Percy-L: Literary, Religious, Scientific, and Philosophical Discussion of Walker Percy

["Beck, David A" <dabeck AT iupui.edu>]

Doug,
Thanks for your insights. Sounds like you had a dream class (all 
English majors and one soc). My guess is that my class will be filled 
with elementary ed majors (no comment).
You might be right about it going over better now than 10-20 years ago. 
I'll just tell them to replace the few actors mentioned with 
contemporary ones (who is a contemporary Holden??).
Thanks.
-David
Quoting mitchdl AT email.unc.edu:

> I just finished teaching The Moviegoer at the end of a Southern Lit
> class and was surprised at how well the students responded.  Granted,
> this was an upper-level course composed of English majors (and one
> sociology major!), so it's a different bag from an intro course.
>
> I think there's less of a problem with TMG seeming dated now than there
> would have been in the eighties/nineties, for the simple reason that
> the references are absolutely meaningless to students now (William
> Holden??).  They take them purely as fictional names and judge the
> meaning by the context, instead of partially recognizing and depositing
> them in the 'fogey' bin.
>
> The predicament, of course, is unchanged and worse now than ever.
>
> Most surprising, though, was the response to Kate.  If any character
> might be said to be a bit overdrawn, it's Kate, but the students (all
> female) immediately recognized a familiar type.  This, I would say, is
> one path into TMG with these students.  It helps that mine tend to be
> notably less ideologically driven readers, so they don't get distracted
> with the "She's dependent on a man!" business.  They understand more
> about desperate times and desperate measures.
>
> Since this is an intro class, however, TMG will leave many students
> flat.  So my recommendation would be to divide the class as the world
> is divided:  those who love Percy (TWLP) and those who hate Percy
> (TWHP), or sheep and goats. Take the class outside and let the TWHPers
> loll about on the grass with their Ipods while the TWLPs palpitate
> their frontal lobes and gaze ironically at the former group.
>
> All the best,
>
> Doug
>
>
>
>
> Quoting "Beck,  David A" <dabeck AT iupui.edu>:
>
> > Friends,
> > A few weeks (months?) ago, someone posted a message about the success
> > of teaching The Moviegoer to a high school class. (I'm thinking it was
> > Rhonda.) But the email encouraged me to try it once again, in my Intro
> > to Lit class this summer. Most of the class will be bright-faced, eager
> > to learn, college freshman--well, college freshman anyway.
> > The Moviegoer is one of my favorites, but it's also one that I've never
> > taught successfully. Most thought it was too weird (I interpreted that
> > as being too dated--replace Tony Curtis with Tom Cruise, etc.) But if
> > high schoolers got it, then maybe it is the way I've been teaching it.
> > Lancelot has always gone over well in my 200-level lit classes. And
> > Love in the Ruins also works pretty well, though it's a little too
> > long. But TMG is such a great book that I thought I needed to give it
> > one more try. I'm re-reading it now and am really enjoying it again.
> > So my question is (to the list and to Rhonda, if she is the one who
> > posted the email): What is a good way of presenting this novel that is
> > dated (in its references) but is as timely now (if not more so) than
> > ever to college freshman?
> > Any help will be much appreciated. The class doesn't begin until 6/26.
> > Thanks.
> > -David
> >
> >
> > --
> > An archive of all list discussion is available at
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> >
> > Visit the Walker Percy Project at http://www.ibiblio.org/wpercy
>
>
> --
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>
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