Literary Education Theory

Author: Lu Dingyuan
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-12-01
Features: This book argues that literary education should be an important component of language education. As students grow older, the proportion of literary education in language education should increase accordingly. It should not be simply regarded as language education, aesthetic education, or political education, although it contains elements of all these. Fundamentally, literary education is an activity where teachers and students, as readers, engage in spiritual communication with the author through language as the medium and the cultural imagery presented in literary works as the content. The aim is to enrich the spiritual world and build a spiritual home. Literary education is both fragmented and holistic; it is both standardized and unified, yet also diverse and personalized; it is both the transmission of skills and the exchange of souls. The process of literary education is one of comprehension and understanding, freedom and guidance, experience and refinement; it is a process of improving the quality of life and elevating the realm of life. The implementation of literary education requires a renewed understanding of literature and literary education. This book is divided into three main parts.
Part 1 explores theoretical discussions on literature and literary education, including two chapters. The first chapter begins by questioning what literature is from an educational perspective.
Part 2 examines historical experiences in literary education, including chapters 2 and 3. Chapter 2 investigates the long history of literary education in China. Chapter 3 explores the origins of Western literary education and summarizes three types of approaches to mother tongue and literary education in the UK, the US, and Russia.
Part 3 reviews and reflects on the current state of literary education in China, including chapters 4 and 5. Chapter 4 analyzes the status and methods of literary education in China today. Chapter 5 reflects on strategies for improving literary education from perspectives such as theoretical vision, teacher-student agency, and literary educational activities.