NEW REVISED QUESTION:

Question: Can literature change society?

Figure: Shakespeare

“Can Literature Change Society?”: William Shakespeare

Society is evolving in numerous ways day by day and minute by minute, but what are

these impacting factors? ​Literature changes society. We have to look at the bigger picture of how

we live in this world and overlook the current outbreak of media in this era. Society is developed

from education, literature, psychology and many other factors. Shakespeare isn’t just a

well-known writer in this world, but also an inspiring figure to others who have helped shape the

environment of literacy plot and how one views the world. As people we must learn that there

are different interactions and views on change and difference, but we have the opportunity to

choose how we react which can be accomplished through literature.

To investigate how society is changed, one must understand the background behind why

they react the way they do; literature reflects what is going on in the world and is a part of

everyone’s life whether it is apparent or not. “The history of human progress is to a great extent

one of specializations. In almost every field of human endeavor—sports, medicine, music, or

visual arts—we see individuals who aspire to, train for, or simply demonstrate expert levels of

performance” (Benear, Sunday, Davidson, Palmeri, and Gauthier 2019). These authors are

recognizing how different interests motivate a person, and this relates back to how society is

constructed because attitudes and reactions make a difference. Everyone automatically interacts

with difference whereas it may be better to stop and think about the situation to be able to change

our world view and react in a more subtle way​, “ by accepting diversity and ‘difference’ as

current societies’ realities, ‘liberal pluralism’ encourages individuals to see diversity all around
us. The idea that is central to this notion is that all individuals have a natural tendency to want to

belong and therefore, they are willing to look beyond their ‘difference’ in order to feel accepted”

(Srinivasan 2016). Society is filled with diversity and different viewpoints, but this can

sometimes cause a negative reaction from ourselves if one doesn’t stop to evaluate the situation.

One can also look at the opposing side that society changes literature rather than literature

changing society; following up with the theory that Shakespeare is being valued for his impact at

the time versus what we (as society) have made from it. There are two viewpoints that can be

considered when evaluating this idea, with both having fair points and evidence involved.

Shakespeare has led with inspiration and created the english-language for current artists and their

works which is more evidence involving ways in which he has been apart of shaping society.

Not only was Shakespeare’s creation of the english-language beneficial to the world, but also his

famous influence for the King James Bible. This is another example of how Shakespeare has

changed society because Shakespeare held strong involvement for translating the bible which is

very important to many individuals and in this world alone.

Through different artists and complex literature works one is able to get a reflection of

the life they live in, “​literature has had a major impact on the development of society. It has

shaped civilisations, changed political systems and exposed injustice. Literature gives us a

detailed preview of human experiences, allowing us to connect on basic levels of desire and

emotion” (Ismail 2008). This reported message describes a lot of what Shakespeare

accomplished in this world while he also introduced new language, represented as a figure of the

american dream, portrayed romance between teens and much, much more. ​Shakespeare has

created different stories that have been a drawing board for the evolving or more recent artists
like Nicholas Sparks or David Foster Wallace, as he was one of the first to develop storylines

and translate the language of love.

Moving forward, one may find investigations on how literature and learning can be used

to develop social-ecological change by seeing the influence that teaching Shakespeare has on

society rather than what society brings out with Shakespeare’s work. “Here, we review literature

which has an explicit action-oriented focus that discusses outcomes from learning. We focus on

the learning processes that can lead to both types of outcomes: learning outcomes in terms of

cognitive or relational change at the individual level (usually elaborated in psychology) as well

as on broader management and policy change (frequently described in transdisciplinary fields

such as NRM)” (Suskevics, Hahn, Rodela, Macura, Pahl-Wostl 2018). In society we grow up

being taught education on average for 12 years to be able to develop, change, and interact with

the world and people around us; and the fact that Shakespeare is apart of our education today

shows that his work is universal and up for interpretation. This could not be accomplished

without literature as for it mirrors reality and opens us up to new perspectives in numerous

different ways, also known as interpretations. Shakespeare influenced our education in ways that

his plays are almost always studied in english classes and acted as an influence in literacy plot to

many other writers, for example William Faulkner’s ​The Sound and the Fury ​(Rodgers 2017).

