of Siddhartha.  Students and I will then read poems by Han-Shan, translated by Gary Snyder, called the Cold Mountain Poems.  Works and writing styles from William Burroughs and Allen Ginsberg will then be read and discussed.  To complete this unit, students will read One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest by Ken Kesey, which is representative of the Beat Generation.  By reading and studying the influences of the Beat Generation writers, students will have a greater understanding of these writer’s works of literature.

 

Afghanistan's Culture and Society 

Carol Hannamann 

This curriculum unit is intended to teach third to fifth grade students the Afghan culture.  The unit will begin with a brief geography lesson then move to explore the popular literature of the Afghan children.  We will read short stories about Mullah Nasruddin, a favorite character in stories throughout the Middle East.  Mulla Nasruddin stories sometimes teach a lesson and other times are just funny stories.  They are popular with Afghan children just as Mother Goose is familiar among American children.  We will also study the clothing,  food, crafts, and education of Afghanistan as well as the connections this region has with America.  By studying this society  the students should gain knowledge about the Afghan culture and an understanding of the connections it has with the United States.    

 

Introducing India in a Middle School Humanities Classroom:
What Indian Literature Reveals about its Culture, History, and Politics 

Charles Kappus 

Teaching a sixth grade humanities block (social studies and language arts) provides me a wonderful opportunity to integrate world literature with world history, and I believe this three-week unit will enable my students to hone their essential skills in both subject areas while they read and write about one of the world’s oldest and mysterious civilizations – India.  Students will read excerpts from some of the oldest texts ever written, including the Vedas, the Bhagavad-Gita, and the Ramayana and be introduced to India’s three major religions – Hinduism, Buddhism, and Islam – as they become more familiar with this incredibly diverse subcontinent where religion and politics have been intertwined for centuries.  Activities for this unit will center around the National Geographic Society’s five themes of geography – location, place, human/environment interaction, region, and movement, as well as provide opportunities to develop the essential language arts skills of reading, writing, listening, speaking, and research.  Throughout the unit, students will be encouraged to read actively, constantly comparing their own beliefs and traditions with that of a culture that is in many ways radically different from their own.  Like New Mexico’s world history curriculum for the entire school year (an extremely broad survey of every major world civilization from the Egyptians to the present day), this unit is designed to introduce important topics rather than cover them in great detail.  The unit is roughly divided into three week-long segments: Ancient India, the Colonial Period, and Independence from Britain and the modern period.  I believe that a sampling of the important literature from each era, including the Ramayana and other heroic tales in week one, the colorful poetry and fiction of Rudyard Kipling in week two, and the inspirational writings of Mohandas Gandhi in week three, will bring the history of this country to life.  By reading the myths, folktales, fiction, and poetry from India, my students will gain insight into Eastern thought and culture as well as an appreciation for the universal values of kindness, duty, and bravery.  For me, the possibilities of combining history and literature in creative classroom activities provides the real value of a humanities block – and the genuine excitement of teaching and learning.

 

Women in Islamic Cultures

 Leslie Keeney 

This two-week curriculum unit was designed for a tenth-grade “humanities” class, a course designed to incorporate world history, world literature, and art in a block setting.  However, the activities can easily be adapted to fit a 45 – 55 minute class setting in either a world history or a world literature course.  Islam and the Middle East carry a negative connotation for most tenth grade students, if not many adults in our society.  Our Western view of this religion and culture has been challenged recently with the events of September 11, 2001.  We are often presented with images in the media of the very negative aspects of Islam and its treatment of women.  Taken into account that this is a one-sided interpretation, the curriculum unit will attempt to expose students to a more historical perspective of Islam through a variety of literary readings.  Tolerance for other religions and cultures becomes more pertinent as our world grows into an increasingly global community.  Understanding how others view themselves and the issues affecting them is a useful and necessary curriculum to teach in today’s world.  Reading literature is one means to close true cultural gaps and attempt to reach some common understanding.

Through interpretive readings, students will gain an awareness of the lives of women in Islamic society, and an historical perspective of the origins of Islam to the present. 

 

Post-Colonial Literature Written in English, (West Indies, UK, USA),
A Sample Survey Unit in “Bass Culture” and “Subaltern-ative” Voice 

Bill Nevins
 

Post-colonial literary and cultural study is an important recent academic development which merits attention in the secondary school curriculum. This grade twelve curriculum unit offers an introductory survey of some post-colonial literature from the West Indies, Britain, and the United States, with historical background.  The authors sampled in this unit use humor and anger to express and comment upon the social and emotional turmoil of the post-colonial period.  As the historical processes continue of de-colonization, assertion of national independence by the former colonies, and ongoing economic globalization, communication among the peoples and cultures of the world has become a vital necessity.  Post-colonial theory seeks to maximize inter-cultural communication. The study of world literature, and the application of evolving post-colonial analysis have become essential aspects of true literacy.  

This unit samples the writings of such diverse authors as Jamaica Kincaid, Derek Walcott, Linton Kwesi Johnson, Leslie Marmon Silko, Joy Harjo, Jimmy Santiago Baca, Sherman Alexie, John Trudell, Jessica Hagedorn, and Rudyard Kipling.  Recordings, films, and videos are used in this unit to engage students in the learning process and to provide some historical background.  As many of these authors are popular writers and many are performing and recording artists, students will benefit from the placing of these popular culture manifestations in some social and historical context.  The story of colonization, de-colonization, and post-colonial literary assertion is an exciting and continuing tale.  This story is particularly relevant in New Mexico, given our state’s unique history. 

