In evening's lap the earth was lying
Reading night for young people of 14 and older
Eve, Adam and me
Book: Jürg Schubiger: Als die Welt noch jung war, illustrated by Rotraut Susanne Berner, Beltz & Gelberg, 1996, 174 pages, as of 10 years
English Titel: Jürg Schubiger: When the World Was New. Annick Press Ltd, Canada, 1996.
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Activity concept: The idea
Who am I? What is a human being? What is masculine, what is feminine? What is happiness? These questions are of more importance during adolescence that at any other time. Adolescent literature is therefore perfect material for reading nights for teenagers. The cultural memory of humanity can, however, provide us with numerous examples from mythology and art which indicate the timeless nature of this topic. The reading night as presented links traditional stories with modern adaptations to be found in literature and in the fine arts. Feelings and emotions in the past are linked to the present day and aesthetic forms such as symbols, similes, motifs, names, patterns of behaviour are indicated.
In our culture, Adam and Eve are seen as the first people, the first »I«, the first representatives of their respective genders and - out of necessity - the first couple. What are the gender roles demonstrated in the traditional stories? Which ones can we see in the modern texts? Can masculine and feminine roles be determined from the type of narrative? All these debates do not provide comprehensive answers, but rather remain as intellectual and/or emotional stimulus. But they should animate the participants to enjoy art more! A table which has been laid with food appropriate to the literary text is a timeless social meeting point and will provide all participants with an idea of the topic and also a feeling for the literary nature of the location. And which epicurean item could be linked to Paradise as a literary location? The apple, of course: a healthy fruit that we eat every day, but which is also an eternal symbol for seduction and temptation.
Time: approx. 5-6 hours
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Course of events
In order to introduce this symbol from literature and the arts to an everyday environment, all of the registered participants receive an invitation in advance:
»Please accept our warm invitation to the reading night. Please remember to bring your sleeping bag and written permission from your parents that you can stay overnight. Please bring a big bottle of apple juice for our shared dinner. We look forward to seeing you soon, Best regards from LesArt«
On the other cards, apple juice is replaced with: a pound of apples, apple pie, apple mousse, apple gelée, apple compote...
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Start
At the beginning of the evening, the teenagers place their »apple items« in a picnic basket and receive a circle picture with curious dots.
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Welcome
The topic of the reading night is started by identifying the curious symbols ... All associations are helpful, finally all agree that the symbols correspond to the five senses: sight, touch, smell, hearing, taste.
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Work groups
In three rooms, various different apple products are tasted, smelt, touched. The participants wear masks to do this. They have brought along everything that they eat, drink, smell or feel.
What they hear is presented on a cassette: the sound of someone biting into an apple.
The Looking group looks through a keyhole at an illustration on which something is missing.
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Discussion
Once the sense experiments have been completed, the five groups discuss their experiences. What do they all have in common? The apple, of course! What do the participants associate with the word apple? In which stories or pictures do apples play a role?
The meaning of the apple in its day-to-day usage (the participants remember the items they have brought with them) through to the symbol of seduction and temptation in literature and art becomes clear. The participants have reached the literary location called Paradise or The Garden of Eden.
When did that all happen? In the past? Way back when? A long time ago? Exactly! Als die Welt noch jung war / When the world was new.
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Reading out loud as a dialogue, including the participants
»The world was called Paradise when it was still young. Humans, animals, plants, mountains and valleys had all only just arrived. They greeted each other. My name is ... and you are?«
The participants introduce themselves ... The text then continues - with Adam and Eve as the first human beings.
Eve: »I see that we are the only people here. I suppose that means we will have to get married.« (Reference will be made back to this statement in a discussion about male and female role models.)
Before Adam and Eve are on first name terms and the whole story has a happy end, the author stops »whilst they are still in love ...«.
Back to the beginning again!
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Reading out loud by the participants
With his story, Jürg Schubiger has four different variations for the start of the world. The group reads a further variant out loud using numbered text elements.
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A story in the round whilst peeling an apple
The author says himself that the story does not have »an end, but it does have a lot of beginnings«, so the participants now add their own - fifth - story, just as the author would.
 The beginning provides a narrative element, which can be used as a point of reference later in the discussion of masculine and feminine characteristics. (20 s., 280 KB, in German)
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Dinner
The end of the story culminates in a picnic in Paradise, naturally with apple juice and apple cake ... During the meal, the characteristics of Adam and Eve in both the Schubiger text and in the own story are discussed more critically. Do clear role attributes exist? What do we understand with masculine or feminine?
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Anonymous writing task »Typical male, typical female?!«
Envelopes marked with the male and female symbols are passed around. The opinions of the teenagers are discussed and voted on democratically. Points which cannot be resolved are placed in the middle.
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Setting up pairs using sayings
Do the teenagers agree with the content of the sayings? How old are these sayings? Is their origin important? (1 min., 1 MB, in German)
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Drawing task
The pairs receive just one pen for each pair: first draw a tree together, without talking to each other ...
Then: a snake wraps itself around the tree.
And then: an apple is hanging on the tree.
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Evaluation
What feelings did the »I's« have? Who was more dominant when drawing? Who was led? Were there unspoken understandings? Did your reactions change during the task? What do these experiences have in common with partnership?
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Crossover to current adolescent literature
»Do you want to go swimming?« she asks.
»Yes, sure«, I said, and we go to the swimming pool.
On the way, we pass by a few apple trees. She stands on tiptoe to pick an apple, rubs it on her pullover and hands it to me. »Here you are«.
I bite into the apple. My mouth seems to shrink. I pass it back and she too takes a bite. »I love sour apples», she says and unbuttons her jeans.
(from Mats Wahl: Winterbucht. Anrich 1995, page 9)
What is the inspiration for this scene? Is the narrator male or female? Are there traditional role characteristics?
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Reading in pairs in the perspective of the first person singular
In current youth literature, male and female narrators talk of their ideas of happiness, their pictures of themselves, of others and of ideals. Task: Can one determine whether the narrator is male or female from the way they talk about themselves, others and the world?
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Discussion
The pairs present their texts and explain why they have determined a »male« or »female« narrator and thus open the discussion.
Anyone curious about the books can read them.
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