Chapter 1 Introduction to the Study of Literature

Intended Learning Outcomes: At the end of this chapter, the students are expected to:

1. Define literature and its characteristics such as history, literary standards, and the
main ingredients of literature.

1.1. Introductory concepts and review on important backgrounds and

pre-requisites

Purpose:

a. Literature is a means of exploring what it is to be human. It is also a way of

communicating with others about a huge range of ideas and concerns.
b. Literature helps us to understand people, societies, events, culture.
c. The purpose of literature is to provide enjoyment and vicarious experiences
that can deepen and enrich our lives.

Literature Defined

- Literature is derived from the Latin term litera,

which means letter
- in its broadest sense, literature is any written work
- etymologically, the term derives from Latin
litaritura/litteratura “, a writing formed with
letters,” although some definitions include spoken
or sung texts.
- most generically, literature is anybody or collection of written work.
- More restrictively, literature refers to a writing considered to be an art form or
any single writing deemed to have artistic or intellectual value and sometimes
deploys language in ways that differ from ordinary usage. It is writing that
possesses literary merit.

According to various writers:

Literature is any printed matter written within a book, a magazine or a pamphlet.

It is a faithful reproduction of man’s manifold experiences blended into one harmonious
expression. Because literature deals with ideas, thoughts and emotions of man,
literature can be said to be the story of man.
Literature is man’s love, griefs, thoughts, dreams and aspirations coached in
beautiful language. In order to know the history of a nation’s spirit, one must read its
literature. Hence it is, that to understand the real spirit of a nation, one must “trace the
little rills as they course along down the ages, broadening and deepening into the great
ocean of thought which men of the present source are presently exploring.”
 “Literature expresses the feelings of people to society, to the government, to his
surroundings, to his fellowmen and to his Divine Creator.” The expression of one’s
feelings, according to him, may be through love, sorrow, happiness, hatred, anger, pity,
contempt, or revenge”, Brother Azurin
“Literature is anything that is printed, as long as it is related to the ideas and
feelings of people, whether it is true, or just a product of one’s imagination”, Webster
“True literature is a piece of written work which is undying. It expresses the
feelings and emotions of people in response to his everyday efforts to live, to be happy
in his environment and, after struggles, to reach his Creator.” Atienza, Ramos, Salazar
and Nazal, PANITIKING PILIPINO
“Literature raises life to a new level of meaning and understanding, and in the
process restores sanity and justice in an insane and unjust world.” – Cirilo F. Bautista
“Literature is life.” – Unknown

There are two major schools of literature:

1. Oral literature includes ballads, folklore, jokes, and fables that are passed
down by word of mouth.
2. Written literature includes poetry and novels, with subsections for fiction,
prose, myth, short story and novel.

Importance of Literature

Ultimately literature is a collection of

written work of language through different
periods and cultures by authors and scholars. The
introduction of riting manifests excessive pace in
human civilization for conveying knowledge,
ideas, events and even feelings.

Why do we study literature?

When students study Literature, they learn to appreciate words and their
power. They travel to other realms and times through the texts they read. They
understand about their own culture and others'. ... Importantly, they learn to consider
multiple perspectives and understand the complexity of human nature.

Approaches and Models of Literature

Literary Approaches

1. Formalistic or Literary Approach

- Literature is viewed intrinsically,
independent of the author, age, or any
other extrinsic factor.
- *The study of the selection is more or less based on “literary elements”.
2. Moral or Humanistic Approach
- Literature is viewed to discuss man and its nature.
- It presents man as essentially rational;
- that is, endowed with intellect and free will;
- or that the piece does not misinterpret the true nature of man.

