WORLD LITERATURE LECTURES

LESSON 1: INTRODUCTION TO LITERATURE INTELLECTUAL VALUE

What is Literature?  Literature stimulates critical
- It is a body of written works. thinking that enriches mental
- Writings having excellence of form process of abstraction, and
or expression and expressing ideas reasoning.
of permanent or universal interest. SUBJECTIVENESS
- Deriving from the Latin litera, “a
letter of alphabet”. Literature is  Literature unravels and conjures
first and foremost humankind’s man’s emotional power to define
entire body of writing. symbolisms, nuances, implied
- It is a “slice of life”. meaning, and images.
- It is a body of work, either
SPIRITUAL VALUE
written, oral, or visual containing
imaginative language that  Literature elevated the spirit and
realistically portrays thoughts, the soul and thus has the power to
emotions, and experiences of the motivate and inspire, drawn from
human condition. suggested morals of different
- It is a product of a particular literary genres.
culture that concretizes man’s
PERMANENCE
array of values, emotions, actions,
and ideas.  Literature endures across time and
- It is a creation of human draws out the time factor:
experiences that talks about people timeliness and timelessness.
and their world.
STYLE
“Literature raises life into a new level
of meaning and understanding, and in the  Literature presents peculiar way/s
process restores sanity and justice in an on how man sees life as evidenced
insane and unjust world.” – Cirilo F. by the formation of his ideas,
Bautista forms, structures, and expressions
which are marked by their memorable
What is the importance of Literature? substance.
1. Studying Literature is like looking How are we going to study Literature?
at the mirror of life where man’s
experiences, his innermost feelings Through the help of LITERARY APPROACHES
and thoughts are reflected. - Theories, principles that can help
2. Through Literature, we learn the in studying Literature
culture of people across time and
space. FORMALISTIC APPROACH
3. We understand not only the past
o Literature is viewed intrinsically,
life a nation but also its present.
independent of the author, age, or
4. We become familiar not only with
any extrinsic factor. It focuses
the culture of neighboring
more on “literary elements”.
countries but also with that of
others living very far from us. MORAL/HUMANISTIC APPROACH
LITERARY STANDARDS o Literature is viewed to discuss man
and its nature. It naturally
UNIVERSALITY
presents man as essentially
 Literature appeals to everyone rational, endowed with intellect
regardless of culture, race, and freewill.
gender, and time
HISTORICAL APPROACH
ARTISTRY
o Literature is seen both as a
 Literature has an aesthetic appeal reflection and product of the times
and thus possesses a sense of and circumstances in which it was
beauty. written.
 WORLD LITERATURE LECTURES

SOCIOLOGICAL APPROACH

o Literature is viewed as the

expression of man within a given
social situation which is reduced.

CULTURAL APPROACH POETRY: DIFFERENT KINDS

o Literature is seen as one of the  LYRIC POETRY
manifestations and vehicle of a
nation’s/race’s culture and It is a comparatively short, non-
tradition. narrative poem, in which a single speaker
presents a state of mind or emotional
PSYCHOLOGICAL APPROACH
state.
o Literature is viewed as the LYRIC POETRY: KINDS
expression of “personality” of
“inner drives” or “neurosis”. It 1. ELEGY
includes the psychology of the
A poem of serious reflection, typically a
author, characters, and even the
lament for the dead.
psychology of its creation.
IMPRESSIONISTIC APPROACH

o Literature is viewed to elucidate

“reacting-response” which is
considered as something very
personal, relative, and fruitful.
It seeks to see how the piece has
communicated.
LESSON 2: CLASSIFICATIONS OF LITERATURE
Key words: genre and 2. ODE

literature What is Genre? A poem in which a person expresses a

strong feeling of love or respect for
- is any category of literature, someone or something.
music, or other forms of art or
entertainment, whether written or
spoken, audio or visual, based on
some set of stylistic criteria.
- Genres form by conventions that
change over time as new genres are
invented and the use of old ones is
discontinued.
- Often, works fit into multiple
genres by way of borrowing and
recombining these conventions.
- Genre began as an absolute 3. SONNET
classification system for ancient
Greek literature. Poetry, prose, A fourteen-line poem written in iambic
and performance each had a specific pentameter, which employ one of several
and calculated style that related rhyme schemes and adhere to a tightly
to the theme of the story. structured thematic organization.

