Discourse after the Bomb.

A number of texts concerning the possibility of a nuclear war and more particularly, its aftermath, have been published for adults and senior school children. This paper discusses literary theory with a focus on two texts currently used with 14-year olds: "Z for Zachariah" by Robert C. O'Brien and "Brother in the Land" by Robert Swindells. Highlights include: heteroglossia, which refers to the socially saturated nature of all utterances, or the "discourse of the other"; differences in the novels' discourses; diversity in language in the two texts; stereotyping; and the uses of persuasive and authoritative discourse. (AEF)