STAGES OF LITERARY APPRECIATION AND THE ADOLESCENT

Literary appreciation, as defined by Nielsen and Donaldson (1993) cited in a power point presentation on the stages of literary appreciation is ‘the ability to gain pleasure and understanding for literature.’

Although I taught at a secondary school for five years I only taught literature in my final year and I never considered my students’ reaction to the text. Neither did I consider their previous experiences which would impact on their attitude to the text. I never questioned them about their reading likes and dislikes. Their enjoyment of the novel was not my aim- it was simply teach and test for me. I told them how they were supposed to interpret the novel.

Now that the veil of ignorance has been lifted from my eyes and I am aware of the stages of literary appreciation I know my flaws of teaching literature to my students.

Secondary school students tend to be at level four of the literary stage which is ‘Finding one’s self in a story.’ According to Erikson (1968) adolescents at this point are experiencing a crisis of finding one’s self as well as their place in society. They constantly ask themselves ‘Who am I? ‘Where do I fit in?  Which is why the genre of literature selected is critical at this stage.

In selecting literature, young adolescent literature is recommended as they deal with problems and issues that are central to the young adult’s life. We also need to select YAL which show them how to resolve conflict in a positive way.YAL helps them in their search for understanding the ‘complete world of today.’ (Carlsen 1980 cited in Hinton to Hamlet: Building Bridges between Young Adult literature and the classics). Carlsen goes on to comment that ‘as developing readers, many students cannot find answers to the questions in such challenging classics such as Jane Eyre and Hamlet…yet’

As teachers of literature, we need to take into consideration students’ stages of development when selecting literature. It is also important to remember that students ‘move along these various reading stages depending on the subject matter, the genre, their interest level as well as their individual reading abilities and habits.’ (Carlsen 1980).

The strategies employed in the classroom should also help students in the quest of finding themselves. The teacher should employ students to respond to the text on a personal level; students can also talk about the characters and justify their actions in certain situations.

Whatever the strategies employed by the teacher, they should be student centered in nature. The goal is to encourage students to become life long readers, as it is through reading students come to understand human relationships and can begin to answer some of the answers about themselves.

Reference

Herz, S & Gallo, R. (2005). From Hinton to Hamlet: Building Bridges between Young Adult Literature and the Classics. Westport,CT:  Greenwood Press. Retrieved from http://books.google.com/books?id=Wg77SNlqP6MC&pg=PA18&lpg=PA18&dq='stages+in+literary+appreciation'&source=bl&ots=uzGr31Wmvb&sig=8xx3668Pl7neJGp1l1LSKBOnjZY&hl=en&ei=AwKhTYLPH4LW0QGw34GhBQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=10&ved=0CFYQ6AEwCQ#v=onepage&q='stages%20in%20literary%20appreciation'&f=false (9^th April 2011)