作者：尚文
　　【Abstract】Literature is often adapted by second language educators as a source of activities， however， it is worth considering what is going on when students read or fail to read literature. As one of the important literacy genre， drama is widely used as a teaching material in second language learning， especially in university for advanced learners. As for the unique feature of dramatic dialogue， it is worth discussing whether drama should be taught as a separate subject or used as a pedagogical method. In this eassy， this author will analyze the current situation of literature in second language teaching， especially drama in education from two aspects： advantages of drama teaching and features of dramatic dialogue.
　　【Key words】drama； literature； English learning
　　【作者簡介】尚文，沈阳城市建设学院基础部。
　　Introduction
　　Teachers have the duty of choosing the proper context for student， not only for the language teaching purpose， but also help students establish positive life values. Especially for drama teachers， they have the task of selecting materials that will interest students， for their teaching is not based on a particular textbook， they have the whole history of life and literature to choose from （Gallagher，， 2001）. When teachers apply drama to classroom teaching， it is also worth thinking of these sources or generators of curriculum as the trigger or springboard for improvised exploration （Gallagher， 2001）. Different types of activities could be developed based on the text， not only role playing. Creative writing could be an alternative exercise， teacher would only present the beginning part of the whole play and let students make up their own stories and they could either write it in the dramatic dialogue way or they can change it into a narration. Drama， in this way， is not only useful for conversation learning， but also a good resource for writing skills study.
　　Advantages of drama teaching
　　What distinguishes drama from novel is that conflicts in it occur frequently and dramatically， while in novel story seems to develop in a more real-life way. Most of the language in drama is dialogues， so characters’ personality need to be distinguished， sometimes exaggerated. From drama learning， students could easily figure out the development of the story， and the strong personality of the characters may have a deep effect on their own growth. Drama could help students make sense of different situation and evaluate choices and dilemmas， which is not simply a subject but of great importance to contribute to students’ personal growth （Fleming， 2001a）.