16 Approaches to Teaching Literary and Cultural Studies

307DOPLA Module 16 - Approaches to Teaching Literary and Cultural Studies

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Module 16APPROACHES TO TEACHING LITERARY

AND CULTURAL STUDIES

Contents16.1 Introduction

16.2 Why teach literary and cultural studies?

16.3 Approaches to reading and criticism

16.4 Working with the meta-language

16.5 Using different audio-visual aids in LCS teaching

16.6 Using the Internet

16.7 Assessment materials

16.8 Suggested reading

308 DOPLA Module 16 - Approaches to Teaching Literary and Cultural Studies

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Approaches to Teaching Literary and Cultural Studies

16.1 Introduction

The aim of this reader module is to provide advice and guidance for postgraduate teaching

assistants and language assistants in British higher education institutions who teach literary

and cultural studies at undergraduate level.

16.2 Why teach literary and cultural studies?

It is perhaps appropriate to begin by identifying some general aims of teaching literary and

cultural studies as part of the undergraduate modern languages curriculum. We may be

teaching several things at once. For example:

1. Ways of reading a written or visual text.

2. Ways of writing about a written or visual text.

3. A deeper appreciation of a text.

4. The cultural context for language acquisition.

5. A critical awareness of ‘other worlds’, namely the symbolic ‘worlds’ of other communities

as well as the ideological ‘worlds’ which shape or are brought into play by the literary or

visual text. In this way, the text might be viewed as a window onto another world, rather

than a mirror which reflects back the student’s own concerns and immediate points of

identification.

6. Acquisition of vocabulary and structures in the target language.

From your point of view, it is necessary to be clear about the aims and objectives that you

are trying to achieve in the classroom and what you are required to assess. This is perhaps

more difficult to quantify in literary and cultural studies teaching because of the emphasis

on personal interpretation. Nevertheless, the ability to perform a critical interpretation of a

text is an element which we can assess. It is also essential that students know in detail

what they are required to do, how and when they are required to do it, and what is being

assessed. If a student is required to give a seminar paper in French on one of Sartre’s

plays, what is being assessed? Are we assessing the quality of linguistic expression in the

target language, the knowledge of Sartre’s philosophy (if relevant), an awareness of his

stagecraft, the student’s presentation skills or general evidence of his/her wide reading?

Are these elements of assessment equally important? In short, we need to be clear about


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what we are teaching and assessing and be systematic in the application of the assessment

criteria generated.

The way in which you carry out many of your activities will be pre-determined by your

department’s or school’s teaching, learning and assessment requirements, practices which

are regularly inspected by the Quality Assurance Agency. So it is essential that you

familiarise yourself with these requirements and that you seek guidance from more

experienced full-time colleagues.

Before you begin teaching, some preparatory steps are needed. For example:

1. Familiarise yourself with departmental or school policy and ensure that your teaching

adheres to it.

2. Consult experienced colleagues whenever possible.

3. Ask if you can observe classes taught by more experienced colleagues.

4. Ask for a departmental/school mentor (preferably in the same subject area) and meet

with her/him regularly to review your progress.

5. Find out as much as you can about your student group, even if you only teach them for

a one-hour literature seminar a week. Find out what course they are on, whether they

have any relevant experience (for example, if they have studied A Level English

Literature or if they are very interested in contemporary Spanish film, or even that they

did not get on with their former literature teacher) and any relevant information on their

background as a student in your institution (for example, that they are a persistent late-

comer or that they ‘never wanted to study literature’). This type of information helps

you in all sorts of ways, especially to know how to pitch your teaching, and enables you

to work effectively with the students as quickly as possible.

6. If you teach part of a course, try and attend some sessions relating to the rest of the

course or at least read the relevant documentation relating to the rest of the course.

7. Draw up a lesson plan for every class which includes extra activities in case you need

them.

8. Design a scheme of work so that you have a long-term view of your teaching.

9. Distribute course/module documentation to the students which contains all necessary

information (class schedule, assessment information, background information,

bibliographies, etc).

10.Ensure that you know how to operate any equipment or software which you intend to

use in class.


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11. Make students aware of any prerequisites before the module/course begins. For

example, do they need to have seen the film or read the book?

In literary and cultural studies departments in higher education, the notion of ‘text’ has

expanded to include literary, filmic and visual media which are increasingly finding their

way onto the syllabus. Some students who choose to study literary and cultural forms are

less inclined to analyse 500-page novels and are more interested in analysing image-

based cultural forms. They may be dismayed to discover that they may still be required to

read written texts in the target language or that they need to learn specialist terms and

concepts. This requires us to be more attentive to their needs and more inventive than

ever before in arousing and maintaining students’ interest.