Literature of the Philippines

Page 2 of
Module 1
 *The approach is close to the “morality” of literature, to questions of ethical
goodness or badness.
3. Historical Approach
- Literature is seen both as a reflection and product of the times and circumstances
in which it was written.
- It operates on the premise that the history of a nation has telling effects on
its literature and that the piece can be better understood and appreciated if
one knows the times surrounding its creation.
4. Sociological Approach
- Literature is viewed as the expression of man within a given social situation
which is reduced to discussions on economic, in which men are somewhat
simplistically divided into haves and haves not, thus passing into the
“proletarian approach” hitch tends to underscore the conflict between the two
classes.
- *The sociological approach stresses on social “relevance”, social
“commitment,” contemporaneity, and it deems communication with the
reader important.
5. Cultural Approach
- Literature is seen as one of the manifestations and vehicles of a nation’s or
race’s culture and tradition.
- It includes the entire compels of what goes under “culture” – the
technological, artistic, sociological, ideological aspects; and considers the
literary piece in the total cultural milieu in which it was born.
- The thrust is to make full use of the reciprocal function between culture and
literature.
- *The approach is one of the richest ways to arrive at the culture of people and
one of the most pleasurable ways of appreciating the literature of people.
6. Psychological Approach
- Literature is viewed as the expression of “personality,” of “inner drives” or
“neurosis”.
- It includes the psychology of the author, of the characters, and even the
psychology of creation.
- *It has resulted in an almost exhausting and exhaustive “psychological
analysis” of characters, of symbols and images, of recurrent themes, and
others.
7. Impressionistic Approach
- Literature is viewed to elucidate “reacting- response” which is considered as
something very personal, relative and fruitful. Unconditioned by explanations
and often taking the impact of the piece as a whole, it seeks to see how the
piece has communicated.

Literary Models

The study of literature appeals in different aspects and importance.

1. Cultural Model Literature - aims to understand and appreciate cultures and
ideologies different from one’s own in time and space.
- (CM) are mental structures and patterns of behavior that distinguish one culture
from another.
- CM are based on joint experience and are shared by the majority of the members
of a certain ethnic or social culture; they are connected with the system of
values of these cultures.

Literature of the Philippines

Page 3 of
Module 1
2. Language Model Literature aims to promote language development like vocabulary
and structure.
- (LM) relies on the development of students` knowledge by working with familiar
grammar, lexical and discourse categories. It focuses on the way language is
used in literary texts.
- (LM) encourages and teaches students how to deal with a literary work in relation
to the target language.
3. Personal Growth Model Literature aims to help one achieve lasting pleasure and
deep satisfaction in reading.
- (PG) views literature as a source of facts and it is teacher centered where the
teacher passes knowledge and information to the students.
- PG focus on the personal development of the students including emotions and
personal characteristics.
- Learners are encouraged to express their opinions, feelings and opinions and make
connections between their own personal and cultural experiences and those
expressed in the text.

1.2 Literature and History

History of Literature

The history of literature follows closely the development of civilization. When

defined exclusively as written work, Ancient Egyptian literature along with Sumerian
literature, are considered the world's oldest literatures.
The primary genres of the literature of Ancient Egypt—didactic texts, hymns and
prayers, and tales—were written almost entirely in verse; while use of poetic devices is
clearly recognizable, the prosody of the verse is unknown. Most Sumerian literature is
apparently poetry, as it is written in left-justified lines, and could contain line-based
organization such as the couplet or the stanza.
Different historical periods are reflected in literature. National and tribal sagas,
accounts of the origin of the world and of customs, and myths which sometimes carry
moral or spiritual messages predominate in the pre-urban eras.
The epics of Homer, dating from the early to middle Iron Age, and the great
Indian epics of a slightly later period, have more evidence of deliberate literary
authorship, surviving like the older myths through oral tradition for long periods before
being written down.

Literature and history

Literature and history are closely interrelated. In discovering the history of a

race, the feelings, aspirations, customs and traditions of a people are sure to be
included . . . and these feelings, aspirations, customs and traditions that are written is
literature.
History can also be written and this too, is literature. Events that can be written
down are part of true literature. Literature, therefore, is part of history.
Literature and history, however, also have differences. Literature may be
figments of the imagination or events devoid of truth that have been written down,
while history is made up of events that really happened.

