Pedagogical Stylistics

Pedagogical stylistics applies stylistic methods and frameworks to teaching. It aims to support learners’ understanding of how language functions in texts, facilitate the development of evidence-based literary and linguistic interpretation, and develop new approaches to teaching texts—particularly, though not exclusively, literary ones. This chapter traces the emergence and evolution of pedagogical stylistics from its origins in L2 English teaching in the 1970s to its contemporary applications across L1 and L2 education, secondary and tertiary contexts, and a range of text types and genres. The chapter applies the core principles of pedagogical stylistics alongside explaining some methodological frameworks. The chapter also highlights recent developments, illustrating the versatility of pedagogical stylistics in research and practice. Finally, the chapter situates pedagogical stylistics as a central concern in stylistics scholarship.