So, how can we help our students to acquire a deep and critical understanding of the text?

16.3 Approaches to reading and criticism

Given the importance of critical reading in literary and cultural studies, the question is how

we can teach students to read and analyse texts and to construct convincing readings.

This assumes that texts are vehicles of meanings which we can decipher, whether we

think that the meaning is (i) intended by the author, (ii) produced by the formal properties

or stylistic features of the text, (iii) generated in the act of ‘reading’ or (iv) a combination of

these three factors. Again you should consult experienced colleagues who have designed

the relevant module and/or course on which you are teaching to ascertain departmental or

school practice. For example, do colleagues teach author-based criticism which does not

use explicit theoretical methodologies? Do colleagues focus on the stylistic or socio-

historical aspects of texts? Do colleagues draw on a range of theoretical methodologies in

their teaching? These are important questions because they determine what the student

must know, should know and could know, and hence what needs to be taught and is likely

to be assessed. Although you will probably not be involved in administering all forms of

assessment, you must know what skills and knowledge need to be acquired by the students.

The aims and objectives of a given programme of study will determine, on the whole, the

level of knowledge and the degree of sophistication in reading and critical interpretation

which you should expect from students. For example, it would be unreasonable to expect

students who are majoring in Engineering or Accountancy and studying French or German

for only a third of their time to have a detailed knowledge of a writer’s published corpus

and the context in which it was produced. Students who are studying several subjects do

not have the time to reach this degree of sophistication.

Some students may also have difficulty adapting to the specific learning methodologies of

different disciplines. For example, students from science or engineering backgrounds,


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who are used to learning and interpreting facts and figures, may find it difficult to work in

the more abstract context of literary and cultural theory.

Other students may have previously learned ‘how to pass the exam’ to the benefit of

school and college league tables and therefore have precise expectations of the teacher

to tell them the ‘right answer’ or formula for exam success. They may feel anxious when

these expectations are not met. You should make the students aware of the specific aims,

objectives, and learning and teaching methods to be used in literary and cultural studies

so that they have appropriate expectations of themselves and of you, the teacher. Students

need to understand why they are being asked to engage in a particular activity and what

the intended learning outcome may be and how it relates to ‘the bigger picture’ of their

studies.

So, where do we begin to teach reading and critical interpretation?

According to the specific aims and objectives of the course and module in question, you

will have to attribute greater or lesser emphasis to the elements listed in Table 1 below. An

initial way of thinking about texts is for students to relate them to their own experience,

although the problem with this approach is that they can become trapped by their own

concerns and preconceptions. Consequently, they do not encounter the text on its own

terms or develop the skills of objective appraisal. One of the rewards of studying cultural

forms is that it offers the student the possibility of encountering and developing respect for

other world-views, rather than simply reinforcing her or his own. In order to foster this

encounter with difference, students might be encouraged to focus on textual elements

which diverge from their own expectations and experience.

You can use the questions below to guide students as they read and re-read the text:

Argument What is the novel, poem, film about? For example, how would

you describe it objectively to a friend?

Voice Who is speaking? How do you know their identity? Do you

identify with the narrator? If not, why not? Is identification

important?

Setting What is the significance of the chosen setting?

Language How is the target language used? Why is it used in these ways?

Relation to ‘the real’ Does the text claim to represent the world? If so, how?

If not, what does it claim to do?

Genre What kind of a film, poem or book is it? How do you know?

Does that knowledge affect how you read the text?


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Intertextual issues What is the text’s relationship to other texts in a given language

community?

Ideological world-view What values are expressed? How does this ‘world-view’

correspond to or differ from your values and views about the

world? Does this ideological correspondence or difference affect

your reading practices?

Table 1

Teaching and learning activities

Although it is unlikely that you will be able to determine the content of the curriculum or the

method of its delivery, you may be able to determine teaching and learning activities once

in the classroom. Perhaps the key word here is pro-active - the more you encourage your

students to be pro-active learners, rather than passive learners, the more chance you

both have of enjoying the teaching and learning process and for it to be successful.

Below are some examples of teaching and learning activities used in literary and cultural

studies which can be undertaken in English or in the target language. If you are intending

to work in the target language, it will first be necessary to check students’ level in the

language, for example, through general conversation.

