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diff --git a/24974.txt b/24974.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..fac7ab6 --- /dev/null +++ b/24974.txt @@ -0,0 +1,8447 @@ +The Project Gutenberg EBook of Ontario Teachers' Manuals: Literature, by +Ontario Ministry of Education + +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with +almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or +re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included +with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org + + +Title: Ontario Teachers' Manuals: Literature + +Author: Ontario Ministry of Education + +Release Date: April 2, 2008 [EBook #24974] + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: ASCII + +*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK ONTARIO TEACHERS MAN.: LITERATURE *** + + + + +Produced by Suzanne Lybarger, Emmy and the Online +Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This +file was produced from images generously made available +by The Internet Archive/Canadian Libraries) + + + + + + + + + + + +ONTARIO + +TEACHERS' MANUALS + + + +LITERATURE + +[Illustration] + +AUTHORIZED BY THE MINISTER OF EDUCATION + + + +TORONTO + +THE COPP, CLARK COMPANY, LIMITED + + + + + COPYRIGHT, CANADA, 1916, BY + + THE MINISTER OF EDUCATION FOR ONTARIO + + REPRINTED, 1916, 1917. + + + + +CONTENTS + + + PAGE + COURSE OF STUDY--DETAILS 1 + + CHAPTER I + + Introduction + What is Literature? 5 + The Qualities that Appeal to Children at Different Ages 7 + In Junior Forms 7 + In Senior Forms (Books III and IV) 10 + Complete Wholes versus Extracts 11 + Correlation of Literature with Nature Study, Geography, + History, and Art 12 + Aims in Teaching Literature 14 + General Principles Applicable in the Teaching of Literature 16 + + + CHAPTER II + + Methods + In Junior Forms 19 + Memorization 20 + In Senior Forms 22 + Teacher's Preparation 22 + Preparation of Pupils 23 + Presentation 26 + Value of Oral Reading in the Interpretation and + Appreciation of Literature 27 + Development of the Main Thought 29 + Minute Analysis 31 + Allusions 32 + Imagery 33 + Literature of Noble Thought 35 + Recapitulation 36 + Mistakes in Teaching Literature 37 + Extensive Reading 39 + + + CHAPTER III + + Illustrative Lessons + Pantomime + Little Miss Muffet 42 + Dramatization + Little Boy Blue 43 + The Story of Henny Penny 44 + Wishes 46 + Indian Lullaby 47 + + + CHAPTER IV. FORM I: SENIOR + + Illustrative Lessons + The Wind and the Leaves 50 + Piping Down the Valleys Wild 52 + The Baby Swallow 54 + The Brook 56 + + + CHAPTER V. FORM II + + Illustrative Lessons + My Shadow 59 + One, Two, Three 62 + Dandelions 64 + The Blind Men and the Elephant 67 + The Lord is my Shepherd 71 + + + CHAPTER VI. FORM III + + Illustrative Lessons + Hide and Seek 74 + An Apple Orchard in the Spring 76 + Little Daffydowndilly 78 + Moonlight Sonata 83 + Lead, Kindly Light 87 + Lead, Kindly Light 89 + + + CHAPTER VII. FORM IV + + Illustrative Lessons + Judah's Supplication to Joseph 93 + Mercy 98 + Morning on the Lievre 101 + Dickens in the Camp 105 + Dost Thou Look Back on What Hath Been 112 + Waterloo 117 + Three Scenes in the Tyrol 122 + + + CHAPTER VIII + + Supplementary Reading + South-West Wind, Esq. 131 + A Christmas Carol 135 + The Lady of the Lake 139 + + + CHAPTER IX + + Selections for Memorization 145 + + + + +LITERATURE + +PUBLIC AND SEPARATE SCHOOL COURSE OF STUDY + +DETAILS + + + +FORM I + + + A. SELECTIONS FROM THE ONTARIO READERS + + B. SUPPLEMENTARY READING AND MEMORIZATION: + Selection may be made from the following: + + I. _To be Read to Pupils_: + + 1. NURSERY RHYMES: Sing a Song of Sixpence; I + Saw a Ship a-Sailing; Who Killed Cock Robin; + Simple Simon; Mary's Lamb, etc. + + Consult _Verse and Prose for Beginners in + Reading_; Riverside Literature Series, No. 59, + 15 cents. + + 2. FAIRY STORIES: Briar Rose, Snow-white and + Rose-red--Grimm; The Ugly Duckling--Andersen; + Cinderella, The Sleeping Beauty in the + Wood--Perrault; Beauty and the Beast--Madame de + Villeneuve; The Wonderful Lamp--Arabian Nights' + Entertainments. + + Consult _Fairy Tales Every Child Should Know_, + by H. W. Mabie. Grosset & Dunlap, 50c. + + + 3. FOLK STORIES: Whittington and His Cat; The + Three Bears. + + 4. FABLES: Selections from AEsop and La Fontaine. + + Consult _Fables and Folk Stories_, by Scudder, + Parts I and II; Riverside Literature Series, + Nos. 47, 48, 15 cents each. + + +II. _To be Read by Pupils_: + + Fables and Folk Stories--Scudder; A Child's + Garden of Verses (First Part)--Stevenson; + Readers of a similar grade. + + +III. _To be Memorized by Pupils_: + + 1. MEMORY GEMS: Specimens of these may be found + in the Public School Manuals on Primary Reading + and Literature. + + 2. FROM THE READERS: Morning Hymn; Evening + Prayer; The Swing; What I Should Do; Alice. + + + +FORM II + +A. SELECTIONS FROM SECOND READER + +B. SUPPLEMENTARY READING AND MEMORIZATION: Selection may be made from +the following: + + +I. _To be Read to Pupils_: + + 1. NARRATIVE POEMS: John Gilpin--Cowper; Lucy + Gray--Wordsworth; Wreck of the + Hesperus--Longfellow; Pied Piper of + Hamelin--Browning; May Queen--Tennyson; etc. + + Consult _The Children's Garland_, Patmore. The + Macmillan Co., 35 cents. + + 2. NATURE STORIES: Wild Animals I Have Known, + Lives of the Hunted--Thompson-Seton; The + Watchers of the Trails--Roberts. + + 3. FAIRY STORIES: Fairy Tales Every Child + Should Know--H. W. Mabie. + + 4. OTHER STORIES: Selections from the Wonder + Book--Hawthorne; Jungle Book--Kipling; + Gulliver's Travels--Swift; Alice in + Wonderland--Carroll; Robinson Crusoe--Defoe; + The Hall of Heroes--Royal Treasury of Story and + Song, Part III, Nelson & Sons. + + +II. _To be Read by Pupils:_ + + A Child's Garden of Verses--Stevenson; The + Seven Little Sisters--Jane Andrews; Fifty + Famous Stories Retold--Baldwin. + + +III. _To be memorized by Pupils_: (A minimum of six lines a week) + + FROM THE READER: + + A Wake-up Song; Love; The Land of Nod; One, + Two, Three; March; Abide with Me; The New Moon; + The Song for Little May; The Lord is my + Shepherd; Lullaby--Tennyson; Indian Summer; + proverbs, maxims, and short extracts found at + the bottom of the page in the Readers. + + + +FORM III + +A. SELECTIONS FROM THIRD READER + +B. SUPPLEMENTARY READING AND MEMORIZATION: Selection may be made from +the following: + + The King of the Golden River--Ruskin; + Tanglewood Tales--Hawthorne; The + Heroes--Kingsley; Adventures of Ulysses--Lamb; + Squirrels and Other Fur-bearers--Burroughs; Ten + Little Boys who Lived on the Road from Long Ago + till Now--Jane Andrews; Hiawatha--Longfellow; + Rip Van Winkle--Irving; Water Babies--Kingsley. + +_To be Memorized by Pupils:_ (A minimum of ten lines a week) + + FROM THE READER: + + To-day--Carlyle; The Quest--Bumstead; Hearts of + Oak--Garrick; A Farewell--Kingsley; An Apple + Orchard in the Spring--Martin; The Charge of + the Light Brigade--Tennyson; Lead, Kindly + Light--Newman; The Bugle Song--Tennyson; + Crossing the Bar--Tennyson; The Fighting + Temeraire--Newbolt; Afterglow--Wilfred + Campbell; proverbs, maxims, and short extracts. + + + +FORM IV + +A. SELECTIONS FROM FOURTH READER + +B. SUPPLEMENTARY READING AND MEMORIZATION: Selections may be made from +the list prepared annually by the Department of Education. + + + + +LITERATURE + + + + +CHAPTER I + +INTRODUCTION + + +It is the purpose of this Manual to present the general principles on +which the teaching of literature is based. It will distinguish between +the intensive and the extensive study of literature; it will consider +what material is suitable for children at different ages; it will +discuss the reasons for various steps in lesson procedure; and it will +illustrate methods by giving, for use in different Forms, lesson plans +in literature that is diverse in its qualities. This Manual is not +intended to provide a short and easy way of teaching literature nor to +save the teacher from expending thought and labour on his work. The +authors do not propose to cover all possible cases and leave nothing for +the teacher's ingenuity and originality. + + +WHAT IS LITERATURE? + +Good literature portrays and interprets human life, its activities, its +ideas and emotions, and those things about which human interest and +emotion cluster. It gives breadth of view, supplies high ideals of +conduct, cultivates the imagination, trains the taste, and develops an +appreciation of beauty of form, fitness of phrase, and music of +language. The term _Literature_ as used in this Manual is applied +especially to those selections in the _Ontario Readers_ which possess in +some degree these characteristics. Such selections are unlike the +lessons in the text-books in grammar, geography, arithmetic, etc. In +these the aim is to determine the facts and the conclusions to which +they lead. Even in the Readers, there are some lessons of which this is +partly true. For instance, the lesson on _Clouds, Rains, and Rivers_, by +Tyndall, is such as might be found in a text-book in geography or +science. Here the information alone is viewed as valuable, and the pupil +will probably supplement what he has learned from the book by the study +of material objects and natural phenomena. When this lesson is to be +studied, the pupil should be taught not only to understand thoroughly +what the author is expressing by his language, but also to appreciate +the clearness and force with which he has given his message to the +world. The pupil should be called upon to examine the author's +illustrations, his choice of words, and his paragraph and sentence +structure. + +Each literature lesson in the Reader has some particular force, or charm +of thought and expression. There is found in these lessons, not only +beauty of thought and feeling, but artistic form as well. In the highest +forms of literature, the emotional element predominates, and it should +be one to which all mankind, to a greater or less degree, are subject. +It is the predominance of these emotional and artistic elements which +makes literature a difficult subject to teach. The element of feeling is +elusive and can best be taught by the influence of contagion. There is +usually less difficulty about the intellectual element, that is, about +the meaning of words and phrases, the general thought of the lesson, and +the relation of the thoughts to one another and to the whole. + + +THE QUALITIES THAT APPEAL TO CHILDREN AT DIFFERENT AGES + +This is a psychological problem which can be solved only by a study of +the interests and capacities of the children. These interests vary so +greatly and make their appearance at such diverse periods in different +individuals and in the two sexes, that it is a difficult matter to say +with any definiteness just what qualities of literature appeal to +children at any particular age. Moreover, the children's environment and +previous experiences have a great deal to do in determining these +interests and capacities. There are, however, certain characteristics of +different periods of childhood which are fairly universal, and which +may, therefore, be taken as guiding, determining factors in the +selection of suitable literature. + + +JUNIOR FORMS + +1. One of the most striking characteristics of young children is the +activity of their imagination. They endow their toys with life and +personality; they construct the most fantastic and impossible tales; +they accept without question the existence of supernatural beings. The +problem for the teacher is to direct this activity of imagination into +proper fields, and to present material which will give the child a large +store of beautiful images--images that are not only delightful to dwell +upon, but are also elevating and refining in their influence upon +character. The fairy tale, the folk tale, and the fable, owe their +popularity with young children to the predominance of the imaginative +element. The traditionary fairy tales and folk stories are usually more +suitable than those that appear in teachers' magazines and modern +holiday books for children. The hardest thing for the educated mind to +do is to write down to the level of children without coddling or +becoming cynical. The old tales are sincere, simple, and full of faith. +They are not written for children, but are the romance of the people +with whom they came into existence, and they have stood the test of +ages. + +The myth is usually not suitable for young children, as it is a +religious story having a symbolic meaning which is beyond their +interpretation. If it is used at all, only the story in it should be +given. + +2. Stories of adventure, courage, and the defence of the helpless appeal +very strongly to young children. Even the cruelties and crudities of +_Bluebeard_, _Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves_, and _Aladdin and his +Wonderful Lamp_ do not alarm or repel children very much, owing to their +lack of experience in these matters. Stories based on the love of the +sexes are unsuitable for children of this age, although it constitutes +the chief element in stories for older people. + +3. The child is also interested in stories of simple games, of animals +and birds, and of the material world on which so much of his happiness +depends. These stories are corrective of the desire which characterizes +some children for too many fairy stories. The fairy story and the nature +story should be alternated, so that the child's interests may be +imaginative without becoming visionary, and practical without becoming +prosaic. + +4. Most children have a keen sense of the musical qualities of verse. +The child of two years of age will give his attention to the rhythm of +the nursery rhyme when the prose story will not interest him. The +consideration and analysis of these musical qualities should be +deferred for years; but it is probable that the foundation for a future +appreciation of poetry is often laid by an acquaintance with the rhymes +of childhood. + +5. The element of repetition appeals strongly to children. In this lies +the attractiveness of the "cumulative story", in which the same +incident, or feature, or form of expression is repeated again and again +with some slight modification; for example, the story of _Henny Penny_, +_The Gingerbread Boy_, and _The Little Red Hen_. The choruses and the +refrains of songs are pleasant for this reason. + +_Silverlocks and the Three Bears_ is an example of a story that has many +attractive features. Silverlocks is an interesting girl, because she is +mischievous and adventurous. The pupils know a good deal about bears and +wild animals from picture books, stories, and perhaps the travelling +menageries. The bears have all proper names--Rough Bruin, Mammy Muff, +and Tiny; this gives an air of reality to the story. The bears speak in +short, characteristic sentences. + +Silverlocks runs away from home, goes into the woods, and finds a lonely +house which is the home of the bears. They are not at home, so she +enters. These actions suggest mystery and adventure. + +The construction of the story shows two chief divisions, with three +subdivisions. The second division begins with the return of the bears. +They find the soup has been tasted, the chairs disturbed, and the beds +rumpled; their conversation is interesting, and their tones +characteristic. Tiny, the little bear, suffers most; he enlists the +sympathy of the children, as he has lost his dinner and his chair is +broken. He discovers Silverlocks, but she escapes and "never runs away +from home any more". + + +SENIOR FORMS (BOOKS III AND IV) + +1. In these Forms, the pupil's imagination is still strong, though less +fantastic and under better control, and hence stories involving a large +element of imagination retain their charm at this stage. The myth, and +longer and more involved fairy tales, such as Ruskin's _King of the +Golden River_, Hawthorne's _Wonder Book_, and Kingsley's _Greek Heroes_, +are read with avidity. + +2. Stories involving _a number of incidents_ are wonderfully attractive. +This is due to the pupil's instinctive interest in action and +personality. Children are more deeply interested in persons who _do_ +things than in those who _become_ something else than they were. A +description of some evolution of character very soon palls, but a +stirring tale of heroic deeds exerts a powerful fascination. This +explains the attractiveness of the hero tale, the story of adventure, +and the stirring historical narrative. The action should have the merit +of artistic moderation. Stories in which there is a carnival of action, +for example, the "dime thriller", under whose spell so many boys fall, +must be avoided. Literature that leaves the mind so feverish that the +pupil loses interest in other subjects is worse than no literature. The +easiest way to prevent a taste for this injurious kind, is to give the +pupil an acquaintance with works descriptive of noble deeds and virile +character. An interest in epic poetry or the historical novel may be +developed from the child's instinctive interest in action. Tennyson's +_Passing of Arthur_, Arnold's _Sohrab and Rustum_, Longfellow's +_Evangeline_ and _King Robert of Sicily_, and Scott's _Ivanhoe_ will be +read with keen enjoyment. The force and beauty of the language, the +faithfulness of the descriptions to life, the historical setting, the +lofty imagery, and the logical development will arouse a healthy mental +appetite that will find no pleasure in the worthless story of sensation +and vulgar incident, or even in some badly constructed compositions of +historical adventure. + +3. The pupils of the Senior Forms show even more striking interest in +animals, pets, and wild creatures than do the pupils of the Junior +Forms. To this natural interest is due the engrossing character of +nature study. To it is also due the satisfaction arising from the +reading of some of the many nature stories that have appeared in recent +years. + +Thompson-Seton's _Wild Animals I have Known_ and _Lives of the Hunted_, +and Roberts' _The Watchers of the Trails_ are excellent examples of this +class. + + +COMPLETE WHOLES VERSUS EXTRACTS + +Scattered throughout the _Ontario Readers_ are to be found extracts from +larger works. These extracts are placed there primarily because they +have some special literary value. They have fairly complete unity in +themselves and can be treated in detail in a way that would be +impossible with a whole story. The extract has an advantage over the +whole, in that it repays intensive study, while, in many cases, such +study of the whole work would not be worth while. It is considered +better to give the pupil many of these passages where the author has +shown his greatest art, rather than to allow one long work to absorb the +very limited time which the pupil can devote to this subject. The study +of the extract will have accomplished its mission if it induces the +pupil to read the larger work for himself in later years. If the +treatment by the teacher is made as interesting as it should be, it is +hoped that the pupil will obtain such delight from, and be inspired to +such enthusiasm by, these glimpses of literary treasures, that he will +not be satisfied until he has enjoyed in their entirety such works as +_The Lady of the Lake_, _Pickwick Papers_, _Lorna Doone_, _The Mill on +the Floss_, _Julius Caesar_, and _It is Never Too Late to Mend_. An +extract may serve as an introduction to the choicest work of an author, +may arouse an interest in his writings, and give the pupils a taste of +his quality, but, unless it whets their appetites for the work as a +whole, its chief purpose will not have been accomplished. These extracts +cannot give a panoramic view of a great historical epoch. They do not +require that sustained attention that relates to-day's readings with +that of yesterday, and that takes a wider survey of many parts in their +relation to a central theme. The larger work gives a culture and a +liberal education, when it is treated in the proper manner, that is very +different from the fragmentary knowledge of an author that would be +gained by even the intensive study of many short extracts. The treatment +of the extract, as we have said, must be minute; while the whole work +should be subsequently read in a method that will be outlined later on +under the head of Supplementary Reading. + + +CORRELATION OF LITERATURE WITH NATURE STUDY, GEOGRAPHY, HISTORY, AND ART + +Many of the lessons in the _Ontario Readers_ should be preceded by +preparatory work in geography, history, or nature study. Poems such as +_Jacques Cartier_, _The Charge of the Light Brigade_, _The Burial of Sir +John Moore_, and _The Armada_ cannot be fully appreciated unless the +historical setting is known. There are famous pictures that will +increase the pupil's interest in these poems. In the lessons on art, +there are studies of pictures that suggest feelings and thoughts +characterized by universality, permanency, and nobility--pictures that +stir men to nobler thought and higher aspiration. Often, such pictures +are the painter's method of expressing in colours, thoughts that the +poet has expressed in words. Lessons such as _Dandelions_, _Bob White_, +and _The Sandpiper_ require a preliminary acquaintance with certain +facts of nature, and therefore should be taken, if possible, when these +can be obtained through personal observation by the pupils. _Wolfe and +Montcalm_ and Drake's _Voyage Around the World_ demand, in addition to +historical facts, certain geographical data. These facts and data should +be communicated at some time before the lessons in literature are taken, +in order that the latter may not descend into lessons in history, +geography, or natural science. The extracts mentioned above are not +placed in the Readers to teach certain historical, geographical, or +scientific facts. They are placed there, as has been said, primarily +because they have some value as literature. Hence the literature lesson +should require few digressions, the necessary preparatory work having +been done in previous periods. + +But while history, geography, nature study, and art frequently assist in +the interpretation of a poem or prose selection, these subjects, on the +other hand, may be reinforced and strengthened by selections drawn from +the fields of literature. The facts of the history lesson will be given +an additional attractiveness if the pupil is directed to some +well-written biography or drama embodying the same facts, or if the +teacher reads or recites to the class some spirited ballad, such as +_Bonnie Dundee_, bearing upon the lesson. The interest in the +observations made in nature study will be intensified by reading some +nature story written in good literary form. + +While these studies may go hand in hand with literature, it is not +necessary that they should be always taken on the same day or even in +the same week. The literature lesson may be an effective agent in the +recall of ideas that have had time to be assimilated from previous +nature study, history, or geography lessons. In our enthusiasm for +literature we must not make these subjects the mere soil and fertilizers +out of which the flowers of poetry will spring. Each of these subjects +has its proper sphere, but that teacher misses many golden opportunities +who does not frequently take a comprehensive survey of his material in +all these studies in order to find the element that will give a unity to +all our knowledge and experience. The lessons in the Reader may be taken +according to the conditions existing in the class or the inclination of +the teacher. By no means is it necessary to follow the order in the +book. + + +AIMS IN TEACHING LITERATURE + +The teacher should always have a clear and definite aim in view in +teaching a selection in literature, but different teachers may have +different aims in teaching the same selection. There should, of course, +always be the general aim to create a taste for good literature by +leading the pupils to appreciate the beauty and power of clear and +artistic expression of thought and feeling; but this aim must be +specific according to the nature of the selection to be taught. Some +specific aims may be given as suggestive: + +1. To appeal suitably to such instinctive tastes and interests of +childhood as are already awake and active; for example, Second Reader, +p. 3, _My Shadow_; p. 185, _A Visit from St. Nicholas_; p. 125, _Little +Gustava_; p. 215, _The Children's Hour_. + +2. To awaken and develop interests and tastes that are as yet dormant; +for example, Second Reader, p. 42, _A Song for Little May_; p. 88, _The +Brown Thrush_. + +3. To develop and direct the imagination; for example, Second Reader, p. +72, _The New Moon_; p. 117, _Little Sorrow_; p. 45, _The Little Land_; +p. 172, _The Wind_. + +4. To arouse and quicken the sense of beauty; for example, Second +Reader, p. 92, _Mother's World_; p. 155, _Lullaby_. + +5. To exercise and cultivate the emotions; for example, Second Reader, +p. 94, _Androclus and the Lion_; p. 135, _Ulysses_; p. 107, _A Night +with a Wolf_. + +6. To develop manners and morals through examples of character and +conduct in action; for example, Second Reader, p. 114, _Joseph II and +the Grenadier_. + +7. To develop appreciation for the well-told story; for example, Second +Reader, p. 5, _The Pail of Gold_; p. 12, _How I Turned the Grindstone_; +p. 56, _The Blind Men and the Elephant_; p. 211, _How the Greeks Took +Troy_. + +8. To develop a true sense of humour; for example, Second Reader, p. 50, +_Change About_. + +9. To develop a sense of reverence; for example, Second Reader, p. 203, +_The Lord is my Shepherd_; p. 218, _Abide With Me_. + + +GENERAL PRINCIPLES APPLICABLE IN THE TEACHING OF LITERATURE + +There are four outstanding principles of general method that apply +particularly in the teaching of Literature. + +I. The pupil must, at the outset, be placed in a receptive attitude +toward the lesson if the best results are to be secured. He must have +some _purpose_ in view if he is to be induced to concentrate his +attention upon it. His purposes determine his interests, and hence the +lesson must, in some way, be related to interests that already exist in +his mind. Frequently his instinctive interest in action, in personality, +or in excitement is sufficient incentive to secure his attention. A +suspicion that a lesson contains a good story is often sufficient to +ensure a careful reading of it, and a curiosity as to the writer's +devices to make the story interesting will lead to a closer examination +of it. But more frequently some special interest resulting from the time +of year, the surroundings, or the work taken in some other subject, may +be effectively utilized by the teacher. These interests of children are +so numerous and so varied that there are few lessons in the Readers for +which a receptive attitude of mind cannot be secured. It will be +observed that the principle here enunciated corresponds to the +"statement of the aim" in the Herbartian "Formal Steps". + +II. The pupil's mind must be suitably prepared for the assimilation of +the ideas contained in the lesson, by recalling old ideas and feelings +that are related to those to be presented in the selection to be +studied. He must be placed in a proper intellectual attitude to +interpret the ideas and in a proper emotional attitude to appreciate +the feelings. Neglect of the former may make the selection wholly +meaningless to the pupil; neglect of the latter may result in entire +indifference toward it. A proper intellectual attitude is necessary in +any lesson, but in a lesson in grammar or arithmetic the emotional +attitude may be almost completely absent. In literature, however, this +emotional attitude is often of the greatest importance, and the neglect +of it may mean an utter lack of appreciation of some literary +masterpiece. This preparatory work may take the form of a recall of some +of the common experiences of the pupil's life or a review of some facts +taken, for instance, in a previous geography, history, or nature study +lesson. The apperceptive power of the pupil's mind takes the new +material of thought and feeling contained in the selection and weaves it +into the web of his previous ideas and emotions. + +III. The mind always proceeds from a vague and indistinct idea of a new +presentation to a clear and defined idea of it. The process is always +analytic-synthetic. In a literature lesson the order of procedure must +be: (1) Let the pupil get that somewhat indistinct grasp of the thought +and feeling which comes from a preliminary reading of it; (2) make this +more definite by a process of analysis, by concentrating attention on +the details; (3) make the idea completely definite by a clear grasp of +the relations existing among the various details, that is, by a process +of synthesis. + +IV. No impression is complete without some form of expression. An idea +or emotion is a very incomplete and useless thing until it is worked out +in practice and conduct. The thoughts and feelings gained from the +literature lesson must be given some kind of expression if they are to +be fully realized. This expression may take many different forms. The +pupils may merely read the selection, showing to the listeners their +understanding and appreciation of it. If it is a story, they may +reproduce it in their own words orally or in writing. They may sketch a +scene or a situation with pencil, or with brush and colours. They may +dramatize it, or act it in pantomime. They may create a story with a +similar theme, or imitate a poem by a creation of their own. The +expression may not be immediate but may be delayed for days or even +years, and come in some modification of future conduct. + + + + +CHAPTER II + +METHODS + + +IN JUNIOR FORMS + +To introduce children to the world of literature, it is not necessary to +wait until they have mastered the art of reading. The introduction +should come long before they have learned to read, through listening to +good stories told or read to them by others, through hearing suitable +poems read or recited with spirit and feeling, and by memorizing nursery +rhymes and gems of poetry. + +The material to be used in primary grades has already been described. +Early work in literature should be correlated with oral composition. + +As to the comparative merits of reading and telling, much may be said on +each side. In the early stages, telling must, of course, be the +predominant if not the exclusive means of communicating the story. The +matter and language can thus be better adjusted to the capacity of the +individual pupil. The teacher who is familiar with the pupil's home life +and surroundings has within his power a means of adapting the story to +the attainments of the pupil that even the best writer of children's +stories can hardly command. A situation in a story can frequently be +made intelligible by reference to the pupil's own experience. Moreover, +in telling the story, the teacher's gestures, facial expression, and +tone of voice are likely to be more spontaneous and natural than would +be the case in reading, and this gives immense assistance in +interpreting aright the meaning and spirit of the selection. + +Some teachers say that the incident, as in the case of Hawthorne's +Tales, is so meagre and the language so exquisite, that the telling +seems to be quite inadequate and inferior to the reading of the story. +In such cases, variety may be afforded by reading, but generally +speaking, it is more effective to tell the story. + +The teacher should strive to become a good story-teller. This requires a +good voice, animated gesture and facial expression, a good command of +English words, power of graphic description and narration, restraint +from digression and superfluous detail, and concentration of aim upon +some definite point. + +In teaching poetry to primary classes, the main object is to lead the +pupils to feel the music and realize the imagery. To attain this end, +the best beginning is made by a sympathetic and expressive rendering of +the passage by the teacher. It can be recited many times incidentally, +while he is asking the pupils to look at the pretty pictures suggested +by the text. It is not necessary to enter at any length into an analysis +of the poem, unless the pictures are arranged in an easy order, such as +spring, summer, autumn, winter. + + +MEMORIZATION + +One of the most valuable means of securing an appreciation of literature +is the memorization of fine passages of prose and poetry. Pupils from +the primary grades upward should be required to memorize systematically +several lines of prose and poetry every week of the school year. During +childhood the mind is at its most impressionable stage, and what is +committed to memory is then retained longer and more accurately than +what is memorized at any later period. The passages should be carefully +selected and should be suited to the capacity and interests of the +pupils. Nothing should be memorized that has not _some_ meaning for +them, but it would be impossible to require that every selection should +be _fully_ understood. The selections which children commit to memory in +the most plastic period of their lives will often reveal a new and +unexpected meaning and beauty in later years and will be a source of +keen delight and satisfaction. The passages memorized will form a +standard, unconscious it may be, by which to test the excellence of +other selections. + +It is of the greatest importance that the passages chosen should have +artistic excellence in thought, feeling, music, imagery, and language. +Moreover, these qualities must be present in such a form that they will, +when properly presented by the teacher's reading or reciting, appeal, in +some considerable measure, to the pupils' capacities and interests. +Since there are so many noble passages in English literature, nothing of +doubtful value should be memorized. + +It is also very important that the teacher himself should have committed +to memory and be able to recite freely and expressively every selection +he requires his pupils to memorize. It is clear that, if he has +memorized it himself, the