For many centuries, books have been one of the central forms of entertainment for humankind. Readers around the world invest countless hours escaping into new and unique worlds, losing themselves in the words and pages of books from various genres. While all books affect readers in different ways, history has shown that some books have a way of reaching and impacting large groups of people so that they are forever changed. These books can share knowledge, inspiration, and discoveries in various fields. They teach, influence, and alter the way we think. Sometimes these books are so important and enlightening that they help the world and its people evolve. The following books have done just that. By educating and informing readers in the areas of politics and government, creating new standards in literature, challenging societal norms, and advancing academic thought in the schools of science and religion, these are top 50 books that changed the world.
Politics and Government
These titles represent some of the most influential books that examine politics, economics, and philosophy. Each of these texts had an impact on the way we understand governance.
- The Republic, Plato. Written around 380 BCE, this text is considered to be one of the most influential pieces ever written. The Republic observes justice in man and politics and discusses the role of the philosopher in society. Many of the intellectual concepts contained in The Republic are still discussed today, but the text is also an important historical document that provides historians with a snapshot of Greece at the time of its writing.
- The Communist Manifesto by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. One of the most recognized and popular political texts ever written, The Communist Manifesto details the class struggle that exists in society and traces its beginnings in history. The document highlights the problems of capitalism and capitalist production and how these structures impact the political and societal landscape.
- The Rights of Man by Thomas Paine. The Rights of Man argues that political revolution is acceptable and permissible when a government fails to perform its duty of protecting the natural rights of its citizens. Written as a defense of the French Revolution, Paine’s 1791 book was widely circulated and challenged all societal institutions that don’t benefit the nation overall, including institutions such as monarchies and aristocracies.
- Common Sense by Thomas Paine. Published anonymously in 1776, this pamphlet supported the Americans in their fight for independence from the British during the American Revolution. The pamphlet encouraged the people in the American Colonies to resist the leaders from Great Britain and push for an egalitarian government. Still today, Common Sense is one of the all-time best-selling American titles.
- Democracy in America by Alexis de Tocqueville. In what was originally meant to be an observation of the American prison system, Democracy in America is a look at American society and institutions overall and the reasons why American democratic equality exists and thrived at the time of the writing. Alexis de Tocqueville traced the historical evolution of equality and suggested that specific conditions, such as widespread economic opportunity and the abolition of primogeniture, led to the American democratic revolution.
- The Prince by Niccolo Machiavelli. Considered to be one of the first works of modern political philosophy, The Prince is a political treatise from 1513 that offers advice on how aspiring leaders can survive and thrive in the contentious political landscape. While the intent of the book is still debated, the result is one of the most unabashed meditations on political power and what is required in order to make it last.
- Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave by Frederick Douglass. Written by the famed orator and former slave, Frederick Douglass, this narrative is considered the most famous of pieces written by former slaves and one of the most influential texts during the abolitionist movement in the United States. In the text, Douglass recounts his life as a slave on his way to freedom.
- On Liberty by John Stewart Mill. This philosophical work is considered a foundational text for modern liberal political thought. The text applies ethical utilitarianism to society and state governance, arguing that more importance be placed on the consequences of actions as they relate to the interests of others than one’s own interests.
- The Wealth of Nations by Adam Smith. The Wealth of Nations, published in 1776, describes how and what builds a nation’s wealth. Largely viewed as the foundational text for classical economics, The Wealth of Nations explores the economic system and suggests that a free market is able to automate and regulate itself. These functions are only limited by the privileges given to certain members within the economy.
- Orientalism by Edward Said. Primarily a work of postcolonial cultural studies, Orientalism discusses how cultural representations of the Eastern world are bound to the structures and societies that create them. Since these patronizing and exaggerated depictions of difference are designed in such a way that Western superiority is highlighted in comparison, Orientalism becomes a critique of Westerns politics and power.
From creating characters and stories that have become foundational elements in cultures around the world to upsetting undesirable standards and inspiring the imagination of many, these works of literature have touched the world in significant ways. These are the most influential books in literature.
- The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer. Written in the 14th century, this collection of tales brought to life characters and stories that remain popular today. The Canterbury Tales also provides a glimpse into the customs and practices within the society at the time of its writing. This work is one of the most read books and one of the most studied in all the world. Many scholars suggest that Chaucer’s magnum opus contributed greatly to the popularization of the English vernacular in literature.
- Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri. Considered one of the most important pieces of world literature, the Divine Comedy is an epic poem that details a journey through the realms of the afterlife and, allegorically, the soul’s discovery of God. Long considered to be the greatest piece of Italian literature, the Divine Comedy also provides us with a closer view of medieval Christian theology and philosophy.
- The Complete Works of William Shakespeare. William Shakespeare is often considered the greatest writer in the English language and the greatest dramatist in all of history. The characters, stories, and language have taken hold of readers for hundreds of years and have greatly contributed to shaping modern culture. Shakespeare’s complete works have been translated into every major language and are still enjoyed around the world.
- Moby Dick by Herman Melville. This now-famous book about a man’s hunt for the great whale is considered one of the greatest American novels ever written. Moby Dick is heavy on symbolism, but is also famous for the detailing of the whaling industry in the 19th century and its many different narrative styles and structures.
- 1984 by George Orwell. This dystopian novel describes life in a totalitarian regime that has stripped the people of their rights. The themes in this novel have become a major part of modern culture, creating terms and concepts that have been incorporated into our own society. Surveillance, truth, and censorship take center stage in this novel; no other book has contributed to our understanding of these themes like 1984.
- Brave New World by Aldous Huxley. Another dystopian novel, this one by Huxley is often considered one of the great novels of the 20th century. Huxley’s novel looked unfavorably on the loss of an individual’s identity through futuristic technological advancements. Huxley’s own fears of commerciality and the emerging youth culture are fully on display in this novel.
- The Iliad and The Odyssey by Homer. These two ancient Greek epic poems are not only the preeminent works in ancient Greek literature, but they are also incredibly influential texts for all forms of art, thought, and music in Western civilization. The Iliad details a few weeks during the end of the Trojan War and the Odyssey describes Odysseus’ ten-year journey home from the Trojan War. These two works are important for their detail of Greek history and legend, the composition of story, and the development of themes.
- Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes. This Spanish novel, originally published as two books, is one of the most influential and popular novels in the world. It’s also considered to be one of the best books ever written. The adventure, symbolism, and characterization contained in Don Quixote has promoted the book to the incredible popularity it has today. Don Quixote became one of the earliest canonical texts and has been inspiring artists of all kinds for hundreds of years.
- In Search of Lost Time by Marcel Proust. Daunting in length, the seven-volume In Search of Lost Time is one of the most prominent modern works of the early 20th century. The novel explores themes of memory, childhood, and meaning, but it avoids the plot-driven model of 19th-century novels. The supporting cast are incredibly well drawn and the events are moved forward by the differing perspectives that experience them, writing techniques that have been emulated endlessly since the novel’s publication.
- Madame Bovary by Gustave Flaubert. Flaubert’s story of a woman who engages in adulterous affairs in an attempt to escape from a loveless marriage was subjected to heavy censorship at the time it was published, and Flaubert was taken to trial over the novel. After his acquittal, Madame Bovary became renowned as a masterpiece of the Realism movement.
- Arabian Nights translated by Andrew Lang. This English language version of One Thousand and One Nights retells the ancient stories that have now become popularized around the world, including the plight of Scheherazade, the adventures of Aladdin, and the voyages of Sinbad.
- One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel García Márquez. Considered to be one of the most significant novels in the Spanish literary canon, One Hundred Years of Solitude tells the story of the Buendía family over several generations. The style and themes in the novel are seen to be representative of a unique Latin American literary movement of the 1960s: Magical Realism.
- War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy. Though Tolstoy was hesitant to call this a novel, War and Peace is often included in the discussion of the best novels of all time. Chronicling the French invasion of Russia in 1812, the book looks at the psychological effects of the war and the philosophical discussions that it created.
- The Tale of Genji by Murasaki Shikibu. Written in the beginning of the 11th century, The Tale of Genji is often called the first novel. While it does not have a plot by definition, the story does have many elements of a modern novel, including a main character, a supporting cast, and characterization. Translation of this novel has proved difficult over time, but most still consider it the first and greatest work in Japanese literature.
- Uncle Tom’s Cabin by Harriett Beecher Stowe. Written by a middle aged, white woman in 1851, Uncle Tom’s Cabin has been credited for changing the views of slavery in the north and continues to serve as a reminder of the effects of slavery and other inhumane acts.
- Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoyevsky. While Fyodor Dostoyevsky has written several works that could be considered some of the most influential ever published, Crime and Punishment is one that stands above the rest as one of the best books ever written. This novel explores the mind of an individualistic person from within, challenging the rules of crime and punishment as they apply to the main character and the people around him.
- Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe. The theme of preserving cultural history in the face of Western domination in this novel gave voice to the oppressed people in Africa and caught the attention of the world. This novel, written in 1958, is still widely read and studied as an example of the damage of colonialism.
- Faust by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe. Faust is a tragic play, but it has long been considered the single greatest work in German literature. The tale tells of Faust selling his soul to the devil for worldly knowledge and pleasures. The influence this story has on art, literature, music, and thought is immeasurable.
- Beloved by Toni Morrison. Written to honor the memory of African American slaves brought over during the slave trade, Toni Morrison’s Beloved is one of the most recognizable and influential texts in modern literature. For giving voice to the African-American experience and observing and recording the collective memory of the population, Morrison’s novel won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1988.
- The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien. Not only is The Lord of the Rings one of the best-selling novels in the world, it also helped form and shape the high fantasy genre. While many of the themes from the story were adapted from earlier mythologies, The Lord of the Rings itself became the foundational text for all fantasy readers and authors.
These are the most influential books in terms of impacting society, texts that helped changed people’s views on racism, feminism, consumption, and language.
- The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank. This landmark book is built from the actual diary kept by Anne Frank, the young daughter of a Jewish family hiding during the Nazi takeover in the Netherlands. The innocence of this young girl so full of hopes and dreams is held in sharp contrast to the reality of her situation at the hands of the Nazis. This book has become a strong symbol and reminder of the impact of racial persecution.
- The Vindication of the Rights of Women by Mary Wollstonecraft. Considered the first great treatise on feminism, Wollstonecraft’s text was written in response to those who felt that women should not be educated. She argued that women are deserving of an education that is proportionate to their position in society, that of educators and companions. Wollstonecraft demonstrated that inequality is not only morally and ethically wrong, but is also economically and socially irresponsible.
- The Second Sex by Simone de Beauvoir. The Second Sex examines why a woman’s position in society is prohibitive and how it got to this point. Establishing herself as a fundamental figure in feminist philosophy, de Beauvoir was one of the first to explore gender as a social construct, distinguishing between the terms “sex” and “gender.”
- A Room of One’s Own by Virginia Woolf. In A Room of One’s Own, an extended essay that Woolf delivered to two women’s colleges, the differences between male and female writers and how those differences are the result of the limitations and restrictions imposed on females, is discussed. Without the freedom, the education, or the financial rewards of male authors, females are barred from creating a literary tradition of their own.
- Walden by Henry David Thoreau. Walden is the textual reflection of Thoreau’s social experiment of living isolated in a cabin next to Walden Pond in order to better understand society. Thoreau wrote the results of his experience with self-sufficiency and simplicity in Walden, which has subsequently become a source of inspiration for those seeking a life removed from the business of society.
- A Dictionary of the English Language by Samuel Johnson. Considered the most influential dictionary of the English language, Johnson compiled this book over seven years all by himself. Credited as the foundational text for the study of the English language and lexicography, Johnson’s dictionary was not the first of its kind, but it was the most comprehensive and well-researched.
- Critique of Pure Reason by Immanuel Kant. Immanuel Kant’s Critique of Pure Reason is largely considered to be one of the most influential philosophical texts of all time. Exploring human knowledge and reason, their extents and limitations, and the perception of space and time, Kant’s text is one of the most important books to read for all who are interested in philosophy.
- The Jungle by Upton Sinclair. Even though Upton Sinclair set out to write a novel about the lives of immigrants in America in the early 20th century, The Jungle ended up gaining popularity because it highlighted the unsanitary practices in the meatpacking industry. By depicting countless health violations and stories of the unfair treatment and pay of migrant workers, Sinclair was a major contributor to the reformation of the meat inspection laws in America. Over time, he gained more recognition for influencing standardized wages as well.
- Native Son by Richard Wright. Often regarded as the father of Black American Literature, Richard Wright wrote Native Son as an attempt to demonstrate the harsh realities of being a black person in white America. It was one of the earliest and most successful books to observe the racial divide in the country from the perspective of the minority, and it highlighted black culture in a way that had not been done before.
Science, Math, and Geography
These works are some of the most influential books because they began or at least represent the beginning of entire movements and schools of thought in the fields of science, math, and geography.
- Philosophae Naturalis Principia Mathematica by Isaac Newton. Written while Cambridge was closed because of the plague, Newton’s Philosophae Naturalis Principia Mathematica details the principles of gravity, mechanics, calculus, and light and color. This book set the stage for modern studies of both math and physics.
- The Meaning of Relativity by Albert Einstein. The Meaning of Relativity is a collection of the Stafford Little Lectures made by Albert Einstein in 1921 at Princeton University. Delivered five years after Einstein’s groundbreaking paper on general relativity was published, these lectures sum up the man’s work. While many of the ideas were presented in different forms prior to the publication of this book, The Meaning of Relativity remains one of the most important collections of ideas ever put together.
- On the Origin of Species by Charles Darwin. This work by Darwin laid out the foundation for the theory of evolution. Since its publication, the book’s theories and observations have helped make life sciences what they are today. Darwin’s adaptation and evolutionary model still aid modern scientists as they build a better understanding of all Earth’s species, including our own.
- Silent Spring by Rachel Carson. Carson wrote on the topic of environmental justice in this book that inspired readers to think more seriously about their relationship to the Earth. Silent Spring helped the modern environmental movement get off the ground and led to the nationwide ban on DDT.
- Geographia by Ptolemy. Ptolemy wrote and mapped the world according to the knowledge he had available to him in the 2nd century. His maps and methodologies were used for hundreds of years afterward. Today’s cartography is directly descended from Ptolemy’s work.
- The Interpretation of Dreams by Sigmund Freud. Freud included the basics of his theories on psychoanalysis in this landmark work that is still read and studied worldwide. In this work, Freud introduced the concept of the unconscious and demonstrated how his theories are used to interpret dreams. Freud’s work popularized the science of psychology and helped build the foundation on which modern psychological discourse now stands.
These religious texts are some of the most influential books ever written, serving as spiritual and lifestyle guides for countless people around the world. Some of these texts are thousands of years old.
- The Bible. This sacred text brought Christianity to the world and has continued to serve as a source of inspiration for millions of people. It is the most translated and the most frequently purchased book in the world.
- The Qur’an. The sacred text of Islam, the Qur’an is believed to be the last word of God told to Muhammad through the angel Gabriel over a period of 23 years. This book is the cornerstone of the Islamic religion.
- The Torah. The written laws and teachings that are contained in the Tanakh have offered a way of life for those of the Jewish faith. The text provides teaching and methods of practice for daily living and has influenced art and literature in countless ways.
- The Tibetan Book of the Dead. Perhaps the most well-known Tibetan text, this book was written by a Tibetan monk and discusses what happens during death, the time between death and rebirth, and rebirth.
- The Analects by Confucius. The Analects is a collection of sayings and ideas attributed to Confucius, a Chinese philosopher. The text has been read and studied in China for the last 2,000 years and has had a monumental impact on Chinese culture, values, art, and thought.


What is an Annotated Bibliography?
A bibliography is a list of works on a subject that gives complete publication information and is formatted according to one of several documentation styles (MLA, APA, etc.). An annotated bibliography gives for each citation some commentary from the person who has compiled the list of works.
An annotated bibliography describes the field of research on a topic and should include sources that reflect the range of approaches to the subject. The annotations tend to do one or both of two things:
Description: a descriptive annotation provides a brief overview of the text.
This can include:
- a description of the contents and a statement of the main argument (i.e., what is the book about?)
- a summary of the main points
- a quotation or two to illustrate the style, tone, treatment of the subject
Evaluation: a critical annotation includes an analysis of the work.
Some useful points to consider are:
- the strengths and weaknesses of the text
- its accuracy, currency, and/or completeness
- the intended audience, the level of difficulty
- the qualifications and authority of the author and publisher
- the usefulness of the text for your research project or for further study
- the place of this text in the field of research covered in your bibliography
Most annotated bibliographies include a combination of descriptive and evaluative comments.
The key to writing a good annotation is to consider who will use it. If it is for someone else, what will your reader need to know in order to decide whether or not to read the text for him/herself? If it is for you, how can you sum up the work so that later you will remember your ideas about it? Be brief, clear, and succinct to convey the maximum useful information in your annotation.
Annotations can vary in length from very brief (a sentence or less) to very detailed (a page or more), but the average length of annotations is around 4-5 sentences or 150 words. The length is related to the purpose and intended audience of the annotated bibliography. Your annotations should be written in complete sentences or brief paragraphs.