Student Activity Teacher Activity Student Input

Read text/view film Explain role of the LCS critic; Read text/view film; answer

set general and specific questions; note down any

questions to guide reading/ preliminary ideas

viewing (see Table 1 above

for general questions)

Note-taking from text, Explain role of note-taking; Practise and experiment

secondary critical explain method of note- with effective personal note-

material, lecture, taking; supply examples of taking styles; read and

seminar ‘effective’ note-taking which review notes regularly

facilitates recall

Information-gathering Supply information on how Go on library tours; surf the

to access local and virtual ‘Net’; organise research

sources of information; material; review and update

provide reading lists; research material regularly

encourage students to be

judiciously critical of

information sources;

explain relevant research

methodology


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Oral presentations Explain O.P. techniques; Research topic; answer

(solo) explain assessment; give question; reference critics

students chance to practise appropriately; manage

in front of an audience questions from audience;

practise public speaking

Oral presentations Explain O.P. techiniques; Research topic; answer

(pair/group) explain assessment; assign question; reference critics

respective tasks; give appropriately; manage

guidance on pair/group questions from audience;

management techniques; reflect on pair/group

give students chance to management techniques;

practise in front of an practise public speaking as

audience a pair/group

Commentary/close Explain purpose of exercise; Research text; read passage

reading exercise explain technique; supply very thoroughly; note down

list of features to look for; ideas; implement advice on

supply ‘model’ ‘good practice’

commentaries

Critical discussion Explain what critical Research topic; gain

(in pairs/group) discussion is; decide how familiarity with meta-

much meta-language is language; participate in

required; manage discussion; be ready to listen

discussion by probing, to and learn from others;

prompting, asking for practise public speaking

clarification and critical

reflection; help students

build confidence and make

progress by affirmation and

feedback on their

participation

Coursework/exam Guidance on coursework Develop time-management

work and exam technique; give skills; practise writing against

students the chance to the clock; research topic

practise with ‘real’ thoroughly; read question,

questions; give feedback answer question; implement

to aid progress advice given by teaching

staff

Table 2


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An example of a learning activity in the LCS classroom: commentary

The aim of literary and filmic commentary is to enable students to acquire and develop

critical interpretative skills and (where applicable) vocabulary and structures in the target

language. Commentary employs the technique of ‘close reading’ of a sequence of film or

a literary extract. If you want to use commentary as a teaching and learning activity, it is

necessary first to select a short, key extract from the text. You might ask individuals or

groups of students to select an extract and present it to the class. Alternatively, you might

select an extract yourself and ask students to prepare it in their own time and then use the

extract as a basis for classroom discussion.

Students first need to read the extract through several times and look up any unknown

vocabulary or terms. They might reflect on what happens before and afterwards in the

text, or in the text as a whole, which renders the extract significant. After familiarising

themselves with the extract, what should students look for? Remember - these are not

exhaustive lists, merely some suggested features to look for in a commentary passage or

filmic sequence. You may need to explain some of these features and give an easy, relevant

example of their use. It is not sufficient to identify them in the text, students need to

analyse and to argue WHY (in their view) they might be important.

Literary commentary: stylistic and linguistic aspects

• tense usage (e.g. predominance of a particular tense)

• adjectives and adverbs (e.g. repetition)

• punctuation

• syntax and sentence length (significant when considered with the subject matter?)

• alliteration (i.e. words beginning with same letter)

• assonance (corresponding vowel sounds)

• paragraph structure

• use of subject pronouns

• use of names (any symbolic significance?)

• use of direct speech

• use of narrative viewpoint

• use of ‘style indirect libre’ or free indirect speech

• metaphor

• metonymy (use of an attribute to denote a larger concept, e.g. ‘Matignon’ [French

Prime Minister’s office] being used to represent the PM’s position on an issue).

• use of interrogative forms

• use of litotes (negative understatement)

• periphrasis (long-winded method of communicating for stylistic effect)

• linguistic register (slang? formal? ‘everyday’ language?)

• passive and impersonal constructions

• enumeration (use of lists)


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• generalisations

• irony

• emphasis

• symbolism

• ellipsis

Filmic language: some general features to note

Make sure your students understand these terms in English and in the target language

before you ask them to identify their significance in a given sequence of film. Once they

understand the terms, show students some brief film clips which contain the relevant

features, for example:

• types of shot

• characteristics of image (e.g. composition, angle, depth of field)

• characteristics of lens (e.g. wide angle, telephoto)

• camera movement

• editing

• lighting

• soundtrack

• use of colour/black and white

• scenario

• special effects

• flashback

• frame composition

• opening and closing credits.

