A Literary Approach to Grammar: Teaching Complex Sentence Structures Using Milton’s <i>Samson Agonistes</i>

Abstract

This paper investigates how to teach students of English as a Foreign Language (EFL) complex sentence structures through the use of literary texts, particularly drama, with a focus on Milton’s Samson Agonistes. The study explores how students’ understanding, and application of periodic, loose, and antithetical sentences are improved through creative writing, enabled by the inductive test-teach-test method. Students’ abilities to recognize and create complex sentences have significantly improved, according to pre-and posttest results as well as qualitative surveys. According to the research, drama can help improve language proficiency while also encouraging critical thinking and creativity.