Document Type

Thesis

Degree

Master of Arts

Major

English

Date of Defense

4-18-2017

Graduate Advisor

Suellynn Duffey

Committee

Suellynn Duffey

Kathleen Nigro

Lauren Obermark

Abstract

Through traditional scholarship and an analysis of survey data collected from undergraduate literature students at the university, I investigate the ways in which pedagogies of composition and disability studies can be incorporated into the teaching of literature. Historically, literary scholarship has not focused on issues of pedagogy to the degree that other divisions within English Studies have done, and it is therefore necessary to determine what gaps exist, if any, and how they might be bridged. For example, composition pedagogies often emphasize active, student-based teaching paradigms that are rooted in students’ personal experiences and the kind of writing that interests them. Additionally, disability studies pedagogies place at the forefront the importance of access (physically, mentally, and emotionally) when designing courses, classroom spaces, and daily activities. This type of engagement with students promotes a fluid, open atmosphere in which individual needs and learning styles are assessed and foregrounded. It is my argument that these tenets, combined with the feminist centering of agency and social justice recently advocated by many composition scholars, should be central to every classroom, including or especially literature courses, in which problematic texts are often read and sensitive topics can be ill-handled.

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