Annotated bibliographies are useful for:
- Active Reading:Annotations make you think carefully about what you are reading: can you sum up an article or a book in a few sentences and state why the source is or isn't useful to your project?
- Keeping Track:Annotations can form the basis of a research bibliography for a large project, tracking what you've been reading, which sources you’ve found useful and why.
- Developing Your Ideas:Annotations can help you focus your own ideas on a subject through critically analyzing and articulating your ideas about other treatments of the subject.
- Surveying the Field: Annotations give an overview of a subject for your reader, showing the range of ideas, viewpoints, what has been "done" on this topic so far, and revealing what has not yet been examined in the literature.
Remember: Always check with your professor for the purpose, format and length requirements of any assignment, including an annotated bibliography, before completing it and handing it in.
Example #1a: Descriptive annotation
A descriptive annotation gives a brief summary of the main points and features of the work, without evaluating it. Note: The following two examples are in APA format.
London, H. (1982). Five myths of the television age. Television quarterly 10, 1, 81-89.
Herbert London, the Dean of Journalism at New York University and author of several books and articles, explains how television contradicts five commonly believed ideas. He uses specific examples of events seen on television, such as the assassination of John Kennedy, to illustrate his points. His examples have been selected to contradict such truisms as: "seeing is believing"; "a picture is worth a thousand words"; and "satisfaction is its own reward." London uses logical arguments to support his ideas which are his personal opinion. He doesn't refer to any previous works on the topic. London's style and vocabulary would make the article of interest to any reader.
Example #1b: Critical Annotation
In addition to what a descriptive annotation should include, a critical annotation evaluates the usefulness of the work, gives a sense of its strengths and weaknesses, and may compare it to other works on similar topics. In this example, the words in bold indicate what has been added to the annotation above to make it a critcal annotation.
London, H. (1982). Five myths of the television age. Television quarterly 10, 1, 81-89.
Herbert London, the Dean of Journalism at New York University and author of several books and articles, explains how television contradicts five commonly believed ideas. He uses specific examples of events seen on television, such as the assassination of John Kennedy, to illustrate his points. His examples have been selected to contradict such truisms as: "seeing is believing"; "a picture is worth a thousand words"; and "satisfaction is its own reward." London uses logical arguments to support his ideas which are his personal opinion. He doesn't refer to any previous works on the topic; however, for a different point of view, one should refer to Joseph Patterson's "Television is Truth" (cited below). London's style and vocabulary would make the article of interest to any reader. The article clearly illustrates London's points, but does not explore their implications, leaving the reader with many unanswered questions.
Examples 1a and 1b reproduced with permission from: Suzanne Sexty. "How to write annotated
bibliographies." Memorial University Libraries. April 22, 2003. August 22, 2003.
Example #2a: Descriptive Annotation
Here is another pair of examples demonstrating the difference between descriptive and critical annotations. The words in bold indicate what has been added to make the second example a critical annotation. These two examples use MLA style.
Summers, Montague. The Vampire, His Kith and Kin. New York: Dutton, 1929.
"The first serious study in English of the Vampire, and kindred traditions from a general, as well as from a theological and philosophical point of view." Concludes that "it is hard to believe that a phenomenon which has so complete a hold over nations both old and young, in all parts of the world, at all times of history, has not some underlying and terrible truth however rare this may be in its more remarkable manifestations." The study covers appearance, characteristics, causes for, feeding habits of, and precautions to be taken against. Includes case histories, ancient accounts, an anthropological-type survey of various nations, asides on premature burial, necrophilia, and various perverse and antisocial acts. Contains a chapter on the vampire in literature and a bibliography of both true and fictitious vampires. A fascinating account which proves the old adage about truth and fiction.
Example #2b: Critical Annotation
Summers, Montague. The Vampire, His Kith and Kin. New York: Dutton, 1929.
"The first serious study in English of the Vampire, and kindred traditions from a general, as well as from a theological and philosophical point of view." Concludes that "it is hard to believe that a phenomenon which has so complete a hold over nations both old and young, in all parts of the world, at all times of history, has not some underlying and terrible truth however rare this may be in its more remarkable manifestations." The study covers appearance, characteristics, causes for, feeding habits of, and precautions to be taken against. Includes case histories, ancient accounts, an anthropological-type survey of various nations, asides on premature burial, necrophilia, and various perverse and antisocial acts. Contains a chapter on the vampire in literature and a bibliography of both true and fictitious vampires. Although useful as a source for broad historical background, this work does not fully address the issue of the vampire's cultural significance. For a review of recent cultural studies work on the figure of the vampire that argues that its current popularity, with both the cultures that represent and the post-modern critics who study it, resides in the vampire’s representation of “racial and sexual mixing,” see Shannon Winnubst, cited below.
Example 2 adapted from McNutt, Dan J. The Eighteenth-Century Gothic Novel: An Annotated
Bibliography of Criticism and Selected Texts. New York & London: Garland, 1975. 61-62.
It is no exaggeration to say that the appearance of David Punter's The Literature of Terror in 1980 formed a landmark in the literary-historical treatment of what has since become a suddenly flourishing area of Romantic studies, namely that of Gothic and related terror-fiction. It was the first substantial and serious investigation of this tradition in English since Edith Birkhead's The Tale of Terror was published nearly sixty years previously; and it undertook a more extended survey than Birkhead had attempted. At once it superseded those embarrassingly eccentric and critically wayward 'authorities', Montague Summers's The Gothic Quest (1938) and Devendra Varma's The Gothic Flame (1957), releasing the study of terror-fiction from the stranglehold of hobbyists into something more like the clear light of twentieth-century critical sanity. It was rightly welcomed by a new generation of students, teachers, and general readers for whom the fascinations of genre fiction (and its cinematic equivalents) were no longer disreputably 'marginal' but now worthy of serious historical exposition. Numerous general studies of Gothic have followed it, many directly indebted to Punter's insights, all at least indirectly benefiting from the wider interest his book attracted.
The first edition of The Literature of Terror was issued in one volume as a 'trade' paperback, which means that most of the copies surviving in the libraries are disintegrating from over-use. The house of Longman has now, for reasons best known to its marketing and accountancy departments, chosen to split the second edition into two volumes, the first covering the period from Smollett to LeFanu, the second (not submitted for review here) taking us from Stevenson to the present. It is in the second volume, in fact, that the most significant updating and expansion has been done: there is a new chapter on the contemporary Gothic, and a revised theoretical retrospect, as well as an updated bibliography. In the first volume, the initial eight chapters of the original text remain much as they were, although the bibliography has been brought up to date, and there is a useful new 'Appendix on Criticism' which briefly reviews twenty-six important studies of the relevant period of Gothic fiction that have appeared since the late Seventies.
Punter's Preface to this new edition modestly presents the largely unrevised work as a 'period piece', and of course in many respects it belongs to a specific moment at which literature in the British academy had begun to be both politicized and psychologized in new ways, but at which the ferment of continental Theory and of American feminism had not yet been digested into the discourses of literary history. The names of Bakhtin, Barthes, Foucault, Genette, and Kristeva appear nowhere in the index, while those of Derrida, Lacan, Sedgwick, and Todorov have surfaced only in this new edition. Any comparable work written ten years later would almost inevitably have been peppered with references to these theorists, and would probably have been dominated by their categories and terms. One of the pleasures of revisiting Punter's book, indeed, is that of enjoying the fluency and narrative continuity of a history uncongested by the burdens of Theory. Not that The Literature of Terror is in any damaging sense a naive or 'innocent' work: a post-structuralist (or perhaps just late-modernist) preference for narrative self-consciousness and for the scriptible has evidently filtered through in its critical stance; and more generally it has a theoretical programme and sense of direction, but one derived from a pre-Lacanian phase of the quest for a synthesis of Marx and Freud, perhaps most closely aligned with the position of Herbert Marcuse - the only post-war thinker noticeably invoked in the first volume. Its most active analytic terms, as Punter acknowledges - the Unconscious, repression, pathology, sublimation, paranoia - are obviously the Freudian ones, while Marx is brought in only intermittently.
