THE TEACHING OF LITERATURE 127

There is an exception to this rale. Verses which
interest pupils (e.g., by their story or incident) and at
the same time are couched in common daily English,
there is probably no harm in treating1 linguistically, like
the ordinary prose passages in the reader, that is, either
cursorily, for the interest of the story, or intensively, for
improving the pupil's vocabulary. But usually simple
prose serves these objects, certainly the second object,
better.

Poetry, and literary prose, which has much English
that is not for the pupil's daily use, never treat inten-
sively; but where they are likely or known to interest
Indian pupils of the age of your class, any literary merit
they possess is so much additional reason for including
them in your course of cursory reading.

But even here, books written in a quaint, or archaic•, or
difficult, or strange, style, had better be avoided altogether.
Under this rule, for example, Lamb's Tales from Shakes-
peare is unsuitable, Robinson Crusoe suitable for cursory
treatment in class.

(2) Where you have a genuine liking for a poem or
prose work of literary merit, and appreciate its literary
merits, only teach it to your pupils if you can help them
to feel its beauty or truth also.

The ability to communicate genuine appreciation of
English literature in Indian pupils at the school stage is,
however, rare, and the range of English literary matter
within their experience and understanding very limited.
Success is rare enough with English pupils learning in
their mother tongue. While failure in this when teach-
ing English to Indian pupils is worse than waste of time,
for, it is diverting time, ill spared from teaching them
language, to no purpose.

Methods of study specially designed to bring to birth
the power of literary appreciation cannot in any case be
embodied as part of the English course in schools, and
would be ineffectual if they were. The special approach
to literature should be made through the vernacular or not
fd all. But there are also indirect approaches, through
methods adapted to the teaching of English as language.
These will be mentioned later. Teachers interested in
ascertaining the special methods of teaching literature