Cirrus@Austlit

It is important for you to gain knowledge of Australian cultural and literary practice.

Aims

This unit aims to improve your analytical, as well as oral and written communication skills.

Objectives

On completion of this unit you would be able to:

1. Read, understand and appreciate critically various texts drawn from Australia's recent literacy history;

2. Understand and evaluate the ways in which social values and political and artistic movements inform and impact upon the production of literature;

3. Consider and investigate the dichotomy between mainstream writing and marginalized writing as it applies to various groups and periods of literature in Australia's cultural traditions;

4. Understand and appreciate some of the seminal periods of development in Australian literature;

5. Produce a series of writing and seminars of critical and creative nature based on comprehensive analysis of the above objects.

Content

This unit provides you with opportunities to read, explore, discuss and evaluate a number of Australian texts written and published over the last twenty-five years. Upon completing this unit, you will be able to understand and critically interrogate texts pertinent to contemporary Australian culture and society. A special emphasis will be placed upon the regional literature of Queensland and Brisbane. Many of the set texts examine the relationship, in broad terms, between place and perspective, geography and identity. Recent developments in literacy and cultural theory will also be discussed as they apply to changing literacy styles and perspectives. You will have the opportunity to be at the cutting edge of the contemporary, and will be invited to contribute to ongoing debates about the nature and purpose of recent fiction; the attempts to define an Australian literature; the relationship between author, text and publisher; and the emergence of the post-modern.

Approaches to Teaching and Learning

This unit will be conducted via a mixture of lectures, discussions, films and tutorials. Emphasis will also be placed on student research and investigation in relevant areas. In tutorial sessions you will receive feedback from the tutor on assessment items, and tutors will also liaise and consult with you regarding your major assessment.This unit provides you with opportunities to read, explore, discuss and evaluate a number of Australian texts written and published over the last twenty-five years. Upon completing this unit, you are able to understand and critically interrogate texts pertinent to contemporary Australian society and culture.