The signature of the book's 'moment' is perhaps most visible in its pivotal third chapter, on the three 'Classic Gothic Novels' of the 1790s - The Mysteries of Udolpho, The Monk, and The Italian . Punter's boldest move here is to read these works 'in series', in effect as a kind of collaborative or at least dialogic trilogy. Before Punter, the figures of Radcliffe and Lewis had habitually been presented as antagonists in the supposedly crucial matter of the use of the 'explained' supernatural. And since Punter, these two romancers have been sundered even more drastically as founders of incommensurable 'female' and 'male' Gothic modes - as 'Mother' and as 'Monk'. The Literature of Terror stands out, then, as one of the few studies of Gothic fiction in which, while allowing for formal, tonal, and gendered differences, Radcliffe and Lewis are treated as interlocutors in a common language. On the one side, Punter's dismissal of the question of the 'explained' supernatural as an exaggerated distraction opens up other dimensions of their writing to new scrutiny; on the other, it now appears refreshing to find no implausible claims for Radcliffe's 'radicalism', and to see Lewis presented more as a formal innovator than as a blindly phobic misogynist. In this chapter, as in many of the others, it is clear that the real critical work is being done not at the level of commentary or of 'readings' of texts (for which there is, in a survey of such scope, little room), but at the level of the collocation or clustering of them - a process which of course involves an 'interpretation' of a silent but powerful kind. Punter works well with either three texts or three authors to a chapter: thus the seventh ('Early American Gothic') covers Brockden Brown, Hawthorne, and Poe, while the eighth ('Gothic and the Sensation Novel') tackles Dickens, Wilkie Collins, and Sheridan Le Fanu. It is in the fifth chapter, though, that the interpretative collocation - of Godwin, Maturin, and Hogg - brings off one of the book's most interesting successes, bracketing Caleb Williams, Melmoth the Wanderer, and the Confessions of a Justified Sinner together as narratives of persecution, indeed as 'paranoiac texts' (p.138) in which, as Punter's commentary ably shows, the authors' overt moral purposes are in each case overwhelmed by darker obsessions. The most significant lost opportunity here is the exclusion of Frankenstein, which really belongs, formally and thematically, within this 'family' of persecution-novels rather than alongside the Romantic poets, where Punter wastefully strands it.
The more disappointing chapters of the first volume are those in which Punter tries to corral too loose an assortment of authors and texts into the same discussion. The sixth ('Gothic, History and the Middle Classes') rounds up Walter Scott, Edward Bulwer Lytton, William Harrison Ainsworth, G. P. R. James, and G. W. M. Reynolds, thus mixing together pseudo-chivalric romances, mainstream historical novels and urban sensational fiction in a rather aimless account of their various sources and debts. One has the feeling that Punter has expended a great deal of time on too many tedious third-rate novels, and needs to have something to show for his efforts, even if he is plainly unconvinced that these materials are either 'Gothic' or terrifying at all. The chapter does, however, throw up one tantalising retrospective observation:
Gothic in the last years of the eighteenth century was, as we have seen, partly an attitude towards history; more specifically, it clearly had to do with the ways in which a social class sought to understand and interpret class relations in the past.P.144
It is a remark that could and should have been followed through more purposefully in several parts of the book, in which attitudes towards history are too frequently occluded by the preoccupations of a dominant depth-psychology.
A weak chapter of a different sort is the fourth, entitled 'Gothic and Romanticism', which embraces five of the six major English Romantic poets (the incorrigibly unGothic Wordsworth is set aside) along with Frankenstein and Polidori's 'The Vampyre'. The purpose of its arguments is announced thus:
One of the features of Gothic fiction which distinguishes it historically from many other forms of 'sensational' writing is the power which it exerted over this group of undeniably major writers; this is both part of its validation as a focus of critical interest, and also a major source of its continuing historical vitality.P.87
As a 'validation' of interest in Gothic fiction, this is both unnecessary and unconvincing - a poeticized variation upon the more familiar and more plausible justifications of early Gothic as a precursor of Dickens or Dostoevsky or Kafka. Even as Punter attempts to illustrate the thesis in this chapter by adducing a small anthology of passages from the Romantics' minor works, it quickly becomes apparent that the connections between Gothic prose and Romantic poetry are both thematically unsurprising (Blake is interested in repression; so is Lewis) and genealogically indirect - which is to say that nothing more is demonstrated here than the well-known existence of a common body of 'pre-Romantic' materials behind both traditions: graveyard poetry, Ossianism, balladry, the cults of sensibility and the sublime. It takes more than a debt to Young or 'Ossian' to constitute a properly Gothic dimension of a poet's work; but in Punter's account there is a frequent slippage, and not just in this chapter, between the sources of Gothic and its achieved generic features, such that the label 'Gothic' can come to be applied to almost anything that contravenes the conventions of Augustanism. Before leaving this chapter, it is worth noticing that its treatment of Frankenstein is unusual to the point of perversity in regarding Mary Shelley's attitude to the creature as fearfully contemptuous. On the other hand, Punter's brief comments on 'The Vampyre' and its shaping of middle-class notions of the aristocracy are perceptive and well balanced.
The principal value of The Literature of Terror, it is worth recalling, is that it takes the story of Gothic fiction well beyond the border of 1820 behind which most previous accounts had restricted it. And in attempting such a prolonged narrative, it needs to be sensitive to shifts and transformations in an evolving tradition. From this point of view it is not just convenient but essential that Punter avoid fixing a tight definition of 'the Gothic' at the start. Instead we have, in the opening chapter, a survey of the various meanings and 'dimensions' of the term as it has been understood, but no attempt to sift or decide among them. This subsequently allows Punter to range fairly freely among different generic and national traditions (the American and Irish short story, the historical romance, the sensation novel) and thus to trace the various ways in which the Gothic legacy has coloured the literature of the last two centuries. This necessary flexibility has its costs, however, in the form of a repeated uncertainty about the applicability of 'Gothic' to many of the texts surveyed. Sometimes Punter will declare forthrightly that a particular novel or novelist is not Gothic (Scott, for instance); at others he concedes that a text's relation to the Gothic is open to debate (as with Frankenstein ); and towards the end of this volume he refers to Le Fanu's Uncle Silas (1864) as 'the first properly Gothic masterpiece in Britain since Melmoth the Wanderer ' (p.201) - which would make more sense (whether or not Dublin is in Britain) if we had been provided with a more secure ground for distinguishing proper Gothic from its impure offshoots. Without such a preparation, we are left with the impression that British and Irish fiction of the period 1820-1864 comprises works that are either Gothic but not masterpieces (Confessions of a Justified Sinner ?) or masterpieces but not properly Gothic (Little Dorrit ?). We are also presented with some curious choices of texts for illustration: the section on Dickens, for instance, is devoted almost entirely to Oliver Twist on the basis of its extreme violence rather than for any more specifically Gothic feature.
Another way of approaching the same recurrent problem is to say that there is a tension in this work between the terms of its main title and those of its subtitle: are we tracing the history of Terror or of Gothic? In so far as this history holds itself together, it does so by characterising (without ever actually defining) Gothic as Terror: 'Gothic fiction has, above all, to do with terror' (p.13). Yet the implied identification of Gothic with Terror is disputable. It is possible, although uncommon, to have a Gothic novel or tale that is not above all to do with terror, so long as certain minimal conditions (apprehension, confinement, and the claustrophobic pressure of the past) are active. The two masterpieces of Charlotte Bronte - the most glaring omission from this volume - are cases of this kind: both Jane Eyre and Villette are truly, if also idiosyncratically, Gothic novels, and yet terror is not of their essence. The same might even be said of Radcliffe's The Romance of the Forest .
Punter often indicates that the essential features of Gothic fiction are psychological: derangement, obsession, nightmare, the eruption of the irrational. This is surely true - a non-psychological Gothic fiction is unthinkable - but just as surely misleading if it is allowed to dispose of other striking elements of the genre. In the fifth chapter especially, Punter tends to contrast the real psychological preoccupations of Gothic with its incidental 'environmental trappings' (p.116) - a model of trivial surface and serious depth that is upheld throughout this 'psychologizing' work. Of almost all accounts of Gothic fiction, this is the least interested in the familiar 'surface' decor of the genre: its castles, underground passages and creaking doors, its stock-in-trade abbots and servants. In this respect, it misses the opportunity to integrate the 'trappings' with the major obsessions. In particular, it is blithely unconcerned with the religious and sectarian dimensions of the genre, with all their historical resonances. The question of anti-Catholicism goes unmentioned for the first fifty pages, and at one point Punter even remarks that Maturin displays 'an anticlericalism, surprising in a priest' (p.124), as if Protestantism had nothing to do with this. It has taken works of a more clearly historical tendency - notably Horror Fiction in the Protestant Tradition (1988) by Victor Sage, Punter's former colleague at the University of East Anglia -to correct such imbalances, but the historicist camp has yet to produce an extensive history of Gothic that could rival the lucidity or stimulating power of The Literature of Terror.


a complete guide to teaching critical thinking and fake news to studentsRead More
The International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions has released an excellent poster for your classroom identifying 'How to spot Fake News"
It can be downloaded here
Recently we posted an insightful article about teaching Fake News in your classroom and I can highly recommend reading it here.
Discussions about fake news has led to a new focus on media literacy more broadly, and the role of libraries and other education institutions in providing this.