General questions to aid close reading

• What effects are created in the passage or sequence?

• How is the literary extract or film sequence structured?

• How is the reader or viewer positioned in relation to the text (as collaborator, enemy,

gullible recipient)?

• What, in your view, is the aim of the passage/sequence/frame?

• What is the writer’s or director’s attitude towards the subject matter? How is this evident?

• What tensions exist in the extract?

• What is the rhythm of the piece chosen?

16.4 Working with the meta-language

In many modern languages departments, lectures and seminars on aspects of literary

and cultural studies are delivered in the target language. In addition, as detailed above,

students are expected to develop their skills of critical expression. This raises a number of


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issues for the student and consequently, for the teacher.

Barriers to discussion: interpretation and use of the target language

As most experienced teachers recognise, it can be difficult to get a discussion started in

any area, be it in English or in the target language. The abstract nature of literary and

cultural studies and the emphasis on interpretation can frighten many students off,

preventing them from developing their own skills of critical analysis and expression. Some

weaker students may perceive the requirement to express their slight knowledge and

interpretation of the text in the target language as an ‘added burden’. In the course of their

prior learning experience, they may not have acquired adequate proficiency in the target

language to discuss a text in detail, or they may not be familiar with the relevant critical

terms. This can result in a total lack of student participation and consequently an entirely

‘teacher-led’ seminar which tends towards facilitating ‘surface learning’ rather than critical

and independent learning (see Module 1 - How Students Learn).

The acquisition of these meta-languages in literary and cultural studies - be it in the target

language or the critical language - is crucial because without them, students will not develop

their expertise in the target language or the necessary skills of critical thinking and

expression. Consequently, they will not be enabled to achieve the aims and learning

outcomes of their programme of study. Students need to be made aware that if they are to

take a professional attitude to their studies, they need to acquire the necessary linguistic

and conceptual tools. If the aim is for students to acquire vocabulary and structures in the

target language, then source material, discussion and handouts should all ideally be in

the target language to avoid giving the students the chance to ‘lapse’ into their native

language. Similarly, if the aim is for students to acquire a critical vocabulary, then these

terms and concepts must be introduced. How might this acquisition and practice of the

meta-language be achieved?

• Students can be introduced to key terms in seminars, lectures and web-based

materials.

• Students can be asked to draw up a glossary of key terms and concepts with which

they are unfamiliar from entries in text books, encyclopedias and the Internet.

• Key terms from lectures can be reinforced by teachers soliciting the appropriate

terminology, by supplying the correct terminology when students are floundering

and by short question-and-answer slots at the start/end of a class.

• Students can practise key terms, vocabulary and structures in different exercises

(see ‘Teaching and learning activities’ above).

Using critical theory

For many years now, some modern languages syllabi have included optional introductory


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modules on aspects of critical and cultural theory which stand apart from the core syllabus.

Other approaches have been to import information on diverse theoretical approaches

directly into core literary and cultural studies classes. Although there is no obligation to

use critical theory in teaching interpretative reading strategies to students, no teaching

practices are value-free and you should at least make your own perspective and

assumptions explicit. Moreover, many published works of literary and cultural criticism are

informed by a diverse range of theoretical approaches, and for that reason too, students

should be made aware of these approaches. Within any department, there will be staff

who are more or less interested in using critical theory in their teaching of literary and

cultural studies. Problems can arise when students and teachers have to find their way

through a range of secondary critical material which employs unfamiliar theoretical

approaches. How should you proceed?

1. Use annotated bibliographies.

Providing a brief commentary on texts cited in a bibliography which is distributed to

students is an established practice and helps them navigate their way through an ever-

expanding field of reference material. If they know that Text ‘A’ is a psychoanalytic

reading of Madame Bovary, then they can eliminate it or include it in their search for

bibliographic material, according to their level of theoretical literacy and to the remit of

their assignment. Such annotation may encourage them to discover and appreciate

the wealth of critical approaches available to them.

2. Explain the jargon.

Critical theory has produced a huge lexicon of complex terms and concepts which can

seem incomprehensible and off-putting. These conceptual and terminological ‘tools of

the trade’ should be used as a shorthand to facilitate critical thinking and discussion,

not to ‘blind your students with science’! Explain the necessary terms and concepts in

stages as simply as possible by using easy, relevant examples and familiar vocabulary.

