In general, we all love stories. There may even be a chance that you are taking this course because you love stories too. As human beings, we are prewired to tell stories as a way of understanding the world around us.
This course is essentially about the stories around us and the different ways in which they can be interpreted.
Think about some of the earliest stories you remember hearing. Were these stories warning you about the dangers of childhood? Were these stories encouraging you to be a better you? Or maybe these were stories to make you laugh or think. In all cases, our stories help in defining us.
Let’s try an experiment. Consider the story of Batman, a crime fighting superhero from the Marvel comic world. This is the opening scene from the 1989 film "Batman".
What motivates Batman to put on a costume and fight crime?
Is having a rich man spend billions of dollars on weapons the best way to solve Gotham’s crime problems?
Why does the problem of male violence have to be solved by more male violence?
Keep your answers in mind as you watch this brief introduction to the course.
After watching this introduction, go back and add any additional insights about Batman to your earlier answers.
As you continue in this course, you will find that you are developing your own deeper understanding both of the literature you study and the world you are in.
This course is about literature and the different ways in which that literature can be interpreted and understood. As a result, this course is based on some assumptions. It assumes that:
- you have a love of literature;
- you are interested in reading a wide variety of literature in different formats;
- you are willing to put on your thinking cap so you can understand why people write the stories they do;
- you have strong basic writing skills including
- knowing the difference between formal and informal writing,
- using good grammar, spelling and punctuation skills, and
- understanding the fundamentals of the writing process.
Setting up your Reader’s Notebook
Before you delve deeper into the course, take a moment to consider how to organize yourself and your work for success. Set up a folder as your Reader’s Notebook. Add notes to it throughout this course when prompted.
You will hand in your notes for Unit 1 for feedback to help you as you work through the rest of the course. These and the notes you take in units 2-4 will help you as you develop your final essay and prepare for the final test.
Add the following templates to your Reader’s Notebook folder:
Reader’s Notebook for Unit 1 (Opens in new window)
Reader’s Notebook for Unit 2 (Opens in new window)
Understanding literary theory
As you have seen and heard in the Minds on, there are multiple ways of understanding and explaining literature. This course is designed around seven literary theories. You may have some experience with one or more already. Don’t worry if you don’t. You will be exploring each of the following literary theories in more detail in this unit. For now, watch the video from the Minds on section one more time. Think about how literary theories provide a framework to analyse and interpret literature.
Notebook
As you listen, take notes using this chart in your Reader’s Notebook.
| Topic | Information from the presentation | My thoughts, noticings and wonderings |
|---|---|---|
|
What is literary theory?
|
||
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Why does literary theory matter?
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Literary theories, also referred to as schools of thought or literary lenses, are really about providing the reader, you, with a variety of ways to make meaning when exploring a text. In this course, one thing to keep in mind is that you will be doing a fair bit of writing in the form of analytical paragraphs. Continue to learn more about the specific format that is recommended.
Paragraph writing
As you work to apply literary theories to literature, you will be writing critical analysis paragraphs to start. One method that is highly recommended is called the PEEC method. In this method, each part of the paragraph has a distinct purpose:
Point: Start the paragraph with a topic sentence stating as clearly as possible what the point is that you’re trying to make.
Example: Use a clear example that backs up that point.
Explanation: Fully explain that example in a way that clearly ties it to your original point.
Conclusion: End with a sentence that doesn’t just repeat what you have already said but adds some final insight.
“Nothing Gold Can Stay”
Let’s see how this works in practice. Read the poem “Nothing Gold Can Stay” by Robert Frost.
Nature’s first green is gold,
Her hardest hue to hold.
Her early leaf’s a flower;
But only so an hour.
Then leaf subsides to leaf.
So Eden sank to grief,
So dawn goes down to day.
Nothing gold can stay.
Wait. Stop. Read that poem again. Beautiful, isn’t it? Now read the paragraph analyzing this poem. When you're done, select the PEEC method to see a breakdown of this paragraph.
