Importance Of Literature

This is a good and important question. English literature is important in many

different ways. Let me list a few of them.

First, English literature tells us about the history of the English speaking
world. In other words, through this literature, you are able to learn about
ourselves and our history.

Second, English literature also teaches us many lessons that have universal
themes, such as love, war, desire, justice and many more. When we read
these topics, we become much more sophisticated in our thinking and our
view of the world expands. This makes us better citizens.

Third, English literature also makes us think, as we might not necessarily

agree. We will have to form opinions and convictions of our own and the
reading of English literature can aid us in the process.

The study of literature allows people to develop new ideas and ethical
standpoints, and can help individuals to present themselves as educated
members of society. Studying literature can be an enriching, eye-opening
experience.

English literature allows us to understand the philosophical movements and

ideas that permeated a particular culture at a particular time.

Literature is a form of art; it is capable of bringing about differing emotions

and a general sense of "spiritual" well-being.

By following the histories presented throughout English literature, it is

possible to understand how contemporary Western culture has developed
into what it is today.It helps us to understand the past better and learn
important lessons of life from it .

Some people read English Literature for their own pleasure also. It also
allows us to know and learn rituals , beliefs ,superstitions and culture of
other religions and develop a secular approach towards it .Developing
intolerant approaches to other religions , castes , community, groups
,countries etc. is the need of the hour in today's world and knowing their
literature helps us in doing it in a better way.
I think that English Literature offers an auther or poet the chance to convey a
palpable message through an intangible scenario. The literature itself has a
microcosm of plots and characters but the overall meaning is contained
when looking at the text as a whole. I think it is a lot easier to debate or
discuss questions of morality and ethics when they are relevant to a peice of
literature because, since the events may never have occured in the real
world and therefore there is nothing tangible to relate the ideas to, it
provides a premise in which to explore the author's thoughts.

English literature is a path to knowledge. As with all World literature, the

English literature has been a key for understanding the world and a means of
inspiring and supporting cultural and social movements.

Inspired by folklore, this literature continue to transmit from one generation

to the others messages of cultural awareness, of beliefs, spiritual growth,
ideals ans many manifestations of the human spirit.All over the world myths
and legends similarly explained life and universe.

The English literature served as a model for European and American

literature but has also taken its part of insipiration from these. The novels of
Modernism and Postmodernism sought to find a way to explain the trauma of
the modern individual , given the reality of the dramatic World Wars, to
understand the alienation of the individual.

Reading is a way to live inspired...one can evade or better come to terms

with his/her own reality if the literary work conveys a clear message. The
spectators of the Greek Theatre purified themselves of evil manifestations
when seeing the wrong-doers being punished for their deeds, therefore Old
or Modern/Postmodern English literature in its extraordinary variety of forms
and genre has this purifying, educating effect.

It is a curious and prevalent opinion that literature, like all art, is a mere play
of imagination, pleasing enough, like a new novel, but without any serious or
practical importance. Nothing could be farther from the truth. Literature
preserves the ideals of a people; and ideals--love, faith, duty, friendship,
freedom, reverence--are the part of human life most worthy of preservation.

The Greeks were a marvelous people; yet of all their mighty works we
cherish only a few ideals,--ideals of beauty in perishable stone, and ideals of
truth in imperishable prose and poetry. It was simply the ideals of the Greeks
and Hebrews and Romans, preserved in their literature, which made them
what they were, and which determined their value to future generations.

Our democracy, the boast of all English-speaking nations, is a dream; not the
doubtful and sometimes disheartening spectacle presented in our legislative
halls, but the lovely and immortal ideal of a free and equal manhood,
preserved as a most precious heritage in every great literature from the
Greeks to the Anglo-Saxons. All our arts, our sciences, even our inventions
are founded squarely upon ideals; for under every invention is still the dream
of Beowulf, that man may overcome the forces of nature; and the foundation
of all our sciences and discoveries is the immortal dream that men "shall be
as gods, knowing good and evil."

In a word, our whole civilization, our freedom, our progress, our homes, our
religion, rest solidly upon ideals for their foundation.

Nothing but an ideal ever endures upon earth. It is therefore impossible to

overestimate the practical importance of literature, which preserves these
ideals from fathers to sons, while men, cities, governments, civilizations,
vanish from the face of the earth. It is only when we remember this that we
appreciate the action of the devout Mussulman, who picks up and carefully
preserves every scrap of paper on which words are written, because the
scrap may perchance contain the name of Allah, and the ideal is too
enormously important to be neglected or lost.

Definition: What is literature? Why do we read it? Why is literature

important?

Literature is a term used to describe written and sometimes spoken material.

Derived from the Latin litteratura meaning "writing formed with letters,"
literature most commonly refers to works of the creative imagination,
including poetry, drama, fiction, nonfiction, journalism, and in some
instances, song.

Why do we read literature?

Simply put, literature represents the culture and tradition of a language or a

people. It's difficult to precisely define, though many have tried, but it's clear
that the accepted definition of literature is constantly changing and evolving.
For many, the word literature suggests a higher art form, merely putting
words on a page doesn't necessarily mean creating literature. A canon is the
accepted body of works for a given author. Some works of literature are
considered canonical, that is culturally representative of a particlar genre.
But what we consider to be literature can vary from one generation to the
next. For instance, Herman Melville's 1851 novel Moby Dick was considered
a failure by contemporary reviewiers. However, it's since been recognized as
a master work, and is frequently cited as one of the best works of western
literature for its thematic complexity and use of symbolism to tell the story of
Captain Ahab and the white whale. By reading Moby Dick in the present day,
we can gain a fuller understanding of literary traditions in Melville's time.

In this way, literature is more than just a historical or cultural artifact, but
can serve as an introduction to a new world of experience.

Why is literature important?

Ultimately, we may discover meaning in literature by looking at what the

author writes or says, and how he or she says it. We may interpret and
debate an author's message by examining the words he or she chooses in a
given novel or work, or observing which character or voice serves as the
connection to the reader. In academia, this decoding of the text is often
carried out through the use of literary theory, using a mythological,
sociological, psychological, historical, or other approach to better understand
the context and depth of a work.

Works of literature, at their best, provide a kind of blueprint of human

civilization. From the writings of ancient civilizations like Egypt, and China, to
Greek philosophy and poetry; from the epics of Homer to the plays of
Shakespeare, from Jane Austen and Charlotte Bronte to Maya Angelou, works
of literature give insight and context to all the world's societies.

Whatever critical paradigm we use to discuss and analyze it, literature is

important to us because it speaks to us, it is universal, and it affects us on a
deeply personal level. Even when it is ugly, literature is beautiful.

Also Known As: Classics, learning, erudition, belles-lettres, lit, literary

works, written work, writings, books.
Examples: "The difficulty of literature is not to write, but to write what you
mean; not to affect your reader, but to affect him precisely as you wish."
-- Robert Louis Stevenson

"The person, be it gentleman or lady, who has not pleasure in a good

novel, must be intolerably stupid." -- Jane Austen, Northanger Abbey.

Don't be satisfied with stories, how things have gone with others. Unfold
your own myth. -Rumi

Ill call for pen and ink and write my mind. -- William Shakespeare, Henry
VI.