GENRES OF LITERATURE
POETRY

o is a form of literature that uses

aesthetic and rhythmic qualities of
language.

4. DRAMATIC MONOLOUGE
A poem in the form of a speech or
narrative by an imagined person, in which
the speaker inadvertently reveals aspects
of their character while describing a
particular situation or series of events.
 NARRATIVE POETRY
It is a form of poetry that tells a
story, often making use of the voices of
a narrative and of characters as well.
The entire story is usually written in
metered verse.
NARRATIVE POETRY: KINDS
1. EPICS
A long narrative poem written in elevated
style, in which heroes of great
historical or legendary importance
perform valorous deeds. (e.g., Beowulf)
2. MOCK-EPIC
Are typically satires or parodies that
mock common Classical stereotypes of
heroes and heroic literature. (e.g.,
Alexander Pope’s The Rape of the Lock)
3. BALLAD
A poem or song narrating a story in short
stanzas. Traditional ballads are
typically of unknown authorship, having
been passed on orally from one generation
to the next as part of the folk culture.
(e.g., The Second Coming William Butler
Yeats (1865- 1939))
 DESCRIPTIVE AND DIDACTIC POETRY
Both lyric and narrative poetry can
contain lengthy and detailed descriptions
(descriptive poetry) or scenes in direct
speech (dramatic poetry).
The purpose of a didactic poem is
primarily to teach something.
WORLD LITERATURE LECTURES
PROSE
o written or spoken language in its
ordinary form, without metrical
structure.
PROSE: KINDS
 FICTION
It is a literature written in a form of
prose, especially short stories, and
novels, that describes imaginary events
and people.
FICTION: KINDS
1. REALISTIC FICTION
A genre consisting of stories that could
have actually occurred to people or
animals in a believable setting.
2. FANTASTIC FICTION
A type of fiction that ideologically and
aesthetically subordinates reality to
imagination by depicting a world of
marvels that is contrasted to everyday
reality and to accepted views of what is
credible.
 NON-FICTION
Prosed writing which is based on facts,
real events, and real people such as
biography and history.
 WORLD LITERATURE LECTURES

NON-FICTION: KINDS  FARCE

1. BIOGRAPHIES Generally, a farce is a nonsensical genre
A detailed description of a person’s of drama, which often overacts or engages
life. It involves more than just the slapstick humor.
basic facts like education, work, It’s basically, what you call a “Parody”.
relationships, and death, but also
portrays a subject’s experience of these  MELODRAMA
life events.
Melodrama is an exaggerated drama, which
2. AUTOBIOGRAPHIES is sensational and appeals directly to
the senses of audience. Just like the
A written account of the life of a person farce, the characters are of single
written by that person. dimension and simple, or may be
3. ESSAYS stereotyped.

Generally, a piece of writing that gives  FANTASY

the author’s own argument – but the It is a complete fictional work where
definition is vague, overlapping with characters virtually display supernatural
those of an article, a pamphlet, and a skills. It is more appealing to children
short story. as fairies, angels, superheroes, etc.,
4. ARTICLES are embedded in the plot. Use of magic,
pseudo- science, horror, and spooky
A piece of writing included with others themes through various kinds of technical
in a newspaper, magazine, or other devices create a perfect world of
publication. fantasy. The modern version of drama
5. HUMOUR incorporates a great deal of special
effects.
Situations, speech, or writings that are
 MUSICAL
thought to be humorous.
DRAMA LESSON 3: ELEMENTS OF FICTION
FICTION
o A piece of writing that tells a
story and is performed on a stage.  Literature in the form of prose,
especially short stories and
novels, that describes imaginary
events and people.
 It uses imaginary events and
characters. In the 21st century,
they are usually adopted into
movies.
DRAMA: KINDS
EXAMPLE OF NOVELS
 COMEDY

