Shakespeare and Austen in secondary school English Curriculum (Essay Sample)

Shakespeare and Austen in secondary school English Curriculum
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Shakespeare and Austen in secondary school English Curriculum
For very many years, Austen and Shakespeare have continued to dominate the western secondary school English curriculum. That being the case, there has been the need to explore this practice and determine how such works are relevant, and the kind of knowledge and expertise these authors offer the contemporary English student. Many people still believe that Shakespeare and Austen still outstand as great and famous writers of all time (Patterson, 2001, p. 38). As well, their works has also been of great importance in teaching sociology and theology through literature. That being the case, there has been a wide debate whether the works of these two authors have been able to offer a lot to the contemporary student of English.
Speaking without false modesty, it is acknowledgeable that there are a number of advantages and disadvantages from studying the works of both Austen and Shakespeare. For instance, these works improve the ability to make positive and logical opinions regarding different views, improved performance in the language and literacy in particular, being able to speak clearer, and also helped development a deeper understanding in the general nature of humanity (Austen, 1950, p. 90). Most of the individuals who study the works of these authors have been able to improve their prowess in analyzing any kind of literary materials ranging from plot, character, irony, and advanced vocabulary. It is agreeable that the works of these authors remain classic and significance in the teaching of English language and literature in western colleges and secondary schools. This calls for the need to explain the reason why such work is significant today.
Today, regardless of the age of a person, Shakespeare studies offer a wide scope of valuable lessons, literary devices, and cultural lessons to all individuals. As well, the work comes with enjoy and sufficient edification. One of the notable things today is that Shakespeare studies have never been able to grow old. The work has been inspiring every generation from all spheres of life. Modern English curriculum has found the works of Shakespeare and Austen to be full of teachings, literary devices, tools and motifs which can be applied in analyzing literary works (Hunter, 1988, p. 47). That being the case, it is observable that the work touches all areas of English and literature such as poetry, music, story-telling, and English culture. Because of that, the works of these authors have been able to retain their position and significance in present classic literature (Poulson, 2008, p. 43).
While the works by the two scholars have been outdated as many might argue, the fact of the matter is that the work is still very valuable and influential even in our modern western society (Hunter, 1988, p. 125). The works is thought by many to be able to connect all aspects of English thus offering a wide scope of understanding and opinion towards life. While the work was written very many years ago, modern developers of curriculum has realized the potential of the devices and analytical approaches used by Austen and Shakespeare. This has made the work very valuable and therefore it will continue being studied for very many years to come (Theobald, 2003, p. 84). As well, Austen’s work has been able to offer diverse views regarding the society and how some issues such as inequality should be addressed (Poulson, 1986, p. 49). The combination of literary devices and use of realism in Austen’s work is something that has been widely appreciated for modern teaching of English language in many schools today. In the final paper we will explore this argument and establish the reason why Shakespeare and Austen continue to dominate the western secondary school English curriculum. This will be achieved by examining their works in order to understand the significance of the written works of these authors and what they offer the contemporary English student.
However, there have been diverse views and arguments regarding the relevance of Shakespeare and Austen works and importance in our teaching literature and English curriculum on secondary schools (Collins & Kinney, 1987, p. 183). This has caused a lot of conjecture therefore leading us to this debate. A number of educationists have been having diverse views and opinions regarding the application of Shakespeare and Austen works in teaching literature and English. It has been believed that the works of these individuals still rich in literature concepts and tools which can be effective to the student.
On the other hand, we have other individuals who believe that these literary works are very outdated and old-school thus making them inappropriate for modern curriculum. Such individuals always encourage the use of modern literary approaches because they offer new ideas and techniques in advancing the study of English language (Austen, 1950, p. ...