Chapter V: Introduction (2)

Throughout the course in English, the pupils ought to be urged, if not actually required, to read considerable good literature in addition to that read and studied in class. A list of standard books as large and as wide in range of subjects as the library facilities of the school make possible, should be prepared each year, and the pupils should be encouraged to read as many of these books as their time permits. Reading that is done on the pupil’s own initiative is many times more valuable than that which he does simply because of a formal requirement. If the plan is followed of requiring that a certain number of books be read, precaution must be taken against making the outside reading a formal task rather than a pleasure. The teacher can do much toward interesting the pupils in the library reading. By reading aloud to the class a chapter or two of a book, he may lead many of the pupils to read the whole book. By referring in the class work to the characters, plots, and other details of the books on the reading list, or by quoting from them, he will often arouse the pupils’ curiosity and create a desire to read the books. By considering the tastes and needs of the individual pupils, he can suggest to each the books most likely to be of the greatest interest and value. To create and develop the desire to read good literature outside of the class room, is one of the greatest privileges of the teacher of English.

In general the plan of having a written review, outline, or summary of these books, either as a part of the composition or the reading work, is to be discouraged. Since the writing of a book review is a difficult task for a man or woman of broad education, it is too much to expect that the immature high school pupil will be able to do it with any degree of intelligence or interest. The fact constantly emphasized by such a method, that every book which he reads must serve as material for a book review, a summary, or an examination, often defeats the purpose of his outside reading, since it tends to create a dislike rather than a love for reading. The books read by pupils may sometimes be discussed in class, however, as a means of arousing interest in the outside reading, and frequently pupils may be led to express their opinions freely, and spontaneously concerning the books under discussion. If the pupils can be turned from an oral to a written discussion of the book more or less spontaneously, there is less danger in having an occasional written exercise based on the library reading.

V
FIRST YEAR ENGLISH

In outlining the work of the first year, it is assumed that English will be pursued for five periods a week throughout the year. Of this time one-half should be devoted to composition, and one-half to reading. These two phases of the first year English, as has already been indicated, should be closely correlated, and must, of course, be taught by the same teacher. By suggesting that one-half of the time be devoted to each phase of the subject, it is not intended, as has already been said, that the time should be formally divided. Instead of setting aside two or three periods a week for composition it is frequently more satisfactory to devote a portion of each period to a study of the principles of composition as exemplified in the reading or to a discussion of subjects for composition, and thus not to interrupt the continuity of the reading.

In Wisconsin high schools the present course of study for one course, generally called the English course, presents one serious difficulty in connection with first year English; i. e., the arrangement by which grammar and composition for five periods a week and reading and composition for five periods a week are required of all pupils in this course. It is manifestly undesirable for any pupils in the first year to pursue two courses in English for ten periods a week throughout the year. This arrangement gives the pupils in this course seven and one-half periods of composition work during the second semester if the course in grammar and composition is divided so that grammar is required in the first semester and composition in the second. It also divides the composition work between two separate classes, part of the instruction in composition being given in the course in grammar and composition and part in the course in reading and composition. Since instruction in the principles of composition without practice is of little value especially for the immature pupils in the first year, and since from five to seven and a half periods is too much time to devote to composition when the amount of practice that is possible or even desirable is necessarily limited, the best solution of the problem seems to be to devote the time to additional reading and not to attempt to give more than two and a half periods, the amount assigned for other courses, to composition work. The question of teaching grammar is considered on page 32.

1. Composition

The object of the first year in composition should be to encourage pupils to express freely their own ideas and impressions. Fluency of expression is to be encouraged by every possible means. The most effective method of developing this free and fluent expression is to have the pupils write on subjects in which they are most interested. It is sometimes said that the difficulty in writing themes in the first year lies in the fact that the pupils have nothing to write about from their own experience, and that therefore subjects must be drawn largely from the reading; that is, pupils must reproduce others’ thoughts rather than express their own. It seems doubtful whether this paucity of ideas really exists, for it is indeed a stupid girl or boy in the first year at high school who is not interested in many things in active everyday life, and who does not talk constantly of these things to schoolmates and friends. It is doubtless true that the pupil often does not consider his simple experiences of sufficient importance to be the subjects of his compositions and must therefore be led by the teacher to see the possibilities which they contain. It is the duty of the teacher of composition, as has been said, to familiarize himself with the surroundings of his pupils, and to interest himself in their various activities in and out of school. It is only by such sympathy and interest that he can get his pupils to express themselves freely in their themes. Experience has shown that the daily life of the individual pupil, and the varied activities of the school can be made to furnish practically all of the theme subjects not only for first year composition, but also for that of the other three years.

