Copper Sun, Harry Potter, and Twilight: are these texts beneficial for students in a classroom?

To begin, I will reiterate a tad bit my thoughts on Sharon Draper's Copper Sun, as it relates to the article "But, is it Good Enough to Teach?" As I mused before, Draper's depiction seemed unrealistic and without a full knowledge and understanding of the Africans that were kidnapped into slavery. I stated, with the hope that no one would misinterpret my feelings as being cold-hearted, that while we saw the victimization of the mistreated Africans, we, as an audience looking for a new perspective, were not provided with an accurate depiction of another race from another country, another culture, another spirituality. The characters in Copper Sun, it seemed to me, had thought processes and understandings of situations that seemed to similar to my own, when I feel that Amari and her fellow kidnappees would probably see the world (and America) as something much different. Additionally, I felt that I had learned very little about Amari's (and thus Africans') lifestyle and culture.

For these reasons, I'd argue that this book is NOT good enough to teach, unless maybe if it were taught to a much younger audience that perhaps would have trouble seeing the world from a perspective completely different than their own (and the ethicality of teaching young students from multi-cultural perspectives is a completely different argument). The article from the Brannon and Greene argues digging deeper into a diverse reading selection for students; while teachers should be comfortable with what they are teaching, they should be able to take risks and perhaps learn new things about the material. They should choose literature for their students that perhaps cannot be easily substituted by a more apt work; they should teach literature that can truly enhance a student's understanding of the world around them. Even more importantly, a teacher should worry about teaching all races and all cultures about each other. A teacher should not teach Copper Sun simply because there is an African American student in the class. Additionally though, the teacher must also understand that not only are the white students in the class to learn about the horrors of slavery, but African Americans must also get something out of the book; and perhaps they should get something out of it more than the cruelty of white Americans, but something about their history, about the culture of their ancestors. And, in my opinion, Copper Sun does not offer that.

I've ranted about Copper Sun's pragmatism in the classroom for quite a while now, and unfortunately I don't feel as opinionated about Harry Potter or Twilight. To me, these books are strictly entertaining. I don't feel that there are any overpresent themes to discuss or analyze. I think that many adolescents are attracted to these books because they can relate to new parental problems of Harry and Bella; they can understand the pressures of tranferring to a new school, whether it be more fantastical like Hogwarts or a regular ole' high school in the rainy town of Forks. They can understand an annoying bully like Draco, or having a crush on someone who seems out of your league, like Edward. So, obviously, there are themes and lessons to be learned in these books. But, they seem more personal and less academic.

Relating this to chapter 12, though these books are popular, they are easily replacable if these are the types of stories that we are interested in teaching to our students. But, I see nothing new to teach. They are easy. The feminist arguments that can be addressed in discussing are almost too easy. If the article suggests that we take risks, shouldn't a teacher who perhaps wants to argue feminism with her students through literature choose a novel that is more beneficial and better written? The teacher should introduce a novel that the student perhaps wouldn't have read otherwise (it is very likely that an adolescent student would have already read Twilight), and should choose one that digs a bit deeper in the issue at hand. In the case of Twilight, the text doesn't help to facilitate discussion. An analytical discussion would only be a critical response to the almost sickening, lovey-dovey dependence of the otherwise stubborn Bella. It would be more insulting the book and its characters than appreciating it. There just seems to be better options.