Scribd
Upload
73 views3 pages

Task 1: Written Assignment (30%)

This document discusses using reader response criticism to analyze the short story "Civil Peace" by Chinua Achebe for a written assignment. It explains that reader response criticism focuses on the reader's experience and interpretation of a text. The author will use this approach to help students participate freely in discussing the story, boost confidence, and consider different perspectives and hidden meanings. Reader response criticism also teaches students to respect individual interpretations and actively engage with concepts by discovering issues for themselves with teacher guidance.

Uploaded by

Raimi Syazwan
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
73 views3 pages

Task 1: Written Assignment (30%)

This document discusses using reader response criticism to analyze the short story "Civil Peace" by Chinua Achebe for a written assignment. It explains that reader response criticism focuses on the reader's experience and interpretation of a text. The author will use this approach to help students participate freely in discussing the story, boost confidence, and consider different perspectives and hidden meanings. Reader response criticism also teaches students to respect individual interpretations and actively engage with concepts by discovering issues for themselves with teacher guidance.

Uploaded by

Raimi Syazwan
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
You are on page 1/ 3

TASK 1: WRITTEN ASSIGNMENT (30%)

Literature can be defined as the written work of an author that includes poem, plays,
and novels. According to Frank (2018), Literature in English is the study of literature written in
the English language. The writers do not necessarily have to be from England but can be from
all over the world. It includes some of history's most famous writers: James Joyce (Ireland),
William Shakespeare (England), Mark Twain (United States), Arthur Conan Doyle (Scotland),
Dylan Thomas (Wales), and Vladimir Nabokov (Russia), just to name a few. The short story
that I have chosen is Civil Peace by Chinua Achebe. This short story is written in 1971,
depicting the effects of the Nigerian Civil War on a man and his family. This story also
introduces a heroic protagonist, Jonathan Iwegbu, whose optimistic attitude surprises the
reader since his country and his family have just survived a terrible civil war. In this paper, I
will discuss on the chosen short story to help my pupils and I broaden our horizon by using
one of the literary criticism theories (reader response).

Reader response criticism is a type of literary criticism that focuses on the reader and
his or her experience of a literary work (Quinn, 2006). There are so many ways that reader
response can be beneficial to the us. The reason why I will use this method is because it is
easy to be implemented and adapted in a daily classroom lesson. Pupils will not feel pressured
and reluctant to participate in the discussion. By reading through the literary text, pupils can
then make connections via their schemata and existing knowledge from the questions raised
by the teachers. In accordance to what Rosenblatt (1938) had said, meanings can only be
created when interaction occurs between the readers and the targeted texts. Through this,
pupils’ confidence can also be boosted as they will be able to express their thoughts freely.
Not only that, this approach also helps the low proficiency pupils and prompt them to
participate voluntarily in class. Throughout the story, the protagonist is portrayed as an
optimistic person. I would use this moral value to further improve my pupils’ motivation in
speaking by telling them to be always optimistic in everything that they are doing.

Next, through reader response criticism also, I have started to view the world and
literary texts in a different way than before. As we all may know, not all types of literary text
can be interpreted directly as there are some texts that have hidden meaning or underlying
messages. In relation with Civil Peace written by Chinua Achebe, there is a hidden message
within this passage:

“My frien... we don try our best for call dem but I tink say dem all done sleep-o... So
wetin we go do now? Sometaim you wan call soja? Or you wan make we call dem for you?
Soja better pass police. No be so?”

-Thief Leader
If we try to understand the passage directly, we might interpret it as a way of mockery to the
protagonist from the thief leader. In contrast to that, it is actually the revelations of unreliable
the soldiers and police are. Furthermore, the passage also reminds the family that nobody is
going to step forward to help themselves. Through reader response criticism, pupils will be
able to understand the importance of reading beyond the text as each pupil will have a different
understanding of the short story. This is where I will highlight that in order to widen our horizon,
we have to view and change our perspective to understand the underlying meaning that exist
in all sorts of things.

After that, reader response criticism also helps me to respect the differences and
uniqueness of each individual. Each individual will have a different interpretation of the
targeted text as what Guide (2019) proposed, that the reader as a significant and active agent
who is responsible to impart unique meaning of the text by interpreting it. In relation to Civil
Peace by Chinua Achebe, we can see from the way the protagonist accepting his differences
and loss but never ever complained about it but rather striving to become a better person from
before. We can see that the main character and his family tried to overcome their problems
by setting up a bar and selling cakes to the soldier. Though he has suffered immeasurable
losses in the war, his ability to set aside the past and hope for the future allows him to success
in his life without whining of his unfortunate situation. Thus, accepting that everyone is born
differently and has different purpose in life is the value that can be used to help my pupils
understand that differences are not something to be ashamed of.

Then, through reader response criticism as well, concepts can be understood better
when the pupils actively discover and wonder about the issues (Rhoda J, Maxwell, 2004 ).
She also claimed that background of information which is experience and prior knowledge is
useful to teach literature and the eagerness to learn will nurture in them. Because of this,
teachers act as a vital role to support the ideas and questions made by the pupils. Without the
guidance and support from the teacher, this method will surely become ineffective. Through
this, I will educate my pupils to always use active listening during the classroom in order for
them to not lose track during the lesson. In conclusion, reader response criticism stresses on
the reader’s role in constructing and interpreting meanings from the targeted literary texts.
References
F. T. (2018, June 3). What is English Literature? - History & Definition. Retrieved from
Study.com: https://study.com/academy/lesson/what-is-english-literature-history-
definition-quiz.html

Guide, A. R. (2019). Reader Response Criticism - History and Purpose. Retrieved from A
Research Guide: https://www.aresearchguide.com/reader-response-criticism.html

Quinn, E. (2006). A Dictionary of Literary and Thematic Terms, 2nd ed. New York: Facts On
File.

Rhoda J, Maxwell. (2004 ). Teaching English in Middle and Secondary Schools. University of
Wisconsin (Eau Claire): Pearson Hall.

Rosenblatt. (1938). Literature as Exploration. New York: Appleton-Century Company.

You might also like

pFad - Phonifier reborn

Pfad - The Proxy pFad of © 2024 Garber Painting. All rights reserved.

Note: This service is not intended for secure transactions such as banking, social media, email, or purchasing. Use at your own risk. We assume no liability whatsoever for broken pages.


Alternative Proxies:

Alternative Proxy

pFad Proxy

pFad v3 Proxy

pFad v4 Proxy