Introduction: 6 Reasons Why Literature Is So Important
"Literature Is One Of The Most Interesting And Significant Expressions Of Humanity." -P. T. Barnum
Today, there are too many people who believe that literature is simply not important or underestimate its abilities to stand the test of time and give us great knowledge. There is a stigma in society that implies one who is more inclined toward science and math will somehow be more successful in life, and that one who is more passionate toward literature and other art forms will be destined to a life of low-paying jobs and unsatisfying careers. Somewhere along the line, the world has come to think that literature is insignificant. However, literature serves as a gateway to learning of the past and expanding our knowledge and understanding of the world. Here are just a few reasons why literature is important.
1. Expanding horizons
First and foremost, literature opens our eyes and makes us see more than just what the front door shows. It helps us realize the wide world outside, surrounding us. With this, we begin to learn, ask questions, and build our intuitions and instincts. We expand our minds.
2. Building critical thinking skills
Many of us learn what critical thinking is in our language arts classes. When we read, we learn to look between the lines. We are taught to find symbols, make connections, find themes, learn about characters. Reading expands these skills, and we begin to look at a sentence with a larger sense of detail and depth and realize the importance of hidden meanings so that we may come to a conclusion.
3. A leap into the past
History and literature are entwined with each other. History is not just about power struggles, wars, names, and dates. It is about people who are products of their time, with their own lives. Today the world is nothing like it was in the 15th century; people have changed largely. Without literature, we would not know about our past, our families, the people who came before and walked on the same ground as us.
4. Appreciation for other cultures and beliefs
Reading about history, anthropology, or religious studies provides a method of learning about cultures and beliefs other than our own. It allows you to understand and experience these other systems of living and other worlds. We get a view of the inside looking out, a personal view and insight into the minds and reasoning of someone else. We can learn, understand, and appreciate it.
5. Better writing skills
When you open a book, when your eyes read the words and you take in its contents, do you ask yourself: How did this person imagine and write this? Well, many of those authors, poets, or playwrights used literature to expand their writing.
6. Addressing humanity
All literature, whether it be poems, essays, novels, or short stories, helps us address human nature and conditions which affect all people. These may be the need for growth, doubts and fears of success and failure, the need for friends and family, the goodness of compassion and empathy, trust, or the realization of imperfection. We learn that imperfection is not always bad and that normal can be boring. We learn that life must be lived to the fullest. We need literature in order to connect with our own humanity.
The Importance of Literature
Crash course: How and Why we Read
1. They’re made out of meat.
They're Made Out Of Meat - New York Film Academy (NYFA)
A Martian sends a postcard home.
A)
•Descriptions in this poem are created through adjectives, similes, metaphors and personification. Can you think of an example of each of these language features?
•In pairs, think of an unusual everyday item and write a couple of sentences describing the item using a simile, metaphor or personification if possible, but without mentioning the item by its actual name.
•We will try to guess the item.
B)
Raine is well known as one of the exponents of ‘Martian’ poetry. Through unusual, ingenious and sometimes humorous visual images, Raine attempts to make readers look at the familiar in fresh, illuminating ways. The poem in this anthology inspired the ‘Martian’ description of the work of a number of writers in the late 1970s and early ’80s, whose poems were full of striking, surreal images. This poem seeks to describe human behaviour and objects as if they are being seen for the first time by a visiting Martian. Consequently, the tone is detached and objective, but also quizzical. The ordinary and commonplace are illuminated by a fresh perspective in seventeen unrhymed couplets. While the poem is almost like a series of riddles that invite the reader to decipher them, the use of language is original and evocative.
C)
Seeing the alien spacecraft that travelled to earth and having had the chance to go for a 'ride'with them was a fantastic experience. Now that you are safely home, you have the opportunity to describe the event. Slam FM has asked you to write a story giving detailed description of the spacecraft, the aliens, and your experiences. The editor advises you to make your description as colourful and specific as you can because people have to be able to imagine what you tell them over the radio. What you observed was really "out of this world", so you can't count on the readers knowing what you have in mind.
- Write a descriptive story you would tell on Slam FM.
2. Desiree’s baby
D)
- Where had Madame Valmonde found Desiree when she was a baby?
- Why had Armand’s mother never left France?
- What was Madame Valmonde’s reply to Desiree’s letter?
- During which month were they picking cotton at l’Abri?
- What did Armand put on the bonfire?
- Describe and explain the changes in Armand Aubigny’s behaviour as the story unfolds.
- Why do you think there was an ‘air of mystery among the blacks’ and frequent visitors to l’Abri about three months after Desiree’s baby was born?
- Why was it assumed that Desiree was the reason her child was not white?
- Why did Armand not consider Desiree’s origins before marrying her?
