Republic of the Philippines

UNIVERSITY OF EASTERN PHILIPPINES

University Town, Northern Samar, Philippines
Web: uep.edu.ph; Email: uepnsofficial@gmail.com
GRADUATE STUDIES
Master of Arts in Language in Literature

LARA, ANA CARMELA S. February 04, 2023

MALL -1

Topic End Activity 1: Whys and Hows of Teaching Literature

Literature as cliché it may sound is a reflection of life. All that are found in between pages
are merely a copy or modified versions of life’s reality. Hence, more than the entertainment
consumption, valuable life lessons are also embedded in literature that can be useful for readers in
every life journey they would embark. Reading literature is a great way to gain insight into the
human experience as it provides readers an opportunity to explore different cultures, ideals, and
perspectives. Which, perhaps is also the reason why readers feel like as if they were the one living
with the complex life of the characters in a literary piece. Readers then feel the realness of
emotions and circumstances, such as the repression of desires, the liberty of amplifying the voice
of the voiceless, or the ecstasy of loving and pain of losing, for all these abstract emotions were
made concrete in the form of literature.
More so, literature traverses the invisible boundary between reality and imagination. With
the creativity and the ability of the writers to play with reality and its circumstances, readers then
are encouraged to think critically. Readers are not only meant to take in and simply agree with all
the stances proposed by the writers, instead literature serves as a mind cultivator that will make
them become critical and rational decision makers. In line to this is that through literature, readers
will be adept in analyzing, drawing inferences, synthesizing, and evaluating concepts and
information in literary texts.
Further, literature imprints the history of the people of long ago. History is an integral part of
literature which gives the present awareness of what had been in the past. It provides the context
of the struggles, conflict, and life itself of the people that lived before us, hence through it, readers
get a sense of time and place, as well as a connection to the past. And so, it is also an invaluable
resource for understanding the motivations of writers for writing literature and the values and
attitudes that people of each era represent.
Aside from the above-mentioned reasons, there are still countless unspoken reasons why
we should teach literature. However, the process of inculcating the values of reading, appreciating,
and understanding literature can be a daunting task for teachers. Reading literature per se is often
regarded as an unexciting task, thus only few appraise doing so. In addition, the complexity of
plots, unfamiliar vocabulary, concepts, and ideas, unawareness of the references and allusions,
and writing style and structure can be factors which hamper learners in reading literary texts.
Nonetheless, hope is not lost in making learners appreciate literature. There are many
possible practices that teachers may employ inside the class when teaching literature. On top of it
is by slowly introducing learners to reading (especially in elementary and high school learners) and
this must be done consistently. Teachers must teach learners in making reading a habit. As when
learners become use to reading it will further encourage eagerness to further read more texts
leisurely.
 Also, teachers must not be contented with the fact that they were able to encourage
learners in reading, rather they must teach learners to participate and be one with the text itself.
This can be simply taught by teachers by engaging the learners to more analysis of literary texts.
Readers must not only enjoy the beauty of the lines, rather they must indulge themselves to it
because only through it that they can have a deeper understanding of the embedded experiences
and lessons of each character in the text. The oneness of the reader with the text requires
thorough reading and letting of the emotions just flow along with the text and by the time that they
are finished reading, they must a formulate a critical discourse of their own.
In conclusion, teaching literature is important because it helps learners develop important
skills and gain insight into the human condition. Through literature, they learn about the values,
motivations and beliefs of people from different cultures and backgrounds, and gain a deeper
understanding of the world around them. And, it takes great teaching prowess to teach literature
because many can teach the basic, but only few can execute literary teaching in a way that they
leave a mark in the mind and heart of their learner. Only few teachers inspire learners to ignite
their passion for reading literature.