Student-Driven Imitation as a Means to Strengthening Rhetorical Agency—Or, Propelling Quintilian’s Chapter on Imitation into Today’s Teaching

Matthiesen, Christina

doi:10.1080/15362426.2016.1186579

Cited by 5 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 9 publications

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“…Following the selection of a model text, careful analysis of the model and deciding upon a manageable target that focused on imitating certain aspects of the model text (as opposed to adopting an all-encompassing approach) is emphasized in our collection books on Chinese composition. This point is also made in the English literature (Brinkman, 2010;Geist, 2005;Matthiesen, 2016). In a very early illustration of how creative imitation can work in a college composition class, D'Angelo (1973) reported that he chose Irwin Shaw's short story The eighty yard run and did a fine analysis of the introductory paragraph with his class at stylistic, structural, syntactic, and lexico-grammatical levels.…”

Section: Similarities Between Chinese and Western Practices In Using ...mentioning

confidence: 88%

“…Suggesting that "imitation is an elusive term at best," Farmer and Arrington (1993) offered a working definition of imitation in the realm of writing instruction: "imitation is the approximation, whether conscious or unconscious, of exemplary models, whether textual, behavioral, or human, for the expressed goal of improved student writing" (p. 13). Overall, the literature that features imitation in English L1 writing pedagogy seems mostly old (published sparsely between the 1970s and the 1990s) (e.g., Corbett, 1971;Farmer & Arrington, 1993;Flanigan, 1980;Kehl, 1986), although there is some more recent scholarly interest (e.g., Eisner & Vicinus, 2008a;Matthiesen, 2016;Vandenberg, 2011). Together, the old and more recent literature reveals insights along several lines, as elaborated below.…”

Section: Imitation In Western Rhetoric and Writing Pedagogymentioning

confidence: 98%

“…(Flanigan, 1980, p. 211). It was the very foundation of rhetorical instruction from Plato's Greece to Quintilian's Rome and it continued to be practiced throughout the Middle Ages (Corbett, 1971;Farmer & Arrington, 1993;Matthiesen, 2016;Swearingen, 1999;Vandenberg, 2011). From the late 18th century, while writing pedagogy began to be dominated by "rules of proper writing and instruction" (Geist, 2005, p. 171), "a common mimetic element" carried on in the 19th century European literature (Macksey, 1996(Macksey, , p. 1057.…”

Section: Imitation In Western Rhetoric and Writing Pedagogymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The five-step model was effective with university students, but Geist (2005) proposed that the method would work optimally in a high school setting. At another Danish university, drawing insights from Quintilian's (1996) discussion of imitation, Matthiesen (2016) developed a student-driven imitation pedagogical model that consisted of five dimensions: a student's fascination with a potential target text is the starting point; the student should then analyze the text to identify features worth imitating; this is followed by a critical reflection of the text's strengths and weaknesses; the critical reflection is then taken further, with the assessment of the text possibly adjusted or transformed; and lastly, the student interacts with the text "by reusing, twisting, and building upon the subject of the chosen text" (p. 221). Overall, Matthiesen (2016) pointed out that the proposed pedagogy was "characterized by the student's own choice of text, valuing reflexive process over mirroring, and strengthening rhetorical agency" (p. 208).…”

Section: Imitation In Western Rhetoric and Writing Pedagogymentioning

confidence: 99%

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“The stone from another mountain can help to polish jade”

Chen

Meng

et al. 2022

L1-ESLL

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In L1 writing instruction, imitation pedagogy is potentially practiced in different parts of the world, yet there has been very little communication among practitioners and researchers on this topic. In the study to be reported in this paper, we aimed to answer the question “How is imitation recommended as a writing pedagogy in a sample of books on Chinese L1 composition?” Discussions of how to use imitation as a writing pedagogy were extracted from a sample of 41 books on Chinese L1 composition to form a dataset of 68,700 Chinese characters. Qualitative content analysis was applied to the dataset in NVivo 12 using a data-driven approach and resulted in a coding structure. In the paper we focus on elaborating two dimensions of our coding structure that addressed the research question in a practical light: “Implementing the imitation pedagogy” and “Going beyond imitation to achieve innovation.” Our findings point to similarities between Chinese and Western practices in using imitation as a writing pedagogy, and highlight a distinction between imitation and plagiarism made in the dataset as well a range of strategies recommended for going beyond imitation to achieve innovation. It is hoped that our paper would contribute to exchanges on L1 writing education between China and the rest of the world.

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Section: Similarities Between Chinese and Western Practices In Using ...mentioning

confidence: 88%

Section: Imitation In Western Rhetoric and Writing Pedagogymentioning

confidence: 98%

Section: Imitation In Western Rhetoric and Writing Pedagogymentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Imitation In Western Rhetoric and Writing Pedagogymentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

“The stone from another mountain can help to polish jade”

Chen

Meng

et al. 2022

L1-ESLL

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“…There are contemporary advocates of the place of the classical notion of imitation, and the use of the progymnasmata, in the contemporary classroom (for example, Minock 1995;Geist 2005;Enos 2016;Fleming 2016;Matthiesen 2016). In general, these authors offer limited re-framing of classical imitation for the contemporary classroom, and tend to make well-reasoned arguments about its sustained applicability.…”

Section: Classical 'Imitatio' As a Learning Toolmentioning

confidence: 99%

Texts that teach: Examining the efficacy of using texts as models

Myhill¹,

Jones²,

Lines³

2018

L1 Educational Studies in Language and Literature

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The classical rhetorical tradition advocated imitation as a tool for learning to be an effective orator, and thus foregrounded the pedagogical importance of using texts as models. More recent contemporary research has also flagged the value of using texts as models, enabling explicit attention to how texts work, and scaffolding students' learning about writing. Despite some empirical evidence which points to the efficacy of this approach there is little detailed evidence of how the use of texts as models plays out in classrooms or what pedagogical practices are most supportive of student learning. Drawing on a funded four-year study, including a qualitative longitudinal project following four cohorts of students over three school years, this paper attempts to redress this gap. Through a detailed analysis of episodes of teachers using texts as models, it argues that it is critical to understand the pedagogical actions of teachers using texts as models to avoid text models being a straitjacket, constraining learning about writing, rather than possibilities for creative emulation. We highlight the fundamental importance of establishing a link between linguistic choice and rhetorical purpose so that young writers are inducted into the craft of writing, and empowered to make their own authorial choices.

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