LESSON 4
Being a critical reader also involves understanding that texts are always developed with a certain
context. A text is neither written nor read in a vacuum; its meaning and interpretation are affected by a
given set of circumstances.
Context is defined as the social, cultural, political, historical, and other related circumstances
that surround the text and form the terms from which it can be better understood and evaluated.
Knowledge of the text’s context helps in appreciating the text’s message more deeply. In discovering a
reading’s context, you may ask questions like:
When was the work written?
What were the circumstances that produced it?
What issues does it deal with?
INTERTEXT
- Intertextuality is the modeling of a text’s meaning by another text. It is defined as the
connections between language, images, characters, themes, or subjects depending on their
similarities in language, genre, or discourse. This is seen when an author borrows and
transforms a prior text, or when you read one text and you reference another. This view
recognizes that the text is always influenced by previous texts and in turn aniticpates future
texts. A text contains many layers of accumulated cultural, historical, and social knowledge,
which continually adds to and affects one another.
Thus, intextuality becomes a dialogue among differe texts and interpretations of the writer, the
audience, and the current and earlier cultural contexts.
Example:
The local legend of folk hero Bernardo Carpio. Many versions of his tale exist, but local folklore
says he is a giant who is the cause of earthquakes. But in greek mythology, there is also Poseidon,
who is the god of the sea and earthquakes
Types of Intertextualities
Obligatory Intertextuality
- It is when the writer deliberately involves a comparison or association between two or more
text.
Example: “To understand the specific context and characterisation within Tom Stoppard’s ‘Rosencrantz
and Guildenstern are Dead’, one must first be familiar with Shakespeare’s ‘Hamlet’ (Mitchell, n.d.). It is
in Hamlet we first meet these characters as minor characters and, as the Rosencrantz and Guildenstern
plot unravels, specific scenes from Hamlet are actually performed and viewed from a different
perspective. This understanding of the hypotext Hamlet, gives deeper meaning to the pretext as many of
the implicit themes from Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are more recognisable in Shakespeare’s Hamlet
(Comhrink, n.d.).”
Optional Intertextuality
- It has a less vital important on the significance of the hyperlinks. It is impossible, but not
essential relationship that if, the
connection will slightly shift the understanding of the text.
- The intent of the writer when sing optional intertextuality is to play homage to the original
writer.
Example: “The use of optional intertextuality may be something as simple as parallel characters or
plotlines. For example, J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter series shares many similarities J. R. R. Tolkien’s Lord
of the Rings trilogy. They both apply the use of an aging wizard mentor (Professor Dumbledore and
Gandalf) and a key friendship group is formed to assist the protagonist (an innocent young boy) on
their arduous quest to defeat a powerful wizard and to destroy a powerful being (Keller, 2013). This
connection is interesting and J.K. Rowling was most likely influenced by other fictional and fantasy
novels. However, this link is not vital to the understanding of the Harry Potter novels.”
Accidental Intertextuality
- It is when readers often connect a text with another text cultural practice or a personal
experience without there being any tangible anchor point within the original text
Example: “Often when reading a book or viewing a film a memory will be triggered in the viewers’
mind. For example, when reading Herman Melville’s ‘Moby Dick’, a reader may use their prior
experiences to make a connection between the size of the whale and the size of the ship. Another
reader could draw deep connections to the Bibilcal allegory Jonah and the Whale, simply from the
mention of a man and a whale. Whilst it was not Melville’s intention to create these links, the readers
have made these connections themselves.”
HYPERTEXT
- It is a non-linear way of showing information. It connects topics on a screen to related information,
graphics, videos, music-information is not simply related to text. This information appears as links
and is usuallly accessed by clicking. The reader can jump to more information about a topic, which in
turn msy have more links. This opens up the reader a wider horizon of information or to a new
direction.
- A reader can skim through section of a text, freely jumping from one part to another depending on
what aspect of the text interests him/her. Thus, in reading with hypertext, you are given more
flexibility and personalization because you get to select the order in which you read the text and
focus on information that is relevant to your background and interests.
Example:
You are doing research about the Philippine eagle. A quick Google search would lead you to a
Wikipedia article on it. Information on it would include a picture and a brief, written description.
While reading about the Philippine eagle, you will also encounter links to its conservation status.
This may lead you to more information about conversation efforts. However, if you were
interested in the appearance of the Philippine eagle because you wanted to sketch it for your arts
class, the same page would provide its physical description and even give you links to pictures and
videos of the Philippine eagle. Thus, depending on your purpose and interests, the article on the
Philippine eagle could lead you to a variety of different, detailed paths.