While fluency and spontaneity of expression should be encouraged in every way possible, the teacher must also insist on accuracy in details of expression. The common errors in grammar, spelling, capitalization, punctuation, and other matters of form should be corrected constantly, and by the end of the first year all such mistakes should be fairly well eliminated from the average pupil’s work. In connection with the correction of errors in the themes, the rules of spelling, capitalization, punctuation, and grammar may be reviewed to advantage from time to time.

2. English Grammar

It is not desirable to take up formally the study of English, grammar as a regular part of first year English. Whenever the plan of devoting a semester or a term to English grammar has been tried, it has been conceded that the course has not been very successful. The cause of this is not far to seek. Since the pupils have been drilled in grammar in the seventh and eighth grades, a repetition of the subject at the beginning of the high school course invariably proves distasteful, and it is extremely difficult if not practically impossible to arouse any interest in the subject. High school pupils in the first year are too immature to take up the subject from a point of view materially different from that from which it was studied in the grades. The work, consequently, is done in a perfunctory manner, and seems to have little practical result in the pupils’ written or spoken English. It is the general experience, nevertheless, that a number of pupils entering the high school are deficient in their knowledge of the most elementary principles of English grammar, and that they are therefore somewhat handicapped in taking up the study of composition. If the present system of promotion permits some pupils to enter the high school without a sufficient knowledge of the elements of English grammar to make possible an intelligent study of high school English, it seems very doubtful whether the high school course in English should be planned to provide for pupils whose preparation is deficient. If provision must be made for the deficient ones, a special class in grammar should be organized for their benefit, and well-prepared pupils should not be compelled to repeat this grade work. This special review of grammar for poorly prepared pupils should not form a part of the regular English work of the first year, and it may be questioned whether it should be credited for graduation from high school. For pupils of required preparation the only study of grammar necessary in the first year may be taken up in connection with the correction of errors made by the pupils in composition. Syntax must be studied in connection with the construction of sentences in composition work. A consideration of the grammatical construction of sentences required for effective work in reading and composition, with such review of grammar as is made necessary by the actual errors of the pupils, will generally be sufficient training in grammar for the first year.

3. Rhetorical Principles

The study of rhetorical principles in the first year should be confined to the consideration of the simpler principles of sentence and paragraph construction. In connection with the study of grammatical construction of sentences, the violation of the principles of sentence unity and sentence coherence in the pupils’ written work will offer opportunity for enlarging upon the application of these principles. If, in the first year, pupils can be taught to express simple ideas in sentences the parts of which are logically connected, much will have been accomplished. In paragraph construction unity and coherence must also be emphasized; that is, the pupils should be taught that the paragraph consists of a series of closely related sentences developing a single topic. The unity of the paragraph as emphasized by the part of the definition referring to the single topic, and the principle of coherence, as brought out by the idea of a series of related sentences, constitute the important points regarding paragraph construction to be developed in the first year.

The simplest principles of narration, such as the choice, order, and connection of incidents, may be emphasized and developed in the pupils’ composition work. Examples of the application of these principles will be noted constantly in the short stories read in class. During the second semester the elementary principles of description can be developed from the reading, and pupils can be led to add a descriptive element to their narrative themes, or even to write short descriptive themes. After studying the descriptive methods used in the portrayal of a character or scene in the story read in class, the pupils may very naturally be encouraged to write descriptions of persons or places with which they are familiar. The knowledge and application of these principles of composition, thoroughly mastered, is all the rhetoric that is necessary for the first year.

4. Theme Writing

In the first year one or two short themes a week will give sufficient practice in composition. A short theme should consist of one well-rounded paragraph of about 150 words. The one-paragraph theme of this length has several advantages. First, the pupil is taught from the beginning of his high school composition work to regard the paragraph as a unit of some length, which may be complete in itself. Second, the pupil usually has enough ideas for a short theme, and can present them simply and directly without writing to fill space, as he sometimes must do when longer themes are required. Third, a teacher can correct these short single page themes in less time, and yet see clearly the pupil’s faults, for he is likely to make the characteristic errors as evident in one page as in three or four. If the teacher has time to correct carefully two short themes a week, one of these may be prepared outside the class room, and the other may be written during part of one of the recitation periods. This plan gives the pupil practice in carefully prepared written work for the writing of which he has plenty of time, and also in writing rapidly in class when he has time to prepare but a single draft of his theme.

