AustLit

This subject explores the relationship between writing and ideology: the philosophical, cultural and political modes that affect creative production. In this subject, you will consider the implications of writing fiction in historical contexts as well as contemporary Australian society. Specifically, you will reflect on questions of textual power: What is the relationship between ideology and textual structure? How can a writer resist implicit textual control? And questions of responsibility: What is the writer’s relationship with his/her culture? Does the writer have an ethical duty to his/her audience? You will explore these questions through two approaches: by analysing existing literary texts in the light of critical theory and by applying the ideas discussed to your own writing.