Living Literature

This bold and timely book challenges the recent and worrying decline of English Literature A Level and presents a set of cardinal principles that should underpin successful teaching and learning in the subject.

Expert contributors make the case that English Literature at A Level is in danger of losing touch with its distinctive and living character as it has evolved over time and present a radical, democratic reaffirmation of the core principles of the subject. This reaffirmation underlines a commitment to textual knowledge and personal engagement in Literature.

Living Literature: Sharing Meaning and Experience in the A Level Classroom begins by tracing the history of how English Literature A Level has reached its current state. It then offers 13 fascinating personal reflections on the teaching of individual texts in the context of that situation, 12 from a range of teachers across the country at different points in their careers and 1 from a recent student. It concludes with a joint statement on the rethinking that is essential if the subject is firmly to re-establish its own distinctive place in the curriculum.

Teachers of English Literature at every stage of their careers will find this an essential, urgent read, as will policymakers and researchers.