This document outlines the objectives and content of a course on literature. The objectives include understanding genres of literature like poetry, drama, novels and prose, as well as literary devices. It defines literature and discusses genres and common elements found in literature like setting, characters, plot, point of view, symbolism, style and theme. Genres like short stories, poetry, drama and novels are described. The document provides an overview of the key concepts and topics to be covered in the course.

3. OBJECTIVES
 After completion of the course, you will be able to:
 Give brief details about the significance of literature, uses and qualities of
good literature.
 Explain the genres used in English literature.
 Describe poetic, linguistic and literary devices used in different genres of
literature.
 Enlist various techniques used in creation of various genres of literatures an
their sub-types
 Elucidate the different methods that could be utilized in teaching of
literature
 Present details about traditional approach to understanding of literature.
 Highlight the modern contemporary trends in literature.
 Bring to limelight the connections of language and literature.
 See how literature could be used to teach English as a foreign language.

4. UNIT NO.1
INTRODUCTION TO
LITERATURE

5. OBJECTIVES
 The main objectives of this Chapter are to enable you
to:
 Develop an understanding of basic genres of literature
 Enable students to understand novel, drama, poetry,
prose and short stories
 Create comprehension of literature

6. WHAT IS LITERATURE?
 The term “literature” is usually used to refer to works
of drama, poetry, fiction (novels), and nonfiction
(prose).
 Literature is a term that is used to describe writing
which is creative.
 Literature is considered as a mirror that reflects life
in a social context.
 Literature depicts society in all its hues and colours.

7. ……
 Literature is a source or means through which a
community defines, describes, and identifies itself.
 Literature means novels, short stories, plays and
poems which convey message
 through language which is rich and multi-layered.

8. REASONS TO STUDY LITERATURE
 helps us grow personally and intellectually
 gives insight into the thoughts and actions of other
people
 makes us relaxed
 gives all-round education
 brings us closer to reality
 gives new ideas and suggestions
 gives enjoyment
 helps us to deal with personal problems
 acquaints us with the style of language
 gives information about people and cultures
 adds to our personal development
 Immerses us in the unreal fictional world of writers.

9. LITERARY GENRES
poetry, drama, novel, prose
 Fiction
 Fiction is a kind of literary creation where the authors use
their imagination to create some stories having characters,
plot, setting and particular themes
 Short Story
 A short story is known as a fictional creation of
prose form of writing.
 Generally a short story focuses on a single incident, with a
limited setting, having a single plot, a lesser number of
characters, and it has a short period of time.

10. POETRY
 Poetry is a form of literary art in which language is
used for its aesthetic and emotional qualities.
 Poetry is an art of writing thoughts, ideas, and
dreams into imaginative language which can
contain verse, meter, repetition, and rhyme
 Poets use words that are known as “poetic devices”
or “figures of speech” or “linguistic devices”. These
words appeal to the reader's feelings and intellect.

11. DRAMA
 Drama is a kind of literary creation, written with
purpose to be performed by the characters on the
stage.
 Drama is distinguished from other forms of literary
genres like short stories, poetry and novels on account
of it being performed by different actors on stages in
different locations.

12. NOVEL
 Novel is a fictional story narrated by the novelist by using
first, second or third person narrators.
 E. M. Forster in his book Aspects of Novels describes a
novel as a story having more than 50 thousand words.
 The characters in the novel can be round (changeable with
the change in the situation) and flat (unchangeable).
 Setting of the novel is the location where the story takes
place.
 Similarly plot outlines the sketch of the story.
 Themes of novel depict the social and cultural matters
related to lives of the human beings.

13. PROSE
 Prose is a kind of literary creation that is a form of short
piece of nonfiction work.
 It is written about a single subject or theme.
 Prose is also an essay that gives expression to a person’s
point of view and it also provides information about a given
subject. Prose is composed by use of common language.
 People use prose in writing of editorials, essay, articles and
books, etc.
 It is a literary medium that attempts to mirror the
language of everyday speech consisting of logically related
sentences.
 Prose is amalgamation paragraphs that form an interlinked
cohesive whole

14. COMMON ELEMENTS FOUND IN LITERATURE
 Setting
 Character
 Plot
 Point of View
 Symbolism
 Style
 Theme

15. SETTING
 If you talk about the where and when of a story,
what you’re really talking about is the story’s setting.
 Understanding a story’s setting means understanding
the context or situation where the story takes place.
 Setting also gives clues about the mood or atmosphere
of a story.
 At a lake in school in outer space

16. Character: A character is a person, an animal, or an imaginary
character that takes part or plays a role in the story.
 Plot: Plot is the action of a story. It is the series of
related events that the author describes from the
beginning of the story to the end.
 There are different stages in a plot and these are:
 Exposition. This is the where the story begins. At this
stage, the characters and the setting are introduced.
Most importantly, we are introduced to the main
conflict (main problem).

17. Rising Action. At this stage the story begins to develop, basically
the conflict(s) become prominent. The expectations of the readers
build and they take interest in the story.
 Climax. This is the turning point of the story. Usually
the main character comes face to face with a conflict
and most probably will change in some way.
 Falling Action. All loose ends of the plot are tied up.
At this stage, the conflict(s) and climax are taken care
of.
 Resolution. The story comes to a reasonable ending.

18. Symbolism: A symbol is often an ordinary object, event, person,
or animal to which we attach extraordinary meaning and
significance. Symbols allow writers to suggest layers and layers of
meaning that a simple, literal statement could never convey
 Style: Style is the choice of words or figures of speech
that writers use to express their ideas. Its HOW they say
something, not WHAT they say. The way writers assemble
words to tell the story, to develop an argument, dramatize
the play, and compose the poem is what we call “style”. Style
involves these three word choice
 sentence structure and length
 literary devices, such as figurative language, symbols,
dialogue, and imagery

19. Theme: A writer’s message or main point is the theme of the
literary work. You will need to infer what the theme is from the
work’s title, key scenes, characters, symbols, and plot events.
Literature represents values along with ideas
 Theme can be found in any of these:
 direct statements by the writer’s voice
 direct statements by a first-person speaker
 dramatic statements by characters