pupils will be more likely to feel it worth +while to do the same. + +In conducting a lesson in memorization, it is well for the teacher to +arouse the interest of the pupils in the selection as a whole by +reciting it himself with expression. Next, he should see that the pupils +understand as clearly as possible the meaning, and realize and +appreciate, as far as they are able, the feeling of the passage. It +should be treated first as an ordinary literature lesson, after the +manner already described. It should then be read aloud several times by +individual pupils, all trying meanwhile to commit it to memory by +concentration of attention on the ideas and their relations, the words +and their meanings. The principles of all habit formation apply +here--attention to the thing to be learned, so as to get a clear +understanding of it, and then repetition with attention. When it has +been read several times, individual pupils should be asked to recite it +without any aid. It will be found more satisfactory to memorize a +complete stanza at a time, or at least a part that expresses a complete +thought, rather than to commit to memory a line at a time. With young +pupils, however, it is well to take small units and let the children +repeat one or two lines at a time till they can give the whole stanza +with ease and accuracy. + +It is important that all repetition should be individual, not +simultaneous. Where the latter method is in use, it is noticeable that +pupils adopt a uniform tone and measured rhythm, both of which are +undesirable. Moreover, especially with young pupils, there is a danger +that absurd blunders made by individuals may pass unnoticed, because the +teacher has not the opportunity of detecting them. When the passage has +been memorized, it should be repeated daily for a time and then repeated +at longer intervals, until there is little probability of its being +forgotten. + + +IN SENIOR FORMS + +THE TEACHER'S PREPARATION + +The teacher must make himself thoroughly acquainted with the lesson that +he has to teach. When it is an extract, he should be familiar with the +longer work from which it is taken. He cannot teach the lesson "Maggie +Tulliver" with the highest appreciation if he has not read _The Mill on +the Floss_. But there is more than mere information required for +successful teaching. In poetry the teacher should feel delight in the +music, the expression, the emotion, till he is eager to communicate his +feelings to the pupils. This enthusiasm, however, should not have in it +any insincerity, or extravagant commendation of the poem or the author. +The teacher who has wide information and genuine interest in his work +will seldom fail to arouse a real pleasure in the literature lesson. + +The relationship between the teacher and the pupils must be cordial if +the lesson is to be successful. This is true in any subject, but the +sympathetic bond must be especially strong in the literature lesson. + + +PREPARATION OF PUPILS + +It has already been pointed out that it is frequently necessary to give +preliminary lessons in nature study, science, history, or geography +before the lesson in literature is presented. The pupil must have the +right information before the literature lesson can arouse the emotion +that the author wishes him to feel. + +Not only is the possession of the right information necessary, but the +pupil should be in the right mood for the lesson. A class that has just +returned to the room after the games at recess is not in the proper +state of mind to appreciate, at once, the recitation by the teacher of, + + Break, break, break, + On thy cold gray stones, O sea! + +Even the enthusiasm and scholarship of the teacher will fail to be +effective under these circumstances. He should arouse in the pupils the +proper mental and emotional state by a very short talk on friendship. He +can refer to the well-known stories of David and Jonathan, or Damon and +Pythias, and tell them of the friendship existing between Arthur Hallam +and Alfred Tennyson. + +Before studying _Lead, Kindly Light_ (p. 315, Third Reader) the teacher +might ask the pupils to picture a solitary traveller in the desert far +from home. Night is approaching; the darkness gathers, and the air grows +chill. What would be the nature of his feelings? Away in the distance he +discovers a faint light glimmering as from a lantern. Now, how would he +feel? Continue till the pupils can see each part of the picture, the +spiritual significance of which they are to learn through the poem. + +To give an extended account of the author's life is a poor introduction, +unless there is something of unusual interest about his personality or +achievements. The pupils usually do not know anything about him, and the +teacher's aim, in this preparatory work, is to relate the thought and +feeling of the poem to the properly assimilated knowledge and experience +of the pupils. In some cases, they may have made a favourable +acquaintance with the author in another poem, and this may give the +necessary stimulus to their interest in his life. The best time, +however, to give a biography of an author, when that is helpful, is +after the lesson has been studied, for then the pupils will appreciate +what the teacher has to say about him personally. + +In some poems, the circumstances under which they are written will be +the only introduction necessary, as in the case of _Break, break, break_ +or _The Recessional_. + +There is often an appropriate time for the teaching of a literature +lesson. Sometimes it is the season of the year. The lesson on _An Apple +Orchard in the Spring_ should come when the blossoms are stimulating +every bird and child with their loveliness, fragrance, and promise. _The +First Ploughing_ and the various poems on birds and flowers should come +at this season. They can be followed, in turn, by _A Midsummer Song_ and +_The Maple_. There are poems in the Readers for September, November, +Indian Summer, and Winter; and a wealth of material for the Christmas +season. Yet the season may not always determine the time for such +lessons. The pupil who has observed again and again an apple orchard in +the spring, and who knows birds and trees, has a store of memories that +will enable him to picture vividly what he reads about these at any +time. + +It may be objected that these methods of introduction make the pupil +depend too much on the teacher, and do not throw him sufficiently on his +own resources. It is to be remembered, however, that the great object of +teaching literature is to cultivate a taste for it. When the pupil +approaches a selection with ideas and feelings which are already, in his +consciousness, related to those presented in the poem, he is in the best +possible mental attitude to appreciate it, and the probability of his +liking it is much greater than if it were presented without any such +introduction. The pupil's first impressions of a poem are all-important, +and it is essential that his first introduction to it should be made +under the most favourable circumstances. If his first acquaintance with +poetry is made under pleasant conditions, he will inevitably develop a +taste for poetical literature, and that is the object which the teacher +has in view. When this taste has been formed, it will not be necessary +that the teacher should be at hand in order to recall the proper +experiences for the interpretation of a passage. The pupil will read +appreciatively on his own account, without any such assistance. + +In all cases, the preparation of the pupils for the lesson must be +short. Nothing more should be given than will suffice to bring them into +a suitable mood; usually some simple experience of their lives is ample. +The time for the lesson is always limited, and the proportion between +the introduction and the main theme must always be maintained. + + +PRESENTATION + +The next step in the development of the lesson is the presentation. How +shall this be done? There are three ways: The teacher may ask the pupils +to read the lesson silently at their seats or at home and come prepared +to participate in the discussion; or he may ask some of them to read the +lesson aloud; or he, himself, may read it to the pupils. The merits of +each of these methods will be considered. + +In prose, it is advisable to let the pupils read the selection before +the lesson is taken up by the teacher. The pupils must have practice in +getting the thought from the symbols on the printed page and in grasping +the general trend of the story, the description, or the argument. The +work will be mainly intellectual, but the pupils may also, at this +stage, have practice in discovering the emotional elements in some of +the prose extracts. + +In the higher Forms, the teacher may occasionally allow some of his best +readers to read a poem aloud, where the emotion is evident or the +narrative plain. _The Barefoot Boy_, p. 118, Fourth Reader; _The Homes +of England_, p. 375; and _Bernardo del Carpio_, p. 131, are examples of +this kind. + +It is usually a better plan for the teacher to read the poem to the +pupils. With many poems of exquisite music and imagery, such as _The +Bugle Song_, p. 337, Third Reader, the reading by a pupil who has not +yet caught the meaning and spirit will be a failure, and the teacher +will see that the mood that he has prepared with care at the opening is +so certain to be dissipated that he must intervene in order to prevent +the spoiling of the lesson. But the teacher who has studied the poem and +whose feelings have been deeply stirred by its music and pictures can, +through his reading, communicate to his pupils his own appreciation; and +it will be a dull pupil who does not feel the contagion. It is, however, +not well to insist on too great uniformity in method; the spirit rather +than the form is vital. + + +VALUE OF ORAL READING IN THE INTERPRETATION AND APPRECIATION OF +LITERATURE + +1. To the reader himself. Poetical literature is akin to music. Poetry +was originally sung by the minstrel, and the thought and feeling were +communicated to the audience solely by the ear. The study of poetry by +the eye is artificial, modern, and contrary to our hereditary instincts. +We should not argue that the best way to appreciate music is found in +following the symbols on the music sheet. It is only the highly educated +musician who can imagine the delights of music by an examination of the +written text. To some degree, it is the same with poetry. The music of +the words and the appropriateness of the rhythm cannot be fully +perceived by merely silent reading. The eye alone would never detect the +exquisite music of such a poem as _Hide and Seek_, Third Reader, p. 50, +or _Break, break, break_, p. 201. Nor could it perceive the suitability +of the rhythm to the theme, as exhibited in _How They Brought the Good +News from Ghent to Aix_, Fourth Reader, p. 351. In this poem, we can +hear in the rhythm the hoof beats of the horses as they gallop along. +How often have we felt a new meaning and appropriateness that our voice +alone has suggested! + +2. To the listeners. The contagious nature of emotion has already been +pointed out. The good reader, by his sympathetic and expressive +rendering of the poem, may reveal to his listeners depths of feeling, +the existence of which they had not before suspected. We have often been +thrilled by a new emotion, upon hearing a familiar passage read by +another. + +Every teacher should be a good reader. His tone of voice, his movement, +his gestures are the signs by which the pupils interpret his emotional +attitude. If he is not already a good reader, he should bend all his +energies to become one. Persevering practice, attention to mechanical +features, such as distinct articulation, pausing, flexibility of voice, +and, above all, a sympathetic appreciation of the author's thought and +feeling, will soon convert a poor reader into a good one. He will soon +find that his voice will accommodate itself insensibly in pitch, tone, +and movement to the changing emotions of the poem. The delight of the +lesson will be greatly enhanced where the reader lends to the rhyme of +the poet the music of his voice. + +The reading reveals the general thought of the poem. In simpler poems, +the pupils will recognize in the reading the relationship and the intent +of many of the subordinate parts. But the intellectual side is only +secondary. Literature, in its finer forms, is not primarily an +intellectual subject, such as grammar or mathematics. The emotional +tone, the spiritual meaning, and the artistic form--these are the main +elements, and these can be best developed by good reading. The teacher +should acquire the habit of reading poetry aloud in his home, and should +induce his pupils to follow his example. Further, as two senses will +give a more vivid realization of thought than one, the pupil, in the +class, should follow with his eye the reading of the teacher; and it is +helpful for a church congregation to follow with the eye the reading of +the scripture lesson by the minister. + + +THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE MAIN THOUGHT + +The teacher should next assist the pupils to discover the main thought +of the lesson. In many cases the meaning will be very vague, and the +pupils will have difficulty in formulating a terse and comprehensive +statement of the subject of the poem. If the question is asked in a +stereotyped form, such as "What is the main thought of the poem?" the +enthusiasm of the pupils is often chilled. The teacher may, if it is a +narrative poem, ask for the main points in the story, and may assist the +pupils by calling attention to some pertinent passage, or by removing +difficulties by means of questions or explanations. In all cases, it is +well to accept a partially correct answer by the pupils, and to try to +improve its imperfection by questioning, until a fairly complete and +substantial statement has been given. Every answer which contains even a +fragment of sound thought should receive due recognition. In some cases +it is sufficient, at the outset, to take an imperfect statement of the +main thought, since the study of the poem will reveal its defects. The +teacher must keep before his pupils this statement, so that at the +conclusion of the lesson they will be quite ready to replace it by a +more accurate one. The teacher should be careful that the emotions +aroused by the poem are not unduly weakened or dissipated by the +analysis of its intellectual content. Many lessons by young teachers +fail just at this point, by reason of questioning unskilfully or by +rejecting answers that do not correspond to their own cut-and-dried +preconceptions. + +The teacher should follow a similar method in discovering the leading +thought of the subdivisions of the poem. These often correspond to the +stanza forms, but the lesson may become very wearisome by insisting on +too great detail. The poem often falls into two or three main divisions, +into which the various stanzas may be grouped. With Senior Forms it is a +good exercise to ask the pupils to make this grouping, but, with those +not so advanced, the teacher himself may make it and ask the pupils for +the central thought in each group. In the teacher's anxiety to have +these subjects clearly stated, he runs the risk of wasting time and, +worse than that, of killing whatever interest the pupils may have had up +to this point. If the pupils could give these subjects with perfect +clearness now, there would be little else to do. The greatest care must +be exercised to prevent the work becoming mechanical, thus destroying +the interest and making the selection distasteful. + +With some pupils, the logical sense is quite strong, and they find their +greatest delight in seeing the purpose of each part in a complex +mechanism. With others, this work does not afford much pleasure. These +are children who, later, can take delight in the flimsy plot of a +musical comedy. Such pupils should be encouraged to do their best to +discover some points of beauty or skill in the arrangement of the +selection. In different lessons there is a difference in construction. +In some, the logical connection and development is so important that +this quality must be stressed, but the works of some authors have merits +which throw the arrangement into a very subordinate position; for +example, "Ring out, Wild Bells", from _In Memoriam_. + + +MINUTE ANALYSIS + +The next stage in the analysis is the examination of the passage +minutely. There is always a place in the lesson for the study of words +and phrases. The teacher should ask questions on these, in order to +ascertain if the pupils have felt their force and vitality. They are to +be taken up only to illuminate and impress the main thoughts and +emotions of the poem. + +In some cases, as in prose lessons, the pupils may acquire the +dictionary habit. This develops and cultivates a studious disposition +and accuracy of statement. But in poetry there are many subtle meanings +that the dictionary will not give, but which the pupil has learned +through contact with educated people and acquaintance with books. Most +of the words that people use have not been learned from the dictionary, +but from their context in reading or conversation. + +On the other hand, many lessons are spoiled by too constant inquiry into +meanings. There is much mere learning of meanings without reference to +the thought or emotion that they are intended to explain. Many words are +explained that are already understood. The fault may be due to the +teacher's experience with annotated text-books of literature. The +teacher, who has been prepared for his examination by this method, is +disposed to carry it into Elementary School work, till even _The +Recessional_ becomes merely a theme for learning verbal meanings. + + +ALLUSIONS + +There are many references in the text-books to geographical, scientific, +and historical matters. If these allusions. In poems such as _The +Armada_ there must be a preliminary lesson such as has been indicated. +Very often the enthusiast in these subjects will make literature a mere +peg on which to hang much information. Teachers often make long +digressions in connection with these allusions, till the mood of the +poem is completely lost in the mist of the disquisitions. The same +method should be adopted in teaching allusions as in teaching the +meanings of words. Only such explanation is necessary as will show the +purpose of the author in introducing the allusions. In poems such as +_The Armada_ there must be considerable explanation given, before the +pupils will feel the emotion that the author hopes to kindle by the +mention of the names that are used in it. With Canadian children, the +effect in the case of this poem cannot be so great as with English +children, who are more familiar with the special geographical and +historical associations. + +The teacher of young people cannot hope, by explanation of the +allusions, to arouse all the pleasure and the vitality of emotion that +will be induced in the reader who has the culture that comes of wide +reading; nor can the teacher communicate this emotion when the +information is new. The pleasure comes, later on, from the recall of +information that was assimilated in earlier years. + + +THE IMAGERY + +The language of poetry is generally concrete. The artist may wish to +give expression to a general truth, or philosophical principle, or +ethereal fancy. These appear very abstract, but the artist embodies in +material forms the idea he wishes to convey. The poet expresses his +thought by the suggestion of material imagery, and emotion is most +readily aroused by these images. + +Antony, in his funeral oration after Caesar's death, knew how to arouse +his audience to fury by showing them Caesar's wounds and holding before +them Caesar's mantle with its rents. Not always can the real object be +produced for these emotional effects, but the teacher can sometimes +bring into the class-room, for the benefit of young pupils, concrete +material such as pictures and work in manual training. He can also call +attention, at times, to the falling snow or the colour of the leaves or +the sky, by asking the pupils to look out of the class-room windows. But +in most cases, he has to be content with trying to recall the memory of +these natural things. This shows how valuable has been the excursion of +the boy into the country, and his experience on holidays by the river +and in the harvest field. The nature study lesson furnishes the material +for future enjoyment of poetry. + +The pupils in our schools are very capable in realizing visual imagery. +They can see the visual image very readily with its colour, form, and +movement. They can arrange the objects in the picture with foreground, +background, light, and shade. + +But it is quite a different matter when they try to realize auditory +imagery. In the poem _Waterloo_, Fourth Reader, p. 311, they can see the +picture in "bright the lamps shone o'er fair women and brave men". They +see the large ball-room with its glass chandeliers, the costumes of +handsome ladies, the scarlet uniforms and the decorations of the +officers and the nobility. But can they realize the next imagery, that +of sound, "and when music arose with its voluptuous swell"? Do they hear +the squeaking of one or two fiddles or do they hear the voluminous sound +of regimental bands? Do they notice the varying metre from the stately +iambic to the sudden "voluptuous swell" of the foot of three syllables +in waltz time? + +These images of sight and sound picture the gaiety and magnificence of +this festive scene, in order to make more marked the contrast with the +fear and pathos of the farewells. This contrast is enforced by the two +auditory images: + + And all went merry as a marriage bell; + But hush! hark! a deep sound strikes like a rising knell! + +Can your pupils image the wedding-bells chiming from the cathedral some +afternoon in June, when suddenly the ear catches the sound of a +death-bell tolling from another church? Any reader who cannot realize +the sounds of those two bells with their discordant effects will miss +the intention of Byron. + +The pupils, through the stimulation of their senses, must have +experienced the luxurious effects of orchards, flower gardens, and +clover fields; the odours of apple blossoms and the smell and taste of +the "full-juiced apple waxing over-mellow"; the perfumes and +temperatures of spring, midsummer, and winter if they are to read nature +literature intelligently and feel its charm. The words must have meaning +if they are to awaken the feeling that was part of the original +experience. + + +THE LITERATURE OF NOBLE THOUGHT + +In literature, as in other arts, there is a great deal that is merely +decorative. It is not the purpose here to disparage this form of art. "A +thing of beauty is a joy for ever. Its loveliness increases." Some of +the most famous portraits and landscapes in the picture galleries afford +infinite pleasure to the student of art by the technique in colour, +drawing, and arrangement. They are greater than photography. "The light +that never was on sea or land, the consecration and the poet's dream" +have given them a beauty that is greater than the realism of the actual +person or natural scene. It is the same in literature. The author's +feelings, his language, the rhythm of his words, and his delicate fancy +afford the reader greater delight than he has ever known when he has met +similar persons, scenes, or actions in real life. This is genuine +aesthetic pleasure, similar to the pleasure that people derive from +china, music, or landscape gardening. + +There is, however, a higher form of art in both pictures and literature. +There are pictures that suggest some noble aspiration, some great +universal truth, some great conflict between duty and interest. We feel +instinctively that these are greater than pictures possessing mere +masterly technique. It is the same in literature. There are poems in +which we feel that the thoughts and feelings are sublime. Perhaps the +technique of these is not equal to that of the poetry described in the +preceding paragraph, but the experienced teacher has felt his pupils +lifted above mundane affairs, when they begin to grasp the true +significance of such poems. The youngest pupils show their appreciation +by wide open eyes, when these are read. They instinctively feel that +this work is better than the merely pretty and dainty things in poetry. + +In the _Ontario Readers_ we have numerous poems of this nature. In the +First Reader, the pupils instinctively feel that _Piping Down the +Valleys Wild_ is of different calibre from _Three Little Kittens_. _The +Lord is my Shepherd_, _Lead, Kindly Light_, and _To a Waterfowl_, are +examples of this class. + +In teaching these lessons, the spiritual meaning should be constantly +emphasized. + +The mere statement of the thought is not impressive. It is the +presentation of it in poetical form that makes its effect impressive and +lasting. The pupils may be led to discover how the author has +accomplished this by means of the concrete embodiment of imagery, +language, metaphor, and music. + + +RECAPITULATION + +The lesson is often dropped just at this time, leaving an impression +somewhat like that of a science room, with the petals and leaves on the +desks and the floor, after the class in botany has been dismissed. No +act of analysis is complete without a final synthesis. The examination +of the various phases of the whole must be followed by a reconstruction +in which are perceived the relations of the various phases to each other +and to the unity of the whole. These various parts must be closely +related to one another if the final conception of the poem is to be +definite. When the analysis is in progress, the teacher should not, of +course, take each part by itself and examine it as if it were an +isolated thing, but its relation to what has gone before should be more +or less clearly perceived. When the analysis is complete, there should +be a final synthesis in which the relations of the various parts stand +out definitely. This can be done by means of a statement of the main +thought in concise but comprehensive terms. If the teacher has accepted +an imperfect statement at the beginning, the pupils will now be in a +position to discover its inadequacy and supply the part that is lacking. +Then the subjects of the various subdivisions or stanzas can be restated +in suitable terms that will show the proper relationships. This +reconstruction may also take the form of oral or written reproduction of +the selection. This is especially valuable after the prose lessons. +There should follow an oral reading of the passage by the pupils, which +will serve to show the teacher how much of the feeling of the poem has +been absorbed, how clearly the pupils have understood the meaning, and +what misconceptions have arisen in their minds. + + +MISTAKES IN TEACHING LITERATURE + +There are some mistakes in teaching literature that are noted here, in +order that they may be avoided: + +1. Teaching pupils about literature, instead of teaching literature +itself; for example, teaching biography, etymology, history, geography, +or science in the literature lesson, because some feature of one or more +of these may be suggested by the language of the lesson. A knowledge of +such subjects is merely preparatory to the study of literature itself. + +2. Teaching merely the meanings of words and phrases, and omitting the +greater things of imagery, thought, beauty of language, and the spirit +of the writer. + +3. Trying to force appreciation by telling the pupils they must learn to +like such and such works because educated people like them. It is +useless, at this time, to try to develop the critical spirit, as the +pupil has not a sufficiently wide acquaintance with literary works on +which to form a judgment. + +4. Doing for the pupil what he should be led to do for himself. A +literature lesson, in which the teacher has been doing all the talking, +or both asking and answering questions, will be barren of good results. + +5. Paraphrasing. Short passages may be paraphrased, in order to show +whether the pupil has understood the force and vitality of the metaphor +or the condensed expression. But paraphrasing must be used with great +discretion. The teacher will not make the pupils appreciate the beauty +of a fine literary selection by converting refined gold into low grade +ore. + +6. Attempting to draw some moral from every lesson. Not all lessons are +didactic. If the pupils have sympathized with what is noble and just in +the story, the statement of a moral at the conclusion is unnecessary. +Yet in poems that are plainly didactic, for example, _To a Waterfowl_, +Fourth Reader, p. 377, the moral lesson must occupy the first place. +There the teacher should show how the author has enforced the lesson of +_confidence in God's guidance_ by the incident of the migrating +waterfowl, the imagery, the music, the arrangement of parts, and the +similarity of his own position to that of the bird. + +7. Dwelling unnecessarily on the intellectual side of a poem that is +mainly emotional and musical; for example, _The Bugle Song_, Third +Reader, p. 337, and _The Solitary Reaper_, Fourth Reader, p. 261. In the +former case, the pupils should be led to realize the visual imagery, +should hear, in imagination, the bugle calls and fading echoes, and +enjoy the rare and appropriate music. In the second case, the teacher +should call attention to the artistic suggestions of loneliness, +distance, antiquity, sadness, and vagueness that are suggested by "old, +unhappy, far-off things, and battles long ago", and by such possible +situations of English travellers in remote parts of the world, and +should show that these elements are suitable for the circumstances under +which the poet sees the girl. He who questions merely to find out the +meaning of the poem, the relation to that of its subordinate parts, and +the meaning of the words and phrases, is using a very heavy tool on a +very delicate mechanism. Such works must be treated deftly and lightly. + + +EXTENSIVE READING + +The class of literature that we have described in the preceding methods +is condensed literature, where thought is large in proportion to the +number of the words. It must be read by a process of close thinking, in +an analytic, exhaustive manner. There must be a clear comprehension of +the central ideas, and a strong grasp of minor thoughts or details, and +the relation of these to the central ideas. While this power to grasp +thought intensively is very valuable, we should also have the power to +grasp the thought rapidly and comprehensively. + +In some works, the thought is not so condensed and confined. Here, the +main effort of the reader is to grasp the thoughts successively in a +rapid, clear, and comprehensive manner. He must be able to read a book +chapter by chapter and grasp the central ideas, to hold paragraph after +paragraph, chapter after chapter, in his consciousness, so that each +gives added illumination to the main thought and, at the end, the whole +of the work stands out in its entirety. He must learn to grasp the +central thought in each section as he proceeds--to sift the wheat from +the chaff. The minor details have been of value in giving him the main +thought, but the real ability of the good reader consists in dropping +these minor details from the mind and holding steadily on to the more +important facts. + +This method gives a greater power of sustained attention and a wider +acquaintance with good literature. Most of our reading is done in this +way. It would be impossible otherwise to get a wide range, as time does +not permit of minute analysis, and many of our longer works are so +diffuse that they would not repay such careful study. + +The supplementary, or extensive, reading may be given as seat work or +home work. As seat work, it can come as a grateful relief from the +arduous tasks in the ungraded school and will keep many an active mind +from getting into mischief. By questioning about the main facts the +teacher can assure himself that the work has actually been done. This +questioning should not be used only to catch the negligent; it should +give pleasure to the pupils as a conversation with them about their +pleasant occupation. It should be done very informally, often as two +intelligent people would discuss a book. The questions should be broad +in their scope and should not dwell on matters of detail. If it is a +story that is to be considered, it should be examined as follows: +Discover what are the difficulties set up; how they are brought about; +how they are overcome; how many threads of interest there are; why +certain characters are introduced; what would be the effect if certain +parts were omitted; to what extent the final solution is logical. + +When the examination is finished, a series of compositions might be +written on topics connected with the story. For instance, if _Rip Van +Winkle_ has been studied, a series of three compositions might be +assigned: (1) Rip's domestic life; (2) his adventure in the mountain; +(3) his return to the village. Three compositions would be better than a +single one on the whole story, because too great condensation usually +detracts from the value, and because the excellence of a school +composition is usually in inverse proportion to its length. + +It is exceedingly important that the teacher should see that these +written exercises are not made distasteful to the pupil. They are very +valuable if they are not considered irksome. The object is not so much +to give skill in composition as to create a taste for wide and excellent +reading. It would be better to allow this written reproduction to drop +rather than to associate the pleasures of literature with something +disagreeable. + + + + +CHAPTER III + +ILLUSTRATIVE LESSONS + + +In the lessons that follow, the answers given to questions are those +which pupils may be expected to give after corrections and additions +have been made by themselves and the teacher. + +Professor Alexander