Literature Review

What is Literature ?

Literature is a highly interdisciplinary category. One can learn about history, culture, politics, sociology, Marxism, feminism, postcolonialisim, critical and literary theory, structuralism and post-structuralism and various isms. So the filled is fatally vast and deep.

 The Student of arts or literature are always asked a question that what is literature? So let me begin with my early collage days because this all started from there, when I am in B.A. I know only single sentence definition of literature that is ‘Literature is mirror of society”. I feeling blessed because in my bachelors I had a good teachers like Kalpnaba Zala and Dr. Vishal Pandya who both explained all the basics of literature well with good examples. But I just studied literature for the only purpose of exam no any other things. I learned in B.A. to attend various conferences of literature also but not with deeper understanding or take it very seriously for further education important like research works etc. And as per our sir said in B.A. that is also true that for study purpose that kind of atmosphere is also very important which I can’t found in B.A.

How Literature shape me?

But when I came for admission at Department of English at that time further this same question asked by Barad sir in written entrance exam that what is literature? And I also wrote the same definition that “Literature is mirror of Society” and which I learned in B.A. but that is the half truth that basic fact I learned during my Master degree of Arts under the guidance of Dr.Dilip Barad. In M.A. the “Real journey of learning literature” began and specially sir taught us that how literature also connect with today’s world and that process of learning literature is very fruitful for me. Now I know that literature has no boundary. It can be anything. There are many definitions of literature and various layers of meanings also. It depends on readers and individualism. To understand and reading literature under the guidance o  Dr. Dilip Barad is precious  occurrence for me which I couldn't learn in my B.A.  Even though i am studying literature since five years, texts and theories which i've studied in M.A has affected & shaped me more.

“Writers open our hearts and minds, and give us maps to our own selves”.

Means literature mirror not of society but of own self. Now I can understand better my all texts of B.A. through some different angle and I can apply some theories and criticism. So here I remember my graduation text that is ‘Dr. Jakyll & Mr. Hyde’ that how that novel presents the reality of our inner self or dual nature of human being.

“Literature is window to the world and window to the self”.

For me literature is ‘backbone’ for me. Because during the M.A. my father’s health was not good, so I was very tense related him. But when I entered the class of New literature I get a lots of motivation and knowledge which is very helpful to stable myself and after reaching home I can gave some kind of good advised or mentally support to my mother and which I learnt from literature and sir’s   lectures . Because in last two years many time I put into the situation of drop my study , but learning literature is only one things which is work for me as a Backbone for me at that time, it provides some kind of mental strength to fight against problems.

Some time people says that literature looks like it’s wasting of time, but literature is actually the ultimate time saver because it gives us access to a range of emotions and events that it would take you years, decades, millennia to try to experience directly.

In 'Ghasiram Kotwal' by Vijay Tendulkar we find that how power politics played very vital role in society which is directly connected with today’s politics and cast problems also. Literature very actively engages us with political everyday life. For example one in DS, sir asked about the news of one student of fine arts at M.S.University that why he burn his principal’s office at that time sir explained that how political parties connected with this news and what about the artistic freedom and problem with Art for the Art Sake ?

Some literature gave some aesthetic delight or pleasure but When I studied ‘The White Tiger’ by Arvind Adiga  at that time I read that The White Tiger is “once  disturbing  as entreating ”. So this types of literature give some kind of restless felling because writer like Adiga presents the Zeitgeist of time and real representation of India, he questioned on our system also. Adiga portrayed the X-ray image of Indian society. He criticized religion also and that’s why he said “Monkey god”. So literature also disturbed or break our blind faith also.

Literature also taught me well that how to watch film and after studying theories I can easily apply some theories like feminism and postcolonialism in movie. I also wrote one research paper on ‘Hindi movies and postcolonialism’ in which I observed that how black people are marginalized and white people became the center.

On the other side in absurd plays like ‘Waiting for Godot’ and ‘The Birthday Party’ shows the triviality in human life and asked questions on our existence and various concept  likes nothingness, meaninglessness and absurdity of life.

Sadat Hasan Manto is an ‘Uncomfortable’ answer to our quest for an artist and art. Such writers and their literature compels us to think and makes us to think and makes us restless and feels us with angst and anxiety. So reading and watching this kind of literature we can’t achieve aesthetic feeling but as per Barad sir said “ bheja shor karta hai” so this type of mental condition we felt.

I learned various poem in literature like Wordsworth’s poems and Robert Frost’s poems so in which I understand that how the concept nature and human nature explained. But the poem like “Meri Sari” by Sabika Abbas Naqvi gave new metaphor like sari and how she portrayed the nation – ‘Narration of nation’ by Homi K. Bhabha. ‘Poetry is the art to speak more in less words’.

‘Harry Potter’ taught me that ‘Make your own choice’ and work for it. The book like ‘Frankenstein’ by Marry Shelly provides the opportunity to think on what is real Monster? How beautifully she gave the unique end of the novel and give justices to Monster, because human being become like Monster.

Self help books like One Night @ Call Center, The White Tiger give the new concept like ‘Amoral’ not moral or immoral. This is the new morality of youth.  Because literature and morality don’t get along. They’re enemies. And you have to respect literature if you believe in freedom.

“Literature is the center division of the “humanities” flanked on one side by history and on the other by philosophy.”  By- Northorp Frye

Archetypes of literature by Northorp Frye are also very useful to understand the skeleton of any literary work or movie.

Reading Virginia Woolf's To the Lighthouse & Room of One's own, leads us towards stronger feminist discourse. How Lily Briscoe break the patriarchal mentality that “women can’t paint or write" but she proved that “Women can paint or write”.

So, this way after studying various types of literature I learned so many good things from various characters, that is the not final means that all characters gives good message. Some characters are portrayed very bad like Mr.Ahab, but what we learn or not we learn from literary characters is up to me.

Studying English literature had brought many changes in me. After studying M.A, I am not same now. My views towards society is completely change and that’s why one problem I face that now I can’t match with people properly because there are many ideas like religious belief, cast , corruption, way of working in working place are contrast with my ideas. So I considered myself different from them and sometime people criticizing my subject also because of my thoughts and way of works with the use of technology. But as per Barad sir said “Don’t be like sheeple”, which is worth to apply in life.

Literature given many radical ideas to improve myself. Through studying literature in last two years one good cultivate one good habit that ‘ questioning’ and ‘doubting’  don’t accept things  as it is. Literature has given me a philosophical insight to look at the outside as well as inside within me.

As a student of literature now I can read the mind of people well with keen observation power because I studied so many characters and their psychology. Studying literature in Department of English under the guidance of Barad sir , my  way of working is completely change so I can say that –‘The festivals have changed’ for ex- My presentation is Asmita parv”  for me.

As per Keats said – “Beauty is truth and truth is beauty” so literature also give very precious beauty in form of new ‘Vision’ to see this world with unique spectacles . Real beauty for human being is in hard work nothing else.

With the Sense of an Ending, I would like to thanks Literature and Department of English because both played very vital role for shaping me. Today whatever I’m is only of studying literature and various experience of my life. At the end I say that ‘I would have been nothing without literature’.