Literature Essay

Defining Literature Essay
The definition of literature has been discussed and argued over time and there is no precise
answer to be given. Any reader or author can define literature as whatever they wish it to be
defined as. This is more of an opinion of how one views certain pieces of work or writings and
whether or not they feel that is actually literature or not. Literature is any type of creative writing
such as fiction or poetry, for example. Literature is also any form of body of written works of
language, which could be from the English era or even as far back as the Shakespearean or
Elizabethan era. It is also work from a specific period or culture defining key elements or somehow
relating to and/or expressing how it is exactly from that time. The...show more content...
In her poem, "Dylan" in lines 4 and 5, she writes, "Her hair was a halo of warm light / and color
dripped off her tongue" (23). The reader can interpret just from those two lines the creativity and
imagination not only in that one poem, but also in all poetry. The description of hair being a halo
of warm light allows the reader to use his or her own imagination to perceive that image in
whichever way they would like. Creative writing can be determined by many other things not only
image or structure of how the poem is set into stanzas, but what is left up to the reader for
interpretation. Jewel writes in "Cautious" in lines 23–29, "an open vessel / whose function it was / to
be filled / until my consciousness / could return and / spit out / the bad seeds" (18). After reading
these lines the reader can be left with different feelings and emotions that vary from disgust or
simplicity. This is just another example of how poetry is creative writing. According to the
American Heritage Dictionary, literature is defined as being the body of written works of a
language, period, or culture. An author of any specific type of writing or works can include
certain details pertaining to language or other details, which allow the reader to develop a sensory
image of that specific period or culture. If the reader had no prior knowledge to the language,
period, or culture of the writing he or she would be reading, upon reading and analyzing
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literature Essay examples
LITERATURE
I. FICTION
A. What fiction is
Fiction (from the Latin fictio, "a shaping, a counterfeiting") is a name for stories not entirely factual,
but at least partially shaped, made up, imagined. It is true that in some fiction, such as historical
novel, a writer draws upon factual information in presenting scenes, events, and characters. But the
factual information in a historical novel, unlike that in a history book, is of secondary importance.
Fiction as we know it today is considered to be a relatively new genre compared to poetry and drama.
The tradition of fiction started with myth and legend and allegory. But the fictional characters in
these imaginary worlds were mostly one–dimensional abstractions, personified as Love,...show more
content...
Plot
Plot is the arrangement of events in a story, or the structure of the action. The action in a plot is
usually progressive because one force acts upon another. Plot begins with an exposition: the opening
portion that sets the scene (if any), introduces the main characters, tells us what happened before the
story opened, and provides any other background information that we need in order to understand
and care about the events to follow.
D. The short story
In a short story, a form more realistic than the tale and of modern origin, the writer usually presents
the main events in greater fullness. A short story is more than just a sequence of happenings. Some
literary short stories, unlike commercial fiction in which the main interest is in physical action or
conflict, tell of an epiphany: some moment of insight, discovery, or revelation by which a
character's life, or view of life, is greatly altered. Other short stories tell of a character initiated into
experience or maturity. The fable and the tale are ancient forms; the short story is of more recent
origin.
E. Point of view
A critical issue in any short story is its point of view. The importance of point of view may easily be
overlooked, but the choice of the narrator influences the total structure of the story.
There are basically three points of view:

Literature in Life Essay
Literature in Life
Literature is the expressed influence of communities and the individuals in societies. Literature spans
culture, beliefs, and attributes the necessary component for corroborating how literature reflects, and
portrays communities. The language from literature helps gives culture explanation of live in
different society. Literature that is defined by the culture aspect, gives details about such fascinating
and affluent information or context. Certain works, and words used in literature can help the reader
understand and describe the sense of the community being read in the story. In addition, it is not
uncommon for people to write about an imaginary community that is based from their own
community. Community...show more content...
Another example of how a community can affect an author's writing is illustrated in William
Faulkner's "A Rose for Emily" (DiYanni, 2007, p. 79–84). The story takes place in the South after
the Civil War. Faulkner's writing is extremely eloquent and deliberate. The time period also comes
out through the language in his writing referring to African–Americans as Negros and to
Northerners as Yankees. It soon becomes obvious that Faulkner must have been raised in the same
time and place this story takes place. Communities do not only affect the language of the author but
they also can provide the community of the author's work. Some communities act like an extended
family and an author may want to show that aspect. Sometimes an author may wish to write about a
close–knit community that knows everyone else's business. Often a writer will write about their
community, illustrating certain cultural aspects that they hold dear. All of these can be examples of
the writer's community coming to life in their own stories. In "A Rose for Emily," (DiYanni, 2007,
p. 79–84) Faulkner shows us a community that is very involved with each other. They are constantly
talking about what Miss Emily does, what she says, and whom she sees. The author speaks for the

