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In this thesis – concerning didactics of literature – I perform a reading and theoretical analysis of two pivotal works within reader-response theory, more precisely: Literature as Exploration (1938) and The Reader, the Text, the Poem – The Transactional Theory of the Literary Work (1978), both written by Louise M. Rosenblatt. The object of this analysis is to examine whether Rosenblatts’ theory and methodology can be used to accomplish understanding for ”the other”, what Martha C. Nussbaum have called ”narrative imagination”. For a theoretical basis I use postcolonial theory, implicating a poststructuralistic och constructivistic understanding of language and linguistics. The reader-oriented theory and methodology of Rosenblatt – what she calls an aesthetic transaction, or a ”total situation” – has been discussed as problematic in relation to ”narrative imagination” mainly because reader has to be understood as centered, i.e. to be able to understand why a reader performs a specific reading Rosenblatt focus is fixed on the reader her-/himself, ignoring the linguistic, social and discursive context surrounding her/him. I have, with reference to postcolonial theory made the argument that teaching literature must be understood as a discursive practice in which context and discourse limits and influences the readers’ perception and appreciation, and thereby found Rosenblatts method restricted and unsatisfactory. Finally I have, in the light of the results above, proposed a postcolonial version of ”narrative imagination” in which ambitions to understand ”the other” is not formulated in terms of personal, empathic and cosmopolitic cultivation, but rather a reflective practice in which the limitations and principles of discourse is taken into account. A certain attitude or a certain reading must be recognized as a concretion of an institutional (social and linguistic) order of thought. This is a theoretical aspect that needs to be considered in future research, as well as in the classroom.

This essay aims to examine the applicability and relevance of subjective reader response in relation to second language (L2) motivation within literature education in the classroom of English as a Foreign Language (EFL). With support from previous research within the field of reader response theory (RRT), this essay argues that a subjective reader response approach contributes to increasing students’ motivation in relation to literature education Thus, this essay answers the following questions: 1) Does subjective reader response contribute to creating motivation among students in EFL (literature) teaching, and if so, how can this theory be implemented? 2) Does subjective reader response support students’ construction of what Zoltán Dörnyei refers to as “Ideal L2 self”? 3) What are the main benefits of using a reader response approach? The results support the hypothesis that a subjective reader response approach contributes to increasing students’ motivation in relation to literature education. Additionally, the study shows that the self-explorative nature of subjective reader response enables students to construct their “Ideal L2 self”.

How can a character from a children’s book become so divisive that he causes arguments amongst adults? This essay uses transactional reader response theory to explain the reason why the character Severus Snape from the Harry Potter book series by J.K. Rowling is so controversial. Applying notions from reader response theorists such as Rosenblatt and Iser together with earlier research on Snape will show how the reader’s opinion is affected by both the text itself and their own personal experience. A poll was created and posted on Facebook with over a thousand replies. This data is analysed and used to apply the theory on real examples. The conclusion of the essay is that Snape is both good and bad. He acts heroically but is also vindictive and petty. Snape is perhaps the most human of all Rowling’s characters and each reader recognises a little of themselves in him that they can relate to. Because of ongoing arguments regarding Snape readers have to constantly defend their opinion. As the opinion is re-evaluated it is also strengthened each time readers reconsider the story of Snape and, like Snape himself once asked Professor Quirrell to do, decide where their loyalties lie.

