Beyond Persepolis (2): ‘The Arab of the Future’

April 24, 2017

Although this work is not on the PLT, you might just want to consider pairing it with Persepolis in Part 1, and including it in Part 4, since the two works could create a more rounded view of growing up in the Middle East.  The leading character is a charming fellow...

Another approach to Literature and Film

March 22, 2017

For Part 4, many of us think of linking longer works such as novels to feature films.  However, another imaginative and productive approach might be this one, suggested by a workshop participant: poetry and short videos. YouTube, in particular, provides many options...

Narratives of a different kind

February 22, 2017

One of the suggested options in Part 4 is digital texts, something not many have taken up.  I’m providing a link here to ‘Tailspin,’ a narrative I picked up from a course described on the MLA commons.  I think you might find it interesting and usable...

Misfortunate misdirections: Literature in Translation

December 12, 2016

IB Examiners of components that involve works in translation become familiar with the most frequently included works.  And those works, among a few others, are Ibsen’s A Doll’s House, Camus’ The Outsider, Kafka’s The Metamorphosis and Chronicle...

A contemporary poet for complicated times

October 28, 2016

I’d like to recommend the poetry of Daljit Nagra as an entrance into the many complex issues that we are all living with these days, the issues of identity, multicultural life, migration. Sometimes literature can open up new avenues of thinking about our place in the...

Teaching ‘Broken April’ or ‘Leo Africanus?”

October 14, 2016

If by chance you are studying either of these texts–Broken April by Ismail Kadare or Leo Africanus by Amin Maalouf–I’ve two suggestions of supplementary materials that can enhance both your work with students and also with their Interactive Orals. I...