Anda di halaman 1dari 18

Short Story Module 1

Short Story Module:


“Was It a Dream?” by Guy de Maupassant

B.H.
Azusa Pacific University
2011
Short Story Module 2

Short Story Module

Theme and Rationale:


“Was it a dream?” (WID) by Guy de Maupassant contains an overarching theme, grief
ends with acceptance. As Aebersold and Field (1997) point out in From Reader to Reading
Teacher, teachers must consider their students' needs, interests, and abilities prior to selecting a
text for their students. I believe that students need to be exposed to literature that addresses a
wide range of deeply emotional topics to be able to truly express their feelings. In order to
effectively communicate in a second language, students need to become familiar with language
that addresses both the positive and negative emotions. Often, in the language classroom,
material tends to focus on lighter issues. However, literature provides a rich medium to present
language that is far more meaningful to students. As Gadjusek (1988) points out, “Because
literature does not simplify the subtleties or complexities of life, it can engage the entire
personality of mature students whose linguistic ability may not yet equal their broader experience
or personal maturity” (p. 254) By addressing the issue of grief, students will be exposed to
language that is used to communicate a deep and universal emotion, an emotion with which every
human will struggle.

Pre-Reading Activities:
Aebersold and Field (1997) identify three key reasons for the incorporation of pre-reading
activities: to establish a purpose for the reading, to activate and build background knowledge,
and to build expectations. Gajdusek (1988) emphasizes the need for background knowledge by
stating, “In all of the prereading work, the focus is on providing essential information or on
making explicit various assumptions and cultural attitudes that could result in misreading of the
text...” (Gajdusek,1988, pp. 237-238).
I designed Activity A (Worksheet A), in which students match vocabulary with provided
definitions, in order to guide students towards building background knowledge related to the
vocabulary of the text. As Gajdusek (1998) points out, “we must really distinguish three kinds of
vocabulary items: (a) words whose meaning can (and should) be derived from context, (b) words
(probably easy for native speakers) that contain vital clues to the cultural and emotional context
of the story, and (c) words that proficient readers merely categorize” (p. 235). Of these three
kinds of vocabulary items, I've chosen to focus on words from category (b) – words that provide
vital clues, establish the context, and cannot be easily defined by contextual clues. When
applicable, I've also chosen to define word stems to provide students with the necessary
knowledge to focus on the roots' prefixes and suffixes. As Aebersold and Field (1997) state,
“Native speakers of English have a vast but usually unconscious knowledge of word parts. L2/FL
students need to have this knowledge as well” (p. 144).
I designed Activity B and C (Worksheet A), in which students identify the five stages of
grief and then write a short story recounting a personal experience with grief, in order to
introduce the topic. As Aebersold and Field (1997) points out there are three main benefits from
knowing the topic ahead of time: (1) it will help students recall information related to the topic
(context schemata), (2) it will increase their interest (and therefore, their motivation), and (3) it
can be used to introduce vocabulary relevant to the topic (pp. 67-68). By providing the pre-
reading activities as homework, not only will it allow students to activate prior background
knowledge, it will provide them an opportunity to build background knowledge. Activity C, will
also provide students with an opportunity to personalize the language and thereby, it will increase
Short Story Module 3

their involvement with the text. Following the at-home work, students will come to class
prepared to discuss the topic and engage their classmates in a communicative setting.

Activities
A. At home
Students will be given Worksheet A at the end of the class that precedes this unit.
The teacher will notify the students that there will be a quiz based on Worksheet A.
The teacher will notify the students that their short essays will remain private.
1. Matching
-Students will match vocabulary (which was taken from the reading) with
an appropriate definition
2. Listing
-Students will need to search online to list the five stages of grief
3. Writing
-Students will write a short descriptive text (75-150 words) describing
how they felt after they heard that a family member, pet, or celebrity
they admired passed away.
B. In Class
1. Quiz
-Students will be given a quiz. They will need to match the vocabulary
with the definitions and list the five stages of grief.

