“I felt dull and flat and full of shattered visions.” -- Sylvia Plath, The Bell Jar
“If there’s one thing I hate, it’s the movies. Don’t even mention them to me.” -- J.D. Salinger, The Catcher in the Rye
Introduction
My students are selfish. Or self-involved. Probably both. I can write this because I understand it. This is the time of their life where they are figuring out their identities, their beliefs, their goals, and struggling with the constant contradictions and societal expectations.
My students are also bursting with creativity, eager to make things their own, and have their voices heard. In a world where images can be controlled, filtered, and uniform and where they feel they are constantly told what to do and how to do it, they are ready to figure things out on their own, tell their own stories, and make their individual mark on the world.
Knowing this about my students, I want to marry their exploration of self with their incredible vision and interpretation of the world. I will use the art of adaptation to help my students to translate their vision of a coming-of-age text to a modern film that not only is faithful to the original text, but transports the relatable themes for modern teenage audiences, giving the modern teenage voice a chance to scream their truth.
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