The 9/11 Report: A Graphic Adaptation is a wonderful cross-genre work that provides government-level insight into the complex systems that brought about the attacks in 2001. Any person interested in history, violence and government fallibility would enjoy this adaptation of the 9/11 Commission Report.
I had a difficult time reading this for a few reasons. The first was due to that blessed form of narcissistic nostalgia -- the "where were you when this unfortunate, history-making event occurred?" reaction. Just as many of the novels I have read for this course have taken me to back in the day, so too did the 9/11 Report; this response to the novel disturbed me because I doubt that a group of students who were not alive when the attacks occurred would give a rat's behind about how I was in Spanish class watching the towers burn. While the reaction is fine, and does not mean that I would have to share that aspect of my personal history with students, the fact that this response came so quickly after beginning reading the report bothered me.
The second reason this book was difficult for me was because I like to question the government (look at me, I'm subversive!), and the government messed up big-time here. Let's face it, the U.S. has a pretty gross history of, well, pretty much everything (don't worry, I'm not going to get all Howard Zinn on you...). So, it is a bit frustrating to learn about the multitude of ways that the attacks could have been prevented. I guess this would be a good "what-if" inquiry to pose to students. It also serves to ask, Does it solve anything to hypothesize an alternate history? This would be an interesting conversation to have with our Social Studies peers.
Overall, 9/11 Report is great. It is filled with a LOT of information and excellent artwork. The tragedy of September 11 defined our modern country...but the events have been commercialized to such an extent that I doubt future students will know much about the actual facts of the attacks. This provides them a chance to learn some truth.
Cassie,
ReplyDeleteI really appreciate this post. I too wonder what it would be like to teach so important an event to students who likely weren't even alive. I suppose it will be like all the times people told us where they were when they heard about Pearl Harbor, JFK, and the moon landing. And here we just thought they were old.
I guess when you live through something as monumental as 9-11 it really changes your perspective on the world. Even though I've only thumbed through it and have not read all of it yet, I still feel that it presents the events in a way that students would find compelling. I'm glad that this book exists.
Do you think that younger students will have any trouble differentiating between reality and fiction? Just a question, as it is so artistically rendered.
Having tried to read this book several times, I must admit that this is one that wish existed in an audio version. I know, I know, then I'd be missing all the graphics (and, no I'm not anti-gn, in fact, I think they're great!) but, alas, there was simply too much 'stuff' per page for these eyes of mine. I guess in my case, too much stimulation isn't necessarily a good thing. Then again, perhaps I ought to give it another go because it sounds as though I'm really missing out on something unsiquely special. In any event, your thoughts on this book make me wonder what (and when) exactly our students are learning about 9/11 (i.e. nuts & bolts, events leading up too...what kind of slant, etc.). I think it's safe to say that there is no such thing as a subjective education (we are human after all) but one really has to wonder about what we know to be true and what we (falsely) believe we know. Muy philosophical...
DeleteI love, absolutely love the question you posed with regards to hypothesizing alternative historical scenarious within the classroom. As for my stance, I'm of the mind that it is absolutely invaluable, for it cannot be a wasted endeavor to encourage that we learn from our mistakes. For example, had the Holocaust not happened, would there be an Israeli Palestinian conflict? Without slavery how would our social stratesphere, here in America, look today? Painful truths to be sure, but fantastic and important food for thought. (And, in answer to Martin's questions, yes, with a little guidance, I believe younger students can certainly differentiate between reality and fiction). :)
I remember all of the talk post-9/11 about how sometime in the near future the events surrounding that day would make it into textbooks and we would, as Ross noted, be in the position of our parents and grandparents in reference to their own generations' darkest days. I also remember that my general reaction to this talk was something along the lines of "gosh, that's going to be crazy", never really thinking about the fact that those history books will someday, in the VERY near future, tell a story that the readers were not present for. It just blows my mind. My memory of that day is SO, SO vivid and the impact of it is still effecting life in such tangible ways that I can't imagine being in the position of not having experienced it first hand.
ReplyDelete"So, it is a bit frustrating to learn about the multitude of ways that the attacks could have been prevented."
ReplyDeleteThe book really steered clear of any kind of editorializing except in this one way. Each time the intelligence agencies failed to stop the plot, the book repeated "Yet they did nothing!" in bold text. It made me frustrated, too. I think it will have the same effects on students, and I think that one of their main takeaways will be that the governments and agencies involved were mostly incompetent.