HOW TO TEACH THE GOLDEN TREASURY 23 talked or wrote the cant of the cliques or of the multitude. He understood and loved what was excellent, he had no toleration for what was common or second rate; he was not of the crowd. . . . In the best and most comprehensive sense of the term, he was a man of classical temper, taste, and culture, and had all the insight and discernment, all the instincts and sympathies which are the result of such qualifications." Professor Charlton Collins (Quoted in Miss HOW TO TEACH THE GOLDEN TREASURY A collection of poems like this is by no means to be taught through from cover to cover, like an arithmetic. It is no matter if the pupils read no more than half or quarter, or even fewer, of the poems, provided they gain an intelligent appreciation of those they do read. Neither should poetry be made an occasion for the teaching of all sorts of extraneous things, - literary history, biography, or gossip, rhetorical principles, “notes," or even too much of the technique of verse, except as these definitely help in the appreciation of the verses under consideration. There should be much reading aloud and reciting, by both pupils and teacher; good oral rendering is the final test of one's real grasp of a poem. The spirit of the recitation should always be not that of fulfilling a task, or of acquiring useful information, but of appreciative enjoyment, and the desire to communicate that enjoyment to others. It may be assumed that every member of the class has already a fund of verse-memories, Mother Goose rimes; hymns and songs; bits from Stevenson's Child's Garden, from Longfellow and Whittier and Tennyson; perhaps much more. A good first lesson, to open up the general subject, would be to ask every pupil to run rapidly through the book, marking any poems that are old favorites, and be ready to read one or more of them aloud well enough to interest the class. This will bring a much greater response than one recitation provides time for. The natural step then will be to run through the book for different kinds of subjects that have interested poets; to see how different poets have felt about nature, about patriotism, about love, about death. By the fourth or fifth lesson, it will be possible to take up technical questions of versification, pretty much as treated in the foregoing pages, which may be divided into parts suited to the maturity of the class. The illustrative quotations in these pages have been chosen partly with a view of interesting pupils in some of the finest poems, and those most likely to appeal to them. In preparing a lesson, pupils should look up the complete poem, trace through it the technical element described, and try to find the same thing elsewhere. The test must always be the sound: can the pupil convince the class by his rendering of the poem, that his understanding of its thought and rhythm is correct? After perhaps a couple of weeks of technical study, the class should spend the rest of the available time on some special subject. This may be (1) a more thorough study of selected types of poetry, as the song for music, the sonnet, the pastoral, the ode; (2) a review of the chief historical periods of English lyric verse; or (3) special study of a few leading poets (such as those named in the list of the College Entrance Requirements for eastern colleges) with the aim of learning to distinguish their individualities, their views of life, their artistic method. Of special teaching devices, the best is reading aloud, provided it is done not in a mechanical or indifferent way, but with an earnest effort to get the poet's thought and express it to the hearers. It is assumed that the pupil has access to a dictionary and a handbook of mythology, if he needs them; and that he will refer to the notes, not for all that might be said for complete understanding of the poem, but for what may help towards an imaginative grasp of the main thought. There should be much memorizing- some of the formal kind, more of the unconscious kind that will grow out of constant cross-references in classroom discussion. Illustration or quotation from other collections of poetry should be encouraged; a profitable scheme is for each pupil to start a scrap book of newspaper and magazine verse, noting opposite each clipping what it was selected for, the idea, the rhythm, the stanza form, the imagery, or what. If possible, have the class learn the tunes and sing some of the lyrics, such as the Shakespeare songs. Those who care to, should be encouraged to try their hands at original verse; indeed Prof. Brander Mathews recommends this as an excellent way to learn to write prose. But the best devices will be those invented by a teacher who loves the subject; and the best results will be the often unexpressed desire to know more of our great poetry. BOOKS FOR FURTHER STUDY First of all, the school library should have some of the standard collections, like The Oxford Book of English Verse, Miss Wiggin's Golden Numbers, and Stedman's Victorian Anthology and American Anthology, and Ward's English Poets, as well as The Golden Treasury, Part Second. There are also many good special collections of poems grouped by centuries, or by verse forms, sonnets, odes, and others. For verse form, the most readable book is Brander Mathews' A Study of Versification; the most compact and inclusive, Bright and Miller's Elements of English Versification; the most concise treatment of the whole field is Francis B. Gummere's Handbook of Poetics. Raymond M. Alden's English Verse gives a scholarly discussion of the subject with numerous well-chosen examples. Max Kaluza's Short History of English Versification translated by A. C. Dunstan, traces the historical changes in our verse-forms. E. C. Stedman's Nature and Elements of Poetry discusses certain general questions of poetic art. G. L. Raymond's Poetry as a Representative Art is controversial, but very suggestive, especially as regards oral interpretation. Percival Chubb's The Teaching of English, especially Chapter 8, will be found of much value. The music for many poems in this book will be found in L. C. Elson's Shakespeare in Music, J. C. Dick's The Songs of Robert Burns and in The Laurel Song Book. TO ALFRED TENNYSON POET LAUREATE THIS book in its progress has recalled often to my memory a man with whose friendship we were once honoured, to whom no region of English Literature was unfamiliar, and who, whilst rich in all the noble gifts of Nature was most eminently distinguished by the noblest and the rarest, just judgment and high-hearted patriotism. It would have been hence a peculiar pleasure and pride to dedicate what I have endeavoured to make a true national Anthology of three centuries to Henry Hallam. But he is beyond the reach of any human tokens of love and reverence; and I desire therefore to place before it a name united with his by associations which whilst Poetry retains her hold on the minds of Englishmen are not likely to be forgotten. Your encouragement, given while traversing the wild scenery of Treryn Dinas, led me to begin the work: and it has been completed under your advice and assistance. For the favour now asked I have thus a second reason: and to this I may add, the homage which is your right as Poet, and the gratitude due to a Friend, whose regard I rate at no common value. Permit me, then, to inscribe to yourself a book which I hope may be found by many a lifelong fountain of innocent and exalted pleasure; a source of animation to friends when they meet; and able to sweeten solitude itself with best society, with the companionship of the wise and the good, with the beauty which the eye can not see, and the music only heard in silence. If this collection proves a storehouse of delight to Labour and to Poverty if it teaches those indifferent to the Poets to love them, and those who love them to love them more, the aim and the desire entertained in framing it will be fully accomplished. May, 1861. F. T. P. |