Why Study Literature?

Why Study Literature?

Studying literature enables an individual to nurture generosity and compassion for others, to develop a sense of wonder about nature, a love of learning, and spirit of openness and hopefulness.

Studying literature is about understanding the past and the present. It’s about the development of language and the use of language in speech, poetry, song, prayer, philosophy, and literature.

Each generation has encountered and engaged the knowledge transmitted to it from the past. This process involves leaving some ideas behind and improving on old ideas. Studying literature is entering into that tradition and offering the privilege of contributing to it yourself.

In this class we will ask some big questions: Does life have meaning? What does it mean to be a hero? How do we deal with suffering? How do we appreciate beauty? What challenges confront us as human beings in thiscentury? These are questions that we will explore together in our discussions of the literature we will read.

The study of literature is also about understanding history, how power relations are formed, and how consciousness changes. This enables a person to realize that the way things are … is not the only possible way things have been or could be. Studying literature is about the inner life, spiritual contemplation, the joy of grappling with the perennial questions, reading the great literature and poetry of the human experience. The focus is on the internal rather than the external. The study of literature is not about the accumulation of money, material possessions, celebrity status, or social power.

In this course, the material is organized chronologically. There is continuity and change (historically), and timelessness and evolution (thematically). The idea is that culture is constantly evolving, but the human experience has certain elements that transcend time.

My goals for the class are many.

One…that we will develop an appreciation for the complexity of the human condition (past and present) and to understand that there are usually no simple answers in life.

Two…that reading and writing become less of a chore and more of a way to organize your thoughts to become critical and analytical thinkers who understand what you read and are able to make informed judgments about current events.

Third, to appreciate different perspectives, (which is necessary if you are going to make informed judgments). In this class I encourage dialogue. A rational dialogue is one where those participating believe that their words can change the minds of others and that the words of others can change their own minds.

Finally, to understand that "useless" is not the same as "worthless." The development of self-understanding and the cultivation of self-expression both have intrinsic value.