21ST CENTURY LITERATURE

LEARNING WEEK 01:

Contextual Reading Approaches

Name:________________________Grade&Section:________________Score:__________
Teacher:_______________________________________________Date:________________

Learning Competency (Essential Competency)

Explains the literary, biographical, linguistic, and socio-cultural
contexts and discusses how they enhance the text’s meaning and
enrich the reader’s understanding (EN12Lit-Ie-28)

Objectives
At the end of the discussion, the students should be able to:

• Identify the central theme of the literary text read

• Differentiate a literary text by examining its socio-cultural
context
• Analyze a literary text by examining its biographical, socio-
cultural and linguistic contexts.
• Examine a literary text using different critical reading
strategies

Let’s Recall (Review)

How does looking through the eyes of the author help us better
understand the text?
Unlocking of Vocabulary words:
biography (noun) - a detailed account or narrative of a person written
by someone else
I wonder if any author would write a commemorative biography of
Stan Lee?
autobiography (noun) - a narrative of a person written by himself or
herself
Dennis Rodman revealed all his inner struggles in his autobiography,
“Bad as I Wanna Be.”
belief system (noun) - the set of mutually supportive beliefs that
define a person’s or society’s outlook on life or reality.
confessional - (adjective) intimately autobiographical; characterized
by openness and self-revelation
jilt (verb) - ending a relationship with someone suddenly or painfully.
Dana was definitely hurt when her boyfriend jilted her.

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 Let’s Understand (Study the Concept)

Reasons to read literature through the biographical context (Gioia

and Kennedy 2007):
• Understanding the author’s life can help you understand his or her
work thoroughly.
• Reading the author’s biography or autobiography helps you see
how much his experiences shape his or her work directly and
indirectly.

I. Biographical Strategies
• Research on what the author believes in and also what he or she
does not.
• Analyze how the author’s belief system is reflected in his or her
work.
• Look at the author’s other works and analyze if there is a pattern
with regard to the theme that is indicative of his or her life and
beliefs.
Reading Literature through a Biographical Context
• In what year was the text written and published?
• Is there anything significant that happened in the author’s life
during this time? What were the circumstances that happened to
the author before the writing of the text?
Were there several drafts of the text? What can you say about the
changes that the author made? What aspects do you think the
author struggled with during the revision? What is the effect of the
revisions to the published text?
• Are there characters and situations in the text that could be
representative of or are similar to the ones in the author’s life?
• How will knowing about the author amplify your appreciation of the
work?
Take note of the following before reading a text through a
biographical context:
• You should not assume that all works are confessional,
biographical, or even “true to life.”
A literary text is according to the author’s perspective and will be
heavily influenced by him or her, but it is not the only way of
studying literature.

II. Literary Reading through a Socio-cultural Context

Timeline
● 1882 – Rizal, a well-known hero of today, leaves for Spain to pursue
his studies.
● 1898 – Americans introduced formal education in the Philippines.
● 1972 – Ferdinand Marcos declared Martial law in the Philippines.
● 1986 – People Power Revolution took place among the Filipino
people.
● 2016 – Rodrigo “Digong” Duterte was elected the 16th president of
the Philippine Republic.

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Reading Selection:

Sympathy
(Paul Laurence Dunbar)
I know what the caged bird feels, alas!
When the sun is bright on the upland slopes;
When the wind stirs soft through the springing grass,
And the river flows like a stream of glass;
When the first bird sings and the first bud opes,
And the faint perfume from its chalice steals—
I know what the caged bird feels!
I know why the caged bird beats his wing
Till its blood is red on the cruel bars;
For he must fly back to his perch and cling
When he fain would be on the bough a-swing;
And a pain still throbs in the old, old scars
And they pulse again with a keener sting—
I know why he beats his wing!
I know why the caged bird sings, ah me,
When his wing is bruised and his bosom sore,—
When he beats his bars and he would be free;
It is not a carol of joy or glee,
But a prayer that he sends from his heart’s deep core,
But a plea, that upward to Heaven he flings—
I know why the caged bird sings!

III. Literary reading through its linguistic context

“What is the importance of understanding the way language is used
in a particular text?”
Unlocking of Difficulty
1. linguistic (adjective) - of or relating to language or the study of
language Linguistic factors play a crucial role in understanding
layers of meaning in a text.
2. syntax (noun) - the study of how linguistic elements form
phrases, clauses, or sentences One of the criteria in checking your
written assignment is syntax.
3. structuralism (noun) - literary theory that examines text to a
larger structure Using structuralism as my approach, I will attempt
to analyze “The Cask of Amontillado” as part of the horror genre.
4. formalism (noun) - a school of literary theory focused on
structure, through which a text is examined without exterior
influences Formalism is usually the first approach taught to
students when dealing with literature.
5. poststructuralism (noun) - a school of literary theory that
examines underlying structures in a text that may have varied
interpretations. Poststructuralism began as a response to
structuralism.
Reading selection:
“Hope” is the thing with feathers Emily Dickinson
“Hope” is the thing with feathers –
That perches in the soul –
And sings the tune without the words –

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And never stops – at all –
And sweetest – in the Gale – is heard –
And sore must be the storm –
That could abash the little Bird That kept so many warm –
I’ve heard it in the chillest land –
And on the strangest Sea – Yet – never – in Extremity,
It asked a crumb – of me.

