What is Literature?

Lawrence J. Clark, Ph.D.

Imaginative Literature

To convey their views of experience, writers of imaginative literature frequently manipulate facts. Even when writers use factual material their primary purpose is to give a unique view of experience. The result is an original work with an emphasis that serves the author’s purpose. Imaginative literature, through the use of vivid imagery and evocative comparisons, encourages the reader to see the possibilities of language and to move beyond the factual account of an event.

Imaginative literature can be divided into three types – fiction, poetry, and drama – called genres. These forms can vary from culture to culture. Imaginative literature of all cultures has similar effects on readers.

Conventional Themes

The theme of a work of literature is its central or dominant idea. Although one central theme may seem to dominate a literary work, most works explore a number of different themes. The most common themes are those that have meaning to many individuals regardless of time or place in which they live. Nearly all cultures have some themes in common. These common themes are: loss of innocence, conflict between an individuals values and societies values, the quest for spiritual enlightenment, the carpe diem theme, nostalgia for the past, and several others. Writers from different cultures and life experiences may develop these themes differently.

Literary Canon

A literary canon is a group of works generally agreed upon by critics to be masterpieces. Through the years, opinions of what constitutes good literature have changes many times. In recent years it has been noted that the traditional literary canon was composed almost exclusively of white male writers whose writing reflected their western values. In the past decade works by women, people of color, and writers from a variety of cultures have been included in the traditional literary canon. Hopefully, by including such works, students will be exposed to the diversity of both American and world culture.

Interpreting Literature

Interpreting literature is attempting to understanding its various meanings. The meaning of a literary work is interpreted by the reader. The meaning is created partly by the work and partly by the reader. While the work can supply the facts, it may also supply the social, political, class and gender attitudes of the writer. The readers understanding of these attitudes, as well as his personal perspectives, will affect his or her interpretation of the work. No single reading of a literary work is “correct”. The reader should not be afraid to take chances and present unusual or creative interpretations of a work. Readers should keep in mind that to make a reasonable interpretation evidence in the text should not be ignored or contradicted to suit their own biases.

Evaluating Literature

Evaluating literature is more than interpreting it, it is making a judgment about it. Evaluating a work consists of breaking is apart and considering its individual elements. When evaluating a work, make certain to determine its purpose and apply reasonable standards. The following guidelines should be considered when evaluating literature:

1. Begin by considering how various elements function individually within a work.
2. Decide whether or not the literary elements of the work interact to achieve a common goal.
3. Consider whether a work reinforces or calls into question your ideas about the world.
4. Consider whether or not a work is intellectually challenging. An intellectually challenging work makes readers think. An intellectually obscure work seems to exist solely to display a writer’s erudition or intellectual idiosyncrasies. There is no rule that exists to determine whether or not a work is challenging or obscure.
5. Consider whether or not a work gives you pleasure.

The Function of Literary Criticism

Literary criticism consists of books and journal articles written by experts who describe, analyze, interpret, or evaluate a work of literature. You should never accept literary criticism automatically simply because it was written by an expert. The following questions can help to evaluate literary criticism.

1. What is the main point of the critical article?
2. Are enough examples given to support the critic’s conclusions?
3. Does the critic acknowledge or refute arguments against his opinion?
4. Does the critic ignore information in the text that might call his conclusions into question?
5. Is historical, biographical, or literary information presented? Does the information shed light on the work being discussed?
6. Does the critic exhibit prejudices or belief that might interfere with his critical judgment?
7. Are the Facts slanted or is a fair and objective reading of the text offered?
8. Are assertions supported by documentation? Is a list of works cited included? Are the works current? Are explanatory notes included as needed?
9. Is the book or article you are reading mentioned in other works? What is said about its conclusions.
10. Does the critic identify with a particular school of thought?
11. Is the critic well known and respected?
12. Does the critic take into account important critical books and articles on the subject? If not, does the exclusion cast doubts on the critics conclusion?
13. Is the publication date of the critical work of any significance?