Mapping English Curriculum: Text Set Assemblages and the Linked Text Set Map

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Abstract

This paper critiques the structural limitations of linked text sets in secondary English curriculum, arguing that their reliance on canonical anchor texts often undermines efforts at diversification. Drawing on Deleuze and Guattari’s concepts of the rhizome and assemblage, the paper reimagines the linked text set as a non-hierarchical, relational form that enables emergent connections between texts. It introduces the Linked Text Set Map, a digital tool built with the Cosma hypertext framework, which visualizes thematic and generic relationships without privileging any central text. By reframing curriculum as a dynamic assemblage rather than a fixed sequence, the paper offers both a conceptual shift and a practical design intervention for educators committed to inclusive, decentralized approaches to literary instruction.

Author

• Austin Jerrod Unowitz, University of Connecticut