Contemporary Literary Theory Analysis

Introduction

A theory is a suppostition of a system of ideas intended to explain something, especially one based on general principles independent of the thing to be explained. However, for education, a theory is an umbrella term that is being comprised of a number of theories, rather than just a single explanation of how we learn or should teach. In this case, contemporary literary theory is a collection of theoretical approaches that mark various premises. As for feminist/gender theory, it is easily malleable and influenced by society’s ideas about what it means to be male or female in their culture. Therefore, these are two specific theories that can uncover and explore these ideologies that can be seen throughout literature allowing students

Nevertheless, the contemporary literary theory, as Appleman (2015) states, “literary theories provides lenses that can sharpen one’s vision and provide alternative ways of seeing.” (p. 22) Therefore, these critical lenses will provide students, teacher’s, to perceive a different perspective of how to read their world. Student’s will be taught explicitly, which can lead to multiple contexts such as culture, curriculum, classroom, personal experience, prior kowledge, and politics. The teacher will introduce the students’ to a knowledge of becoming enlightened witnesses. They will be able to critize the texts with the ultimate authority of teaching different ways of reading. As Appleman (2015) mentioned, “literary theory provides the interpretive tools young people need to recognize and “read” those cultural forces.” (p. 30) Therefore, the contemporary literary theories will guide students to understand the texts and the outside world with different

In doing so, I would like to introduce to the short story, A Soldier’s Home, because it will describe the social expectations of a male character. Even though it will talk about all the “expecations” a real man has to achieve, the main character feels trapped. However, this story will also talk about the mother and the sister and how they wanted for him to be meaningful even if there is contraversy in doing so. The students, will be able to view, “the gender expecatations of males… a man who was very distraught and almost frantic.” (Appleman, 2015, p. 96) Therefore, this dimension will put men in a women’s shoes, as women are portrayed in most texts, and give insight to the students of the difference of the roles