Creative English Teacher — World Literature

“Herein may be seen noble chivalry, courtesy, humanity, friendliness, hardiness, love, friendship, cowardice, murder, hate, virtue, and sin. Do after the good and leave the evil.” ~ Sir Thomas Malory, “Preface to Le Morte D’Arthur” ~ Some stories just resonate with students, and the saga of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table is a student favorite time and again. Maybe it’s that the story cycle is so long, spanning fourteen script-stories, with a sprawling cast of memorable characters. Or maybe it’s just the medieval setting full of knights and damsels, wizards and enchantresses, chivalry and jousting. No...

What can a myth tell you about a culture? Maybe a better question would be, what can't it tell you? Social customs, traditions, beliefs, and values–they're all embedded there within the story. Myths are windows into cultures, but with such a wide variety of cultures in the world, how, within the time constraints of a high-school course, do you achieve a panoramic look at myths from all corners of the globe?  That question led me to the idea of World Myth Speed Dating. Based on information I've gleaned from sitcoms, Speed Dating is a social gathering where singles pair up time...