has said: + + It is impossible to exemplify on paper actual + teaching. Actual teaching, as all other + practical matters, is in large measure + determined by circumstances and conditions + which are never twice the same. A large part of + a teacher's skill lies in the sympathetic + perception of these conditions and in the power + of adapting himself to them on the spur of the + moment. The teacher should have a definite aim + in view, and a general conception of the proper + method to be followed; but these will be + modified by the character of the pupils before + him, of the answers given, of the manifestation + of interest, and the comprehension of the + various points brought forward. A question + quite proper in one case will be quite out of + place in another. What knowledge should be + imparted by the instructor, what elicited from + the pupils themselves, what matters dwelt upon, + what lightly passed over--these things can only + be determined by the actual circumstances. + + +PANTOMIME + +LITTLE MISS MUFFET + +(Primer, page 75) + +Little Miss Muffet sits on a low chair eating from an imaginary dish. +The spider comes creeping softly behind her. When he reaches her side, +he sits quietly down. Then she sees him and, in a great fright, jumps up +and runs away. + + +DRAMATIZATION + +LITTLE BOY BLUE + +(Primer, page 68) + +The senior division of the primary class had read the story of Little +Boy Blue. Norman asked: "May we play it? May I be Little Boy Blue?" + +Allan said: "I'd like to be the farmer". + +Dorothy wished to be the farmer's wife. + +Clara asked if the pupils of the highest class might be the cows and the +sheep. + +As Norman was enthusiastic and eager to express himself, he was +permitted to direct the movements of the different characters. + +The farmer selected a horse and prepared to take him to market, while +Little Boy Blue could be seen tramping along the road (the front part of +the room). The cows and sheep were grazing quietly near by. + +As Little Boy Blue approached the farmer, he removed his cap and said: +"Good morning, sir, do you want a boy?" + +_Farmer_: "Yes, I want one to watch the cows and the sheep." + +_Little Boy Blue_: "I can do that, sir." + +_Farmer_ (handing Little Boy Blue a toy horn that had been brought to +school for use during a drawing lesson): "Here is a horn, then. If they +try to go away, blow this, and they will come back." + +_Little Boy Blue_: "I will, sir." + +The farmer drove away, and Little Boy Blue watched the cows and the +sheep. Once they were about to wander away (among the aisles), but +Little Boy Blue blew the horn, and they immediately returned. He soon +grew tired of watching them; they seemed to be content to graze quietly +where they were. He leaned against a haystack (a chair) and fell asleep. +The cows were soon in the corn and the sheep in the meadow, where the +farmer saw them as he was driving home. But he could not see Little Boy +Blue. He called: + + Little Boy Blue, + Come blow your horn, + The sheep are in the meadow, + The cows are in the corn. + +_Farmer_: "Wife, where is Little Boy Blue?" + +_Wife_: "He is under the haystack, fast asleep." + +_Farmer_ (going to haystack): + + Little Boy Blue, + Come blow your horn. + +The boy jumped up, blew a blast on the horn, and the sheep and cows +immediately came back. + +_Little Boy Blue_: "It was my fault and I'm sorry." + +_Farmer_: "All right, you'll take better care of them next time." + + +THE STORY OF HENNY PENNY + +(Primer, page 48) + +When the teacher suggests that a game be played, many pupils fairly +project themselves backward in an effort to look so well that they may +be chosen to take part in it. + +The teacher wrote "Dorothy" on the black-board. Dorothy whispered that +she would like to play the story of Henny Penny. (The adventures of +Henny Penny had been recounted the day before.) The teacher wrote the +story of Henny Penny. As Dorothy had sufficient self-confidence and a +good memory, she was allowed to choose her part, which was certain to be +that of the principal character. Had she not possessed these qualities, +she would have been assigned a minor part during the first attempt at +dramatizing this story. The teacher wrote "Rooster Pooster" on the +black-board. "I should like to be Rooster Pooster", said Albert. "Turkey +Lurkey", wrote the teacher. "I'd like to be Turkey Lurkey", said +another. In this or some similar way, the parts were assigned. + +As the play began, Henny Penny was discovered pecking at imaginary worms +in the garden; suddenly she jumped up in a great fright. "Oh, the sky is +falling!" she said, "I must run and tell the king". She ran down the +road (an aisle) till she met Rooster Pooster. + +When he saw her coming, he stopped crowing and asked, "Where are you +going, Henny Penny?" "Oh", she said, "the sky is falling, and I am going +to tell the king". "I will go too", said Rooster Pooster. They ran down +the road till they met Turkey Lurkey gobbling contentedly. The usual +formula was repeated, and Turkey Lurkey ran on with them. + +But the fox (villain) was waiting around the corner. "Where are you +going, Henny Penny, Rooster Pooster, and Turkey Lurkey?" said he. "Oh, +Fox Lox", they said, "the sky is falling and we are going to tell the +king". "I will show you the way." "Oh, no, Fox Lox, we know you. We will +not go with you." + +So they ran and ran, but had to return home because they did not find +the king's house. + + +WISHES + +(Primer, page 52) + +The pupils knew by the pictures on page 52 that the lesson would be a +delightful one, but when they attempted to read it, they found +difficulties that lessened their pleasure somewhat. + +They enjoyed reading "I wish I could find a little fat fly", but "sad +little sigh" and "an odd little shrug" were very difficult to say and +were meaningless until the children imitated the teacher's "sad little +sighs" and "odd little shrugs". + +The pupils were then asked which little chicken they would like to be. +The first pupil to respond was chosen. He went to the front of the room, +which was then a garden, and with a much bigger sigh than was necessary, +complained: "I wish I could find a little fat fly". + +The other pupils then eagerly studied the page, that they might learn +what the next little chicken said and did. The teacher was always ready +to tell them any words they could not discover for themselves. One pupil +could make a shrug but could not remember the second little chicken's +words, so another was found who could say what the second little chicken +said in just the way he would say it if he could talk. The other little +chickens and the mother hen were chosen in a similar manner. + +The mother hen could be seen busily scratching at one end of the garden, +while her little chickens were walking aimlessly about. + +_First Chicken_ (after sighing): + +"I wish I could find a little fat fly." + +_Second Chicken_ (with a shrug): + +"I wish I could find a fat little bug." + +_Third Chicken_ (with a squeaky voice): + +"I wish I could feel some corn in my beak." + +_Fourth Chicken_ (sighing): + +"I wish I could find a fat worm on a leaf." + +_Mother Hen_ (impatiently): + +"See here, if you want things to eat, just come here and scratch." + + +INDIAN LULLABY + + Rock-a-bye, my little owlet, + In the mossy, swaying nest, + With thy little woodland brothers, + Close thine eyes and take thy rest. + + Hush-a-bye, my little owlet, + Many voices sing to thee; + "Hush-a-bye," the water whispers, + "Hush!" replies the tall pine tree. + --LONGFELLOW + +There had been language lessons on the habits of the Indians; their way +of living had been worked out, as far as possible, on the sand-table, +and pictures representing Indian life had been shown. The pupils had +eagerly constructed an Indian home--"Dark behind it rose the forest" +(twigs from the pine and other evergreen trees), "Bright before it beat +the water". + +The lessons in drawing, painting, end modelling had been connected with +this work. From their boxes of coloured crayons, the pupils had selected +the colours used in making the pine trees, the grass, the bark of the +trees, the owl in the tree, the wigwams, etc. + +From the many beautiful Indian lullabies that would have been suitable, +the teacher selected the _Indian Lullaby_ by Longfellow. During the +periods set apart for music, the pupils had been taught the desired +melody with the syllable "loo". + + _Teacher._ "How does your mother put baby to + sleep?" + + _Pupils._ "My mother rocks the baby in her + arms." "Mine puts him on the bed and he falls + asleep." "We rock our baby in a cradle," etc. + + _Teacher._ "The picture I give you will show + you what the Indian mother does with her baby." + +Each pupil was given a small picture showing an Indian baby in his +cradle suspended from a tree. These pictures had been cut from a +supplement to _Primary Education_. + + _Teacher._ "What has the mother done?" + + _Pupils._ "She has put her baby in a basket and + hung it on a tree." + + _Teacher._ "Is the baby in the picture awake or + asleep?" + + _Pupils._ "He is asleep." + + _Teacher._ "What could the baby see before he + went to sleep?" + +Here a picture--fourteen by twenty inches--was shown. It was a good +representation of an Indian home and its surroundings. The pupils had +made use of this picture when working at the sand-table. + + _Pupils._ "He could see the pine trees, the + water, the wigwams, the canoes, the Indians," + etc. + + _Teacher._ "What could the baby hear while + swinging in his cradle?" + + _Pupils._ "He could hear the Indians talking. + He could hear the wind among the trees; the + water; the birds singing in the woods; the cry + of an owl; perhaps wolves, bears," etc. + + _Teacher._ "What other babies lived in the + woods?" + + _Pupils._ "Birds, squirrels, owls, wolves," + etc. + + _Teacher._ "A man once wrote what he thought an + Indian mother might have sung to her baby. This + is what he thought she would sing." (The + teacher recited the _Indian Lullaby_.) + +Individual pupils then repeated one stanza at a time with the assistance +of the teacher. + +The pupils sang softly the melody they had learned to "loo"; then all +tried to sing the words with the teacher. The purpose was to emphasize +the rhythm and interpret the spirit of the poem. The lesson occupied +twelve to fifteen minutes. At another time, hectographed copies of the +poem were given to the pupils, and as they had already partly memorized +it, they soon learned to read it. + + + + +CHAPTER IV + +FORM I: SENIOR GRADE + + +THE WIND AND THE LEAVES + +(First Reader, page 49) + +It is the aim of this lesson to help the pupils to appreciate +imaginative descriptions of some natural phenomena. This lesson will be +best appreciated if taken some day in autumn when the leaves are +falling. If the pupils have recently noticed the wind rushing through +the trees, scattering the many-coloured leaves and driving them before +it along the ground, they will be in the best mood to enter into the +spirit of the poem. + + What is the time of the year that the poem + speaks about? The autumn. + + Select all the things that tell you this. The + leaves have "dresses of red and gold"; "summer + is gone"; "the days grow cold"; the leaves come + "fluttering" down; the "fields" are "brown". + + What did the wind mean by "Come o'er the + meadows with me, and play"? It meant that they + should come down from the trees and be blown + away by the wind across the fields. + + What does it mean by "Put on your dresses of + red and gold"? Before they fall, the leaves + have many beautiful colours. + + What was the colour of their dresses in summer? + When do they begin to change colour very + quickly? + + What leaves show the most beautiful colours? + What different colours have you noticed that + leaves have? + + When does the wind call? When it blows loudly + or whistles. + + Do you know what the wind says when it calls? + Why not? We do not understand the language that + it speaks. + + How did the leaves show that they understood? + They obeyed at once and came down from the + trees. + + What is meant by "fluttering" down? They came + down slowly, moving from side to side, and + turning over and over as they fell. (This could + be shown in the class-room quite easily.) + + Which line in the first stanza corresponds in + meaning with the third line of the second? The + second line. + + What makes the fields "brown"? It is the end of + the summer, and the grass and the plants have + dried up. + + What colours have the fields at other seasons + of the year? Green in the spring, golden in the + summer, white in the winter. + + What are "the soft little songs" of the leaves? + The rustling sounds they make as they are blown + about by the wind. + + Why do we not understand their songs? For the + same reason that we do not understand the call + of the wind--their language is not ours. + + "Winter had called them." What is the voice of + winter? The cold winds that roar and whistle. + + What is meant by "content"? The leaves were + quite glad to answer the call. + + Why were they content? The work that they had + been doing all summer long was done; they were + tired and sleepy and glad to go to bed. + + When may it be said that the leaves are "fast + asleep"? When they lie quietly on the ground, + no longer blown about by the wind. + + How were they kept warm during their long + sleep? The snow came and covered them up + warmly, like a "blanket". + + What does the whole lesson describe? The + falling of the leaves. + + What does the first stanza speak of? The call + of the wind. + + The second? The answer of the leaves. + + The third? The leaves asleep. + + Tell the story of the poem in your own words. + + +PIPING DOWN THE VALLEYS WILD + +(First Reader, page 52) + + +AIM + +To enable the pupils to appreciate the pretty pictures and the music, +and to learn how their pretty songs were written. + + +PREPARATION + + In far-away countries there are many sheep, and + they require shepherds. These shepherds, as + they can rest while their sheep feed, sometimes + amuse themselves by cutting oat straws and + making them into little flutes. They cut holes + in the straws, just as you see holes in flutes + or in tin whistles. They learn to play very + pretty tunes. David, king of Israel, was, in + his youth, a shepherd boy, and he learned to + play beautiful music while he watched his + sheep. The Psalms that you find in the Bible + were composed by him. + + +PRESENTATION + + Now let us read about a shepherd who was + playing music. (The teacher reads the poem.) + While he was playing, what did he see? He saw a + little child sitting on a cloud. + + What was the child doing? He was laughing. + + Why? He liked the music. + + What kind of music was it? It was pleasant, + full of joy. + + Where was the shepherd? In a valley. + + Tell what the valley was like. It was wild. It + had big rocks and hills on each side, and a + cloud was over the valley. + + What did the child ask him to do? To play "a + song about a Lamb". + + Why did he do that? Because the sheep were + pretty and he thought he should like to hear + pretty music about them. + + How did the child like it? He asked the + shepherd to play the tune again, and it was + such beautiful music that the keen enjoyment of + it made the tears come to his eyes. + + What did the child next ask? He wished to have + the music put into words, so he asked the + shepherd to "sing" it. + + How did the child enjoy it? It was so lovely + that he "wept with joy". + + What did he ask the shepherd to do? To "write" + it down. + + Why? The child thought it was so lovely that he + wanted other children to hear it, too. + + Yes, that is the way that we come to have all + these pretty poems in our books. If they were + only played or sung, not so many children could + have the opportunity of enjoying them. + + What do you need when you write? We need pens, + and paper, and ink. + + The shepherd had not steel pens, and white + paper, and black ink. He may have used the bark + of trees to write on. + + How did he get a pen? He "plucked a hollow + reed", and he "made a rural pen". + + What does that mean? He took a hollow stalk, + such as an oat straw or a weed, and cut it in + the form of a pen. + + What is a "rural pen"? "Rural" means belonging + to the country. The pen was not made as ours + are. The shepherd wrote about sheep and other + things belonging to country life. + + How did he get any ink? He took "water" from + the stream and "stained" it so that it would + leave a mark something like our ink. + + Yes, the paper, the pen, and the ink would not + be so good as at present, but they would serve + as a beginning. + + +REPRODUCTION + + 1. Where was the musician? + + 2. What kind of instrument was he playing? + + 3. Where was the child? + + 4. What was the child's second request? + + 5. What was his third request? + + 6. How was the shepherd able to write? + + 7. Why did the child wish him to write? + + (The pupils may not understand "rural", + "valley", "pipes", so the teacher should give + such further explanation as the different cases + demand.) + + +THE BABY SWALLOW + +(First Reader, page 103) + +The aim of this lesson is to teach, by means of a story, the moral of +trusting in God and trying to do one's best. + +The teacher should introduce the lesson by inquiring of the pupils if +they have ever watched a young bird learning to fly. Its timidity and +the anxiety of the mother-bird should be especially emphasized. A brief +reference to the swallow might also be in place, though this is not +essential, as the poet has selected it merely as a type of birds in +general, and almost any other bird would answer his purpose as well. The +rapidity and grace of the swallow's flight, and its habit of +constructing its nest of mud under the eaves and in other sheltered +places about buildings, are the main points to be noted. + + What is the lesson about? About a baby swallow + learning to fly. + + What do the first four stanzas tell us? His + fears. + + And the last three? The success of his effort. + + What do you see in the picture? A tower with a + bell in it. + + What name is given here for tower? Turret + ("Turret" means a little tower.) + + From its sound, what do you think "belfry" + means? The place where the bell is. + + What, then, is a "belfry turret"? A tower where + a bell is hung. + + On what part of the tower had the bird its + nest? The front. + + What word does the poet use to express that? + "Breast". + + What has been beating against the tower for + years? The wind, sun, rain, snow. + + What one word would stand for all these? + Weather. + + Explain "weather-beaten". + + In perching on its nest, what does the baby + swallow seem ready to do? To fly. + + What other words might the Mother-Bird use + instead of "courage"? "Don't be afraid." + + How many wings are meant by "either wing"? + + In this stanza, what is the "Mother-Bird" + doing? Giving the little bird instructions in + the way to begin flying. + + Describe how he is to begin. + + How does the baby feel about it? He feels + afraid. + + What word tells you this? "Pauses." + + What does he think is deep? The distance + between the tower and the ground. + + Why is the bird afraid to attempt to fly? It is + so far to the ground and his "wings" seem very + "small". + + Why is the "Mother" not afraid to let her baby + try? She knows that God will carry him safely. + + How does she know this? Because "He" had + "carried" her. + + When? When she was as small as the baby swallow + is now. + + Why does the "Mother" tell him this? To + encourage him to make the attempt. + + How does the baby swallow make his start? He + "spreads out his wings" as far as he can and + "springs" out. + + Which stanza has almost the same form as this? + The second. + + What is he surprised to find? That he is able + to fly. + + How does he feel after that about flying? He is + no longer afraid. + + +PREPARATION + + What is he able to do well? To steer. + + What does this mean? To fly in any direction he + wishes. + + How does the "Mother" feel over her baby's + success? She feels glad. + + To whom does she give thanks? To God. + + How does she do so? By singing a song of + thankfulness. + + What can we learn from this story? That, if we + really try to do a difficult thing, we can + usually succeed; that sometimes a thing that + looks hard is really very easy when we try to + do it. + + Tell this story in your own words. Tell any + similar story you know. + + +THE BROOK + +(First Reader, page 110) + + +PREPARATION + + You stood on the bridge and looked at the + stream. What did you see? I saw some little + fishes. I saw my image. I saw some bright + stones. + + It is no wonder you looked at the stream when + it shows you so many things. What were the + fishes doing? They were swimming. They would + dart after some crumbs that we dropped into the + water. + + Why were the fishes there? That is their home. + + Yes, they like to live in the clear water. Mary + says she saw her image. What have you at home + that shows you your image? The mirror. + + Yes, the brook is somewhat like the mirror. Did + you see images of any other things? Yes, I saw + images of the trees, and some stones, and I saw + the images of the ducks that were swimming. + + Willie says that he saw some pretty pebbles. + Does the brook make any noise? Yes, it seems to + sing when it runs over the pebbles, but in the + deep places it does not make a noise. + + +PRESENTATION + + Now I shall read you a little poem about a + brook. (Read with emphasis, even with slight + exaggeration.) Now, where did this brook begin? + In "a fountain". + + What is that? A spring of water. + + Where was the fountain? "In a mountain". + + What is that? A high hill. + + Was it very large where it started? No, the + lesson says it was only "Drops of water" and it + trickled "through the grasses". + + What does it mean by "Trickling through the + grasses"? It means that there was so little of + it that the blades of grass seemed almost to + check its source. + + Did it run very fast at first? No, the lesson + says that it "started" "Slow". + + Did it run any faster after that? Yes, "Soon it + darted", and it was "Hurrying". + + What caused it to dart and hurry? The ground + was steeper, and it had to run more quickly. + + Where was it running? Down "to the sea", where + it would be lost in the other water. + + Did it grow any larger before it came to the + sea? Yes, it grew "Swift and strong", and it + widened "very fast". + + What caused it to widen? Other little brooks + ran into it and made it wider. + + Now, the brook is said to be like a person. Can + you point out any words that make you think it + was like a person? Yes, it hurries just as + children hurry. + + In the next stanza, the lesson says it was + "Glad". Why was it glad? It was glad that the + "Children" came to play on its banks. + + Yes, it felt just as you feel when your friends + come over to your house to play. Do you see any + other words that make you think it is like a + person? Yes, it is "Swift and strong and + happy". It rushes and it sings. + + What is it like now? It is like a big, strong, + happy boy. + + Why did the children come to play on its banks? + They came to pick the flowers. + + What line shows you that? "Blossoms floating." + The children picked the flowers and threw some + on the stream to watch the current carry them + away. + + What else were the children doing? They were + sailing toy boats in the water. + + What words show you that? "Mimic boating." + + What else did the children enjoy? They liked to + see the "Fishes darting past" them. The fishes + were timid. + + The brook makes some very pleasant sounds. What + words show you that? "Rippling", "Bubbling", + "singing", "ringing". + + When does the water make these sounds? When it + is running "over pebbles" or down the steep + places. + + + You must fancy you hear the brook make its + gentle music when it is running over the + pebbles. What does the water look like when it + ripples? It is not smooth; it has tiny waves + upon it. + + You have heard the water bubble and gurgle, and + then, when the stream grows large and runs + faster, you can hear it "singing" and "ringing" + in the distance. The poet tells us some pretty + things about the brook. Tell me some of them. + It was "Cool and clear and free". + + Why was it "Cool"? It had flowed among the + grasses and had come from a spring in a + mountain. + + Why was it "clear"? It was such pure water that + you could see the stones at the bottom of the + brook. + + Why does the poet say it was "free"? There were + no logs nor big stones to stop its course. It + ran freely on its way. + + Do you see any other words that describe its + appearance? It is "Flecked with shade and sun". + + Now "Flecked" is a hard word. It means + _spotted_ or _striped_. Can you tell me what + that means? Sometimes the brook is bright and + shining and, in some places, it is shaded by + the trees or by the clouds. You can see bright + patches on the water. + + Now you have told me many wonderful things + about this brook; where it began and where it + ended, how it grew, how it sang, how glad it + was to see the children, and how the children + played with it, and how it looked. What does it + tell us at first? It tells us where it began. + + In the next stanza? It runs a little faster. + + In the next? It was glad to see the children. + + In the next? The children were playing with it. + + In the next? It ran bubbling and singing into + the sea. + + +MEMORIZATION + + Now we shall learn the words of this pretty + lesson, taking the first stanza to-day. Let us + take the first three lines. Now all the lines. + Let each one be ready to repeat it. See whether + you can say the first stanza to-morrow, and + then we shall learn some more. + + + + +CHAPTER V + +FORM II + + +MY SHADOW + +(Second Reader, page 3) + + +AIM + +The aim of the lesson is to make the poem so lifelike that it will seem +to each pupil as though the shadow and the words were his own. + + +PRESENTATION + +After the poem has been read to give a general idea of the story, the +teacher should proceed with it in detail, much in the same spirit as he +would carry on a bright conversation with the pupils about something in +which they were all equally interested. + +Stanza I + + How do I know my shadow is very fond of me? He + "goes in and out with me". + + What does that mean? It means he goes wherever + I go. + + What is "the use of him"? That "is more than I + can see". + + What is he like? He is just "like me from the + heels up to the head". + + What does he do when I go to bed? He jumps into + bed "before me". + +MEMORIZATION + + Now, children, four of you may each recite one + line. What have you, Susie? "I have a little + shadow that goes in and out with me." + + What is the use of your shadow, John? "And what + can be the use of him is more than I can see." + + What is he like, Mary? "He is very, very like + me from the heels up to the head." + + When do you see him jump ahead of you? "And I + see him jump before me, when I jump into my + bed." + +NOTE.--Each pupil's expression should reveal an active imagination and +hearty response to the spirit of the selection. The whole should be very +lifelike and real. Some pupil should be asked to recite or read the +whole stanza. + +Stanza II + + What is there funny about the shadow? "The + funniest thing about him is the way he likes to + grow." + + How is that? "He sometimes shoots up" very tall + all at once, and then he dwindles down to + nothing. + + How would you expect him "to grow"? I would + expect him "to grow" as I do. + + How is that? Oh, that is "very slow". + + The author says "like proper children". What + does that mean? That means like real children. + + What shows that he sometimes grows up very, + very quickly? The poet says he "shoots up". + + What other words tell the same thing? "Like an + india-rubber ball." + + How is that? The ball goes up quickly with a + bounce, and the shadow seems to spring up in + the same way. + +READING AND MEMORIZATION + +Let two or three children read the stanza. In the first line, the voice +should show how funny it all is; in the second, the demureness of the +"proper" child and the slowness of the growth should be revealed in the +reading; in the third and fourth lines, there should be an imitative +response to the sudden up-growth of the shadow and to the childish +surprise at his dwindling into nothing. + +Memorization should be conducted as shown in Stanza I, above. There +should be no evidence of task or effort in the recitation; it is very +necessary that it be spontaneous and full of enjoyment for the pupils. + + +Stanza III + + The shadow knows very little about one thing. + What is that? He has no "notion of how children + ought to play". + + How does he "make a fool of me"? "In every sort + of way." + + Well, give one way. He mimics me. + + Where does he stay? He stays right "close + beside me". + + Why does he do that? He does that because "he's + a coward". + + How would you feel about doing the same thing? + I would feel ashamed of myself. + +Reading and recitation of this stanza should now be conducted as +indicated in Stanzas I and II, above. + + +Stanza IV + + Did you ever manage to get away from your + shadow? Yes, I did. + + Tell us about how you did it. Well, "One + morning, very early", I got up "before the sun" + did, and went out in the flower garden. I + looked around for my shadow, and I found he + "had stayed at home behind me" in bed. + + What is he called for doing that? He is called + "an arrant sleepy-head". + + Give another word in place of "arrant" that + will mean the same thing. He was a thorough and + shameless "sleepy-head". + + What was the real cause of his staying behind? + There was "none of him at all", because the sun + was not up. + + What will happen when the sun does come up? + Then my shadow will suddenly show himself + again. + + Now, if you would like to have another stanza, + telling about what happened when the sun came + up, just try your best to write one. + +Here is another that was written once at the end of the lesson: + + But when the dear old sun came up above the trees, + My frisky little shadow came out into the breeze; + I didn't see him coming, but, when I turned around, + His head was at the window, and he lay along the ground. + + +ONE, TWO, THREE + +(Second Reader, page 21) + + +AIM + +To enable the pupils to understand the beauty and pathos of the +selection. + +To arouse in them a sympathy for those who are weak. + + +PREPARATION + + How many of you like to play games? Everybody. + + Name some of the games you play. Ball, tag, + hide-and-seek, etc. + + With whom do you like to play? With boys and + girls of our own age. + + +PRESENTATION + + Here is a story that tells about two people + playing a game. (The selection is read aloud by + the teacher.) + + What is the story about? An "old lady" and a + little boy playing "Hide-and-Go-Seek". + + What relation were they? The old lady was the + boy's "Grandma". + + Let us look at the story again, and see if they + enjoyed their game as much as you do yours. Is + there anything in the first stanza that tells + us they were having a good time? "The way that + they played together was beautiful to see." + + What was beautiful about it? They were so kind + to each other. It was pleasant to see an old + lady and a little boy having such a happy time + playing together, and understanding each other + so well. + + How do you feel, as you read the second stanza? + I feel sorry for the boy because he is lame. + + Any other reason for feeling sorry for him? He + is "thin", as though he had been sick a long + time. + + In what way are he and his Grandma alike? + Neither of them can run or jump. + + Do you feel more sorry for the Grandma or for + the little boy? I feel more sorry for the boy, + because he may never be able to run around, and + his Grandma could when she was young. + + Describe the picture you see in the third + stanza. I see an old lady and a little boy + sitting "under the maple tree". The little boy + has a pair of crutches beside him. The + "sunlight" is shining through the leaves, and + it is a warm summer's day, or they would not be + sitting out. There is a house near them. + + What game were they playing? + "Hide-and-Go-Seek." + + Would you know it from looking at them? No, + because they are sitting still, and when we + play the game, we run around and hide. + + How did they play it? They thought in turn of + some place to hide and imagined they were + hiding in it; they had three guesses to find + out the place. + + Whose turn was it to hide? The old lady's, + because the boy is guessing where she is. + + Where did he find her at last? In "Papa's big + bed-room", in "the clothes-press". + + Is there anything else spoken about that was in + the bed-room? There was a "little cupboard". + + Why does he mention the cupboard? He often + thinks of it. He likes it. + + Why? His mother's "things used to be" in it. + + Why does he say "used to be"? That tells us + that they are not there any longer. + + Why? I think his mother is dead. + + Who takes care of him now? His grandmother + lives with him and looks after him. + + Why does the boy say "It can't be the little + cupboard"? They both think too much of it to + want to use it in connection with their play. + + How did the boy enjoy the game? Very much, + because it says he laughed "with glee". + + How did the Grandma enjoy it? She was glad to + see the boy happy. + + Do old ladies usually like to play games? No, + they generally prefer to read or sew. + + Why was she playing with the boy? She loved him + and was sorry he was lame. + + Could he do anything for his Grandma? He could + talk to her, and keep her from being lonely. + When he grows older, he can read to her. + + Describe the picture you see in the ninth + stanza. I see the old lady, with her hands + covering her face, while she guesses where the + boy is hidden. + + In the last stanza, why does the author use so + many "olds", in speaking of the Grandmother? He + wants to make us feel she is quite