GEC 12_LITERATURE “Because I could not stop for death” – Emily
Dickinson
LITERATURE Theme: Acceptance, inevitable death
Literature refers to written works, especially LITERARY STANDARDS
those considered of superior or lasting artistic
merit. - These are a set of characteristics to
determine whether or not a work is
A literature may also be any imaginative literary. The criteria were developed by
Works of poetry and prose distinguished by writer William J. Long
the intentions of their Authors and the
perceived aesthetic excellence of their 1. PERMANENCE
execution. It is Derived from the Latin word - A great work of literature endures. It can
literature meaning “writing formed with letters be read again and again as each reading
“. gives fresh
- delight and new insights and opens a new
Literature may be in a form of poetry, drama, world of meaning and experience. Its
fiction, Nonfiction, and in some instances, appeal is lasting.
journalism, and song.
2. ARTISTRY
The Importance of Literature
- This is the quality that appeals to our
sense of beauty.
1. Literature are guides for the reader and 3. SUGGESTIVENESS
generate a bridge for them to learn
something new. - This is the quality associated with the
2. Literature allows a person to step back in emotional power of literature. Great
time and learn about Life on Earth from literature moves us
the ones who walked before us. - deeply and stirs our feeling and
imagination, giving and evoking visions
3. Literature acts as a form of expression of above and beyond the plane of ordinary
each individual author. life and experience.
4. Literature confirms the complexity of 4. UNIVERSALITY
human conflict.
- Great literature is timeless and timely.
Forever relevant, it appeals to one and
all, anytime, anywhere, because it deals
with elemental feelings, fundamental
“The Road Not Taken”- Robert Frost truths and universal conditions.
Theme: Contemplating, making right
decisions. 5. SPIRITUAL VALUE
“Alone” – Edgar Allan Poe - Literature elevates the spirit by bringing
out moral values which makes a better
Theme: Isolation, feeling misunderstood, person. The capacity to inspire is part of
depression, indifference the spiritual value of literature.
6. INTELLECTUAL VALUE
- A literary works stimulates thought. It The types of prose include:
enriches our mental life by making us
realize fundamental truths about life and
human nature.
1) Fictional prose takes you away to
7. STYLE a made-up world or story such as
The Hunger Games.
- This is the peculiar way in which writers
sees life, forms his ideas and expresses
them.
2) Non-fictional prose is factual
CRITICAL APPROACHES TO LITERATURE accounts of events such as Anne
Frank’s The Diary of a Young
1. Formalist Criticism Girl.
2. Biographical Criticism
3. Historical Criticism
4. Gender Criticism
5. Psychological Criticism 3) Heroic prose includes oral and
6. Sociological Criticism written traditions like fables and
7. Mythological Criticism legends.
8. Reader-Response Criticism
9. Deconstructionist Criticism
4) Poetic prose is writing with poetic
qualities, such as heightened
emotions and imagery, that is not
Written in verse. One example is
HISTORICAL DIVISIONS OF LITERATURE Amy Lowell’s Bath To articles to
novels.
POETRY is defined as a form of
Ancient Period literature that adds artistic style
to writing.
- Sumerian Civilization of Mesopotamia.
- It started from Epic of Gilgamesh up to The common types of poetry
Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey. include:
- were credited to have started a first Sonnet. It is a lyrical poetry with
system of writing called cuneiform fourteen-line poem written
1. “Epic of Gilgamesh “ Babylonian Epic Haiku – traditional Japanese
poetry
2. “ Mahabharata “ -Vyasa
Acrostic – mixes letters and
Theme: Sacred duty, karma, duties, roles phrases
Hindi literature Free verse – no set meter
PROSE refers to everyday writing. It covers Epic – from oral traditions
all the different types of writing you read daily,
from blogs Rhymed – creates specific
rhyme pattern
Descriptive – uses descriptive language to PARTS OF THE PLOT
express a message
Exposition is an introduction moves
Narrative – tells a story into rising action a problem,
sometimes called an inciting incident,
occurs for the main Character to
handle or solve. This creates the
FICTION is fabricated and based on the beginning of the story.
