Criticism of Literature

Essay format; 2000 words; Harvard style referencing.

Assessment Task: Write an essay on one of

the following topics:
Note: texts recommended for this task are listed in the
Unit Guide and at the end of this page
Remember to include at least 4 scholarly sources (peer-
reviewed journal articles, book chapters or books) in your
essay to support your main argument.
You cannot write on a text that you have already written
on for Assessment 2.

1. Consider how questions of race and cultural difference are

addressed in any two of the listed texts. You should clearly identify
the conceptual framework (from postcolonial and/or multicultural
theory) which informs your discussion.

2. Power and politics appear in children’s books in disguised forms,

often through narratives involving conflict or comparisons
between characters with different life experiences and points of
view. Drawing on Marxist or postcolonial theory, discuss how
questions of class, power and politics are addressed in any two of
the listed texts.

3. Select two texts that thematise gay and/or lesbian identities from
the list above. Consider how these texts represent homosexuality,
 drawing on your reading of queer theory or studies in gay/lesbian
literary theory.

4. Select any two children’s texts which draw on ecocentric concepts.

How do these texts position child readers in regard to notions of
environmental decay, human responsibility and imagined futures?

Primary Text List

Novels
Abdel-Fattah, Randa 2005, Does my head look big in this? Pan Macmillan, Sydney.
Blackman, Malorie 2006, Noughts & Crosses, Corgi, Croydon.
Brugman, Alyssa 2002, Walking Naked, Allen & Unwin, Crows Nest.
Burnett, Frances Hodgson 2009, The Secret Garden, Puffin, London. (Or any other edition)
Crossan, Sarah 2012, Breathe, Greenwillow, New York.
Crutcher, Chris 2007, Deadline, Harper Collins, New York.
Gardener, Scott 2003, Burning Eddy, Pan Macmillan, Sydney.
Green, John 2008, Paper Towns, Dutton Books, Boston.
Howell, Simmone 2008, Everything Beautiful, Bloomsbury, New York.
Larbalestier, Justine 2009, Liar, Allen & Unwin, Crows Nest, N.S.W.
Lee, Mackenzi 2017, The Gentlemen’s Guide to Vice and Virtue, Katherine Tegen Books, New York.
Marsden, John 2003, While I Live: The Ellie Chronicles, Pan Macmillan, Sydney.
Morgan, Lara 2010, The Rosie Black Chronicles: Genesis, Walker Books, Newtown, N.S.W.
Starke, Ruth 2008, Noodle Pie, Omnibus Books, Norwood, S.A.
Summers, Courtney 2015, All the Rage, St. Martin's Griffin, New York.
Wilkinson, Lili 2009, Pink, Allen & Unwin, Crows Nest, NSW.
Zusak, Markus 2005, The Book Thief, Picador, London.

Picture books
Baker, Jeannie 2004, Belonging, Walker Books, London.
Base, Graeme 2006, Uno’s Garden. Penguin, Camberwell, Vic.
Browne, Anthony (Any picture book by Browne)
Macaulay, David 1990, Black and White, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, Boston.
Ottley, Matt 2007, Requiem for a Beast: A Work for Image, Word and Music, Hachette Livre Australia,
Sydney.
Tan, Shaun (Any book by Tan, please consult your tutor about your choice)

Graphic novels
Folman, Ari 2018, Anne Frank's Diary: The Graphic Adaptation, Pantheon Books, New York.
Krosoczka, Jarrett J. 2018, Hey, Kiddo, Graphix, New York.
Medina, Tony 2017, I Am Alfonso Jones, Lee & Low Books, New York.
Wilson, W 2014, Ms. Marvel (at least five issues), Marvel, New York.

Verse novels
Alexander, Kwame & Hess, Mary Rand 2018, Swing, Zondervan, Grand Rapids, Mich.
Levithan, David 2004, The realm of possibility, Knopf, New York.