2. What is Literature?
Literature is not things but a way to comprehend things
(Norman Holland)
Some written works called literature and some are not. How?
Stopford Brooke declares “Writing is not literature unless it
gives to the reader a pleasure which arises not only from the
things said, but from the way in which they are said.
The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Languages
defines literature as “imaginative or creative writing, especially
of recognized artistic value.”
Literature awakens us to the richness and complexity of
language. The study of literature enhances our command of
language and our sensitivity to its effects and meaning in every
form or medium.
3. CANON: a select list of the most highly and widely
esteemed works.
What makes the literary way of reading diferent from
pragmatic reading is that is does not focus “on what will
remain … after reading—the information to be acquired,
the logical solution to a problem, the actions to be carried
out,” but rather on “what happens during … reading.”
The difference between pragmatic and literary reading
resembles the difference between a journey that is only
about reaching a destination and one that is just as much
about fully experiencing the ride.
4. Literature engages our emotions, our imagination, and all
of our senses, as well as our intellects.
There are two ways to categorize literary works:
1) On the basis of contextual factors, especially historical and
cultural context—that is, when, by whom, and where it
was produced (as in nineteenth century or Victorian
literature, American literature, or African American
literature)
2) On the basis of formal textual features. In this type we
focus on the key term “genre.”
Whet is genre?
5. GENRE: as the Oxford English Dictionary defines “a
particular style or category of works of art; esp. a type of
literary work characterized by a particular form, style, or
purpose.”
Largest categories of genre are: fiction, poetry, drama, and
nonfiction prose.
Subgenre applies to smaller divisions within a genre
Kind applies to divisions within a subgenre
Subgenre of fiction include: the novel, the novella, and the
short story.
Subgenre of nonfiction include: biography, autobiography
6. GENRE: as the Oxford English Dictionary defines “a
particular style or category of works of art; esp. a type of
literary work characterized by a particular form, style, or
purpose.”
Largest categories of genre are: fiction, poetry, drama, and
nonfiction prose.
Subgenre applies to smaller divisions within a genre
Kind applies to divisions within a subgenre
Subgenre of fiction include: the novel, the novella, and the
short story.
Subgenre of nonfiction include: biography, autobiography
