EUROPEAN LITERATURE

European literature refers to literature of Europe that includes literature in many languages;
among the most important of the modern written works are those in English, Spanish, French,
Dutch, Polish, German, Italian, Modern Greek, Czech, and Russian and works by the
Scandinavians and Irish. Important classical and medieval traditions are those in Latin, Ancient
Greek, Old Norse, Medieval French and the Italian Tuscan dialect of the renaissance.
It has been known for its significant contribution to world literature. It is from Europe developed
the standards and techniques in writing literature where the rest of the world are using or
innovating and following to make writing good. Their innovation and creativity have influenced
generations after generations of writers.
21ST CENTURY REPRESENTATIVE TEXTS AND AUTHORS FROM EUROPE

1. Joanne Rowling (31, July 1965) born in Yate, Gloucestershire, a British writer and
philanthropist. She is best known as the author of Harry Potter fantasy series and with
her pen name J.K. Rowling. Harry Potter becomes her best-selling book series in history
and the basis of a popular Harry Potter film series: Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s
Stone, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of
Azkaban, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix,
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows.
Rowling was being named as the world’s first billionaire LESSON 8 author according to
Forbes and she has lived as a “rags to riches” life.

2. Stephen Edwin King (21September 1947) born in Portland, Maine. He is an American

writer of various genre such as horror, supernatural fiction, suspense, science-fiction,
and fantasy novels. According to King his formula for learning to write is “Read and write
four to six hours a. If you cannot find the time for that, you can’t expect to become a
good writer.” He was once asked why he writes, and King answered - “there was nothing
else I was made to do. I was made to write stories and I love to write stories.

3. George Raymond Richard Martin (born on 20, September 1948; as George Raymond
Martin) also known as GRRM and George R.R. Martin. He is an American novelist, short
story writer, screenwriter, and television producer. He is known for his international
bestselling series of epic fantasy novels, A Song of Ice and Fire and later adapted into the
Home Box Office (HBO) dramatic series of Game of Thrones (2011).
LATIN AMERICAN LITERATURE
It consists of the oral and written literature of Latin America in diverse languages, like Spanish,
Portuguese and the Indigenous languages of the Americas in particular. So, basically Latin is the
base language of Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, and French. It became globally prominent during
the second half of the 20th century, largely because of the international success of the style
known as Magical Realism. It has a rich and complex tradition of literary production dates back
many centuries.
21ST CENTURY REPRESENTATIVE TEXTS AND AUTHORS FROM LATIN AMERICA
1. Gabriel Garcia Marquez (6 March 1927 – 17 April 2014) was a famous Columbian
novelist, short story writer, journalist, screenwriter and a Nobel Prize winner in 1982 for
his novels and short stories, in which the fantastic and the realistic are combined in a
richly composed world of imagination, reflecting a continent’s life and conflicts. He was
familiarly known as “Gabo” and considered as one of the greatest authors of the 20th
century.

2. Carlos FuentesMacías (11, November 1928- 15 May 2012) was a Mexican novelist and
essayist. He was described by The New York Times as “one of the most admired writers
in the Spanish Speaking World.

3. Julia Alvarez (27 March 1950) is a Dominican-American poet, novelist, and essayist.
Many literary critics regard her to be one of the most significant Latina writers and she
has achieved critical and commercial success on an international scale.

AFRICAN LITERATURE
It generally refers to a comprehensive, complex and creative literature of and from Africa. But
different critics belonging to different schools of thought have provided varying interpretations
about African literature. Chinua Achebe doesn’t “see African literature as one unit but as a
group of associated units in fact the sum total of all national and ethnic literatures of Africa.”
Nobel Laureate Nadine Gordimer believes that “African writing done in any language by Africans
themselves and by others of whatever skin color … who share the African experience and who
have African centered consciousness”.
FAMOUS CONTEMPORARY AFRICAN WRITERS
1. Chinua Achebe- was a Nigerian novelist, poet, professor, and critic. He is one of the
world’s most widely recognized and praised writers. He is often called the father of
modern African literature.
2. Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie- a Nigerian writer whose works range from novels to short
stories to nonfiction. He is part of a new generation of African writers taking the literary
world by storm. Adichie’s works are primarily character-driven, interweaving the
background of her native Nigeria and social and political events into the narrative.