To the Lighthouse Worditout
We are reading "To the Lighthouse" by Virginia Woolf in British Literature. I have been told by teachers whose opinions I trust that it is a difficult book, not fun to teach. It is the second time I have read the book, (the first time for my own pleasure) and I am thoroughly enjoying it. I am told that my joy for the book confirms that I am not "ADD."
I am fascinated by the gentle persistence with which Woolf plumbs the depths of relationships. She permits thoughtful intimacy without being patronizing toward her reader or overly prying toward her characters.
I used Word it Out to create this "wordle" of the book. I located the entire text of the book through Project Gutenberg. I did remove approximately five or six words from the wordle, and added one or two others that were near the threshhold for inclusion in the wordle. However, what appears in the wordle says volumes about Woolf's writing. One interesting observation is her use of relational words (together, another, alone, liked, being) and relational position words (himself, husband, father, men, Mr., Mrs., mother, herself). However, I also note a healthy balance between people, places, emotions and verbs. This book is all about relations - how we relate to each other and to our world.
There are many potential directions I can go with this wordle as a teaching tool. Categorizing and prioritizing these words, and developing their symbolic importance to the story are only two such ways. I look forward to using this tool, and others offered through technology to teach what is offered by this rich and amazing story.
