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An English teacher talks English literature
Kalyani Roshan Shrestha pursued her love for literature professionally by teaching Compulsory and Optional English to Grade 10 students at St Xavier’s School, Jawalakhel.Sudikchya Shrestha
What was your favourite book that you read as a student? Why?
My favourite book from my school days is Little Women, by American author Louisa May Alcott. That novel is my favourite because it follows the lives of four sisters, Meg, Jo, Beth and Amy March. It talks about their journey of childhood to womanhood, following the characters’ quest for domesticity, work and true love. I also love this novel because it is a family drama that validates virtue over wealth for achieving individual identity. This novel is not only a classic novel but it is a form of literature where romantic children’s fiction is combined with other forms of sentimental novels.
What do you enjoy the most about reading a book?
I enjoy reading as it always provides me with new experience. I love to read good books as a good book is like sumptuous meal. I feel that reading has opened me up to a better vocabulary, a better understanding of different cultures, a whole lot of new ideas and innovative as well as positive thinking.
What are some things about reading that you do not particularly enjoy?
At times I hate the idea of having to have a lot of patience to figure out all the
facts and contents of a book. The lack of patience makes you so desperate to finish off the whole stuff that you sometimes forget to do the work at hand. This really annoys me at times.
‘Bad books are like bad friends.’ Do you agree? Do you think there is such a thing as bad books?
I really don’t believe in the statement ‘Bad books are like bad friends’ because it is you who choose your friends. I guess you are smart enough to select the best people from the rest to be exemplary friends who really understand you and stand by your side through your thick and thin. Likewise you are responsible for selecting a good book for yourself, which can change you into a good human being instead of blaming and pinpointing at others.
Book readers are always talking about how the book was better than the movie. Do you think books always prevail over their adaptations? Explain.
Books prevail over adaptations because plots make more sense in books and because the point of a book is to tell a story, not just to be visually spectacular. Take Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, for an example. The book had quite a lot of action in it and yet when the movie was released a huge part of the plot was removed and replaced with more action, which made the movie drag on uselessly. Apart from this, books also cannot have bad special effects. Instead, you are yourself responsible for creating the images in your own head. These images come out more flawlessly than the special effects in the movies sometimes do.
Which author do you think would make a good English teacher?
In my view, Maureen Daly would have made a good English teacher. She captured the hearts and minds of young adults through her award-winning short story Sixteen, written when she was herself sixteen. She had the ability to understand young minds and young hearts. So based on popular demand, she penned her work.
In today’s age, it is very important for a teacher to understand his or her students very well. Unless there is a good rapport between a teacher and a student, the teaching and learning won’t be fulfilling and fruitful. Thus, I think Maureen had all the qualities of a good and understanding teacher.