Contemporary American Short Stories (1967)

February February 13^th 2015 Literature Circle 7^th grade Rebecca_poulson@hotmail.com

Contemporary American Short Stories Selected and Introduced by Douglas and Sylvia Angus, publisehd by Fawcett, 1967

Read “Greenleaf” by Flannery O’Connor, and “In Dreams Begin Responsibilities” by Delmore Schwartz, and read any others you like –

Like the Civil War, World War II was a great upheaval of American life and society, and that is the theme of most of the stories. The humor tends to be kind of dark. “In Dreams Begin Responsibilities” was written in 1935 (before WWII) and “Greenleaf” in 1956.

They can be challenging to follow because what’s happening is not always on the surface, but in symbolism and impression – this is a characteristic of Modernism in literature, which began around the turn of the 20th century. Another characteristic is the awareness of how our reality is shaped by our minds.

So enjoy these stories, relax and don’t worry about getting everything.

So for these two stories, write a paragraph about one of them. Pick out some part that stands out to you, and tell why – how it fits into the whole, or maybe it’s just beautiful writing. For example, a description of a physical scene, from the point of view of the narrator, that tells you about the character.

The other task is to type up your part of the story from last time (way back when) and send it to me, and I’ll compile.

And, bring back your books – Hound of the Baskervilles and Haunting of Hill House.