IV. Literary reading strategies in Literature

“What does it mean to critique someone’s work?”
Unlocking of Difficulty
1. critique (noun) - a detailed analysis and evaluation of something
Our literature professor wrote an interesting critique of J.K.
Rowling’s Harry Potter series.
2. arguments (noun) - a set of reasons given to prove a statement or
a stand
I will side with you because you have convinced me with your
arguments.
3. infer (verb) - to form an opinion from evidence; to reach a
conclusion based on facts
Using the data we have gathered, we may infer that the water has
been contaminated by mining activities.
4. annotate (verb) - to make or furnish critical explanatory notes or
comments
Be sure to annotate your source material for easier citation later.
5. defiant (adjective) - refusing to follow something or someone
Fiona was defiant when it comes to following uniform regulations.

Let’s Apply
Guide Questions
A. This may be done with a partner.
1. What is the central image of the poem, “Sympathy”? How is this
used throughout the poem?
2. What does the central image symbolize?
3. What other images or figures of speech help develop this central
theme?
4. How are these related to the times the author lived and wrote in?
5. What aspects of the author’s socio-cultural context can be seen
in his written work?

B. (Reading selection: “Hope”)

1. Who is the persona? What words give clues to his/her
characteristics?
2. What words, grammatical structures, or punctuations stand out?
What effect
do they have on the poem?
3. What is the structure of the text? How does it add meaning?
4. What is the tone? How is it developed?
5. What is the theme? What statement does it make about life?

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Criteria Score:
Content
(The question is answered comprehensively. Textual evidence is
provided to support the given answer.) 6 pts.
Organization
(Logical progression of details/events; clear transitions between
ideas.) 6 pts.
Language
(spelling, mechanics, grammar, and word choice) 3 pts.
Score: /15

Let’s Analyze
A. Read the article below:
Student Backpacks are Literally a Pain
NewsUSA.com
Beware the overstuffed school backpack! If you wonder why
more kids than ever before are complaining about back and neck
pain -- and you should be, what with classes starting up again -
- a likely reason is that they're weighed down by backpacks
crammed with everything from textbooks to laptops to musical
instruments. Consider this: "The federal Consumer Product
Safety Commission calculated that carrying a 12-pound
backpack to and from school and lifting it 10 times a day for an
entire school year puts a cumulative load on youngsters' bodies
of 21,600 pounds," The New York Times reported, "or the
equivalent of six mid-sized cars." No wonder experts warn that
kids are putting themselves at risk of even more serious
conditions like stress fractures in the back, inflammation of
growth cartilage and nerve damage in the neck and shoulders.
"Over time, the heavy weight of a backpack can cause an
unnatural alignment of the spine as students are forced to offset
the pressure by arching the back or bending forward at the hips,"
said Sherry McAllister, DC, executive vice president of the not-
for-profit Foundation for Chiropractic Progress, adding that
students who are already prone to slouching may experience
further pain from sitting at a desk for prolonged periods. Doctors
of chiropractic, who have a minimum seven years of higher
learning, specialize in providing drug-free, hands-on care that
helps to naturally align and strengthen the spine. And since they
also routinely advise on proper body positioning -- especially
important to ensure while children are still growing -- the
foundation knows from whence it speaks on these backpack-
related tips: * Limit packs to no more than 10 percent of a kid's
weight.

1. What is the main idea of the article? What supporting ideas

does it have?
2. What is the article’s tone and purpose? How can this be
inferred?
3. In what context(s) can the article be better understood?
4. Is the article credible? What shows its credibility?

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5. How would you respond or react to the article?

Criteria Score Content

(The question is answered comprehensively. Textual evidence is
provided to support the given answer.) 6 pts.
Organization (Logical progression of details/events; clear
transitions between ideas.) 6 pts.
Language (spelling, mechanics, grammar, and word choice) 3 pts.
Score: /15

Let’s Try (Evaluation)

To relate your learnings to real-world situations:
“We have learned how the use of critical reading strategies allows
us to fully
analyze, interpret, evaluate, and respond to text. How can these
strategies
help and protect us amid rampant distractions and fake news?”

Let’s Create

Read and analyze the selection entitled, “How Self-Publishing

Made this Author a Best-Seller” NewsUSA.com

Criteria
Content (The question is answered comprehensively. Textual
evidence is provided to support the given answer.) 6 pts.
Organization (Logical progression of details/events; clear
transitions between ideas.) 6 pts.
Language (spelling, mechanics, grammar, and word choice) 3 pts.
Score: /15