WHY LANGUAGE AND

LITERATURE ARE
IMPORTANT
I. Why we study Language
A. We use language to communicate to each
other and to express how we feel.
B. In the study of language, essentially, we
study ourselves.
C. Words are our history, our history is
preserved through our stories
II. How do we do this?
A. We listen to and tell stories, as well as
read and write them.
B. We also tend to act them out and we
enjoy watching a story unfold.
(theater, movies, video games, songs, camp fire stories, etc.)
III. What does it look like?
A. To learn from stories, we must ask ourselves
about its origins, the author, what time period it
might be written in.
B. There are 5 key elements that we look for
within a story to help us determine the true
meaning and origin
(Setting, Symbols, Characters, Conflicts, Themes)
1. We look at the SETTING of a story, meaning
its location, time period, and atmosphere or
feel of the environment.
a. Setting helps us determine when the story was
written and under what circumstances, if any
b. How does setting do this?
What technology are the people using? What are
there living conditions like? Do they have a
government? Is the location real?
Are the people real?
What can you infer from the setting of this picture?
2. We try to find SYMBOLS that reveal hidden
meanings.
a. Symbols are a person, place, thing, or event that
stands for itself (literal) and for something beyond itself
(figurative)

We investigate symbols in
order to find the true intention
of the author’s words
3. We look at the CHARACTERS and
wonder about their personality and
motivation or simply, why they do
what they do. (heroes, villains,
sidekicks, etc.)
a. Round: a character that has depth (“more than meets the eye”)
b. Flat: a character with no depth
c. Dynamic: a character that changes during the tale
d. Static: a character that does not undergo change
4. From these characters, naturally a
CONFLICT arises.
a. Conflict is a struggle or clash between
opposing characters, forces, or emotions
b. Internal: conflict that takes place solely within a
single character’s mind, thoughts, or emotion
(Man v. Self)
c. External: conflict that takes place in the outside
world, between more than one character, force,
or emotion
(Man v. Man, Man v. Nature, Man v. Society)
5. Through the study of all of this, THEMES
emerge
a. Theme: Idea or insight revealed by a work of
literature. It is the message the writer wishes us to
discover about that subject.
b. The author uses setting, symbols, characters, and
conflict to present the theme
c. A theme is NOT a one word concept, like LOVE.

A theme is expressed as a sentence:

LOVE HAS THE POWER TO TRANSFORM A PERSON.
IV. Why are themes important?
A. We find common themes in many stories.
B. If we are communicating through telling our own stories
and reading others, we are finding out that we have
many things in common.
C. We share many of the same experiences and emotions
as we react to the experience of life.
D. Themes transcend culture, tradition, and time periods.
They speak to who WE are as a species, and connect
all of us.
V. Why is it important to study
World Literature?
A. First, what do we all have in common? What is the most
basic common denominator? We are all human.
B. By the study of stories from all over the world, crossing
cultures and time periods, we find the things we have in
common. These things tell us about ourselves, the
essentials of being human.
C. Science cannot explain everything; we have to wonder
and try to explain the rest. This may be why we feel this
need to tell stories.
VI. What kind of stories do we
start with?
A. The first stories are called Myths.
B. These are stories about beginnings, an attempt to
explain mysteries.
C. Like what? Why and how the world was created, why
people die, why not everything is perfect. Questions
that do not have definite answers.
D. A similar type of story is the folktale. These are
usually told for entertainment, but have been known to
teach a moral lesson.
VII. Why are these important in
every world culture?
A. These stories give a culture its
identity, traditions, and a name.
Greece = The Iliad, The Odyssey Babylon = Epic of Gilgamesh <=OLDEST
Rome = The Aeneid Persia = One Thousand and One Nights
China = Romance of the Three Kingdoms Germany = Nibelungenlied
England = Beowulf France = The Song of Roland
Italy = The Divine Comedy Egypt = Story of Sinuhe
Japan = The Tale of Genji Africa = Epic of Sundiata