When Oxford Dictionaries announced post-truth was Word of the Year 2016, we as librarians realise action is needed to educate and advocate for critical thinking – a crucial skill when navigating the information society.
IFLA has made this infographic with eight simple steps (based on FactCheck.org’s 2016 article How to Spot Fake News) to discover the verifiability of a given news-piece in front of you. Download, print, translate, and share – at home, at your library, in your local community, and on social media networks. The more we crowdsource our wisdom, the wiser the world becomes.
Regardless of their cultural background, every student in your class is likely to be familiar with fables. They are often one of our first introductions to the joys of storytelling. Of course, their merit lies not only in their huge entertainment value, but the fact that they are designed to teach us moral lessons.
In Western culture, the influence of fables, particularly those of that wily old Greek Aesop, permeate our everyday speech. Everything from Don’t count your chickens before they hatch to Out of the frying pan and into the fire can be traced to the wisdom of fables.
Given they are generally relatively short, very entertaining, and students are likely to have some familiarity with them already, fables make excellent resources for improving literacy skills. Read on to get more 5 interesting ideas on how to incorporate them into your lessons.
1. As Sly as a Fox
Though fables can reveal to us much about human nature, it is interesting to note that the central characters are most often animals. This is true even in more modern versions of fables, such as George Orwell’s Animal Farm. This anthropomorphism can provide a great in for some very fun writing activities.
Have younger children match personality traits to animals. This simple animal adjectives task consists of providing a list of adjectives and a list of animals. Students must match each adjective with the most suitable animal based on the fables they have been working on. You can further categorize adjectives in lists relating to size, shape, color, feeling, tone etc. This will open up learning opportunities for punctuation work too.
Older students can undertake a similar activity, but incorporate their understanding of poetry techniques to write similes or metaphors based on the animals in the fables they have read. To broaden out their characters, students could also be asked to develop bios for each animal.
2. And the Moral of the Story is...
As mentioned, these pithy little tales convey morals to readers. Indeed, back in the days of togas and scrolls, the Greeks would use fables to teach their society how to live the virtuous life. Encourage close reading skills in your students by having them identify the moral of a variety of fables.
As many of these stories date back over 2,500 years old, copyright is unlikely to be an issue! You can find tons of free versions of Aesop’s fables online. Print a selection off, organize your class into groups, give them copies of the tales, and set them the task of reading and identifying the moral of each one.
This activity is easily differentiated by the language level of each version. There are numerous versions of Aesop’s fables available for download online. Choose the version that best suits your class, group, or individual’s needs.
For younger students, or students of lower ability, you may wish to provide the group with a list of morals from which they have to choose to match up with the appropriate fable.
3. Getting Your Ducks in a Row
Sequencing is very important in storytelling; in fact, it’s very important in all writing genres. Having a firm grasp of the importance of good sequencing helps students organize their writing at the planning stage.
There are many possible variations of sequencing activities you can set your students. Very young students can be given a series of jumbled up pictures of scenes from a fable you have already read to them. They are tasked with putting the pictures in chronological order and sticking them onto a strip of paper. They can then use these as prompts to tell each other the story in their own words.
This activity can easily be modified to challenge stronger students. For example, you may provide a set of corresponding captions that must be matched to the pictures before organizing chronologically. You can further differentiate by introducing non-conventional story structures such as In Media Res where a story starts in the middle. Students will likely have some awareness of this from its frequent use in the movies. Have them play with the sequence of events and try different starting points for effect. This can reap great creative rewards in their writing later.
This HUGE BUNDLE offers a mix of hands-on, printable, and digital media resources. By the time you have finished this pack, your students won’t just be able to READ and COMPREHEND fables, but will also be WRITING their own unique fables with structure and purpose. That’s it's one our most popular products –Keeping kids excited and engaged for weeks as you work through...
✔ What Is a Fable and Its Purpose?
✔ Who Is Aesop, The Father of Fables?
✔ 12 Famous Interactive Fables by Aesop (Professionally Narrated)
✔ Scripted Fable Theater - Turn These Fables into a Drama Class
✔ Deconstructing Fables for Meaning
✔ Planning and Assessment Rubrics for Writing Fables
✔ Fable Writing Workshop
✔ Character Traits Worksheets and Activities for All of Aesop's Creatures
✔ Digital and Paper Based Resources for Publishing Fables
✔ Fable Glossary and Curriculum Links.
4. Divide and Comprehend!
Just as scientists can understand the inner workings of a frog by dissecting it, students can understand the inner workings of a story through the same process. Hopefully though, the magic of storytelling survives the process, unlike the poor frog!
Use a fable your students are very familiar with to teach the essential parts of a story: character, setting, problem,climax, and resolution. Discuss the characters in the story and have them identify the setting. Discuss the links between types of character and suitable settings. Broaden this idea out to other writing genres such as science fiction, westerns, and horror. What patterns can your students uncover about the relationships between characters and settings?
Now it’s time to get scientific! In groups, have students draw a graph with time along the horizontal axis and action along the vertical axis. Have students plot the various parts of the story (introduction of the characters and setting, problem, climax, resolution) as points along the axis. The points should move from left to right as they occur chronologically in the story. The higher the point is, the more dramatic the action. This is a great way for students to see the physical shape of a narrative arc.
A simple version of this activity may involve students simply plotting the points and labeling them introduction, problem etc. However, more advanced students can also write captions that describe the action at the different stages.
You may also wish to take the opportunity to make some cross curricular technology links here and have students construct their graphs digitally with a suitable software program.
5. Dragged Kicking and Screaming into the 21st Century
Though many of traditional fables date back to around 500 BC, they have survived due to the timeless nature of their messages and the generality of the characters and settings. Now your students have a good understanding of how they work, have them rewrite the fables for the modern day.
This will require them to get specific. Characters will become human and locations will be defined. This is a great way to reveal to students that the same theme can be given a number of different treatments; stories that seem markedly distinct can share an underlying moral.
This activity can be differentiated by outcome, whereby more able students will produce more complex stories. While the less advanced students may stick tightly to the original, more advanced students may completely reinterpret the story with only the central moral remaining intact.
A Word in Summary and an Extra Idea or Two
The activities above can be used as one-off lessons or as a series of lessons exploring different aspects of fables: character, moral, sequence, and story structure.
There is also a lot of scope here for continuing work based on the initial fables. Time spent getting to grips with a story can be utilized in other genres and for other learning objectives too.
Perhaps you want to teach the writing of playscripts? You can teach the criteria for the genre and then set your students the task of adapting a fable to the playscript format.
To develop public-speaking skills, have the students engage in an oral retelling of a fable or make a dramatic presentation of the story. There are innumerable opportunities, but don’t be in too much of a rush, for if The Tortoise and the Hare have taught us one thing, slow and steady wins the race...
This tool assists students to create engaging fables based upon the model we have been using for generations. It is best printed in a larger format so as your students can visually represent their ideas alongside written ones and is completely free and available here.
Whatever Donald Trump’s legacy as president of the United States becomes he will forever be known as the protagonist for bringing two key terms to the modern vocabulary. “Fake News” and “Alternative Truths”
Whilst Trump’s delivery and intent of these terms are contentious there is no debate he called out the elephant in the room when talking about news and journalism in the context of modern technology.
Facebook, Twitter, blogging and an endless army of social media tools have provided a platform for anyone with a WiFi connection and a device the opportunity to voice their opinion and consider themselves a journalist, social crusader, paid opinion or blatant liar...
The propagation of questionable “news” content has skyrocketed out of control at pace with the growth of the internet. Content creation today is virtually free without any need for fact-checking or validation. Today’s news cycle is now driven by the need to be first as opposed to providing insight, truth and depth behind a story.
Our students are growing up in a world dominated by fake news on the platforms they look too most frequently for truth and reassurance.
21st-century media is out of control, living off the reputation of two centuries of professional journalism operating within an environment in which printing, publishing and televising news was an expensive and competitive game in which “fake news” and “alternative truths” could sink an organisation and end a career in instantly.
Mark Zuckerberg Facebook creator and founder has the loudest voice on earth, with 3.15 billion active users log into Facebook at least once per month. He has the loudest voice in history, and it’s not even close. No individual or organization has actively controlled what half the earth’s population can see, say or share. And all without any regulation.
Facebook is valued at over $500 Billion, with Zuckerberg’s wealth entirely generated by selling our data. The flow of this data is controlled by algorithms. Secret algorithms that are completely hidden by Facebook. This denial of transparency underpinned by our governments who clearly value the profitability of big business over free speech, privacy and protection of our rights.
We must understand that Facebook is drinking water from a fire hydrant here and get a lot more wrong than right. Mark Zuckerberg is still wiping the egg from his face after he was forced to admit they completely bungled the flow of information and content from Russian hackers that may potentially have put Trump in office.
