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Why literature matters

1897809_10203116473092603_289540637795405066_nLiterature can take many forms, but what I think of when the word is used encompasses fiction, poetry, plays, historical or contemporary biography, journalism and documentary writing, not all of which have to be experienced on the page. I am sure there are many better, even wider, definitions.
What all have in common is storytelling. A novel or short story speaks for itself, of course, but a poem also tells a story, sometimes a story of a single image or thought, sometimes a very complex story of emotion or sensory impression. A play allows a story – or several stories – to be acted out before the eyes of an audience, and derives resonance in part from the live nature of that audiences’ response so that every performance becomes a slightly different story. Good non-fiction writing, although based around known facts, gains by telling its story in a meaningful and accessible way. Human beings have delighted in story-making and telling for centuries: earlier developed world examples include the great epics of Rome and Greece, the Icelandic sagas, the chansons de geste told and sung by travelling performers across medieval Europe and of course the religious writings of saints and prophets. 65 per cent of adults in the UK say that they read for pleasure, two thirds of us read in bed, and apparently 25% in the bath. Despite the credit crunch and competition from other media, the number of book titles published has increased exponentially in recent years.
So what makes literature such an enduring form of expression? I think there are a number of common features

  • Making sense of one’s place in the world: sometimes by imagining what is not, rather than what is, the realisation that another world is possible;
  • Making sense of feelings – love and hatred, for example. I can still remember my Latin teacher at school quoting Catullus’ “Odi et Amo” as the perfect description of the pain of intense sexual desire, and one only has to think of the various themes of sirens, love potions and other divine interventions to see that stories are powerful ways of trying to analyse instincts and feelings;
  • Stirring emotions – fear, admiration, sympathy : tales of heroism or suffering (individual or collective), great spectacles, the shock of common recognition, Aristotle’s catharsis;
  • Using examples to teach others and inspire or influence them; this can be overt – say,the Gospels, or Machiavelli’s The Prince, Simone de Beauvoir – or covert – Voltaire’s Candide, Pilgrim’s Progress, even Erica Jong;
  • Propaganda or saying something in an unreal universe that resonates in a real one, perhaps to better criticise the status quo or address a moral dilemma: Shakespeare and Moliere, of course, used this technique to perfection, and you could add Zola, Orwell, Tolstoy, Dickens, Hardy and many more to this category;
  • The distinction between illusion and reality, the game of understanding where they divide and what happens if they are confused: one thinks of classic fairy tales and legends, where characters become animals or humans on the taking off or putting on of a garment, or Mog the cat dreaming of a universe of mousedogbirds.

I believe that anyone who is able to listen to, read, watch or experience a good story in whatever form suits them best will get some or all of these things, and anyone who is able to think, analyse and write or speak about the stories that they themselves have found meaningful is getting a little closer to understanding what makes them and others tick. Literature breaks the continuum of everyday and makes us stop and think. Appreciating literature is to appreciate diversity, nuance and difference, to be prepared for the unexpected, the frightening, or the painful and to know that there are many ways of handling it, to experience agony and ecstasy in someone else’s shape without having to do what they have done. Literature is therefore much more than mere entertainment – it is a fundamental technique for the understanding of ourselves and our universe, just as much as astronomy, biology or most of the other “ologies”. Although I am not suggesting literature should be validated on utilitarian grounds, nonetheless to corral literature in education as an “arts subject” which high achievers should eschew in favour of maths and science is like trying to plant a forest in a desert: it may grow, but with less strength and resilience.
A literature lover and a literature learner will empathise, and the emotional intelligence that they acquire will undoubtedly help them in many real world ways: to write and express themselves effectively, to be good leaders and guides, to be less likely to sink than swim, to appreciate their communities and their own role in them, and probably how to make them better.
Cathy Baxandall
Cathy is Vice-Chair of OCA Trustees and a trustee of the Ilkley Literature Festival.
This piece was originally discussed by OCA Trustees as part of a review of the OCA charitable purpose in November.


Posted by author: Cathy

3 thoughts on “Why literature matters

  • I enjoyed this writing and would i feel enjoy the course, i do have a B in English O Level and a BA degree Open
    but i often feel that my English would not be up to it as i left school with no qualifications and therefore even though i like writing what put me off is not knowing all the Rules of the English language like where to put a comma or apostrophe correctly. do we learn this as we go or would we be criticised for not using correct gramma etc.
    Kind regards

    David

  • When you step into a world of learning then it’s important to accept the nudges and shoves that are part of it all. Revel in improvement.

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