Reading Literature Supports Cognitive and Emotional Development. A Practical Realization on the basis of Zora Neale Hurston’s Their Eyes Were Watching God

摘要

The thesis reflects on how literature can provide new understandings in regards to how weconceive ourselves and the world. Further, it directs attention to the need to strengthen students’response to the cognitive, emotional and aesthetic aspects of the literary text. This thesis suggeststhat literature can be used to address important social aspects which a class might encounter. Iillustrated my claims through Zora Neale Hurston’s acclaimed Their Eyes Were Watching God. Iconnected issues of identity, race and gender roles from the text with students’ life. The intentionis to provide a way of thinking about some important and recurring issues that most teachers willneed to address. It examines broad teaching approaches as writing, discussions and visualizingresponses. This thesis suggests that reading can be a means of developing intelligent awareness ofrace and gender issues in the students’ own lives.