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Welcome to Week Eleven!
Learning Outcomes for Week Eleven
· Become familiar with general concepts related to literature/short stories
· Read and Analyze short works of fiction
· Collectively discuss the role of literature in society
Week Eleven: Literature Unit Begins
This week you begin the brief literature unit, which focuses on fiction and specifically short stories. Begin by watching the short video “What is Literature For?” and viewing the Powerpoint on aspects of short stories. Then, read the excerpt from Reading and Writing About Literature.
After viewing and reading the general sources about literature, it’s time to read some carefully selected short stories. First, print “Analyzing Short Stories,” which contains a list of questions to consider as you read the fictional works. You are not required to answer these questions, but they will help you consider critical elements of the texts as you are reading. You can also use the questions to guide your response in the discussion board, which asks you to contemplate the materials you viewed this week.
Works of Literature:
*Suspending your disbelief: When reading literature, attempt to let yourself step back from critically analyzing the "realness" of the text. Instead, lean into the story being told and accept what the author is conveying as a truthful (fictional) interpretation of aspects of society.
Short Stories by Tim O'Brien: As you read these stories, contemplate O'Brien's concept of "Story-Truth instead of Happening-Truth" -- it's key to his works and literature as a whole. Fictional stories are told in literature and through fiction we often get an enhanced sense of ourselves, humanity, and other aspects of the world. O'Brien takes a real setting -- the Vietnam War (where he served as a soldier) -- and creates fictional stories about experiences there. Why? After reading some of his work, think about how you feel. He creates fiction to convey experiences and invoke emotions that may not be available through a real-world portrayal. I'd like for you to consider how all fiction blends the real and the imagined to reach readers in a specific way.
Shirley Jackson, "The Lottery": This short story was published in 1948. As you read it, and hopefully, reread it, consider the element of fiction/short stories and what is being conveyed in this text that is still relevant today.
Week Eleven: Discussion Board
Using the texts -- fiction and non-fiction -- from the week, contemplate and then articulate what roles literature plays in society.
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