Teach This #2
My text is the first book in a science fiction, fantasy series
called Vampire Academy. Vampire
Academy is a book about essentially vampires, but in the book the vampires are
called Moroi and they are a lot different from traditional vampires. These Moroi
wield a magic or an affinity in one of the elements. The Moroi are also not
immortal and have protectors that are half human half Moroi called Dhampirs.
The book follows the journey of Lisa a royal Moroi and her Dhampir best friend
Rose. We see Lisa’s battle with depression after the death of her family and absence
of magic. And Rose has a battle to keep Lisa safe from the Strogi which are the
evil, undead “vampires” intent on the destruction of the Moroi. The book is full
of struggles from depression and battles with evil, to the struggle of
forbidden love for both of the main characters.
This text explores many topics that are important to bring
up in the classroom, since many students are affected by them. A large one
being mental illnesses, such as depression, something that can’t really be
controlled or go away. The battle of
depression is one that one of the main characters Lisa has to deal with. We see
how much of a struggle it is for her, like it is for so many kids, and people
in general. Therefore, it is a good gateway to discussion, especially how
people suffering from it can get help, and there are people there for them.
The text is also so much different from other vampire books
that it would be good to talk about and good for comparison with other texts.
You could pair this book with another text such as Dracula and compare and contrast the two. I’m sure most if not all
of your students will have heard some vampire story, read a book or seen a
movie about them. Therefore, even if you don’t have time to bring in another book
for comparison you can compare based on what the students have seen, heard, or
read. This would still result in a nice discussion.
Another concept worth mentioning in this text is the
forbidden love. While the teacher-student love is going to be more difficult to
walk around, I think the forbidden love with Lisa is quite interesting. Her
love is only forbidden because it isn’t accepted by the Moroi society. This
shows how much we let other people’s opinions faze us, when we shouldn’t. It is
also a gateway for discussion on other “forbidden” loves that aren’t accepted
by society, such as gay relationships.
One idea for teaching this book I mentioned earlier, this
being the comparison of Vampire Academy with
another vampire text. My favorite choice for this idea being Dracula since it is a classic. There are
so many differences between the “classic vampire” and the Moroi in this book.
You could do a Venn diagram, have a compare and contrast essay, or just a class
discussion. I would probably start with an essay or Venn diagram and then
discuss it.
You could also do a comparison with the book and the movie
adaption of it. You could go over how the movie adaption is different, and why
the students think these things were changed. After a discussion the class
could write an essay on what they thought was wrong in the movie and what they
would change about it. Or they could do a project on how they would have made
the movie if they directed it and made the script, props, etc.
The kids could also write a short essay from one of many
prompts. Some prompts could be:
·
How would this story
be different if the Moroi were classic vampires?
·
How would you have
made the Moroi if you wrote this book? Would you have the magic? Would you
change different things?
·
How would the story be
different if it was in Lissa’s P.O.V. or another character?
References
1. Mead, Richelle. Vampire
Academy. New York: Razorbill, 2008. Print.
Emily,
ReplyDeleteYour descriptions of the way in which these vampires differ from the classic depiction really drew me in. That the book also addresses mental illness and depression does seem like a gentle approach to the subject and could definitely open up discussions that would maybe have been too painful or difficult otherwise. The pairing of this book with the one that started this craze – I would love to be in that class! You also mentioned movie adaptions. Have you seen any references to the old Hammer Pictures? Those could be fun to include along with the better-known films. And if you’re ever able to catch Nosferatu, do. Probably one of the ugliest monsters I’ve seen. You have some much available out there, you could probably spend an entire semester on the subject. What fun!
I think it is interesting how you bring up "classic" vampires is a great starting point. Even in our own generation, many of us have this idea of vampires being sparkly Edward Cullens, and this is obviously not super scary or threatening! However, maybe even doing a compare/contrast of what ideas students have when they think of vampires and then you showing them traditionally how vampires were written about would give them great insight before reading this text.
ReplyDeleteDracula would be a great text to pair this up with. Crossing over between a classic and modern is important for Common Core, but also for students to gain multiple perspectives about a certain topic or idea. You could also utilize your history teacher during this--I remember talking about Vlad the Impaler, who is essentially Dracula. This historical context might bring up some interesting discussion between the facts of "vampires" and the magical aspects of them!
Vampire books are very popular now. With Twilight making its grand entrance a few years ago, everyone seems to be on this mystical vampire kick. Teaching this book would be successful on many levels, but even at the most basic level of it being a topic of interest.
Great ideas for your assignments you would do! I think it is important for the essay you gave options--this allows students to self-direct their learning to a degree, but still being in the boundaries you have set. And of course, using technology and other mediums of literature is highly accepted with Common Core, so the movie idea is wonderful!!