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Graff
Graff
English 203
Dr. Decker
Gerald Graff allows readers to better understand his passion for literature by informing them of
his past relations with the subject. He informs readers that at an early age, Graff disliked the
subject especially due to the setting he grew up in. He explains on page 41 that being a young
experiences due to his constant fear of being bullied by other boys. Due to the time period he
grew up in and his family background, Graff decided to major in English upon entering
college. Unfortunately, this did not make the subject anymore admirable to him, on page 42 he
writes, " At this point the fear of being beaten up if I were caught having anything to do with
books was replaced by the fear of flunking out of college if I did not learn to deal with
them." Graffs text is still relevant to modern-day students, as many still face similar issues he
did. Although he studied the text and kept up with his school work, he often still felt flustered
during class due to his lack of ability to communicate his thoughts and opinions on literary works
in class. Graff goes on to explain the famous text that ultimately changed his view and attitude
toward literature in college, Huckleberry Finn. He describes how class debates and critic reviews
influenced his interest in the novel and viewpoint on the subject all together.
Graff continues to explain his views on literature and the way it is taught. He goes on to inform
readers that traditionally readers may become infatuated with literary works first and discover
literary criticisms later as they begin to find their passion for literature however in his personal
experience, he found his passion in what he considers "opposite." He states on page 45, "It was
only when I was introduced to a critical debate about Huckleberry Finn that my helplessness in
the face of the novel abated and I could experience a personal reaction to it." From his personal
experience, his first altercations with literature were poor due to the lack of critical conversation
and literary criticisms. From this he presents his thesis by stating, "The moral I draw from this
experience is that our ability to read well depends more than we think on our ability to talk well
about what we read." Lastly, Graff examines and criticizes the way literature is being taught.
While he feels that books should be able to teach themselves, he explains how teachers effect
how students learn and react to the content. He refers to Allan Blooms The Closing of the
American Mind to better explain his view on how one may use text in ways it was not meant to
be used. He states, "What has gone wrong, Bloom suggests, is that instead of letting the texts
themselves dictate the questions we ask about them, a generation of overly professionalized
teachers has elevated its own narcissistic interests over those of the author and the students."
Graff is explaining how the relationship between the teachers lesson and the students has an
Did it feel like you settled when you decided to major in English?