"Lord of the Flies" - in TENTH grade?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP, give your kid a copy of AARP Magazine. It is recommended for ages 55 and up, so will be a stretch challenge for your genius child.

Funniest post ive read here in a while.

Very sad to see tiger parenting reach the level where one would brag about their elementary school child reading Lord of the Flies, Heart of Darkness, and other books with dark depressing themes. Oh but the books have big words! If your child is verbally gifted, let them do the NY Times crossword or read Anne of Green Gables.

Basically all children's literature from the 19th century (heck, even Nancy Drew from the 40s) has more sophisticated language than most students read now.

But what is the purpose of learning old English no longer used? When writing i was always taught to simplify the language and not to use a $20 word when a 25 cent word was perfectly fine.

Court documents were being simplified years ago so that anyone with a with grade education can read them. Too many insecure people want to be seen as so much more intelligent than the average guy that they would like to see old awkward language stay around.

By old english you mean english written hundreds of years ago, not Old English like what Beowulf was written in?

anyway, no, students should read old books so that they know how to read old language, not so that they will write like that. People should know how to read and understand literature like Frederick Douglass's autobiography, Shakespeare, etc.

English is just trashy German Latin mashup. Unless you are reading, the original Classic works, it's lowbrow garbage. Some people are so low class they don't even attend Mass in Latin anymore.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Can you imagine an AP exam essay in which a student uses "The Help" as their answer, OMG.)

I don’t know, I once had a student who told me she wrote about Harry Potter on question 3 (I was horrified, having told them many times not to use YA). She still got a 4! She was a very talented writer though. I still laugh thinking about it!

Harry Potter mostly is not classified as YA. And folks majoring in English Lit write thesis’s in Alice in Wonderland. My 11th grade class did a section analyzing comics/cartoons for political messages. Heck even Disney movies have language/jokes specifically placed for adults that kids won’t pickup on until they’re older. It’s the context, experiences and maturity that someone can bring to the analysis of a work that matters.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP, give your kid a copy of AARP Magazine. It is recommended for ages 55 and up, so will be a stretch challenge for your genius child.

Funniest post ive read here in a while.

Very sad to see tiger parenting reach the level where one would brag about their elementary school child reading Lord of the Flies, Heart of Darkness, and other books with dark depressing themes. Oh but the books have big words! If your child is verbally gifted, let them do the NY Times crossword or read Anne of Green Gables.

Basically all children's literature from the 19th century (heck, even Nancy Drew from the 40s) has more sophisticated language than most students read now.

But what is the purpose of learning old English no longer used? When writing i was always taught to simplify the language and not to use a $20 word when a 25 cent word was perfectly fine.

Court documents were being simplified years ago so that anyone with a with grade education can read them. Too many insecure people want to be seen as so much more intelligent than the average guy that they would like to see old awkward language stay around.

By old english you mean english written hundreds of years ago, not Old English like what Beowulf was written in?

anyway, no, students should read old books so that they know how to read old language, not so that they will write like that. People should know how to read and understand literature like Frederick Douglass's autobiography, Shakespeare, etc.

English is just trashy German Latin mashup. Unless you are reading, the original Classic works, it's lowbrow garbage. Some people are so low class they don't even attend Mass in Latin anymore.

If this isn't satire, I have to point out that it is extremely difficult to find a Church which offers Latin Mass. Imo, the Church has gotten too casual since Vatican II. The whole world has been dumbed down and it's only getting dumber and more casual. See also: pajamas, leggings and sweats worn in public to school and/or work.