Welcome to Critical Worlds: A Targeted Introduction to Literary Analysis. This book was created for my English 211: Literary Analysis course at the College of Western Idaho.  Here is the catalog description of the course:

“This course refines literary analysis skills with emphasis on critical approaches and methods. Students will learn techniques in literary research and apply researched, critical perspectives to a variety of texts.” (CWI)

This textbook is designed for English literature and creative writing majors, especially those planning to transfer to a four-year institution. Our English 211 course also meets the Research and Writing requirement for Liberal Arts majors. One of my primary goals is to prepare you for the work you will do in upper-division literature courses. To accomplish this goal, we will do a substantial amount of reading and writing each week. We will explore literary analysis, a variety of theoretical approaches to literature, and some basic information on literary research. The culmination of this class will be a group-produced critical edition Pressbooks publication, Beginnings and Endings: A Critical Edition.

How This Book Is Organized

The book is organized in sections that “target” a specific approach to literary analysis. Each section in this book will do the following:

1. Introduce the critical lens(es), terminology, and scholars associated with this form of criticism.
2. Engage with an example of a scholarly article from this critical method.
3. Explain how to apply the theory to a specific literary text.
4. Provide an example of how terminology can be used for this lens using a generative artificial intelligence “model” essay. I will also engage in a dialogue with the model essay to show you the limitations and strengths of generative AI in academic writing.
5. Demonstrate how students can use the critical lens with a student essay example.
6. Encourage students to practice the critical lens through texts and guiding questions. In some cases, these guiding questions will encourage the use of generative AI to explore the texts.
7. Provide a narrated lecture with notes to help introduce and review concepts for online students.

Learning Outcomes

This book was designed to incorporate the course outcomes for English 211, which include the following:

1. Consider a wide range of alternatives to a habitual way of approaching texts
2. Analyze literature with attention to style and form as well as content
3. Use accepted methods of literary research and MLA documentation to integrate others’ ideas respectfully, accurately, and critically
4. Apply a variety of critical strategies in responding to literature
5. Write literary analysis essays using critical approaches and incorporating the ideas of others
6. Discuss the significance of cultural, historical, thematic, and theoretical perspectives in interpreting literature
7. Deliberate over the kinds of political interpretations made when reading and writing about literature

OER Philosophy and Use of Generative AI

This text represents a collaboration, reuse, and sharing of others’ Creative Commons licensed content, including student work. As much as possible, I have tried to create a text with diverse perspectives and writing styles.  I invite you to provide feedback as well as using, reusing, or remixing any of the materials in this text in accordance with the terms of their Creative Commons licenses.

As I was writing this textbook, ChatGPT and other new generative artificial intelligence technologies were introduced. I decided to explore how these tools could assist in developing content for OER. I also am experimenting with these tools in crafting assignments for students.

I acknowledge that ChatGPT does not respect the individual rights of authors and artists and ignores concerns over copyright and intellectual property in its training; additionally, I acknowledge that the system was trained in part through the exploitation of precarious workers in the global south. In this work I specifically used ChatGPT to assist me in outlining chapters, explaining basic terminology, drafting model essays, and creating student prompts. I have included links to the chats I used for this book in an appendix.

Fair Use Statement

Unless otherwise indicated, third-party texts, images, and other materials quoted in these materials are included on the basis of fair use as described in the Code of Best Practices for Fair Use in Open Education.

Accessibility

I created this textbook with accessibility in mind. Instructors can upload the whole text to online learning systems, such as Blackboard, Canvas, and Google Classroom. Because reliable internet access is a problem in rural areas of Idaho where some of my students live, the book can be downloaded in multiple formats including PDF and EPUB or MOBI files. It can also be accessed through text-to-speech readers provided through your learning institutions or other common text to speech tools, such as Read Aloud and Dragon. All videos have subtitles/closed captioning. I have included an accessiblity check as part of my revision process. If you encounter any issues, please use the feedback form at the end of this book to report them.

Land Acknowledgement

I would like to acknowledge the traditional and ancestral lands of the Shoshone-Bannock and the Shoshone-Paiute tribes on which I am teaching, learning, and working today. The struggle for Indigenous rights is deeply connected to human rights. It is important that the stories and traditions from tribal nations are heard, celebrated, and protected.

Professional Acknowledgements

I would like to thank the following people/entities:

• Jonathan Lashley, Associate Chief Academic Officer, Idaho State Board of Education
• Open Pedagogy + Advocacy + Leadership in Idaho Fellowship
• Apurva Ashok, Program Manager, Rebus Foundation
• Greg Wilson, Assistant Dean of General Education and OER Coordinator, College of Western Idaho
• Joy Palmer, Department Chair of English, College of Western Idaho
• Joel Gladd, Department Chair of Integrated Studies, College of Western Idaho
• Jason Roach, OER librarian at the College of Western Idaho
• My wonderful students and writer friends who have contributed to this book.

About the Author

I am an author, educator, and mother of four children, one of whom has bipolar disorder. My book, The Price of Silence: A Mom’s Perspective on Mental Illness (Hudson Street Press, 2014), was a “Books for a Better Life” award winner. My essays have appeared in USA Today, the Huffington Post, Psychology Today, Time.com, The Mighty, MindBodyGreen, Good Men Project, and Boise State University’s The Blue Review, among others. Since my essay “I Am Adam Lanza’s Mother” went viral, I have appeared on the Today Show, Good Morning America, Erin Burnett Out Front, Anderson Cooper 360, Don Lemon, Dr. Oz, the Diane Rehm Show, NPR’s Weekend Edition, and other programs. I presented talks on children’s mental health and stigma at TEDx San Antonio in October 2013 and at the National Council for Behavioral Health in March 2016. I was featured in the Peabody award-winning HBO documentary A Dangerous Son in May 2018 and participated in the 2019 Columbine documentary, An American Tragedy.

I hold a B.A. in Classics from Brigham Young University (1994); an M.A. in Classics from the University of California, Los Angeles (1997), and an Ed.D. in Organizational Leadership from Argosy University (2016). My dissertation research focused on mental health advocacy and leadership strengths. I am a former Department Chair of Integrated Studies and current assistant professor of English at the College of Western Idaho. I am passionate about inclusivity and diversity and believe that education has the power to change lives for the better. You can contact me here: lizalong@cwi.edu. 

Creative Commons Licensing

This book is licensed under a Creative Commons as CC BY NC 4.0. Parts of this book may be All Rights Reserved, so please check the licensing of creative texts before reusing or remixing them.