‘The gun went off’:

Teaching the Writing of Violence

This essay was published in TEXT (Volume 12, no 2, October 2008), the Journal of Writing and Writing Courses.

Abstract:

This essay canvasses a range of literary approaches to the writing of violence in fiction. It analyses practical modes of writing violence in contemporary novels: violence from the perspective of a witness or victim; the creation of psychic distance; focalisation through a ‘less-violent’ character; and violence as allegory. It also discusses the implications of violent student writing for the university classroom in the context of authorial responsibility, cultural studies and the potential scope and function of the writing workshop.

 

Read the whole essay here: http://www.textjournal.com.au/oct08/kissane.htm