Evoking the World of Poetic Nonfiction Picture Books

An increasingly prevalent and accessible form of hybrid nonfiction picture books blends factual information with poetry or poetic devices to create literary nonfiction. This important form of hybrid text has been sparsely examined. This article addresses three questions about poetic nonfiction picture books: first, how might we categorize picture books that represent this hybrid text?; second, by what criteria might we evaluate the quality of these books?; third, based in Rosenblatt’s concept of reader’s stance, how might we read these books? The author develops a typology of six categories along a continuum from poetry to narrative or expository prose. He examines well-established criteria in the fields of picture books, children’s nonfiction, and poetry that can apply to poetic nonfiction picture books. He argues that in the best of these books, the poetry or poetic devices are synergistic with the content and raise the overall reading experience. The author also argues that, depending where along the continuum each of these books is located, a reader’s stance moves along the continuum of efferent to aesthetic experience. All these books demand a dynamic and recursive reading process. He suggests ways to work with teachers to teach deep readings of these books.     

Generous reading: Discovering dialogic voices in writing

This paper describes an approach to the assessment of EAL written composition in the primary school. It draws upon related work in literacy as social practice and socio‐linguistic approaches to language learning to develop an approach to writing assessment that builds upon students’ linguistic strengths and traces their written words to sources in the immediate context and wider world. Following Joseph Tobin (2000) this approach is described as generous reading. Generous reading references poststructuralist literary theory through a focus on close reading of texts using a multidisciplinary approach. This paper describes the purpose, theory, and methods for generous reading followed by examples and a discussion of implications for instruction and assessment.     

Relationships between sixth-graders’ reading comprehension and two different measures of print exposure

This study examined sixth-graders’ reading comprehension and component reading abilities in relation to two measures of print exposure: an author recognition test (ART) involving fiction authors and a reading habits questionnaire (RHQ) about children’s voluntary reading for enjoyment across various genres. The ART correlated only with children’s fiction book reading habits, not with other habits such as nonfiction book or magazine reading, and had a stronger relationship to all tested reading abilities than did the RHQ. Strong comprehenders in reading outperformed weak comprehenders on all component reading measures, ART score, and fiction habits; however, weak comprehenders scored higher than did strong comprehenders on the indicator of nonfiction reading habits. The two groups of comprehenders did not differ significantly on other reported reading habits. The results are discussed in relation to children’s specific book choices and demonstrate the relevance of genre to evaluations of children’s print exposure.     

Pairing Fiction and Nonfiction Texts to Promote Literacy and Language Development of Adolescent English Learners

Abstract

Based on the relevant research that highlights the impact of pairing fiction and nonfiction texts around a specific theme or a topic for enhanced motivation and reading comprehension for English learners (ELs), this article describes ways to combine texts of various genres to promote ELs’ language and literacy development. A middle school example of a lesson on chocolate exemplifies how pairing a number of fiction and nonfiction texts supports differentiation and multiple opportunities for writing.     

Close Reading: A Synergistic Approach to the (Post)Modern Divide

This paper explores the relationship between New Critical close reading techniques and studies of literary engagement by building on the work of Sumara, Rosenblatt and Todorov. New Critical techniques responded to the allusive density and terseness of modernist poetry and fiction. In the half‐century since, the situated approaches favoured by postmodernism have pushed the hermeticism and analytic underpinnings of modernism (that of the text as an entity unto itself) from vogue. After delineating some precepts from the New Critical perspective and tracing the shift towards postmodernism, this paper argues for a synergistic critical approach for literary exploration in the secondary and tertiary classroom; specifically, it argues for the pedagogical necessity of close reading as a precursor to literary engagement and postmodernist textual considerations.     

Reading nonfiction text on an iPad in a secondary classroom

The intent of this research was to investigate the experiences of eighth grade readers as they read nonfiction text on an iPad for academic purposes. We investigated reading strategies that students use to support their reading as well as what role iPad features played in the reading process. New literacies, metacognition and transactional theories informed the framework. Multiple data sources were used to triangulate findings and included (a) retrospective think alouds, (b) student iPad survey, (c) pre and post study student interviews, (d) Metacognitive Awareness of Reading Strategies Inventory and (e) student observations. Data for the collective case study participants focused on the identification of proficient readers who displayed confidence, competency, and control over text. Themes identified in the collective case studies included (a) reading comprehension strategies, (b) nonfiction features and (c) iPad features to support their reading of nonfiction on the iPad.     

The All-Heterosexual World of Children’s Nonfiction: A Critical Content Analysis of LGBTQ Identities in Orbis Pictus Award Books, 1990–2017

Despite increased attention toward children’s nonfiction and informational texts in recent decades, there is still little research that investigates the ways in which various cultural identities are depicted in nonfiction children’s books. Focusing specifically on the 143 winners and honor recipients of the Orbis Pictus Award for Outstanding Nonfiction Literature for Children (1990–2017), this article reports the findings of a critical content analysis of depictions of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) identified people in award-winning nonfiction youth literature. The authors look across this set of texts as a literary construction of the world, making explicit where and how LGBTQ people are visible in these award-winning books for young readers. By analyzing specific depictions of queer-identified people, the authors argue the creators of these books rely upon heteronormative constructions, queer erasure, and compulsory heterosexuality to minimize (and even eliminate) queerness.     