Factual In-Class Work


Gajdusek (1998) states, “After carefully selected (and limited) prereading work, it is time
to give students an opportunity to read and work with the text at home” (p. 238). In order to aid
students in their comprehension of the text and prepare students to answer factual questions, I've
decided to break the text up into short sections. Worksheet B1, contains the first section as a
sample. In Worksheet B1, students are presented with four vocabulary strategies they can use
when they encounter unfamiliar words. Students should first determine if an unknown word is
vital; if it is not, they should skip over the word (Aebersold & Field, 1997, p. 142). If the word is
vital or frequently used, students should attempt to use context to determine its meaning
(Aebersold & Field, 1997, p. 142). Students should also attempt to analyze parts of the words
(Aebersold & Field, 1997, p. 144). If a word's meaning still cannot be determined, a dictionary
should be consulted (Aebersold & Field, 1997, p. 145). Worksheet B1, also includes a guiding
question, “What will happen next?”, to encourage students to make predictions and thereby,
become active-readers. After the students have worked through the complete story, they should
be better prepared to answer the factual questions.
As Gajdusek (1998) states, ”the factual work with a piece will establish who, what
(happens), where, and when” (p. 238). I designed Worksheet C, which will be given as
homework, to address these questions. As Gajdusek (1998) points out, “It really helps students
assume responsibility for in-class work if they have been given some fairly factual questions to
answer (on paper) during a second, at-home reading and before they come to class” (p. 238). By
completing Worksheets B and C prior to coming to class, students will be prepare to utilize the
class time in communicative activities. As Gajdusek (1998) states, “...we can let these questions
represent problems to be solved and take advantage of the need to establish the "facts" of the
story to stimulate interactive, small-group work based on the text (p. 239).
Short Story Module 4

Activities
A. At home
Students will be given Worksheets B and C to complete at home
Students will repeat Activity 1 and 2 for each section of the story
1. Unknown Words (Worksheet B)
-Students will read a section of the text and circle unknown words.
-Student will identify which of the four strategies provided is
appropriate for each word
-Students will define unknown words in the margin and identify contextual
clues that are useful for defining the words.
2. Predicting (Worksheet B)
-Students will use a guiding question, “What will happen next?”, to make
predictions before they read the next section of the text.
3. Factual Questions
-Students will refer to the text to answer the factual questions on
Worksheet C

B. In Class
1. Unknown words (Worksheet B)
-In groups, students will discuss the contextual clues they used to identify
unknown words
-As a class, the teacher will elicit the unknown vocabulary and the
contextual clues
2. Predicting (Worksheet B)
-In groups, students will discuss the contextual clues they used to make
predictions
-As a class, the teacher will elicit the contextual clues that the students used
to make predictions
3. Factual Questions
-In groups, students will discuss their answers to the factual questions and
compare time lines. Groups will be re-arranged and students will
compare their answers again.
-As a class, a general time line will be elicited and presented on the
whiteboard

Analysis
As Gajdusek (1998) states, ”Having established the facts, students can now begin to ask
why and to develop their own attitudes toward the characters, values, and situations of the story,
in short, to move beyond information to involvement and experience” (p. 245) and “this might
now be the time to approach the text as literature: to investigate (a) structure or significant
patterns in the work, (b) theme(s), and (c) style-ways in which the writer uses and organizes
language to communicate with the reader” (p. 245). To address these issues, I designed
Worksheets D and E to be completed as homework. For Activity A from Worksheet D, students
must divide the text into sections and identify a purpose for each section. This activity helps
Short Story Module 5

students identify the structure, or staging, or the text and the significance of each stage. For
Activity B from Worksheet D, students need to identify the stories climax. As Gajdusek (1998)
points out, “the ideas of climax and conflict are closely related and help define one another” (p.
246) and “...classroom interaction is liveliest if we ask each student to choose, before coming to
class, the line from the text in which he or she believes the climax occurs” (p. 246). For Activity
C from Worksheet D, students need to identify and cite stages of grief present in the text. This
activity helps students identify the theme of the text. For Activity D from Worksheet D, students
must answer several questions of inference. As Aebersold & Field (1997) point out, “the ability
to understand or posit information that is not overtly stated in the text is a higher-level reading
ability” (p.125) In Worksheet E, students are guided towards noticing certain grammatical
features and “style-ways in which the writer uses and organizes language to communicate with
the reader” (Gajdusek, 1998, p. 245). From these activities, students can begin to appreciate why
the writer chose certain grammatical features.