Included in this unit are authors from the United States who identify themselves as post-colonial and whose works offer students the opportunity to examine the history and present status of the US as a multi-cultural, diverse society.  The humorous, iconoclastic and irreverent tone of many of these writings should appeal to students.  Throughout the unit, assessment via student discussion and written response is encouraged. 

 Human and Physical Geographic Features of the Western Hemisphere
Focus: People and Places in the Caribbean 

Bernadette M. Ortega 

This curriculum unit will be used to integrate seventh grade social studies and language arts.    As part of our study of the western hemisphere, this nine-week unit Caribbean, as they study the different countries, major cities, and geographic features of the area. Students will observe that the Caribbean encompasses many islands, people of various racial, ethnic, cultural, religious, and social backgrounds, as well as several distinct languages.  Through research, students will reflect on the history of the islands from the colonial period to the present and examine the role of the Caribbean in the development of the Americas.  Students will investigate the migration of Europeans, Africans, and others to the Caribbean and the influences these people have had on the historical and social development of the region. This unit will include a survey of world literature from the Caribbean that has been written in English, as well as works in translation. Simultaneously studying the history, the geography, and the literature of this region will help students to develop a personal sense of the people and the places they are investigating and, perhaps, heighten their sense of self as they exist within the larger context of the world.

  

 Japan and the United States:  The Atomic Bomb 

Valorie T. Rigby
 

In this unit we will examine the dropping of the atomic bomb on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, an event that changed American and Japanese lives and linked the countries together politically and economically.  We will read literature about Japanese culture written by Japanese authors in an attempt to understand the role and perspective of the Japanese in WWII.  We will also read material written about the bombing by American authors.  The events are best understood in their relationship to American and Japanese participants and not separately as an American occurrence or a Japanese reaction, hence the inclusion of Japanese and American writings.  The purpose of the unit is to enlarge students’ view of the world through exploring social conditions that led to the A-bomb and to generate an atmosphere where students will begin to inquire and hold discussions concerning the world and their place in it.    It is appropriate to investigate an event that has so thoroughly affected life and to enter into a transactional process of reading, where students participate in a larger community as they negotiate cultural boundaries.  The transmission of cultural values must take place as students read about and discuss the role of each nation in a global act.  If American students consider their country to be the world leader, and many do, then they need to understand the responsibility and commitment that comes with that role.

A Humanities Approach to Modern Indonesia
 

Bruce W. Simmons

This unit is designed to challenge high school seniors who are required to explore language arts and social studies in a humanities setting.  After a first week of studying the concepts of what modern world literature is, and why it should be given a priority in this core class called Modern World Studies, the students will study the history and literature of modern Indonesia, the fourth most populous nation in the world with more Muslims than any other country.  Students will be expected to read and understand scholarly papers on modern world literature, analyze modern poetry and essays, research the country of Indonesia, and present information on various assigned subjects to the rest of the class.  They will also study and discuss the novel The Fugitive by Pranoedya Ananta Toer.  By incorporating literature with history, politics, economics, geography, and religion students will become familiar with one of the world’s important countries and understand the value of reading world literature in order better understand themselves in a global context.

 

 I am a Mexican American:
Cultural Identity through Literature, Traditions, Folk Art, and Food 

Earl A. Vallejos
 

Families come to the United States in hopes of a better life and a solid foundation in which their child can flourish.  These Mexican children must leave behind family, friends, and some of their cultural identity. For Mexican children coming to the United States, being embraced by the community in which they live can be a determining factor of their success in that new culture. Hundreds of Mexican-American students enter the Albuquerque Public School system every school year. These “new comers” are labeled either LEP (Limited English Proficiency) or ESL   (English as a Second Language).  

This unit is designed to bridge the student’s prior knowledge to the new information that will cover many aspects of Mexican culture.  We will focus on the contributions Mexican culture has made in our home state, New Mexico, as well as the influences around the globe.  The purpose of this curriculum unit is to provide third and fourth grade students an overview of Mexican culture, whether they are Hispanic, Mexican-American, Native American or Anglo.  We will explore the geography, history, traditions, folk art, food, and most importantly the Literature of old and modern Mexico. The literature of this unit will cover a variety of genres, including informational books, folktales, short stories, poetry, and creative drama.  I will introduce students to different genres through mini-lessons, reading aloud, discussions and oral story telling.  The purpose is to also teach the literacy devices (such as character, plot, theme, setting, point of view, style, and tone).  Students will also explore the similarities and differences in genres as they read, listen, and talk about the literature.   

 The Economics of Migration:
Understanding motivations for migration, its impact on the economy,
and the immigrant experience through literature.
An intredisciplanary unit for high school economics and literature classes.

 Michael Wahl 

The following interdisciplinary unit has been constructed for high school students, and seeks to integrate economics with contemporary literature.  Though not often combined, the use of literature with the study of migration, and how the economy is affected by immigrant and migrant workers here in the Southwest, can serve as an innovative way of creating connections on a more personal level between the students and their study of the principles of economics.   My students will study the patterns of immigration into the region.  They will develop an understanding of the economic stimulation behind this migration.  They wll investigate how the immigrant and migrant workers play a very important role in the regional economy.  They will learn to seperate the hard facts of this interdependant relationship from the prejudices and stereotypes that surround it.  And finally, through various forms of literature, they can appreciate the joys and struggles of this migrant and immigrant population, enabling the students to enjoy the study of economics on a more personal level.