解释学与阅读

解释学作为一种批评话语一直强调其语言学范式。虽然解释学似乎已经是一种学科间的桥梁,但大多数当代批评话语一直对把解释学传统作为一个普遍的文化批评的方法保持警惕性的冷漠。这表明解释学的未来将依赖能够找到把一个遭到抑制但仍然活跃的主体恢复到解释学过程中的方式。与解释学发展历史紧密相关的文学批评——解释学批评、接受理论和文化理论——经历了"奴隶式的阅读"、"主人式阅读"和新近倡导的"亲近式阅读"。当前的文学批评只有在把文学作为传播交流方式的前提下恢复文本/读者范式中被抹杀的作者的维度,才能真正将一个遭到抑制但仍然活跃的主体恢复到文学解释学的过程中来。     

论读者在文学创作中的地位与作用

接受反应文论认为读者是文学活动的主体,文学作品的最终完成、文学意义的最终实现取决于读者的能动性阅读和接受。本文运用文学接受史中的典型例子阐述了读者创造性阅读的重要意义,指出读者在文学接受活动中的主体作用对于作家的文学创作起着推动作用。     

从解构主义语境简析文学翻译的文化差异

解构主义对于文学文本以及作者思想的解构没有确定的文本要意,主张文本读者从不同的生存环境、文化习俗、历史背景、思维模式、生活习惯、宗教信仰等多个角度对于文本进行阅读以及理解。因此,解构主义语境的文学翻译中,译者可以通过自己对于文本的阅读以及理解角度有多种文化阐释。本文主要从解构主义语境对于文学翻译的文化差异进行分析论述。     

理性思辨与现实关怀的结晶--评孙宝林教授的《文艺选论》

孙宝林先生的新著<文艺选论>记录了作者十多年来在影视文化、中国现代文学和马列文论等诸多领域辛勤探索的轨迹.其中既有宏观的历史文化扫描,又有微观的具体文本细读.既有理论的深刻性,又有实践的针对性.是一部值得一读的学术著作.     

析徐州方言入声字的文白异读格局——以曾摄开一、梗摄开二入声字为例

徐州方言入声字存在着年龄层面上新老两派文白异读系统,老派音文读和白读之间,韵母不存在对立,大都是[e],而声调上对立整齐,凸显了文白异读中声调手段的强表达功能;文读的阴平调值向44靠拢。新派音则显示了普通话对方言的覆盖作用。探讨了移民因素对徐州方言文白异读格局形成的影响。     

Narrative Fiction and Expository Nonfiction Differentially Predict Verbal Ability

Although reading is known to be an important contributor to language abilities, it is not yet well established whether different text genres are uniquely associated with verbal abilities. We examined how exposure to narrative fiction and expository nonfiction predict language ability among university students. Exposure was measured both with self-report and with recognition tests of print exposure. Verbal ability was measured in the form of synonym knowledge, analogies, sentence completion, and reading comprehension in 4 different studies. Across all studies, narrative fiction was a better predictor of verbal abilities relative to expository nonfiction. When examining unique associations, controlling for demographic variables and the other genre, fiction remained a robust predictor, whereas nonfiction became a null or weak negative predictor. In light of this evidence, it appears that what we read plays an important role in how reading contributes to language development.     

卓尔不群,历久弥新——重读、重释、重译夏目漱石的《文学论》

重读一百年前夏目漱石著《文学论》,更能看出其独具一格、卓尔不群.作者不是以某种“主义”而是以“全义”的视阈,以文学批评家、文学史家、作家的三重角色,从（F＋f）的“文学公式”出发,以“焦点意识”、“幻惑”、“文学语法”、“暗示”、“渐进推移”等一系列独特的概念范畴为中心,以18-19世纪英国文学原著为主要例证,阐述了文学构成论、文学特性论、文学创作与文学鉴赏论、文学修辞论、文学推移论,形成了独特的理论体系,堪称世界上第一部用社会心理学方法写成的自成体系的文学概论著作,对今天的中国文论界仍具有重要的参考价值.七十多年前出版的张我军译本错译甚多,在译本严重老化的情况下,很有必要加以重译.     

幼儿园儿歌文本阅读策略

要求孩子“喜欢听故事、看图书”,就需要有相应的阅读策略教给孩子.本文以新批评的细读策略为基础,从文学作品形式的感受、叙述关系的理解、音韵格律的体验及儿歌意义的阅读四个方面阐述了儿歌阅读的策略.     

