Probe: Exploring the Context
Texts do not exist in isolation. It is essential therefore that we don't overlook these opportunities for further readings and explorations beyond the boundaries of the text in order to help us better understand the boundaries of this text.
If there is anything in the text that you're unsure about or want to learn more about, this probe allows for that exploration.
Creating a Probe
There are two types of contexts that can be explored within a text.
- (1a) Reference in the Text: Authors will mention a myriad of things in their work that you may not know. They'll reference movies, songs, poems, other literary works, organizations, laws, historic events, people, places, things, and so much more. As readers, it's important to understand these references and how they connect to the text.
- (1b) Author's Context: The context of the author can be an important influence when consider certain elements of a text. For example, the time period they were living through, how they were raised, what was happening culturally, socially, historically, economically, can all be important factors that influence the creation of a text.
- (2) Influences on the Text: Authors are influenced by other texts. These influences often shapes their own work. As readers we need to be able to recognize these influences, allusions, homages, callbacks, responses, and/or nods that may be made within a text.
So, when creating a probe that explores the context of a text you need to:
- Choose a context - either a reference or influence - to explore within the text.
- Optional: Provide any framing about the probe you've created.
- Select 'readings' that helps us better understand the context.
- At the very least, you need to share two 'readings':
- A text that helps us explore/understand the context.
- Evidence from the actual text that connects to the context.
- Be sure that you choose a rich passage to share.
- You can have your peers find the evidence. Just make sure it is clear what they should be looking for.
- Create guiding question(s) that explore how this context informs our understanding of the text and/or connections to themes within the text or the course.
- You could also work to connect it to:
- Bigger, Common Themes
- Previous Texts
- Analyze the 'readings' in connection to your probe.
- Basically, be ready to discuss answers to your guiding question(s) and how this context informs your understanding of the text. In discussing your text, be sure to be granular in your analysis.
Here is an example of what this probe might look like: