Introduction to Literature

Literature

any collection of written or oral work, but commonly and narrowly refers to writings

World Literature

refers to the circulation of works into the wider world beyond their country of origin

Asian Literature

refers to the vast array of literary works originating from the Asian continent which is home to numerous countries with rich and varied cultures

Rich in Culture

Reflects values, beliefs and customs

Focus on Nature

Many works celebrate nature’s beauty

Moral Lessons

Often teaches values like respect, loyalty, and harmony

Use of Symbolism

Common in poetry and Narrative forms like epics, legends, and folktales

Africa

2nd Largest continent next to asia

Fictional Literature

imaginary, composed of writings or works of art that are meant to provide information, education, and entertainment to the reader

Non-Fictional Literature

is factual writing or written work that gives facts that can be proved as it provides real places, events, characters, times or reality rather than imaginary things

Author

the writer of the any written work of art or fiction

Setting

This is the place and time in which the story unfolds or takes place

Plot

a series or chain of related events that tells us ‘what happens’ in a story

Theme

This refers to the controlling, main idea or central insight in the novel or short story

Characters

These are persons or animals involved in a story in order to show entertain and show us some truth about human experience and ourselves

Style

This refers to the way the novel or short story is written in order to have a desired effect on the reader or audience

The Third-person

pov where the writer has decided to tell the story from the limited point of view of a single person in the story

The Omniscient

pov of a gold-like being who has created a fictional world and who can tell us everything that is going on in the minds of all the characters

The First-person

The narrator speaks of ‘I’, as a character in the story, this character can only tell us what he or she sees, hears, and thinks about what is going on

Language

is a part of style but it stands out to be the most important element of any fiction writing