Who is the 'Protagonist' of a Book Report?
Among summer vacation homework assignments, the book report is likely what troubles elementary, middle, and high school students the most.
I, too, have had the experience of reaching the latter half of August while worrying about 'what to write' and 'how to write it,' and then filling in the squares by repeating plot summaries and fragmented impressions just to meet the 'number of manuscript pages' requirement.
Surely, there are many people who have come to hate reading because of book reports.
I would like to introduce an article recommended for those suffering from 'book report allergy'.
The author is book critic Kaho Miyake. The 'tips for writing a book report' that Miyake shares are quite simple.
1. Choose a book written about something you dislike.
2. Write a report about reading that book where 'something you disliked became something you like'.
For me, having always thought that a book report was about writing 'the interesting parts of the book,' this is truly an 'eye-opener'.
However, it makes sense if you consider the act of 'writing a book report' itself as a single 'story'.
Whether it is a novel, a movie, or a drama, stories often follow this structure:
1. The protagonist,
2. through various experiences and encounters with people,
3. grows or undergoes a transformation.
Comparing this to the act of writing a book report, one could say the following:
1. The reader (the person writing the book report),
2. through the experience of reading,
3. grows or undergoes a transformation.
In other words, writing a book report means creating a short story about 'how the protagonist, which is yourself, grew or transformed through the experience of reading.'If you think of it that way, there is no doubt that a story with ups and downs, like 'something I disliked became something I like,' is more compelling than a flat story like 'things I like are still things I like.'
Even in television dramas,
- A man and a woman who had the worst first impression of each other end up together after many twists and turns.
- A protagonist starts a job against their will, but finds great fulfillment in it after a certain event.
Developments with such ups and downs or range are standard.
Now, if you are still skeptical after reading this far, please read Miyake's article. The article uses 'Picnic at Night' (by Riku Onda) as the assigned book, and it includes a book report by Miyake herself as an 'example.' If you read that, you will surely understand the effectiveness of this method of 'choosing a book written about something you dislike'.
Furthermore, Miyake's short intensive course on how to write book reports is scheduled for eight sessions in total. In the second session, 'The Frozen Whale' (by Mizuki Tsujimura) is used as the assigned book, and it explains how to take notes and how to make use of them. And this time, too, it comes with an 'example' by Miyake.
This is also recommended for those who are about to write a book report.