1. Do we have a canon for Malaysian literary works? Let's say we do, who do you think are in it? Consider the fact that their works are well-known and most importantly included as part of the school syllabus- (both in BM and English)
I think that the recipients of the national literary scholar awards (anugerah sasterawan negara) are in the list of Malaysian literary canon. The recipients of the awards are listed below:
1981 : Kamaluddin Muhamad (Keris Mas)
1982 : Dato' Shahnon Ahmad
1983 : Datuk Dr. Usman Awang
1986 : Datuk A. Samad Said
1988 : Muhammad Dahlan bin Abdul Biang (Arena Wati)
1991 : Prof. Dr. Muhammad Haji Salleh
1993 : Datuk Noordin Hasan
1996 : Datuk Abdullah Hussain
2001 : S. Othman Kelantan
2009 : Dr. Anwar Ridhwan
The recipients whose literary works are being used in the school’s textbooks are as below:
English literature
a) Kamaluddin Muhamad – Jungle of Hope (novel) for SPM level (Form 5)
b) Datuk A. Samad Said – The Dead Crow (poem) for PMR level (Form 1)
c) Prof. Dr. Muhammad Haji Salleh – Si Tenggang’s Homecoming (poem) for SPM level (Form 4)
Malay literature
a) Dato' Shahnon Ahmad – Gelungnya Terpokah (short story) for SPM level
b) Prof. Dr. Muhammad Haji Salleh - Anak Global (poem) for SPM level
2. The poems by Erica Jong raises some feminist issues. What are they?
The feminist issues raised by Erica Jong in her poems are gender difference, gender bias, women’s rights and interests, gender equality for women, patriarchy and oppression of women, male dominance in love and family relationship, sex-positive issues, one’s quest for freedom and purpose.
3. Do you think they are suitable to teach at the secondary school level? Explain.
I think they are not suitable if we consider it based on our cultures, taboos and religious. Most of Jong’s works are very open-minded, realistic and sexually explicit which are against our moral values. The raw language she used in her works is forbid by our multi-cultures country. Although secondary school students are far more mature and knowledgeable, due to globalism nowadays, some issues, topic, activities on sex, love and feminist can be easily misinterpret by these teenagers and mislead them into committing social problems. Therefore, Jong’s poems are not suitable to be taught at the secondary school level. Perhaps they are more suitable for adult people.
4. Is Hillary Tham's poem more suitable?
Hillary Tham’s poems are more suitable compared to Erica Jong’s poems because as a local writer, she has better understanding of our multi-racial cultures, taboos and religious. The language uses in her poems are more moderate too. Besides that, her poems often deal with common feminist issues which can be used to teach our secondary school students on feminist issues in Malaysia context.
5. The short tale from the Native American group is about a girl who is unsatisfied with her life. Why it is an universal experience? Can our students learn from the story?
This is a universal experience across all countries, societies, races and religions because no matter how much we have in our possession, we still desire for more. We as human being are ungrateful and won’t be easily content with what we have. In real life, most people are very materialistic and self-minded. Even if we own a lot of assets and possessions, we are still not satisfied and we still demand for more. In regard to the story, the girl was deceived by the attractive outlook of the man who turned out to be a horned serpent.
From this story, we can teach our students to be grateful and content with the simple things they have. They need to appreciate their friends, parents and teachers for every thing they had given to them. Half a bottle of water is better than having an empty bottle. Other than the above, another moral value from the story is don’t judge a book by its cover. Appearances can be deceiving because someone may look pleasant outside but they might be bad intentions inside.
6. From your findings about his background, tell me about the dilemma he conveys through the poem CROSS.
"Cross" is a lyric poem expressing in first-person point of view the feelings of a person with a white father and a black mother. The poem expresses the confusion and conflict of the speaker who experiences mixed heritage.
The dilemma conveyed in the poem is the inner turmoil the speaker feels because of his mixed racial heritage. The speaker struggles to accept and understand his ethnic identity in a world where black people and white people are considered polar opposites. The speaker faces dilemma of not being able to decide whether he is white or black. Thus, he does not feel any sense of belonging.
Another dilemma in the poem is how the speaker is going to end his life. Since he is still unable to decide which identity he wants to take, the speaker really does not know how he is going to die, whether in high profile like his father or low profile like his mother.
7. I find "Dinner Guest: Me" laden with irony and sarcasm. Briefly state if you feel the same.I agree that “Dinner Guest: Me” by Langston Hughes contains irony and sarcasm. The evidences can be seen in the following lines from the poem:
Stanza 1, Line 1 & 2
I know I am
The Negro Problem
Stanza 1, Line 9, 10 & 11
Of darkness U.S.A.
Wondering how things got this way
In current democratic night
Stanza 1, Line 14
“I’m so ashamed of being white.”
The "Negro problem" can be interpreted as the struggle faced by African-Americans as they attempted to fully integrate and participate in American (white) society. In the 1965, the ‘whites’ especially the upper-middle class white see themselves as polite, well to do and sympathetic. The poem also touched on the attitudes of ‘white’ people, who intend to tone down their guilt by inviting the author to dinner, rather than coming up with a way to allow African-Americans to participate equally in society. The author did not intent to make the white to be ashamed of being white. He appreciates the hospitality and of listening to him, but he is no charity case which the rich sympathetic white culture can now feel gratified to have contributed to helping solve 'the problem.' One meal and conversation won’t solve the problem.
8. The experience in the poem Harlem is one that is true for many people. Do you agree?Yes, I agree. During the year of this poem’s publication, the African-American were frustrated for being marginalized and being treated as lower class citizens. The poem is basically about what happens to dreams when they are put on hold. The author intended to lead us to focus on the dreams of African-Americans in particular because he originally entitled the poem "Harlem," which is the capital of African American life in the United States. On the other hand, the poem could be interpret as just about any dream in general and what happens when people hesitated to fulfil them and put off making them come true. Eventually, the author uses a carefully arranged series of images that also function as figures of speech to suggest that people should not delay their dreams because the more they postpone them, the more the dreams will change and the less likely they will come true.
9. Langston Hughes fights for the voice of his people. What is the movement called?
New Negro Movement.