- Are there any clues given by the author which hint at the true cause of the baby’s appearance? (before the last few lines of the story) Which clue(s) is/are given?
Strange fruit
Billie Holiday - Strange Fruit
E)
- What do you think inspired Billie Holiday to write this song?
- What did she express with this song (or: what message did she convey)?
F)
Assignment for discussion (in groups, your teacher will indicate when the next round starts, there is one who takes notes and one who presents)
- Describe an experience of racism you know of (your own experience, the experience of someone you know or an example from the news/internet) (everyone in the group)
- What can be done against racism? (schools, jobs, countries, art) Discuss and work out one possibility. (one of you makes notes in keywords)
- Give a one-minute summary of the discussion (everyone in the group)
- Present this one-minute summary to the rest of the class. (presenter)
- Choose a song(text) and explain why this is a fit.
3. The silent hostages
G)
Newspaper Report
Your assignment, should you choose to accept it (and you will) is to write a six (6) paragraph newspaper report based on the story “The Silent Hostages.” You will take on the role of a hard-hitting crime reporter and write an article that includes all major events and facts of the story.
Follow the step by step process using the outline provided to write your article.
- Decide what angle you are going to take when writing your article. Think about an attention grabbing headline!
- Decide what is going to be in your lead paragraph. This is the paragraph with the most important information.
- You will probably want to break up the 5 W’s (Who, What, Where, When, Why) and How and not have all that information in the same paragraph. So choose three (3) of the W’s to write about in the first paragraph, then write the other two W’s and How in the second paragraph.
- After you have written about the 5 W’s and How, move on to writing quotations from other characters. Here you will have to start using your imagination to determine what witnesses would say to a reporter about the incident. Think about who would make the best people to interview and choose two (2) characters that you will quote in your article. This section of your article will consist of two (2) paragraphs, one for each witness.
- Finally, in the last two (2) paragraphs of your article, outline the least important information. For example, this event has never happened before – or maybe it has, notify readers that the investigation is ongoing.
- Remember, all paragraphs should be very short and accessible for everyone to read. Paragraphs should be no more than three (3) sentences long.
- Avoid using overly complicated words and sentences. Keep it simple.
- MOST IMPORTANT: As a journalist, you are only reporting the facts. Do not insert your own opinion into the article. Further to this, no using personal pronouns AT ALL!
- In addition, your article must be formatted to resemble an actual newspaper article. Accordingly, be sure that you divide the paper in half (below the headline and deck) and write your paragraphs in two (2) columns.
- Your article must also feature an appropriate graphic with a short caption that explains the scene depicted in the image.
The lesson
4. The case of the lower case letter
I)
- What impression do you get of Mrs Nettleston at the beginning of the story?
- In what way is her name a ‘speaking name’?
- Why does the police officer ask about her ring?
- In what way did Mr Nettleston outsmart his wife?
- Explain the word play in the title.
J)
Homophones
Homophones are two words which have the same sound but different meanings. Complete the following lines by filling in the 9 homophones. 10:think of one yourself!
1 ‘Waiter, what do you call this?’
*‘It’s .................... soup, sir.
‘I don’t care what it’s .................... . What is it now?’
2 ‘Have you ever hunted ....................?’
*’No, I always hunt with my clothes on.’ (....................)
3 ‘Why are black clouds like somebody riding a horse?’ (………………..)
*’Because they both hold the ....................’
4 A teacher saw two boys fighting in the playground.
*’Stop! You know the school rules – No fighting ……………….. .’
‘But sir, we weren’t fighting ……………….. . We were fighting quietly.’
5 ‘What is the efect of seven days dieting?’ (………………..)
*’They make one ……………….. .’
6 ‘Did you hear about the novelist who lived on the ninth floor of a block of flats?’
*’He dropped six ……………….. into a wastepaper basket and lived.’ (………)
7 ‘How can I get rid of my headache?’
*’Hit your head against the window and the ……………….. will disappear.’
8 Fortune teller: ‘Would you like your palm ……………….., sir?’
*Man: ‘No thanks, I like the colour it is now.’ (………………..)
9 ‘What did the small shy stone say?’ (………………..)
*’I wish I was a little ……………….. .’
K)
1. You have now seen several ways to play with words. Think of a different way to do so, describe it and give at least
one example.
40 love
L)
- What is this poem about? (Say in a few lines in your own words)
- How does the poet use double meanings, form effects, sound effects etc. to get his message across? Try to find as many things as possible.
M)
- Find 3 different forms of poetry and describe the characteristics of each form.
- Write an example of one the three forms.
- Present the results of both assignments to the whole class.
