Analyzing Literature: Getting More Out of a Book

     So I started a literary analysis class this week. I was not sure how exactly it would go but it seemed to go pretty well for a class.
    This semester we are studying Pride and Prejudice, Jane Eyre, and Tale of Two Cities. I am so glad I started with the easy book because it will help me to "feel the waters" so to speak and get into the groove of things. It will also help me to understand how my students study better before jumping into something more complex.
    With literary analysis you take a book and really pay attention to what the author is saying. What do they believe? Do I believe that? What kinds of attributes would I expect the author to have? Are they displayed in any of the characters? What kinds of characters do we see (introverts, extroverts, proud, silly, vain, kind, accepting)? Who do you think you would like to meet? Who do you think you would definitely avoid meeting? What characters become more interesting as you ask questions? Why? What kind of person can you draw from these characters?

     As you can see I ask a lot of questions of the text and particularly about the characters because Pride and Prejudice is all about the characters. Other books are too but as we go on I think that we will find that books like Tale of Two Cities have a lot of setting and background scenes that we would ask other, more tailored questions about the setting. For Pride and Prejudice this is not a huge focus in the book so naturally we will ask more questions about the characters themselves. We could also draw out more about who the author is because the focus is not as broad or deep as it will be in the other books.
     I had some information about Jane Austen that I had the kids read and I had them read to chapter 6 this week. Here are some of the questions that I asked them in particular for discussion (along with some of the general ones above):
   
What did Jane Austen originally name Pride and Prejudice? (First Impressions)
What kind of writing was she known for? What did people say about her writing? (She wrote about the ordinary in an interesting way)
What would we categorize it as today? (Romance, classical, historical fiction)

    Jane Austen is very good at portraying (especially in this book) how destructive, and silly, human Pride can be. What examples do you see in the first few chapters of this?
      Do you typically rely on first impressions? Why or why not?
      Do you think that first impressions of others usually are good judgments? Why or why not?
      Which characters do you think you could be friends with? Why?
      Which characters (if any) would you prefer to avoid? Why?

     It fascinates me how fictional books hold so much information that we often don't get in just reading through them. We get to meet someone and engage in the world that they either live in or have created. In these stories we can see how this person thought about others and catch a glimpse of what they are/were like as an individual.
     As I'm writing I just had a thought. What if we read the Bible in a similar fashion? I end up asking the same question every time I read the Bible when I have devotions (what does this passage tell me about God? Or some variation of that.) but what if I asked questions that asked first about the human author and then about God (or vice versa). Just an interesting thought.
      Anyway, rabbit trail :)
      Fictional stories can hold so many ideas in them and explore how different people think which is one of the reasons why I enjoy analyzing them.

Do We Judge Them Too Quickly?

     Homeschooling parents everywhere are doing are doing a good thing. It is a very good thing to homeschool, it's a better education, it can be hand tailored to the students interest and learning style, homeschoolers are generally more self motivated, there is better retention of what was learned.
     There are lots of reasons why people should homeschool but if your brother or sister in Christ cannot or will not homeschool I do not believe that it is necessarily wrong. If the situation is handled correctly it does not have to be the automatic wrong choice.
     I babysit for a lady who is honoring her husband by putting her kids in Public School. She goes and volunteers once a week at her kids school so that she can be involved in their lives and can kind of keep an eye on what is talked about in class. She discusses with her kids why they believe differently and why as Christians we need to stand for what is right. This particular mom when she comes across curriculums that she disagrees with in the school will go and complain to the teachers and/or the principal and does what she can to raise awareness among the other parents. Even though its not the best option I think this particular mom is doing the best she can in the situation that she is in.
     I help out a a Good News Club. The reason that it got started was because a little girl told her mom that she wanted to know how she could share her faith with her friends at school. Her mom looked into it and found out about this program that could be taught after school. As I have helped to teach this group it has been so cool to see kids get the gospel for the first time. This ministry is affecting lives, sometimes weekly. The Good News Club has now been in that school for 9 years. If this little girl hadn't been in that school I wonder if the Good News Club would have existed at all.
     Was it the parents best option to public school their kids in this instance? Probably not, but there were more people affected that probably wouldn't have been affected if this particular family hadn't public schooled their kids.
     I strongly believe that homeschooling is the way that I would want to educate my children but I do not believe that all Christians who put their kids in Public School are doing the wrong thing. I think as Christians we need to be careful that we don't get up on our high and mighty horses and say that all Christians who choose to Public School their kids are "doing it wrong." It's really easy to get in that mentality.

    Here are some questions that I ask myself when I meet a Christian parent who public schools:
-What is the parent involvement/interest in their child's education?
-Are they Public Schooling out of necessity?
-If not, what is the hesitation with homeschooling?

     These just help me to more fully understand the situation.
     I do not have to agree with the choice made but I do not have to let this be a separating point between me and a brother or sister in Christ.

