Subjects

Who is it for?

This subject is for students who enjoy reading a wide range of literary forms and styles.

Students who study Literature usually enjoy exploring and examining complex characters and ideas. Literature students can go on to a range of different areas of study, and may pursue a career as a writer of prose, film, games or other media.

What do you do?

Activities you will engage in include:

Unit 1

• exploring how language, structure and stylistic choices are used in different literary forms and text types through a comparison between Robert Louis Stevenson’s classic novella, The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, and a film version.
• learning about conventions, techniques, language patterns, style and diction in relation to the study of World War One poets, including Wilfrid Owen, Siegfried Sassoon and a range of Australian poets.
• studying how texts reflect or comment on the interests of individuals and particular groups in society via a comparison of Shakespeare’s comedy, The Taming of the Shrew and the film adaptation, 10 Things I Hate About You.

Unit 2

• exploring the issues, ideas and concerns of the 1920s and how they are represented in F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel, The Great Gatsby.
• learning about the dialogic nature of texts and how they influence each other, via a comparison of Euripides’ classic play, Medea, and Faye Weldon’s, The Life and Loves of a She-Devil.

What skills do you need?

To study Literature Units 1 and 2 you will need to be a highly-independent and confident reader. You should be able to write at length and have the ability to reflect on your interpretations and those of others.

What skills do you develop?

You will develop the following skills:

• an understanding of how both the author and reader influence the reading experience
• an understanding of social and cultural contexts that texts are created in
• the ability to critically analyse key literary features of individual texts and to make relevant connections to them
• an understanding of literary theory
• the ability to write analytical and creative responses to texts.

Requirements

Internet is needed to access this course. All work will be completed and submitted online weekly.

Unit 1

Students will need to purchase a copy of the following:

Shakespeare, The Taming of the Shrew (Cambridge School Shakespeare) (3rd ed.) Cambridge University Press, 2014 – (ISBN: 9781107616899)

Note that all other texts studied in Unit 1 Literature are provided in the course.

Unit 2

Students will need to purchase copies of the following:

Fitzgerald. The Great Gatsby (Penguin Modern Classics) Penguin ISBN: 9780141182636

Euripides. Medea /Hecabe /Electra /Heracles (translation by Vellacott) Penguin Classics. ISBN: 9780140441291

Note that all other texts studied in Unit 2 Literature are provided in the course.

Things to think about

You need to be an independent reader with established writing skills. It is important to plan ahead and make time for extensive reading tasks.

Things you can do now

If you intend to enrol in the subject, access the booklist promptly so you can read your texts for enjoyment over the summer break.

You could access online resources for background information on the author’s works we will study. For example, you could do some background reading about Shakespeare or Robert Louis Stevenson. There is a lot of information available online or in your library, that can help you familiarise yourself with the time period and the language of the set texts.

Go to the VCAA website for more information about this subject.