old. + + Why does he say "dear" so often? He wants to + show how very kind she was to the lame boy. + + Why does he say the boy was "half-past three", + instead of three and a half years old? It + sounds better the way he says it. It suggests + the clock's time. + + Give me some other titles for this poem. "The + Chums", "A Queer Game", "The Two Playmates". + + +DANDELIONS + +(Second Reader, page 30) + + +AIM + +To lead the pupils to perceive and appreciate how the poet uses +personification and comparison. + + +PRESENTATION + +This poem should be studied in the spring, when the dandelions are in +bloom. A nature study lesson should precede the literature lesson. The +pupils should be required to observe when the dandelions begin to make +their appearance; at what time of the day they are most conspicuous; +after what kind of night they are to be found in greatest profusion; +what change occurs in the structure of the flowers as they grow older; +how long a time usually elapses between the first appearance of the +flowers and this change; what the white, downy part of the flower +constitutes; what eventually becomes of this part. + +Introduce the lesson by a brief conversation about military operations. +Describe how one army tries to seize a strategic position, sometimes a +hill, where the men can fix their guns and command the surrounding +country. If this lesson could be presented without the pupils knowing +the title (by writing the poem on the black-board, for instance), there +would be the added interest of solving a riddle, namely, what the poet +is describing. + + What is a real "trooper band"? A band of + soldiers on horseback. + + And what are real "veterans"? Old soldiers who + have seen much service in war. + + What is actually meant by the "trooper band"? + The dandelions when they first come out. + + What is the phrase that suggests that they are + dandelions? "Yellow coats." + + What does the author actually mean by the + "veterans"? The dandelions, when they have gone + to seed. + + What phrase suggests this? "Their trembling + heads and gray." + + Where did the "trooper band" make their + appearance? On the hillside. + + When? On a "showery night and still". + + Why is such a night selected? Because it makes + the dandelions bloom in great numbers. + + To what is the coming of the dandelions + compared? To an army taking possession of a + hill. + + What words tell how they came? "Without a sound + of warning", "surprised", "We were not waked by + bugle notes", "No cheer our dreams invaded". + + Explain "surprised the hill". Marched upon it + when they were least expected, and seized it. + + Give the meaning of "held it in the morning". + Had undisputed possession of it. + + Tell, in your own words, how the dandelions + came. Suddenly and unexpectedly. + + How did this attack differ from a real military + attack? There were no notes of the bugle or + shouts of the soldiers to announce the capture + of the hill. + + Change "No cheer our dreams invaded" into prose + order, and explain the meaning. No cheer + invaded our dreams. Our sleep was not disturbed + by the victorious shouts of soldiers. + + How did the coats of the soldiers you have seen + differ in colour from those of the dandelions? + + What is the meaning of "at dawn"? The first + appearance of light in the morning. + + "Green slopes"? Grassy hillsides. + + "Paraded"? Marched up and down. + + About what time has elapsed between the + incident of the first stanza and that of the + second? Probably a week or thereabouts. + + What deed is referred to in the first stanza? + The seizure of the hill. + + What is meant by "idly walking"? Without any + definite purpose in view. + + "Marked"? Noticed. + + About what were the veterans probably + "talking"? About their military exploits in + years gone by. + + What words are suitably used in describing + these veterans? "Trembling" and "gray" suggest + old age. + + Arrange "their trembling heads and gray" in + ordinary prose order. Their gray and trembling + heads. + + Why should the veterans be filled with "pride"? + Because of the brave deeds they had done. + + Why did they laugh? Perhaps, because of some + amusing occurrences they had seen. + + What characteristics of the dandelions suggest + these fancies regarding the veterans? The heads + of the dandelions are white. As they sway in + the breeze on their slender stalks, they + incline their heads toward one another in much + the same way as people do in conversation. + + Why is the "laughter" said to be "noiseless"? + Because human beings could not be expected to + hear the laughter of the dandelions. + + What expression would you be likely to use, + instead of "welladay"? Alas! + + What is meant by "they blew away"? The seeds of + the flowers were scattered far and wide. + + What do you like about this poem? (1) Its + charming poetic fancies. (2) The fitness of the + comparisons. + +Point out clearly how the appearance of the dandelions resembled a +military attack, and how, in the later stage of their life history, they +resembled veteran soldiers. + + +THE BLIND MEN AND THE ELEPHANT + +(Second Reader, page 56) + + +AIM + +The aim of the lesson should be, not only to lead the pupils to enjoy +the humour of the poem, but also to appreciate the lesson it teaches. It +affords a fine opportunity for the development of conversational powers +in the pupils. + +The pupils should be encouraged to talk freely, and the questions should +often call for quite lengthy answers. + + +PREPARATION + + Who has seen an elephant? You have, Henry? + Well, tell us something about him. He was very + large. One of our barn doors is twelve feet + high and six feet wide, and father said the + elephant would just be able to go through that + door. If he was in the school-room, his back + would reach almost to the ceiling. His ears + were bigger than the top of my desk. His trunk + was twice as long as father's cane, and was + nearly as big around at the upper end as a bag + of wheat, and the lower end was as small as my + leg is below the knee. His tusks were hard and + white, one on each side of his trunk, and were + longer than father's arm. His tail was small. + It did not seem to be as long as one of his + tusks. His legs were larger around than the + trunk of the biggest apple tree in our orchard. + His skin was something like a hog's skin, only + thicker, and he had no hair. His whole body was + a dirty, dark colour. + + That is a fairly good description, Henry. You + have helped us to picture a very large + elephant. + + +PRESENTATION + + As you have read this poem to yourselves, tell + me what it is about. It is about six blind men + "Who went to see the elephant". + + As they were blind, how could they see him? + They couldn't see him as we do, but they could + feel him, and that was to them what seeing is + to us. + + In what way was feeling the same to them as + seeing is to us? It was their way of knowing + the animal, and that is just what seeing is to + us. + + Where did this happen? It happened in Indostan. + + I told you to look for Indostan in Asia. Point + it out on the map. (A pupil points to it.) + + What are we told about these men? They gave + much of their time to study. + + What do you suppose was their favourite way of + finding out things? This lesson makes me think + that they liked to find out things by their own + efforts. + + Why do you think that? Because it says that + they wanted to "satisfy" their minds by their + own "observations". + + In what other ways do boys and girls satisfy + their minds about new things? By asking + questions about them until the answers satisfy + them. + + What other way do you use sometimes? We read + books to learn about many new things. + + What did the first man learn? He thought he had + learned that the elephant was "like a wall". + + Why do you say thought? He hadn't really + learned it. He stopped making observations just + as soon as he had one idea. + + Why do you think he did that? I think he was in + a hurry to be the first to state what he knew. + + What words in the poem suggest that idea to + you? The words "At once began to bawl". + + How did this man come to think the elephant was + "like a wall"? He fell against the animal's + huge side, and it made him think of a wall. + + What was the second man's opinion about the + elephant? He thought the animal was "like a + spear". + + Account for that idea. He felt one of the + elephant's tusks, and formed his opinion + without going any further. + + And what about the third man? The third man put + his hands on the elephant's trunk and felt it + all over, but as he did not go any further, he + declared that the elephant was "like a snake", + because it was the only thing, as far as he + knew, that squirmed about as the trunk did. + + What did the fourth man do? The fourth man felt + the big front legs and declared the elephant + was "like a tree". + + Tell us about the fifth man. The fifth man + happened to touch the ear. He felt all over it + but nowhere else, so he said the elephant was + "like a fan". + + And what had the sixth man to say? The sixth + man had caught hold of the elephant's tail, and + when he had felt all over it, he declared the + elephant was "like a rope". + + What conclusion did they come to in the end? + They didn't come to any conclusion. They argued + and argued for a long time, and each man was + stubborn and stuck to "his own opinion". + + +GENERALIZATION + + In what respects were they all alike? + + 1. Each one felt just one part of the animal + and took the part for the whole. + + 2. Each was in a hurry to give his opinion and + did not take time to form a good one. + + 3. Each man was stubborn and probably refused + to feel where the others had felt. + + If they could be in your place, how would they + see themselves? They would see how foolish they + had been, and each would see that the others + were as nearly right as he himself was. + + What lesson for ourselves can we learn from + this? It teaches us not to be in a hurry in + giving our opinions. + + What do we learn from the dispute mentioned in + the last verse? We learn from it that, when our + own opinions about anything are firmly fixed, + it does no good to argue about the matter. + + In what way could they have arrived at the same + conclusions? If each had done all that each of + the others did, they would have agreed about + the elephant. + + In what way were these men really blind? They + could not, or would not, see the viewpoint of + others. There may be a mental blindness, as + well as a physical blindness. + + Here are two lines that you may memorize, as + they fit the lesson very well: + + Convince a man against his will, + He's of the same opinion still. + + + + +THE LORD IS MY SHEPHERD + +(Second Reader, page 203) + + +AIM + +To lead the pupils to appreciate the beauty and power of the language of +this Biblical lesson, and to feel a confidence in God's protection and +support. + + +PRESENTATION + +The teacher should talk with the pupils about the great flocks of sheep +in Eastern lands. They require a shepherd to lead them to pastures where +the grass is long and sweet, and to protect them from the wild animals. + +This Psalm is called the "Shepherd Psalm" because it was written by +David, after he became a king. He remembered the time when he was a +shepherd boy and used to spend his days and nights in the fields with +the sheep, and how he once killed a lion and a bear that came to attack +his flock; and he thought to himself that God had cared for him all his +life just as he himself used to care for his little lambs, so at last he +put his thoughts into the words of this Twenty-third Psalm. + +There are two metaphors in this Psalm. In the first is developed, +through the figure of a shepherd and his flock, God's care of His +people. + + What are the feelings of the sheep toward the + shepherd? They feel confident that he will + supply them with food; he will lead them to the + "green pastures" and to the "still waters" by + the wells and fountains, where they will + neither hunger nor thirst. + + What does the expression "lie down" infer? A + sense of rest and security. The sheep can lie + down in the "green pastures" and feel + confident that the shepherd is able and willing + to protect them from danger. + + In what way do we resemble the sheep? We are + dependent upon the Lord for our supply of + spiritual and material needs, and for guidance + and protection along the path of everyday life. + + What does the Psalmist mean when he says: "He + restoreth my soul"? "Soul" means, in Hebrew, + the "life," or "one's self". The Lord restores + and brings back His people, when wandering into + forbidden places. + + Explain the next line. As the shepherd goes + before and leads his sheep by the right paths, + avoiding all dangers, so the Lord leads His + people into "the paths of righteousness". + + What does "for His name's sake" mean? He has + undertaken to guide His people safely and will + do it for the honour of His name. + + In the next section, whom is the Psalmist + addressing? He is speaking to the Lord. + + What words show that he is still using the + figure of the shepherd and the sheep? "Through + the valley"; "Thy rod and thy staff". + + What does the first line mean? Some paths that + are right paths for us to walk in still lead + through perilous places; and this is the way + the Psalmist refers to this fact in shepherd + life. + + How should we feel? The Lord accompanies us, + and we should "fear no evil". The sheep follow + the shepherd with absolute confidence, and our + attitude toward "the Good Shepherd" should be + the same. + + What words show that danger is sometimes close? + Death sometimes comes so close that it almost + seems to cast a shadow. + + What does the "rod" represent? The rod is the + sign of authority, and represents the defence + and protection afforded by the shepherd to the + sheep, when in danger from robbers or wild + beasts. + + What does the "staff" represent? The staff + denotes support and guidance, and is used for + aiding the sheep in places of need, even along + peaceful ways. The expression "Thy rod and thy + staff" covers the whole round of protecting + care. + +Here the figure is changed. In the second metaphor God is represented as +a host with the Psalmist as a guest at a banquet. + + "Thou preparest a table before me." The Lord + makes provision for man's needs. He does so + openly, publicly ("in the presence of mine + enemies"). + + In what other way does the Lord show His care + for His people? The Psalmist says: "Thou hast + anointed my head with oil." + + To what does this refer? In the East, it was + the custom to pour an ointment of great + fragrance on the heads of the guests of honour + at a feast. + + How does the Psalmist further picture the + goodness of God? He fills our "cup" till it is + overflowing. + + What is the thought in the last two lines? The + confidence of the Psalmist in the Lord, that as + He has led and guided him in the past, so His + "goodness and mercy" "shall follow" him "all + the days of his life," and he will live forever + in intimate communion with Him. + + What do you like about the selection? The + spirit of gratitude and confidence in those who + enjoy God's benefits. The nature of some of + these benefits is made plain to us by the + pictures of the "green pastures", the "still + waters", "the rod and staff", and the prepared + "table". + + + + +CHAPTER VI + +FORM III + + +HIDE AND SEEK + +(Third Reader, page 50) + + +AIM + +To lead the pupils to appreciate the exquisite music of the language and +the pathos of the story. + + +PRESENTATION + + What does the poem describe? It describes a + father's love for his son. + + There are two distinct parts. What does each + part describe? The first two stanzas describe a + game of "Hide and Seek" between the father and + the boy, and the last two, the father's intense + longing for the boy whom he has lost. + + What kind of day is described in the first + stanza? A bright and calm June day. + + What things suggest this? Sleeping trees, still + winds, wandering clouds, "noonday silence". + + What does the writer represent the trees and + the winds to be? Persons--the trees having the + ability to sleep, and the winds to move or keep + still. This is called personification. + + What are "fleecy clouds"? Clouds that are white + and downy. + + The poet speaks of them as "flocks". What is + the comparison intended? The comparison of the + clouds to flocks of white sheep that, instead + of wandering across a meadow, are wandering + across the sky. + + What does the word "wandered" suggest? That the + clouds are moving along slowly and leisurely + without any purpose in view. They are doing + this because the "winds are still". + + What is meant by saying that they "Have + wandered past the hill"? They have gone below + the horizon at the hilltop and cannot be seen. + The sky is thus clear of clouds. + + What causes "the noonday silence"? The heat of + the mid-day has silenced even the songs of the + birds. Compare Keats: + + When all the birds are faint with the hot sun + And hide in cooling trees. + + How is the silence broken? By the voice of the + little boy hunting for his father. + + What do the words of the tune he is singing + constitute? The rules of the game. The one + hiding must respond "Coo-ee" each time the one + searching calls. + + Where is his father? In a "leafy nook" in the + woods. + + What does the question "Shall I let him pass?" + seem to indicate? That his father hesitates for + a moment to reveal himself. + + What does he do, however? He gives the boy the + signal--a "low, soft whistle". He cannot "let + him pass". + + What is shown in the last long line of the + stanza? That the man enters into the spirit of + the game with the same zest as the boy. + + What feeling exists between the two? A feeling + of perfect good-fellowship and affection. + + Explain, "you're it". Your turn to hunt, mine + to hide. + + What further rules of the game are given here? + (Every boy and girl will know these.) + + What change in feeling is there between the + first two stanzas and the last two? A sudden + transition from gaiety and light-heartedness to + sorrow. + + What has happened? The boy is dead. + + Why is "Long ago" repeated? It emphasizes the + idea and adds to the pathos of the line. The + time has seemed long because of the intensity + of the father's grief. Happiness makes time + pass quickly, not so grief. + + How does the poet suggest the idea that the + game is still being continued though it is now + an inexpressibly sad one? He speaks of the boy + as having left his father as if to hide, of + his father as seeking him "high and low", of + his being safely "hidden" "in some pleasant + place", of the father as being unable to hear + his "Coo-ee". + + What is really meant by seeking him "high and + low"? The thought of his boy is ever with him. + He unconsciously looks for his face wherever he + goes. + + What is the "pleasant place"? Paradise. + + How could you describe the short lines, "Far + away", etc., down to the end of the stanza? As + the call of a broken heart to the boy. + + Where is the idea contained in "Far away" + expressed before? In "Hidden safe and happy in + some pleasant place". + + And where is the thought, "Many a day", + repeated? "Long ago he left me, long and long + ago." + + How is the father continually reminded of his + boy? By the "Birds" and "Flowers"--everything + that he loved is charged with memories of him. + + What light is thrown upon the little fellow's + interests? He loved the out-of-doors, the + things of nature. + + What ray of sunshine breaks through the clouds + of the father's grief? The conviction that his + boy "is waiting" for him till he comes. + + What is the meaning of the line, "Love may hide + itself", etc.? The little boy's love may for + the moment be hidden, but it is everlasting. + The father's love is likewise everlasting. This + is sufficient ground for believing that they + will some day be united. + +The reading of this poem by the pupils will show whether they feel its +joy, its sadness, and its hope. + + +AN APPLE ORCHARD IN THE SPRING + +(Third Reader, page 60) + + +AIM + +To lead the pupils to appreciate the beauty of an apple orchard in the +spring and the music of the language used in describing it. + + +PREPARATION + +This lesson should be taken when the apple orchards are in bloom. The +teacher should prepare the pupils for it, by asking them to observe the +blossoms, their colours and odours, the songs of the birds, and the +sounds of the streams. + + +PRESENTATION + + Read the poem describing these. What is the + main theme of the lesson? The poet tells us how + much we have missed if we have not "seen an + apple orchard in the spring". + + What is his theme in the first three stanzas? + The beauty of an apple orchard. + + What, in the last stanza? His memory of it. + + In what order does he describe the blossoms? In + the first stanza, the buds are turning white; + in the second, they are unfolding; and in the + third, the petals are dropping. + + Where does the author suppose the reader to be + standing, in the first stanza? Outside the + orchard, where it is possible to see "the + spreading trees" and all the orchard at once. + + Where, in the next two stanzas, is he supposed + to be? He is plucking the blossoms and walking + under the trees. + + What senses are appealed to in the first + stanza? Sight--"seen an apple orchard". + Hearing--"mavis sings its story". + + What senses are appealed to in the second + stanza? Touch--"plucked the apple blossoms", + "touch them a delight". Smell--"caught their + subtle odours". Sight--"Pink buds pouting at + the light", "Crumpled petals baby white". + + What senses are appealed to in the third? + Sight--"pink cascades". Hearing--"silver + brooklets brawling", "cuckoo bird soft + calling". + + Show the appropriateness of "hoary", "wealth of + promised glory", "pouting", "pink cascades", + "silver brooklets brawling", "wonder of the + spring", "precious", "tender". + + What Canadian birds could be substituted for + the mavis and the cuckoo? The robins, warblers, + and goldfinches. + +Lead the pupils to examine the arrangement of the rhythm and the +refrain, so that they will appreciate the music of the verse. Let each +pupil show his appreciation by reading the stanza he likes best. + + +LITTLE DAFFYDOWNDILLY + +(Third Reader, page 223) + +The teacher should require the pupils to read the lesson through and +then to reproduce its main incidents without any regard to their +allegorical significance. Such headings as the following might be +suggested by the pupils, and these would serve to guide in this +reproduction: + +1. Daffydowndilly's dislike of the schoolmaster + +2. His decision to run away from school + +3. His meeting with the stranger who accompanies him on his journey + +4. The haymakers + +5. The carpenters + +6. The soldiers + +7. The merry-makers + +8. His discovery of his companion's identity + +9. The lesson that he learned. + +Having thus obtained the literal meaning of the story--a matter of +little difficulty--it remains to get its deeper significance. It is +hardly probable that many pupils will be disposed to regard the story as +literally true, yet few will be likely, upon a first reading, to see the +principle that underlies it. In order to arrive at this, the teacher may +proceed as follows: + + Are there any parts of the story that strike + you as improbable? (1) The reference to Mr. + Toil's long residence upon the earth. (2) The + frequent meetings with Mr. Toil's brothers. (3) + Daffydowndilly's slowness in discovering + another brother in the person of his companion. + (4) Their travelling all day in a circle. + + If the story is literally untrue or improbable, + what object might Hawthorne have had in view in + writing it? Perhaps he wished to teach some + lesson; perhaps there is a meaning hidden + beneath the story. + + Let us discover what that hidden meaning is? + What does the name "Toil" suggest to you? Work. + + What, then, may Mr. Toil represent? Work. + + And what may his brothers represent? Different + kinds of work. + + With this idea in mind, we shall now try to + understand what each adventure really means. + How are we prepared for Daffydowndilly's + troubles with the schoolmaster and for his + later unpleasant experience? The author tells + us that he "took no delight in labour of any + kind". + + What flower did he resemble? The daffodil. The + boy's name is another form of the name of the + flower. + + In what respect is he said to resemble a + flower? He "loved to do only what was beautiful + and agreeable, and took no delight in labour of + any kind". + + Why is Mr. Toil first represented as a + schoolmaster? Because it is at school that a + boy is first introduced to real work. (This + might be given a still more extended meaning. + The school represents the preparation for our + future vocation, whether it be in the + school-room, or in an apprenticeship, or + elsewhere. This involves hard work, and hence + is, to some extent, at least, unpleasant.) + + What is meant by saying that Mr. Toil "had done + more good ... than anybody else in the world"? + Work does everybody good: (1) It keeps us out + of mischief. Criminals often become so because + of the lack of profitable employment. (2) It + improves character. The people of the best and + strongest character are those who have had to + work hard. (3) It makes the world happier. The + most miserable people are those who have + nothing to do. + + "A very worthy character." Is "character" used + in its usual sense here? It usually means what + a person really _is_. + + (Distinguish "character" and "reputation".) + + Explain what is meant by saying that "he had + dwelt upon earth ever since Adam was driven + from the garden of Eden". Ever since that time + man has had to work. God said to Adam (Genesis + iii, 19), "In the sweat of thy face shalt thou + eat bread". + + Why is Mr. Toil represented as being such a + disagreeable person? Because, to some people, + work has many unpleasant features. + + Any activity that has no compulsory elements in + it is no longer work, but play. What is the + real meaning of the paragraph describing the + schoolmaster's method of discipline? The work + of the school-room, being compulsory, and + therefore disagreeable to idle boys, becomes + exceedingly painful when long continued. + + Contrast Daffydowndilly's previous life with + his experience at school. Brought up under the + indulgence of his mother, his life had been + very pleasant. Now, introduced to real work, he + finds life very unpleasant. + + What gives us a suggestion as to the identity + of the stranger whom Daffydowndilly met on the + road? We are told that he was "trudging" "along + the road", and that his voice "seemed hard and + severe". + + Why is "trudging" a better word than "walking"? + It suggests effort, and hence work. + + How does the form of the question, "Whence do + you come so early, and whither are you going?" + harmonize with the description of the stranger? + + We are told that he had a "grave and sedate + appearance", and the somewhat stilted form of + the question is quite in harmony with this + description. + + Why had his voice "a sort of kindness in it"? + Because moderate work, such as this walking + early in the day, is not altogether + unpleasant. + + Explain "ingenuous disposition". How does + Daffydowndilly show this? + + What made his discovery of Mr. Toil among the + labourers in the hayfield so unexpected? The + circumstances and surroundings--"the sunshine", + "the blue sky", the singing birds, the fragrant + hay--were so pleasant that it was hard to see + how anything so unpleasant as work could + intrude there. + + Why is Mr. Toil recognized in the owner of the + field rather than among the labourers? In + directing the activities of the men, as well as + working himself, he is performing the most + arduous labour of all. + + Why does the stranger say the farmer is a "more + disagreeable man" than his brother, the + schoolmaster? Because the activities of farm + life are more laborious than those of the + school-room. + + What expression that takes the form of a + proverb is used in describing this incident? + "To make hay while the sun shone." + + Distinguish its meaning, as the author uses it, + from its meaning as a proverb. The author uses + it in its literal meaning. The farmer must make + the most of fine weather and sunshine in curing + ("making") his hay, for, if rain comes after it + is cut, it will be more or less injured. Used + as a proverb, the expression means that one + should seize the opportunities presented and + make the most of them. + + What does Hawthorne mean by placing a Mr. Toil + at the head of the company of soldiers? + Military movements, though very attractive to + the eye, really involve work. Soldiers find + their activities very toilsome, especially + after the novelty has worn off. + + Why is Mr. Toil placed even among the dancers? + The pursuit of pleasure soon becomes wearisome, + and hence toilsome. + + Why is the fiddler represented as a Frenchman? + France, as a whole, is reputed to be the gayest + and sprightliest of nations. + + What is meant by saying that "those who have + known him best think him still more + disagreeable than his brothers"? Those who + devote themselves entirely to the pursuit of + pleasure find it more toilsome and disagreeable + than ordinary work. People frequently say, + after a day given up to pleasure, that they are + more tired than if they had worked hard all + day. + + In which of the incidents of the story does it + seem least likely that Mr. Toil would be met + with? In the incident of the merry-makers. + + In which, most likely? The incident of the + haymakers. + + How has Hawthorne apparently arranged + Daffydowndilly's experiences? He has so + arranged them that in each successive incident + we are more surprised at meeting with Mr. Toil. + Each one seems to promise less probability of + his presence than the preceding. + + Why had Daffydowndilly not recognized his + companion before? His voice had been kind and + his manner agreeable in the early stages of the + journey. + + Interpret this as has been done in the case of + the other incidents. The early part of + Daffydowndilly's journey had been pleasant, + owing to the freedom from school and the + interesting experiences by the way. But, as the + day drew on, he gradually grew tired, and then + it was that he recognized that walking is work. + + What lesson did he learn? That he could not get + away from work. It is to be found everywhere, + in the most unexpected places, and one cannot + escape from it by changing his occupation. + + What is meant by Daffydowndilly's finding Mr. + Toil's ways more agreeable upon better + acquaintance? When he grew accustomed to his + work, he found that it was not so very + unpleasant after all; "that diligence is not a + whit more toilsome than sport or idleness". + + What is Mr. Toil's "smile of approbation"? The + consciousness of work well done. + +Tell the pupils that this story is an Allegory. They have probably read +other stories of a similar nature, and may be asked to frame a simple +definition. An Allegory is a story, not literally true, containing +incidents that have a deeper meaning than is apparent on the surface. +Its purpose is to teach some moral truth or universal principle. It +differs from the Parable in being longer and more complex. + +When the pupils reproduce the story, it will be well to adhere to the +allegorical form, and not attempt to give its significance. + + +MOONLIGHT SONATA + +(Third Reader, page 285) + + +AIM + +To lead the pupils to appreciate the importance of details in the +construction of a story. + + +PREPARATION + +The teacher will have told the pupils a few facts about Beethoven and, +if possible, will have shown them his picture. He will also have asked +them to read the lesson at home and become familiar with the story. + + +PRESENTATION + + What is the main point in the story? The + circumstances under which the musician wrote + the "Moonlight Sonata". + + What is a sonata? It is a musical composition + which consists of movements fast or slow, sad + or playful, according to the varying mood of + the composer. + + Where was the scene? In Bonn in Prussia. + + When? On a moonlight winter's evening. + + Who were the two persons? Beethoven and the + writer. + + Notice that these three important facts are all + told briefly at the beginning. + + Why had the writer called on the musician? He + wished to take him for a walk and afterwards + take him home with him to supper. + + Had he any reason except the desire for + Beethoven's company? Yes, Beethoven's health + was not good, his hearing was becoming + impaired, and the writer evidently thought he + needed rest and recreation. These circumstances + led to an important result. + + What happened next? In passing through a narrow + street, Beethoven heard some one playing his + "Sonata in F". + + What were his feelings? Surprise to hear it in + such a place and delight at the excellence of + the playing. + + How did he show his feelings? By exclamations, + questions, and short sentences. + + What is told in the next three paragraphs? They + describe a conversation. + + Who are speaking? A brother and sister. + + What are they saying? The sister is lamenting + that she cannot "go to the concert at Cologne" + and her brother reminds her of their poverty. + Then she wishes that "for once in her life" she + "could hear some really good music". + + What happens next? Beethoven decides to enter + the house. + + How does the writer impress this fact on the + reader? By giving the argument between himself + and Beethoven. + + What were the latter's reasons? The player had + "feeling, genius, understanding", and these + qualities are so rarely found that Beethoven + could not neglect them. + + Explain these terms. The player showed refined + feeling in her interpretation of the music, + genius in her skill on the piano, and thorough + understanding of the