Literature of the Philippines

Page 4 of
Module 1
Literary Compositions that Have Influenced the World:

1. The Bible or the Sacred Writings - Became the basis of Christianity originating
from Palestine and Greece
2. Koran - The Muslim bible from Arabia
3. The Iliad and the Odyssey - Have been the source of MYTHS and LEGENDS of
GREECE. Written by homer
4. The Mahabharata - Longest epic of the world. Contains the history of RELIGION
in INDIA
5. Canterbury Tales - Depicts the religion and customs of the English in early
days/ originated from England and was writer by Geoffrey Chaucer
6. Uncle Tom’s Cabin - by Harriet Becher Stowe of the US. Depicted the sad fate
of SLAVES; this became the BASIS OF DEMOCRACY later on.
7. The Divine Comedy - By Dante Alighieri of ITALY. Shows the RELIGION AND
CUSTOMS of the early ITALIANS
8. El Cid Compeador - Shows the cultural characteristics of the SPANIARDS and
their national history
9. The Song of Roland - Includes DOS PARES and RONCESVALLES of France. I tells
about the GOLDEN AGE OF FRANCE
10. The Book of the Dead - Includes the CULT OF OSIRIS and the MYTHOLOGY and
THEOLOGY of EGYPT
11. The Book of the Days - Written by Confucius; became the BASIS of the
CHRISTIAN RELIGION
12. One Thousand and One Nights or The Arabian Nights From ARABIA and
PERSIA; this shows the ways of GOVERNMENT of INDUSTRIES and pf the
SOCIETY of the Arabs and Persians

1.3 Literary Standards

Literature, as compared to any other forms of

writing, possesses distinct qualities that
separate it from the rest. These include:
1. Universality - Literature appeals to
everyone, regardless of culture, race,
gender, and time which are all
considered significant.
2. Artistry – Literature has an aesthetic
appeal and thus possesses a sense of beauty.
3. Intellectual Value – Literature stimulates critical thinking that enriches mental
processes of abstract and reasoning, making man realize the fundamental
truths of life and its nature.
4. Suggestiveness – Literature unravels and conjures man’s emotional power to
define symbolisms, nuances, implied meanings, images and messages, giving
and evoking visions above and beyond the plane of ordinary life and
experience.
5. Spiritual Value – Literature elevates the spirit and the soul and this has the
power to motivate and inspire, drawn from the suggested morals or lessons of
the different literary genres.

Literature of the Philippines

Page 5 of
Module 1
 6. Permanence – Literature endures across time and draws out the time factor:
timeliness, occurring at a particular time, and timelessness, remaining
invariable throughout time.
7. Style – Literature presents peculiar way/s on how man sees life as evidenced by
the formation of his ideas, forms, structures, and expressions which are
marked by their memorable substances.
- The author's word choice, sentence structure, figurative language, and
sentence arrangement all work together to establish mood, images, and
meaning in the text.
- - In literature, style is the way in which an author writes and/or tells a story. It's
what sets one author apart from another and creates the “voice”that
audiences hear when they read.
- Style is also what determines the mood of a piece of literature, so its
importance is huge across all genres.
- Devices include, but are not limited to, point of view, symbolism, tone,
imagery, diction, voice, syntax, and the method of narration.
- The following criteria are suggested and used by literary bards, pundits and
critics around the world to evaluate a literary piece. Be critical. Ask yourself
once in a while.
o Does it move you?
o Would it still be read and make a good reference hundreds of years from
now?
o Does it tickle your imaginations?
o What does it suggest?
o What moral lessons can be drawn out?
o Does it possess multifaceted natures for all sorts of audience?
o Does the style fascinate you? Is the style used unique or forgery?

1.4 Main Ingredients of Literature

➢ Subject
- Any work of literature on something and for this reason, it has subject e.i
emotion, object, abstract idea, or event.
- Subject is the topic on which the story has to be written. and theme of the story
is that what you are trying to explain in the story or in words the moral. for
example: subject: dreams.
- Subject is a topic which acts as a foundation for a literary work while a theme is
an opinion expressed on the subject
- For example, a writer may choose a subject of war for his story and the theme of
a story may be writer's personal opinion that war is a curse for humanity.

➢ Form
❖ Form is the verbal and artistic structuring of ideas.
- The subject on love may be expressed in a poem, a story, or drama form. In
reading a literary work, one must pay careful attention to its form because the
work of art is in large part and aesthetically shaped structure.
- The most common elements of the narrative structure are: setting, plot, and
theme.
- The parts of narrative plot include - exposition (the beginning), rising action,
climax, falling action, and resolution (denouement)

Literature of the Philippines

Page 6 of
Module 1
 - Poetry is a form of literary art which uses aesthetic and rhythmic qualities of
language to evoke meanings in addition to, or in place of, prosaic ostensible
meaning.
- Literature is subdivided into the classic three forms of Ancient Greece: poetry,
drama, and prose.
- Poetry may then be subdivided into the genres of lyric, epic, and dramatic. This
genre is often broken up into five subgenres: fantasy, historical fiction,
contemporary fiction, mystery, and science fiction. Nonetheless, there are more
than just five types of fiction, ranging from romance to graphic novels.
❖ Structure, or form, is the arrangement of story elements according to purpose,
style and genre. ... While the plot is the events in the story itself, heavily affected
by character, setting and theme, the structure is how these elements are
presented to the reader.

