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Emma and Clueless in the ESL Classroom: A comparative study from a Marxist perspective

Jonsson, Norah LU (2016) ÄENC51 20162
Educational Sciences
English Studies
Abstract
This essay provides an understanding of why a teacher of English in Sweden can use the novel Emma (1994) and the film Clueless (1995), in comparison, to describe and use Marxist literary theory in the classroom. As there are various ways of teaching the English language to adolescents, using literature and film provides a chance for teachers to teach new terminology connected to critical theory, and to show how learners can contrast and compare the world with critical eyes. Through comparison of extractions of the famous novel and transcriptions of its contemporary adaptation that was set in the 1990s, learners are given an idea of how Marxism can be used to analyse both then and now. Also, it shows that various issues of social class were... (More)
This essay provides an understanding of why a teacher of English in Sweden can use the novel Emma (1994) and the film Clueless (1995), in comparison, to describe and use Marxist literary theory in the classroom. As there are various ways of teaching the English language to adolescents, using literature and film provides a chance for teachers to teach new terminology connected to critical theory, and to show how learners can contrast and compare the world with critical eyes. Through comparison of extractions of the famous novel and transcriptions of its contemporary adaptation that was set in the 1990s, learners are given an idea of how Marxism can be used to analyse both then and now. Also, it shows that various issues of social class were prominent in both cases, and discussable through the extracts provided, for learners to see the development of the divide between social classes. Although neither of the works are outspokenly Marxist, the ideas of social class are still prominent enough to show, as well as to compare the differences and likenesses. In the end, it was concluded that, although the comparable passages in the novel and film could be used in the setting of an English classroom in Sweden, further research regarding the comparison of the novel and film through their different media was encouraged. This was because of the lack of other essays and articles researching the comparison of Emma and Clueless to be used in a classroom setting, as well as the interesting comparison they proved to possess. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
Jonsson, Norah LU
supervisor
organization
course
ÄENC51 20162
year
type
L3 - Miscellaneous, Projetcs etc.
subject
keywords
ESL, Marxist criticism, Jane Austen, Emma, Clueless
language
English
id
8902073
date added to LUP
2017-02-09 14:29:45
date last changed
2017-02-09 14:29:45
@misc{8902073,
  abstract     = {{This essay provides an understanding of why a teacher of English in Sweden can use the novel Emma (1994) and the film Clueless (1995), in comparison, to describe and use Marxist literary theory in the classroom. As there are various ways of teaching the English language to adolescents, using literature and film provides a chance for teachers to teach new terminology connected to critical theory, and to show how learners can contrast and compare the world with critical eyes. Through comparison of extractions of the famous novel and transcriptions of its contemporary adaptation that was set in the 1990s, learners are given an idea of how Marxism can be used to analyse both then and now. Also, it shows that various issues of social class were prominent in both cases, and discussable through the extracts provided, for learners to see the development of the divide between social classes. Although neither of the works are outspokenly Marxist, the ideas of social class are still prominent enough to show, as well as to compare the differences and likenesses. In the end, it was concluded that, although the comparable passages in the novel and film could be used in the setting of an English classroom in Sweden, further research regarding the comparison of the novel and film through their different media was encouraged. This was because of the lack of other essays and articles researching the comparison of Emma and Clueless to be used in a classroom setting, as well as the interesting comparison they proved to possess.}},
  author       = {{Jonsson, Norah}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  note         = {{Student Paper}},
  title        = {{Emma and Clueless in the ESL Classroom: A comparative study from a Marxist perspective}},
  year         = {{2016}},
}