READING LITERALY WORK/LITARATURE SKILLS

                              

Technically speaking, literature is a superior written work that stands the test of time. Personally speaking, literature is something written with a soul that lasts through the ages because it speaks to us on a subliminal level. Literature has a cadence of the word and thought, it brings to life setting, characters and plot. Literature provokes thought and tests our convictions. It brings forth uncomfortable ideas and erotic fantasies.

Literature provides us with an alternate reality, that is its purpose. Whether that be in the form of an escape; a great adventure or a devastating heartbreak, whether it be a philosophical pondering or an argument that sways us. Its purpose, it’s meaning is to give us perspective. We can learn a great many things from studying great works of literature but the biggest lesson we learn is how to see.

Literature can be defined as a work of art which uses words or language creatively to express and reflect human realities.

ORIGIN OF LITERATURE

I think from very early on, human beings have been storytellers in one form or another.  They told stories of their lives, they created stories to explain the natural phenomena around them, and they created stories of heroes and heroines.  To be human is to imagine, and to be human is to create a narrative of one's world and one's life. Before they had written, humans told stories in the form of pictures, for example, in cave paintings, and probably in rhyme, since the rhythm of poetry made it easier to remember a story. Once people acquired writing, they used writing to keep records, certainly, but they also used writing to tell their stories.  The oldest writings in the world that we know of are from the Middle East and go back to approximately 2600 BC.  These include poetry and stories. It is possible that there is earlier written literature, but none has been found so far.  So, the origins of literature is to some degree lost in the mists of time, but we do know that people have been telling stories from their earliest days and will continue to do so as long as humans exist as a species.

• Literature and language are indistinguishable /inseparable because:
• Literature is created through language. It is called so when language is used creatively to reflect human realities. Language is the medium or tool of communication in literature, no language, no literature. It can also be argued that language develops through the four language skills which are listening, speaking, writing and reading.
• Therefore, literature as a work of art is different from other work of art such as pottery, sculpture, painting, carving, weaving, because it uses language creatively to describe or express human experiences and realities.

Generally, there are two types /genres of literature, namely:

1. Oral/old literature
2. Written/ modern literature

Oral/Old Literature

This is the type of literature which is presented through word of mouth from one generation to another. It is a primary source of literature because it started before written literature. It was practiced through verbal expressions from one generation to another. Oral literature originated with human being as human started to use it in a form of verbal songs, myths, folk tales, epics, etc. Therefore, oral literature is a the foundation of literature even which we use today i.e. Written literature.

Written /modern literature

This is the type/genre of literature which is expressed in a form of writings. It started with the invention of writings. It is also called an A secondary source of literature because it started after oral literature and is a property of literate and semi-literates.

Written literature has three genres, these are:

1. Novels and short stories
2. Poetry
3. Drama/play

Novel

This is long narrative prose in which characters and actions represents real life and are portrayed in a complex plot. Examples of novel books are such as “Passed Like a Shadow” written by B. Mapalala, “Spared” written by S.N Ndunguru, Weep Not Child written by Ngugi Wa Thiong’o, “House boy” written by Ferdinand Oyono, “A Wreath for Father Mayer” written by S.N. Ndunguru.

Short Stories

This is a fictional prose narrative that is shorter than a normal novel and restricted in characterization and situation. It normally deals with a single major event. Examples of short stories are from the book titled “Encounters from Africa” by Macmillan Ltd. The book contains two stories, which are; ‘The Voter’ and ‘The Smile of Fortune’.

Drama/Plays

Drama is a literary work written to be performed /acted by actors on a stage before an audience? The word “drama” means ‘to do’ or ‘to act’. It is a story that involves characters who act before the audience which gets the message intended by the playwright. In order to be complete and, effective drama needs actors or players, audience, language (diction), plot, setting, scenes, actions, etc.

