Literature notes| Ordinary level notes| play, novels and poetry
Literature| novel| play| poetry | form three and form four literature notes| Ordinary level notes of English | Advanced level notes of English
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Do you know the meaning of literature?
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There is no single definition that suits the
meaning of literature. As a result, there have been various attempts to define
the term literature. Some of these attempts are;
Literature is the work of art that uses the language
creatively to portray the message to the intended audience.
Literature is a work of art that uses the
language creatively to express human realities to the society.
Literature is an imaginative work of art that uses
language to reflect social realities.
Literature is divided into two major categories
(i) Oral literature
(ii) Written literature
Oral literature
This is a type of
literature that presents the message through words of mouth. This is the oldest
type of literature since it was practised before the invention of writings. Its
forms include; Folk tale, tall tale, legends, myths, fables, anecdote, ballads,
epics, riddles, sayings (proverbs and idioms). Let us discuss some of them in
details.
Written literature
This is a type of literature that presents the message
through/ in written form. This began with the invention of writings. This has
two major forms. Fiction and non-fiction
Since literature does
not develop from a vacuum, but from the society in which it emanates, it has
got different roles to play in the society. The following are some of the most
important functions of literature in the society.
i. Literature
educates people in the society. Literary works are used to impart knowledge to
the members of the society. It creates awareness on different social political
and economic matters taking place in their societies. It educates the young
people on how they are expected to behave in accordance with the demands of
their societies and the roles they are required to fulfil.
ii. Literature expresses people’s
culture. Since literature develops from the society, it automatically expresses
the culture of its people. All cultural aspects like traditions, beliefs,
customs, norms etc are expressed so that the society may cherish the good ones
and carry them over to the next generations, and modify or discard the outdated
ones.
iii. Literature is used to entertain people. Most
literary works appeal to the emotions. By reading, listening and watching
literary works, we get entertained. Poems and dramas create an enjoyment to the
audience different from one we get when we are eating food. Literary enjoyment
is called aesthetic pleasure. E.g. comedies and melodrama.
iv. Literature is used to influence people in the
society. More often than not people who are interested in watching, listening
and reading literary works are tempted to act like those characters in the
respective literary work. During the struggle for independence for example
literary works were used to instil revolutionary ideas to the oppressed to take
up arms against the oppressor. Consider the poem “Your Pain” by Armando
Guebuza.
v. Literature is used to develop
language. By reading, listening and watching literary works, people improve
their language skills such as listening, speaking, reading and writing. People
may also improve their vocabulary stock since they will not only come across a
number of new words but also know how they are used in real contexts. Authors
do also come with new words, phrases, idioms, figures of speech, that help to
develop the language.
vi. Literature is used to liberate people mentally and
physically. Literary works present the message that helps to liberate the
society mentally as a result they liberate themselves physically. It
conscitizes the society about the existence of oppressive systems and suggest
ways to get rid of those systems. E.g. United we stand, divided we fall.
vii. Literature is used to criticize
the society.
Literature may be used to criticise the society in a sense
that it points out the burning issues and requests the society to resolve them.
More often than not literary artists point out the evils done by the traditional
society e.g. Perpetuating the outdated customs like FGM, Widow
Inheritance, forced marriages etc. and ask the society to discard them. They
may also point the wrongs done by the ruling class and suggest the ways to get
rid of these leaders.
