For Thursday, October 8, 1998 Drummer Column, Gibbs, 700 words

Goes without saying

I have a problem as an English teacher. I've had this problem my whole career, and I can't seem to lick it. It's an ironic problem for an English teacher to have, especially one who also writes a newspaper column each week.

Here is my problem: I can't think of good essay topics for novels. I suffer over them endlessly, constantly changing the topics each year. I figured I'd happen on a good one every year or two and by now have a collection to use throughout my career. After 14 years, my good-idea-for-an-essay folder is empty. Moths.

The brainstorm folders are bulging. I can whip up 20 essay questions on a novel during passing period. I just don't like any of them. They either look like they could be answered in a few sentences, or they miss the point.

For every book we read, I always want to ask the same question: What is the book about? What's the point?

I couch it in different words -- What is the author's central theme? What gives the book value for you? Why was the book written in the first place? Why are we taking the time to read it? What valuable lessons do we learn from this book? And so on. It's still the same question.

The inherent problem is that the point of a good novel can often be stated in a few sentences. If I ask students to unveil the point, how can they pull an essay out of that?

I crave questions that students can sink their teeth into. Sometimes I'll embellish my tired old question to stimulate more analysis: What is the novel's point, and how does that point manifest itself in the plot? Give examples.

This helps somewhat. Still, I've never been good at crafting questions that require prolixity, or at best, volubility.

I'm forever mooching essay topics from my peers in the English department. I scour the Internet. I sometimes buy topics from the Perfection Form Company. I hold brainstorm sessions with my students to devise good essay topics. My students often spend more time asking questions about a book than they do giving answers.

Presently, we are reading Medea by Euripides. We probably finished it yesterday. Today, as you are reading this, I'm probably in front of my class sweating out a rationale to some overly strained contrivance of an essay topic.

I have taught this book for almost a decade. Still, I do not have a good writing prompt for it. I've changed the topic every year and have never been satisfied. My brainstorm folder has at least 30 topic questions, but I dislike them all just now. Moths.

Actually, in this particular case, I know exactly what I want my students to write about Medea, but I can't tell them what it is or there will be no inductive reasoning going on. My pupils might just parrot my words, and what good would that do? All I can do is point them in that general direction and take what comes.

Here's my essay topic for this year (maybe): Why is the play Medea considered a tragedy? Identify the tragic qualities of the central characters.

That question is solid and legitimate, but it lacks passion. I wish I could be more creative. I want my writers to get inside of Medea's mind. What makes her tick? What trait drives her to murder her children? Do we have that trait? What is Jason's tragic flaw? Why has Euripides told her story? Why is the play still alive and popular 2,430 years later? What is the point? Whoops. There I go again.

In the spring we read Night by Elie Wiesel. It is my greatest challenge. It's about the Holocaust. How are students supposed to respond to the Holocaust? By giving their opinions? It was terrible, horrible. Carnage speaks for itself. We learn of it, are aghast, and speechless. Nothing is hidden. Even Weisel's point is obvious. Where do we go with it? What is the writing prompt?

Beats me. Perhaps by revealing my aphasia over essay topics, some literary folks out there will help me out and email me a few ideas. Otherwise, what is the point of this essay?