Subsequently it is proven that Shakespeare has an eye for psychology, “Shakespeare is

such a towering literary figure that any new insight into the man, or his work, tends to generate a

jolt of excitement in academic and non-academic communities[...]Applying psychological theory

and text-analyzing software, researchers at the University of Texas at Austin have ​discovered​ a

unique psychological profile that characterizes Shakespeare’s established works” (Boyd 2015).
Through Shakespeare’s work one can see how he has created an art form of human reaction

which allows us to evaluate our feelings and the message that is being portrayed. Literature is all

about creating a message or a storyline angled toward and audience and this brings society

together as one. According to the book, ​How Literature Changes the Way We Think​, “literature

and arts emphasizes discovery rather than simple knowledge[...]we discover ways of changing

our lives, as well as ways in which we could come to terms with the often disturbing changes

that we are facing now” (Michael 2012). Shakespeare gives us the opportunity to interpret his

work and create different messages with it through education and the art of literature.

Shakespeare saw the world from a different view than how one may see it today, but because of

this people have the opportunity to grasp an idea of life back then compared to life now.

To sum up, literature is a big factor that plays a role in how our world is shaped and

William Shakespeare has great contribution to this. Literature is considered any form of written

work and can also be referred to as art and Shakespeare is well known for his many different

pieces of written art. Shakespeare’s work originated around the 1600s, but till this day

generations are still studying his famous plays and has now become a part of history. The world

is shaped through history and literature, but in this era our society is more based upon media and

electronics.​ ​“We know what we are, but know not what we may be” - William Shakespeare.
Scholarly journal articles:

Benear, S. L., Sunday, M. A., Davidson, R., Palmeri, T. J., & Gauthier, I. (2019, October 28).
Can Art Change the Way We See?. Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts. Advance
online publication. ​http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/aca0000288

Mack, M. (2012). ​How literature changes the way we think​. London: Continuum International
Publishing Group.

Srinivasan, P. (2016). What we see is what we choose: seers and seekers with diversity.
Pedagogy, Culture & Society,​ ​25(​ 2), 293–307. doi: 10.1080/14681366.2016.1255243

Suškevičs, M., Hahn, T., Rodela, R., Macura, B., & Pahl-Wostl, C. (2017). Learning for
social-ecological change: a qualitative review of outcomes across empirical literature in natural
resource management. ​Journal of Environmental Planning and Management,​ ​61(​ 7), 1085–1112.
doi: 10.1080/09640568.2017.1339594

Other articles:

Ismail, M. (2019, July 24). Literature is the mirror of society. Retrieved from
https://gulfnews.com/general/literature-is-the-mirror-of-society-1.86134

McCrum, R. (2016, April 17). Ten ways in which Shakespeare changed the world. Retrieved
from
https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2016/apr/17/ten-ways-shakespeare-changed-the-world

Rodgers, A. (2019, October 16). 5 Times Shakespeare Changed The World. Retrieved from
https://www.theodysseyonline.com/shakespeare-changed-world
Project #1 Case Study Reflection and
Self-Assessment
Instructions: Please ​copy and paste​ this worksheet to the bottom of your Final Draft of your
Project 1. Then, complete the worksheet. Please do not type directly into this
document--remember to copy and paste it into the end of your own document and then fill it
out.

Part 1:
Please write 300ish words below reflecting on your process of composing this paper and what
you learned in that process​. Address issues including (in no particular order) how completing a
peer review for your peer helped you revise your own project, how your peer’s feedback
helped you revise your project, how this project has helped you better understand the
discourse of your field and profession, what you might still revise in your project if you were
able to do it again, what about your process of writing (brainstorming, drafting, revising,
polishing) was helpful and what might you change in the future about your process, and other
points about your process that you think are relevant for reflection. Be sure that you are
primarily reflecting on your process of writing and not only on what you learned about the
content about which you wrote (although you can address that also). Additionally, be sure you
spend some time on this and be honest with yourself. It is not enough to say “I didn't learn
anything from my peer review” or “I didn’t learn anything about my field or profession”. You
will want to spend some time reflecting because you will be asked to use this reflection again at
the end of the seven weeks. :

