Introduction and Rationale
When English teachers sit down to develop curricula in world literature, European writing and writers seem to take precedence. This is partly because the exposure for teachers-in-training at the undergraduate level is typically Euro-centric. Even if teachers specialize in American literature, the focus is on writers steeped in Western traditions. In high school anthologies, little attention is paid to the literature of native America, aside from a few nods to North American Indian mythologies, and in some enlightened collections, selections from Central and South American writers of the last century. (Of course much of the latter has been written in Spanish, so selections depend upon translations.) But the bigger issue is an assumption that the literature of any ancient American culture is, by the very nature of those defunct civilizations, irrelevant to the modern student of literature, and more a curiosity to the student of history or archaeology. The fact is that literature is a representation of, and simultaneously an influence on, all civilizations great or small. Further, I believe that high school students in the United States have a cultural heritage in literature that reaches way beyond the European-based canon, and which they deserve to be acquainted with.
With these notions in mind, and using a translation of the Popol Vuh as a literary keystone, I developed this literature unit for inclusion in a twelfth grade curriculum that immerses students in the culture of the Maya civilization of the first millennium, especially the Classic period—from about the fourth through the tenth centuries A.D. I want to draw students' attention to the literary themes and conventions reflective of a great American civilization with which they are not so familiar. Using the mythical tales in the Popol Vuh, I draw on students' power of inference to determine what kind of civilization might have created and sustained such a literature. As measures of success, in terms of assessment, students ask questions like: What politics, religious beliefs, art, agriculture, social customs, and geography is reflected in this literature? What motivated its creation? What purposes (cultural, religious, artistic) did it serve? To help students make strong inferences, and to even care to find answers to these kinds of questions, careful study of the specific elements of the writing takes place.
Conventions in literature emphasized in the unit are: theme, tone, character and the techniques of characterization, symbolism, point of view, irony, satire, plot elements, setting, and the conventions of story telling, and figurative language devices. When considering audience and purpose, students will consider—for the sake of context and contrast—the general similarities found in several creation stories, and in the Bible's account of creation in Genesis.
The intended participants for this teaching unit are twelfth grade vocational high school students. Demographically, the school population is African American (65%), White (25%), Hispanic (9%), and a few Asian students. While the primary interest in my school setting is preparation for a career in various technical, service, and trade occupations, students are offered the standard curriculum of a comprehensive high school, and are required four years of English, Social Studies, and Mathematics and three years of Science. Spanish is the only second language offered, and there are no arts electives. In fact, one motivation for developing this unit was the possibility of incorporating some elements of visual and performing arts into instruction.
A prime personal motivation for this unit reflects my belief that at the senior year, (especially among students who will choose career paths that will involve little or no further training or formal education), it is critical to expand a student's awareness of the variety of traditions in cultures other than his own. Most adults understand that such awareness yields a perspective that is critical to personal success and well-being, however a person defines them. And particularly in a world whose economic and political landscape is shifting and changing at nanoseconds, students facing futures in technical, trade, and service careers must not only see new horizons for reasons of personal enrichment, but will need perspective to function in that new world. Just think of the implications of what outsourcing means for a young American, for example.
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