Question

“Modern readers will benefit from reading novels such as Rudyard Kipling’s Kim.” Write a short argument either for or against this claim. Be sure to support your argument with valid reasoning and relevant evidence.

Answer 1

If you agree with the claim, you might include some of the following points in your answer:

One major purpose of reading literature and literary fiction is to expand one's horizons. A novel such as Kim encourages readers to construct a mental picture or an understanding of a different culture.
While many details may be challenging to understand, readers can always refine their reading of the novel with research about the setting. In the process, they are likely to come away with useful facts or insights.
The novel has a timeless appeal as a coming-of-age story and as a tale of adventure and intrigue.
The novel explores issues of identity in a setting where people of different races mix together. These issues are relevant in today's world.
Novels such as Kim allow readers an opportunity to examine alternative viewpoints on topics of social and historic importance (such as life in a colonized country and the relationship between the rulers and the natives) and compare their viewpoints and attitudes to those of a writer from a different period.

If you disagree with the claim, you might include some of the following points in your answer:

For readers who seek literature that offers insight into their life experience, a novel set in India at the turn of the century lacks relevance.
The enjoyment of reading a novel such as Kim may be significantly diminished because most readers cannot relate to a protagonist with a social identity very different from their own.
Contextual details and topical references in such a novel are likely to be lost on modern readers. They are unlikely to follow plot details that rely on the context. They may also miss important nuances in the writing because of the unfamiliar setting.
Kim is written from the viewpoint of an author who accepted colonization. To modern readers, the writing seems to lack sensitivity to the concerns of people living in a colonized country.

Answer 2

If you agree with the claim, you might include some of the following points in your answer:

One major purpose of reading literature and literary fiction is to expand one's horizons. A novel such as Kim encourages readers to construct a mental picture or an understanding of a different culture.

While many details may be challenging to understand, readers can always refine their reading of the novel with research about the setting. In the process, they are likely to come away with useful facts or insights.

The novel has a timeless appeal as a coming-of-age story and as a tale of adventure and intrigue.

The novel explores issues of identity in a setting where people of different races mix together. These issues are relevant in today's world.

Novels such as Kim allow readers an opportunity to examine alternative viewpoints on topics of social and historic importance (such as life in a colonized country and the relationship between the rulers and the natives) and compare their viewpoints and attitudes to those of a writer from a different period.PLATO