books like catcher in the rye and 1984 are required reading for most school children. catcher in the rye isn't really that enlightening as far as sitting around a campfire later in life saying things like, "but it really makes you think, man" 1984, however, is a glimpse into the idea of the man and big brother and concepts that generally embrace a concept of the world being an entity that is out to get you. and it's approved by the school board. teachers cringe when they are forced to teach a boring curriculum, but they seem to really revel in the idea of sending children out into the world with some feeling of enlightenment. especially when that is established through required reading. if those books were really the framework for free-thinking, wouldn't they be illegal? required reading doesn't really go hand in hand with anarchy, but teachers - to some degree - are escaping the norm. they have agreed to take a job that doesn't make them a spoke in the wheel. summers free. they can travel. follow the dead. relax. it's great. but when they are required to show up and fulfill their civic duties, they do so diligently ..except when it comes to assigning reading to the students. it's a prisoner's final wish they pass on to a younger inmate heading toward the prison's walls. "i didn't make it, but it's not too late for you! read the count of monte cristo ...and give me a 2 page report on what it means to you ...and rebel, damnit!"