For Zuckerberg, a man with an endless cash flow, and the largest soapbox in history and surely has an eye on the White House at some point will be forever dogged as being asleep at the switch in a critical moment of global history.
As educators, we must value this understanding of fake news, and a greater understanding of algorithmic design and suppression and release of data as an essential skill for our students. And we are already starting from a long way back.
As teachers and education systems what are we doing to move fake news from the top of our news feed back to the “News of the world?”
What skills and knowledge do our teachers and students need to outsmart a journalist who got their degree from Walmart.
Sugata Mitra, globally renowned educational researcher believes today’s students need only three essential skills beyond a basic elementary education that are based on sorting facts from fiction, enquiring and acting.
Skip ahead to 9:54 to hear Sugata Mitra discussing his three essential skills for modern students
- Reading Comprehension
- Information Search and Retrieval Skills
- Teach students to both question and believe things they read and see.
Mitra identifies these skills as essential for students in arming them with the skills to oppose doctrine and think and act for themselves.
Teaching “Fake News” in the classroom is surely an essential skill for any student with access to social media and uses the internet to seek out information about the world around us.
We need to teach them the key elements of fake news
- Rumor Mill
- Paid Opinions
- Click bait
- Fake News
What are they? What is entertainment? What is news? How can I report or respond to this?
The internet is not driven by free speech or good will, but by search engine optimization and keyword stuffing. Internet success is more about being page one on Google or first with a news story rather than being correct or the best at what you do.
We have an obligation to our students to share this knowledge with them from a very young age.
We need to explore and discuss what living in a world in which we cannot trust the media and news, in general, might be like. It’s quite frightening. Facebook is currently creating regime of doubt and mistrust in news and media as we speak but assures us “they have got this”
Of course, we will never know as there is no transparency or government regulation around the content they run on Facebook. Ironically the government could shut down NBC tomorrow for major breaches of ‘Fake News” but they can do nothing to control Facebook.
We must teach our students the difference between a fact and opinion. Twenty years ago it used to be what someone thinks as opposed to what was published in a nonfiction book such as an encyclopedia. Today a student probably considers what Siri tells them to be a fact, and maybe what their teacher tells them to be an opinion. The lines have become very blurred but we cannot avoid dealing with this issue.
How do students seek a second opinion, be it on the internet or otherwise and what weight can I place on different news sources? These are all issues we just took for granted in a post-internet world.
Technology is not going anywhere, and nor is our dependence upon it for news. Ignoring this issue will not make it go away. Become a teacher who understands and accepts that we are the products of organizations such as Google, Facebook and Amazon and if we see content or behavior in these spaces that simply does not pass the sniff test that we can either call it out or step off the train until we are comfortable it is taking us to a better place.
Fake news has and always still exist but we just need to start teaching our students that in the real world they do not have to accept it.
Every aspect of life has its own vocabulary. Jargon, lingo and terminology which is essential to function in that field of expertise and appear credible to those around you.
As an English teacher, tutor or even a student there are some essential terms required to run and participate in an effective English class.
Knowing these literary terms and their meanings will greatly enhance your students learning opportunities and enhance your own professional understanding of your craft.
Hopefully, you already know most of these but here is the definitive list of what you need to know in order to 'walk the walk, and talk the talk' as a quality English teacher
Accented: a word, syllable, or musical note or chord) stressed or emphasized.
Allegory: A story, poem, or picture that can be interpreted to reveal a hidden meaning, typically a moral or political one.
Alliteration: The occurrence of the same letter or sound at the beginning of adjacent or closely connected words. ‘the alliteration of ‘sweet birds sang’’
Analysis: Detailed examination of the elements or structure of something.
Assonance: Resemblance of sound between syllables of nearby words, arising particularly from the rhyming of two or more stressed vowels, but not consonants (e.g. sonnet, porridge), but also from the use of identical consonants with different vowels (e.g. killed, cold, culled) ‘the use of assonance throughout the poem creates the sound of despair’
Ballad: A poem or song narrating a story in short stanzas. Traditional ballads are typically of unknown authorship, having been passed on orally from one generation to the next.
Biography: An account of someone's life written by someone else.
Character: A person in a novel, play, or film. - The mental and moral qualities distinctive to an individual.
Chiasmus: A rhetorical or literary figure in which words, grammatical constructions, or concepts are repeated in reverse order.
Chronological: following the order in which they occurred.
Cliche: A phrase or opinion that is overused and betrays a lack of original thought.‘that old cliché ‘a woman's place is in the home’’
Comparison: A consideration or estimate of the similarities or dissimilarities between two things or people.
‘they drew a comparison between Gandhi's teaching and that of other teachers’
Contrast: The state of being strikingly different from something else in juxtaposition or close association.
‘the day began cold and blustery, in contrast to almost two weeks of uninterrupted sunshine’
Description: A spoken or written account of a person, object, or event.
Dialogue: A conversation between two or more people as a feature of a book, play, or film.
Drama: A play for theatre, radio, or television.
Epic: A long poem, typically one derived from ancient oral tradition, narrating the deeds and adventures of heroic or legendary figures or the past history of a nation.
Fact: A thing that is known or proved to be true.
Fantasy: A genre of imaginative fiction involving magic and adventure, especially in a setting other than the real world.
Fiction: Literature in the form of prose, especially novels, that describes imaginary events and people.
A figure of speech: A word or phrase used in a non-literal sense for rhetorical or vivid effect.
Fairy Tale: A children's story about magical and imaginary beings and lands; a fairy story.
Folk Tale: A story originating in popular culture, typically passed on by word of mouth.
Form: The structure of a word, phrase, sentence, or discourse.
Generalization: A general statement or concept obtained by inference from specific cases.
Genre: A style or category of art, music, or literature.
Hyperbole: Exaggerated statements or claims not meant to be taken literally.
Idiom: A group of words established by usage as having a meaning not deducible from those of the individual words (e.g. over the moon, see the light).
Imagery: Visually descriptive or figurative language, especially in a literary work.
Inference: A conclusion reached on the basis of evidence and reasoning.
Irony: The expression of one's meaning by using language that normally signifies the opposite, typically for humorous or emphatic effect.
Kenning: A compound expression in Old English and Old Norse poetry with metaphorical meaning, e.g. oar-steed = ship.
Metaphor: A figure of speech in which a word or phrase is applied to an object or action to which it is not literally applicable.
Metonymy: A figure of speech in which a word or phrase is applied to an object or action to which it is not literally applicable.
Moral: A lesson that can be derived from a story or experience.
Motive: A reason for doing something.
Narrative Poetry: Poetry that tells a story.
Narrator: A person who narrates something, especially a character who recounts the events of a novel or narrative poem.
Non-fiction: Prose writing that is informative or factual rather than fictional.
Novel: A fictitious prose narrative of book length, typically representing character and action with some degree of realism.
Ode: A lyric poem, typically one in the form of an address to a particular subject, written in varied or irregular meter.
Onomatopoeia: the formation of a word from a sound associated with what is named (e.g. cuckoo, sizzle ).
Oxymoron: A figure of speech in which apparently contradictory terms appear in conjunction (e.g. faith unfaithful kept him falsely true).
Personification: The attribution of a personal nature or human characteristics to something non-human, or the representation of an abstract quality in human form.
Plot: The main events of a play, novel, film, or similar work, devised and presented by the writer as an interrelated sequence.
Poetry: Literary work in which the expression of feelings and ideas is given intensity by the use of distinctive style and rhythm; poems collectively or as a genre of literature.
Point of view: (in fictional writing) the narrator's position in relation to a story being told.
Predictions: A thing predicted; a forecast.
Rhyme: A short poem in which the sound of the word or syllable at the end of each line corresponds with that at the end of another.
Rhythm: The measured flow of words and phrases in verse or prose as determined by the relation of long and short or stressed and unstressed syllables.
Science Fiction: Fiction based on imagined future scientific or technological advances and major social or environmental changes, frequently portraying space or time travel and life on other planets.
Sequence: A particular order in which related things follow each other.
Setting: The place or type of surroundings where something is positioned or where an event takes place.
Simile: A figure of speech involving the comparison of one thing with another thing of a different kind, used to make a description more emphatic or vivid (e.g. as brave as a lion).
Solution: A means of solving a problem or dealing with a difficult situation.
Stanza: A group of lines forming the basic recurring metrical unit in a poem; a verse.
Theme: An idea that recurs in or pervades a work of art or literature.
Voice: The distinctive tone or style of a literary work or author.
Getting younger students to record their ideas in a logical and engaging manner can be tough.
