Getting 'meta': Reflexivity and literariness in a secondary English literature course

Abstract

This paper investigates how the study of English literature at senior secondary level might be construed in ways that are congruent with current poststructuralist understandings about texts, reading and writing. As an example we analyse an innovative English literature course, whose students develop a theorized understanding of a range of reading practices, which they apply in undertaking a series of readings of literary texts. Students thereby develop a reflexive understanding of their reading and meaning-making and are enabled to critically interrogate the reading positions texts invite readers to adopt. In the current historical moment, when a retreat from theory is being stridently advocated by reductive media-political campaigns, this paper contributes to debates concerning what knowledge about literary texts and reading is valuable and what capacities students can and should develop as readers and writers. By investigating the character of this distinctive English literature course and the kinds of development each task makes possible, we argue for the value of a critical poststructuralist reflexivity in helping students understand the constructive and often contested nature of texts and reflect on their own shaped and shaping role in meaning-making.