Literature

English

VCE

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VCE Literature focuses on the meanings derived from texts, the relationships between texts, the contexts in which texts are produced, and how readers’ experiences shape their responses to texts.

In VCE Literature students develop and refine four key abilities through their engagement with texts. These are:

  • an ability to offer an interpretation of a whole text (or a collection of texts)
  • an ability to demonstrate a close analysis of passages or extracts from a text, in consideration of the whole text
  • an ability to understand and explore multiple interpretations of a text
  • an ability to respond creatively to a text.

Students are provided with opportunities to read deeply, widely and critically; to appreciate the aesthetic qualities of texts; and to write creatively and analytically. VCE Literature enables students to examine the historical, social and cultural contexts within which both readers and texts are situated.

This study enables students to:

  • enjoy reading a range of challenging literary texts
  • approach unfamiliar texts and negotiate diverse literary territories with confidence
  • explore the ways in which authors craft their writing
  • recognise there are many possible ways of interpreting literary texts
  • develop their own responses to texts, recognising the impact of form, features and language in the creation of meaning
  • write creatively and critically, and develop their individual voice
  • consider the views of others, including when developing interpretations
  • express their ideas, through all language modes, with insight and flair.

 

Assessment activities

  • close analyses of passages from texts
  • essays (comparative or analytical)
  • debates
  • reading journal entries
  • in-class seminars
  • creative responses to a texts
  • oral or written reviews
  • multimedia responses
  • written interpretations of texts
  • comparisons of texts with adapted versions

Selection advice

The study of VCE Literature fosters students’ enjoyment and appreciation of the artistic and aesthetic merits of stories and storytelling, and enables students to participate more fully in the cultural conversations that take place around them. By reading and exploring a diverse range of established and emerging literary works, students become increasingly empowered to discuss texts. As both readers and writers, students extend their creativity and high-order thinking to express and develop their critical and creative voices. Units 1 and 2 Literature are prerequisites for Units 3 and 4 Literature.

Links to further pathways

Throughout this study, students deepen their awareness of the historical, social and cultural influences that shape texts and their understanding of themselves as readers. Students expand their frameworks for exploring literature by considering literary forms and features, engaging with language, and refining their insight into authorial choices.