5. The lady or the tiger
N)
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1.1 What is the meaning of the following words in the context in which they appear:
a) Emanated (middle page 1)
b) Retribution (top page 2)
c) Impartial (middle page 1)
d) Aesthetic (bottom page 3)
e) Moiety (middle page 4)
f) Epithalamic (middle page 2) 
1.2 What is the meaning of the following phrases:
a) "The apple of his eye." (top page 3)
b) "Poetic justice." (middle page 1)
1.3 The answers to the following questions can be found in the text:
a) Where did the king sit in the arena?
b) Did the tiger come out of the same door each 'trial'?
c) Did the princess like the lady who had been chosen for her lover's 'trial'? Give reasons.
d) How did the princess indicate to her lover the door of her choice?
e) What had the princess seen in her dreams?
f) Did the princess expect her lover to ask her to indicate which door he should choose?
g) Why did no one else in the arena notice that the princess was communicating with her lover?
1.4 In your own words:
a) Write a description of the king's arena.
b) Describe the king's method of administering justice.
c) Why did the princess have difficulty deciding which door to indicate to her lover.
1.5 Draw a picture or diagram of the king's arena. You could show the lover making his choice.
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2.1 What does the author mean by "When he and himself agreed upon anything, the thing was done"? (top page 1) Why has he expressed the meaning in this way?
2.2 Did the mourners come to the arena because they wanted to?
2.3 Why did the king think the princess' lover would be 'disposed of' whichever door he opened?
2.4 How had the princess found out what was behind each door?
2.5 Why had the king thrown the princess' lover into prison?
2.6 Is there a suggestion that polygamy is legal in the kingdom?
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3.1 Do you think women ever committed crimes in the kingdom? If they did, how do you think they were tried?
3.2 If you were the princess, what option would you have indicated, and why?
3.3 If you were the lover, what door would you have taken, and why?
3.4 Write an ending to the story. It may or may not involve opening a door.
3.5 Do you agree with the author that the king's method of administering justice was fair?
3.6 Comment on the author's use of language.
3.7 If you were the king of a similar kingdom, how would you administer justice?
3.8 If the princess took another lover who, in due course, was put to trial in the arena, what strategies might he adopt as a result of knowing which door the first lover had opened?
3.9 Do you think the king's system is a deterrent to crime?
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Fire and Ice
O)
Bring on the tough stuff - Discuss! (there’s not just one right answer)
- Seriously, now, which superpower would win in a no-holds-barred grudge match between fire and ice?
- How many different ways can you think of that these two forces could actually destroy the world?
- What other elemental forces or passions do you think might rival, or at least compare, with the destructive power of fire and ice?
- How would you describe the speaker's worldview? Is it pessimistic, realistic, just indifferent?
- Do you think the extremes of fire and ice could exist in a person at the same time?
- We've got a pretty good handle on what it means to "taste" desire, but what do you think it means to "know enough of hate"? How much of hate is "enough," and what kinds of life experiences could give someone this knowledge?
- Do you think this is a poem that only could have been written in the 20th century? Why or why not?
The road not taken
The Road not Taken - Video
P)
Bring on the tough stuff - Discuss! (there’s not just one right answer.)
- Do you think the road the speaker took was really the less traveled one? Why?
- What do you think the chances are that the speaker will get to come back and try the other path?
- Do you think the speaker regrets his choice, or is happy about it? Why?
- What type of choices do you think this fork in the road represents for the speaker?
- What personal choices does this poem remind you of?
Q)
Bring on the tough stuff - Part 2!
Writing with Purpose—Extended Metaphor
What decisions have you made this week? Did you choose to stay up late one night to
watch a movie? Did you go to bed earlier than usual? Did you get homework done or did
you put it off? Did you pack your lunch or buy it?
You can probably think of hundreds of decisions and choices that you’ve made this
week. What choices had a consequence – big or small? Staying up late may have left
you tired in English class. Buying your lunch may have meant you had to spend your
allowance.
Choices have consequences whether they are big or small. The poem ―The Road Not
Taken” is about making choices. As a matter of fact, the entire poem can be read as a
metaphor about a choice the speaker makes – it is a comparison between two things.
Metaphorically speaking, what are those two things?
When a poet uses a metaphor throughout an entire poem, it’s called an extended
metaphor.
Write a poem about a recent choice and consequence
Summary: What to hand in?!
Your Literature File should contain the following:
-They are made out of Meat & An Alien sends a Postcard Home:
* Your Alien Experience
-Desiree's Baby & Strange Fruit:
* Summary Racism Discussion
-The Silent Hostages & The Lesson
* Newspaper Report
* Ideal classroom
-The Case of the Lower Case Letter & 40-Love
* Different forms of Poetry
-The Lady or the Tiger & Fire and Ice & The Road Not Taken
* 1 Evaluative Assignment
* Extended Metaphor Poem
All Texts
Literature 4V All Texts