Robert Frost’s poem “Nothing Gold Can Stay” makes a poignant and beautiful commentary on the fleeting nature of our lives. The poem uses as its primary image the brief yellowish colour of a newly-unfolded leaf. From this example, Frost generalizes to the idea that is stated in both the title and the last line of the poem, that “nothing gold” -- thus, nothing beautiful or valuable -- can remain with us forever. It is perhaps a little ironic that this poem itself, a golden and beautiful object, has stayed in our consciousness long after the leaf that must have inspired it has disappeared.
Robert Frost’s poem “Nothing Gold Can Stay” makes a poignant and beautiful commentary on the fleeting nature of our lives.
The poem uses as its primary image the brief yellowish colour of a newly-unfolded leaf.
From this example, Frost generalizes to the idea that is stated in both the title and the last line of the poem, that “nothing gold” -- thus, nothing beautiful or valuable -- can remain with us forever.
It is perhaps a little ironic that this poem itself, a golden and beautiful object, has stayed in our consciousness long after the leaf that must have inspired it has disappeared.
Now let’s take it to the next level.
The thing is, the previous paragraph is a simple structure, but you can add more to it and make it more complex. There’s no rule that says a paragraph should have only one example and only one explanation in it. Read this re-written paragraph, this time with a little more content added to it. When you're ready, select the PEEEEC method to see a breakdown.
Robert Frost’s poem “Nothing Gold Can Stay” makes a poignant and beautiful commentary on the fleeting nature of our lives. The poem uses as its primary image the brief yellowish colour of a newly-unfolded leaf. From this example, Frost generalizes to the idea that is stated in both the title and the last line of the poem, that “nothing gold” -- thus, nothing beautiful or valuable -- can remain with us forever. Frost furthers his point with a biblical allusion in the line, “So Eden sank to grief.” Here he is extending his idea from the natural world to the human world; just as the beauty of nature cannot last forever, so too was humanity’s stay in the Garden of Eden limited by time, and so by extension is all of our experience with beauty fragile and temporary. It is perhaps a little ironic that this poem itself, a golden and beautiful object, has stayed in our consciousness long after the leaf that must have inspired it has disappeared.
Robert Frost’s poem “Nothing Gold Can Stay” makes a poignant and beautiful commentary on the fleeting nature of our lives.
The poem uses as its primary image the brief yellowish colour of a newly-unfolded leaf.
From this example, Frost generalizes to the idea that is stated in both the title and the last line of the poem, that “nothing gold” -- thus, nothing beautiful or valuable -- can remain with us forever.
Frost furthers his point with a biblical allusion in the line, “So Eden sank to grief.”
Here he is extending his idea from the natural world to the human world; just as the beauty of nature cannot last forever, so too was humanity’s stay in the Garden of Eden limited by time, and so by extension is all of our experience with beauty fragile and temporary.
It is perhaps a little ironic that this poem itself, a golden and beautiful object, has stayed in our consciousness long after the leaf that must have inspired it has disappeared.
See how those worked? Point, example, explanation, more example, more explanation and conclusion. As you continue with the course, please consider reviewing this activity again. If you use this kind of plan for the paragraphs you write in this course, you will do very well.
Do you need more practice?
Here are some other sample paragraphs that will help you to review paragraph structure. Having a strong understanding of paragraph structure will get you ready for the paragraphs that you will write in this unit.
Notebook
At the end of each learning activity, you will find a Consolidation section. In this section you will be asked to reflect on both what you are learning and how you are developing as a self-directed learner.
In your Reader’s Notebook, write a short summary of approximately 100 words, explaining your understanding of what literary theory is and why it is used.
Discover more
Throughout the course you will periodically find some Discover more content. This content is optional and is provided to encourage your curiosity and engagement with the course material. Dive in as your interest and motivation permits.
If you are interested in exploring the idea of finding deeper meaning in literature you may want to watch this TED Ed video, “Mining Literature for Deeper Meanings” (Opens in new window)