Activities
A. At home
Students are given Worksheets D and E to complete for homework
1. Staging (Worksheet D)
-Students re-read the story then divide it into sections.
-In the margins of the text, Ss write down the purpose of each section.
2. Climax (Worksheet D)
-Students identify the line of the text which contains the climax.
3. Topic and Theme (Worksheet D)
-Students identify the stages of grief expressed in the text and cite lines
from the text as support
4. Inferring (Worksheet D)
-Students answer several questions which require them to infer
information not contained in the text
5. Grammar: Repetition (Worksheet E)
-Students re-read the story and underline any words, phrases, or sentences
the writer repeats.
-Students write down their opinion on what affect repetition has on the
writing.
6. Grammar: Adjectives (Worksheet E)
-Students re-read the story and highlight the adjectives they find.
-Students make a list of the adjectives. Beside each adjective they write
down the word it modifies.
-For each adjective, Ss write down two other adjectives that could be
used to substitute for the adjective.
-Students re-write the story using different adjectives.
-Students write down their opinion on what affect the writer's choice of
adjectives had on the writing.

B. In Class
1. Staging
-In groups, Ss compare their stages and discuss the structure of the text.
Short Story Module 6

-As a class, the Teacher elicits and discusses the overall staging of the text.
2. Climax
-In groups, students discuss their opinions on where the story climaxes.
-As a class, the teacher elicits the moment of climax and elicits the conflict
(the emotion tension) that lead to the climax
3. Topic and Theme
-In groups, students discuss the stages of grief they identified and thereby,
identify the topic and theme of the text.
-As a class, the teacher elicits the stages of grief, the topic, and the theme
4. Inferring (Worksheet D)
-In groups, students discuss their opinions on the questions of inference
-As a class, students share their opinions
5. Grammar: Repetition (Worksheet E)
-In groups, students discuss their opinions on the affect of repetition
-As a class, students share their opinions
6. Grammar: Adjectives (Worksheet E)
-In groups, students discuss their opinions on the affect of adjectives
-As a class, students share their opinions

Extending Activities
As Gajdusek (1998) states, “both kinds of extending activities (writing and in-class group
work) carry interaction with a literary text beyond the text, asking for creative, relevant responses
from the readers” (p. 251). Aebersold and Field (1997) echo this belief when they “recommend
the use of other activities that stimulate the students' minds by involving them in doing something
with the content and the language of the text” (p. 132). To meet these objectives, I designed
Worksheet F, which provides an opportunity for students to work with a partner, create an original
dialogue based on the text, and role play the dialogue for the class. Worksheet F also contains an
activity, which is intended for homework, in which students create an original story based on the
text but written from a perspective of another character. As Ferris and Hedgcock (2004) point out,
“empirical findings pointing to connections between reading skills and writing performance have led
researchers to infer that efficient reading skills lay a foundation for the growth of both L1 and L2
writing proficiency” (p. 32). Finally, w hile both activities help students build their comprehension
of the text, they also provide an opportunity for students to use the language they have acquired
from the text to engage in creative, meaning-focused activities.

Activities
A. In Class (Worksheet F)
1. Scripting
-Students will work with a partner and write a dialogue (10-20 lines) that
the man and woman might have had while she was sick in bed.
-The teacher will walk around the class and provide assistance when
needed
2. Role-playing
-Students will role-play their dialogue for the class.
B. Homework (Worksheet F)
1. Writing
Short Story Module 7

-For homework, Ss will write a story (50-100 lines) in which the lady
grieves based on the scenario that the man had gone out that night
looking for his wife and was the one who got sick and passed away.
Ss will use a similar structure and similar settings as the text.
-The teacher will collect the essays in the following class.