composer's purposes in the + composition. + + Was it only for his own pleasure that the + composer entered? No, he wished to give + pleasure to one who could so well appreciate + his work. + + Describe the scene. A young shoemaker is seated + at his work. He is pale from the effects of + confinement and toil. A young girl with an + abundance of light hair is leaning on an + "old-fashioned piano". + + What does this piano show? That their parents + had very probably been lovers of music, and the + piano may have been an heirloom. + + What comes next? The musician explains the + reasons for his intrusion. + + How did the brother look upon it? The young man + seemed annoyed at first. + + How was this annoyance overcome? The manner of + Beethoven was so comical and pleasant that the + young man's annoyance passed away. + + How had Beethoven addressed the brother and + sister? His manner was very confused. He wished + to conceal his name, and yet wished to give + pleasure to the young girl. + + How does he show his confusion? The sentences + "I, I also ... play for you", are such halting + ones. He does not make his sentences complete. + + What was the next part of the conversation? The + young man tells Beethoven that the "piano is so + wretched" and they "have no music". + + What is the purpose of this statement in the + story? It shows Beethoven that the young girl + is blind and plays these difficult compositions + by ear. + + How had she learned to play this Sonata? She + had heard a lady "practising" it, and "walked + to and fro" in front of the house in order "to + listen to it". + + What does this show? What a love of music and + wonderful natural ability the young girl + possessed. + + What is the next action in the story? Beethoven + plays. + + Why did he play better than he had often done + before large audiences? He realized how greatly + his work was appreciated; and he was deeply + touched by the thought of the young girl's + blindness, her poverty, her skill, and her + passion for good music. + + What trifling occurrence now affects the story? + The last candle in the house burned out, so the + writer opened the shutters and admitted "a + flood of brilliant moonlight". + + What effect had this upon the composer? It + changed the current of his thoughts and + feelings. + + How did he appear? "His head dropped upon his + breast", and "his hands rested upon his knees". + + What is the next action? The young shoemaker + asks Beethoven who he is. + + What did the composer answer? "He played the + opening bars of the Sonata in F." This revealed + his name. The writer says that the young people + "covered his hands with tears and kisses". + + What were their feelings? Their actions were + expressions of their affection and admiration. + + What takes place next? The brother and sister + beseech him to play "once more". + + What description is given here? Beethoven's + appearance in the moonlight. + + Describe him. He was very "massive" in size, + his head was large and his features strong, and + the light from the moon encircled his head. + (Produce a picture, if possible, of Beethoven.) + + Did he agree to play again? Yes, he said he + would "improvise a Sonata to the Moonlight". + + What does "improvise" mean? He would compose + the music as he played. + + Had this any relation to what goes before? Yes, + the writer has told us how thoughtful he had + been when the moonlight first streamed into the + room. Now he is going to express his thoughts + and feelings through the tones of the piano. + + We said at the beginning that a Sonata was a + musical composition consisting of various + movements. What are the movements? In this case + there is first, "a sad and infinitely lovely + movement", then, "a wild, elfin passage in + triple time", and lastly, "a breathless, + hurrying, trembling" close. + + Let us examine this description of the + "Moonlight Sonata" more closely. What did the + moonlight suggest to Beethoven? "Spirits" + dancing in the moonlight. + + What does the first movement suggest? The + "moonlight" flowing "over the dark earth". + + What does the second movement suggest? The wild + dance of the "spirits on the lawn". + + What does the last suggest? "Flight", + "uncertainty", "impulsive terror". + + What was the effect upon the listeners? They + were left in a state of "wonder" and + "emotion". + + What musical terms are used to describe this + music? _Interlude_, _triple time_, _agitato + finale_. + + Explain them. _Interlude_ is a piece of music + played between the main parts. _Triple time_ is + time, or rhythm, of three beats, or of three + times three beats in a bar. + + Give an example of triple time. It denotes + sprightliness, as in the waltz. The _agitato + finale_ means the close of the passage with a + hurrying movement. + + What takes place next? Beethoven rose quickly, + promised to come again, and hurried away. + + Why did he hurry? He wished to write out the + "Sonata" while it was still fresh in his mind. + + What does the last short paragraph state? It + tells that this was the origin of the + "Moonlight Sonata". + + Where is the theme of the whole lesson found? + In the last sentence. + + What has the writer told us? He has given us + all the circumstances which combined to inspire + Beethoven to compose this great work. + +RECAPITULATION + + Now let us review the story and collect these + details. What are they? The time, place, the + persons going for a walk, the narrow street, + the wonderful playing, the conversation, the + appearance of the young people, the blindness + of the girl, her eagerness to hear "good + music", the moonlight admitted, the recognition + of Beethoven. + + Yes, all these things had a combined effect + upon the musician. If he had gone straight to + supper, there would probably not have been a + "Moonlight Sonata". This lesson illustrates how + time, place, persons, and action are arranged + to produce a well-told story. + + +LEAD, KINDLY LIGHT + +(Third Reader, page 315) + + +AIM + +To aid in the culture of a sensitive response to the spirit and language +of the prayer. + + +PREPARATION + +The teacher should talk with the pupils about a journey through the +darkness, over dangerous bogs, swollen streams, and beside precipices. + + +PRESENTATION + + Read the poem. In what form is this lesson? A + prayer. + + What is the prayer? The traveller asks for the + guidance of the Holy Spirit. See notes on this + lesson in the Manual on _The Ontario Readers_, + pp. 166-7. + + Describe his journey. "The night is dark", he + is "far from home", he trusts to the light + shining through the darkness to keep his feet + from stumbling; he does not trouble himself + about what lies far before him, he attends only + to his footsteps one by one. He feels he can + pass safely over the "moor", the "fen", the + "crag", and the "torrent", by trusting to the + guidance of the light. With the dawning of the + day will come the reunion with his loved ones + from whom he has been separated. + + Explain the symbolism employed here. The poet + speaks of himself as going through life like a + traveller on a long journey, wherein he is + constantly met by trials and temptations and + cannot always know what is the right course to + take. He acknowledges that he needs some + stronger power than his own to direct his life + and asks for the guidance of the Holy Spirit, + content to trust himself to His leading in any + dangers and difficulties that may arise in this + life, and secure in the knowledge that "with + the morn" he shall see once more those whom he + has "loved" and "lost awhile". + + What is the main thought of the first stanza? + The traveller prays for guidance. + + Of the second stanza? He states that he has not + always been willing to ask for guidance, but + had relied on his own reason. + + Of the third stanza? He expresses his belief in + the power and willingness of God to guide him + aright. + + What is the relation of the second stanza to + the first one? It contrasts the poet's earlier + attitude of mind toward God with that of later + years, thus emphasizing the change that has + taken place in his life. + + Is the poet stronger in the second case than in + the first? No; in the first, his ideal is + higher and his humility greater, as he relies + absolutely on the guidance of the Holy Spirit. + In the second, relying only on his own + reasoning powers to guide him, he made many + humiliating failures. + + Image the "moor", the "fen", the "crag", the + "torrent", and "with the morn". + + +RECAPITULATION + +Summarize the main thoughts and lead the pupils to bring out clearly the +comparison between the traveller and the poet. + +Give a brief account of the author's life. + + + + +LEAD, KINDLY LIGHT + +(Third Reader, page 315) + + +AIM + +To aid in the culture of a sensitive response to the spirit and language +of the prayer. + + +TREATMENT + +The teacher should read the poem aloud, to awaken respect for the deep +humility, complete open-mindedness, and growing faith of the poet. + + What may this poem be called? A prayer for + guidance. + + +Stanza I + + What are the poet's feelings? He feels very + much depressed in spirit, as a traveller would + who was far from home and alone in the + gathering darkness. + + Whom does he address as "Kindly Light"? Why + does he use the term "Light"? He may remember + that our Saviour called Himself "the Light of + the world", and it is as his "Light" or Guide + that the traveller feels his need of Him. He + may be thinking of the Pillar of Fire and the + Pillar of Cloud. + + What image is suggested by the words "Lead, + kindly Light"? It suggests something that has + life (moves on before), and sheds a beneficent + light on the travellers' path. + + What is meant by the "gloom"? It means the + condition of his mind. He is seeking Truth and + feels that he cannot rely on reason alone to + guide him. + + What do the last two lines show about him? They + show that he is humble and is content to be + guided through the darkness "one step" at a + time. + +Stanza II + + What more do we learn about his life in the + second stanza? In what language is his former + "pride" contrasted with his present humility? + What is the meaning of "garish"? What part of + his life is called "the garish day"? Why is it + so called? + +NOTE.--"Garish" means dazzling, and by "garish day" is meant the earlier +care-free years when life seemed all brightness and the author felt +perfectly certain of his ability to take care of himself. + + What at times disturbed his life, even in those + "past years"? What made him hide these fears? + What is meant by saying "Pride ruled my will"? + What now is his prayer concerning these years? + Why does he want them put out of remembrance? + + What is the relation of the second stanza to + the first one? It contrasts the author's + earlier attitude of mind toward God with what + it is in later years, thus emphasizing the + great change that has taken place in his life. + + Compare the dependence depicted in the first + stanza with the strength described in the + second. In which case is the man really the + stronger? Account for the fact that when he was + strong, but not in his own strength, he really + felt his weakness more than when he was weak. + +NOTE.--The higher his ideal, the smaller he sees himself; and the lower +his ideal, the larger he sees himself. Observe also how the prayer to be +led "on" reveals the man's progressive spirit. The unprogressive man +would pray simply for safety and protection. + +Stanza III + + What lesson does the poet learn from the "past + years"? What confidence does this lesson give + him for the future? What phases of experiences + of life are suggested by "moor", "fen", "crag", + and "torrent"? + +NOTE.--To answer this, there should be an effort to image a moor, a fen, +a crag, or a torrent clearly. Then when the pupil sees the desolate, +lonesome moor; the miry, almost impassable fen; the sharp, out-jutting +crag which makes the ascent more forbidding and difficult; and the +rushing, unbridged torrent which must be forded or breasted, even though +it threatens destruction; it should be easy to relate these to the +experiences in life which they typify, or represent. + + How long does the poet believe this guidance + will last? In what words does he say that it + will last as long as it will be needed? What + does he mean by "the night"? Beyond "the + night", what vision does he see? Whose are + "those angel faces"? + + What is the relation of the third stanza to the + second? It shows how the author's confidence in + the Divine guidance to be granted him during + future years is strengthened by the lessons + learned in former years. + +The teacher should again read the poem aloud. This will impress upon the +pupils, not only the truth and beauty of the poem, but also furnish an +ideal to stimulate them in their preparation for the reading lesson +which is to follow. + + + + +CHAPTER VII + +FORM IV + + +JUDAH'S SUPPLICATION TO JOSEPH + +(Fourth Reader, page 51) + +INTRODUCTION + +Review briefly the Scriptural account of Joseph's life, and particularly +the story of the visits of his brethren to Egypt to buy corn. Note +especially the following points: + +1. The famine in the land of Canaan; the first visit of Joseph's +brothers to Egypt; their interview with Joseph; the detention of Simeon; +Joseph's demand that Benjamin be brought down. + +2. The return to Canaan; Jacob's refusal to let Benjamin go down into +Egypt; Judah's becoming surety for his safe return. + +3. The second visit of Joseph's brethren to Egypt, this time with +Benjamin; their entertainment by Joseph; their homeward journey; the +discovery of the silver cup in Benjamin's sack; their return to Joseph. + +GENERAL ANALYSIS + +After the selection has been read, the teacher should proceed by some +such method as the following: + + With what does the passage deal? Judah's + entreaty to Joseph for Benjamin's safe return + to his father, and the effect it produced. + + Into how many parts is the selection naturally + divided? Into three parts, corresponding to the + paragraphs as given in the Reader. + + What is the principal idea in each part? + + 1. Joseph's decision to keep the offender as a + bondman. (Paragraph I) + + 2. Judah's supplication to Joseph that Benjamin + be permitted to return for his father's sake. + (Paragraph II) + + 3. Joseph's revelation of his identity, and the + provision he makes for the maintenance of his + kindred. (Paragraph III) + +DETAILED ANALYSIS + +Paragraph I + + Why did Joseph's brethren fall "before him on + the ground"? Prostration is the Eastern mode of + signifying profound respect, complete + submission. + + What is the meaning of "divine"? In this sense, + to look into the future; to see what is hidden + from ordinary people. + + Does Joseph claim explicitly to have this + ability? No, he merely suggests it, probably to + impress them with the idea of his power. + + What does Judah mean by "the iniquity of thy + servants"? Doubtless he has in mind the wrong + that they committed years before, in selling + Joseph to the Ishmaelites and deceiving their + father. Verses 21 and 22 of the 42nd chapter of + Genesis go to show that the consciousness of + this sin was ever before them. + + What was Judah's attitude toward the accusation + brought against them? He frankly confesses the + guilt of all--not of Benjamin only. + + Why do you think he adopts this attitude, when + he must have been sure that all were guiltless? + He perhaps believes that they are victims of a + conspiracy, the object of which is to place + them in the power of this Egyptian governor, + and he thinks that this submissive attitude is + best calculated to secure mercy at his hands. + + How do you account for Joseph's apparent desire + to keep Benjamin in Egypt, with himself? + Probably he thinks this the best means of + inducing his father, Jacob, to come to Egypt. + However, he may not really intend to keep + Benjamin at all. He may be making the threat + only to test Judah. It may be remembered that + it was Judah who had counselled the selling of + Joseph years before. Joseph may now be trying + to see if Judah is the same kind of man he was + when the selling into Egypt took place--whether + he will sacrifice Benjamin in this extremity as + he sacrificed Joseph himself. + + If the latter is Joseph's object, how does the + experiment succeed? It proves that Judah is a + different man, that the years that have elapsed + have produced a remarkable change in his + character. + +Paragraph II + + Of what does Judah's entreaty largely consist? + Of a recital of the governor's orders and of + Jacob's attachment to Benjamin, the son in whom + all the thoughts, hopes, and desires of his old + age are centred. + + Upon what does Judah lay the greatest emphasis? + Upon the effect that Benjamin's detention will + have upon his father. Evidently the brothers + are very anxious to spare their father any + unnecessary grief and pain. + + For what purpose is the whole speech specially + adapted? To stir the emotions. It is suited to + appeal to the feelings of anybody, but, + particularly, to the feelings of Egypt's + governor, though his identity is still unknown. + + Which are the most pathetic sentences? The two + beginning with, "And we said unto my lord, We + have a father, an old man", and "Now, + therefore, when I come to thy servant, my + father, and the lad be not with us". + + What features of the speech would make the + strongest appeal to Joseph? The reference to + his father's old age and his attachment to + Benjamin; his belief in Joseph's untimely end; + the blow that separation from Benjamin would + involve; Judah's willingness to sacrifice + himself. + + What light does the speech throw upon Judah's + character? It shows a capacity for intense + feeling, a deep devotion to his father, and a + spirit of self-sacrifice. It might indicate + also a shrewd knowledge of human nature, for he + apparently knows how to present the case in the + most effective manner. + + What is the meaning of "thou art even as + Pharaoh"? Thou art as mighty as the king of + Egypt. + + Explain "thy servant became surety for the lad + unto my father". Judah had given Jacob a + guarantee that Benjamin should return safely. + + Select any figurative expression and give its + meaning. "Thy servants shall bring down the + gray hairs of thy servant our father with + sorrow to the grave." The blow which separation + from Benjamin would involve will cause the aged + father to die of a broken heart. + + What are the main characteristics of the + supplication? The language is simple and + direct, the feeling is of the loftiest + character, and the whole speech is highly + eloquent. If the test of true eloquence is the + intensity of the appeal it makes to worthy + emotions, this passage may well be regarded as + one of the most eloquent in all literature. + +Paragraph III + + Did Joseph purposely select this as the most + fitting moment to reveal himself? No. He + revealed himself because he could not help it + and because Judah's appeal had so worked upon + his feelings. The first sentence of the + paragraph indicates this. + + Why did he send every man away except his + brothers? He did not wish others to see his own + lack of self-control or his brothers' shame and + embarrassment. Moreover, it was a solemn + situation, too sacred for vulgar eyes to gaze + upon. + + We are told that he "wept aloud", that "he fell + upon his brother Benjamin's neck, and wept", + that "he kissed all his brethren", etc. Is he + unduly demonstrative? Eastern people are much + more emotional and demonstrative than Western + people. + + Why did he have to repeat his assurance that he + was Joseph? The first announcement was so + amazing that it seemed incredible to them. + Moreover, all his previous communications had + been through an interpreter and, no doubt, + their amazement was increased by hearing him + address them in their own tongue. + + Upon what ground did Joseph tell his brothers + that they should not blame themselves for + selling him into Egypt? Upon the ground that + God had brought good out of the evil they had + done. + + Is he quite right in telling them that they + should not be grieved for the wrong they did + him? They were free agents; God did not will + that they should sin, though He brought good + out of it. From this point of view Joseph is + wrong. But he doubtless sees that his brothers + have long ago repented their action and does + not wish them to continue to blame themselves. + His assurance is no doubt prompted by a noble + generosity induced, to some extent, by Judah's + appeal. + + What seems to be Joseph's dominating motive? + His love for his father. His repeated + references to him show this. + + We can understand his desire to provide for his + father and Benjamin, but why for his brothers + who had wronged him? Partly for his father's + sake, perhaps. It was natural, in those + patriarchal days, that Jacob, if he migrated to + Egypt, should wish his family to do the same. + Besides, Joseph sees that his brothers are + changed men. + + What inducements does he hold out to them? He + shows them that his own power in Egypt is + sufficient to protect them; he promises them + the fertile land of Goshen, with sufficient + food for themselves and their flocks and herds; + and he points out that five years of famine are + yet to be in the land, and that they must + inevitably suffer if the invitation is + rejected. + + Joseph frequently draws attention to his power + in Egypt. Is he at all vain-glorious? No, he + does this to assure his brothers that the wrong + done him years before has had, through the + goodness of God, a beneficent result; to show + them that it has not been all suffering in his + long exile; and to induce his father to come + down to Egypt. + + "After that his brethren talked with him." + About what would they probably talk? No doubt + Joseph would ask many things about what had + occurred in Canaan since he left, and would + give his brothers an account of his own + experiences in Egypt. + + Does it not seem strange that Joseph, during + all these years, should never have taken + measures to find out how his kindred fared, or + to assure them that he was still alive? He was + probably ever looking forward to such a + situation as this, confident that the dreams of + his boyhood would still be realized. It was, + perhaps, this belief in the ultimate fulfilment + of his dreams that had kept him silent during + these years. + + What qualities of character does Joseph show in + his speech? A spirit of noble generosity and + forgiveness, filial devotion, and a desire to + find good in the midst of seeming evil. + + Point out passages that indicate these + qualities. What admirable characteristics does + the whole selection exhibit? Simplicity, + directness, and eloquence of language, noble + emotion, loftiness of character, and high + ideals. + +As a final synthesis of the lesson, let the pupils tell the story in +their own words, preserving, as far as possible, the same order of ideas +as is followed in the extract. This will reveal to the teacher whether +they have grasped the ideas in their proper relationship. + + +MERCY + +(Fourth Reader, page 89) + +THE SETTING OF THE SELECTION + +This selection is taken from Shakespeare's play _The Merchant of +Venice_, iv. i. In this play, Shylock, a Jew of Venice, had loaned +Antonio three thousand ducats, repayable on a certain date without +interest, but if not so paid, Antonio was to forfeit a pound of flesh +from such part of his body as pleased the Jew. Antonio, not being able +to pay the money as agreed, Shylock sued for the fulfilment of the bond, +and in court refused to accept even three times the amount borrowed, +insisting on a pound of the merchant's flesh. According to the law, +there appeared to be no help for Antonio, but the judge, Portia, asked +Shylock to show mercy. To this he answered, "On what compulsion must I? +Tell me that." This selection is part of Portia's reply to Shylock's +question. The teacher should relate to the pupils the outline given +above. + +ANALYSIS OF THE THOUGHT + + 1. The qualities of mercy: + + (1) It is not forced. + (2) It is gentle. + (3) It carries a twofold blessing. + (4) It is the most powerful attribute in men of might. + (5) It is divine in its nature. + + 2. Where mercy is found: + + (1) It is found "enthroned in the hearts of kings". + (2) It is found as a Divine attribute. + + 3. The results of showing mercy: + + (1) It adds strength to strength. + (2) It makes man God-like. + + Question, in order to develop the analysis of + the thought, and write on the board the topics, + as given by the pupils. + +THE DIFFICULTIES + + Quality of mercy. The nature of mercy is not + strained, is not forced. When the Jew asks + "Upon what compulsion must I?", Portia answers + that compulsion has nothing to do with mercy. + It is not in the nature of mercy to be a result + of compulsion. + + Mightiest in the mightiest. This is capable of + a double interpretation--(1) the quality of + mercy in a man of great power must be strong in + proportion as his power is great. (2) Mercy is + at its greatest when exhibited by the greatest. + Portia would wish to convey the first meaning, + as that would have the more weight with + Shylock. + + Becomes the throned monarch. The possession of + this quality makes a man more truly kingly than + the mere wearing of a crown. + + Sceptre. The symbol of the monarch's authority. + + Temporal power. Power which belongs to this + world only. + + Mercy--is enthroned in the hearts of kings. The + "hearts of kings" are for mercy what the throne + itself is for a king--the most exalted position + he can occupy. + + Mercy seasons justice. Mercy tempers justice, + rendering it less severe and making it more + acceptable and pleasing. + + Develop the meaning through Illustration, when + possible. For example, to teach the meaning of + "seasons" in "mercy seasons justice", lead the + pupils to use the word seasons in such + sentences as: We season our food with spices. + Lead, from the meaning in common or familiar + use, to its use in the lesson. Avoid mere + dictionary meanings of words. Teach the use of + the word where it is found, never one of its + meanings apart from its use. + +THE ARGUMENT + + There is no compulsion in mercy. Its course is + always from the higher to the lower. It is a + blessing to both giver and receiver. The + greater the mercy shown, the greater will be + the giver. To show mercy does more to make a + monarch kingly than does his crown. The one + stands for the exercise of authority and power + commanding obedience and awe; the other comes + from the heart and reveals the character. It is + more than kingly, it is God-like; for in + exercising it, man's power becomes more like + God's than in any other way. + + Develop the above argument by questioning. Sum + up the result by requiring the whole argument + to be given by a pupil orally in his own + language. Finally, require the pupils to write, + as forcibly as they can, the whole of Portia's + argument. + + The remainder of Portia's speech as given in + the play may also be given to the pupils. In + that case, the remainder of the argument should + be given as follows: + + You demand justice, Jew. Even so, require it as + you hope Heaven may require it of you. Consider + that mercy is necessary to salvation, and + remember that, as we all pray for mercy, that + fact itself requires us all to show the deeds + of mercy. + + The speech containing this part of the argument + is as follows: + + Therefore, Jew, + Though justice be thy plea, consider this, + That, in the course of justice, none of us + Should see salvation: We do pray for mercy; + And that same prayer doth teach us all to render + The deeds of mercy. + + "We do pray for mercy", refers to the general + prayer of humanity for mercy. To have limited + its reference to the petition for mercy in the + Lord's Prayer would have weakened its force to + the Jew. + + +MORNING ON THE LIEVRE + +(Fourth Reader, page 228) + +ASSIGNMENT + +1. The teacher should explain to the pupils that the Lievre River +(pronounced Lee-eh-vr) runs through a deep gorge in the height of land +on the Quebec side of the Ottawa River, into which it flows not far from +the Capital. In some places, the banks of the Lievre rise abruptly to a +great height; at others more gradually, the slope being covered with a +thick forest growth. As the river nears the Ottawa, the banks become +much lower. The scenery, whether viewed from the height above or from +the river below, is very beautiful. + +2. The teacher should ask a few questions which can be answered easily +from the pupil's own reading of the poem, for example: + +From what position does the author first view the scene? What things in +the scene appeal to each of the pupils as the most beautiful? Describe +the incident mentioned in the last stanza. State in a single sentence +the subject-matter of the whole poem. + + +TREATMENT + +The pupils' answers to the questions given when the lesson was assigned +should be dealt with first. + +Stanza I + + What first attracts the author's attention as + he looks upward? What makes us feel how high up + the banks the mist extends? What part of the + mist appears most beautiful? Why? To what is it + compared? How does this comparison affect our + impression of (1) the colour of the mist; (2) + the height of the mist? Does the comparison + make the meaning clearer? Is the comparison + apt? Is it beautiful? + +NOTE.