ppt1 english.pdf

What is literature? DEFINING LITERATURE: -Literature came from the Latin word “littera” which means “letters” DEFINING LITERATURE: (Jim Meyer) 1. The Criterial Approach / The Checklist Approach 2. The Prototype Approach 1. The Criterial Approach / The Checklist Approach - the usual approach...

What is literature? DEFINING LITERATURE: -Literature came from the Latin word “littera” which means “letters” DEFINING LITERATURE: (Jim Meyer) 1. The Criterial Approach / The Checklist Approach 2. The Prototype Approach 1. The Criterial Approach / The Checklist Approach - the usual approach in defining a word in English is to provide a list of criteria which must be met 1. The Criterial Approach / The Checklist Approach - if all the items on the list are checked off, the word applies - it is characterized by “clear, inflexible boundaries” Example: (Bird) animal has feathers has wings lays eggs Example: (Literature) “Literature or letters were understood to include all writing of quality with any pretense to permanence.” -Wellek, 1978 Example: (Literature) written writing of quality (use artistic language) relevant (past, present, future) Example: (Literature) “Literature includes any text worthy to be taught to students by teachers of literature.” -Hirsch, 1978 Example: (Literature) written worthy to be taught to students by teachers of literature 2. The Prototype Approach (Ludwig Wittgenstein) - focuses not on a list of creteria which must be met by each example, but on an established prototype, a particularly good example of the word, to which other examples of the word bear some resemblance 2. The Prototype Approach (Ludwig Wittgenstein) - we see a complicated network of similarities overlapping and criss-crossing; sometimes overall similarities, sometimes similarities of detail. Example: (Bird) animal can fly has feathers can sing has wings can imitate human lays eggs language The Literary Prototype (Jim Meyer) are written text are marked by careful use of language, including features such as creative metaphors are in literary genre (poetry, prose fiction, or drama) The Literary Prototype (Jim Meyer) are read aesthetically / are intended by the author to be read aesthetically contain many weak implicatures (are deliberately somewhat open to interpretations) DEFINING LITERATURE: (Oxford English Dictionary) BIG “L” vs. small “l” literature: Oxford English Dictionary “printed matter of any kind; especially leaflets, brochures, etc., used to advertise products or provide information and advice” Literature: Oxford English Dictionary “written work valued for superior or lasting artistic merit” Ur, Enheduanna (2285-2250 BCE) - she is a high-priestess - world’s first author known by name Homer’s soaring odes (poems meant to be sung) which are regarded as myth were then considered as true and sacred as any of the writings contained in the Judeo-Christian Bible or the Muslim Quran are to believers. Early literary works are usually didactic in approach (intended to teach), particularly in having moral instruction as an ulterior motive) and had an underlying (or often overt) religious purpose. - Herodotus is widely accredited as being the first historian. - He is often referred to as “The Father of History” Mesopotamian Naru Literature - The purpose of this literature was not to relate what really happened but to emphasize a moral, cultural, and religious point. What is World Literature? - Johann Wolfgang von Goethe is a German poet, playwright, novelist, scientist, statesman, theatre director, critic, and amateur artist. - Johann Wolfgang von Goethe is considered as the “greatest German literary figure in modern era” - He famously known to his two-part tragic play “Faust, a Tragedy” Faust, a Tragedy - Faust is unsatisfied with his life as a scholar and become depressed. After an attempt to take his own life, he calls on the devil for further knowledge and magic powers with which to indulge all the pleasure and knowledge of the world. Johann Wolfgang von Goethe introduced the concept of “weltliteratur” in 1827. World literature is used to refer to the sum total of the world’s national literatures, but usually it denotes the circulation of works into the wider world beyond their country of origin. To be considered world literature, it has to be speak to people of more than one nationality, hence it transcends borders. Circulation, translation, and production are the processes by which a literary work becomes world literature. - David Damrosch is an American literary historian - Damrosch maintains that a literary work never really leaves its place of origin but simply has two foci, one in the host country and one in the original country. - He explains that several different types of literature can either maintain or lose meaning when they become a translated work. - Greek Literature - Roman Literature - Early European Literature