The Study of Literature Essay
The Study of Literature
I finally understand the study of literature. As an English major, a reader/ writer/ poet who has spent
a great deal of time reading the works of others and writing about them, I am reminded of something
I have heard my father, a teacher, say repeatedly about the modern American attitude toward
education. "Nobody learns just to learn," he observes sadly, pointing out the way in which students
often view particularly higher education as some kind of training ground for a career. I know exactly
what he means. Every time someone asks me what I plan to do with a degree in English, I am
reminded of the inquisitive student who interrupts a classroom lecture to ask in earnest "Is this
going to be on the test?"...show more content...
If others train for careers, learning practical skills with "real world" implications, then the
Humanities student simply learns about being human. He attempts to recognize universal experience
and reflect it in art. As ambitious as that may sound, I find my pursuit of English studies to be quite
useful in my own life. Let me explain.
One year ago, my wife and I separated. When she left, she took with her (according to mutual
agreement) all of the furniture and household amenities, leaving me with only the barest essentials.
For several weeks afterward, I returned home to my modest quarters that contained no more than a
mattress, my work desk and my books, and one small stand on which to place a stereo. I must
confess that in the near month before my parents rescued me, supplying me with a dispossessed
sofa, love seat, and T.V. (What do you mean you don't have a television?), I accomplished much
more in my work and studies than ever before.
I came to realize in that period the true definition of necessity. Though my wife had retained the
comforts of modern living that one gets used to, I found I could still satisfy my basic human needs
within the five empty rooms of my apartment. I was reminded of my reading of Thoreau's Walden,
and his experimental living in the woods that invited the criticism and skepticism of many of his
contemporaries. Inspired, I

18th Century Literature Essay
18th Century Literature
The 18th century is a period of great literary works. The styles are different throughout the period,
but the unity of the work is still present.
Much of this period focused on public and general themes, until the Pre–
Romantic era when literary works began to focus upon personal expression. 18th century literature
can be broken down into three main parts: the Restoration, the Age of Pope, and Pre–Romantics.
The literature of the Restoration period covers a time span from
Charles's recovery of the throne to the years until the expulsion of James II in 1688 or until the death
of John Dryden in 1700. The literature of the
Restoration was characterized by...show more content...
This literary time period also included works from John Dryden, who used elegance and cleverness
in his writings. This period ended about 1700, and enabled a new age of literature.
In literary history, the first half of the 18th century is known as the
Age of the Pope. In this age, the writers expressed views of the public and restrained from writing
personal topics or expressions. In the Age of the Pope or the Neoclassical Age, most of the literary
themes were of social, political, and moral life. The Rape of the Lock and Epigrams by Alexander
Pope, and "A
Modest Proposal" and Gulliver's Travels by Jonathan Swift are some examples from the Age
of Pope or the Neoclassical age. Most of the literary works in this period used satirical styles to
express a concern in society. "Puffs, powders, patches, Bibles, billet–doux", from The
Rape of the Lock shows an example of pathos a satirical device used in this age of literature.
Jonathan Swift also uses satire in Gulliver's Travels to mock the Parliament, and in "Modest
Proposal" he writes about eating children as a solution to a socioeconomic problem. After the
writings, literature began to focus on private expressions rather than public thoughts and emotions.
The Age of Johnson or the Pre–romantic era was shown in various ways.
Characteristics of the age included ballads, a new taste for ruins, Gothic
castles

Essay on Why Read Literature?
Nothing teaches us better than literature to see, in ethnic and cultural differences, the richness of the
human patrimony, and to prize those differences as manifestation humanity's multi–faceted
creativity. Reading good literature is an experience of pleasure, of course; but it is also an
experience of learning what and how we are, on our human integrity and our human imperfection,
with our actions, our dreams, and our ghosts, alone and in a relationship that link us to others, in our
public image and in the secret recesses of our consciousness.
The bond that literature establishes among human beings compels them to enter into dialogue. The
bond also makes them conscious of a...show more content...
Without reading and untouched by literature will resemble a community of mutes and those of
lost expressions afflicted tremendous problems of communication due to its crude and rude
language. This is true for individuals, too. A person who does not read, or reads little, or reads
only trash, is a person who speaks much but he/she will say little words such as curse words,
because his/her vocabulary is lacking in the means for self–expression.
Reading Literature is not only a verbal expression, but also represents a limitation on intellect and
in imagination. It is a poverty of thought, for the simple reason to grasp our knowledge and ask
what is the importance of life? We learn how to speak correctly––and deeply and subtly–– from
good literature and only from good literature. No other discipline or branch of the arts can
substitute for literature in crafting the language that people need to communicate. To speak well,
to have at one's disposal a rich and diverse language, to be able to find appropriate expression for
every idea and every emotion that we want to communicate, is to be better prepared to think, to
teach, to learn, to converse, and also to fantasize, to dream, to feel. In a secret way, words repeat in
all our action, even