Mot bakgrund av att det finns en diskrepans mellan poesiläsningen i skolan och gymnasieungdomars fritidsläsning av poesi är syftet med studien att ge ett kunskapsbidrag om vilka spår av svenskämnet som kan urskiljas ur ungdomars samtal om den lyrik de läser på fritiden. För att möta studiens syfte har följande frågeställningar besvarats (1) Vad präglar gymnasieungdomars val av lyrik? (2) Hur präglas lyriksamtalen av ämnesspecifikt språk? (3) Vad kan framträda i lyriksamtal när gymnasieungdomar själva väljer lyrik utifrån vad de läser på fritiden? Metoden som användes var fokusgruppsamtal med 16 ungdomar som läser kursen svenska 3. För att analysera resultatet användes reader-response som teori. Resultatet visar att det som präglar ungdomarnas val av lyrik finns både utanför och innanför texten. Ungdomarna använde sig av ämnesbegrepp för att konceptualisera texternas innehåll och form. Det som präglar ungdomarnas samtal om texterna är främst enskilda och gemensamma tolkningar där meningsfullhet behandlas som en viktig aspekt. Vidare är ungdomarna måna om att det ska råda en samstämmighet i tolkningarna. / In the light of the fact that there is a discrepancy between poetry reading in school and upper secondary youth's leisure reading of poetry, the purpose of the study is to provide a contribution to research about which traces of the Swedish subject can be found from young people's conversations about the poetry they read in their spare time. To reach the aim of the study the following questions have been answered (1) What characterizes the students’ choices of lyricism? (2) How are the text discussions characterized by subject specific terms? (3) What can appear in text discussions when the students choose lyricism from what they read on their spare time? The method used was focus group discussions with 16 upper secondary school students taking the class Svenska 3. To analyze the result reader-response criticism was used as theoretical framework. The result shows what characterizes the discussions about lyricism is both found outside and within the texts. The students used subject specific terms to conceptualize the texts’ contents and shapes. What characterizes the discussions are mainly individual and mutual interpretations where meaningfulness is addressed as a significant aspect. Furthermore, the students are seeking a unanimous interpretation of the texts.

In this dissertation it is argued that literary theories have traditionally extended abundant attention on authors and texts, neglecting, with very few exceptions, the impor- tant role of the READER. To address this imbalance, par- ticular attention will be paid to the view of Wolfgang Iser, that a literary text can only elicit a response when it is read, and that it is virtually impossible to describe this response without also analysing the READING PROCESS. I share this view as it makes logical sense: a literary text remains meaningless, a mere 'paper and ink' production without the involvement of the reader. It is also the reader's own com- petence, his sense of aesthetic perception which enables him to make sense of the, in the literary text embedded message, hence the title: "The Nature of Aesthetic Perception in Literature. The Interaction between Text and Reader in the Process of Perceiving Literary Texts." / Afrikaans & Theory of Literature / M.A. (Theory of Literature)

Play in the school setting is a highly contested issue in today's restrictive academic environment. Although many early childhood educators advocate the use of play in their classrooms and emphasize the importance of play for children's learning and development, children beyond the preschool and kindergarten years are not often afforded opportunities to learn through play in their classrooms. This eight-month study, conducted in a first grade classroom in the outskirts of the Phoenix Metropolitan area of Arizona, analyzed young children's playful responses to literature as they read various books together in the classroom context. The purpose of this study was to develop deep understandings about the affordances of play in response to text within a first grade classroom and to investigate the ways that children utilize play to respond to literature and to construct meaning. This dissertation is informed by these guiding research questions: What are the affordances of play for responding to text in a first grade classroom? 1. What are the sociocultural resources that children use to respond to text? 2. In what ways do first graders incorporate and utilize play to make meaning with texts and each other in the classroom? In order to answer these research questions, I utilized several theoretical frameworks including: sociocultural theories of learning and literacy, the role of play and imagination in development, funds of knowledge, and reader response theories. This study was also informed by recent research findings in the areas of play and culture and play and literacy. I implemented a classroom Reading Center wherein I studied children's cooperative reading transactions and play as reader response. I collected data through classroom observations and field notes, videotaped and transcribed transactions, audiotaped and transcribed conversations and interviews, artifact collection, teacher observations of responsive play, family home visits and interviews, and the use of family story backpacks. This data, analyzed through thematic analysis, the constant comparative method, and grounded theory, revealed rich information about the ways that children utilize play to respond to literature in the classroom setting. The findings of this study provide evidence to suggest that through their play as reader response, their responsive play, children create a social space in the classroom which connects official school literacy practices and academic instruction with their social play practices. In this new space, children's play and talk take central roles in their explorations and uses of literacy. Findings further suggest that play can be seen as a generative source of academic learning, that the notion of response in research and practice be reconceived in the field to include play as a valid and valued form of reader response, and suggest that further research be conducted on children's responsive play.