Part 1-

While all of the units have their merits, I must say I am the most interested in the Godfather trilogy Odyssey combination. I think as far as pop culture pairings this one is really solid, it makes sense to me even without intimate knowledge of the subject matter. I have not read the Odyssey or seen the Godfather but I have picked up enough baseline knowledge of both just from being aware of pop culture in general. The questions on the final exam in regards to both just added up to me and they seem to share similar themes and narratives. I think they are both well known pieces of culture and the fact that they are both so popular in my opinion makes the pairing more interesting. I think the focus on smaller supporting characters on the field of an epic is also interesting. I could see myself teaching that or something similar to it, granted I read/watch the works and find some form of enjoyment out of them. The thing that really stuck out to me about this unit was the final test question about the role women have to pay. If you are teaching something that has a lack of central female character I think putting a light on the ones that are in the story and a focus on their role and how their gender plays into it is a good way to cover an area that could have been a weakness.

Part 2-

The Coquette or The History of Eliza Wharton by Hannah Webster Foster (published anonymously), is my first pick for this unit question. I think that this book and the story surrounding it play with assumption in a compelling way. It’s an epistolary novel that tells the story of a woman named Eliza Wharton who is balancing two suitors but through the course of the novel winds up unwed and pregnant then dies. It is sort of like the New England book version of a found footage horror movie. The way that the novel is loosely based on a news headline but was believed to be a completely factual story, relates to the question of how we know what we know and the role assumption plays in society.

This American Life: Things I Mean to Know #630 (hosted by Ira Glass, put on by NPR), my next pick is this episode of This American Life which felt to me, very on topic. I am a lifelong listener of This American Life, I find it to be so fascinating and as soon as I read this question I knew there would be an episode that lined up thematically with it. This episode focuses on common knowledge that we take for granted or don’t think to question further.

Freakonomics (Dir. Heidi Ewing, Alex Gibney, Seth Gordon, Rachel Grady, Eugene Jarecki, Morgan Spurlock), I know this movie is a little dated at this point but I was so into it when I saw it I took a 3- hour community college economics night class at age 15. I got a C and the class was nowhere near as interesting as the movie but regardless I think the movie succeeded in making me think about how I perceived the world.

The Enigma of Amigara Fault, this is a graphic novel short story by Japanese horror artist Junji Ito. I will say, it is not violent or really all that scary in nature and I think it does a good job of exploring the central question. The story is about a group of people who find themselves against all reason drawn to this mysterious mountainside. It has interesting things to say about fear and how well we know ourselves and how much we should trust our own instincts.