--When a blacksmith cools the red-hot iron in a tub of water, +vapour rises to the roof of his shop. The blaze from his forge shining +on this mist produces the colours mentioned. The amethyst is a precious +stone, clear and translucent, with a colour inclining to purple. The +presence of coal dust or smoke in the vapour would help to produce the +colour of amethyst. The same effect would result, if some smoke or dust +were mingled with the mist where the sun's rays reach it at the top of +the gorge. + + "Screams his matins to the day." What is meant? + What idea does the author wish to convey by + this mention of the bird? Out of hearing "of + the clang of his hammer" gives a strong + impression of the great height of the gorge. Of + what "giant" are we made to think? What is + meant by "skirts of mist"? + +The teacher's reading of this stanza, a part at a time, if it is taken +up in that way, or all at once, should aid much in impressing upon the +minds of the pupils the wonderful beauty of the scene described, and +this is the main purpose of the lesson. + +Stanza II + + The author is paddling down the river. Describe + the movement. What shows that the mist has + risen from the surface of the water? What + indicates the calmness of the river? What + things connected with himself does the author + show to be in harmony with the scene? How does + he indicate the harmony in each of the + following: The motion of his canoe, the surface + of the water, his own activity, the force of + gravity, the character of the morning, and the + forest life? We should expect him to dip his + paddle very quietly, if he felt the calmness of + the morning, but to show that the "silence" + pervades all nature, the very drops of water + from the paddle blades seem to fall gently, in + sympathy with the spirit of silence reigning + all around. What are the "river reaches"? The + reach is the stretch of the river between two + bends. How are they "borne in a mirror"? The + high cliff-like banks are mirrored in the + surface of the water. Explain the colour + "purple gray". It is the colour of the image of + the banks in the water. What is meant by "sheer + away"? It means that the "river reaches" curve + away like a winding road. Try to see the + picture of the winding river, apparently + growing smaller as it passes curve after curve. + As it seems to recede into the distance, the + surface of the river forms a "misty line of + light", just before it melts into the shadows + of the forest. Where do the forest and the + stream seem to meet? What does the word + "plight" suggest about their meeting? What + suggests a meeting-place out of sight? Why is + the meeting represented as taking place in the + shadow? Now what is described in the second + stanza? + + "As a cloud", "like a dream". Do these make the + meaning clearer? Explain. Are these comparisons + apt? Show the fitness of "silvery", "crystal + deep", "asleep". + + +Stanza III + + As the author goes farther and farther down the + stream, the river runs more slowly. How is this + shown? What shows that the little creek runs + very slowly into the river? How does the author + say the creek is winding? Why would not the + same word "curling" do to show that the river + was winding through the gorge? What are we told + about the mouth of the creek? See those sunken + wrecks down in the water. What are they like? + What shows you that they are very large tree + trunks? What starts the ducks? See them as they + rise out of the water. Make a drawing to show + their position. The drawing should show them + flying in the shape of a horizontal letter V, + as wild ducks fly. What words show you that + they keep this position unbroken? Hear them as + they fly off at their utmost speed. Why such + haste? What makes the "swivelling whistle"? + This is the noise they make as they fly. + Imagine a whistle to be set whirling around as + it whistles. The change in the sound due to the + whirling motion of the whistle might be called + a swivelling whistle. See them go, led through + the shadow. Hear them, as they disappear behind + a rocky point ahead. What is meant by their + "whirr"? What has made us forget all about the + beauty of the silent morning? What effect did + this silence probably have on the poet's + judgment of the noise made by the ducks? Now + what is described in the third stanza? + + Consider the fitness of the words "lazy", + "sucks", "bleeds", "sneak", "swept", "splashy". + + +SYNTHESIS OF THE WHOLE BY CORRELATING THE LESSON WITH ART + + 1. Make a sketch of the scene in the first + stanza, showing the rocky, high, forest-covered + banks, with mist rising along the slopes, and + the man in a canoe on a small stream below. + + 2. Make a sketch of the scene described in the + second stanza, showing the winding river, with + its high banks appearing to meet in the + distance, the man in his canoe in the + foreground, and over all the dim light of early + morning. + + 3. Make a sketch of the ducks rising from the + water. Show the reeds at the mouth of the creek + and the rocky spur toward which the birds are + heading. + +THE LIFE OF THE AUTHOR + + As it is not necessary to know anything about + the author to fully understand this poem, + nothing should be said about his life until the + pupils become interested in him through their + interest in what he has written. Then teach the + main points in his life. See sketch of his + life, at the back of the Manual on _The Ontario + Readers_. + + +DICKENS IN THE CAMP + +(Fourth Reader, page 287) + +INTRODUCTION + +By way of introduction, it might be well to tell the pupils something of +Bret Harte--his residence in California, his experience as a prospector +in the goldfields, his stories of the mining camps, and his admiration +of Dickens. (See Manual on _The Ontario Readers_, p. 315.) These facts +throw considerable light upon the poem, and will be useful in aiding the +pupils to interpret it properly. This poem was written shortly after the +death of Dickens. It might well follow the study of _David Copperfield's +First Journey Alone_ and _The Indignation of Nicholas Nickleby_. + + +PREPARATION + +When the poem has been read, the teacher should, before beginning the +analysis, ask a few general questions, such as: + + What has Dickens to do with the story related + in the poem? He was the author of the book read + in the camp, _Old Curiosity Shop_, of which + "Nell" is the heroine. (A brief outline of the + story, with special reference to the feelings + it arouses in the reader, might be given here.) + + What kind of camp is referred to in the poem? A + mining camp. The last line of the second stanza + suggests this. + + Where is the scene laid? Apparently in + California, among the Sierra Nevada Mountains. + This is indicated in the first stanza. + + What is the leading idea of the poem? The + effect which the reading of a story by Dickens + produced in a Western mining camp. + + What are the main sub-topics? + + 1. The scene of the incident. Stanzas I-III. + 2. The reading of the story. Stanzas IV-VII. + 3. A lament for the death of Dickens. Stanzas VIII-X. + +MINUTE ANALYSIS + +Stanza I + + How does the description of the scene, as given + in stanza I, differ from that given in stanza + II? Stanza I gives the background and the + remote surroundings, while stanza II places us + in the midst of the camp. + + What features give the story a romantic + setting? The stately "pines", the singing + "river", the "slowly drifting moon", the + snow-capped mountains. + + From the description in the first stanza, give + as clear a picture of the location of the camp + as possible. It was situated on the edge of a + canyon in the Sierras, towering pines rising + round about, the river flowing noisily beneath, + and the mountains uplifting their snow-covered + peaks in the distance. + + Explain the comparison suggested in the last + two lines. The mountain summits, with their + everlasting snows, resemble in the distance the + minarets, or lofty tapering towers, attached to + Mohammedan mosques. + + Which is preferable, "minarets of snow", or + "snow-covered peaks"? The former, because it is + a more unusual expression and because of what + it suggests. + +Stanza II + + Why is the camp-fire represented as a rude + humorist? It causes faces and forms that are + haggard and care-worn to appear fresh and + healthy, thus playing a grim jest upon those + gathered round it. + + Explain the significance of "fierce" in the + last line. In the mad rush for gold, all the + worst elements of man's nature are brought to + the surface--disregard for the rights of + others, contempt for law and order, and even + carelessness with regard to human life. + + Consider the fitness of the words "rude", + "painted", "race", as used here. + +Stanza III + + What indicates the value that the owner places + upon this book? The words "treasure" and + "hoarded" suggest that it is one of his most + highly prized possessions. + + What suggests that this is not the first time + the story has been read in camp? The word + "anew". + + How does the poet indicate the absorbing + interest that the story has for these men? He + says the fascination is so great as to draw the + attention of these rough miners even from their + card-playing. Explain "listless leisure". + +Stanza IV + + Explain "the firelight fell". The fire + gradually died down, because, absorbed in their + interest in the story, the miners forgot to put + on fresh fuel. + + Why is Dickens called the "Master"? A master is + one who attains the highest degree of skill in + some art. Dickens was master of the art of + story-telling, a master of vivid narration, a + master of pathos and humour. + + +Stanzas V and VI + + Is there anything in these stanzas which might + throw light upon the identity of the reader? He + is probably the poet himself. His familiarity + with the fancies of the reader seem to indicate + this. Besides, the reader is kept very much in + the background--we are told only that he was + young--and this seems to be in keeping with the + modesty of the poet as shown elsewhere in the + poem. At any rate, we must admit that the + reader was a poet, for he indulges in fancies + of a highly poetical nature. + + What are those fancies? Such is the absorbing + interest of the story that even the pines and + cedars seem to stand silent to listen, and the + fir trees gather closer in order that nothing + may escape their hearing. + + What is the poetic element in these fancies? + Ascribing to inanimate objects the power of + human interest and sympathy. + + What effect does the poet secure by picturing + the trees as listeners? It enhances our idea of + the absorbing interest of the story. + + Mention any other illustrations of a poet's use + of this device of attributing human sympathies + to inanimate objects. Many might be given, for + example: + + Byron's _Waterloo_: + + And Ardennes waves above them her green leaves, + Dewy with Nature's tear-drops, as they pass, + Grieving, if aught inanimate e'er grieves, + Over the unreturning brave. + + Longfellow's _Evangeline_ describing the song + of the mocking-bird: + + Shook from his little throat such floods of delirious music, + That the whole air and the woods and waves seemed silent to listen. + + Mrs. Hemans' _The Landing of the Pilgrim + Fathers_: + + Amidst the storm they sang, and the stars heard, and the sea. + + What experience of "Nell" is alluded to in the + last two lines of stanza V? She and her + grandfather had been lost on their journey from + London. + + Why does the poet say that the whole camp "lost + their way" with "Nell" on English meadows? The + narrative was so vivid that the miners, in + spirit, accompanied her in her wanderings. + + +Stanza VII + + What is meant by "Their cares dropped from + them"? They forgot themselves, their cares and + privations, and realized the hopes and fears, + the joys and sorrows of "Little Nell". + + How was this result brought about? It was due + to the fascination of the story. + + To what does the poet compare this? To some + "spell divine", some supernatural influence, + which causes their own troubles to disappear + for the time being. + + Give, then, the meaning of "o'ertaken as by + some spell divine". They are brought, as it + were, under the influence of some magician, + who, by the exercise of his power, transports + them from their own world to that in which + "Nell" lives and moves. + + Show the beauty of the comparison in the last + two lines of this stanza. As the needles of the + pine, through the action of the wind, fall + silently and almost unperceived, so the cares + of the miners were forgotten in the + all-compelling interest of the story. + + Compare Longfellow: + + The cares that infest the day + Shall fold their tents like the Arabs, + And as silently steal away. + + Why is this comparison more appropriate than, + for example, like the leaves from the trees in + autumn, or, like snow-flakes from the clouds in + winter? Because it is drawn from the objects at + hand, not from more remote things--an example + of local colour. + + Explain "gusty pine". A pine exposed to the + mountain blasts. + + +Stanza VIII + + Who is referred to by "he" in the second line? + Dickens--not the reader of the story. + + What is meant by "wrought that spell"? Produced + that magic influence. + + State the question in full. Is "he who wrought + that spell" lost, too? + + What tale has the "towering pine" to tell? That + the mining camp has disappeared. + + And what the "stately Kentish spire"? That + Dickens has gone. (Dickens' home was at + Gadshill, in Kent.) + + What is the one tale that both have to tell? A + tale of disappearance and death. + + Is the question asked in the second line + answered? Not directly, though the answer is + implied. + + State the substantial meaning of the stanza. + The "towering pine" of the Sierras tells of the + disappearance of the mining camp; the "stately + spire" of Kent tells of the death of Dickens; + both bear witness to the potent influence of + Dickens. + +Stanza IX + + What is the "fragrant story" of the Western + mining camp? The tribute that the incident + related in the poem pays to the magical power + of Dickens as a story writer. + + Why is it called a "fragrant story"? The author + poetically conceives of it as being laden with + the fragrance of the fir, the pine, and the + cedar--a sort of "incense" to the memory of the + "Master". + + What is incense? The odours of spices and gums + burned in religious rites. + + What poetic idea does the author express in the + last two lines? The hopvines of Kent are + represented as uniting with the pine, fir, and + cedar in sending forth their fragrance as + incense. + + What is the meaning, then, of the whole stanza? + Let the fragrance of the pine, the cedar, and + the fir, mingled with the odours of the Kentish + hopvines, be as incense to the memory of the + "Master". + + +Stanza X + + Does the poet mean that the grave of Dickens is + literally adorned with oak, holly, and laurel + wreaths? No; he is speaking figuratively. + + What do these typify? The tributes of + admiration, reverence, and love that are paid + to the memory of Dickens in his own country. + + Of what is each emblematic? The oak is + emblematic of England, the life of whose people + he so vividly depicted; the holly suggests his + charming Christmas stories; the laurel + signifies his mastery of the art of writing. + + What does the poet mean by "This spray of + Western pine"? This poem was written in the + Western World, as a tribute to the memory of + the great novelist. + + What personal characteristic does the poet show + in the third line? A sense of humility, which + leads him to suggest that this poem is unworthy + of a place among the tributes paid to the name + and fame of the great artist. + + Stripped of its figurative significance, what + is the meaning of the whole stanza? To the many + tokens of love and admiration that are offered + to the memory of Dickens, may I be permitted to + add this poem--a Western tribute to the + worldwide influence of the famous author. + +RECONSTRUCTION + + Tell the story of the poem in your own words. + + In a canyon of the Sierras, a group of rough + miners were gathered about a camp-fire. Around + them stood the stately pines, above which the + moon was slowly rising; below, at the bottom of + the canyon, a river sang, as it threaded its way + among the boulders; and, far in the distance, + the mountains reared their snow-covered summits + to the evening sky. The flickering camp-fire + played strange tricks upon those gathered round + it, for it gave to the care-worn faces and bent + forms of the miners the appearance of freshness + and health. + + One of the miners, a mere youth, opened his + pack, drew therefrom a copy of Dickens' _Old + Curiosity Shop_, and began to read aloud. At + once, all other occupations were suspended, and + everybody drew near to listen to the story. The + whole camp yielded itself to the fascination of + the tale, and in its absorbing interest they + forgot themselves and their surroundings, their + ills, their hardships, and their cares. One + might almost fancy that the very pines and + cedars became silent, and that the fir trees + drew closer to hear the story of "Little Nell". + + Dickens, the "Master", has gone, but, among the + many tributes that are paid to his power as a + writer, let this little tale of the Western + camp be added, to illustrate the universal + nature of his influence. + + +DOST THOU LOOK BACK ON WHAT HATH BEEN + +(Fourth Reader, page 289) + + +PREPARATION + +This lesson should be preceded by a suitable preparatory lesson on the +life of some man, for example, Peel, Disraeli, or Lincoln, who, in spite +of all obstacles, rose to eminence in the nation and lived "To mould a +mighty state's decrees". + +INTRODUCTION + +Tennyson and Arthur Hallam, as young men at college, were great friends. +The bond of affection between them was probably as strong as it was +possible for friendship between two men to be. When Hallam died in 1833, +at twenty-two years of age, Tennyson said of him: "He was as near +perfection as a mortal man could be". From time to time during the next +seventeen years, Tennyson wrote short poems on themes which occurred to +him in connection with his thoughts of Hallam. These he finally +collected and published in one volume, called _In Memoriam_. + + +PURPOSE + +The purpose of this lesson should be in harmony with the purpose of _In +Memoriam_. It should, therefore, be a study of life within the +comprehension of the pupils. The lesson should aid in securing the +development of character and an appreciation of worthy ambition and +enduring friendship. + +ASSIGNMENT + +The lesson should be assigned in such a way as to encourage the pupils' +natural desire to learn something through their own efforts. A few +questions should be given to be answered from their own study, for +example: + + 1. What does the first line show regarding + Tennyson's present thought of Hallam? + + 2. What stanzas describe the progress of the + man who reminds him of Hallam? + + 3. What is described in the remaining stanzas? + + 4. What lines suggest something about this + man's feelings toward the scenes and friends of + his youth? + + 5. In what respect, according to the last + stanza, does Tennyson show that one of these + old-time friends is like himself? + + +CLASS WORK + + What does Tennyson describe in the first four + stanzas? + + +Stanza I + + Why does he call the man "divinely gifted"? + Because he has had great natural gifts. + + When should we call a man of only ordinary + ability "divinely gifted"? What have you read + that illustrates this? (If the pupils cannot + answer this question, the teacher should tell + briefly the parable of the talents.) + + What is meant by "Whose life in low estate + began"? Why are the details about his early + life mentioned? State briefly the thought + contained in this stanza. + +Stanza II + + What was the effect of his humble birth on his + progress in early life? In what ways did it act + as a bar: (1) upon his own mind; (2) upon the + good-will of others toward himself? Which of + these two do the following lines from + _[OE]none_ indicate that the poet would say + must be overcome first? + + Self-reverence, self-knowledge, self-control, + These three alone lead life to sovereign power. + + State in your own words, the full meaning of + "breaks his birth's invidious bar". + NOTE.--"Invidious" means likely to incur, or + bring on envy, ill-will, or hatred. + + What idea is suggested in the second line as to + the opportunities which come to such a man? + Imagine him grasping these fleeting chances. + What were his probable feelings toward those + things which eluded his grasp? (Be careful in + answering this. Remember that the man has + gained the mastery of himself.) + + What is meant by "blows of circumstance"? What + were some of these difficulties? + + What does the action-word "breasts" suggest: + (1) about the character of these difficulties, + (2) about the character of the man? Explain + "grapples with his evil star". What is the + allusion? Tell, in the poet's own words, what + this "evil star" was. Imagine this man + grappling with it. What term do boys often use + for a similar action? Which is going to win + this wrestling match? Give reasons, from what + the man has already done, for thinking that he + will win. What does this action show about his + belief in luck? + + What do the action-words in this stanza suggest + about the man's character? What sounds in each + of the words help to emphasize this grim + determination? + + State briefly the relation of the thought of + this stanza to that of the first. + + +Stanza III + + What effect did the man's early struggles have + on his mental power and character? What does + Tennyson call this increased energy and + strength of character? He calls it "force". + Now, explain "makes by force his merit known". + + What position in the gift of the nation do the + next three lines show that he gained at last? + What words indicate the emblem of the Premier's + power? + + "Clutch the golden keys." What does this action + suggest as to his character? What word is + generally used to denote such determination to + gain power and influence? What makes such + ambition lawful? What use does Tennyson show + this man made of his ambition? What is meant by + "mould a mighty state's decrees"? As Premier, + to whom would it be his duty to give advice? + + The people know that the sovereign must act on + the advice of his ministers, of whom the + Premier is the most influential; but they + believe that the judgment of the sovereign + often modifies and improves this advice. To the + nation, this influence of the sovereign is a + silent force, but, like the silent forces in + nature, they believe it to be powerful. + + In what words does Tennyson express this mutual + influence of the King and the Premier? What + features of this influence are expressed + respectively by the words "shape" and + "whisper"? What action-words in this stanza + suggest the relation (1) of effort, (2) of + time, to the magnitude of the work? + + State in a single sentence the thought of this + stanza. + +Stanza IV + + What is the final test of the value of a law? + Its effects on the people. In what words does + Tennyson show the effect on the people of the + laws made through this man's influence? + + Explain how this man became "The pillar of a + people's hope". What words show the + far-reaching extent of his influence? Which + shows the more force in the man, his influence + with the King or his later influence in the + whole nation? In what words does Tennyson show + which he thinks the greater? To which do "high" + and "higher" respectively refer? What does + "Fortune's crowning slope" suggest about (1) + the honour which the man has now gained, (2) + the nature of the road he has travelled? + +Stanza V + + Picture the man as he looks back after having + reached the height of his ambition. Describe + his mood. At what times does he indulge in + these dreamy memories? What does he seem to see + in these quiet hours? What hill and stream does + the poet mean? What feeling does each awaken? + Why is the "sweetness" called "secret"? Why is + the "dearness" called "distant"? + +Stanza VI + + What part of his life is meant by "his narrower + fate"? With what is he comparing that early + life, when he calls it "his narrower fate"? + Using similar language, what might his present + position of great influence be called? + + Some think that the first line of this stanza + refers to the limitations or restrictions of + his early life, while others say the poet was + thinking simply of the stream, as the limit or + boundary of the things that influenced his + childhood. Which view is to be preferred? Which + meaning agrees with the use of the word "its" + in the next line? Would this man now look back + on those difficulties of his early life as + limitations and hindrances, or as things which + helped to make him what he is? + + Now explain "The limit of his narrower fate". + Compare the direction in which he looks in his + day dreams now, with the direction in which he + looked in those of his boyhood. What is meant + by "vocal springs"? + + In what way were the games of his youth + prophetic of his future work as a man? What do + people mean by saying, "The boy is father of + the man"? + + +Stanza VII + + Describe the present occupation of the friend + of his boyhood. What information about his + friend does the word "native" give us? What + phrases show how he does his work? + + Compare the farmer's query in the last line + with that in the first line of the poem. + +SYNOPSIS OF DETAILS + + Under the following heads, point out the + resemblance of Hallam to the statesman and of + Tennyson to the farmer: + + 1. Early friendship + 2. Their separation + 3. Progress since parting + 4. Memories of each other. + + It is hoped that no teacher will use these + questions as a substitute for his own + questioning. If they are accepted as suggestive + in regard to both interpretation and method, + they may be of real service, otherwise they + will be almost valueless. + + +WATERLOO + +(Fourth Reader, page 311) + + +AIM + +To lead the pupils to appreciate the music and imagery of the poem. + + +PREPARATION + + Where is Waterloo situated? In Belgium. What + two armies were engaged in this battle? The + French and the English; with the latter were + some Prussian allies. Who were the French and + the English commanders? Napoleon and + Wellington. What was the result of the battle? + The overthrow of Napoleon and his banishment to + St. Helena. What would have been the + consequence if Wellington had been defeated? + Napoleon would possibly have had complete + mastery of Europe. Picture this struggle of + great commanders and disciplined armies, while + Europe waited breathlessly for the outcome. + (The pupils should read some good history of + this battle.) + + +PRESENTATION + +Read the poem to the pupils in such a way as to make vivid the scenes +depicted. + + +DEVELOPMENT + +What has the poet described in this poem? Some of the events preceding +the battle. + +What are the main pictures found in each stanza? (Write on the +black-board.) + +1. The ball + +2. The sound of the enemy's cannon + +3. The Duke of Brunswick + +4. The farewells + +5. The muster + +6. The gathering of the Highlanders + +7. The march to battle + +8. Summary of pictures and the result. + +Do you see any stanza that interferes with the progress of the action? +The third stanza anticipates the battle and destroys the continuity +between the sounds of the approaching enemy and the hurried farewells. + +Why does the poet devote a special stanza to the Highlanders? Were they +more worthy of mention than the English and Irish regiments? The author, +George Gordon, Lord Byron, belonged to a Scotch family. The muster of +the Highlanders at midnight, combined with their stirring music, made a +very picturesque incident. + +Consider the elements which contribute to the various scenes: + + +Stanza I + + What is described? The ball given by the + Duchess of Richmond. What is the emotion of + this stanza? Pleasure, gaiety. What is the + picture in the first line? The arrival of the + guests, the welcomes, and the "revelry" of the + assembly. Why does the author say "Belgium's + capital" rather than "Brussels"? It suggests + the capital of a nation with a noble people. + Who were the "Beauty" and the "Chivalry"? The + ladies, the officers of the army, and the + nobility. Describe the picture you see in + "bright the lamps shone o'er fair women and + brave men". The large ball-room, the + brilliantly lighted chandeliers, the beautiful + costumes of the ladies, the uniforms and + decorations of officers and nobles. Describe + the images that are suggested by "and when + music arose with its voluptuous swell". The + bands of the regiments are playing the music of + the dance. Notice how the poet changes the + rhythm to the foot of three syllables, to + indicate the music of the waltz. What contrast + do you find in the last two lines? "Marriage + bell" and "rising knell". What was the purpose + of this? To show the contrast between pleasure + and fear. + +Stanza II + + What is the theme? The sound of the enemy's + cannon. Why does the author use the dramatic + form? A conversation between two people of + opposite temperaments gives greater reality to + the picture. The first seems to expect danger, + but is, for a moment, silenced by the other's + upbraiding him for attempting to spoil the + pleasure of the evening. A repetition of the + "heavy sound" proves that he is right. The + second is a lover of pleasure, who would not + have the first speaker alarm the guests by his + gloomy anticipations. Show how the second + speaker indicates his impatience. His answers + are short, he speaks in ellipses. "On with the + dance", and "No sleep till morn". Notice the + positive tone of the first speaker in the + repetition, "It is--it is". + + +Stanza III + + What is described here? The fate of Brunswick? + Why does the author single out Brunswick from + all the others who died? One specific case + appeals to the reader more effectually than the + report of the death of unknown thousands. + Brunswick's father had been a noted general in + the war with Napoleon. Explain, "Death's + prophetic ear". This refers to a common + superstition that "the veil of the future is + lifted to those near to death". Show how the + poet has broken the order of succession of the + pictures. Brunswick's death is recorded before + the breaking up of the ball is described. + +Stanza IV + + What is the theme? The farewells. What is the + emotion? Fear and anguish. What words show + this? "Gathering tears", "tremblings of + distress", "cheeks all pale", "sudden + partings", etc. Give a line in a preceding + stanza that expresses the same thought as + "mutual eyes". "Soft eyes looked love to eyes + which spake again." + +Stanza V + + What is described? The muster of the troops. + What is the prevailing feeling? The haste of + the soldiers and the terror of the citizens. + How does the poet show this haste? By the use + of such phrases as "hot haste", "mustering + squadron", "clattering car", "impetuous speed", + "swiftly forming", as well as by the rapid + movement of the verse. Why did the citizens of + Brussels fear, since they had not to fight? + They dreaded the pillage and ruin which would + follow a French victory. Describe the scene in + your own words--the cavalry forming in line, + the movements of the artillery, the noise of + distant cannon, the "alarming drum", and the + panic of the citizens. + +Stanza VI + + The gathering of the Highlanders. Does the poet + address the ear or the eye in this description? + Only the sound of the bagpipes is described, + though it may suggest a picture of the Highland + regiments. What words describe the music? "Wild + and high", "war-note", "thrills savage and + shrill". Why does the poet mention proper + names--"Lochiel", "Evan", "Donald"? The + bagpipes recall stirring memories of these men, + which inspire the clansmen to prove worthy of + their ancestors. What is the "Cameron's + gathering"? The war-song of the Cameron clan. + Were there only Camerons in the Highland + regiments? No, the Camerons were only one + famous clan, but are taken here as + representative of the heroism of all the + Highlanders. Again, the use of individual + specific cases produces a greater impression + than a more general term. What was the + "pibroch"? A wild, irregular species of music + played on the bagpipes, adapted particularly to + rouse a martial spirit among troops going to + battle. + +Stanza VII + + What is described in this stanza? The march to + the battle-field. What words show that? "As + they pass". They were going through the forest + of "Ardennes". What is the mood of this stanza? + Sadness. The trees are represented as shedding + tears when "Nature" thinks of the sad fate + awaiting so many brave men. What were those + tears? The expression refers to the dew of the + early morning on the leaves of the trees, but + the poet has called it "Nature's tear-drops". + It is only a fanciful presentation of a natural + phenomenon. Explain, "if aught inanimate e'er + grieves". If inanimate nature, such as trees or + grass, can express sorrow. Nature cannot + grieve, but we appreciate the beauty of the + imagery. Point out a contrast in this stanza. + "This fiery mass of living valour", and "shall + moulder cold and low". + +Stanza VIII + + What is the purpose of this stanza? It gives a + summary of the preceding ones. Which stanza + corresponds to line 2? Stanza I. Which + corresponds to line 3? Stanzas II, III, and IV. + Which stanzas picture the "marshalling in + arms"? Stanzas V and VI. What stanzas picture + "Battle's magnificently stern array"? Stanzas + V and VII. Now contrast all these pictures with + the last. The story is epitomized, and the end + described--"friend, foe,--in one red burial + blent!" + +The pupils should now read the poem, in order that the teacher may judge +by the varying tones and movements whether it has been properly +appreciated. + + +THREE SCENES IN THE TYROL + +(Fourth Reader, page 336) + + +AIM + +To lead the pupils to appreciate the thrilling pictures and to +understand the means by which the author has produced this vividness. + + +PREPARATION + +The pupils have been required to read this lesson at their seats or at +home. + + Where is the Tyrol situated? It is a province + in the Austrian Alps directly east of + Switzerland. (Show its position on the map.) + + The mountains are majestic, high, precipitous; + the people daring and independent. The Tyrol is + noted for the many accidents which happen to + mountain-climbers. Who are the chief persons + concerned in these three scenes? Maximilian I, + Charles V, and Napoleon. + + The author wishes to give, amid the most + impressive surroundings, three stirring events + in the lives of three great Emperors. State + briefly the first story. The Emperor Maximilian + was hunting a chamois, when he slipped on the + edge of the precipice, rolled helplessly over, + and caught a jutting ledge of rock, which + interrupted his descent. An outlaw hastened to + his assistance and guided him to safety. + + +PRESENTATION + + +I + + Yes, this story is often called "The Rescue". + Let us note how the author helps us to see the + picture. Where does he place the spectator? On + a "thread-like road" running between the rocky + bank of the Inn River and the foot of the + precipice of the Solstein. + + What does the author ask you, as the imaginary + spectator, to do? To throw your head back and + look upward. + + Why? The precipice towers perpendicularly many + hundred feet above you. He wishes you to + imagine you are standing on this road and the + scene is taking place before your eyes. + + What do you see? A hunter in pursuit of a + chamois. + + Describe this hunter. He is lofty and + chivalrous in his bearing. + + What happens? He is bounding on after a chamois + toward the edge of a precipice, when he loses + his footing and falls. + + How does the author make you see this plainly? + He uses the present tense, as if the scene were + happening now--"is bounding", "loses his + footing", "rolls helplessly". + + Any other way? Yes, he utters exclamations, + "Mark!" "Ah!" Every act is told in the form of + an exclamation. + + "What is it that arrests him?" This is a + question. Does the author expect an answer? No, + he asks the question as I would ask it of + myself if I saw the hunter stopped in his + descent. + + Why does he not tell you who this hunter is? I + see now for the first time that it is the great + Emperor Maximilian who is in such peril. + + Does any one else see him? Yes, the Abbot, or + head of a neighbouring monastery. + + Why does the author mention him? To indicate + that, apparently, human aid could not save the + Emperor. + + What has been told us in this first paragraph? + The peril of the Emperor. + + What is told us in the next? His rescue. + + Who else sees the danger? Zyps of Zirl. + + Who is he? A famous hunter and outlaw. + + Do you see him at first? No, I hear his cry. + The author says "Hark! there is a wild cry!" + Then I recognize the outlaw. + + Why does he utter the cry? To encourage the + Emperor and let him know there is some one + coming to his rescue. + + Again how does the author make the picture + vivid? By the use of the present tense, by + commands, questions, and exclamations, and by + making the spectator, in his excitement, + address the mountaineer directly; for example, + "thou hunted and hunting outlaw, art thou out + upon the heights?" etc. + + By what means does the author show how the + outlaw comes to the Emperor's aid? By comparing + him with the chamois, the insect, and the + squirrel. This man combines in himself all + their powers of movement. + + What does the spectator now do? He fears that + all may yet be lost, so he shouts to the + Emperor to have courage, that the hunter is + coming. + + How does the author show his relief from the + strain of the last few moments? His sentences + are now longer and smoother. + + How was this event afterwards regarded? The + peasants maintained that an angel came down to + their master's rescue. + + What does the author seem to think? That his + rescue was due to the interposition of + Providence. + + What is told in the next paragraph? Zyps' + reward. + + What did he receive? He was created a Count and + received a pension from the Emperor. + + What was his title? "Count Hallooer von + Hohenfeldsen." + + To what does this refer? To his "wild