As in all composition work, these themes must be promptly and carefully corrected by the teacher; and the errors, as has already been pointed out, should be indicated by signs and abbreviations so that the pupil may have the benefit of correcting his mistakes. This correction by the pupil may be done either by rewriting the theme or by revising it and making corrections neatly between the lines, or in some other convenient place. In either case, the work should be returned to the teacher so that he may glance over the original and rewritten forms, or the original as revised, and may see whether the errors have been corrected and the changes properly made.

In the first year the conferences of teacher and pupil on composition work are of great importance. By talking over the work, the teacher can do much towards encouraging a pupil who becomes disheartened because of the difficulties in expressing his ideas in writing. In these conferences, also, the teacher can learn much concerning the pupil’s interests and character, and by sympathy and insight can be as helpful to the excellent pupil as to the mediocre or poor one.

5. Reading

The selection of suitable masterpieces for reading and study in the first year must be made with particular care, since the pupils’ attitude toward the reading and study of literature is often influenced for some time by their first impressions. As the purpose of the reading is not only to have the pupils understand what they read by teaching them to read carefully and accurately, but also to interest them in reading good literature, it is desirable to begin on material that does not present too many difficulties. The length of the selection is also an important element. The piece of literature must not be so long that interest in it flags or that the pupil can not grasp it in its entirety and study it as a unit. Short stories, tales, and narrative and descriptive sketches combine more of the desired elements than other forms of literature. Prose narratives of this type also make possible the close and effective correlation of the reading and composition, the importance of which has already been emphasized. Among the short stories and sketches that have been used successfully in the first year and that may be taken as typical are Hawthorne’s “Twice Told Tales”, Irving’s “Rip Van Winkle” and “Legend of Sleepy Hollow”, Holmes’ “My Hunt After the Captain”, Warner’s “A-Hunting of the Deer”, Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol”. Mythology and folk tales have also been tried with considerable success in the first semester of the first year; the available selections include Hawthorne’s “Wonder Book”, Church’s “The Story of the Iliad” and “The Story of the Odyssey”, Peabody’s “Old Greek Folk Stories”, Bryant’s translations of the “Iliad” and the “Odyssey” and Palmer’s translation of the “Odyssey”.

The advantages of using prose for reading and study in the first year in preference to poetry or the poetical drama, are important ones. In the first place since it is desirable to teach pupils to get the whole thought contained in what they read, it is undoubtedly best to begin with those forms in which ideas are expressed in the usual order, which, of course, is that of prose rather than that of poetry or the poetical drama. The training in following and grasping in their entirety the expressed thoughts of others as they appear in the simplest logical order of prose should be one of the first aims of the first year reading. In the second place poetic inversions and figurative expressions increase so greatly the pupils’ difficulties in understanding what they read, that at the beginning of the course it makes too great a task of that which should be a source of interest and pleasure. To pass over these difficulties and emphasize simply the story or description in the study of poetry is to encourage the bad habit of careless, inaccurate reading. If the pupil is taught to understand fully the prose that he reads in the first year, his progress in reading poetry in the following years will be much more rapid. These advantages together with close correlation possible between the study of prose and the theory and practice of composition should determine the choice of reading for the first year.

What has already been said in regard to the reading in general (p. 23) applies particularly to the first year work.

VI
SECOND YEAR ENGLISH

1. Composition

In the second year the composition and the reading which have been begun in the first year may be continued in about the same proportion, that is, about one-half of the five periods a week may be devoted to each. The work should be largely a development and expansion of that of the first year. In the study of the rhetorical principles the consideration of sentence construction should be continued, and the principle of emphasis and its application should be studied. The several types of sentences, such as long, short, loose, periodic, and balanced, and their uses should receive considerable attention, and the importance of variety in sentence structure may be emphasized. In the discussion of paragraph structure more study may be given to the details of its construction by developing the importance of the principles of emphasis, as well as by considering again the principles of unity and coherence. The methods of developing the paragraph topic will naturally form a part of the work of paragraph construction, particularly in the second semester, when the principles of exposition are studied. The application of the same principles of unity, emphasis, and coherence to the whole theme, where it consists of a number of paragraphs, may also be developed, for in the second year it is desirable to have the students write longer themes, as well as the short ones.

