Literature or Not Literature: That’s the Question

Seminar paper from the year 2003 in the subject American Studies - Culture and Applied Geography, grade: A-, San Francisco State University (Ethnic Studies), course: Asian American Literature and the Arts, language: English, abstract: What is Literature ? According to the American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, the term Literature is defined as Imaginative or creative writing, especially of recognized artistic value: Literature must be an analysis of experience and a synthesis of the findings into a unity (Rebecca West). The Collins English Dictionary describes it as written material such as poetry, novels, essays, etc., esp. works of imagination characterized by excellence of style and expression and by themes of general or enduring interest. The emphasis in the first definition lies in the words of recognized artistic value. However, in my opinion, what makes literature in the sense of printed material Literature is not necessarily the recognition of its artistic value. As far as the second definition is concerned, by excellence of style and expression and by themes of general or enduring interest seems of primary importance. In opposition to this view, I believe that neither excellence of style and expression nor themes of general interest are necessarily characteristic for what should be considered Literature. In my understanding, everything that addresses our emotions, that makes us feel for one moment with a situation described is of artistic value, and that things that are not of general interest and may not excel in style and expression can still be equal to the Great Literature recognized by the academic and literary world. Critics have long considered Toshio Mori’s work overly sentimental and poorly plotted [… and] full of grammatical errors. […]