I feel that this project and it’s requirements have helped me overall grow as a
writer for many reasons. I really enjoyed the peer reviews process, considering at the
beginning I wasn’t sure how they’d go or if I’d be able to provide feedback. Through
giving a peer review I found insight in me that I didn’t know I was liable to give and this
also opened a new perspective on the writing I did for myself. It was sort of like if I gave
someone else advice I would have to evaluate if I even applied it to myself, this was very
beneficial for me. I also enjoyed receiving peer reviews, getting advice, and different
view points from my own peers because they gave me some great ideas and allowed me
to acknowledge that I was on the right track while providing great suggestions. This
project helped me better understand the discourse of my field by basically allowing me
to understand the whole idea of discourse and disciplines as I wasn’t fully clear on these
concepts. Originally I was focusing on psychology for my discipline (this is currently my
minor), but the route I took with my case study led a little more towards literature
where I’m not as familiar with that discipline. If I was able to do this project again I
would revise it to fit my personal discipline more accordingly, which is communication
sciences and disorders. The brainstorming and drafting I struggled with the most was
developing a question and a figure, it took me a while to grasp onto the goal of a case
 study, as this was my first time creating one. In the future I now understand the idea of
a case study along with discourse and disciplines, therefore I could better develop a
question/topic that’s not too specific within my discipline but still relevant.

Part 2:
Please complete the self-assessment below, including the points and comments section.
Please spend some time on this and complete it honestly with points and comments. I will also
use this when I grade your final product.

Each section is worth 5 points:

5=excellent, 4=good but could be improved, 3=adequate but needs significant work, 2=doesn’t quite meet the
requirements and needs significant work, 1= does not meet any of the requirements.

Category and Goals Points Student Comments Professor Comments

Genre: 5/5 Great work here! I thought you were able to

balance the larger point you were making
● Demonstrates about literature’s influence on society with
careful research and ● I feel that I found some good the example of Shakespeare really well.
evidence for the insight from scholarly articles Overall great work with this genre. I would
through the ASU Library have liked to see you address an issue that is
case study topic website. even more broad (how do we learn ethics? Or
● Demonstrates something like that) that goes outside of the
understanding of ● I didn’t understand what a case discipline of literature, but overall great
study was at the beginning, but work. 4.5/5
genre of case study now at the end of the project I
● Effectively came to realize that the genre
demonstrates is all about analyzing and using
language that fits your
complexity in discipline, but allows for others
exploring your to be open-minded.
question and issue ● I feel that I demonstrated
● Demonstrates complexity by exploring not
engagement with just literature, but by including
psychology and relating
interdisciplinary/disc Shakespeare’s work to modern
iplinary knowledge day and society that all
making disciplines can have a say in.
● Demonstrates
creativity and critical
thinking
● Is sufficiently
developed.
● Shows effective use
of citation
conventions.
Rhetoric: 4/5
● Demonstrates
understanding of
rhetorical situation
and audience needs
in the specific
discourse.
● Demonstrates aim
and engagement
with critical problem
that adds to the
conversation
● Demonstrates
anticipation of genre
and audience
expectations in your
own writing.
Research: 4/5
● Uses sufficient
textual examples
and provides
sufficient evidence
for claims including,
scholarly research
(with at least 5 peer
reviewed journal
articles and primary
sources)
● Demonstrates
analysis of genre,
author/s, purpose,
audience, context,
sources, content
level, format,
language and
visuals.
● Uses sufficient
textual examples.
● Shows effective use
of citation
conventions.
Style/organization​: 4/5
● Demonstrates
careful crafting,
including structure,
with respect for the
primary audience.
● Is sufficiently
developed.
Good work here also! I thought you balanced
your reader’s expectations of the genre with
● I believe that I addressed the the information you provided. I tend to agree
audience openly, but could with your self assessment to a degree here,
improve on how I approach or though, since it needed to be even more
word a lot of my phrases broad. 4.5/5
without making it sound so
inclusive.
● I tried to relate critical
problems to the real world of
society we live in now by
providing examples and
relatable situations.
Good work here! I agree you could have
provided more, but what you did provide
● I provided the minimum gave your piece great ethos. Your citations
amount of scholarly research, are close, but for literature you might have
as I could’ve provided more. used MLA rather than APA. 4.5/5
● I feel that I could work on how
I include my quotations and
evidence into my own
sentences and interpretations
● My quotes and outside sources
could flow better
● I think I show correct use of
citations
Good work here! I didn’t notice any
grammatical issues that detracted from
● I believe I crafted it out in a readability and meaning-making.I do think
way my audience can easily some additional revision to organization
follow along and is sufficiently could have been helpful 4.5/5
developed
● Although I’m not positive my
writing is fully grammatically
correct
 ● Demonstrates clear
writing and is
grammatically and
tone appropriate.
TOTAL: 17/20 18/20

Peer review grade: 5/5 (great work!)

Draft grade: 5/5 (great!)