Module Conclusion:
“The texts most readily available for the languages that I teach are usually populated by
stock photos or cartoon depictions of anodyne individuals with what are taken to be average
interests and qualities” (Smith, 2009, p. 7) and “by and large, the people depicted do not suffer,
do not die, do not face difficult moral choices, do not mourn or lament, do not experience or
protest injustice, do not pray or worship, do not believe anything particularly significant, do not
sacrifice, do not hope or doubt” (Smith, 2009, p. 7) In order to treat my students as spiritual
beings, I must treat my students holistically and address both their positive and negative
emotions. I must introduce my students to language that not only allows them to speak of their
joy but also their pain. Literature, therefore, is an ideal source of material for the language
classroom since literature is a source of deeply emotional language and meaning. However, for
second language students, literature, as a source of authentic text, requires that a far stronger
framework be provided from which to work.
As Aebersold and Field (1997) clearly point out, “the real purpose of reading is to
comprehend the text” (p. 149). In order to help ESL readers achieve this goal, “we must help
[them] establish frameworks (schemata) of the more factual information assumed by the writer
or conveyed by the piece, which they can then use to experience the work at progressively deeper
levels” (Gajdusek, 1998, pp. 231-232). The four-level sequence (prereading activities, factual in-
class work, analysis, and extending activities) outlined by Gajdusek (1998) provides a well
thought out approach to establishing these frameworks. In addition to establishing these
frameworks, the approach presented by Gajdusik (1998) provides a balance between at-home
work and in-class work that prepares students to maximize their use of classroom time to engage
in highly communicative activities.
Short Story Module 8

Worksheet A
Pre-reading (Homework)

A. Matching
-first try to match the words without using a dictionary then use a dictionary to check

1 atom a strange
2 audible b a very small piece
3 conscious c a small crack
4 crevice d make-up
5 deceive e to erase
6 efface f to able to be heard
7 grief g to search
8 grope h to see through
9 penetrate i to seed
10 queer j miserable
11 reproach k to blame
12 sow l to cause to believe what is not true
13 toilette m awake
14 torment n to cause physical or mental pain
15 wretched o deep mental pain

B. List the five stages of grief.

C. On the back of the worksheet, write a short descriptive text (75-150 words) describing
how you felt after you heard that a family member, pet, or celebrity you admired
passed away.
Short Story Module 9

Worksheet B1
In-Class-Factual Work (Homework)

A. Read the text below and circle any words you don't know.

1 "I had loved her madly!


2 "Why does one love? Why does one love? How queer it is to see only one being in the
3 world, to have only one thought in one's mind, only one desire in the heart, and only one
4 name on the lips--a name which comes up continually, rising, like the water in a spring,
5 from the depths of the soul to the lips, a name which one repeats over and over again,
6 which one whispers ceaselessly, everywhere, like a prayer.
7 "I am going to tell you our story, for love only has one, which is always the same. I met
8 her and loved her; that is all. And for a whole year I have lived on her tenderness, on her
9 caresses, in her arms, in her dresses, on her words, so completely wrapped up, bound, and
10 absorbed in everything which came from her, that I no longer cared whether it was day or
11 night, or whether I was dead or alive, on this old earth of ours.
12 "And then she....

B. Building strategies to handle unfamiliar words


Strategy 1: If the word is not essential to understanding the sentence, skip it.
Strategy 2: If the word is important or repeated often, try to guess the meaning by the
context.
Strategy 3: If the word has a familiar root, try to use contextual clues to determine the
meaning of the prefix or suffix.
Strategy 4: If it is still unknown, consult a dictionary.
Pick a meaning that can be used to replace the unknown word.