Northrop Frye in the Elementary Classroom

Northrop Frye (1912–1991) was one of the leading literary theorists of his day, and this article shows the ways in which his theories continue to be relevant for both the field of literary criticism and elementary classroom education today. The author, an eminent scholar in the field of children’s literature in her own right and a student of Northrop Frye, presents her interpretation of his major theories as they relate to reading and writing pedagogy in the elementary school classroom. This article articulates some of the key issues developed in the author's book, The Child As Critic, which has undergone a number of printings and editions, and which may well be as close as we get to a handbook for teaching the art of literature, as Northrop Frye might have written it.     

Young Children, Questions and Nonfiction Books

This article discusses the use of nonfiction as a powerful antecedent for success in the types of reading required later on in the intermediate grades. Recent trends in informational (nonfiction) books, values of bringing together young children, and informational books and criteria for selecting high quality informational books are identified. Several question types are highlighted and incorporated into three strategies for bringing together young children, informational books, and questions. Also, a bibliography of high quality informational books is provided.     

"具体化"与读者在阅读中的能动作用

“具体化”是接受关学中的一个重要概念,指的是读者在阅读过程中,对文本中“不确定”和“意义空白之处”,通过积极想像填充完成的活动。“具体化”概念体现了读者是文学活动中的接受主体,文学作品的最后完成、存在价值,文学意义的最终实现都依赖于读者在阅读过程中的能动性阅读。同时,因读者的个人背景不同,文本的“具体化”因人而异,“具体化”也就期待着读者加强文学素养、提高文学阅读能力,以达到文学价值的最大化实现。     

Reading the Other: Ethics of Encounter

Most scholarly fields, at least in the humanities, have been asking the same questions about the politics of encounter for hundreds of years: Should we try to find a way to encounter an other without appropriating it, without imposing ourselves on it? Is encountering‐without‐appropriating even possible? These questions are profuse and taken up with intense interest in scholarship about the personal essay, specifically, which has often been credited as a philosophical form.

Within debates about the ethics of the personal essay, the most significant concern is about the traditionally accepted relationship of the writer‐represented‐on‐the‐page. For example, the notable rhetoric and composition scholar, David Bartholomae, argues that students of what he calls ‘“creative nonfiction” or “literary nonfiction”’ (1995, p. 68) write ‘... as though they [are] not the products of their time, politics and culture, as though they could be free, elegant, smart, independent, the owners of all that they saw’ (p. 70).

In other words, the personal essay, as a subgenre of creative or literary nonfiction, allows for the perpetuation of the fallacy that a writer can be ‘free’ of social influences, ‘independent’ of a society and of its politics, and ‘owners’ of their own perspectives and experiences—of those the writer expresses on the page, specifically. Consequently, if the writer is not conscious and critical of the social influences acting on him/her, if s/he believes the text to be the singular and uninfluenced production of his/her own self, then the topic taken up in the essay is tyrannized by the self‐centered (and dangerously un‐critically‐conscious) perspective of the writer.

However, the personal essay also has its strengths as a philosophical form: in its privileging of skepticism; in its attention to complexity and complication; and even in its existence‐as‐evidence of some quality of its writer. Too, very often essays pay homage to works of other essayists, as in the case of Gass's ‘Emerson and the Essay’, instead of mowing down other works in order to establish its own reign. Despite these ethically responsible characteristics, though, I show, using Gass's essay about Emerson's work, that the personal essay continues to be devalued because of its reliance on and celebration of its transparent relationship to its author.

In general, essayists don't complain in their work about the belief in this transparent relationship; they advocate it. Thus, my purpose is not to suggest that there is no relationship between the essayist and the essay. Rather, I will, in the latter half of the article, turn to the work of philosopher Emmanuel Levinas, which describes and enacts an approach to an other (writer/text) that does not hinge on the assumption that writer and text are in a transparent relationship to each other. I hope that in presenting this possibility for re‐thinking the essay (and its relationship to its writer), writers, scholars, and teachers of the essay—and even its opposition—will give it new attention and explore further the possibilities that it may provide for engagement, for encounter.     

Building reading resilience: re-thinking reading for the literary studies classroom

This paper introduces the concept of ‘reading resilience’: students’ ability to read and interpret complex and demanding literary texts by drawing on advanced, engaged, critical reading skills. Reading resilience is a means for rethinking the place and pedagogies of close reading in the contemporary literary studies classroom. Our research was across four Australian universities and the first study of its kind in the Australian context. We trialled three working strategies to support students to become consistent and skilled readers, and to equip teachers with methods for coaching reading: ‘setting the scene’ for reading, surveying students on their reading experiences and habits, and rewarding reading within assessment. We argue that the nature and pedagogy of close reading has not been interrogated as much as it should be and that the building of reading resilience is less about modelling or outlining best practice for close reading (as has traditionally been thought) and more about deploying contextual, student-centred teaching and learning strategies around reading. The goal is to encourage students to develop a broad suite of skills and knowledge around reading that will equip them long term (for the university and beyond). We measured the effectiveness of our strategies through seeking formal and informal student feedback, and through students’ demonstration of skills and knowledge within assessment.