What is Literature?

[Alban]

Is any piece of writing Literature?

If it is, why isn't every piece of writing remembered as a good piece in literature...

What is Basis for saying something a Good piece of Literature? The Criteria?

[olichka]

Is any piece of writing Literature?

If it is, why isn't every piece of writing remembered as a good piece in literature...

What is Basis for saying something a Good piece of Literature? The Criteria?


I think that writers' diaries are considered literature---they certainly start out as writers by writing in their own diaries. There they discuss and describe various people they know, thus presenting " characters ", as well as put down interesting insightful thoughts and ideas which later serve as themes in the novels. Diaries can also serve as " companions " to literary works to help shed light on writers' motivations .

[PeterL]

Is any piece of writing Literature?

Yes and no. You used a capital L on Literature, so I assume that you mean high literature. All writing is literature.


If it is, why isn't every piece of writing remembered as a good piece in literature...

The is high and low literature.


What is Basis for saying something a Good piece of Literature? The Criteria?

Opinion, but you might also want to read Mark Twain's "The Literary Offences of Fennimore Cooper" for some specific comments about what makes writing food or bad.

[masterlibrarian]

Is any piece of writing Literature?

If it is, why isn't every piece of writing remembered as a good piece in literature...

What is Basis for saying something a Good piece of Literature? The Criteria?

1&2. my opinion is the same as Peter.

3. I believe that a good criteria (not the only one) it's if a work is capable of talk to the men of all ages and all times.

[Weisinheimer]

uhhh, what's high literature and what's low literature? :confused:

[Demona]

Is any piece of writing Literature?

Defining the word is just a convention. However, I would say that indeed everything written is literature, everything.



If it is, why isn't every piece of writing remembered as a good piece in literature... What is Basis for saying something a Good piece of Literature? The Criteria?

Now that is a tough question. As I see the situation, particular groups of people have an opinion about particular books, and by joining this or that group a person is driven towards reading this or that. Eventually, he just establishes his opinion, understands his preferences and if he is independent enough chooses books on his own. If not--uses others' guidlines. So every person, in my opinion, sets his own criteria depending on his background, preferences, aims, beliefs, etc. whatever doesn't suit the criteria usually but not always is considered wrong or bad.

[Tuesday]

uhhh, what's high literature and what's low literature? :confused:

I'm wondering about that, too. I once read that high literature (in contrast to literature which was written purely for the sake of entertainment) transcends the reader's expectations and therefore leads to some kind of intellectual growth. But honestly...I've got no idea if that's really a legitimate criteria.

After all, I think that most of the books we nowadays call classics and teach in school started out just as a means of entertainment. I don't think that too many writers consciously sat down and said to themselves "Okay, now I'm going to write a book that will be very taught in school one day".

[anydazecoo]

i hate english and literature classes but i enjoy reading edgar

[McGrain]

I feel writing has to have intrinsic value before it can he considered literature, even with a small letter l. For example, if all writing is literature, any combination of words (or combination of symbols) becomes literature if it is written down. ("Spake frick moosehead" isn't literature - even if it is written, printed and even sold!) So it is established that there are certain perameters immediatley. It is defining them that is difficult.

Of course, their are plenty of literary snobs that will refuse to define King as literature. This is, of course, ridiculous, although it is perfectly reasonable in company to have a discussion regarding his "literary merit". This i feel is key. If we can have a discussion about literary merit, we can agree that literary merit is a value that can be inherant to writing, to any given peice of work. If something like, for example, War and Peace can have a very high literary merit, can Great Expectations, Crime and Punishment or Ulysses have a "maximum" value? If so it follows that a work could have a "minimum" value?

Could this minimum value be 0? If so, would that peice of work cease to be lierature? If so, what would it then be?

What does everyone else think?

[Demona]

"Spake frick moosehead" isn't literature - even if it is written, printed and even sold!

What is it then?

[McGrain]

Signs? Symbols? I think it's more important to say what it's not. It's not a construct in any form. It's not designed to ellicit a response, be it pleasure, displeasure, indifference. It's not meant to be read. It's not meant as a form of expression. If you feel better about it, imagine a computer programed to create letters and numbers in a random way. These randoms pop into existance, then out again, without anyone having read them. Perhaps they are even printed and shredded. How does this compare in "literary terms" with Emma?

[B-Mental]

I'm confused McGrain...what are you smoking? It's not a construct? Not meant to be read? Are we supposed to eat it? play games with it? Sit on it at the table to make any chair a highchair....you make no sense with your answer.

[kilted exile]

"Spake frick moosehead" isn't literature


Looks like old English to me, clearly someone called Frick Moosehead has just finished speaking. No idea what he was saying however.

[Demona]

Signs? Symbols? I think it's more important to say what it's not. It's not a construct in any form. It's not designed to ellicit a response, be it pleasure, displeasure, indifference. It's not meant to be read. It's not meant as a form of expression. If you feel better about it, imagine a computer programed to create letters and numbers in a random way. These randoms pop into existance, then out again, without anyone having read them. Perhaps they are even printed and shredded. How does this compare in "literary terms" with Emma?

I must admit, it's hard to disagree with B-Mental.
But ok, signs and symbols. Don't they form a part of any literary work? Besides, if someone doesn't understand what the author wanted to show by this or that combination of signs and symbols it doesn't mean it's not literature.

[Mrs. Dalloway]

Well, it's a difficult question!! :p Not every piece of writing is Literature because I suppose you wouldn't consider an article as literature. I think it's subjective... In all the periods of literature, every writing was consider as literature following the Intellectual people's opinion. You know, there were so many poets considered now as literature but in their periods weren't. The same happens with letters. Now, it depends on the person or the way that the letters are written that can be considered literature.

Maybe, we must follow the opinions of people that know more of literature than us. Or maybe not... What do you think? It's a good and interesting question! But the answer is complicated.

(It's my first post here! Sorry for my English! It's not my native language ;) I hope you can correct my mistakes. I'll be very happy!)

[*Classic*Charm*]

To me, Literature is any piece of writing that inspires insight- what leads one person to think insightfully may not for another, and so in this I believe that almost anything can be considered literature. That which is considered high literature has inspired insight universally.

[Redzeppelin]

Literature is that which deepens our appreciation of what it means to be human; it takes us deeper into Life and gives us a sharper awarness of who we are and why we're here.