Introduction
1. Why does literature matter?
-Nazi book burnings not only for personal entertaining; also, as an integral part of our
-banned books society
-(against) censorship?
à - communicates ideas, feelings, values, a.s.o
- Literature as providing aesthetic pleasure, entertainment, provocation, stimulation.
- Theodor W. Adorno: “Engaged literature” (=books have power, they can influence people and
Their Opinions) ; f.e: “Uncle Bens cabin” ( about how cruel slavery is)
è
„
engaged literature” = literature seen as not being an isolated piece of art with no relation to
reality BUT as active participant in the social political realities of societies and our world
- “didactic cum edifying endeavor” (Frank. B. Farrell); literature is aimed at the betterment of
Human life in general
è Literature is teaching empathy.
2. What is literature?
A History of literature:
è Writing has been a cultural practice for more than 4 millennia; the concept of literature is still
relatively young.
Context of English:
è Around 1400: literature = human learning in sense of education
è By 1800: literature designed both fictional/ imaginative and non-fictional writing.
è Since mid-19.th century: literature= written work valued for artistic merit
è Since 1960: literature= any kind of written communication
è Today: use both, a broad understanding as literature as text; and a more restrictive
understanding of literature as a particular type of text
è literature (writing, art) VS. Literature (a body of specific a culturally valorised texts; to learn
sth.)
è Hermeneutics: Textual interpretation aiming at a full understanding of the whole
How can we characterize literature?
Terry Eagleton: “Literature has no essence whatsoever”
è there is no consent set of inherent features: with every characteristic we come back to the
realization, that there are always exceptions.
è no characteristic for once and for all
è Goal of literary studies: reach an intersubjective agreement. (intersubjektive: komplexe
Sache für alle einig)
- Meaning does not exist “objectively” somewhere “out there” – but is created
in the exchange between subjects (people/scholars)
- Meaning is negotiated
-> especially the acknowledgement that our judgments and findings are not value-free and
objective is has become highly important for literary theory & history
