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The idea that reading literature changes the reader seems as old as literature itself. Through the ages philosophers, writers, and literary scholars have suggested it affects norms, empathic ability, self-concept, beliefs, etc. This book examines what we actually know about these effects. And it finds strong evidence for the old claims. However, it remains unclear what aspects of the reading experience are responsible for these effects. Applying methods of the social sciences to this particular problem of literary theory, this book presents a psychological explanation based upon the conception of literature as a moral laboratory. A series of experiments examines whether imagining oneself in the shoes of characters affects beliefs about what it must be like to be someone else, and whether it affects beliefs about consequences of behavior. The results have implications for the role literature could play in society, for instance, in an alternative for traditional moral education.
The idea that reading literature changes the reader seems as old as literature itself. Through the ages philosophers, writers, and literary scholars have suggested it affects norms, empathic ability, self-concept, beliefs, etc. This book examines what we actually know about these effects. And it finds strong evidence for the old claims. However, it remains unclear what aspects of the reading experience are responsible for these effects. Applying methods of the social sciences to this particular problem of literary theory, this book presents a psychological explanation based upon the conception of literature as a moral laboratory. A series of experiments examines whether imagining oneself in the shoes of characters affects beliefs about what it must be like to be someone else, and whether it affects beliefs about consequences of behavior. The results have implications for the role literature could play in society, for instance, in an alternative for traditional moral education.
The idea that reading literature changes the reader seems as old as literature itself. Through the ages philosophers, writers, and literary scholars have suggested it affects norms, empathic ability, self-concept, beliefs, etc. This book examines what we actually know about these effects. And it finds strong evidence for the old claims. However, it remains unclear what aspects of the reading experience are responsible for these effects. Applying methods of the social sciences to this particular problem of literary theory, this book presents a psychological explanation based upon the conception of literature as a moral laboratory. A series of experiments examines whether imagining oneself in the shoes of characters affects beliefs about what it must be like to be someone else, and whether it affects beliefs about consequences of behavior. The results have implications for the role literature could play in society, for instance, in an alternative for traditional moral education.
Over the last several decades, the study of discourse processes has moved from the complementary efforts characteristic of multidisciplinary research, to the explicitly integrative focus of interdisciplinary research. Some organizations have supported the methodological and conceptual merger of areas like literary studies, psychology, linguistics, and education. As evident in this special issue, research concerning personal involvement in narrative discourse has benefited from these developments. The five studies supported in this issue examine a range of potential determinants of personal involvement in narrative discourse. These include overt verbalization of thoughts and feelings, foregro...
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This book draws on empirical studies of classrooms teaching The Sirens of Baghdad by Yasmina Khadra to demonstrate how novels can effectively help achieve learning objectives related to intercultural understanding and global citizenship. By combining theoretical and empirical research, the book offers insights into the most effective ways to discuss cross-cultural literature with upper secondary students who have grown up in the Western world. It outlines how, where, and why such literature can enhance students' understanding of different cultures and make them more globally aware citizens.
Focuses on enlarging teachers' understanding of how reading and writing can change lives and how the language arts can contribute significantly to and change educational processes in the twenty-first century.
Traditional studies of literature have developed approaches ranging from historical, hermeneutic, critical, close reading and author studies perspectives. The present volume shows that there is much, much more to analysing literary texts, their readers, the literary system, movies, their structure and their effects. These diverse new ways of looking at literature are exemplified in this volume. The volume shows how these various approaches can be carried out in concrete projects in the area of literary studies. Twenty-three chapters encompass research on literary studies from perspectives of psychology, linguistics, anthroplogy, history, sociology, computer science. The contributors demonstrate in non-technical language the amplitude of detail and insight that can be gained from such a wider perspective on the study of literary texts. The interdisciplinary diversity of the study of literature may launch itself as a New Beginnings in Literary Studies indeed.
Directions in Empirical Literary Studies is on the cutting edge of empirical studies and is a much needed volume. It both widens the scope of empirical studies and looks at them from an intercultural perspective by bringing together renowned scholars from the fields of philosophy, sociology, psychology, linguistics and literature, all focusing on how empirical studies have impacted these different areas. Theoretical issues are discussed and solid methods are presented. Some chapters also show the relation between empirical studies and new technology, examining developments in computer science and corpus linguistics. This book takes a global perspective, with contributors from many different countries, both senior and junior researchers. Broad in scope and interdisciplinary in nature, it contributes with the state-of-the-art developments in the field.
Stylistics: Prospect & Retrospect looks backward toward classic and foundational approaches and texts that helped to establish the field of stylistics. It also looks forward by examining recent innovations that seem likely to alter the ways in which style is studied in the years to come. The essays presented here, written by an array of experts from nine countries on four continents, employ a wide range of approaches to works that range from romantic poetry to contemporary fiction and from traditional folktales and nursery rhymes to contemporary film. The variety of authors, approaches, and works found here testifies to the vitality of the field of stylistics, and these essays should appeal ...