Oldest Daughter Complex: What You May Not Understand

    Recently I was in a conversation with a homeschool mom at our church who was describing some of her confusion as to why her oldest daughter wasn't getting her schoolwork done till 5pm whereas most of her other kids would get done regularly at 2. They have a big family of 9 kids. I actually wasn't aware of the fact that others struggled similarly to myself until this mom started describing some of her confusion of why her daughter wasn't getting done with her schoolwork earlier.
     I have found that at least in my own situation that I tend to be one of those types who likes to be useful to others. As the oldest daughter I saw my role as being a helper to my mother first and schoolwork was second. I love being part of a big family and I love that I got to benefit from learning alongside my mother from a very early age. I have had moments of not wanting things to be this way but for the most part I have been pretty content with my situation.
     This being said let's get down to what I wanted to say in the first place. When I was homeschooling I would spend between 7 and 8 hours a day on schoolwork. Part of this was due to the fact that I felt that I needed to be ready and available if my mom needed me. This included, but was not limited to, helping the little kids get lunch, changing diapers when they needed to be changed, cleaning up after the little kids, and being generally available for them should the occasion arise.
     The other kids around my age would pitch in and help too, but they are boys and didn't see things the same way that I did. It's not that they can't be the same way that I was (and to some extent still am) but I think some people are born with more of an awareness to the details around them, some people are born with a "big picture" awareness, and some people are just confusing as to what kind of awareness (if any) that they happen to possess. (I personally think God puts these kinds of people in our lives to keep the systematic people from being able to categorize everyone into their little box. I think He must get a kick out of that sometimes.)
     As a girl we tend to be more nurturing than men. We tend to be more aware of the immediate needs of the children under our care and tend to want to meet those needs (notice I said needs to wants, as mothers and older daughters we learn to distinguish between what the children in our care want and what they really need). It is not a bad thing and in fact is a reflection of our creator who is very aware of His children's needs and meets the needs of His children.
     In the Bible we see the children of Israel wandering around in the desert but God faithfully takes care of them, he gives them manna every day for food, he makes sure that their sandals on their feet don't wear out, he gives them water from rocks. God takes care of his children.
    In 2011 our landlord lost the property that we lived on and so we were asked to leave the property. During that time my dad didn't have a regular job and relied on contract work to get the money just to pay for our expenses. So no regular job and no house to live in and yet for a whole year to the day God provided not only food for us to eat but we always had a roof over our heads and a place for everyone to sleep. We really felt that God was taking care of us and directing us through the whole experience.
     That all said (sorry for the rabbit trail) I think it's important for mothers who may be confused about their older children not getting done with their schoolwork till late to try and figure out if there is a way of helping them.
     One way of doing that might be by observing what they do throughout the day and write down what it is that they are doing throughout the day. Try not to let them know what you are doing because we generally act better when we know that others are watching.
     It also could be mental fatigue from being in the house all of the time. I found that I was able to focus better on my schoolwork much better after I had gotten out of the house for a bit (such as when we would get home from P.E. or go out for a quick shopping trip with mom). I would encourage homeschool moms to try and work it out for your kids (especially the ones who have a harder time getting their schoolwork done earlier) to get out of the house on a regular basis and see if that helps to improve their focus and improve how quickly they are able to get their schoolwork done.
     Another tool that might help that I was not aware of till I was in high school is getting a speed reading course. We have an audio version which takes about 10 minutes to go through and it's really good.
     If all else fails it might be helpful to just sit down and talk with your child or have them write answers to the questions on paper if they feel they need more time to think about the answers. Some of the questions below might be questions to ask yourself first and see if you already have an answer some might be appropriate to ask your child. You may even come up with questions of your own.
     How do they view themselves in relation to the family unit? If they could liken themselves to something inanimate what would it be? If they could choose to take a class doing something what would they want to learn? What kinds of things frustrate them? Is there a subject that they are having trouble in but don't understand why and are afraid to ask because they don't know why it's hard for them or why it takes so long? Which siblings give them the most trouble? Why?
     The child will appreciate that you care and want to help. If you don't end up coming up with an answer after doing these things realize that we are all imperfect ink splotches and that I for one do not have all of the answers. I'm just trying to help you see from the perspective of an oldest daughter what it's like and then trying to help mothers help their daughters feel successful and not feel discouraged because it takes them so long to do their school and feeling like they can never do what they want to do.
      I think my mom did some things really right when I was homeschooling like taking me and her out shopping together just to get away from the house and it gave me a chance to take a break from that mental "on" that you get when you are at work (which is where I was when I was at home or when I was with the little kids). She had us involved in a P.E. group outside our home for a while. I did choir while I was in Jr. High. I did ballet for 4 years (from when I was 10 till I was 14).
     I am appreciative of all of the time spent doing all of the activities outside of the home. I am also appreciative of the things we did inside the home and for the chance that I got to be involved in the "dirty work" of motherhood and gaining the skills that I did from being involved. It is a matter of finding where the balance is and not giving up or feeling discouraged because you haven't found a balance that works for your family yet.
     Be in communion with other believers and ask God to bring guidance into your life that can help you through this challenge. God knows what you need and sometimes it's not as obvious as we think.