[Question Mark]

I read the first Harry Potter book because my wife, a non-native English speaker, had picked up an English copy of the book and was asking me all these questions about strange words. I got tired of asking her to read me the sentence so I could have the word in context. Decided it would be far simpler just to read the book. Wasn't terribly impressed by it, but was better able to help my wife work her way through it. Neither of us bothered with any of the other books in the series...

Until, that is, I was supervising some of my students during their lunch breaks. On winter days when the weather was bad, they would bring in DVDs to watch. Most of what they brought in wasn't terribly interesting. But then somebody brought in the Harry Potter series. I saw snippits here and there, but never paid too much attention. However, as the series progressed, it seemed to get darker and more interesting. I thought I might give it another chance if for no other reason than to understand what was captivating the attention of so many of my students.

I thereupon ordered all the books and all the movies from the local library. Read and watched them entirely out of sequence as each title became available. Was pleasantly surprised. I quite enjoyed the series as it grew darker and as the characters matured. Am now currently reading the series in both Japanese and Chinese for language practice, switching languages each time I begin a new book.

Will the series ever become a "Classic". Don't know. Perhaps. It's certainly has had tremendous reach. Whether it can continue to maintain that over time is another question. I suppose it will depend if anything else comes along to bump it out of the way.

As for the "Classics" in school. I really think the education system needs to rethink its goals. Is the goal to teach students to read and write or to "enculture" students?

Personally, I think that courses in "Literature" or the "Classics" should be optional. Just like the two years of Latin which I took in high school. Nobody was forced to take it, but it was on offer for those who wished to do so.

As for regular English classes, I think there should be a very diverse range of reading material. Because people have such different tastes in reading, I think much of the reading material should be somewhat short in nature. That way, if a student doesn't like a particular book or author, they are not subjected to it for an entire term or semester. When reading material which draws upon Shakespeare or other "Classics", it could be noted in a footnote. Perhaps a scene from Romeo and Juliet could be compared to scene from West Side Story or a more modern rendition on the theme of star crossed lovers. No need to read the entire play. There would be a Literature/Classics class for that.

However, if teachers really want their students to read the "Classics", then perhaps they should just forbid them from doing so. That might just pique their interest.

As for Shakespeare, wasn't much into him in school. It was only later that I became able to see his genius and historical significance. That said, I still would be unlikely to pick up any of his works for pleasure. Have always much preferred Beckett, even when I was in high school.