Exploring Literariness and Historical Variations in Literature

1. Review of Chapter 2

2. Literariness • Story-like. Using literary devices. • What does he have to say about using this as a guide to definition?

3. What’s the question, again? • What sort of object is it? What does it do? What purpose does it serve? (Depends on who you’re talking to.) • What makes it different from non-literature? (What are its distinguishing features? See p. 19.)

4. Historical Variations • Used to mean “Knowledge.” • Used to mean fine use of language -- persuasive, argumentative, etc. • Used to mean “imaginative writing.” • Could mean whatever a given society decides it to be. • What does he mean when he says it’s like “WEED”?

5. Reading as Literature • Where do you find it? • Does it pose a problem, exercise the imagination? • How about format? The way it looks? • Detached from purposefulness?

6. Hyper-Protected Cooperative Principle • We cooperate when we communicate. • Literature is reviewed or Hyper-Protected. • We’re willing to work harder when we read literature because we assume that it’s worth it. Somebody who knows has said so.

7. Nature of Literature • Foregrounds Language • Integration of Language (156 S&S) • Literature as Fiction (We’ve got to figure out the connection between it and life.) • Lit. as Aesthetic Object (Purposefulness without a purpose.) • Intertextual/self-reflexive (69 S&S, 594 Text, 727 Text.)

8. The Turtle • The turtle lives ‘twixt plated decks • Which practically conceal its sex • I think it clever of the turtle • In such a fix to be so furtile.

9. Because he lives between two decks, It’s hard to tell a turtle’s gender. The turtle is a clever beast In such a plight to be so furtile. The turtle lives ‘twixt plated decks Which practically conceal its sex. I think it clever of the turtle In such a plight to be so fertile. variations

10. Functions of Literature • to civilize the natives • organize and present values for the masses • replace religion • explore universal human condition • build national cohesion

11. Some arguments • P. 35-36 Which do you believe to be true? Does it lift us up or stir us up? Does it repress rebellion, encourage us all to be followers, or does it challenge us to constantly re-evaluate? • P. 37 Does it isolate us, encourage passivity? Is it dangerous, encouraging us to question authority?

12. God’s Will for You and Me • Just to be tender, just to be true, • Just to be glad the whole day through, • Just to be merciful, just to be mild, • Just to be trustful as a child, • Just to be gentle and kind and sweet, • Just to be helpful with willing feet, • Just to be cheery when things go wrong, • Just to drive sadness away with a song, • Whether the hour is dark or bright, • Just to be loyal to God and right, • Just to believe that God knows best, • Just in his promises ever to rest -- • Just to let love be our daily key, • That is God’s promise to you and me.

13. Pied Beauty • Glory be to God for dappled things-- • For skies of couple-color as a brinded cow; • For rose-moles all in stipple upon trout that swim; • Fresh-firecoal chestnut-falls; finches’ wings; • Landscape plotted and pieced -- fold, fallow and plow; • And all trades, their gear and tackle and trim. • All things counter, original, spare, strange; • Whatever is fickle, freckled (who knows how?) • With swift, slow; sweet, sour; adazzle, dim; • He fathers-forth whose beauty is past change: • Praise him.