EDUCATION AND THE DEMANDS OF LITERATURE TEXTS: POETIC MEANING
Abstract
If a poem itself does not communicate what it means, what can a teacher do for it? It is perfectly proper and customary for a writer to refuse to discuss the meanings of what he or she has written; if the writing itself has not failed, the meanings are already there for the sensitive reader to grasp. The question then becomes a matter for the sensitivity of the reader. Schiralli has written previously in this Journal on the topic of training those aesthetic sensibilities that too many people assume are either by nature given or withheld. Using certain ideas of Ezra Pound's he explores here the directions in which students' attention may be drawn so that they may grasp those elusive meanings in sounds, images, and implications which poetry often brings into play. RÉSUMÉ Si le sens d'un poème échappe à certains élèves, qu'y peut un professeur? Il est paifaitement normal et même courant qu'un poète refuse de discuter du sens qu'il a voulu donner à ce qu'il écrit; si l'écriture a atteint son but, le lecteur sensible parviendra à en saisir le sens. Le problème semble donc avoir trait à la sensibilité du lecteur. Ce n'est pas la première fois que Schiralli aborde dans notre revue la question de l'éducation des sensibilités esthétiques qui selon trop de gens sont un don de la nature dont certains sont dépourvus. Reprenant certaines idées d'Ezra Pound, il examine les moyens d'attirer l'attention des élèves afin qu'ils puissent comprendre le sens insaisissable des sons, des images et des insinuations dont se sert souvent le poète.Downloads
Published
1981-01-01
How to Cite
Schiralli, M. (1981). EDUCATION AND THE DEMANDS OF LITERATURE TEXTS: POETIC MEANING. McGill Journal of Education / Revue Des Sciences De l’éducation De McGill, 16(001). Retrieved from https://mje.mcgill.ca/article/view/7377
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