Attending a ‘Writing the War’ Literature Conference in Year 12, I became aware that literature is something that can be revisited endlessly and is open to a number of interpretations. A writer’s intention is acknowledged, but not passively accepted by the reader; the written word creates an impetus for discussion, deliberation and debate. A reader therefore brings to as well as draws from a text and in this way literature can be approached inexhaustibly. This concept has inspired me to continue its study.
My AS course introduced me to works such as Remarque’s ‘All Quiet on the Western Front’ and focused largely on the poetry of Wilfred Owen. Whilst I appreciated Owen’s intense compassion and complete immersion, I found my favourite poet from this era to be Isaac Rosenberg; though his poetry was largely anti-war, his symbolism implied richer significance. I greatly enjoyed this course, but am eager to discover a greater range of literature, as I will from exploring over 800 years of literature at University.
This zeal to discover more led me to explore a wide range of eras and genres beyond our curriculum. Reading Wilde’s ‘Dorian Gray’ I developed a love for immortality in literature, particularly in gothic fiction. This led me to read Stoker’s ‘Dracula’, which I admired for its sense of realism and the prose of ‘Frankenstein’ independently. I
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This has been excellent practice for independent critical analysis. It has led me to read ‘Brave New World’, drawing parallels between Huxley and Orwell’s satire of social and moral issues, and works of feminist literature such as Sylvia Plath’s ‘The Bell Jar, which I found highly evocative in parodying her personal experiences. I am presently working with a group of able year nines to extend their understanding of dystopian literature, which is mutually