The American Play
The book Moon over Buffalo by Ken Ludwig should not be read in the classroom as a required American play. This play takes place in 1953 in buffalo New York. It’s about a crazy group of actors and actresses working in the same theater and striving to become stars. They get themselves into a couple stick situations and this is the story of how it played out. If Maine south students have to read and American play it should be interesting, teach you a lesson, hard to read but not impossible to understand and discussable. This play does not meet those standards.
High School students usually have a very short attention span, so the play they read should be interesting. In order for it to do that, it should have an intriguing plot, compelling characters and provoke thoughts. The plot in this story was almost nonexistent. It really just seems like a bunch of odd characters trying to get away with the bad things they are doing. It took me a very long time to finish this play because it didn’t get me thinking. It was just more useless information after another. According to Corey Freedman (2008), author of 10 Features of an Interesting Book, “they should have some kind of conflict within them, whether it is internal or external. A great novel requires an interesting struggle”. Moon over buffalo did not have this. If the play the high schoolers are reading is boring, there is a very good chance they won't want to read it. If the students don't read the book, then their grades will suffer. In order to keep that from happening a book like Moon Over Buffalo should not be read.
Focusing on a book that is hard to understand is near impossible. Whenever I read something that is too difficult to comprehend it makes me very frustrated. I think I can speak for most high school student when I say that there are few things that can make you feel worse than not getting the hang of something. Moon Over Buffalo was extremely hard to catch on to because of the type of language they used and how much the subject changed.Esther Lombardi (2011) makes a good point in How To Read a Difficult Book “When you are just attempting to get through the book, it matters why the book is difficult. You just want to finish the work, so you can move on to your next reading pick” she agrees that a hard play makes you want to just give up. This play could make a lot of kids frustrated and feel bad about themselves. A good book leaves you feeling great but every time I finished reading for the day I felt a little dispirited because of how little I could comprehend of the play. If the goal is to leave the kids wanting more this plays difficulty would not do that.
It’s crucial for something you read in class to be discussable. An important part of English is to be able to take what you read and talk about it with other students. Finding a deeper meaning and symbolism is something that can be debated over in the group. This American play contained little of those two things. All that can really be talked about in this play is the characters. They are interesting but straight forward, much like most of the play. According to Douglas Fisher(2012) in Why Talk Is Important in Classrooms
“Talk becomes critical when students discuss tasks or ideas and question one another, negotiate meaning, clarify their own understanding, and make their ideas comprehensible” he also agrees that it’s pointless if you can’t chat about the play. A book that has such a small amount of detail, plots and deeper meanings would make for really dull class discussion.
The last reason I believe the Mr.Ludwig’s play should not be required is because it doesn’t teach you any life lessons. According to Meagan Frank (2013), author of What Makes a Book Worth Reading?, “It does not matter the author, or if the content is happy or good, to make it a good book. For me, if it grabs my interest, makes me think, or helps me learn something then it is a good book.”Some of the most notable plays in the world teach you something you will never forget. Almost all the characters in this book ran into some form of a dilemma. Instead of having to stand up for themselves, work hard or do something courageous everything just worked itself out. The couples that broke up found new loves and the man that would decide these actors shot at stardom just so happen to not be there when the play they put on was a complete disaster. All these people got away with something and had no consequences. In real life everything doesn’t just fall into place like that. It is key to have a life lesson in the story so you can take more away from the play then just some humor, laughs and drama.
It’s important for Maine south high schoolers to read an American play because it gives us exposure to more than just novels and poetry like we are used to. When choosing a play to read in class it should contain a life lesson, be interesting, hard to read but not impossible, and discussable. Ken Ludwig’s Moon Over Buffalo did not meet those standards. So next year when the teachers choose a required American play we can only hope that this is not the one.















Work cited
Frank, Meagan. "What Makes a Book Worth Reading? - Books Make a Difference." Books Make a Difference.
Booksmakeadifference, Jan.-Feb. 2013. Web. 08 May 2014.
Freeman, Corey. "10 Features of an Interesting Book." 10 Features of an Interesting Book. Archie D'Cruz, Mar.-Apr. 2008. Web. 08 May 2014
Lombardi, Esther. "How to Read a Difficult Book - Reading Tips." About.com Classic Literature. About, 7 Aug. 2011. Web. 08 May 2014.
Fisher, Douglas. "Membership." Why Talk Is Important in Classrooms. Membership, 14 Dec. 2012. Web. 07
May 2014.