The forms of discourse, narration and description, studied in the first year, will also be developed and expanded during the second year, and more emphasis can be placed upon the several forms of description. From description the pupil can be led by gradual steps to the study of exposition, and this subject may be developed as fully as the maturity of the pupils will permit. It is also possible in some schools to undertake the elementary forms of argumentation toward the end of the second year, particularly if there is considerable interest and activity in the school debating society, but it is not desirable to undertake much of this work with immature pupils.

The reading of the second year will also furnish material for a study of words and figures of speech. In the analysis and writing of description it is natural to note the effects of different kinds of words, and to discriminate between the general, colorless term and the specific, picture-making expression. In description, likewise, the effectiveness of contrast, or of a comparison in the form of a simile or metaphor may be pointed out. In exposition emphasis must be given to the importance of using the exact term to make clear the idea, and to the dependence of clearness upon this accurate choice and use of words. The use of comparisons, contrast, and other figures of speech, may also be studied in relation to exposition.

In the second year, as in the first, the subjects for composition should be drawn largely if not entirely, from the pupil’s own experiences. In narrative and descriptive themes the pupil, after his practice in the first year, will find little difficulty in choosing the right kind of subjects. In exposition he can be encouraged to write explanations of those subjects with which he is thoroughly familiar. Simple manufacturing processes, the operation of machinery or of mechanical devices generally, methods of doing any kind of work, directions for playing games, and many other similar subjects that the pupil understands thoroughly, furnish excellent material for simpler expository themes. If argumentation is undertaken, the pupil may be led to discuss questions constantly arising in connection with the life of the school and the community, and thus he can obtain most of his material from his own experiences.

The plan of having one or two paragraph themes of from 150 to 200 words each week should be continued throughout the second year. Every month or six weeks pupils should write a longer theme of from 600 to 800 words, that is, a theme of four or five paragraphs. Both the short and the long theme should be promptly and carefully corrected by the teacher and revised or rewritten by the pupil. In the second year a careful revision of the corrected themes by the pupils is usually sufficient, but all themes that can be sufficiently improved to make rewriting worth while, should be rewritten.

2. Reading

The general purpose and the character of the reading in the second year are the same as in the first. During the first part of the year narrative and descriptive material should be read, and during the second semester some of the simpler types of essays may be used as a basis of a study of exposition. As has already been indicated in connection with the composition, the pupils’ attention should be directed to the use of words and figures of speech in the masterpieces. The plot and its development, and the form in which the story is told can be studied in more detail than in the first year.

Methods of describing persons and places and of delineating character, taken up in connection with description, will frequently be exemplified in the reading. Direction may be given to the study of essays by considering them as examples of exposition. All this analytical work ought to be carried on with a view not only to developing inductively or illustrating the principles of composition which it is desired to have the pupils apply in their own writing, but also to having the pupils understand the author’s purpose and the methods which he uses to accomplish it; that is, to understand fully what they are reading.

The following may be taken as typical of the character of the reading best adapted for the purposes outlined: Irving’s “Sketch Book” and “Tales of the Alhambra”, Poe’s “Gold Bug”, Thoreau’s “The Succession of Forest Trees”, Burroughs’ “Birds and Bees” and “Sharp Eyes”, Macaulay’s “Lord Clive” and “Life of Samuel Johnson”, Lincoln’s “Gettysburg Speech.” If at the end of the first semester the pupils have learned to read prose of average difficulty, it is often advantageous during the second semester to study a play of Shakespeare’s, and “Merchant of Venice” or “Julius Caesar” is well adapted for this purpose. Narrative poetry such as Tennyson’s “Idylls of the King”, Arnold’s “Sohrab and Rustum”, Coleridge’s “Ancient Mariner”, or Scott’s “Lady of the Lake” may also be used successfully during the second semester.

VII
THIRD YEAR ENGLISH

1. Reading and History of Literature

The plan for the third year reading provides for a survey of English and American literature, in which about three-fourths of the time is to be devoted to English literature, and one-fourth to American literature. In designating the reading as a study of English and American literature, it is not intended that the history of literature, as such, should occupy any considerable portion of the time. It is not desirable to devote more than one-tenth to one-fifth of the time, that is, from one-half to one period a week, to text-book work in the history of literature. The greater part of the time (about four periods a week) should be spent in the reading of selections from representative authors. In the study of the history of literature, emphasis should be placed upon general movements and tendencies in literature, and their relation to national conditions and ideals. In each period one or two typical authors should be selected whose works are to be studied in the class room. Selections from writers contemporary with these authors may be read by the pupils as library reading. In a course of this kind it is much more important to have the pupils read the literature than to have them read about literature. It is also much more important to lead the pupils to perceive the characteristics of the author in a selection read in or out of the class room than to have these characteristics called to their attention by the teacher or by reading criticism. In connection with the course in the history of literature, a list of books for outside reading should be prepared, and the pupils should be encouraged to supplement the class room study by reading other works of the authors studied in class. It seems desirable to follow as far as possible the chronological order in the reading done in and out of the class room so that the pupil may be led to see the development of English and American literature and the relation of the work of one author to that of those preceding and succeeding him.