1. Above each word you circled, write the number for the strategy you will use.
2. For words that you guessed the meaning, draw a line to the contextual clue and
write the meaning in the margin.
3. For words that you used the root to define, make a note of the suffix or prefix and
its meaning in the margin
4. For words that you used the dictionary to define, write the meaning in the margin
and underline the meaning. Draw a line to any contextual clues if you can now.

C. Developing active-reading skills (Predicting)


1. What will happen next?
Short Story Module 10

Worksheet C
In-Class-Factual Work (Homework)

A. Re-read the text and answer the questions below.

1 Who is telling the story?


a. A character
b. Someone outside the story who knows everything
c. Someone outside the story who knows everything about only one character

2 Who is the main character?

3 In which city does the story take place?

4 In which settings does the story take place?

5 When is the author telling the story? (Hint: Line 31)

6 How much time passes in the story? (one day, one year, twenty years)

7 What happens in the story? (focus on verbs)


On the back of this worksheet, create a general time line.
Short Story Module 11

Worksheet D
Analysis (Homework)

A. Re-read the story then divide the story into sections. In the margins of the text,
write down the purpose of each section. (Why did the writer write that section?)

B. Which line of the text contains the climax?

C. On the back of the worksheet, identify the stages of grief expressed in the text
and cite lines from the text as support

D. Answer the questions below with your own opinions. Cite lines to support your
opinions.

1. Why did he leave Paris?

2. Why did he return to Paris?

3. Why did he go to the cemetery?

4. Why did he spend the night in the cemetery?


Short Story Module 12

Worksheet E
Analysis (Homework)

A. Grammar Activity 1: Repetition


1. Re-read the story and underline any words, phrases, or sentences the
writer repeats. For example, in Line 2, the writer repeats the question,
“Why does one love?”.

2. What affect does repetition have on the writing? Why does the writer
choose to repeat certain words, phrases, and sentences?

B. Grammar Activity 1: Adjectives


1. Re-read the story and highlight the adjectives you find.
2. Make a list of the adjectives. Beside each adjective write down the word it
modifies.
3. For each adjective, write down two other adjectives that could be used to
substitute for the adjective. Note, the adjectives don't need to be
synonyms. For example, for 'sad man' you could write 'happy'.
4. Re-write the story using different adjectives.
5. What affect did the writer's choice of adjectives have on the writing?
Short Story Module 13

Worksheet F
Extending Activity (In Class)

A. Read lines 17-19. With a partner, write out a dialogue (10-20 lines) that the man
and woman might have had while she was sick in bed.

B. Role-play the dialogue for the class.

C. For homework, imagine that the man had gone out that night looking for his wife and was
the one who got sick and passed away. Write a story (50-100 lines) in which the lady
grieves. Use a similar structure and similar settings as the text.
Short Story Module 14

Appendix 1
WAS IT A DREAM?
Guy de Maupassant
1 "I had loved her madly!

"Why does one love? Why does one love? How queer it is to see only one being in
3 the world, to have only one thought in one's mind, only one desire in the heart,
and only one name on the lips--a name which comes up continually, rising, like the
5 water in a spring, from the depths of the soul to the lips, a name which one
repeats over and over again, which one whispers ceaselessly, everywhere, like a
7 prayer.

"I am going to tell you our story, for love only has one, which is always the same. I met her
9 and loved her; that is all. And for a whole year I have lived on her tenderness, on her
caresses, in her arms, in her dresses, on her words, so completely wrapped up, bound, and
11 absorbed in everything which came from her, that I no longer cared whether it was day or
night, or whether I was dead or alive, on this old earth of ours.

13 "And then she died. How? I do not know; I no longer know anything. But one evening she
came home wet, for it was raining heavily, and the next day she coughed, and she coughed
15 for about a week, and took to her bed. What happened I do not remember now, but doctors
came, wrote, and went away. Medicines were brought, and some women made her drink
17 them. Her hands were hot, her forehead was burning, and her eyes bright and sad. When I
spoke to her, she answered me, but I do not remember what we said. I have forgotten
19 everything, everything, everything! She died, and I very well remember her slight, feeble
sigh. The nurse said: 'Ah!' and I understood, I understood!

