Gerald Graff: An Analysis Of Disliking Books
Jessica Christy
Klayton Kendall
English 121
7 September 2015
A Better Understanding
In the essay ‘Disliking Books” Gerald Graff claims that he has an “advantage teaching literature”. That advantage is attributed to the fact he felt animosity and fear towards books growing up. He didn’t understand what he was to say about these books that never related to him. Or why he was supposed to say these things. Understanding the confusion about these things and knowing that there is more than one way to get to the goal, loving and understanding literature, is the true reason that Graff has an advantage as a literature teacher.
In his youth the fear that Graff felt towards books was based on the predicate that, if you liked books you were “a sissy”
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His first encounter with a debate on literature had to do with the book The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. The teacher had brought up the fact that critics had issues with the last part of the novel. The class soon divided over the issue at hand and had a debate on it. Graff later decided to write a paper on the debate over the ending. During the research for his paper he read other critics opinions on the subject. While doing this Graff gained confidence realizing that he had the same thoughts as famous published critics. Towards the end of the Huckleberry Finn debate Graff makes a realization that reading and logical talks about literature may actually have to do with his …show more content…
The fact alone that he had a dislike for books does not constitute that he would be greater at teaching them. His overall experience with literature and his unconventional way of coming to love literature is what makes him have an advantage as a teacher. Not all students learn the same way. There are those that need a more hands on approach, where as some that can learn by simply listening to the teachers lectures. The ability to put yourself in the shoes of that child and figure out a different way to teach them is a major advantage. Graff has that
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