The detailed study of selections from the most important English and American authors, is a large task for one year’s work, but experience has shown that much can be accomplished toward widening the pupils’ knowledge and appreciation of literature by a course of this kind. After two years of intensive study of the elements of expression, the average pupil will be able to comprehend more readily what he reads, and less time will have to be spent on the details. The selections studied may also be regarded from a somewhat different point of view from that taken during the first two years. The piece of literature may be considered in relation to the author’s personality and the age in which it was written, as well as in comparison with other literature that has been read by the pupils.

In the history of English literature characteristic selections from most of the following authors should be studied in class: Chaucer, Shakespeare, Bacon, Milton, Pope, Addison, Goldsmith, Gray, Burns, Scott, Wordsworth, Coleridge, Keats, Shelley, Tennyson, Browning, Lamb, George Eliot, Dickens, and Thackeray.

In the survey of American literature the same general method should be followed. As the pupils have generally read considerable of the poetry of Longfellow, Whittier, Bryant, and Holmes, as well as selections from the prose of Irving, Hawthorne, and Thoreau, a brief review of these will be sufficient. The class work should therefore consist largely of the reading and study of works of authors not previously read in class, such as the poems and short stories of Poe, essays of Emerson, Lowell, and Holmes, and novels of Hawthorne and Cooper.

2. Composition

During the third year about one-fifth of the time, or one period a week, should be devoted to English composition. One short theme a week, and one long composition once in six weeks will furnish the necessary practice in writing. While the narrative and descriptive work of the first two years may be continued, more emphasis should be placed upon expository composition, in continuation of the study of exposition begun in the second semester of the second year. Besides explaining the various processes and simple mechanical devices with which he is familiar, the pupil may be encouraged to express his own opinions in regard to what he reads in literature. If the conditions are favorable, the kind of elementary argumentation suggested for the second year, may also be used in theme work.

VIII
FOURTH YEAR ENGLISH

1. Reading

In the fourth year about four-fifths of the time should be allotted to reading and about one-fifth to composition. The time assigned to the reading may most profitably be devoted to an extensive study of a few typical examples of the most important forms of literature. The novel, the drama, the lyric, and the essay, may be taken as the types to be studied. The maturity of the pupils in the fourth year will make possible a detailed analysis of the essential elements of these forms, which cannot be undertaken earlier in the course. By a careful study of a few of the best examples of each form to be found in English literature, the pupils not only come to know and appreciate some of the best literature in our language but are given some canons by which to judge what they read independently after they leave school.

2. The Novel

The novel is a convenient form with which to begin the fourth year work. George Eliot’s “Silas Marner” is one of the novels which lends itself admirably to intensive study. The kind of novel, the theme, the author’s point of view, the plot, the characters, the setting, and other important elements are all to be carefully studied. In the detailed analysis of plot, the introduction, the situation, the development of the plot, the secondary plots, the interweaving of principal and subordinate plots, the means of sustaining interest and suspense, the climax of the action, the unraveling, the denouement and the probability and plausibility of action, should receive consideration. The study of character presented in the novel will include the interaction of plot and character, the types of character, the grouping of characters, the methods of delineation, the truth to life, and similar points. It is also important to consider the novel as the expression of the author’s personality, of his attitude toward life, and of his interpretation, or “criticism,” of life.

Since time will permit of the detailed analysis, in class, of but one novel, use for comparison may be made of other novels which the pupils have read or are reading as a part of their library work. Novels of such different types as Goldsmith’s “Vicar of Wakefield,” Dickens’ “Tale of Two Cities,” Scott’s “Ivanhoe,” and “Talisman,” Thackeray’s “Henry Esmond,” Hawthorne’s “House of Seven Gables,” and George Eliot’s “Romola,” will furnish ample supplementary material.