What Is Literature? Essay
Since the 18th century, the definition of the concept "literature" has become a problematic and a
controversial issue among various literary schools. What is literature? What are the qualities that
distinguish a literary text from a non–literary one? Does literature have any particular function in
society? These are some crucial questions whose answers were supposed to limit and define the
scope of "literature". However, various literary and critical schools have advanced different and
contradictory responses to these same questions, which have consequently led to a failure in
producing an authoritatively established definition of "literature". This failure can be ascribed to
many reasons, but because the length of the paper doesn't...show more content...
This new sense, which was ascribed to the development of printing, was "a specialization В… to
the printed word and especially the printed books with certain quality [imaginative works]"
(Williams, 46). To elaborate on this definition, R. Wellek and A. Warren have stated that "in all of
them [the printed books with certain quality], the reference is to the world of fiction, of
imagination" (Wellek and Warren, Theory of Literature, 25). However, a simple review of the
history of prose narrative forms would show that this definition of literature as a category of
fictional and imaginative writings is irrelevant. Many writings which were written as
anthropological documentaries were making use of fiction, while many other fictional works were
given the status of documentary and factual writings. All travelogue writings and western
historiography between the middle ages and the twentieth century are good examples to illustrate
this point. Works like T.E. Lawrence's Seven Pillars of Wisdom, W.M. Thackeray's From Cornhill
to Cairo, Kingslake's Eothen, and Sir Thomas More's Utopia made use of both fact and fiction.
Moreover, at the time of their appearance, most of these works were conceived of by the western
audience as factual and documentary writings. Later on, due to some historical and political changes
in the world, these writings became conceived of as fictional and imaginary works.

What Is Literature Essay
Charmine J. Cramales
BS Math II
Lit 3 10:30 – 12:00
What is Literature?
Poems, novels, and stories; these are some of the things that first came to my mind upon pondering
on the question 'What is Literature?'. And just lately I have known that literature also includes
songs, speeches, plays, and many others in written and spoken forms. I have also known that things
that are produced out of creative imagination can be referred as literary works which are the ones
that comprise literature. Considering this description of what literature is, the coverage of literature
seems very puzzling. If literary works are those produced out of creative imagining, then it would
directly point to fictional works. But then, there are also...show more content...
Take for example the views of two individuals coming from different places on anovel based on the
culture of one. It would likely be the same if their culture and beliefs are quiet related but if not, then
they would surely have different understandings on certain parts of that novel. Hence, defining
literature as those considered by people as 'literature' is questionable.
Eagleton also associated literature as any kind of works which are valued highly by people. But
then again, since people may have different perceptions on things, one may value highly a certain
work while another person may consider it just as a plain writing. As stated by Ms. Pinzon, a
literature professor, a personal letter can be an example of this. The recipient of the letter can be
expected to really value the letter while her classmate may not. Hence, this can't define literature as a
whole.
Then, what really is literature? Many great critics have tried formulating a fixed definition of
literature but have failed to do so. In the rise of every possible definition of what literature is,
counter arguments also rise.
Literature, though it seems impossible to enumerate everything it covers, play an important role in
every individual's life. One can influence using literature or be influenced by it. Examples of these
are the novels made by our very own national hero, Jose Rizal – the Noli Me Tangeri and El
Filibusterismo. During his time, Rizal has

Multicultural Literature Essay
Multicultural literature is a way of increasing cultural awareness. Through multicultural books many
young readers are able to make a connection with their own culture or better yet, further explore
another culture. Authors use different themes such as culture, politics, and even personal barriers to
show different cultures. At times though, this genre will often reveal the "ugly roots for even the
greatest literature" (Multicultural).
The phrase "ugly roots" emphasizes that what readers may not want to hear about a culture, including
their own, will be told. Nothing is held back in this type of reading, everything is told– there are no
secrets. The writing is a source of information that helps readers to better understand the...show more
content...
When they were younger, their mother would buy them all the same things but each in their own
color, and all the clothes she made for them was even color coordinated.
Sandra was known as the artistic daughter, who was always very imaginative. She always wanted to
be an artist, but after coming to America, things begin to change
(Contemporary). She feels as if she was not good enough and began to put a lot of pressure on
herself. A major event that later led to her submitting herself into a mental home was when she
saw a woman kiss her father. She was very young, and seeing a "white lady" kiss her father caused
her to wonder why life would allow this to happen to her. She never told anyone what she saw,
because she was not even sure if it was something bad and if it was who would believe her. With
the lack of being able to express her feelings, she began to make herself go crazy by thinking she
was moving backwards in evolution. Sandra started to think she saw her features changing and was
turning into an ugly monkey. This symbolized herself growing apart from the world. The evolution
theory of hers showed how she felt apart from the world and was slowly growing apart in her own
way.
Yolanda, the third daughter has the most trouble with finding herself. It all starts in her childhood
when she had still lived in the Dominican Republic. She was known as the tomboy in the family and
did not understand why

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Literature Essay