cry" from + the high peaks, when he saw the Emperor in + danger. + + How can you prove that this story is true? By + inspecting the pension list of the Royal House + of Hapsburg and by looking at a cross in the + mountains that has been erected on the very + spot where Maximilian was rescued. + + +II + + Whom do you see in the second vision? The + Emperor Charles V. pursued by his enemies. + + Who was he? One of the greatest monarchs in + Europe, greater even than his grandfather, + Maximilian I. In this scene he is ill; his army + has met with reverses; he has made his escape + from Innsbruck, the capital of the Tyrol, and + is being conveyed through the mountains to a + place of safety, closely pursued by Maurice of + Saxony. + + Describe the scene. It is at night, the wind is + high, and is driving the rain against the + Emperor's litter, which is borne by + mountaineers and surrounded by his faithful + officers. + + What is given in the first paragraph? A + description of the storm. + + How does the author prepare you for the scene? + The night suggests danger and mystery, and the + moon looks out from a cloud, as though at + something taking place in the gorge. The + spectator hears something besides the roar of + the wind. + + Select all the words that show what a fearful + night it is. "Night", "dark", "wild", "gusty + winds", "howling", "sheets of blinding rain", + "whirling", "hissing eddies", "rent asunder", + "ravings of the tempest". + + Notice all the details the author has made use + of to convey the idea of terror and danger. + + What is described in the next paragraph? The + passage of the litter through the dark gorge. + + Is the spectator forgotten in this scene? No, + he first hears the "tramp of feet", then he + sees the torches, and, lastly, the Emperor's + litter surrounded by his attendants. + + What words show you the difficulty of their + situation? "Hurried", "crowding", "crushing", + "steep and narrow gorge", "suppressed voices", + "fitful glancing of torches", "anxiously + shielded", "melee", "struggle onward". + + Why are their voices suppressed? As a natural + result of their perilous position. + + Why do they keep their torches burning? To find + their way through the enemy's country amid the + dangers by which they are surrounded. + + What do the lamps look like? A "constellation" + of stars moving on in the same relative + position. + + Does the author still refer to the storm? Yes, + in "derisive laughter", "rude wrath of the + tempest", and "plumes streaming on the wind". + The author wishes to picture continuously the + fitting surroundings for this adventure, and so + emphasizes these details. + + Why does he speak of the "derisive laughter of + the storm"? He compares it to a fiend who mocks + the attempts of man to battle against his + power. + + Who is described in the third paragraph of this + vision? The Emperor himself. + + Why is he not described before, as he is more + important than either the storm or his + comrades? The story runs in a natural order. + First are seen the figures surrounding the + litter, and, as it approaches, the Emperor's + face is distinguishable. + + What is first mentioned in connection with him? + His firmly set teeth. + + What does this indicate? His great physical + pain, and his determination of character. + + What is mentioned next? His age; he is but + fifty-three, but his wrinkles are deep and his + hair turning gray. + + What are next described? His forehead, his + nose, his eye, his underlip. + + Why does the author picture these features in + such detail? To show the character of the + Emperor. + + What are we led to infer are some of his + characteristics? A strong intellect, imperious + manner, cruelty, and stubborn pride. + + What strong contrast is drawn? The fugitive + invalid is the great Emperor. The author first + discusses his illness, his flight, his + suffering in the storm, his adverse fortune, + and then gives him his full titles--"Emperor of + Germany, King of Spain, Lord of the + Netherlands, of Naples, of Lombardy, and the + proud chief of the golden Western World". + + Where does the author place the blame for his + present sufferings? On Charles himself, whose + sufferings, humiliation, and ultimate + deliverance were perhaps intended as a + discipline to lead him to repent for past + cruelties. + + What is described in the last paragraph of this + scene? The escape. + + Who is first mentioned? The pursuer, Maurice of + Saxony. + + Describe him. He is first compared to an + "avenger of blood" in pursuit of a man fleeing + to the cities of refuge referred to in Joshua + xx. 3. He is next compared to the hound + relentlessly following his prey. + + Who wins in this race? Charles eludes his + pursuer. + + To whom should he show gratitude for his + escape? To Providence. + + Does he acknowledge God's protection? No, he + gives all the credit to his "lucky star". + + Explain this. Astrologers had said that the + "Star of Austria" was always at the highest + point in the heavens; and of this favoured + House of Austria, Charles was Archduke. + + +III + + The first scene is called "The Rescue"; the + second, "The Run"; and the last, "The Ruin". + What is described in the last scene? The + destruction of the French Army. + + Where is the scene laid? In the Tyrol, beside + the River Inn. + + What is described in the first paragraph? + Bonaparte's decree that the strongholds of his + enemies--the Tyrolese warrior hunters--shall be + destroyed. + + Why should he wish to do this? The Tyrolese + were an independent people, who would not + submit to conscription and taxation at the + hands of the Bavarians. + + By what names does the author call Napoleon? + "Bonaparte." That was his surname. The French + Emperor had no hereditary right to the throne, + but he wished to be called Napoleon, instead of + Bonaparte, just as we speak of our King as + George V. and rarely refer to his surname of + Guelph. + + Who advised Napoleon? "His own will is his sole + adviser." He ruled arbitrarily, consulting no + one. + + What does he do in this case? He sends ten + thousand French and Bavarian soldiers to crush + the Tyrolese. + + Why were the Bavarians taking part in the + struggle? They were at this time allies of + France, and Napoleon had given to their Elector + possession of this new but hostile province. + + What does the second paragraph describe? The + army entering the narrow gorge in the + mountains. + + How does the author give vividness to this + picture? He endows inanimate things such as the + "gorge" and the "river" with human attributes. + The "gorge" looks gloomy, forbidding, and + unfriendly, and the "river" seems to roar + indignantly, as though at the attempt of "the + mountain walls" to impede its progress. + + The next sentence is in the form of a question + and its answer. Who is supposed to ask this + question? This is the question the leader of + the army would ask and the answer he would make + when he discovered the narrow road. The + construction of the sentence suggests the idea + of danger. + + Why does the next sentence begin with "But"? + "But the glittering array winds on." It + suggests that some precautions for the safety + of the army should have been observed; but it + may have been impossible to take these + precautions, and the orders of Bonaparte had to + be obeyed at all hazards. + + What is described in the next sentence? The + author gives full details of the progress of + this imposing army. The River Inn seems to + share the feelings of the Tyrolese themselves + and protest angrily against this invasion by a + foreign power. + + How is the next sentence related to the + preceding? "But" marks a contrast. The noise of + the army and the river is contrasted with the + silence on the heights. + + Why are the "eagles" mentioned? The silence is + rendered more impressive by the occasional + "shrill cry" of the eagles, and the "wings" of + the eagles hovering above are an omen of the + coming disaster which is to overtake "the + gilded eagles of France" below. + + What is described in the next paragraph? The + "voice" from the "heights". + + How does the author make this paragraph + impressive? As he wishes to indicate the + critical moment, he still uses the present + tense, direct narration, short sentences, + exclamation, and interrogation; he suggests, + through a mysterious voice far up the heights, + that supernatural agents are at work. The army, + in its helpless length, is compared to an + "uncoiled serpent". + + What is the subject of the next paragraph? The + destruction of the entire army. + + How is this ruin accomplished? Unseen in the + heights above, the Tyrolese peasantry hurl down + rocks, roots, and trunks of pine trees, as well + as sending a "deadly hail" from their rifles + along the "whole line" of the defenceless army + below. + + Notice the richness of detail. What words help + to make the description of their destruction + more vivid? "Bounding", "thundering", + "gathering speed", "headlong way", "launched + down", "powerless foe", "deadly hail", "fearful + storm", "crushed to death", "tumbled, horse and + man, into the choked and swollen river". + + Notice the contrast of this paragraph with the + picture in the second paragraph of this vision + of the gallant invading army. + + What is the subject of the last paragraph? The + reflections of the author. + + Of what does he speak? Of the wonders and + beauties of creation and the sad power that man + possesses of spoiling and staining these + wonders by giving rein to his own "evil + ambitions and fierce revenges". + + How has he emphasized this? By the use of + exclamation, question, ellipses, and the + mention of the "serpent" as the symbol of evil. + + How does the interrogative form of the sentence + give it vividness? Contrast the effect of + saying, "Who would willingly linger on the + hideous details?" with "No one would willingly + linger", etc. The author does not expect an + answer, he throws the sentence into the + question form for the rhetorical effect. The + reader pays more attention to the thought by + trying to find an answer to the question. + + What is the value of the ellipses in "Sorrowful + that man ... should come"? It is stronger than + saying, "It is sorrowful that man ... should + come". The subject and verb are omitted, as + they are not strong words, and "Sorrowful" is + placed in the most prominent position on + account of its importance. + +SUMMARY + + In these three pictures, what is the constant + element? The scene used as the background. All + three visions take place in the Tyrol, two of + them on the banks of the Inn River. They are + three companion pictures of this historic + mountain province. + + How does this style compare with that which you + find in other lessons? It is abrupt and abounds + in many rhetorical forms--ellipses, use of the + present tense, exclamation, direct address, and + accumulation of details. + + Would it be suitable for all prose expression? + No; it is impassioned prose, full of emotion + and picturesque detail. The smoother, more + regulated sentence-structure, such as is in + place in ordinary narration, would be too cold + for these descriptions. On the other hand, this + style is not suitable for expressing a quiet + mood or giving a clear explanation. It is too + turbulent, and would pall upon the reader if + continued at too great length, but it is often + very suitable in an oratorical selection. + +The pupils should finally read the lesson aloud, to show how they have +appreciated the story. + + + + +CHAPTER VIII + +SUPPLEMENTARY READING + + +Before studying these lessons in supplementary reading, it is suggested +that the teacher read again what has been said on "Extensive Reading", +p. 39 of this Manual. + + +SOUTH-WEST WIND, ESQ. + +(Third Reader, page 86) + + You have read the story of South-West Wind, + Esq., in the Third Reader. + + Who were the persons mentioned in this story? + Three brothers, Schwartz, Hans, and Gluck. + + What were their characters? Schwartz and Hans + were rich but very miserly; they were + quarrelsome, drunken, and cruel. Gluck was + kind, polite, and unselfish. + + How did Gluck show these qualities? He admitted + the stranger into the house for shelter from + the rain, when he knew his brothers would + punish him for so doing; he asked politely to + take the stranger's cloak, when the water + dripping from it was putting the fire out; and + he offered him his share of the mutton, + although he knew it meant that he must go + without his own supper. + + When the older brothers returned what did they + do? They tried to punish Gluck and to force the + stranger out of the house. + + What happened? They were hurled to the ground + by the stranger, who was much stronger than + they supposed. + + What other punishment did they receive? The + roof was blown off the house while they slept, + and their beautiful valley, together with their + crops and cattle, was utterly destroyed by the + heavy rains. + + Who was the stranger? He left his card with + "South-West Wind, Esq." written on it. + + Now the story in the Reader is only the first + chapter of a longer story, which relates what + fortune came to the three brothers. What should + you expect would happen to them? I should + expect that Schwartz and Hans would have more + troubles, and that Gluck would be rewarded for + his kind-heartedness. + +CHAPTER II + + Read the second chapter of this longer story + called _The King of the Golden River_. + + Give me the main points in this chapter? + + 1. The valley was turned into a desert. + 2. The brothers became goldsmiths. + 3. The mug + 4. Gluck's wish that the river would turn into gold + 5. The voice from the furnace + 6. The dwarf + 7. The King told Gluck how the river could be turned into gold. + + What are the characters of the two brothers in + this chapter? They were very dishonest and even + tried to mix copper with the gold. They were + drunken and wasted their money, and they were + lazy and cruel. + + Describe the mug that was being melted. It had + been given to them by their uncle, and Gluck + was very fond of it. It was made of gold almost + in the form of a human face. The face was + fierce and red, the eyes were bright, the beard + and whiskers were of fine gold, and the hair + was of fine spun gold, forming the handle of + the mug. + + While the mug was being melted in the furnace, + what did Gluck see as he looked out of the + window? The range of mountains overhanging + Treasure Valley, with the mountain tops shining + in the sunset. + + This is a lovely description of a sunset in the + mountains. Pick out the details of the picture. + "Rocks ... all crimson and purple with the + sunset", "bright tongues of fiery cloud", "the + river ... a waving column of pure gold", "the + double arch of a broad purple rainbow", + "flushing and fading alternately in the wreaths + of spray". + + What words suggest colours? "Crimson", + "purple", "fiery", "pure gold", "purple + rainbow", "flushing", "fading". + + What did this picture suggest to Gluck? It made + him wish that the river were really gold. + + Describe the dwarf who came out of the furnace. + He was a foot and a half high; his hair and + beard were long, curled, and delicate, and his + face was copper-coloured. + + Account for the dwarf being in such a place. It + was owing to the malicious enchantment of a + king stronger than himself that he had been + turned into the golden mug, and, when the mug + was melted, Gluck poured out the metal, and, + thus freed the King of the Golden River from + the power of his enemy. + + How did the King show his gratitude? He told + Gluck how the river could be turned into gold. + + What must Gluck do in order to gain this end? + He must climb to the top of the mountain and + cast three drops of holy water into the stream + at its source. + +CHAPTER III + + What are the main facts in this chapter? + + 1. The brothers returned and beat Gluck because the mug + was a total loss. + 2. Schwartz and Hans fought. + 3. Schwartz was arrested. + 4. Hans stole a cupful of holy water. + 5. Hans taunted Schwartz. + 6. Hans attempted to change the river to gold. + (1) The dog; + (2) the fair child; + (3) the old man. + 7. Hans was changed into the Black Stone. + + What characteristics of the older brothers are + shown in this chapter? They were drunken, + brutal, quarrelsome, dishonest, malicious, and + selfish. + + Why are the dog, the child, and the old man + introduced into the story? To show how + indifferent Hans was to the suffering of + animals, children, and aged people. The sight + of these helpless creatures should have aroused + his pity. + + Were there any indications in the story that + Hans would be unsuccessful? Yes, there was "a + strange shadow"; the air "seemed to throw his + blood into a fever"; "a dark gray cloud came + over the sun"; "long, snake-like shadows"; + "leaden weight of the dead air"; "flash of blue + lightning"; "tongues of fire"; "flashes of + bloody light". + + Why was Hans unsuccessful? He had led a bad + life, had been dishonest, and had been selfish + to the dog, the child, and the aged man. + + Show that it was an appropriate punishment that + Hans should be turned into a Black Stone. His + heart was as hard as stone, and his deeds were + black. + +CHAPTER IV + + What is the main theme of this chapter? + Schwartz's attempt to turn the river into gold. + + What are the chief incidents recorded? + + 1. Gluck paid Schwartz's fine. + 2. Schwartz refused water to the child, the old man, + and to the spirit of Hans. + 3. He was also changed to a Black Stone. + + What were the indications that Schwartz would + be unsuccessful? There was a "black cloud + rising out of the West"; "a mist of the colour + of blood"; "waves of the angry sea"; "bursts of + spiry lightning"; "the sky was like ... a lake + of blood"; "its waves were black, like + thunderclouds"; "their foam was like fire"; + "the lightning glared into his eyes". + +CHAPTER V + + What is the theme in the last chapter? Gluck's + attempt to turn the river into gold. + + Give the main incidents. + + 1. The priest gave him holy water. + 2. He gave water to the aged man and the child. + 3. He gave his last drop of water to the dying dog. + 4. The dog was transformed into the King of the Golden River. + 5. He gave Gluck three drops of dew. + 6. Gluck cast the water into the river. + 7. Treasure Valley again became a fertile garden, and Gluck + became very rich. + + What were the indications that Gluck would be + successful? After giving the old man some + water, the "path became easier"; "grasshoppers + began singing"; there was "bright green moss"; + "pale pink starry flowers"; "soft belled + gentians"; "pure white transparent lilies"; + "its waves were as clear as crystal". + + What strong contrast is brought out in this + story? There is a contrast between this chapter + and the two preceding ones. Gluck's conduct is + so different from that of Schwartz and Hans; + and the aspect of nature, as it appears to him, + is very different from the scenes viewed by his + brothers. + + Describe Treasure Valley after it was changed. + The "fresh grass sprang beside the new + streams"; "creeping plants grew"; "young + flowers opened"; "thickets of myrtle and + tendrils of vine cast lengthening shadows"; + "his barns became full of corn and his house of + treasure". + + Why did Gluck deserve so much kindness? He had + been hospitable to South-West Wind, Esq.; had + suffered hunger and punishment on his account; + had been industrious; had freed the King of the + Golden River from his enchantment; had obeyed + his instructions; had felt sorry for Hans; had + paid Schwartz's fine; and had shown mercy to + animals and helpless people. + + Was there anything said about the two older + brothers? Yes, there are two black stones, + which people still call "The Black Brothers", + at the top of the cataract. This story tells + how these stones came to be there. + + +A CHRISTMAS CAROL + +(Fourth Reader, page 39) + +The pupils have read _Scrooge's Christmas_, in the Fourth Reader. They +have also read the synopsis of _A Christmas Carol_ at the beginning of +the lesson. If they have read the first four _staves_ of the carol in a +general way, they will be in a better position to study intensively the +last stave, or chapter, which is the lesson in the Reader. They will +understand the causes that have changed this "covetous old sinner" to +the man "who knew how to keep Christmas Day well". This lesson should be +taken up near Christmas. The pupils will discuss Stave I, after having +read it at home. + +Stave I + + What is the title of this work? A Christmas + Carol. + + Why is it called a carol? In England, it is the + custom for bands of singers, called "waits", to + go from house to house on Christmas Eve. The + author calls this ghost story of Christmas a + carol in prose, for it pictures the joys and + sorrows of this season. + + What does a stave mean? It keeps up the idea of + a carol. Each chapter is called a stave, or + stanza of the carol. + + What is the title of the first stave? "Marley's + Ghost." + + Who was Marley? He had been Scrooge's partner, + but was now dead. He had been as miserly as + Scrooge himself. + + Where is the scene laid? In London. + + When? On Christmas Eve. + + Describe Scrooge. "Oh but he was a tight-fisted + hand ... one degree at Christmas". (See Stave I + of _A Christmas Carol_.) + + Notice the wonderful accumulation of strong + adjectives and phrases in this description. Why + does the author use so many? He wishes to + emphasize the cold miserliness of this man. + + What is the first incident? Scrooge's treatment + of his nephew, who has invited him to dinner on + Christmas Day. + + What does this incident show? His churlishness, + and his contempt for those who spend money + freely. + + What is the next incident? His refusal to + subscribe to any charities in the city. + + What comes next? The account of his treatment + of Bob Cratchit. + + What does this show? His meanness and tyranny. + + When he returns from his supper, what does he + encounter? Marley's Ghost. + + What does the ghost tell him? How it must + wander through the world without rest, in + atonement for Marley's cruelties and his + neglect of other people. It laments his + misspent life. + + What does it promise to do to Scrooge? It + promises to send him "Three Spirits". + + What good description is found in Stave I? + Besides the character sketch of Scrooge, there + is a picture of Christmas Eve in the London + streets, in the paragraph beginning "Meanwhile + the fog and darkness thickened". + +Stave II + + What is described in this chapter? The visit of + the first spirit. + + What was it? The "Ghost of Christmas Past". + + Read me a description of it. "It was a strange + figure ... like a child ... which it held under + its arm". + + What does the spirit do? It forces Scrooge to + accompany it and shows him former Christmas + scenes in his life. + + What are these scenes? Scrooge as a solitary + boy at school; his boyhood stories, _Ali Baba_ + and _Robinson Crusoe_; his sister; Fezziwig's + ball; Scrooge's sweetheart; scenes in her + married life. + + What is the mood of these different scenes? + There is humour, and a great deal of fun, as + well as some pathos. It is all told in a lively + style. + + What are the best descriptions? Fezziwig's + ball, and the remembrance of the scenes in _Ali + Baba_. + +Stave III + + What is told in this chapter? The visit of the + second spirit. + + Who was it? The "Spirit of Christmas Present". + + What does it show Scrooge? Scenes of Christmas + shopping; Christmas out-of-doors; the Grocers; + Bob Cratchit's family, the goose, their + dinner, the puddings; the miner's home; the + lighthouse keepers; the sailors; Scrooge's + nephew at home--blindman's bluff, forfeits, Yes + and No; vision of "Ignorance" and "Want". + + What do all these scenes go to show? How + different kinds of people keep Christmas; how + kind and merry most people are at this season + of the year: and how some have to struggle in + order to get this one day's pleasure. + + Select some examples of humour. Peter's + conceit, some of the descriptions of the + grocery stores, the anticipations lest harm + befall the goose and the pudding. + + Select any examples of pathos. The references + to Tiny Tim. + + Select and read the best descriptions. The + grocery stores, the fruit stores, the goose, + the pudding. + +Stave IV + + What is told in this chapter? The visit of the + third spirit. + + What was it? The "Ghost of Christmas Yet to + Come". + + What does it show Scrooge? A vision of his + death--how he is plundered by laundress, + charwoman, and undertaker; the phantom of + Death; Scrooge's creditors; the grave. + + Had these scenes actually taken place? No, but + they will be realized if Scrooge does not + change his manner of thinking and living. + + What is the effect of these three visions? + Scrooge promises the "Ghost of Christmas Yet to + Come" "I will honour Christmas in my heart and + try to keep it all the year". + + Why are the scenes in this chapter not so + pleasant as those that the two former spirits + had shown him? The scenes that the first spirit + had brought before him were his joys at the + Christmas season before he had hardened his + heart; those that the second spirit had shown + were scenes in the lives of people who do + something for others and enjoy themselves in + the true Christmas spirit; those that the last + spirit had shown were the sordid scenes which + would be sure to come if he did not change his + attitude toward life. The last scenes shown him + by the third spirit furnish a strong contrast + to the others. + + +Stave V + + What does this chapter relate? How Scrooge + actually kept Christmas Day. + + What were the other chapters about? The first + and the last were the only chapters where he + was awake. Chapters Two, Three, and Four are + visions or dreams. Notice how the phantom + changed into the bed-post. + + This chapter should be studied closely. Who + wrote this story? Charles Dickens, an English + novelist. + + Do you know any other good stories by the same + author? _David Copperfield_, _The Pickwick + Papers_, _Nicholas Nickleby_. + + Yes, we have had extracts in the Readers from + these books. + + What lessons are they? _The Pickwick Club on + the Ice_, in the _Third Book_; _David + Copperfield's First Journey Alone_, and _The + Indignation of Nicholas Nickleby_ in the + _Fourth Book_. + + Some day you must read these stories. _David + Copperfield_ tells us a great deal about + Dickens' early days. _The Pickwick Papers_ is + full of humour in scenes such as that depicted + in _The Pickwick Club on the Ice_, and has some + fine characters in it, and _Nicholas Nickleby_ + gives a vivid picture of the brutality existing + in some schools in England at the time the book + was written. + + +THE LADY OF THE LAKE + +(Fourth Reader, page 270) + +The pupils will have read the account of the stirring combat between +Fitz-James and Roderick Dhu. They will be curious to know the +circumstances that led up to this combat and also the conclusion of the +story. + +The aim of the teacher is to lead the pupils to appreciate the +construction of the story, the fine character sketches, and the +descriptions of natural scenery, as well as to give them an impression +of Highland life. The pupils will take delight in the rapid movement of +the verse and in the deeds of valour. + +Some passages should be dwelt upon at greater length by the teacher, and +others more lightly touched upon, so that the connections of the various +parts will be understood. A close and tedious consideration of all the +lines would not show a good critical taste, as some passages are very +fine, while others have only ordinary merit. + +The teacher should disclose the identity of Fitz-James as James V of +Scotland and should explain the cause of the exile of the Douglas +Family. He should also sketch the life of rebellion and consequent +outlawry led by some of the Highland clans before they were reduced to +submission. + +CANTO I + + The teacher should study with the pupils the + Invocation of the three opening stanzas and ask + them to read the first canto. He should next + discuss it briefly, as suggested in the + following outline: + + What are the main divisions of the first canto? + + 1. The chase + 2. Description of the Trossachs + 3. Description of Ellen Douglas + 4. Description of Fitz-James. + + Why is the story of the chase introduced? It + brings Fitz-James alone into the enemy's + country, where he meets Ellen Douglas, and + prepares the way for the adventures that + follow. + + What is the story of the chase? The hundred + huntsmen and the horses and the dogs become + wearied in the long pursuit after the stag. One + huntsman alone is left to enter the deep ravine + where the stag escapes. + + This description of the Trossachs made the spot + famous, and ever since it has been a favourite + resort of tourists. + + +CANTO II + + The Island + + What are the divisions of this canto? + + 1. The departure of the huntsmen + 2. Description of the minstrel + 3. The story of Roderick's love + 4. Return of the Clan-Alpine + 5. Malcolm Graeme + 6. The quarrel. + + What is the value of this canto? It explains + many facts that we did not understand. Among + others, it shows us the relation of the + Douglases to the King and to Roderick Dhu. It + tells of the love of Malcolm Graeme for Ellen + and of Roderick's hopeless love for her. It + shows us Roderick's noble traits of character + and the fearful cruelties of which he is + capable. He cannot possibly win Ellen's love. + +CANTO III + + The Gathering + + What are the main divisions of this canto? + + 1. Roderick's determination to renew hostilities + 2. Brian the Hermit + 3. The ceremony + 4. The message of the Fiery Cross + 5. Roderick's devotion to Ellen + 6. The gathering. + + What are the best passages in this canto? + + 1. Description of Loch Katrine + 2. The coronach + 3. Hymn to the Virgin. + + Why are funeral and wedding scenes introduced? + These serve to show how the message of the + Fiery Cross was looked upon as more important + than even death or marriage. + + What insight into the life of the clansmen is + furnished in this canto? + + 1. The superstition of the Highlanders. This is shown in + Brian's faith and in the weird ceremonies in connection + with the Fiery Cross. + 2. The method of mustering the clans by means of the message + of the Fiery Cross. + 3. Their funerals and weddings. + + Notice also the vigour of the stanzas that + describe the flight of Malise. + +CANTO IV + + The Prophecy + + Give the main themes in this canto. + + 1. Return of Malise + 2. Norman's guard + 3. The augury and the prophecy + 4. Return of Fitz-James to Ellen Douglas + 5. The ring + 6. Blanche of Devan + 7. Death of Murdoch + 8. Fitz-James meets Roderick Dhu. + + What are the best stanzas? The ballad of "Alice + Brand". + + Why is this ballad introduced? It shows the + character of Scottish minstrelsy, the belief in + the world of fairies, and the lesson of hope + that at the darkest moment the hour of + happiness may be near. It furnishes another + example of Allanbane's prophetic insight. + + The introduction: "The rose is fairest when it + is budding new." Why is this stanza + appropriate? It shows the tenderness of + Norman's love, as contrasted with the fierce + warfare in which he is engaged. + + Why is Blanche of Devan introduced? To furnish + an example of Roderick's cruelty, so that + Fitz-James should feel justified in punishing + him. Blanche of Devan also warns Fitz-James of + Murdoch's treachery. This stanza explains the + allusions in the lesson in the _Fourth Book_, + for example: "a braid of your fair lady's + hair", and "There lies red Murdoch stark and + stiff". + + What characteristics of Roderick are shown in + the canto? + + 1. His care for the defenceless in his clan + 2. His cruelty to his enemies + 3. His hospitality + 4. His superstition. + + What was the prophecy? + + Who spills the foremost foeman's life + That party conquers in the strife. + + What is the value of the prophecy in the poem? + It furnishes a reason for the eagerness of the + clansmen to take the life of the huntsman, as + the former would then "conquer in the strife". + +CANTO V + + The Combat + + Give the main events in this canto. + + 1. Roderick guides Fitz-James to neutral ground + 2. The combat + 3. Douglas surrenders + 4. The games + 5. The popularity of Douglas. + + What is the most striking part of this canto? + The story of the combat. + + Why? It is a fine example of Scottish bravery + and chivalry. + + What Scottish characteristics are found in this + canto? + + 1. The character of Scottish games in the city + 2. The fickleness of the mob + 3. The chivalrous conduct of the combatants. + + +CANTO VI + + The Guard-room + + What are the main themes in this canto? + + 1. The rough soldiers + 2. Ellen presents the ring + 3. The battle of Beal' an Duine + 4. Death of Roderick + 5. Ellen's request to James + 6. Happiness of the Douglases and of Malcolm Graeme + 7. Farewell to the Harp. + + Why are the rough soldiers introduced? This + passage furnishes a good description of the + character of the soldiers, and shows the power + of Ellen's quiet dignity and modesty. + + What is the value of the battle of Beal' an + Duine? It affords an opportunity to the valiant + Roderick to imagine himself in battle, so that + when death comes he does not realize that it + finds him a prisoner and his clan vanquished. + + How does the poem end? Ellen, her father, and + Malcolm Graeme are united and happy, and + Fitz-James reveals his identity and shows his + magnanimity. + + What should be read in connection with the last + three stanzas? The first three stanzas of the + poem. They are an Invocation to Scottish + minstrelsy. We now have the Farewell. + + Which cantos do you consider are the best? The + first and the fifth. + + Why? The first contains such wonderful + word-pictures and the fifth seems to be the + crisis of the story. The interest is not + sustained in the sixth canto, as one knows + matters are sure to be adjusted. + + + + +CHAPTER IX + +SELECTIONS FOR MEMORIZATION + + + Little deeds of kindness, + Little words of love, + Make our earth an Eden, + Like the heaven above. + --BREWER + + + God make my life a little light, + Within the world to glow,-- + A little flame that burneth bright. + Wherever I may go. + + + The world is so full of a number of things, + I'm sure we should all be as happy as kings. + --STEVENSON + + + Be kind and be gentle + To those who are old, + For dearer is kindness + And better than gold. + + + Politeness is to _do_ and _say_ + The kindest thing in the kindest way. + + + Two ears and only one mouth have you; + The reason, I think, is clear: + It teaches, my child, that it will not do + To talk about all you hear. + + + Whene'er a task is set for you, + Don't idly sit and view it, + Nor be content to wish it done; + Begin at once and do it. + + + Work while you work, play while you play; + This is the way to be cheerful and gay. + All that you do, do with your might; + Things done by halves are never done right. + --STODART + + + Five things observe with care,-- + Of whom you speak, to whom you speak + And how, and when, and where. + --GRAY + + + See that little sunbeam + Darting through the room, + Scattering the darkness, + Lighting up the gloom. + Let me be a sunbeam + Everywhere I go, + Making glad and happy + Every one I know. + + + Sing a song of seasons! + Something bright in all! + Flowers in the summer, + Fires in the fall! + --STEVENSON + + + Do all the good you can, + In all the ways you can, + To all the people you can, + Just as long as you can. + + + When you come to think of it, + The day is what you make it; + And whether good, or whether bad, + Depends on how you take it. + + + Slumber, slumber, little one, now + The bird is asleep in his nest on the bough; + The bird is asleep, he has folded his wings, + And over him softly the dream fairy sings: + + + Lullaby, lullaby--lullaby! + Pearls in the deep-- + Stars in the sky, + Dreams in our sleep; + So lullaby! + --F. D. SHERMAN + + + Dare to be true; nothing can need a lie. + + + The face you wear, the thoughts you bring, + A heart may heal or break. + + + He who is good at making excuses is seldom good + for anything else.