As such, I present my argument for replacing some classic novels with their more recent, and relevant, counterparts. Before my fellow English teachers start sharpening their pitch forks, hear me out. The novels I suggest for replacements could just as easily work as supplements for further study. So just breathe deeply, and keep reading. Round One: Plot Lord of the Flies is a novel about survival in the wild. A group of prep school boys finds themselves stranded on a deserted island and have to find the wisdom and skills within themselves to survive until they can be rescued. Readers follow along, amazed at how these civilized little Brits could turn into such barbarians so easily. Meanwhile, in the background there are hints of a war going on, to serve as an explanation for the way that the real world of adults seems to have abandoned these boys without remorse. For more detailed information on LOTF plot lines, check out this article:. The Hunger Games is also a novel about survival. Now that continent exists as 13 separate districts, and each year the districts have to send a representative pair of teens to compete in a survival game show on television for the rest of the district residents to watch. In order to win, you have to eliminate the competition literally — you have to kill them all and survive the elements. The premise of the game show is that the Capital wants to showcase its power over the other districts and enforce peace by flexing its muscles now and again. In both novels, you get suspense, wondering what will happen to these young protagonists as they try to survive the elements. Katniss, like Ralph, finds herself in situations where she has very little experience and yet must outsmart her enemies if she is going to survive the night. Fears of a third one, though, they can understand. The trio of Ralph, Jack, and Piggy each teach us something about human nature, while Simon reveals to us the truth of the dangers on the island. Ralph struggles to be a leader and maintain his civility in a harsh new world. Piggy tries to stand up for himself and maintain the order in their environment by advising Ralph. Jack embraces his savage instincts and goes off to the dark side. Simon comes face to face with the Lord of the Flies, and in his death he reminds us all of the darkest depths human nature can reach when properly pushed. In The Hunger Games, Katniss is far from privilege. She comes from a poor district and has grown up mostly fatherless. In her community, that means she has to support her family by hunting illegally because her mother cannot support herself and her two daughters Katniss has a younger sister, too. Once the games begin, many of the problems with the LOTF boys also plague Katniss and her fellow competitors. They each take a different position in their quest to win the games, but in the end the darkness shows through in them as well. Katniss finds allies in some of her fellow gamers, and enemies in others. So, what do you teach when you teach Lord of the Flies, anyway? Can you really replace all those great teaching gems with new ones from The Hunger Games? I say, yes you can. In teaching Lord of the Flies, you probably want your students to learn about the symbolism involved. You may even include the historical significance of the war-torn background for the novel, and how that affects the boys without their realization. In teaching The Hunger Games, you can get all of that good stuff too, I promise you. But the catch is that your students will find it a LOT more interesting. In the characters from the different districts, you will see discrepancies in class and socioeconomic status: the closer you are to the capital, the richer you are. The kids from lower-numbered districts have literally been bred for these games, while kids from the higher-numbered read: poorer districts are basically there to be killed for entertainment. The historical significance in this novel is a vision of the future, not the past. The darkness inside the characters is one we can already see brewing in the world today, not the remnants of another era. She has to learn to kill or be killed from the moment the games begin. The Final Round: Yes or No? Have you put away your pitch forks yet? I promise, I'm not trying to make radical changes, or to tell you how to run your English classes. But if you take my advice, I think your students will thank me for it. And after all, what have you got to lose? We want our students to learn to love literature, right? We want them to learn to analyze theme, and symbols, and characterization techniques. We want them to dissect plots and find new insights. They can do that with almost any novel we assign, and certainly kids have been doing it for years when they read Lord of the Flies. But have they enjoyed it? I will grant that kids will find a way to complain about anything. The difference is that you might actually get some kids who like the book if you teach The Hunger Games. And if they like that book, they might stick around for the sequel, due out in fall 2009. They might even do something really radical, like read a book on their own, just for the fun of it. All because their daring English teacher took a risk and threw out an old classic to replace it with a more relevant and entertaining option.