If you have reluctant writers in your classroom, you will appreciate how difficult it can be to get work from them demonstrating a clear understanding of what you have been teaching them.
Finding alternatives to written work is not always easy to come across especially if there are deeper issues than the student simply being a reluctant writer such as a diagnosed learning condition.
To counteract this issue I find Adobe Spark Video to be an incredibly easy to use on all devices. It is a powerful tool which as the name suggests relies mainly on visuals and images to share knowledge as opposed to writing down line after line of text.
The other great thing about Adobe Spark Video is the polish it adds to presentations that make them far more engaging than your traditional PowerPoint or Keynote presentation.
Simply giving students Adobe Spark Video and directions around a specific topic can sometimes leave them confused and seeking further clarification.
To remedy this I have created a free template which you can download here that will ensure your students stay on task and have a clear direction about what they are supposed to be doing. Best of all the template can be adapted to any age group or topic area
Argumentative writing may sound like a new concept or approach, but it is not. This term basically means to argue one’s opinion while understanding that there is an opposing side.
Brought to the forefront with the adoption of the new ELA Common Core Standards, middle and high school students alike need practice in developing argumentative writing. This allows them to increase their comfort level in choosing a side on a controversial issue and developing their opinion using persuasive language and techniques. From there, writers should be able to think about the arguments or counterclaims that the opposing side would make in response. Not only should the author seek to provide these counterclaims, but to add support that dismisses the opposition’s argument.
The argumentative graphic organizer is a strategic teaching tool that better equips students to develop this type of writing. This graphic organizer is designed to anticipate the needs of the readers, as well as have the author utilize a variety of detail types to develop their opinion with more than just fluffy, eloquent language.


Drama may be stereotypically presumed as a group of people on stage following a script and acting it out. However, drama in the curriculum is rather diverse, and focusses more on the simple elements, such as understanding body language and emotions. Drama has also been said to enhance other areas in the curriculum (Woolland, 2010, p41), for example, health and wellbeing. For me, children generally expressing themselves is very important as it contributes well to our mental health. Participating in drama could also potentially increase confidence as children can present their work in front of others. This can also encourage meeting CfE outcome EXA 2-01a: I have experienced the energy and excitement of presenting/performing for audiences and being part of an audience for other people’s presentations/performances.
Within the video, “Teaching Drama: A Structured Approach”, the drama facilitators had a clear structure to their lesson. They found that having a warm up, exploring some drama conventions, then having an evaluation discussion at the end was an effective way to teach children drama. They also had an “agreement” of “3 C’s” (communication, cooperation and concentration) and included a stimulus of photographs at the beginning to get ideas flowing. Some of the drama conventions used were still image/freeze frame, visualisation, soundscape and bodyscaping. The structure used conveys to work very well, the point in the warm up is to encourage decision making and physical activity. The stimulus is used to develop ideas and the drama conventions are great ways to explore different elements of drama. They also allow questions to develop and open up the discussion more. Lastly, evaluation of what the children have learned in the session is a good way to not only recap on their learning, but also to let the children calm down after such a physical, exciting lesson. The lesson as a whole meets a variety of the Es and Os, including EXA 2-12a, 2-13a and 2-14a.
Assessing children through drama can be done in a variety of ways. Firstly, looking at their spacial awareness and body movements around others can be an indicator that the child understands that in order to present, we must have the appropriate space and be aware of our surroundings. Other things to look at can be:
- Facial expressions
- Eye contact
- Roles taken on
Also, it may not be a bad idea to let children assess one another, after all, it is simply peer learning and assessment, just as we would use in the classroom. It lets children get a better understanding when they watch another child who is maybe doing a different facial expression or body position which is more appropriate to the context, which can inspire a change of their previous thought.
Drama is a great way for children to express themselves, can be applied to other areas of the curriculum, and can also help gain more confidence in children’s performance and expressive arts. If we could teach history though interactive learning, for example, acting out an important historic event, why shouldn’t we? It can promote and enhance learning if children are out of their seats and getting creative and involved instead of sitting on seats listening to the teacher talking, resulting in a better classroom atmosphere for all.
TeachFind. (2006). Teaching Drama: A Structured Approach. [online]. Available at: http://archive.teachfind.com/ttv/www.teachers.tv/videos/ks1-ks2-drama-teaching-drama-a-structured-approach.html [Accessed 22 January 2019]
Woolland, B. (2010). Teaching Primary Drama. Ebooks Corporation.
I have come to realise that reflection is a crucial part of becoming a teacher. Taking constructive criticism has always been difficult for me, and over the first semester, peering into second, I am beginning to understand why it is essential, and why I should encourage people to watch over my practice and assess it. I understand that we cannot improve without critique. If we weren’t reviewed by others and ourselves, we would repeatedly be in the same position making the same mistakes, and for the interests of the children, we must use our professional development to benefit them and improve the quality of our practice. Education is an ever-changing profession, things such as the curriculum and legislation have changed over the years and it is up to us to stay in-date with relevant issues and topics, as well as policies and regulations to give future generations a good, informed education.
Reflecting becomes important after lessons in the sense that we should always evaluate what went well and what could have been better. We should continually ask ourselves “How have the class responded?” and “What are my next steps?”. Although you may be challenging some of the children, maybe for others it was too difficult, which caused them to be disengaged. If a lesson in misunderstood by the whole class, there is of course no logic in progressing further and deeper into the subject. Next steps should be to adapt the lesson and maybe even our style to engage the children and encourage their understanding. Reflection allows us to answer questions such as, “What from your teaching has prevented the children from understanding?”, “Have you challenged the children enough, or too much?”, “What could I have done better to improve the children’s learning?”. Pulling out our own abilities and developing qualities from the lesson can encourage our personal development in order to enhance children’s education.
In semester one during the working together module, I figured that speaking up and getting my voice heard wasn’t at all a bad thing. It was best for my group to get my opinion, as when we are qualified together, speaking up is important for the children and young people we will work with. Also in semester one, my involvement was restrictive and therefore restrictive to my learning. Moving forward, my confidence should continue to grow and I should ensure I get involved and keep up to date with reading, as I have found how much this can benefit my studies.
I feel my realisation for personal development and reflection was at the beginning of semester two. I only began truly reflecting when we started our second semester and had a dance workshop. When I realised in the dance workshop that actually, getting involved can be enjoyable and that everyone in my class was in the same boat, I no longer wanted to be the shy girl I was in primary school again. I wanted to enjoy every moment of my studies, including through dance. I decided there that I would try to give everything my maximum effort when possible and that I should stop being embarrassed to participate. My confidence was limited in semester one and I thought speaking out in a lecture was a rather daunting thing. However, semester two has already taught me that getting involved heightens my learning and that I should believe in myself more. I should try to speak up in a lecture if I have an answer, I should try to throw myself into new things when appropriate, and I should definitely take constructive criticism! Not everything will be perfect, and sometimes, some things change depending on the day. It is now crucial for me to regularly reflect, otherwise, I would still be that shy girl from primary school, and not the best version of myself.
A rush of anxiety flowed through me at a velocious pace when I heard our workshop was going to be on dance. I stereotypically pictured a dance workshop with mirrored walls and a choreographed routine that we would have to memorise and repeat. I recalled on memories from school where I was a hesitant child and didn’t enjoy joining in on active sessions or expressive arts, unless it was art such as painting and drawing. However, I persisted and rid the negative thoughts and memories from school, and went into the workshop with an open mind.
After the workshop, I was surprised and overwhelmed by how much I actually enjoyed it! It especially made me realise that everyone can dance, and it doesn’t have to be a strict routine where only those who are fluent in dance are able to greatly participate. With being a shy child, I wasn’t one to express myself through things such as dance, or generally any exercise, so taking part in the workshop was a significant step for me in my self confidence, and not just in my studies.
I have found that dancing is a great way for children to release anxiety and gain confidence which can contribute to other areas of the curriculum, not just the expressive arts. It can encourage critical thinking in children which they can apply to things such as their maths problems or creative writing, for example. If I were to use the lesson plan kindly given by Eilidh Slattery, I would be certain that children were working together in teams, thinking about sequencing and creating solutions to problems. All of these skills can be applied to other areas of the curriculum as well as in every day life. I haven’t realised until now the affect these types of activities can have on children, as these are well needed skills which are being taught through dance.
After reading ‘Get Scotland Dancing’, a Scottish Government policy by Creative Scotland, I gained a better understanding as to why we have to get more people dancing. Key findings from the Scottish Health Survey reported that although 70-72% of children under 10 meet the Recommended Physical Activity (RPA), this figure reduces to 50% as the children progress into teenagers (age 13-15). The RPA for children is 60 minutes of physical activity per day. Some schools can only stretch in an hour a week for a PE session, which can be considered unacceptable, as in this generation, a lot of children are going home to play on their online devices and therefore are less likely to be playing actively outdoors. Get Scotland Dancing managed to achieve 546 dance events (and 74,636 participants!) with 448 of those events being over Scotland. With how important exercise and keeping active is, I’d like to think this was a great achievement.
