At this juncture, the most useful course of action is to acknowledge the fact that this writing is crafted with two separate, but equally valued, audiences in mind. The first audience consists of the appointed readers from the UMass Boston English Department. These individuals are tasked with assessing this curriculum project in the context of a final exercise completed by the author in the hopes of earning a Master of Arts in English. The second audience is comprised of the administrators and school committee members who help determine the policies, practices, and course offerings at Wakefield Memorial High School. The members of this second audience are offered this presentation as a means of earnestly appealing for the addition of The Dark Days of Future Past to the program of studies. Although these two audiences are approached as distinct entities with their own agendas and expectations, one of the commonalities to be found is an admiration afforded to sound teaching methodologies. As such, the proposal is complemented by an explanation of the pedagogical justifications for the teaching of this elective literature course.

[next up: let’s get pedagogical]