Students are almost always capable of understanding the concept if it is explained

clearly.

3. Use introductory guides to literary and cultural theory.

There is now a mass of accessible and short introductory guides to literary and cultural

theory available (some of which are listed at the end of this module). Refer to them and

encourage your students to use them from the outset.

4. Read the same passages using different theoretical approaches in small groups;

assess the merits and shortcomings of these different approaches.

Using departmental Web pages or seminar discussions, you can distribute textual

extracts employing a range of different theoretical approaches among groups of students

for close reading. You can use question and answer sessions or buzz groups (break


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the class into small groups for discussion) to check understanding and identify the

strengths and weakness of the different approaches. Obviously, this must be preceded

by explanation of the particular approach at issue, for example, feminist psychoanalytic

or new historicist, although this can be hard-going for students and can seem irrelevant

until you explain your aims. Most usefully, once the basic concepts of a given theoretical

approach have been explained, the discussion should be kept as practical as possible

- providing examples of features of a particular interpretative strategy in the text under

discussion.

A helpful approach to understanding the practical use of theory is offered by Peter Barry in

Beginning Theory, An Introduction to Literary and Cultural Theory (Manchester University

Press, 1995) in his sections ‘What Structuralist/Feminist/Freudian Psychoanalytic, etc,

Critics Do’. In these sections relating to the various critical methodologies, Barry lists the

activities involved in applying a particular theoretical approach to a text. For example, we

learn that (among other activities) feminist critics ‘rethink the canon’ to include texts by

women, challenge representations of women as ‘Other’ and examine gendered power

relations as they affect reading and writing practices. Supplying students with practical

applications of different theoretical methodologies in this way should help them use theory

effectively.

16.5 Using different audio-visual aids in LCS teaching

It is now broadly accepted that using a variety of audio-visual material to stimulate the

learner is good pedagogic practice. Using a range of materials to appeal to students’

different ‘preferred learning styles’ is important to keep learning interesting and effective.

Some students learn more effectively if information is delivered via a combination of written

text and image - perhaps because we learn approximately 70% of information by visual

means. For this reason, it is important that you vary methods of information delivery and

techniques in small group teaching in order to maximise the chance of accommodating

students’ different preferred learning styles. What kinds of audio-visual media can you

use in LCS teaching?

1. Use films in conjunction with novels or film adaptations of novels to promote

intertextual readings.

Students might watch the entire film in their own time or extracts in class time. You

can distribute a questionnaire in advance to guide their viewing which they complete

during and after seeing the film. Students might compare how a thematic issue is

treated in a literary text and in a film. In the case of film adaptations, students can

be invited to comment on the casting, the deletions of characters and scenes, the

differences between the written text and the film version(s), the merits and

disadvantages of viewing film adaptations of written texts.


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2. Use visual arts materials (in the form of slides, prints, computer-generated

images) with literary texts to promote learning of the cultural context.

The pairing of artists and writers’ work - such as Zola’s novels or art criticism with

Manet’s paintings, or Verlaine’s poetry with Watteau’s paintings - in the teaching of

a literary module can enable students to understand the cultural context of a given

writer more effectively and broaden their knowledge base. You will need to supply

students with basic terms relating to visual arts criticism. In pairs or small groups

they can think about how these different media might affect what the writer or artist

is communicating and how multi-media access to texts might facilitate different

readings of a given theme. For example, students might compare the representation

of ‘orientalism’ in Delacroix’s painting with that of nineteenth-century French travel

writing.

3. Use music of the period to promote learning of the cultural context.

For example, you might contrast Baroque with Romantic music in a module on the

nineteenth-century German novel. You should explain any relevant musical or

cultural terms in advance. If there are any students who have a musical background,

you can pair them with students who do not. You might then play music in the

background and invite students to comment on it or complete a questionnaire on

their personal responses to the music in relation to the texts being studied. Once

they understand the concept of Romanticism, you might ask them to identify common

Romantic elements in an extract of music and a written text.

4. Use the ‘Net’ (see below).

16.6 Using the Internet

(For general information on how to use the Internet, please refer to Module 12 - IT in

Language Learning.)

Educational use of the Internet is commonplace these days and teachers have access to

a vast range of resources. It is very likely that staff in your department or school use the

‘Net’ for pedagogic purposes, and this section aims only to be a brief overview of areas of

resources which you might consider using to facilitate student learning. So, what can you

and your students use the Net for?

