Literature why do we read

Thus far, in my opinion, to be an English major entails more than just being able to read and write well. An English major must also strive to understand and interpret the importance that various forms of literature have had on the society of the past and the present. Being able to express opinions is another important aspect, as is starting a piece of literature with an open mind.

These habits are also important when facing everyday life, not just literature. The chance to read and write is something that everyone should be able to experience. Whether it is studied in the classroom, read for pleasure or purpose, literature is a central part of many lives. In my case, having the opportunity to study literature in two different languages has helped me to find similarities in two different cultures, and to also find that although literature varies in form and content, it is important and it is a central part of many lives.

After mastering these elementary skills, comprehension, analysis, and interpretation are learned and used to better educate ones self. Studying literature and observing personal reactions to the literature can make one more aware of his or her own values.

English skills are helpful in every area of life. Reading, writing, comprehension, analysis, and interpretation increase efficiency in multiple ways including communication, documentation in other areas of study, and reflection of personal values. I believe there is no area of study that English and communication skills do not influence.

However, there exists a purpose for reading and writing outside of these immediate practical purposes; the written word can be used to enlighten, to persuade, to express emotion, or simply for enjoyment. In these forms the written word becomes an art form, and a way of reaching out to others through a personal experience between the writer and the reader.

Reading is an excellent way to associate oneself with the great minds of history and peer into their own thoughts. Reading is surely one of the most effective ways one can expand oneself. An entire culture exists in the written word, documenting the collective thoughts of everyone who cared to share them with the world. Therefore, I believe that for one to truly be a part of human society, it is critical that one take part in the evolution and self-realization that is literature, even if only in the reading aspect.

Writing, however, carries a grave importance, as literature simply would not exist in the accessible form it does without written word, and for that reason I believe all who can write should. One should take advantage of the great opportunity to be part of and contribute to the world and society in which he or she lives through writing.

I see literature in the societal sense a collective struggle to understand and make the best of the lives that we have all been given. Literature serves as a way to enrich our minds, and presents a way to improve the world not only through the beauty of its presence but through the ideas and tangible possibilities it possesses.

I was taught to both see a work of literature as a way to understand the time it was written, and the people who produced it, and to find the parts of that work that spoke to me in my time and place. While I am skeptical about whether or not anyone can ever really understand a culture or a time prior to their own, I do know that many times literature and art provide insights that cold hard facts do not.

Most of all I find that literature makes the differences more manageable, and highlights the similarities between people. I can read a Greek tragedy two thousand years later and agree with things that some older white man was saying because he was a human being, and I am a human being. Although it may sound trite, I have had reading experiences that taught me more about what it means to live in this world.

I have met very intelligent people who do not read. But all of the interesting people I know read, whether or not they are particularly intelligent. Literature is an art full of passion and heart; it transcends the ages. Great literature hits on many different levels.

Over the years authors have accomplished unfeasible tasks through the use of their words. Literature has prompted political and social change in societies and continues to do so to this day. It can be a battle cry for the proletariat to rise up and make a difference, and it can also provide personal counsel. In a practical sense, an active imagination helps us perceive truth, make value judgments, and deal with the complexities of life in creative ways. It even aids in our ability to use logic and to reason well.

Reading literature transports us out of our current context and into other ages and places. Interacting with characters across space and time diminishes our ignorance.

Reading literature enables us to see the world through the eyes of others. Reading literature nurtures and develops the power of sympathetic insight. Great works of literature have played a fundamental role in shaping society. For example, The Epic of Gilgamesh initiated the archetypal narrative of the hero embarking on an epic quest, which became a popular and influential blueprint for literature the world over.

Books have the power to shape culture and history. Reading literature fosters contemplation and reflection, and improves our facility with language and vocabulary. Interacting with these texts requires deliberate, conscious thinking in order to understand and retain longer units of thought. The average number of words per sentence in the sixteenth century was words, but, not surprisingly, that number has steadily declined through the modern era to about 15 words today.

Likewise, the average number of letters per word has declined, revealing a decrease in the use of longer, higher-level words. The continual exposure to elaborate, elevated syntax and diction develops not only our thinking abilities, but our speaking and writing skills too. We begin to conceive of sentences in the manner of the great writers, imitating their techniques in style and vocabulary.

In his poem Four Quartets , T. Reading great literature is an active push against this tendency. One mark of a 'great' work of literature is its ability to have an effect on the reader. In the same way, it is this affective power of fiction, drama, and poetry that helps to explain the survival of those works we regard as classics.

Despite its other uses, a poem, a play, or a novel is a self-contained work of art, with a definable and describable structure and texture: it can be approached and appreciated on terms that are uniquely its own. What distinguishes literature from other forms of artistic expressions is its reliance on structure and style in language.

Sensitive and experienced readers will respond to well-chosen words, though they many not be initially conscious of exactly what they are responding to, or why. When that response is a positive one, we speak of our sense of pleasure or delight, in much the same way that we respond to a painting, a piece of sculpture, or a musical composition. If we push our inquiry farther and try to analyze our response, we begin to move in the direction of literary criticism. Neither is the word criticism to be confused with the kind of negativism and fault finding we sometimes encounter in caustic book reviews.

The fact of the matter is that the more we learn about how to approach a story, poem, or play, the greater our appreciation of a truly great work becomes, and greater still the sense of pleasure and enjoyment we can derive from it. Literary criticism is nothing more, or less, than an attempt to clarify, explain, and evaluate our experience with a given literary work.

Properly understood and properly employed, literary criticism allows us to raise and then answer, however tentatively, certain basic questions about an author's achievement and about the ways in which he or she achieved it.