STUDENT, MEET BOOK.

In this age of icon-clicking and computer graphics, reading for pleasure as well as edification is on the decline. Educators strive to instill habits of learning that will last a lifetime; and, whatever the current cultural practice may be, print is still at the heart of this pursuit. Students have become increasingly aware that factual information is no longer only accessible in bound volumes. It is available on the Internet, in sometimes inaccurate as well as accurate form; and thanks to search engines, the searching process need not take the time it used to. Web sites seem to provide the quick, painless way out. Unless forced to mine specific points from a book, students will not bother and will opt for data print-outs over prose.

Who can blame them? Most textbooks and monographs are unfortunately not very readable. Current trends in historiography emphasize social and cultural patterns at the expense of a political or diplomatic storyline. Perhaps this approach is justifiable in a purely academic sense; by addressing areas previously overlooked or ignored, it fills gaps in scholarship. But it is unattractive, nonproductive reading at an introductory level and does not provide a foundation upon which to build or ignite enthusiastic curiosity. No matter how attractive the publisher makes the packaging, such accounts remain dry purveyors of data and are interesting primarily to people who already have an established background. Another negative point is simple but weighty; new books are expensive.

Reading should not be a prohibitive chore if we want students to develop habits that will stick with them for a lifetime. They should willingly take a book to the beach - and not hope that it will be swept away by the tide. At an introductory level, story should be central. Those who reject that conclusion usually argue that it amounts to a lowering of academic standards and is a regrettable compromise with our shallow, entertainment-oriented culture. Referring in exasperation to his college freshmen, Mark Edmundson argues, "They read to enjoy, but not to become other than they are." (Edmundson 7) To be intellectually engaging, he argues, readings must be challenging, i.e. difficult – and anything but entertaining. In other words, medicine is only good for you if it is hard to swallow. That logic is not appropriate for secondary education, the level at which educators seek to draw beginners to the study of history. What will strike initial interest and curiosity is an engaging story about people in conflict – something that entertains but also raises questions and deals with debatable issues.

Such a criterion does not preclude all non-fiction. There are a great many splendidly written historical studies, of which books by Barbara Tuchman and DavidMcCullough are prime examples. But length and detail can be a deterrent to a beginner, especially if he or she has been conditioned to look for and recall significant names and facts. The inclination to highlight almost every line of text is a difficult habit to break.

USEFUL, RIGHT OR WRONG

Fiction provides an alternative that is more attractive from the students' perspective as reader and from the teacher's as educator. Novels and plays tend to have plot-, or issue-driven focus. Their effectiveness does not preclude brevity. Finally, and perhaps most importantly, even if they contain inaccuracies or other obvious flaws, they still can yield very useful historical introductions to subject matter when employed with forethought and care.

A good example is The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown. While immensely popular with the general public, it has become the target of defenders of traditional Christianity, inspiring an extensive sub-genre of Da Vinci Code literature. One particularly intense attack refers to "Brown's central concerns, which are ideological. Without its radical rewriting of historical fact, Brown's novel does not exist in any shape or form" (Olsen and Miesel 33). It also has raised eyebrows in academic circles. Bart D. Ehrman of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill found the book to be "a real page-turner... [b]ut like most historians who have spent their lives studying the ancient sources for Jesus and early Christianity, I immediately began to see problems with the historical claims made in the book" (Ehrman xii-xiii).

A high school teacher's initial inclination is to avoid this book at all costs. It is a lot safer to feign ignorance of a title when it is judged offensive and inaccurate. To do so, however, constitutes a missed opportunity. Ehrman recognizes the possibilities:

The Da Vinci Code has so well succeeded where professional historians have miserably failed; it has gotten people interested in a range of historical questions about early Christianity... For some people it takes a Da Vinci Code to see what can be interesting in the past, not just for the dull professional types who read dead languages for a living but for average people.... (Ehrman 189)

The novel stimulates curiosity. Channeling that curiosity in a direction that leads to research instills habits that stick after a course ends, since students learn how to substantiate the "facts" the book presents. It provides an excellent opportunity for a traditional term paper, or a group discussion that generates common questions to pursue.

MAKING TIME FOR NOVELS

In standard survey courses, time is at a premium because of coverage demands – especially since history has a way of growing with each passing year!

No matter how attractive a particular period may be, there is always pressure to maintain the pace in order to reach significant contemporary attitudes and events. These constraints work against the inclusion of novels in the curriculum. No matter how vivid and compelling The Killer Angels may be, a teacher may not feel comfortable devoting a large block of time to the Battle of Gettysburg or using up several assignment nights having students read about it.

