Literatura y competencia comunicativa: Matrimonio mal avenido?

Abstract

This article addresses the problematic relationship between teaching literature and communicative approach, specifically between learning literature and developing communicative competence. From this diagnosed tension, the following questions arise: Is it plausible to teach literature while developing communication skills?; is literature compatible with a communicative approach? These questions consider a premise: understanding literature as a domain with different characteristics. Therefore, from a literary and educational perspective, I have tested the working hypothesis that it is possible to develop communicative competence without neglecting the specificity and potential of literature. To this end, various texts are analyzed in relation to lexical-semantic, textual, discursive, socio-cognitive and cultural sub-competencies. While a single work could be analyzed in terms of all these sub competencies, they are considered separately for the purposes of research. The analysis includes mainly narrative and some lyrical texts, regardless of age. This reveals that it is feasible to develop sub competencies at different educational levels, although adjusting the relevance of texts and didactic treatment. At the end, it is concluded that it is possible to combine communicative competence and literature considering the specific emphasis of the literary and its consequent didactic derivations.