Page 137 - Student: dazed And Confused

that strand of the franchise; other rights lie with any number of companies to put their spin
on.

After having considered all of the evidence both in and around this essay, I have

formed an opinion as to whether the writer or reader truly owns a piece of literary work. The

ultimate answer to this will doubtlessly be debated long into the future and, I am equally
certain, no definitive answer will ever be found. Surely, some might argue, no single person

can own a work once it is in general circulation because the piece can be laid claim to by any
one of us and for any length of time. Of course, anybody can have their own copy or version

of a written work. Readers can own a neatly printed and bound copy of a work which is their

property to read and imagine over and over again. But I do not believe that the reader can
take sole ownership of that work. No, the original idea belongs to the writer as does the final

draft and the creative process he went through to get there. And yet it is only truly their work
until it is put forward to publishers who, along with editors, may have temporary custody of a

work in order to make it of a publishable quality. It is my view that many more people than

simply the writer and the reader own some part of a work and influence it in some way. I
will therefore suggest that, although the writer’s name goes on the cover, we pay more

attention to the acknowledgements page to recognise everyone who helped it into print.

TUTOR NOTES - There are some interesting ideas presented here in relation to both
readerly and writerly perspectives on authorship. In both cases i felt you were opening up
exciting perspectives (favourite word?) - e.g. the notion that the 'real people' who inspire a

work of fiction, have in some way got part ownership of it - but you were not fully
developing these idea. Your use of secondary sources to support your points was not
adequate (I could develop a complex about that) for a level 3 essay. You could have
referred to Reader Response theory for example. Likewise, your approach invited a
stronger focus on issues of process - e.g. writers on writing - as well as on the texts
themselves - although you were doing this in some measure.
Overall an ambitious essay, but still lacking in breadth and depth of analysis.

OVERALL MARK - 60