Normally, plays belong to a different genre because they are border than other genre due to the economical use of words by tge playwright. Examples of play;‘ This Time Tomorrow’ written by Ngugi wa Thiong ‘An Enemy of the People are written by Henrik Ibsen “The Black Hermit,” Kivuli Kinaishi and ‘The Lion and The Jewel’ by Wole Soyinka

Elements of Literature

Literature has two important elements which include form and content.

FORM: This refers to how work or art is structured (how something is arranged or said). Form includes PLOT, STYLE/TECHNIQUES, SETTING, CHARACTERISATION, and LANGUAGE USE (DICTION)

• Plot: This refers to how events are arranged in a novel /play. It shows how events are arranged in an artistic way through conflict which can be moral or personal or physical conflict.
• Style/ technique: This refers to the way the work of art is made/composed. Style can be narrative where an author accounts for a story. It can also be part of the oral tradition which story is told in traditional styles such as a long a time ago……….., for many years ago……….. Style can also be straight forward where events are narrated from what happened or takes place at the beginning to an end of the novel. We also have flashback techniques whereby an author may narrate events by moving back then forward through time. . Example of a book in which the author employed a flashback technique is ‘Betrayal in the City ‘by Frances Imbuga. Under technique style we also have a point of view, this refers to how events are observed. Depending on who sees the action and who tells the story. A story can be told from an omniscient point of view whereby the narrator is not known and has access to characters' thoughts feelings and all events. Third person point of view is used when the author describes his/her characters depending on what he sees, hears or thinks and the first person point of view uses 'I" and the author describes only what can be seen, heard or thought by a single character.
• Setting: This refers to environment or the immediate world in which the events in a story takes place. It includes time, culture and place where events take place. Setting can be physical real or imagery setting. For example setting of this play ‘’ This Time Tomorrow’’ is Kenya after independence and the setting of a book 'Betrayal in the City' is the Kafira state in Africa hence imagery since we have no such state in Africa.
• Characterisation: Is the description of characters in a story. Characterisation refers to the creation of an imaginary person to exist as a lifelike human for the readers. A good writer always strives to create believable characters. We know a character by examining what she/he thinks, says/does and what other character say about him or her life in general. Character can be main/major /central character; that appears mostly in every page of the book or narrative and plays a big role to the portrayal of the intended message by the author. Character can also be minor. These appear few times or very scarcely in a work of art. They assist the main character in accomplishing some message to the reader(s).
• Language, diction: Refers to the choice and arrangement of words in a literary work.We examine whether the language used is simple, complex, mixed, grammatical, or ungrammatical, normal, or figurative language.

Content:: Refers to the main subject of a literary work presented in a written or spoken form. It also refers to what is being conveyed in a speech, an article or a certain program. Content includes the following elements: Themes, message, conflicts, climax, crisis, and philosophy.

• Theme: This refers to the major idea or subject contained in a work of art. It is represented through persons, actions, or concepts in a literary work. It may also refer to the major topic obscured and reflected or describe in the book. In Africa literature the main themes are such as corruption, position and role of women, irresponsibility, betrayal and African traditional, belief, poverty. Other minor themes can be alienation, protest, oppression, and humiliation, sacrifice, class struggle.
• Message:This refers to the lesson we get after reading a work of art. For example; is the play ‘This Time Tomorrow’ we learn that unity and solidarity is important for the liberation of the oppressed and humiliated society.
• Conflict: This refers to the clash or opposition between one idea, thought or feeling and another, one person and another or conflict within an individual person. Conflict can be because of economic conflict, social conflict, political, personal or philosophical conflict between one idea and feelings and another.
• Climax: This is a stage in which conflict reaches the higher point where resolution is inevitable or necessary.
• Crisis: This is a point where conflict rises and causes some problems to the person or people involved and therefore, a resolution is necessary. There may be different crisis each proceed the climax.
• Philosophy: Refers to the belief or outlook of the author which he/she expresses in the a book/story.

                                        
QUESTIONS
What is the function of literature?

 TRANSMISSION OF CULTURE: While a history textbook or transcripts of court trials, or newspapers can tell us the facts and events of society, nothing can share the feelings or beliefs like literature does. In literature we see the struggles and triumphs of various societies in addition to how people responded to them. People's morals and values are often portrayed through literature.

