What Is Literature?

As with poetry and family values, we all think we know what literature is until challenged to give a definition. The dictionary gives several meanings including: written works, especially those whose value lies in beauty of language or emotional effect; the realm of letters; the writings of a country or period; printed matter, leaflets etc. Except for the last, which is quite recent ("Have you got any literature you could send me?") they all tend to be based on the idea of literature as something special, not just any written matter. Nowadays this idea of literature being identifiable by "beauty of language" etc is often challenged. It's increasingly common for English literature syllabuses to include study of a variety of texts – informative writing, official writing such as court reports, or political propaganda- alongside traditionally "literary" fiction, poetry and drama. The idea is that all written language can be analysed in the same way, using the same critical framework.

Literature - meaning the art of written works. It literally means "acquaintance with letters