Understanding and Exploring Social Contexts

The following extract is drawn from PETAA Book A Literature Companion for Teachers, 2nd Edition, by Dr. Lorraine McDonald, published in 2018.

Social contexts are inextricably tied to history and culture, and they foreground power relationships in society, particularly noting differences nd inequalities in socio-economic status, in gender and in generational interactions (Cervetti, Pardales & Damico, 2001). The influential weight of each of these sets of discourses varies between periods and raises interesting reflections on how these contexts play out in the lives of student readers. As students engage in revealing the social values, attitudes and beliefs they may have experienced, they can take some control of which discursive positions they choose to take up. 

Reading for social context in literary texts draws attention to the daily lives of the characters and their power and status in relation to each other, their families, communities and country. For example, often in fantasy quest novels it is the youngest and most innocent of the community who has special knowledge or skill to rescue the population from evil or danger. Emily Rodda's fantasy novels such as Rowan of Rin (1993/2003) and Shadows of the Master (2015) are excellent examples of this narrative strategy. This traditional fantasy structure highlights the shifting power relationships that are present moment by moment in lived social contexts. Students can recognise who has power and is given respect through political position, social status, economic wealth, gender and/or generational position; they can also observe who is devalued, ignored or silenced and what aspects of the social contexts contribute to this. 

Social Contexts: A Teaching and Learning Experience

• For any level of students, select one picture books (or two with similar topics) written for young readers. Together, examine how aspects of social contexts are expressed across the text/s.
• Depending on the level of the students, deepen the discussion: ask students to find evidence for how power is distributed and realised through:

- a display of wealth/social comforts
- the communities or groups represented
- the values the groups espouse
- how gender is presented
- how different generations relate to each other

• Guide students to name the belief systems/discourses that seem apparent. Whose interests are being served and who might challenge these?
• Have students share and compare their experience, knowledge or history of any of the discourses.
• Divide students into groups and allocate moments from the chosen text/s that present aspects of the social context that have been discussed. Using the drama strategy of still image/depiction, have groups form a 'still photo' showing the power/status relationships. They can then re-present their depiction and include some verbal text that could accompany the scene using apps or with pen and paper.