author’s imagination. Short stories, novels,
myths, legends, and Fairy tales are all Rising action includes the events that
considered fiction. the main character encounter
scenes, makes the problem more
NON FICTION , by contrast, refers to factual complex
and reports on true events. Histories,
biographies, Journalism, and essays are all Climax is the turning point in the
considered nonfiction story. Usually, it is a single event with
the greatest intensity and
ELEMENTS OF FICTION Uncertainty. The main character
must contend with the problem at this
1. Characters are the people, animals, or point.
aliens in the story.
A. Flat characters do not play Falling action includes the events
important roles in the stories. that unfold after the climax. This
B. Round characters play an usually creates an emotional
important role, often the lead response From the reader.
roles in stories
2. Setting is where and when the story takes Denouement or resolution provides
place closure to the story. It ties up loose
3. Plot is the order of events in the story ends in the story.
Freytag’s Pyramid has five parts: “The Story of an Hour” by Kate
exposition, rising action, climax, falling Chopin
action, and denouement/resolution.
4. Conflict- struggle between two entities.
5. Point of view. It refers to “Who” is telling
the story.
• First-person point of view
- Like I, Me, my, we, us, and our are used.
• Third-person point of view
- He, she, it, him, her, his, hers, they, them,
and theirs.
6. A Theme is not the plot of the story. It is
the underlying truth that is being
conveyed in the story.
7. Tone refers to the overall emotional 5. Rhyme scheme
“tone” or meaning of the story, such as
happy, funny, sad, and Is also one of the basic elements of poetry.
depressed. In Simple words, it is defined as the pattern
of rhyme.
8. Style refers to how things are said. It
includes word choices, sentence Aabb (1st line rhyming with 2nd, 3rd with 4th);
structure, dialogue, metaphor, Simile, abab (1st with 3rd, 2nd With 4th);
hyperbole. Style contributes significantly
to tone. abba (1st with 4th, 2nd with 3rd), etc.
POETRY can be defined as literature in a 6. Theme
metrical form or a composition forming
rhythmic lines. This is what the poem is all about. The theme
of the poem is the central idea that the poet
A poem is something that follows a particular wants to convey.
flow of rhythm and meter.
7. Symbolism
ELEMENTS OF POETRY
Often poems will convey ideas and
1. Rhythm thoughts using symbols.
This is the music made by the statements
of the poem, which includes the syllables 8. Imagery
in the
lines. Imagery is also one of the important elements
Readers to create an image in their
2. Meter imagination readers to create an image in
This is the basic structural make-up of the their imagination.
poem.
DRAMA
3. Stanza
Stanza in poetry is defined as a smaller Has one characteristic peculiar to itself—it is
unit or group of lines or a paragraph in a written primarily to be performed, not read.
poem.
Also known as a play
o Couplet (2 lines),
o Tercet (3 lines), ELEMENTS OF DRAMA
o Quatrain (4 lines),
o Cinquain (5 lines), 1. Plot referring to the basic storyline of the
o Sestet (6 Lines), play
o Septet (7 lines),
o Octave (8 lines) Exposition, inciting incident, or conflict,
climax, falling action, denouement
4. Rhyme
2. Characters
When you write poetry that has rhyme, it 3. Setting
means that the Last words or sounds of the 4. Theme
lines match with each other in some form. 5. Genre
Rhyme is basically similar Sounding words 6. Audience
like cat and hat, close and shows, house and
mouse, etc.
• “Iliad” by Homer
Theme: War and its consequences,
heroism, and the emotions of
characters
• “Odyssey” by Homer
Theme: The journey of a hero trying
to return home, cleverness, family,
and loyalty.
• “Mahabharata”- Vyasa
Theme: Sacred duty, karma, duties,
roles
Hindu literature / Hindus
• “Ramayana”- Valmiki
Theme: Dharma, right way of living,
respect to one’s duty
Hindu literature / Hindus