3. The Drama

The consideration of plot, character, etc., in the novel will prepare the way for a similar study of the drama. Shakespeare’s “Macbeth” offers excellent opportunity for thoughtful study. The important elements in the technique of dramatic construction may be brought out inductively in the course of the reading. The indirect and suggestive method of describing character of the drama will give rise to much discussion, for pupils will naturally differ in their estimates of the characters as a result of different interpretations which they give to the words and actions of the characters. To give a better conception of the drama as it is to be acted, important scenes may be presented in the class room by the pupils. The greater appreciation of the drama and dramatic action which comes from the preparation for an informal presentation of this kind, makes it well worth undertaking.

Some attention should also be given to the style and the versification in so far as these are necessary for a better understanding of the author’s methods.

4. The Lyric

The study of lyric poetry, although often difficult alike to teacher and pupils, should be undertaken during the second semester of the fourth year. Much of the success will depend upon the character of the lyrics selected for reading and study. Palgrave’s “Golden Treasury of Songs and Lyrics,” containing as it does much of the best English poetry of this type, is the most convenient book to use. While interpretative reading and the memorizing of these poems often lead to a real appreciation of their music, and the emotions which they express, a judicious analysis of metrical structure and poetic expression will result in a better understanding of the essentials of good poetry.

5. The Essay

The expository essay, as the most difficult form of literature for high school pupils, may well be left until the last part of the fourth year. The analysis of the logical development of the subject of the essay is of particular value at this stage of the course. The outlining of the plan of the essay with its divisions into sections, sub-sections, topics, subtopics, and details is excellent practice. Macaulay’s essays, Burke’s “Speech on Conciliation,” and Webster’s “First Bunker Hill Oration” although, of course, the latter two are orations rather than essays, afford material for this kind of study. Burke’s “Speech on Conciliation,” although difficult for young pupils, is particularly well adapted for analysis of logical structure, and may be used to study methods of exposition and argumentation.

The elements and qualities of prose style illustrated in the essays should also be considered. Balance, parallelism, antithesis, hyperbole, climax, terse and epigrammatic expression, methods of transition and connection, and similar elements of Macaulay’s style are sufficiently obvious to be readily recognized by the high school pupil after his attention has once been called to them. The rhetorical qualities of Burke’s or Webster’s style are also evident enough to make possible the study of them by high school pupils.

6. Library Reading

The library reading for the fourth year can be arranged to supplement the work done in class. Several standard novels, two or three plays of Shakespeare, considerable lyric poetry, and a number of essays may be assigned from time to time so that the library and class room reading will run parallel. Reference by teacher and pupils to these pieces of literature by way of comparison with those under consideration, will lead to a close correlation of these two phases of the reading.

7. Composition

The fourth year is in some respects the most important for the work in composition. The ability to write good English fluently, acquired by most of the pupils from several years of constant practice; the maturity of the pupils; their larger stock of knowledge and wider experience; and the possibility of making practical application of their ability to write in preparing orations and debates, reporting for local newspapers, or editing the school publications; all tend to make composition a more attractive and significant subject in the fourth year than it seems to be at any other period of the course. The emphasis will naturally be shifted from the mechanical details of expression which necessarily occupy the greater portion of the time in the earlier years of the course, to the larger and more interesting problems of expression. The study of the principles of exposition and argumentation, and of the development of the theme, as they appear in the plan and outline of the essay, take on new significance when their application to the writing of a debate or a commencement oration is made clear. The pupil discovers that the periodic sentence, parallel construction, climax, and other rhetorical devices, are effective means that he may use to accomplish his ends. For those with literary inclinations the study of plot, characterization, and poetic form and expression furnishes new inspiration for their own work. The teacher who fails to take advantage of this new interest in writing for practical purposes, by correlating it closely with all the English work of the fourth year, is losing the best opportunity of the course to teach the art of effective expression.

The amount of written work should be about the same as in the third year; that is, a weekly theme of about 250 words, or a fortnightly one of from 400 to 500 words; and a long theme of from 800 to 1200 words at intervals of six weeks. The subjects chosen for both long and short themes, in the course of the year should give practice in all the forms of discourse, narration, description, exposition, and argumentation, especially in combinations as they are found in the literature that is read in and out of the class room. The writing of a short story or of a chapter of a novel proves an interesting form of composition when fiction is being studied. The consideration of problems of character in the novels and dramas read and studied, permits pupils to express their opinions in essay form, while debates on questions growing out of class room discussions will give practice in argumentation. The preparation of commencement essays and orations, as has already been suggested, can readily be made a part of theme writing during the second semester.

