1960s Quote by John Barth
“One of the things I miss about teaching is that students would tell me what I ought to read. One of my students, back in the 1960s, put me onto Borges, and I remember another mentioning Flann O'Brien's At Swim Two-Birds in the same way.”
About This Quote
Source Interview: "On Teaching and Reading", 1975
Teaching can be a two‑way exchange where students introduce mentors to new ideas, enriching both parties.
In simple terms: Students can guide teachers to new books.
Key Takeaway
Stay open to learning from students.
Themes
education
mentorship
literature
discovery
Mood
thoughtful
inspired
Type
educational
reflective
When to use this quote
- college classroom
- book clubs
- literary conferences
Key Concepts
dialogue
intergenerational learning
literary influence
Questions to Reflect On
- How do you integrate student suggestions?
- What value do you find in unexpected recommendations?
A Different Perspective
Not all student recommendations align with curriculum goals.
![“Nearly all the writing of our time is likely to disappear in a hundred years. Certainly most readers - and nearly all critics - feel that [Kurt] Vonnegut started to repeat himself, to grow increasingly self-indulgent and meandering, and to sometimes just blather in his later work. But his books up…” quote by Michael Dirda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/ed7/michael-dirda-3414_1960s_nearly-all-the-writing-of-our-time-is-li_13506.jpg)
![“[In the 1960s]...you could take LSD but you couldn't wear a pantsuit.” quote by Betsey Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/29a/betsey-johnson-11907_1960s_in-the-1960s-you-could-take-lsd-but-you_14174.jpg)