21 "I knew nothing more, nothing. I saw a priest, who said: 'Your mistress?' and it seemed to
me as if he were insulting her. As she was dead, nobody had the right to say that any longer,
23 and I turned him out. Another came who was very kind and tender, and I shed tears when
he spoke to me about her.

25 "They consulted me about the funeral, but I do not remember anything that they said,
though I recollected the coffin, and the sound of the hammer when they nailed her down in
27 it. Oh! God, God!

"She was buried! Buried! She! In that hole! Some people came--female friends. I made my
29 escape and ran away. I ran, and then walked through the streets, went home, and the next
day started on a journey.
*******

31 "Yesterday I returned to Paris, and when I saw my room again--our room, our bed, our
furniture, everything that remains of the life of a human being after death--I was seized by
33 such a violent attack of fresh grief, that I felt like opening the window and throwing myself
out into the street. I could not remain any longer among these things, between these walls
Short Story Module 15

35 which had inclosed and sheltered her, which retained a thousand atoms of her, of her skin
and of her breath, in their imperceptible crevices. I took up my hat to make my escape, and
37 just as I reached the door, I passed the large glass in the hall, which she had put there so
that she might look at herself every day from head to foot as she went out, to see if her
39 toilette looked well, and was correct and pretty, from her little boots to her bonnet.

"I stopped short in front of that looking-glass in which she had so often been reflected--so
41 often, so often, that it must have retained her reflection. I was standing there. trembling,
with my eyes fixed on the glass--on that flat, profound, empty glass--which had contained
43 her entirely, and had possessed her as much as I, as my passionate looks had. I felt as if I
loved that glass. I touched it; it was cold. Oh! the recollection! sorrowful mirror, burning
45 mirror, horrible mirror, to make men suffer such torments! Happy is the man whose heart
forgets everything that it has contained, everything that has passed before it, everything that
47 has looked at itself in it, or has been reflected in its affection, in its love! How I suffer!

"I went out without knowing it, without wishing it, and toward the cemetery. I found her
49 simple grave, a white marble cross, with these few words:
" 'She loved, was loved, and died.'

51 "She is there, below, decayed! How horrible! I sobbed with my forehead on the ground, and
I stopped there for a long time, a long time. Then I saw that it was getting dark, and a
53 strange, mad wish, the wish of a despairing lover, seized me. I wished to pass the night, the
last night, in weeping on her grave. But I should be seen and driven out. How was I to
55 manage? I was cunning, and got up and began to roam about in that city of the dead. I
walked and walked. How small this city is, in comparison with the other, the city in which
57 we live. And yet, how much more numerous the dead are than the living. We want high
houses, wide streets, and much room for the four generations who see the daylight at the
59 same time, drink water from the spring, and wine from the vines, and eat bread from the
plains.

61 "And for all the generations of the dead, for all that ladder of humanity that has descended
down to us, there is scarcely anything, scarcely anything! The earth takes them back, and
63 oblivion effaces them. Adieu!1

65 "At the end of the cemetery, I suddenly perceived that I was in its oldest part, where those
who had been dead a long time are mingling with the soil, where the crosses themselves are
67 decayed, where possibly newcomers will be put to-morrow. It is full of untended roses, of
strong and dark cypress-trees, a sad and beautiful garden, nourished on human flesh.

69 "I was alone, perfectly alone. So I crouched in a green tree and hid myself there completely
amid the thick and somber branches. I waited, clinging to the stem, like a shipwrecked man
71 does to a plank.

73 "When it was quite dark, I left my refuge and began to walk softly, slowly, inaudibly,

1 French word - Goodbye


Short Story Module 16

through that ground full of dead people. I wandered about for a long time, but could not
75 find her tomb again. I went on with extended arms, knocking against the tombs with my
hands, my feet, my knees, my chest, even with my head, without being able to find her. I
77 groped about like a blind man finding his way, I felt the stones, the crosses, the iron
railings, the metal wreaths, and the wreaths of faded flowers! I read the names with my
79 fingers, by passing them over the letters. What a night! What a night! I could not find her
again!