I chuckled at the title of, “What? Me? Teach Dance?” by Russell-Bowie (2013), as I felt it was fitting to myself. With having no dance background, I found this article interesting to read, with its conclusions being that nationality backgrounds may play a fair part in teachers’ abilities and willingness to teach dance. In South Africa, participants were much more confident in teaching dance to their classes and strongly agreed/agreed that they had a stronger background in dance compared to those from Western countries. This was because they have been raised around dance from birth and it is a cultural thing for them to take part in. 34% of all participants said they did not enjoy or feel confident teaching dance, and only 20% said they felt they had at least a “good” dance background. If we continue to increasingly teach dance in the UK, wouldn’t we gradually find it more accepting and enjoyable to teach?
Through the workshop, I have been shown that dance can certainly be for everyone. I would like to go into schools with this attitude to show the children who are as shy as I was, that dance can be fun and refreshing! All it takes is some effort and an open mind, and the best thing to do is to give it a go and join in! It does not have to be a complicated, hard-to-remember sequence or a daunting performance, but just an enjoyable, creative lesson and routine for children to express themselves, and to give an opportunity to work on different skills and abilities. I am particularly glad that I had the chance to take part in this workshop, as it was very insightful, and I now feel a great amount more confident with teaching the expressive art of dance.
Creative Scotland. (2014). Get Scotland Dancing: A Literature Review. [online]. Scottish Government. Available at: https://www.creativescotland.com/__data/assets/pdf_file/0004/26149/GSDLitReviewv2.pdf (Accessed on: 12 January 2019)
Creative Scotland: Get Scotland Dancing, 2014. Phase Two. Evaluation Report. [online]. Scottish Government. Available at: https://www.creativescotland.com/__data/assets/pdf_file/0018/31626/Get-Scotland-Dancing-Phase-2-Evaluation-Report.pdf (Accessed on: 12 January 2019)
Russell-Bowie, Deirdre, E. (2013). What? Me? Teach Dance? Background and confidence of primary preservice teachers in dance education across five countries. Research in Dance Education. V(14.3). P216-232.
After the input on Tuesday’s lecture on Values, I found myself slightly itching with how uncomfortable I had felt because of how little the world has really come over so many decades. The realisation of the fact Racism is still so current honestly disheartens me. I will never understand why people of 2018 still think it is acceptable to judge someone from simply the colour of their skin. Why does this matter so much to people? Groups like the Ku Klux Klan are still present to this day, from around 1865. Surely after 100+ years, political responses and Civil Rights movements should be enough to change someones mind about how we are treating others. Why is this not the case? Why did Rosa Parks stand her ground on that bus, just for the future to still contain racism? Why have millions of people marched for rights, just for their children to still be brought up in this world, which has changed so little?
In the news, we are still faced with racist stories and headlines every so often. We hear of a black man being shot in America because “he was posed a threat”, however was nothing of the sort. I never realised how lucky I am to be a white, female, UK citizen until this input. It was astonishing to say the least, to see a quote from only 2016, claiming, “they hate white people because white people are successful and they’re not,”. My eyes have been opened to a different way of thinking – a deeper way – to understand why racism is still apparent.
While watching Clint Smith’s TEDTalk on “How to Raise a Black Son in America”, I was pushed to see an insight to a black child’s life growing up in America. Children are having their childhoods almost stripped when they are simply trying to live their child lives, making mistakes and building resilience. However, Clint Smith recalls of a time with his friends in a low-lit area having fun with water guns, hiding and dodging behind cards, then quickly being taken by his father with an “unfamiliar grip” back inside. His father apologised to him, explaining that he “can’t act like his white friends”, hiding behind cars holding a fake gun. Parents and their children are existing in fear and cannot afford to make any mistakes living in America around white police. It is an extremely sad reality.
Regarding the police force, interesting statistics showed that in 2010, 10.5% of white people were drug users, with only 5.8% of black people being drug users. However, the stats for being stopped and searched show that black people are 6x more likely to be stopped than white people. Why should black people have to put up with this? How does this make any sense? A percentage of black people are also sceptical that the country will make changes for racial equality.
I am certainly not saying I was unaware of racism existing, but the amount of it is overwhelming, and in my opinion, the changes in the world have not been enough over the years. We must strongly influence change on the upcoming generations to hopefully change future opinions, because racism is unacceptable.
“All human beings belong to a single species and are descended from common stock. They are born equal in dignity and rights, and all form an integral part of humanity.”
– UNESCO 1982
On Tuesday afternoon, we had our first values workshop. It consisted of 4 groups, and each table had their own pack of materials to work with. Everything inside was all we had to work with to create something which would benefit a new student. The package my group received had a range of luxurious materials. We discussed our ideas which resulted in creating a double layered pencil case with a map on the outside. It also contained different, colourful information cards inside. However, the point of the task was not how well we worked together, or what we came up with to help students; it was to highlight the fact we can be quite submissive in noticing how different groups can be treated differently by society, depending on what we have. The groups with the packs of rich materials lacked the consideration to notice that the other groups had a basic supply of resources to work with, and that the lecturer was treating everyone differently (the richer-material groups were gaining attention and on the contrast the groups with less resources were going unnoticed).
In all honesty, it was a big eye opener for me. Have I always been this passive? Is this a good thing, because then I do not notice people for what they lack or have, I just see the group as simply another group of people? Or is it a bad thing – that I selfishly do not see what negativity is happening to other groups around me?
I do believe the way we are raised can be fed into our personal beliefs and values. As a teacher, I feel it is important to not treat anyone different just because they are from a certain group; whether it be race, gender or anything else. I want to teach children this when they are young while their brains are still making their set decisions on others, so that they can go out into the world and be respectful of everyone and their beliefs. Nowadays, I think being non-judgemental is a good trait to have. We have a lot of variation in people who are open and happy to share their lifestyles; whether this be around religion, gender roles, or any other personal choice.
To finally reflect on the meaning of this workshop, I understand that as a teacher it is crucial not to treat children differently regarding things such as their economic backgrounds, as of course, just because a child may have limited resources, does not mean they are any less than any other child in the classroom. Lots of families are effected by inequalities, and it is an educators job to support them as much as possible, and not let them go unnoticed.
A frequently asked question: What made you want to be a teacher?
Honestly, I don’t have a specific reason as to why I would like to become a teacher. So many things over the years have contributed to where I am today, influencing my decision to apply for Primary Teaching. However, there are key elements which I can highlight which I have taken from my own school experiences. Firstly, my primary 5-7 teacher is one of the biggest reasons I am studying at Dundee University today. Over the 3 years, she got to know me on a personal level, knowing my interests, abilities and preferences. To me, she was more than a teacher; she was a friend, a guardian, and a safe place to confide in. The relationship we shared was created over the 3 years we had spent together, her caring nature captivated me, influencing me to begin my career path as a teacher.
Throughout high school, I began to doubt my career options. I varied between midwifery/nursing, and early years practice/primary teaching. I felt I wasn’t good enough to be teaching future generations, until I met my new art teacher in S5. She is another key character in my teaching journey, who continually encouraged me to keep going with my studies to ensure I achieved the best outcome from school. She sat with me while I researched the teaching roles and helped me with my personal statement for University. She was truly there for me when I needed support and I will always appreciate that.
These two women are the passionate, considerate, inspiring role models who I took a lot of advice and motivation from, and are part of the many reasons why I am aiming to be a teacher. I want to bring the same, supportive, approachable role model to my future pupils, and offer them a warm, comfortable environment, similar to the experience I was lucky enough to have.
Another reason regarding my want to become a teacher would have to be based on how much I really enjoyed school, and the people there who were around me. The primary school I attended, in a considerably deprived area, is now the primary school of the majority of my younger family. In high school, I felt embarrassed to admit where I had attended P1-7, due to the stigma around my scheme. It took me a while to realise that it does not matter where a school is situated, it is about who is inside, that makes it a successful school. My 3 sisters and I (age range 11-31) attended the school, and now their children attend. The auxiliary nurse still remembers all of our names after all of these years and still welcomes us back with open arms whenever we visit. The school’s staff always ensured you felt comfortable, and still continue to do so.
To me, education is about shared learning between enthusiastic teachers and willing pupils; it is about a thriving environment with multiple opportunities to offer; it is about the relationships, the bonds and the personal progression of everyone inside. All-in-all, to me, education does not matter where it is situated, and it is not just about mathematics and literacy, it is so much more.
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