Comedies are lighter in tone than

ordinary writers and provide a happy
conclusion. The intention of dramatists
in comedies is to make their audience
laugh. Hence, they use quaint
circumstances, unusual characters, and
witty remarks.
 TRAGEDY

Tragic dramas use darker themes such as

disaster, pain, and death. Protagonists
often have a tragic flaw – a
characteristic that leads them to their
downfall.
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TWO TYPES OF CHARCTERIZATION

DIRECT CHARACTERIZATION

 The writer makes direct statements

about a character’s personality and
tells what the character is like.
 Think of adjectives.
 Descriptions; Showing
Example: Gary is a nice and caring person.

INDIRECT CHARACTERIZATION
EXAMPLE OF SHORT STORIES
 The writer reveals information
about a character and his/her
personality through that
character’s thoughts, words, and
actions, along with how other
characters respond to that
character, including what they
think and say about him/her.
 Think of verbs.
 Actions; Telling

Example: Gary watched his little brother

for two hours while their mother was ill,
taking care of his every need. He did
this without being asked and he did not
ask for anything in return.
TWO MAJOR TYPES OF CHARACTERS
 PROTAGONIST

It is one of the major characters in the

story. It receives the blow from the
antagonist.
ELEMENTS OF FICTION

CHARACTERS

 They are the people whom the story

revolves around.
 They are usually the recipients and
cause of different conflicts.
 They can be good and bad.
 Some stay and some go away during
any part of the story.
Why are characters important?
 ANTAGONIST
 Something to invest in
 Someone to care about It is the one in conflict with the
 Someone to root for protagonist. It gives the protagonist the
sense of terror and realization. It can
CHARACTERIZATION be a single person or a group.
 It is the creation or the
construction of a fictional
character.
 It is how characters are described.
 It is the description of the
character’s features, attitudes, or
as a whole.
 WORLD LITERATURE LECTURES

THE FOUR ASPECTS OF CHARACTERIZATION Can be any time of the day.

STATIC CHARACTER VS DYNAMIC CHARCTER
STATIC: remains the same throughout the
story; this character undergoes no change
in thought or personality when involved
in conflict.
DYNAMIC: undergoes a change as a result
of learning from conflict; starts the
Can be any season (natural).
story one way and then will have
revelation that changes his or her views.
FLAT CHARACTER VS ROUND CHARACTER

FLAT: one who has only 1- or 2 more-

character traits; these characters have
no depth and usually fit a simple role.
Examples: bad guy, class clown, cute girl
ROUND: one who has many character traits; Any season (man-made celebrations).
his personality has various qualities and
is complex, more like a real person; most
main characters are round.

Why is characterization important?

 It helps the readers visualize and

relate to the characters.
 It gives the readers a time to
examine the characters, thus Any type of climate.
creating “healthy bias”.
 It helps the readers understand the
actions of the characters deeply.
 It gives the readers understand the
different motivations and downsides
of a character.
SETTING
Abstract setting.
 It is where the story takes place.
 It helps the readers give context
in analyzing the text.
Can be large and all encompassing.

Why is setting important?

It shapes the tone and mood of the

story.
It gives the readers a vivid mental
Can be very intimate areas. picture of the world your
characters move in.
PLOT

 It is the series of events that

happen in story.
 WORLD LITERATURE LECTURES

 Commonly known as the “flow” and the FLASHBACK

arrangement of the story.
o The author shares to the reader an
DIFFERENT TYPES OF PLOT event that has happened in the
CONVENTIONAL PLOT past. This past event is where the
story focuses on.
o A conventional plot allows a
straight or linear flow of events
that has a start, a middle part,
and a conclusion.
PARTS OF A CONVENTIONAL PLOT

1. EXPOSITION

It provides background information needed

to make sense of the action, describes IN MEDIAS RES
the setting and introduces the main
characters. o The author chooses to start the
story in the middle of a situation.
2. CONFLICTS The current situation of the
It is the moment of great tension among context is not explained.
characters. o The beginning of the story is
already established with the
3. CLIMAX conflicts; thus, the exposition
does not exist.
The turning point, a moment of great
tension that fixes the outcome.
4. RESOLUTION

