Journeys Through Bookland, Vol. 10: The GuideSylvester, Charles Herbert
General
Journeys Through Bookland, Vol. 10: The Guide
Sylvester, Charles Herbert
Children's literature; Literature -- Collections
For older boys there are plenty of good selections, and the discussion
of some of them must help to bring nearer to the lad his increasing
responsibilities. A normal boy of sixteen has a lot of the man in him
and wants to be treated as a man, at least to have his ideas, hopes and
ambitions given some consideration. He does not want always to be called
"Bobby" or "Jimmy" or "Tommy." He likes better to be called "Smith,"
"Jones," or "Robinson," or whatever his last name is. He is tired of
being told to do this and that and would like to join in some of the
family councils and feel that father is beginning to see the man and
forget the "kid." He will be interested in anything that relates to
commerce, or manufacture or government if it is presented to him in such
a way that he can "be somebody" in the discussion.
It is easy to interest boys in speaking, in orations, in debates. In
_Journeys_ (Volume IX, page 321) is printed the _Gettysburg Address_ by
Abraham Lincoln. It is the one great, masterly American address, noted
not only for its perfect construction, but for its sentiment, its power
and its brevity. In no other great address are all these elements
combined. Tested by any standard it rings true in thought and is perfect
in form. It is worth while to commit it to memory, and father and son
should be equally interested in the task, if it can be called a task.
Preceding the address is a note giving its historical setting, and
following it is an analysis of the thought and a series of questions
tending to give the thought a more personal application. _The Fate of
the Indians_ and _A Call to Arms_, both in Volume IX, are good orations
accompanied by studies.
An essay that is in effect almost an oration is the extract from the
_Impeachment of Warren Hastings_ by Macaulay (Volume IX, page 32), and
in this volume are studies on that essay (page 248).
_The Boston Massacre_ by Nathaniel Hawthorne is a pleasing bit of
history which in this volume (page 370) is used as the basis of a study
in argument. You may prefer to read the studies first and arrange the
arguments for your sons or for yourself and your boy. It is surprising
into what different directions the argument will lead you and how many
interesting questions will arise which will make good subjects for
discussion. To make conversation worth while there is needed only
something interesting to talk about. To be a good talker is worth a
great deal to any young man and there is no better way to give him this
power than by conversing freely with him while he is young.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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