We are cutting the R lit. assignments pretty drastically, especially for the first 10 weeks of school, since my R boys are taking a dual credit speech course and other classes, playing soccer, working, etc. We've done weeks 1-3 intact as written, but the boys are really ready for something a bit more enjoyable just as story. Among Beowulf, Dante's Inferno, and the Canterbury Tales (and maybe even Sir Gawain and the Green Knight - we don't HAVE to go in order), which might be most likely to give them a literary "shot in the arm," make them remember why they love to read, feel like a good story? They're willing to read whatever I assign them, but I'd like this assignment to give them some encouragement in literature.
Thanks for suggestions.
Bonnie

Bonnie,

I felt Beowulf would be the best, just for pleasure reading, but I ran it past my 19 y.o. daughter, who loved ToG just to make sure. She agreed - the best story of the bunch is Beowulf. She said Dante is great if you want to bring in historical stuff and references to other literature, but if you just want a good read, go with Beowulf.

Thanks, that's helpful. (And thank your daughter, too, Sharon ) Now my boys are saying they want Dante! But I want to be able to give them some information before we really decide. They're good readers and want to feel like they're reading something important to Western Literature (I know the earlier stuff was, too, but it wasn't stuff they've always heard and been curious about, kwim?) But I also want them to enjoy the reading, because I'm sensing this is a critical time in helping them form a positive attitude toward literature studies (they're busy, have challenging outside classes with lots of reading, and need a good reason to spend real brain space on literature!) So is your recommendation still Beowulf? Anyone else have any thoughts, too?
Thanks so much ~
Bonnie

Well, they could do both. There is no reason to make them do all of the SAPs and everything for every piece of Literature they read. You could have them just read Beowulf for the fun of it and then take a more in-depth approach to Dante, still without necessarily doing all of the work on Dante.

The reason I would say just a relaxing read for Beowulf and not for Dante is that Beowulf can easily be appreciated as just a fun, swashbuckling story, whereas Inferno is an allegory and needs a bit more probing.

BTW, our favorite version of Beowulf is Seamus Heaney's. It can be done as a read-aloud, even rhetoric students can do that, once in a while. A roaring fire, hot spiced cider and candlelight can give the feeling of a Saxon mead-hall on a fall evening.

Unless, of course, you don't have a fireplace. In which case I'd skip the fire.

I agree - Beowulf is fun on its own; Dante requires more work. The Canterbury Tales and Sir Gawain could also be done just to read and discuss, especially since not all the C Tales are assigned. If you don't have time to read and decode all of the Dante assignment, perhaps you could find a Dante for kids - someone on the Well Trained Mind forum linked just such a book on Amazon. I have not seen it myself, so I can't speak to the age level, but it might be a quick read that would make the real Dante easier to understand. My 10th grader enjoyed Dante when he did yr 2. He found the syncretism going on in religious thought during the Middle Ages fascinating.

Hope these ramblings from a current yr 4 mom are helpful!
Blessings,
April (we are currently reading Metamorphosis by Kafka - Beowulf is more fun!

Oh, Amen to that April! Kafka is just freaky. Any of them are more fun than that.

We did Year 4 for my daughter's senior year. It was hard going, but she said it was great preparation for college. Hope your year goes smoothly.

Thank you Sharon! My boys are in 12th and 10th this year, so my 10th grader will finish TOG with yr 2 as a senior. I, too, think TOG is great prep for college. My older son wants to be an engineer, but he will have a great base knowledge of world history, literature, and writing skills to draw on. All those things should help him be a well-rounded engineer or whatever he chooses ultimately. I am glad to hear the your daughter found TOG good preparation for her freshman year! TOG is certainly richer and more challenging than anything I did in high school!
Blessings,
April (who is tired of big bug-guys and all their introspection, but finding the whole thing more interesting than expected!)

I asked my 16 year old son this question while driving in the car today. I couldn't remember all the books so I gave him the choices that I remembered which were Dante, Beowulf, and Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. Hands down and without hesitation he said Dante. He said Dante was great and that they would really learn what they needed to learn about literature for that time period.

So...more options to ponder.

Blessings,
Barb Spanier

I have to admit that Dante is, without question, THE most most significant work of the Middle Ages... and also the work most referenced in later literature, history, and culture. However, that being said, several of you ladies have rightly pointed out that Dante is more work to understand. So I guess it's maybe a bit of a toss-up between most important and most enjoyable. For "most enjoyable," I might vote Sir Gawain and the Green Knight even higher than Beowulf (especially for girls, because it includes ladies as well as knights)... but both are good! :-)

In case you're wondering, the boys decided to do
Dante. Thanks for all your help!!
Bonnie in IN

It's good to "see" you again April! We will be doing Kafka next week. ;-) Gloomy and weird, ain't he? But still very interesting!