Literary Lens Lateral roles

Feminism Finder
ü  How does your own gender affect your view of the text?How
ü  How does the author’s gender affect the way the text is presented?
ü  How are women portrayed in this work?
ü  What stereotypes are being reinforced?
ü  What can you generalize about gender from this text? Does this piece reflect the society in which you live or influence it?
ü  Does the text subvert the role of women? / Archetypal Analyzer
ü  What universal meanings do you see in this text?
ü  What character types/motifs/plots are used by the author and why? (tricksters, heroes, antiheros, Earth Mother, monsters, death/rebirth, circles, water, forest, creation, seasons, gardens, heroic journey, climbing mountains, decent into the abyss, rituals, journey, heavenly bodies, colors, fire, animals, numbers…)
ü  Are these characters, motifs and plots central to the theme? Explain.
ü  Are any rituals of social behavior utilized and how do these rituals move the story forward?
ü  What is the theme of the text, what motifs/leitmotifs do you see?
Marxist Motivator
ü  In the text, do you notice movement from feudalism to capitalism to socialism to communism?
ü  Does one group own the power, exert control over another? Do a few own the most?
ü  Does one class exploit another?
ü  Do you see a differentiation between classes: lower, middle, upper class/ peasants, noble, royal?
ü  Does each class experience an internal struggle is this struggle the seed of its own demise?
ü  Does the working class become aware of their station and predicament, potentially leading to revolution? / Historian
ü  What historical events are of significance to the setting of this text?
ü  How do the text, the author and the cultural context work together to produce meaning? Where is the reader in the equation?
ü  What literary or historical events might have influenced the writer?
ü  Where did the author get the idea for writing this text?
ü  What events in the author’s life impacted the writing of this piece?
ü  What motivates the protagonist and antagonist?
ü  Is the author trying to work out a personal psychological situation in this work?
Deconstruction Diva
ü  What is your lens of the world?
ü  What other lenses do you use to view your world?
ü  What is a lens you are uncomfortable with and how does this change your perspective on a text?
ü  How does changing your lens aid your understanding of author’s purpose, character motivation, effect on the reader? / Structural Seeker
ü  What linguistic patterns are built up and broken down in this text?
ü  How does the author use repetition, contrasts, parallel structure and figurative language to propel his message?
ü  What signs and symbols are used by the author?
ü  How does the author use verb tense/ active- passive voice/point-of-view to enhance his message?
ü  Does the author break conventions to make a point?