what is the meaning of literature?

[cacian]

this question/thought came up as I was thinking my way through books I have read versus poetry.

for example:

what is the meaning of Harry Potter?
or
what is the meaning of Lolita?

and so before I query it/answer myself because I believe there is one meaning to everything we do, I put it to you to see....


what do you think is the meaning of a book you have just recently read?
what were your thoughts at the end?
did you get the meaning? there could only be one of course.

[kev67]

The title of the thread appeared as 'What is the meaning of li...' when I pulled up the site. I thought it was going to be 'What is the meaning of life?' Still, even 'What is the meaning of literature?' is quite a broad question.

[cacian]

The title of the thread appeared as 'What is the meaning of li...' when I pulled up the site. I thought it was going to be 'What is the meaning of life?' Still, even 'What is the meaning of literature?' is quite a broad question.

hi kev
the meaning of life?
there is only one life and so I guess that is one meaning :D

why broad question?

[kev67]

Literature is a medium for delivering meaning. You could as well say what is the meaning of speech. Actually, I think what you meant was what were the messages or themes of the books you have been reading recently, so I am being a bit facetious.

[cacian]

Literature is a medium for delivering meaning. You could as well say what is the meaning of speech. Actually, I think what you meant was what were the messages or themes of the books you have been reading recently, so I am being a bit facetious.

yes and no.
when I read a poem I get an idea from it. It tells me something I can link to the immediate reality.
the magical touch if you like between the poet and the reader is that element of reality.
a book such as the ones I cited, amongst many others, i don't seem to have a meaning to them. they give quite a hefty sypnosis but they leave no meaning.


for example:
is the meaning of a book is to write another book?
or is it to read more books?

what is the general meaning of a book?

[kev67]

yes and no.
when I read a poem I get an idea from it. It tells me something I can link to the immediate reality.
the magical touch if you like between the poet and the reader is that element of reality.
a book such as the ones I cited, amongst many others, i don't seem to have a meaning to them. they give quite a hefty sypnosis but they leave no meaning.
they they tell me quite a lot more then enough but there is not one meaning it leaves me with.
does that make sense?

for example:
is the meaning of a book is to write another book?
or is it to read more books?

what is the general meaning of a book?

Do you mean meaning or meta-meaning?

[cacian]

Do you mean meaning or meta-meaning?

LOL that is exactly it. meta-meaning :D

[JHG]

Such a broad question deserves a broad response. I take by the framing of the question and responses that we are proposing "meaning" as the objective purpose, and not the subjective "meaning" of personal relations. For fun, let us take a soft Marxist point of view. So I half-heartedly assert: Literature is in part an attempt to rectify language into an imitation of nature (where painting or sculture actually imitated nature). Though after the Industrial Revolution and subsequent onset of nationalism, all literature is destined to become a mode of propoganda.

Therefore, the meaning (as objective purpose) can be said to be twofold:

1. an imitation of nature (beauty)
2. propoganda (politics)

I might go so far as to assert the primary and perhaps defining dialectic of literature is in these factors. The Imitation of nature (beauty) is the demeanor of the work, i.e., the outward appearance and means of appeal to the reader. But the nature of the work is, in one way or another, propoganda; it either promotes the status-quo (decadence, bourgeois) or calls for change (revolution).

See: Kant; Walter Benjamin, Horkheimer and Adorno, et al.

In addition, we must be careful to not confuse the meaning of "writing" with the meaning of "literature."

[cacian]

an interesting post thank you JHG.

propaganda that is one point.
but is that because we are unable to asset ourselves publically so we need books to do for us?

the status quo?
a book to promote the status but how does it do that?
and if that
does it also means it promotes corruption of the mind/give false idendity?
just a question.

[cacian]

delete.

[JHG]

an interesting post thank you JHG.
propaganda that is one point.
but is that because we are unable to asset ourselves publically so we need books to do for us?

No, books are just able to do it more effectively than a person screaming in the town square.


the status quo? a book to promote the status but how does it do that?

By not inciting or somehow preciptating change from the reader, then the work must be happy with the way things currently are.

You could say that the work had no interest in either the status quo or in arousing change. But that would only be an endorsement of the status quo, or to put it a different way, "good enough."


does it also means it promotes corruption of the mind/give false idendity?

That would very much depend on the mindset of the reader. If the inherent propoganda confirms their already held beliefs, it couldn't be a corruption. However, if it incites change in the reader towards the financial benefit of a politician, for example, then you could claim that it is "corrupting."

Though I must say that I really don't like the words "corrupt" or "pure" when relating to literature. They are misleading and tremendously subjective.