The fixing or the resolution of the

different conflicts.
5. DÉNOUEMENT

It is where the action falls off as the

plot’s complications are sorted out and Why is having a plot important?
resolved.
¤ It organizes the thoughts, ideas and
events, thus making the readers
enjoy reading without confusion.
POINT OF VIEW

 It answers the question “Who is

telling the story?” or “Who is the
narrator?”.
DIFFERENT TYPES OF POINT OF VIEW
FIRST PERSON POINT OF VIEW

 We are seeing events through the

EPISODIC PLOT eyes of the character telling the
story.
o They are plots that still functions
as conventional plots but they come SECOND PERSON POINT OF VIEW
in series.
 The narrator is speaking to YOU.
This isn’t very common in fiction,
unless the narrator is trying to
talk to the reader personally.
 We see second-person point of view
mostly in poems, speeches,
instructional writing, and
persuasive articles.
 WORLD LITERATURE LECTURES

THIRD PERSON POINT OF VIEW character. It can be mental or

emotional.
 The narrator is describing what’s
seen, but as a spectator.
 If the narrator is a character in
the story, then we are reading what
he or she observes as the story
unfolds.

 LIMITED

In limited third person, the narrator

sees only what’s in front of him/her, a
spectator of events as they unfold and
unable to read any other character’s
mind.

 OMNISCIENT

An omniscient narrator sees all, much as

an all-knowing god of some kind. He or
she sees what each character is doing and
can see into each character’s mind.
 LIMITED OMNISCIENT

The limited omniscient third-person

narrator can only see into one
character’s mind. He/she might see other
events happening, but only knows the
reasons of one character’s actions in the
story.

Why is having a point of view important?

It will help the readers determine

the generic views and personal
biases that are offered in the
story.
It helps limit the knowledge about
character, and at the same time.
It helps explain the contribution
of each character and event in the
story.
CONFLICT

 Conflict is a literary element that

involves a struggle between two
opposing forces, usually
a protagonist and an antagonist.
INTERNAL CONFLICT

 A struggle within the mind of a

 WORLD LITERATURE LECTURES

EXTERNAL CONFLICT

 A struggle that occurs between a

character and an outside force.
DIFFERENT TYPES OF
CONFLICT MAN VS MAN

 The protagonist encounters conflict

that are caused by another human
being.
MAN VS SELF

 The character experiences internal

conflict. It is a battle with
his/her own “demons”.
MAN VS THE SOCIETY

 The character experiences a dilemma

with the people around him, having
a hard time coping with the norm.
MAN VS CIRCUMSTANCES

 The character struggles with events

or situations that happens to him,
like accidents, death and loss.
MAN VS NATURE

 The character struggles between

forces of nature like storms,
floods, landslides, mudslides and
avalanches.

MAN VS THE SUPERNATURAL

 The struggle happens between the

character and a paranormal being, a
curse, and the like.
MAN VS GOD

 It is usually a struggle that roots

from a sin. God is blamed by the
character who usually exhibits
spiritual frailty and backsliding.
DEUX EX MACHINA
 “divine intervention”
 A seemingly unresolvable problem
was abruptly resolved in an
unexpected or unlikely occurrence.
Why is having a conflict important?

 It gives “spice” and excitement to

the story.
 It gives readers something to look
forward to and something to worry
about.
 WORLD LITERATURE LECTURES

LESSON 4: FIGURES OF SPEECH ASSONANCE

What is the difference between Figurative Identity or similarity in sound
and Literal Language? between internal vowels in
LITERAL LANGUAGE neighboring words.

