> Actually, I never heard of catharsis until this topic.
>
> My boyfriend Mike majored in philosophy [his current career has nothing to do with his major, of course :)], so I think I'll ask for input tomorrow. He has a bookcase full of philosophy books, including Aristotle...I'll look through them when I get a chance.


Tenth grade English class. The teacher taught us like he was used to teaching college students. It was a school for gifted students, but this was way beyond anything we had experienced or had ever expected to experience.

We were doing presentations on what we had been reading for class - different Greek literature pieces from our anthology. I had done the work and prepared a really great presentation. It had to do with Aristotle and catharsis.

He sat in the back of the class, listening and asking the occasional question. The guy presenting before me didn't know how to answer his last question. The teacher called me to present and, because our presentations were all related, asked me the same thing - after I passed around the handouts I had made but before I had a chance to say anything.

I didn't know the answer. At all. To make a long story short, he asked me in several different ways and I still didn't know. He made me sit down without giving my presentation or showing all of the work I had done.

I cried. It was very cathartic.

Gahalia

Oh, and Mr. Spain? If you're out there, somewhere... please know that I am SO lucky to have been able to learn from you. The good things so much outweighed any bad; in fact, I can only think of this (oh, besides the room being as cold as Dante's Inferno). You're an incredible person and a wonderful teacher, and I thank you.