8. Writing of Verse

The writing of verse has frequently been tried in the fourth year, and has generally proved an interesting and valuable exercise. The reading of poetry in the third and fourth years makes necessary some study of metre and verse forms, and with the information thus obtained as a basis, many pupils, it has been found, can write creditable verse. Exercises beginning with blank verse, octosyllabic and heroic couplets, and continuing with the quatrain, the triolet, the rondeau, the Spenserian stanza, and possibly the sonnet, can be given from time to time in place of weekly themes and will usually arouse considerable interest. Efforts to write verse, whether entirely successful or not, give the pupils a keener feeling for rhyme and rhythm, a better understanding of metrical forms, and of the nature of poetical composition; and to that extent should heighten their appreciation of poetry.

IX
OUTLINE OF HIGH SCHOOL COURSE IN ENGLISH

The following outline is designed to show in general the amount and character of each part of the English work to be considered in each year of the course. The order in which the details are arranged in each year is not intended to be the order in which these parts of the subject are to be taken up in the class room.

First Year

A. COMPOSITION (one-half of the time).

I. Grammar, Punctuation, Capitalization.

1. Work based on errors in pupils’ written work.

2. Occasional review of general principles.

II. Sentence.

1. Grammatical construction.

2. Unity.

3. Coherence.

III. Paragraph.

1. Length.

2. Unity (topic, selection of material).

3. Coherence (order, connection).

IV. Forms of Discourse.

1. Narration.

2. Description.

V. Theme Writing.

At least one and not more than two, one-paragraph themes of from
150–200 words, every week; to be carefully corrected by teacher and
to be rewritten by pupil.

B. READING (one-half of the time).

Short stories and descriptive sketches.

Second Year

A. COMPOSITION (one-half of the time).

I. Sentence.

1. Length (long, medium, short).

2. Rhetorical form (loose, periodic, balanced).

3. Unity.

4. Coherence.

5. Emphasis.

II. Paragraph.

1. Unity.

2. Coherence (subtopics, order, and connection).

3. Emphasis (selection, proportion, position).

4. Methods of developing topic.

III. Whole Composition—Unity, Coherence, Emphasis.

IV. Words.

V. Figures of Speech.

VI. Forms of Discourse.

1. Narration.

2. Description.

3. Exposition.

VII. Theme Writing.

At least one and not more than two, one-paragraph themes of from
150–200 words, every week; and one four or five paragraph theme of
from 600–800 words, every six weeks; both long and short themes to
be carefully corrected by teacher and to be revised or rewritten by
pupil.

B. READING (one-half). Descriptive and expository essays.

Third Year

A. READING (four-fifths).

1. History of English Literature (one-fifth to one-tenth for ¾ of
year).

2. History of American Literature (one-fifth to one-tenth for ¼ of
year).

3. Study of selections from representative English and American
authors (three-fifths to four-fifths).

B. COMPOSITION (one-fifth to one-tenth).

I. Exposition.

1. Kinds.

2. Methods.

II. Structure of Whole Composition.

1. Unity.

2. Coherence (transition, connection).

3. Emphasis (proportion, position).

III. Words, figures of speech, sentences, and paragraphs.

IV. Theme Writing.

One short theme not exceeding 500 words every week; and one long
theme of from 700–1000 words every six weeks; to be carefully
corrected by teacher and to be rewritten or revised by pupil.

Fourth Year

A. READING (four-fifths).

Study of typical examples of the novel, the drama, the lyric, and the
essay.

B. COMPOSITION (one-fifth).

I. Narration, Description, and Exposition.

II. Argumentation.

Methods.

III. Words, figures of speech, sentences, paragraphs, and whole
composition.

IV. Verse writing.

V. Theme writing.

One short theme not exceeding 500 words, every week; and one long
theme of from 800–1200 words every eight weeks; to be carefully
corrected by teacher and revised or rewritten by pupil.

X
LIST OF READINGS FOR FOUR YEARS

The following list contains the college entrance requirements in English for the years 1906 to 1911, and other selections adapted for reading and study in high school English classes. The Roman numerals following the titles indicate the year or years of the course herein outlined, in which the books may most profitably be read:

Addison’s De Coverley Papers. II, III.

Addison and Steele’s Spectator. II, III.

Arnold’s Sohrab and Rustum. II.

Bacon’s Essays. III.

Blackmore’s Lorna Doone. IV.

Bunyan’s The Pilgrim’s Progress, Part One. I, III.

Byron’s The Prisoner of Chillon, and Mazeppa. III.

