This study adopted guided categories for text analysis to help beginning EFL
learners become involved in the plot, characters' relationships, major themes, reader's
responses and so on. Through the guided reading of the texts, they were able to
comprehend the reading text easily and experience vicariously the actions and
emotions of the characters in the story and shared their problems and concerns. As
shown in the findings in this study, reading the text offered students opportunities to
experience vicariously the actions and emotions of the characters in the reading text.
The participants compared and contrasted these experiences with their own and
showed their responses to what they read and felt. In this way, reading stories can be a
vicarious experience providing students important insights about themselves and the
world around them.