 The actual dictionary meaning of a Example: “It beats as it sweeps as it

word; language that means what it cleans.”
appears to mean. CHIASMUS
FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE A verbal pattern in which the
 Language that goes beyond the second half of an expression is
normal meaning of words used. balanced against the first but with
the parts reversed.
FIGURES OF SPEECH
Example: “I flee who chases me, and chase
ALLITERATION who flees me.”
The repetition of usually initial EUPHEMISM
consonant sounds in two or more
neighboring words or syllables. A mild or indirect word or
expression substituted for one
Example: “I saw Susie sitting in a shoe considered to be too harsh or
sine shop. Where she sits she shines, and unpleasant.
where she shines she sits.”
Example: “Pre-loved” instead of saying
ANAPHORA second hand
The repetition of a word or phrase HYPERBOLE
at the beginning of successive
clauses to achieve an effect. An extravagant statement; the use
of exaggerated terms for the
Example: “We shall go on to the end , we purpose of emphasis or heightened
shall fight in France, we shall fight on effect.
the seas and oceans, we shall fight
growing confidence and strength in the Example: “I’m so hungry that I can eat an
air, we shall defend our Island, whatever elephant.”
the cost may be, we shall fight on the IRONY
beaches, we shall fight on the landing
grounds, we shall fight in the fields, The use of words to convey the
and in the streets, we shall fight in the opposite of their literal meaning.
hills; we shall never surrender.” A statement or situation where the
meaning is contradicted by the
ANTITHESIS appearance or presentation of the
An opposition or contrast of ideas. idea.
Two opposite ideas are put together Types of Irony
to achieve a contrasting effect.
SITUATIONAL IRONY — where actions or
Example: “Speech is silver, but silence is events have opposite result from what is
gold.” expected.
APOSTROPHE Example: A pilot in the story with a fear
When you speak up into an object, of heights.
an idea, or someone who doesn’t VERBAL IRONY — where someone says the
exist as if it is a living person. opposite of what they really mean or
Example: “Hello darkness, my old friend. intend.
I’ve come to talk to you again.” Example: Saying “Oh, you’re great!” after
failing the exam.

DRAMATIC IRONY — occurs when the audience

or reader of the text knows something
that the characters do not.

Example: In horror movies, the audience

 WORLD LITERATURE LECTURES

is aware that there is a killer in the

house,

but the characters in the story does not
know.
LITOTES
A figure of speech consisting of an
understatement in which an
affirmative is expressed by
negating its opposite.
Example: If a person is very intelligent,
someone might say “He’s not dumb.” or
“He’s not unintelligent.”
METAPHOR
Involves a comparison between two
relatively unlike things without
the use of “like” or “as”.
Example: Time is a thief.
METONYMY
Which a word or phrase is
substituted for another with which
it is closely associated; also, the
rhetorical strategy of describing
something indirectly by referring
to things around it.
Example: A pen is mightier than a sword.
ONOMATOPEIA
The formation or use of words that
imitate the sounds associated with
the objects or actions they refer
to.
Example: “Plop, plop, fizz, fizz, oh what
a relief it is.”
OXYMORON
A figure of speech in which
incongruous or contradictory terms
appear side by side.
Example: “A yawn may be defined as a
silent
yell.”
PARADOX
Contrary to expectations, existing
belief or perceived opinion. It is
a statement that appears to be
self- contradictory.
Example: War is peace.
PERSONIFICATION
A figure of speech in which an
inanimate object or abstraction is
endowed with human qualities or
abilities.
WORLD LITERATURE LECTURES
Example: The stars dance playfully in the
moonlit sky.
PUN
A play on words, sometimes on
different senses of the same word
and sometimes on the similar sense
or sound of different words.
Example: When it rains, it pours.
SIMILE
A stated comparison (usually formed
with “like” or “as”) between two
fundamentally dissimilar things
that have certain qualities in
common.
Example: My love is like a red, red rose.
SYNECDOCHE
A figure of speech is which a part
is used to represent the whole, the
whole for a part, the specific for
the general, the general for the
specific, or the material for thing
made from it.
Example: His parents bought him a set of
wheels.
UNDERSTATEMENT
A figure of speech in which a
writer or a speaker deliberately
makes a situation seem less
important or serious than it is.
Example: “I have to do this operation.
This isn’t that serious. I have this tiny
little tumor in his brain.”