ART OF COMMUNICATION: Some people express themselves well visually, others verbally, and yet others with the written word that has had opportunities for editing and several drafts.

SCIENCE OF COMMUNICATION: Often, an author will have a significant feeling on an issue that they wish to communicate. To persuade people to think or feel similarly, they might entertain, use reverse psychology (like a dystopia), or blatantly describe the issue with many literary devices.
A word on literary devices: For everyone, there are different comparisons or hyperboles that speak to us. An author of a literary piece can use many to convey their point.

 Why is the study of literature important? What skills do students learn through reading?

The study of literature has a civilizing effect on people. There is an extreme danger of education being used primarily to turn out engineers, lawyers, doctors, accountants, business men and business women and other professionals who are lacking in human feelings and who have been described as educated barbarians. The great Leo Tolstoy wrote a sadly neglected book titled What is Art in which he explained, among other things, the importance of all art to human society. Here is a critical excerpt which might induce some readers to look for the book itself.  (See reference link below.)

As, thanks to man's capacity to express thoughts by words, every man may know all that has been done for him in the realms of thought by all humanity before his day, and can in the present, thanks to this capacity to understand the thoughts of others, become a sharer in their activity and can himself hand on to his contemporaries and descendants the thoughts he has assimilated from others, as well as those which have arisen within himself; so, thanks to man's capacity to be infected with the feelings of others by means of art, all that is being lived through by his contemporaries is accessible to him, as well as the feelings experienced by men thousands of years ago, and he has also the possibility of transmitting his own feelings to others.
If people lacked this capacity to receive the thoughts conceived by the men who preceded them and to pass on to others their own thoughts, men would be like wild beasts, or like Kaspar Hauser.
And if men lacked this other capacity of being infected by art, people might be almost more savage still, and, above all, more separated from, and more hostile to, one another.
And therefore the activity of art is a most important one, as important as the activity of speech itself and as generally diffused.  

A lot of what is offered as art in our modern world is what Tolstoy called "counterfeit art." It is totally insincere and produced mainly for money. Some of the characteristics of counterfeit art are imitation, and striking and unusual effects. In popular music it can be seen that amplified noise and screaming are substitutes for genuine feeling. Much modern painting looks like nothing more than blatant hoaxes.
Exposure to genuine art in school could conceivably help students to discriminate between real and counterfeit art, including real and counterfeit creative literature. If young people do not get such exposure in school--where are they going to get it when they leave school? 

 General Themes of Literature

Literature is not written in a vacuum, it emanates from a society to reflect its social, political, economic, as well as cultural aspects. Therefore, literature has a direct connection to human life and thus, it cannot be separated from human beings. The following are some of the important roles and functions of literature:

• Literature criticises societies. authors of a literary work criticise society by revealing corruption, oppression, and humiliation,and inequality.
• Literature expresses people’s culture. This includes norms, values, traditional, and, practices so that people can follow them. It can also make people abandon some bad cultural practiced such as female genital mutilation (FGM) for positive changes.
• Literature educates people: it educates people about day to day happenings or events in their society. It widens their minds and thinking capacity.
• Literature entertains people; people enjoy by watching and reading different works that appeal to their state of mind.
• Literature is a tool of liberation. It makes people know the presence of exploitation, irresponsibility, it direct people to struggle for mental and physical liberation against these problems.
• Literature develops language because language is a tool or medium of communication in literature.

 

Interpreting Poems

POETRY is a genre of literature which expresses the feelings, ideas, and emotions of the reader(s) or hearer(s). The language used in poetry is characterised by imagery and rhythmical sounds.

Terms related to poetry

• Poem:This is a piece of writing in a verse form that expresses deep feelings using artistic language.
• Persona: This refers to a character in a poem.
• Poet/poetess: This refers to a man or woman who composes an oral or written poem.
• Verse:This is a simple line in a poem.
• Stanza: Is a combination or collection of verses to make a complete idea of a poem.
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