Plot Element Diagram

The setting and characters are introduced during the exposition, and we usually
learn some background information to help us have a good understanding of the setting
and characters.
During the rising action, some
form of problem or crisis becomes
apparent.
The climax is usually the turning
point and includes the highest level of
tension.
During the falling action, we
begin to see the characters solving their problems or crises.
Finally, there is the resolution, in which there is some form of closure. The figure
below is a good visual to remember the parts of the narrative structure.

Climax

Rising Action Falling Action

Exposition Resolution
Freytag's Pyramid
Freytag's Pyramid
The story begins by revealing exposition upfront, then leads into a long rising
action. The climax falls in the middle of the story, and then the second half is spent on a
very long falling action, followed by a short resolution.
Freytag's Pyramid is best used for structuring children's books. Adults
understand the cycles of human psychology well enough to know what life is going to be
like for the hero after the climactic conflict.
Children, on the other hand, are still learning and developing. A longer falling
action will help young readers understand the effects of conflict on a character.

Literature of the Philippines

Page 7 of
Module 1
Fichtean Curve
The Fichtean Curve is
similar to Freytag's Pyramid, but
it is much better suited for
modern young adult and adult
books.
This plot structure is
probably the most popular
across all creative writing
genres. It's been used time and
time again by novelists, short story writers, and poets because the formula simply
works.
The Fichtean Curve begins immediately with rising action, the exposition being
scattered throughout first half of the story. Many crises appear, each followed swiftly by
its own mini falling and rising action. At last, the story reaches its climactic conflict
around two-thirds of the way through the book, leaving the remaining pages for falling
action. This is where loose ends are tied up and a new normalcy is established for the
characters.
The Hero's Journey
The Hero's Journey is
the perfect plot structure for
most fantasy, science fiction,
and horror books. If your hero
is stumbling into a new world,
or a new understanding of the
world, then this is the plot
structure for you.
The hero in “The
Hero's Journey” begins in
their known world, where
they soon receive a call to
adventure. Often, they ignore that call until a mentor pushes them to accept it. It is then
that they enter into a new world that leads them into all sorts of trouble as they work to
defeat the antagonist.
Eventually, the hero comes to defeat the bad guy, but not without experiencing
a literal or figurative death and rebirth that transforms their view of the world. Now that
the hero has a new mindset, they strive to atone for their past mistakes and eventually
return to the world they once knew to live out their days. The Hero's Journey allows us
to live vicariously through the characters in our book. Besides, who doesn't love a good
adventure?

➢ Point of view
The angle of vision of the narrator, the one who tells the story from different points
of view:
- In literature, point of view is the mode of narration that an author employs to let the
readers “hear” and “see” what takes place in a story, poem, or essay.
- Point of view is a reflection of the opinion an individual from real life or fiction has.
Examples of point of view belong to one of these three major kinds:

Literature of the Philippines

Page 8 of
Module 1
First Person: a character narrator who tells the story in the “ I “ voice, expressing his
own views and in his own words; either a minor or main character.

o The narrator is likely to also be the protagonist. He or she will be saying things such
as, “As I went toward the door, my friends were all peeking out the window at me.”
o The pronouns I, me, mine, we should be used to indicate first-person.
o The narrator could also be an observer who may be close to the protagonist, such as
Nick Carraway, in “The Great Gatsby” by F. Scott Fitzgerald. Nick becomes Jay’s
confident. Through his eyes, we watch Gatsby, the protagonist, slowly slide toward
his own destruction.
Example:
Hamlet (By William Shakespeare)
“I have of late, — but wherefore I know not, — lost all
my mirth, forgone all custom of exercises; and indeed, it
goes so heavily with my disposition that this goodly
frame, the earth, seems to me a sterile promontory.”
• Hamlet, the protagonist, explains the feeling of
melancholy that afflicts him after his father’s death:
• The use of first-person point of view gives us a
glimpse into the real inner feelings of frustration of
the character.
• The writer has utilized the first-person point of view to expose Hamlet’s
feelings in a detailed way.

