Teaching ethics through literature

Abstract

The study reported on in this paper is part of a larger research project on moral education through literature. It focuses on how reading a great work of literature offers ample opportunities to discuss and reflect on the complexity of moral life and human association and how such reflection can simultaneously improve students’ understanding of concepts and ideas necessary for ethical reasoning, spark interest in literature and assist them in better understanding literary texts.

The focus of this paper is on the insights and work experiences of five teachers of Icelandic literature in grade 9 and 10 in upper elementary school who teach a shortened version of Laxdæla Saga, with special emphasis on ethical concepts and ethical contemplations related to the Saga. The research aims to answer two main questions:

1. 1. From the teachers’ point of view, how well does teaching ethics go together with the teaching of a literary work, such as Laxdæla Saga?
   2. How do teachers view the purpose of teaching a work of literature such as Laxdæla Saga?

These questions are answered by using qualitative research performed in three elementary schools in Iceland. The data collection involved 10 semi-structured interviews with five teachers and observational studies which took place in their classes.

The research data was analysed and categorised, with meticulous coding to begin with and later theme-based coding. All the teachers who participated in the research were women who taught Icelandic studies in 9th and 10th grade. They were between 30 and 60 years of age, all educated in Icelandic studies but with different levels of teaching experience, from two to three years to over thirty years.

In the semi-structured interviews, the teachers shared their experience of using supplementary materials and an approach to the saga that emphasised the use of ethical concepts and vocabulary. In general, the teachers move through four steps to connect the students to the saga which all have to do with the students enjoying the work. From what they say about these four steps a view emerges to the effect that works of literature have an intrinsic value and studying them aims at human betterment.

The first step is to spark interest. This is revealed in the teachers’ remarks on how important it is that students enjoy reading and like listening, gain interest in and have a passion for reading literature.

The second step is knowledge acquisition. The teachers all maintained that to dive deep into the saga the students must acquire certain basic knowledge; know who the main characters were, be able to follow the storyline and understand the fundamental ethical concepts included in the supplementary material provided by the research team.

The third step the teachers emphasised was the importance of students being able to fully submerge themselves into the saga and step into the characters’ shoes. The teachers were also of the opinion that the ethics-based approach helped in that regard.

The fourth step relates to thinking and digging deeper. This is emphasised in the supplementary material which contains exercises and assignments that invite students to ponder open and difficult questions. All the teachers emphasised the importance of getting their students to think and dig deep and this was intertwined with their, apparently, traditional approach to the teaching of literature. Contemplating deeply - emerges in several aspects which revolve around connecting the students with the teaching material, in one way or another, for example by encouraging them to compare characteristics, virtues, and vices, to relate the material to themselves and their own reality, link their own present with by-gone eras and the world of literature with reality, to look at things in a small context and from a broad, whole world perspective. The aim is to gain a deeper understanding, draw their own conclusions, become independent readers and reasoning and thinking human beings.

According to the teachers, the association with ethics and looking at characters and deeds from the perspective of virtue ethics enabled the students to step into the characters’ shoes and deepened their understanding of the saga. In that way, the students became literate in the saga, it was transferred to their own world context and helped them to enjoy the saga and reach their own conclusions regarding its content. In conclusion, it is fair to say that a discussion of ethical concepts and an interchange of ideas on ethical matters can, according to the participating teachers, make teenagers more interested in literature and help them to better understand literary texts.