English Literature

Literature can be portrayed using many different styles of writing, be it poetry or a novel, a piece of drama or perhaps a newspaper. Whatever form it is, English literature has been in creation for many hundreds of years and has played an important role in individual peoples lives and in society as a whole. In basic terms, literature is a fascinating manipulation of language that can be written in different forms (i.e. prose, verse) and provides people with an insight into different societies and cultures, past and present, and for many can offer a welcomed escape from reality.

So what is the attraction with it? Well, unlike normal everyday communication, literature uses the language in a more ‘artistic’ way. Each differing form of literature has ‘aesthetic’ qualities such as rhythm, form, repetition etc. and can also offer a ‘sensual experience’ that brings enjoyment when people read it.

Furthermore, certain types of literature, such as novels and plays are composed by the author to have a special meaning behind them. Some authors like to portray their feelings on a particular matter portrayed in the text. The author can do this by either basing his or her text solely on the matter in hand, or by subtly placing there messages within it. This then offers the reader a chance to reflect on the text and make their own opinions on the views expressed in the piece. I believe this can be quite powerful and can make people wake up and realise things they otherwise would not have noticed or cared about. Maybe literature is morally important to society – to get messages and opinions across and broaden people horizons.

Literature in the past, before all the modern entertainment equipment such as televisions and computers, was a pivotal source of amusement and enjoyment for many people. Yet even now, in a time new when 21st century forms of entertainment seem to be dominating in terms of use, literature is still a big pastime in Britain and throughout the world.
Literature is an important source of historical data. For example Shakespeare’s plays give us an insight into how people used to live; their lifestyles and culture. In most cases, the language used in a text is a representation of the language used at the time it was written.

Now I think it is important at this point to inform you that I wrote this article nearly 2 years ago now. I went on to study English Literature for a year at A-level and if I’m honest, I found the course utterly dull. The set texts that I had to study were not to my taste and the way in which we went about studying the texts was…weird. The apparent techniques that authors used got to me the most. In very few cases yes, features such as pathetic fallacy and symbolism perhaps were present. However, when annotating a novel for example, we were being told that every other thing was a symbol for this or that, or that the author put this in to represent that. I’m sorry but I cannot pick things out that are not there. You are not telling me that the author ‘put those trees in the garden to represent the families hidden past’. No he didn’t! He put them in to create the scene and trees are usually in attendance in a garden!

As a historical, social, informative and enjoyable resource, English literature is invaluable. As far as studying it goes, well it’s just not for me. I cannot be taught things I don’t believe in, but hey that’s just me.

Because everyone has a different opinion