An effective but less intrusive way to integrate fiction into the classroom is to build a research project around it by having students read novels or plays and determine their accuracy through research. This kind of extended assignment permits slower readers the opportunity to set their own pace and it encourages everyone to go into depth analyzing the subject matter. An additional benefit is the flexibility such an assignment offers; because of its course-wide scope, a teacher can offer a variety of titles covering a broad range of subjects - and an assortment of skill levels.

WHEN TIME AND THE CURRICULUM PERMIT

In courses that are less driven by breadth of coverage, it may be possible to use a single novel as a class-wide text. There are titles that fit any circumstance, whether it is a broad chronological review, the consideration of one situation in depth, or an introduction of material omitted from the standard curriculum. Some of the best come from a field that is increasing in popularity: alternate histories.

For advanced students with a background in Western Civ, there is plenty to discuss in John Ford's alternate-history fantasy novel, The Dragon Waiting . In fewer than 400 pages, it incorporates subjects as diverse as Roman mystery religions, Byzantine imperial politics, Medici Florence, and the Wars of the Roses. While entertaining and laced with action, this is not an easy book; the author does not spell out every detail but requires the reader to think and recognize connections. The fantasy elements - magic and vampires – may also not be to everyone's taste. All things considered, however, there are worse things than forcing students to think and use their imaginations . Discussing the real history that underpins each successive chapter and recognizing how Ford incorporates it into his narrative will ideally take several days, if not weeks. If it is possible to establish a seminar environment in the class, individual students can research and present reports on subjects or characters employed in the novel. These can initiate discussions comparing the novel's portrayal with "real" history.

There is also an interesting and highly effective option for classes studying the Civil War: Harry Harrison's Stars and Stripes Forever. Like Ford's book it is an alternate history novel, but its focus on a single era and its realistic tone make it completely accessible. The premise is that the Trent Affair had a different outcome; an enraged British cabinet decides to teach the United States a lesson by aiding the South. Capitalizing on an imaginary "incident" on the Canadian border, they authorize retaliatory raids. A stupendous, but plausible, blunder leads to an attack not on Union-held New Orleans but on a Confederate seaport. Suddenly Britain is at war with both American sides.

Harrison describes in straightforward prose the key events of the early war years, sacrificing depth of characterization but not action narrative. Students find the book readable as well as entertaining. Its utility in the classroom, however, does not require that it be read in its entirety. The author describes what he feels would be the outcome of the raids, but is it plausible or even possible? Classes can stop reading Harrison's novel at this point and discuss that central question. Is the author's scenario logical? (Research into the size and makeup of the British military in the mid-nineteenth century might raise some doubts.) All reasoning should be based on historical evidence, no matter which side students take. Another key question is: If the events in the story actually had transpired, what do they think the outcome would have been? Having the class complete the narrative, rather than simply read what is written, can yield far more subtle analysis than one finds in Harrison's novel.

Finally, a novelette by Poul Anderson, "The Sorrows of Odin the Goth", from the author's Time Patrol collection of stories, provides an intriguing look into an area generally ignored in survey courses. It concerns a time traveler who returns to Eastern Europe in the 300's to study the origins of the epic Nibelungenlied. The story portrays Gothic culture as well as Arian Christianity, and it provides an avenue for addressing epic heroes and what they represent. Students analyze how heroes and gods reflect the values of the cultures in which they develop, and this can lead to a discussion of a subject with immediate impact: What values do our "heroes and gods" reflect?

READ AND IMAGINE

Making fiction an integral part of a History course, whether in the form of a research project or a text for class-wide discussion, can provide the kind of stimulus that will make the past memorable for students accustomed to memorizing and repeating facts. It encourages them to question, to analyze, and to imagine. A teacher's goal is to excite a lasting interest, and nothing does it better than stories.

REFERENCES:

Anderson, Poul. "The Sorrow of Odin the Goth." In Time Patrol. New York: Baen Publishing Enterprises, 2006.

Brown, Dan. The Da Vinci Code. New York: Doubleday, 2003.

Edmondson, Mark. Why Read? New York: Bloomsbury Publishing, 2004.

Ehrman, Bart D. Truth and Fiction in The Da Vinci Code New York: Oxford University Press, 2004.

Ford, John M. The Dragon Waiting. New York: Timescape Books, 1983.

Harrison, Harry. Stars and Stripes Forever. New York: Ballantine Publishing Group, 1998.

Olsen, Carl E., and Sandra Miesel. The Da Vinci Hoax. San Francisco: Ignatius Press, 2004.

Shaara, Michael. The Killer Angels. New York: Ballantine Books, 1974.

"Uchronia: The Alternate History List." http://www.uchronia.net/intro.html (accessed September 29, 2007)

Richard Oberdorfer has been History Department Chair at Norfolk Academy since 1984. He was born in Jacksonville, Florida in 1945, and holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from the University of the South (1967) and a Master of Arts in History from the University of Florida (1970).