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ENLARGE
Ah, the end of summer. Swimming pools, bike rides, barbecues, back-to-school. What? Back-to-school? Ugh!
Despite students' visions of teachers anxiously tapping their pencils at their school desk and just chomping at the bit to inflict their diabolical plans upon unsuspecting new students, we too bemoan the end to our beloved summers.
It never takes me long, however, to get that feeling back. All it takes is one good, thought-provoking discussion about a great book to get my motor running and the wheels spinning. So, with that in mind, I thought I would recommend a few favorites of mine from classroom discussions in the hopes that you may find some time to read them before summer ends and to discuss them yourself in a book club, with friends or maybe even in a class (No Cliff-notes allowed!).
The first book on my list is Oscar Wilde's enigmatic novel “The Picture of Dorian Gray.” The book represents a fictional playing out of Wilde's theories of moral hedonism and art-for-art's-sake aesthetic. Alone, these theories lead to intriguing questions of moral responsibility and good versus bad art. With questions persisting regarding an afterlife, should we live for the pleasure of the moment, damned be the consequences (especially for others)? Does good art have a moral message, or must it merely be beautiful?
The questions underpin a creative and engaging plot. The young and handsome Dorian Gray, while being painted by Basil Hallward, wishes that he could remain forever youthful while the painting grows old. When his wish is indeed granted, he becomes an embodiment of Lord Henry's pleasure-driven moral philosophy. All along, we know that his obsession with himself and his desire for self-gratification can only lead to tragedy of epic proportion, but it's the cleverly ambiguous ending that sparks such engaging debate. What has really happened, and what is the symbolism regarding Dorian's demise?
One of my other favorite novels for generating meaty conversation is F. Scott Fitzgerald's classic, “The Great Gatsby.” Though it is certainly a time-piece that is intricately associated with the extravagances of the Roaring 20ís, it is also a cautionary tale of the decadence of greed and shortcuts to success that resonates with meaning in a contemporary era that witnessed a financial crisis created by the overreaching hands of some Wall Street investors.
It also has one of the most powerful symbols in the annals of American fiction. The green light at the end of Daisy's dock represents an intangible, unreachable American Dream that is constantly promised but never attained. It is the ever-present searching, the quest for that which will always elude us. The final paragraphs of the novel not only elucidate this meaning but also reinforce it with the tragic consequences that befall those who put too much faith in materialistic endeavors.
The best part about both of these books, however, is that they are readily available in a variety of formats from your Summit County Library system. Whether it be downloadable, audio or old-fashioned book, your library either has it or can order it from another Colorado library. So don't forget to take advantage of one of Summit Countyís best resources: our public library.
Despite students' visions of teachers anxiously tapping their pencils at their school desk and just chomping at the bit to inflict their diabolical plans upon unsuspecting new students, we too bemoan the end to our beloved summers.
It never takes me long, however, to get that feeling back. All it takes is one good, thought-provoking discussion about a great book to get my motor running and the wheels spinning. So, with that in mind, I thought I would recommend a few favorites of mine from classroom discussions in the hopes that you may find some time to read them before summer ends and to discuss them yourself in a book club, with friends or maybe even in a class (No Cliff-notes allowed!).
The first book on my list is Oscar Wilde's enigmatic novel “The Picture of Dorian Gray.” The book represents a fictional playing out of Wilde's theories of moral hedonism and art-for-art's-sake aesthetic. Alone, these theories lead to intriguing questions of moral responsibility and good versus bad art. With questions persisting regarding an afterlife, should we live for the pleasure of the moment, damned be the consequences (especially for others)? Does good art have a moral message, or must it merely be beautiful?
The questions underpin a creative and engaging plot. The young and handsome Dorian Gray, while being painted by Basil Hallward, wishes that he could remain forever youthful while the painting grows old. When his wish is indeed granted, he becomes an embodiment of Lord Henry's pleasure-driven moral philosophy. All along, we know that his obsession with himself and his desire for self-gratification can only lead to tragedy of epic proportion, but it's the cleverly ambiguous ending that sparks such engaging debate. What has really happened, and what is the symbolism regarding Dorian's demise?
One of my other favorite novels for generating meaty conversation is F. Scott Fitzgerald's classic, “The Great Gatsby.” Though it is certainly a time-piece that is intricately associated with the extravagances of the Roaring 20ís, it is also a cautionary tale of the decadence of greed and shortcuts to success that resonates with meaning in a contemporary era that witnessed a financial crisis created by the overreaching hands of some Wall Street investors.
It also has one of the most powerful symbols in the annals of American fiction. The green light at the end of Daisy's dock represents an intangible, unreachable American Dream that is constantly promised but never attained. It is the ever-present searching, the quest for that which will always elude us. The final paragraphs of the novel not only elucidate this meaning but also reinforce it with the tragic consequences that befall those who put too much faith in materialistic endeavors.
The best part about both of these books, however, is that they are readily available in a variety of formats from your Summit County Library system. Whether it be downloadable, audio or old-fashioned book, your library either has it or can order it from another Colorado library. So don't forget to take advantage of one of Summit Countyís best resources: our public library.