Browning’s Cavalier Tunes, The Lost Leader, How They Brought the Good
News from Ghent to Aix, Evelyn Hope, Home Thoughts From Abroad, Home
Thoughts from the Sea, Incident of the French Camp, The Boy and the
Angel, One Word More, Hervé Riel, Pheidippides. III.

Bryant’s Translation of the Iliad and Odyssey (selections). I, II.

Burrough’s Birds and Bees, Sharp Eyes, A Bunch of Herbs, etc. I, II.

Burke’s Conciliation With America. IV.

Carlyle’s Essay on Burns. III, IV.

Carlyle’s Heroes and Hero Worship. III, IV.

Chaucer’s Prologue. III.

Coleridge’s Ancient Mariner. II, III.

Cooper’s Last of the Mohicans. II, III.

De Quincey’s Joan of Arc, and The English Mail Coach. III, IV.

Dickens’ Tale of Two Cities. II, IV.

Dickens’ Christmas Carol. I.

Emerson’s Essays (selected). III, IV.

Franklin’s Autobiography. I, II, III.

Mrs. Gaskell’s Cranford. III, IV.

George Eliot’s Silas Marner. IV.

Goldsmith’s The Deserted Village. II, III.

Goldsmith’s The Vicar of Wakefield. II, III.

Hawthorne’s House of the Seven Gables. II, III.

Hawthorne’s Twice Told Tales. I.

Irving’s Life of Goldsmith. II, III.

Irving’s Tales of a Traveler. I, II.

Irving’s Alhambra. II.

Irving’s Sketch Book. I, II.

Lamb’s Essays of Elia. II, III.

Lincoln’s Gettysburg Speech, etc. II, IV.

Longfellow’s The Courtship of Miles Standish. I, II.

Lowell’s Vision of Sir Launfal. II.

Macaulay’s Lays of Ancient Rome. II.

Macaulay’s Essay on Addison. III, IV.

Macaulay’s Lord Clive. II, IV.

Macaulay’s Life of Johnson. II, IV.

Milton’s Lycidas, Comus, L’Allegro, and II Penseroso. III, IV.

Palgrave’s Golden Treasury (First Series) Books II and III with
special attention to Dryden, Collins, Gray, Cowper, and Burns. III,
IV.

Palgrave’s Golden Treasury (First Series) Book IV with special
attention to Wordsworth, Keats, and Shelley. III, IV.

Poe’s Poems. III, IV.

Poe’s Short Stories. II, III.

Pope’s The Rape of the Lock. III.

Pope’s Essay on Man and Essay on Criticism. III.

Ruskin’s Sesame and Lilies. II, III.

Scott’s Ivanhoe, Lady of the Lake, and Quentin Durward. II, III.

Shakespere’s Julius Caesar. II, III.

Shakespere’s Macbeth. IV.

Shakespere’s As You Like It, Henry V., Twelfth Night, and Midsummer
Night’s Dream. III.

Shakespere’s Merchant of Venice. II, III.

Spenser’s Faerie Queene (selections). III.

Stevenson’s Treasure Island. I, II.

Thoreau’s Succession of Forest Trees. I, II.

Tennyson’s Gareth and Lynette, Lancelot and Elaine, The Passing of
Arthur. II, III.

Thackeray’s Henry Esmond. IV.

Warner’s A-Hunting of the Deer. I.

Washington’s Farewell Address. II, IV.

Webster’s First Bunker Hill Oration. II, IV.

XI
OUTLINE FOR THE STUDY OF COMPOSITION AND STYLE

The following is a fairly complete outline of the essential elements of rhetorical theory as applied in composition work and in a study of structure and style. As such, it is designed primarily for the teacher who desires to review any part of the subject in preparation for teaching composition. Many portions may be used in the class room in a simplified form, to supplement or summarize parts of the text-books in rhetoric and composition. The books to which references are given are in general the most convenient and comprehensive manuals for the particular parts of the subject with which each deals.

The references as abbreviated in the outline are as follows:

(P), Pearson, Principles of Composition. Heath, Boston ($.50).

(W), Barrett Wendell, English Composition. Scribner, New York. ($1.50).

(M), Minto, Manual of English Prose Literature. Ginn, New York. ($1.50).

(C), Cairns, Forms of Discourse. Ginn, New York. ($1.15).

(BI, BII), Bain, English Composition and Rhetoric, 2 Vols. American Book Co., New York. ($1.20 a vol.).

1. Whole Composition