• obtaining pedagogical advice

• using Author/Topic web sites for teaching/learning resources

• access to general information on political, historical, cultural background

• participating in discussion lists

• accessing text archives


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• reading film, literature and visual arts journals and magazines

• designing web sites for student use (hyperlinked extracts, booklists, etc)

• accessing bibliographical databases

16.7 Assessment materials

It is imperative that you consult colleagues in your department for information on

departmental assessment requirements and practices. On the next pages, there are some

sample assessment materials which you may find useful to use. For general information

on assessment, please refer to Module 5 - Assessment.


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SAMPLE 1

Coursework Assessment Sheet which supplies student with detailedfeedback and mark.

COURSEWORK ASSESSMENT

MODULE:

STUDENT:

MARK AWARDED:

———————————————————————————————————————

1. CONTENT:

2. QUALITY OF ARGUMENT AND ANALYSIS:

3. ORGANISATION AND STRUCTURE:

4. QUALITY OF LANGUAGE AND EXPRESSION:

5. USE OF REFERENCE SOURCES:

6. QUALITY OF PRESENTATION:

7. GENERAL COMMENTS:


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SAMPLE 2

Some suggested essay marking criteria

The criteria below are suggested only as a general guide. All features may not necessarily

be present simultaneously in a given piece of work. If an essay is written in the target

language, it will be necessary to decide what percentage of the marks is devoted to the

use of the target language and the quality of target language required. This will depend on

the specific aims and objectives of the module and the course of which it is a component.

For example, depending on your department’s or school’s policy, certain types of error

might be overlooked in first year students’ work but will be heavily penalised if they appear

in final year students’ work.

Classmark Features which may be found

I (70 and above) Well-structured; analytical approach to key terms of question;

answers the question, evidence of original thought and insight;

well-researched and refers to a wide range of primary and

secondary reading; logical reasoning; essay methodology is

explicit; appropriate use of quotation; concise; well-presented;

bibliography included and correctly laid out.

II.i (60-69) Largely well-structured; analytical approach to key terms of

question; answers the question, some limited evidence of original

thought and insight; well-researched and refers to a range of

primary and secondary reading; logical reasoning; essay

methodology is explicit; appropriate use of quotation; usually

concise; well-presented; bibliography included and correctly laid

out.

II.ii (50-59) Some apparent structure; more descriptive than analytic; engages

with only some of the key terms of the question; no real evidence

of original thought or insight; some research evident but not

sufficiently well-organised to answer the question; refers to primary

and some secondary reading although this is not always relevant;

essay methodology is not always explicit; use of quotation may not

always be appropriate in choice/length; tends towards a superficial

engagement with question; presentation acceptable; bibliography

included but incorrectly laid out.


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III (40-49) Little apparent structure; descriptive; engages only vaguely with

some of the key terms of the question; no evidence of original

thought or insight; little research evident, essay methodology is

not very explicit; use of quotation may not always be appropriate in

choice/length; a superficial engagement with question; illogical

reasoning; presentation acceptable; no bibliography.

FAIL (below 40) No structure; descriptive; does not engage with the question; no

evidence of original thought or insight; no research evident,

essay methodology non-existent; use of quotation inappropriate;

illogical and chaotic reasoning; badly-presented; no bibliography.


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16.8 Suggested reading

Barry P. (1995): Beginning Theory. An Introduction to Literary and Cultural Theory.

Manchester University Press, Manchester.

Computers in Teaching Initiative Textual Studies. Humanities Computing Unit, OUCS, 13

Banbury Road, Oxford, OX2 6NN. Web site: http://info.ox.ac.uk/ctitext/

Culler J. (1997): Literary Theory. A Very Short Introduction. Oxford University Press, Oxford.

Durant A. & Fabb N. (1990): Literary Studies in Action. Routledge, London.

Eagleton T. (1983): Literary Theory. An Introduction. Blackwell. Oxford.

Gibaldi J. (series editor) Approaches to Teaching World Literature, Modern Language

Association of America. An extensive series of guides to teaching specific literary texts

which is aimed at specialists and non-specialists.

Jefferson A. & Robey D. (1993): Modern Literary Theory. B.T. Batsford, London.

Porter S. & Sutherland S. (eds) (1999): Teaching European Literature and Culture with

Communication and Information Technologies, Selected Papers. CTI Centre for Textual

Studies Occasional Series, Number 3, OUCS, Oxford.

16 Approaches to Teaching Literary and Cultural Studies

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