81 "There was no moon. What a night! I was frightened, horribly frightened in these narrow
paths, between two rows of graves. Graves! graves! graves! nothing but graves! On my
83 right, on my left, in front of me, around me, everywhere there were graves! I sat down on
one of them, for I could not walk any longer, my knees were so weak. I could hear my heart
85 beat! And I heard something else as well. What? A confused, nameless noise. Was the noise
in my head, in the impenetrable night, or beneath the mysterious earth, the earth sown with
87 human corpses? I looked all around me, but I cannot say how long I remained there; I was
paralyzed with terror, cold with fright, ready to shout out, ready to die.

89 "Suddenly, it seemed to me that the slab of marble on which I was sitting, was moving.
Certainly it was moving, as if it were being raised. With a bound, I sprang on to the
91 neighboring tomb, and I saw, yes, I distinctly saw the stone which I had just quitted rise
upright. Then the dead person appeared, a naked skeleton, pushing the stone back with its
93 bent back. I saw it quite clearly, although the night was so dark. On the cross I could read:
" 'Here lies Jacques Olivant, who died at the age of fifty-one. He loved his family, was kind
95 and honorable, and died in the grace of the Lord.'

"The dead man also read what was inscribed on his tombstone; then he picked up a stone
97 off the path, a little, pointed stone and began to scrape the letters carefully. He slowly
effaced them, and with the hollows of his eyes he looked at the places where they had been
99 engraved. Then with the tip of the bone that had been his forefinger, he wrote in luminous
letters, like those lines which boys trace on walls with the tip of a lucifer match:
101 " 'Here reposes Jacques Olivant, who died at the age of fifty-one. He hastened his father's
death by his unkindness, as he wished to inherit his fortune, he tortured his wife, tormented
103 his children, deceived his neighbors, robbed everyone he could, and died wretched.'

"When he had finished writing, the dead man stood motionless, looking at his work. On
105 turning round I saw that all the graves were open, that all the dead bodies had emerged
from them, and that all had effaced the lies inscribed on the gravestones by their relations,
107 substituting the truth instead. And I saw that all had been the tormentors of their
neighbors--malicious, dishonest, hypocrites, liars, rogues, calumniators, envious; that they
109 had stolen, deceived, performed every disgraceful, every abominable action, these good
fathers, these faithful wives, these devoted sons, these chaste daughters, these honest
111 tradesmen, these men and women who were called irreproachable. They were all writing at
the same time, on the threshold of their eternal abode, the truth, the terrible and the holy
113 truth of which everybody was ignorant, or pretended to be ignorant, while they were alive.

115 "I thought that SHE also must have written something on her tombstone, and now running
Short Story Module 17

without any fear among the half-open coffins, among the corpses and skeletons, I went
117 toward her, sure that I should find her immediately. I recognized her at once, without seeing
her face, which was covered by the winding-sheet, and on the marble cross, where shortly
119 before I had read:
" 'She loved, was loved, and died.'
121 I now saw:
" 'Having gone out in the rain one day, in order to deceive her lover, she caught cold and
123 died.'
*******

"It appears that they found me at daybreak, lying on the grave unconscious."
Short Story Module 18

References

Aebersold, J.A, & Field, M.L. (1997). From Reader to Reading Teacher: Issues and Strategies
for Second Language Classrooms. New York, NY: Cambridge Univ Press.

Ferris, D. & Hedgcock, J.S. (2004). Teaching ESL composition: Purpose, process, and practice
(2nd ed.). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.

Gajdusek, L. (1988). Toward Wider Use of Literature in ESL: Why and How. TESOL Quarterly,
22 (2), 227-257.

Smith, I.D. (1999). On Viewing Learners as Spiritual Beings: Implications for Language
Educators. CELEA News, 1 (1), 5-11.

Anda mungkin juga menyukai