Second-person point of view is rarely used in fiction, although it might be used in

poems.

- Generally, persuasive pieces such as speeches or advertisements will use it to pull in

their audience.
- Second-person is shown through the pronoun you, yours, your.
- In Rudyard Kipling’s poem “If,” the author is speaking to people in general, giving
sage (wise) advice.
Example:
Bright Lights, Big City (By Jay Mclnemey)
“You are not the kind of guy who would be at a place like
this at this time of the morning. But here you are, and
you cannot say that the terrain is entirely unfamiliar,
although the details are fuzzy.”
• Here, the writer illustrates the use of second-person
point of view with the use of the pronoun “you.”
• This technique may be less common, but it has its own strength of hooking the
reader right from the start.

Third-person point of view, use pronouns such as he, she, it, them, they, themselves,
himself, herself, etc.

- Writers like the flexibility of third-person because they can use this perspective in
various ways.
- The use of a limited, omniscient, or limited omniscient narrator allows readers to
see bits of the action, all the action, or all of one character.

Literature of the Philippines

Page 9 of
Module 1
Types of Third Person Point of View:
o Omniscient = an all-knowing story teller, who sees the mind of all the characters.
o Limited = a camera technique narrator, who tells only what he can see or hear inside
the world of the story, as he does not reveal what the characters are thinking and
feeling.
o Central = a narrator that limits narration to what the central character thinks, feels,
does, and what and whom the central character observes.
o Editorial = a narrator that comments on the action by telling the readers its
significance or evaluating the behavior of the characters.
Example:
Pride and Prejudice (By Jane Austen)
“When Jane and Elizabeth were alone, the former,
who had been cautious in her praise of Mr. Bingley
before, expressed to her sister how very much she
admired him.”
“He is just what a young man ought to be,” said
she, “sensible, good humoured, lively; and I never
saw such happy manners! — so much ease, with
such perfect good breeding!”

• These lines demonstrate a fine use of the third-

person point of view.
• The excerpt shows the reader two different ways of using third person point of
view.
• Jane Austen first presents two leading characters –Jane and Elizabeth – from
the third-person point of view, and then shows us that the two characters
are talking about Bingley from their own third-person point of view.
How do you analyze point of view?
- If the subject is the point of view of a work of fiction, then an analysis would include
breaking down the point of view into its elements, observing how point of view
affects the story, and then evaluating the relationship between the point of view
and the story.
- What point of view you choose to use in writing depends on how you want the story
directed to the reader.
o If you are telling a story from the writer's perspective, use the first-
person point of view to provide a sense of intimacy.
o To direct the writing at the reader, say, for a recipe or speech, use the
second person as a way to separate the writer from the narrative.
o To tell the story from an outside perspective, with the ability to have an
overview of the piece, use the third person.
- Always be sure to be consistent in your writing and stick with one point of view
throughout. This makes it easier for the reader to understand your angle.

Function of Point of View

- Point of view is an integral tool of description in the author’s hands to portray
personal emotions or characters’ feelings about an experience or situation.

Literature of the Philippines

Page 10 of
Module 1
- Writers use a point of view to express effectively what they want to convey to their
readers.

❖ Literature is a term used to describe written or spoken material.

- Broadly speaking, "literature" is used to describe anything from creative writing to
more technical or scientific works, but the term is most commonly used to refer to
works of the creative imagination, including works of: poetry, drama, fiction,
nonfiction.
- Literature is basically the art of writing. It has been used by man since centuries. In
fact, Literature is an important expression of the culture of an individual.
Literature has three main components which are as
follows:
1. Poetry: Poetry is a composition which is written in
verse.
o They rely on imagery, a keen word choice and
use of metaphors.

2. Prose: Prose is a kind of literature which does not

adhere to any particular structure except for
grammar.
o It is mostly non-poetic in nature.
o It can be divided in essays, fiction and non-fiction piece of writings.

3. Play/Drama: A play consists of dialogues between the characters.

o It is aimed at dramatic performance rather than reading.

Literature of the Philippines

Page 11 of
Module 1