A.A. Milne as Serious Literature

Most people, when they are young, are introduced to stories and nursery rhymes as an initiation to the world of communication and learning. Preschool and primary school teachers use fairy tales, nursery rhymes, and children's stories in order to engage their students so that the students will enjoy school and want to learn more. This is the beghnning of learning to read and write. Somewhere along the line, however, due to social pressure, state and federal testing guidelines and other demands, teachers drop what will engage the students and instead teach them what they "ought" to know. In English Literature courses this usually means thick, dry tomes such as Moby Dick, by Herman Melville, depressing regional writing such as Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, or well-meaning, horizon-expanding, and very depressing, multicultural tales such as The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros. All of which are very serious pieces of literature used in classes as platforms to not only teach students how analyze and communicate, but also to expand their point of view by exploring different lifestyles, philosophies, and cultures. None of it is fun.

Reading is supposed to be fun. Reading and writing are actions that people do everyday to survive. It is a basic part of functioning in the 21st century. It should be enjoyable. One of the ways to make it more enjoyable would be to introduce more contemporary or fun literatu

udents, because of its familiarity, but it would also be a positive and uplifting segment to help balance out some of the other more serious material. In other words, it would be a good variation on the regular grind of the classroom curriculum. As can be demonstrated by the research, this is not an isolated practice. Frederick Crews, in writing on whether or not the work of A.A. Milne was appropriate for analysis, indicated in both The Pooh Perplex and Postmodern Pooh, that the material was indeed suitable and relevant to the academic world (Crews 1 x, xi; Crews 2 xii, xiii). In addition, John Tyerman Williams, in his book on Pooh and Psychotherapy, has expounded on the importance and contribution of Winnie-the-Pooh to the field of psychology (Williams 3). Finally, Hoff, in his book, The Tao of Pooh, explaining an eastern philosophy (Taoism) with a western icon (Pooh), has also demonstrated how relevant Milne's children's literature has become in current society, making it ripe for analysis (Hoff xii). In Which the "Expotition" (Journey) is Contemplated Another reason that Milne's literature would be a strong asset to the English Literature course is that the stories and characterizations are just as easily platforms f