--FRANKLIN + + + To _be_ good is the mother of to _do_ good. + + + + I'll not willingly offend, + Nor be easily offended; + What's amiss I'll try to mend, + And endure what can't be mended. + + + A man of words and not of deeds, + Is like a garden full of weeds; + For when the weeds begin to grow, + Then doth the garden overflow. + + + Little children, you must seek + Rather to be good than wise, + For the thoughts you do not speak + Shine out in your cheeks and eyes. + --ALICE CARY + + + To tell a falsehood is like the cut of a sabre; + for though the wound may heal, the scar of it + will remain.--SADI + + + All that's great and good is done + Just by patient trying. + + + 'Tis a lesson you should heed, + Try, try again; + If at first you don't succeed, + Try, try again. + + + If a task is once begun, + Never leave it till it's done; + Be the labour great or small, + Do it well, or not at all. + + + For every evil under the sun, + There is a remedy, or there is none. + If there be one, try to find it; + If there be none, never mind it. + + + There are many flags in many lands, + There are flags of every hue, + But there is no flag in any land + Like our own Red, White, and Blue. + + + The inner side of every cloud + Is always bright and shining; + And so I turn my clouds about, + And always wear them inside out, + To show the silver lining. + + + I would not hurt a living thing, + However weak or small; + The beasts that graze, the birds that sing, + Our Father made them all. + + + Little drop of dew, + Like a gem you are; + I believe that you + Must have been a star. + When the day is bright, + On the grass you lie; + Tell me then, at night + Are you in the sky? + --F. D. SHERMAN + + + How beautiful is the rain! + After the dust and the heat, + In the broad and fiery street, + In the narrow lane, + How beautiful is the rain! + --LONGFELLOW + + + In spring, when stirs the wind, I know + That soon the crocus buds will show; + For 'tis the wind who bids them wake + And into pretty blossoms break. + --F. D. SHERMAN + + + O, pause and think for a moment + What a desolate land it would be, + If, east or west, the eye should rest + On not a single tree! + --GRAY + + + It was only a sunny smile, + And little it cost in the giving, + But it scattered the night, + Like the morning light, + And made the day worth living. + + + Keep pushing--'tis wiser + Than sitting aside, + And dreaming and sighing, + And waiting the tide. + In life's earnest battle, + They only prevail + Who daily march onward, + And never say "fail". + + + One step and then another, + And the longest walk is ended. + One stitch and then another, + And the largest rent is mended. + One brick and then another, + And the highest wall is made. + One flake and then another, + And the deepest snow is laid. + + + Speak the truth and speak it ever, + Cost it what it will. + He who hides the wrong he did, + Does the wrong thing still. + + + Whichever way the wind doth blow, + Some heart is glad to have it so; + Then blow it east or blow it west, + The wind that blows, that wind is best. + + + We should make the same use of books that the + bee does of a flower: he gathers sweets from + it, but does not injure it. + + + I smile, and then the Sun comes out; + He hides away whene'er I pout; + He seems a very funny sun, + To do whatever he sees done. + And when it rains he disappears; + Like me, he can't see through the tears. + Now isn't that the reason why + I ought to smile and never cry? + --F. D. SHERMAN + + + If fortune, with a smiling face, + Strew roses in our way, + When shall we stoop to pick them up? + To-day, my friend, to-day. + If those who've wronged us own their faults, + And kindly pity pray, + When shall we listen and forgive? + To-day, my friend, to-day. + + + Are you almost disgusted with life, little man? + I will tell you a wonderful trick + That will bring you contentment if anything can-- + Do something for somebody, quick. + Are you very much tired with play, little girl? + Weary, discouraged, and sick? + I'll tell you the loveliest game in the world-- + Do something for somebody, quick. + + + "Were it not for me", + Said a chickadee, + "Not a single flower on earth would be; + For under the ground they soundly sleep, + And never venture an upward peep, + Till they hear from me, + Chickadee-dee-dee!" + --SIDNEY DAYRE + + + The world at noon belongs to the sun, + At eve to the home-coming herds; + But while the dew is early--very, very early-- + The world belongs to the birds. + As still as in a dream lie the meadows and the stream, + 'Neath the soaring and outpouring of the birds. + --WETHERALD + + + I know, blue modest violets, + Gleaming with dew at morn-- + I know the place you come from, + And the way that you are born! + When God cuts holes in Heaven, + The holes the stars look through, + He lets the scraps fall down to earth,-- + The little scraps are you. + + + The blossoms, down in the meadow, + In the gardens, and woods, and the hills, + Are singing, too, with their playmates, + The birds, and the breezes, and rills. + And I think, if you listen closely, + In the sweet glad days of spring, + With the song of the brook, the breeze, and the birds, + You can hear the flowers sing. + --MOOREHOUSE + + + Good-night, little shivering grasses! + 'Tis idle to struggle and fight + With tempest and cruel frost-fingers; + Lie down, little grasses, to-night! + Good-night, little shivering grasses! + Lie down 'neath the coverlet white, + And rest till the cuckoo is singing; + Good-night, little grasses, good-night! + --_A November Good-night._--BEERS + + + Daffydowndilly came up in the cold, + Through the brown mould, + Although the March breezes blew keen on her face, + Although the white snow lay on many a place. + I can't do much yet, but I'll do what I can. + It's well I began! + For unless I can manage to lift up my head, + The people will think that the Spring herself's dead. + O Daffydowndilly, so brave and so true, + I wish all were like you! + So ready for duty in all sorts of weather, + And holding forth courage and beauty together. + --WARNER + + + One to-day is worth two to-morrow's.--POOR + RICHARD'S ALMANAC + + + The future is purchased by the present.--SAMUEL + JOHNSON + + + The sober second thought is always essential, + and seldom wrong.--MARTIN VAN BUREN + + + Recollect that trifles make perfection, and + that perfection is no trifle.--MICHAEL ANGELO + + + Have more than thou showest, + Speak less than thou knowest. + --SHAKESPEARE + + + Sin has many tools, but a lie is the handle + that fits them all.--O. W. HOLMES + + + Let all the end thou aim'st at be thy country's, + Thy God's and truth's. + --SHAKESPEARE + + + Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but + in rising every time we fall. + + + Learn to obey and you will know how to + command.--LUBBOCK + + + One who is contented with what he has done will + never become famous for what he will do. + + + Be not simply good, be good for + something.--THOREAU + + + The better part of valour is + discretion.--SHAKESPEARE + + + They that touch pitch will be + defiled.--SHAKESPEARE + + + Ill blows the wind that profits + nobody.--SHAKESPEARE + + + Honour and shame from no condition rise; + Act well your part, there all the honour lies. + --POPE + + + True happiness consists not in the multitude of + friends, but in their worth and choice.--BEN + JONSON + + + One "do" is worth a thousand "don'ts" in the + destruction of evil or the production of + good.--HUGHES + + + I look upon the simple and childish virtues of + veracity and honesty as the root of all that is + sublime in character.--EMERSON + + + Remember that though it is a good thing to be a + great man, it is a great thing to be a good + man. + + + Striving not to be rich or great, + Never questioning fortune or fate, + Contented slowly to earn, and wait. + + + In the workshop, on the farm, + Or wherever you may be, + From your future efforts, boys, + Comes a nation's destiny. + + + It is a low benefit to give me something; it is + a high benefit to enable me to do something of + myself.--EMERSON + + + Greatly begin! though thou hast time + But for a line, be that sublime,-- + Not failure, but low aim, is crime. + --LOWELL + + + Never give up! 'Tis the secret of glory; + Nothing so wise can philosophy preach; + Look at the lives that are famous in story; + "Never give up" is the lesson they teach. + + + It is a good thing to be rich, and a good thing + to be strong, but it is a better thing to be + beloved of many friends.--EURIPIDES + + + Do what conscience says is right; + Do what reason says is best; + Do with all your mind and might; + Do your duty, and be blest. + + + What men want is not talent, it is purpose; in + other words, not the power to achieve, but the + will to labour.--BULWER-LYTTON + + + So nigh is grandeur to our dust, + So near is God to man, + When Duty whispers low, _Thou must_, + The soul replies _I can_. + --EMERSON + + + Habit is a cable; we weave a thread of it each + day, and it becomes so strong we cannot break + it.--HORACE MANN + + + Ponder well, and know the right, + Onward then, with all thy might! + Haste not! years can ne'er atone + For one reckless action done. + --GOETHE + + + Our grand business is not to see what lies + dimly at a distance, but to do what lies + clearly at hand.--CARLYLE + + + Slight is the sting of his trouble whose winnings are less than his worth: + For he who is honest is noble, whatever his fortune or birth. + --ALICE CARY + + + Press on! There's no such word as fail! + Push nobly on! The goal is near! + Ascend the mountain! Breast the gale! + Look upward, onward--never fear! + + + He who has a thousand friends + Has not a friend to spare; + And he who has one enemy + Will meet him everywhere. + --OMAR KHAYYAM + + + Work for some good, be it ever so slowly; + Cherish some flower, be it ever so lowly; + Labour!--all labour is noble and holy. + --FRANCES S. OSGOOD + + + A man should never be ashamed to own he has + been in the wrong; which is but saying in other + words that he is wiser to-day than he was + yesterday.--POPE + + + Tender-handed stroke a nettle, + And it stings you for your pains; + Grasp it like a man of mettle, + And it soft as silk remains. + + + Fill up each hour with what will last; + Buy up the moments as they go; + The life above, when this is past, + Is the ripe fruit of life below. + + + New occasions teach new duties; time makes ancient good uncouth; + They must upward still and onward, who would keep abreast of Truth. + --LOWELL + + + The heights by great men reached and kept, + Were not attained by sudden flight; + But they, while their companions slept, + Were toiling upward in the night. + --LONGFELLOW + + + Nothing useless is, or low, + Each thing in its place is best, + And what seems but idle show + Strengthens and supports the rest. + --LONGFELLOW + + + And not by eastern windows only, + When daylight comes, comes in the light, + In front, the sun climbs slow, how slowly, + But westward, look, the land is bright. + --CLOUGH + + + Full many a gem of purest ray serene + The dark unfathom'd caves of ocean bear; + Full many a flower is born to blush unseen, + And waste its sweetness on the desert air. + --GRAY + + + If a man empties his purse into his head, no + man can take it away from him. An investment in + knowledge always pays the best + interest.--BENJAMIN FRANKLIN + + + I do not know + Where falls the seed that I have tried to sow + With greatest care; + But I shall know + The meaning of each waiting hour below + Sometime, somewhere! + + + Lives of great men all remind us + We can make our lives sublime, + And, departing, leave behind us + Footprints on the sands of time; + Let us, then, be up and doing, + With a heart for any fate; + Still achieving, still pursuing, + Learn to labour and to wait. + --LONGFELLOW + + + Begin while life is bright and young, + Work out each noble plan; + True knowledge lends a charm to youth, + And dignifies the man. + Then upward, onward, step by step, + With perseverance rise, + And emulate, with hearts of hope, + The good, the great, the wise. + + + The night has a thousand eyes, + And the day but one; + Yet the light of the bright world dies, + With the dying sun. + The mind has a thousand eyes, + And the heart but one; + Yet the light of a whole life dies + When love is done. + --FRANCIS BOURDILLON + + + In the darkness as in daylight, + On the water as on land, + God's eye is looking on us, + And beneath us is His hand! + Death will find us soon or later, + On the deck or in the cot; + And we cannot meet him better + Than in working out our lot. + --WHITTIER + + + The Royal Navy of England hath ever been its + greatest defence and ornament; it is its + ancient and natural strength--the floating + bulwark of our Island.--BLACKSTONE'S + _Commentaries_ + + + It is the land that freemen till, + That sober-suited Freedom chose. + The land, where girt with friends or foes + A man may speak the thing he will; + A land of settled government, + A land of just and old renown, + Where Freedom slowly broadens down + From precedent to precedent. + --TENNYSON + + + O triune kingdom of the brave, + O sea-girt island of the free, + O empire of the land and wave + Our hearts, our hands, are all for thee. + Stand, Canadians, firmly stand, + Round the flag of our Fatherland. + --LACLEDE + + + Sharers of our glorious past, + Brothers, must we part at last? + Shall we not thro' good and ill + Cleave to one another still? + Britain's myriad voices call, + "Sons, be welded each and all + Into one Imperial whole, + One with Britain, heart and soul! + One life, one flag, one fleet, one Throne!" + Britons, hold your own! + --TENNYSON + + + "England! What thou wert, thou art!" + Gird thee with thine ancient might. + Forth! and God defend the Right. + --NEWBOLT + + + Believe not each accusing tongue, + As most weak people do; + But still believe that story wrong + Which ought not to be true. + --SHERIDAN + + + He prayeth best who loveth best + All things, both great and small, + For the dear God who loveth us, + He made and loveth all. + --COLERIDGE + + + For whatever men say in blindness, + And spite of the fancies of youth, + There's nothing so kingly as Kindness, + And nothing so royal as Truth. + --ALICE CARY + + + To do something, however small, to make others + happier and better, is the highest ambition, + the most elevating hope, which can inspire a + human being.--LUBBOCK + + + Small service is true service while it lasts. + Of humblest friends, bright creature! scorn not one: + The daisy, by the shadow that it casts, + Protects the lingering dew-drops from the sun. + --WORDSWORTH + + + Look up and not down; + Look forward and not back; + Look out and not in; + And lend a hand. + --HALE + + + Have you had a kindness shown? + Pass it on. + 'Twas not given for you alone, + Pass it on. + Let it travel down the years, + Let it wipe another's tears; + Till in heaven the deed appears. + Pass it on. + + + A little spring had lost its way + Amid the grass and fern; + A passing stranger scooped a well + Where weary men might turn. + He walled it in, and hung with care, + A ladle on the brink; + He thought not of the deed he did, + But judged that Toil might drink. + He passed again; and lo! the well, + By summer never dried, + Had cooled ten thousand parched tongues, + And saved a life beside. + --MACKAY + + + Evil is wrought by want of thought + As well as want of heart. + --HOOD + + + Nature has given to men one tongue, but two + ears, that we may hear from others twice as + much as we speak.--EPICTETUS + + + Count that day lost whose low-descending sun + Views from thy hand no worthy action done. + + + If happiness have not her seat + And centre in the breast, + We may be wise or rich or great, + But never can be blest. + --BURNS + + + A kindly act is a kernel sown, + That will grow to a goodly tree, + Shedding its fruit when time has flown, + Down the gulf of eternity. + + + If I can stop one heart from breaking, + I shall not live in vain; + If I can ease one life the aching, + Or cool one pain, + Or help one fainting robin + Into his nest again, + I shall not live in vain. + --DICKINSON + + + It is pleasant to think, just under the snow, + That stretches so bleak and blank and cold, + Are beauty and warmth that we cannot know, + Green fields and leaves and blossoms of gold. + + + Under the green hedges after the snow, + There do the dear little violets grow, + Hiding their modest and beautiful heads + Under the hawthorn in soft, mossy beds. + Sweet as the roses, and blue as the sky, + Down there do the dear little violets lie; + Hiding their heads where they scarce may be seen, + By the leaves you may know where the violets have been. + --MOULTRIE + + + The linnet is singing the wild wood through; + The fawn's bounding footsteps skim over the dew. + The butterfly flits round the blossoming tree, + And the cowslip and bluebell are bent by the bee; + All the creatures that dwell in the forest are gay, + And why should not I be as merry as they? + --MITFORD + + + Do the duty which lies nearest thee! + Thy second duty will already have become clearer. + --CARLYLE + + + Live truly, and thy life shall be + A great and noble creed. + + + I slept, and dreamed that life was Beauty; + I woke, and found that life was Duty. + --HOOPER + + + Great is the art of beginning, but greater the + art is of ending.--LONGFELLOW + + + Opinions shape ideals, and it is ideals that + inspire conduct.--JOHN MORLEY + + + You cannot dream yourself into a character; you + must hammer and forge yourself into + one.--FROUDE + + + Not once or twice in our fair island story + The path of duty was the way to glory. + --TENNYSON + + + Know thy work and do it, and work at it like a + Hercules. One monster there is in the world--an + idle man.--CARLYLE + + + Every evil to which we do not succumb is a + benefactor. We gain the strength of the + temptation we resist.--EMERSON + + + In every common hour of life, + In every flame that glows, + In every breath of being rife + With aspiration or of strife + Man feels more than he knows. + --W. W. CAMPBELL + + + Never to the bow that bends + Comes the arrow that it sends; + Never comes the chance that passed: + That one moment was its last. + + + Oh, fear not in a world like this, + And thou shalt know ere long, + Know how sublime a thing it is + To suffer and be strong. + --H. W. LONGFELLOW + + + Sow an act, and reap a tendency; sow a + tendency, and reap a habit; sow a habit, and + reap a character; sow a character, and reap a + destiny.--THACKERAY + + + The gifts that we have, heaven lends for right + using, and not for ignoring, and not for + abusing. + + + It is not what he has, nor even what he does, + which directly expresses the worth of a man, + but what he is.--_Journal_--AMIEL + + + My good blade carves the casques of men, + My tough lance thrusteth sure, + My strength is as the strength of ten, + Because my heart is pure. + --TENNYSON + + + True worth is in _being_, not _seeming_,-- + In doing each day that goes by + Some little good--not in the dreaming + Of great things to do by and by. + + + No work which God sets a man to do--no work to + which God has specially adapted a man's + powers--can properly be called either menial or + mean.--CARLYLE + + + Truth, crushed to earth, shall rise again; + Th' eternal years of God are hers; + But Error, wounded, writhes in pain, + And dies among his worshippers. + --BRYANT + + + To thine own self be true; + And it must follow, as the night the day, + Thou can'st not then be false to any man. + --SHAKESPEARE + + + No life + Can be pure in its purpose or strong in its strife + And all life not be purer and stronger thereby. + --LYTTON + + + Knowledge and wisdom far from being one, have + ofttimes no connection. Knowledge is proud that + he has learned so much; wisdom is humble that + he knows no more.--COWPER + + + Wish not to taste what doth not to thee fall; + Do well thyself, before thou striv'st to lead, + And truth shall thee deliver without dread. + --GEOFFREY CHAUCER + + + Oh, many a shaft, at random sent, + Finds mark the archer little meant! + And many a word at random spoken, + May soothe, or wound, a heart that's broken. + --SIR W. SCOTT + + + Govern the lips as they were palace doors, the + king within. Tranquil and fair and courteous be + all words which from that presence win. + --EDWIN ARNOLD + + + Whene'er a noble deed is wrought, + Whene'er is spoken a noble thought, + Our hearts, in glad surprise, + To higher levels rise. + --LONGFELLOW + + + Love thyself last; cherish those hearts that hate thee; + Corruption wins not more than honesty. + Still in thy right hand carry gentle peace, + To silence envious tongues; be just, and fear not. + --SHAKESPEARE + + + Not by the power of commerce, art, or pen, + Shall our great Empire stand, nor has it stood, + But by the noble deeds of noble men-- + Heroic lives and heroes' outpoured blood. + --F. G. SCOTT + + + Take up the white man's burden-- + In patience to abide, + To veil the threat of terror + And check the show of pride; + By open speech and simple, + An hundred times made plain, + To seek another's profit + And work another's gain. + --KIPLING + + + Love thou thy land, with love far-brought + From out the storied Past, and used + Within the Present, but transfused + Thro' future time by power of thought. + --TENNYSON + + + For as long as conquest holds the earth, + Or commerce sweeps the sea, + By orient jungle or western plain + Will the Saxon spirit be; + And whatever the people that dwell beneath, + Or whatever the alien tongue, + Over the freedom and peace of the world + Is the flag of England flung. + --W. W. CAMPBELL + + + Of old sat Freedom on the heights, + The thunders breaking at her feet; + Above her shook the starry lights; + She heard the torrents meet. + Her open eyes desire the truth. + The wisdom of a thousand years + Is in them. May perpetual youth + Keep dry their light from tears. + --TENNYSON + + + If I have faltered more or less + In my great task of happiness; + If I have moved among my race + And shown no glorious morning face; + If beams from happy, human eyes + Have moved me not; if morning skies, + Books, and my food, and summer rain + Knocked on my sullen heart in vain-- + Lord, Thy most pointed pleasure take, + And stab my spirit broad awake. + --R. L. STEVENSON + + + A good book is the precious life-blood of a + master-spirit, embalmed and treasured up on + purpose to a life beyond life.--MILTON + + + The book which makes a man think the most is + the book which strikes the deepest root in his + memory and understanding. + + + Men at some time are masters of their fates: + The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars, + But in ourselves, that we are underlings. + --SHAKESPEARE + + + No book is worth anything which is not worth + _much_; nor is it serviceable until it has been + read and re-read, and loved, and loved again; + and marked, so that you can refer to the + passages you want in it, as a soldier can seize + the weapon he needs in an armoury, or a + housewife bring the spice she needs from her + store. Bread of flour is good; but there is + bread, sweet as honey, if we would eat it, in a + good book.--RUSKIN + + + Goodness moves in a larger sphere than justice. + The obligations of law and equity reach only to + mankind, but kindness and beneficence should be + extended to creatures of every + species.--PLUTARCH + + + My heart leaps up when I behold + A rainbow in the sky; + So was it when my life began, + So is it now I am a man, + So be it when I shall grow old, + Or let me die. + The child is father of the man; + And I could wish my days to be + Bound each to each by natural piety. + --WORDSWORTH + + + Be but yourself, be pure, be true, + And prompt in duty; heed the deep + Low voice of conscience; through the ill + And discord round about you, keep + Your faith in human nature still. + --ELIZABETH WHITTIER + + + Four things a man must learn to do + If he would make his record true; + To think, without confusion, clearly; + To love his fellow-men sincerely: + To act from honest motives purely; + To trust in God and Heaven securely. + --HENRY VAN DYKE + + + Give thy thoughts no tongue, + Nor any unproportioned thought his act. + Be thou familiar, but by no means vulgar; + The friends thou hast, and their adoption tried, + Grapple them to thy soul with hooks of steel. + --SHAKESPEARE + + + Never do anything of which you will have cause + to be ashamed. There is one good opinion which + is of the greatest importance to you, namely, + your own. "An easy conscience", says Seneca, + "is a continual feast".--LUBBOCK + + + There is a tide in the affairs of men, + Which, taken at the flood, leads on to fortune; + Omitted, all the voyage of their life + Is bound in shallows and in miseries. + On such a full sea are we now afloat; + And we must take the current when it serves, + Or lose our ventures. + --SHAKESPEARE + + + Man is his own star, and the soul that can + Render an honest and a perfect man, + Commands all light, all influence, all fate, + Nothing for him falls early or too late; + Our acts our angels are, for good or ill; + Our fatal shadows that walk by us still. + --BEAUMONT AND FLETCHER + + + Our birth is but a sleep and a forgetting; + The soul that rises with us, our life's star, + Hath had elsewhere its setting, + And cometh from afar, + Not in entire forgetfulness, + And not in utter nakedness, + But trailing clouds of glory do we come + From God who is our home. + --WORDSWORTH + + + Be wise to-day; 'tis madness to defer; + Next day the fatal precedent will plead; + Thus on, till-wisdom is pushed out of life. + Procrastination is the thief of time; + Year after year it steals, till all are fled, + And to the mercies of a moment leaves + The vast concerns of an eternal scene. + --EDWARD YOUNG + + + Build thee more stately mansions, O my soul, + As the swift seasons roll! + Leave thy low-vaulted past! + Let each new temple, nobler than the last, + + + Shut thee from heaven with a dome more vast, + Till thou at length art free, + Leaving thine outgrown shell by life's unresting sea. + --O. W. HOLMES + + + Grow old along with me! + The best is yet to be, + The last of life for which the first was made: + Our times are in His hand + Who saith, "A whole I planned, + Youth shows but half; trust God: see all nor be afraid!" + --BROWNING + + + Were a star quenched on high, + For ages would its light, + Still travelling downward from the sky, + Shine on our mortal sight. + So when a great man dies, + For years beyond our ken, + The light he leaves behind him lies + Upon the paths of men.--LONGFELLOW + + + It is not growing like a tree + In bulk doth make man better be; + Or standing long, an oak, three hundred year, + To fall a log at last, dry, bald, and sear. + A lily of a day + Is fairer far in May, + Although it fall and die that night-- + It was the plant and flower of light. + In small proportions we just beauties see; + And in short measures life may perfect be. + --BEN JONSON + + + We shape ourselves the joy or fear + Of which the coming life is made, + And fill our Future's atmosphere + With sunshine or with shade. + The tissue of the Life to be, + We weave with colours all our own; + And in the field of Destiny + We reap as we have sown. + --WHITTIER + + + Heaven is not reached at a single bound, + But we build the ladder by which we rise + From the lowly earth to the vaulted skies, + And we mount to its summit round by round. + I count this thing to be grandly true: + That a noble deed is a step toward God,-- + Lifting the soul from the common clod + To a purer air and a broader view. + --J. G. HOLLAND + + + Let me but do my work from day to day + In field or forest, at the desk or loom, + In roaring market-place or tranquil room; + Let me but find it in my heart to say, + When vagrant wishes beckon me astray, + "This is my work; my blessing, not my doom; + Of all who live, I am the only one by whom + The work can best be done in the right way." + --HENRY VAN DYKE + + + Good name, in man or woman, dear, my lord, + Is the immediate jewel of their soul. + Who steals my purse, steals trash; 'tis something, nothing; + 'Twas mine, 'tis his, and has been slave to thousands; + But he that filches from me my good name, + Robs me of that which not enriches him, + And makes me poor indeed. + --SHAKESPEARE + + + God give us men! A time like this demands + Strong minds, great hearts, true faith, and ready hands; + Men whom the lust of office does not kill; + Men whom the spoils of office cannot buy; + Men who possess opinions and a will; + Men who have honour,--men who will not lie. + --J. G. HOLLAND + + + To live content with small means; to seek + elegance rather than luxury, and refinement + rather than fashion; to be worthy, not + respectable; and wealthy, not rich; to study + hard, think quietly, talk gently, act frankly; + to listen to stars and birds, babes and sages + with open heart; await occasions, hurry never; + in a word, to let the spiritual, unbidden and + unconscious, grow up through the common,--this + is my symphony.--CHANNING + + + O, may I join the choir invisible + Of those immortal dead who live again + In minds made better by their presence; live + In pulses stirred to generosity, + In deeds of daring rectitude, in scorn + Of miserable aims that end with self, + In thoughts sublime that pierce the night like stars, + And with their mild persistence urge men's minds + To vaster issues. + --GEORGE ELIOT + + + A thing of beauty is a joy forever: + Its loveliness increases; it will never + Pass into nothingness; but still will keep + A bower quiet for us, and a sleep + Full of sweet dreams, and health, and quiet breathing. + --KEATS + + + Sunset with its rosy feet + Stains the grasses low and sweet; + And the shadow-beeches softly fall + Across the meadows, dark and tall; + O fold away + The dusty day, + Sweet nightfall, in thy curtains gray. + --JAPANESE + + + Now fades the last long streak of snow, + Now bourgeons every maze of quick + About the flowering squares, and thick + By ashen roots the violets blow. + Now rings the woodland loud and long, + The distance takes a lovelier hue, + And drowned in yonder living blue + The lark becomes a sightless song. + --TENNYSON + + + A cloud lay cradled near the setting sun; + A gleam of crimson tinged its braided snow; + Long had I watched the glory moving on + O'er the still radiance of the lake below. + Tranquil its spirit seemed, and floated slow! + Even in its very motion there was rest; + While every breath of eve that chanced to blow + Wafted the traveller to the beauteous west. + --WILSON + + * * * * * + +Transcriber's Notes: + +Obvious punctuation errors repaired. + +Page 32, the first paragraph under ALLUSIONS contains a sentence +fragment: "If these allusions." As no meaning could be ascertained, it +was retained intact. + +The OE-ligature is denoted in this work by brackets [OE]. + + + + + +End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Ontario Teachers' Manuals: Literature, by +Ontario Ministry of Education + +*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK ONTARIO TEACHERS MAN.: LITERATURE *** + +***** This file should be named 24974.txt or 24974.zip ***** +This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: + https://www.gutenberg.org/2/4/9/7/24974/ + +Produced by Suzanne Lybarger, Emmy and the Online +Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This +file was produced from images generously made available +by The Internet Archive/Canadian Libraries) + + +Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions +will be renamed. + +Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no +one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation +(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without +permission and without paying copyright royalties. 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