منتديات الشروق أونلاين - literature courses of sidi bel abbes LMD first year

first course: what is literature?

the energy of mind and imagination released by the creative use of mind ( LC Knights)

literature should represent an experience, giving something to the reader and employing all the ressources of language

the text should be balanced with properly literary matching of form and content (Barrel)

the formula for literature lies in: the diction, movement, style and manner and their perfect proportion to one another (M.Arnold)

each individual has their own literary standards and defines the essence of literature in relation to these

writings that has permanence and value- literature is the truth, that is what makes it literature (Wain)

writings that are valued for their beauty of forms
(Oxford English Dictionary)

2nd course: literary genre

genre: is the term used to describe the various types of literature. genre is a french term derived from the latin genus, generis meaning type, sort or kind

it is devided into two subgenres: fiction and non-ficyion

1/fiction: includes drama, fable, fairytales, fantasy, fiction in verse, folklore, historical fiction, horror, humour, legend, mystery, mythodology, realistic fiction, science fiction and tall tales

2/ non-fiction: includes biography, autobiography,essay,narrative nonfiction, nonfictional, speech, magazines, newspapers, cooking books

3rd course: basic literary terms

antagonist: a character or force in conflict with the main character
character (major or minor): a person or an animal who takes place in the story; major is a character that has a big part in the story, a minor character is a character that has less of a role in the story
characterisation: the means by which characters are depicted or created- commonly by accounts of their physical appearance, psychological characteristics, direct speech, and the opinions of the narrator or other characters about them
climax: the point of the story where the story line reaches its high point
conflict: a struggle between opposing forces
cultural context: the historical and cultural context and the circumstances in which the work was produced
denouement: the ending or the closing of a story
dialect: regional version of a language
dialogue: spoken words between characters
exposition: a writing or a speech that informs or explains
figures of speech: the rhetorical devices often used to give decorative and imaginative expression to literature for example: simile, metaphor, puns, irony...ect
flashback: a section of a literary work that interrupts the sequence of events to relate an event from an earlier time
foreshadowing: a method of hinting what is to come later in the story earlier in the book
grammar: the relationships of the words in sentences, which might include such items as the use of adjectives for description, of verbs to denote action, switching between tenses to move between present and past, or any use of unusual combinations of words or phrases to create special effects
hero/heroine: the character in the story that the reader is supposed to side with and does all of the brave and daring obstacles in the story
idiom: a speech form or expression that cannot be understood from the meanings of its seperate words as in keep tabs on
implicit: understood though not directly stated
explicit: clearly and precisely expressed
jargon: confused, nonsensical, meaningless talk; usually of a particular group or activity
literary devices: the devices commonly used in literature to give added depth to a work for example imagery, point of view, symbolism, allusions...
moral: a lesson teaching literary work
narrator: the person telling the story. this may be the author , assuming a full knowledge of characters and their feelings: this is an omniscient narrator. it might alternatively be a fictional character invented by the author. there may also be multiple narrators. you should always be prepared to make a clear distinction between author, narrator, and character-even though in some texts these may be ( or appear to be) the same
narrative mode: this is usually either te first person singular (i am going to tell you a story about...) or the third person singular (the duchess felt alarmed...)
narrative: the story which is being told: that is, the history of the events, characters, or whatever matters the narrator wishes to relate to the reader
parable: a short story with a simple moral lesson
plot: the outline of the story and the main ideas and events
point of view: the literary strategy by which an author presents the events of a narrative from the perspective of a particular person-which may be the narrator or may be a fictional character. the point of view may be consistent, or it may switch between narrator and character(s). it should not be confused with the mere opinion of a character or the narrator
protagonist: the character or force the main character is up against
rhyme: the repetition of sound at the end of words
rhythm: the beat for a poem
setting: the localisation and time frame in which the action of a narrative takes place
stanza: a group of lines in a poem considered as a unit
structure: the planned underlying framework or shape of a piece of work. the relationship between its parts in terms of arrangement or construction
syntax: the arrangement and logical coherence of words in a sentence; the possibilities for re-arrangement are often used for emphasis or dramatic effect
theme: the underlying topic or issue, often of a general or abstract nature, as distinct from the overt subject with which the work deals. it should be possible to express theme in a single word or short phrase-such as 'death', 'education', or 'coming of age'
tone: the author's attitude to the subject as revealed in the style and the manner of the writing. this might be for instance serious, comic, or ironic
vocabulary: the author's choice of individual words-which may be drawn from various registers such as colloquial, literary, technical, slang, journalism, and may vary from simple and direct to complex and sophisticated

4th course: literal and figurative language

literal language: if a person uses literal langiage it is true to fact and is used in a completely standard way with its primary or basic meaning

figurative language: language is either figurative (metaphorical) or literal. figurative language suggests more than words themeselves, in order to achieve a special meaning or effect

eg:
grass looks green----> literal language
the grass looks like spiky green hair----> figurative language
sand feels rough----> literal language
sand is solid water----> figurative language

5th course: denotation and connotation

what a word or name denotes is what it means or refers to,that is to say the word has a literal or obvious meaning as destinguished from the suggestive meaning or association

denotation: in literary usage, the denotation of a word is its primary meaning or what it refers to; the denotation is the explicit or specific meaning commonly given by a dictionary, and destinguished from suggestions, associations, ans connotations eg: one denotation of "light" is " illumination; the electromagnetic radiation that makes vision possible"
connotation of a word or phrase is an association or idea suggested by that word or phrase. the connotation is the idea or quality it makes you think of eg: water---> life, growth, cleansing, religious rites...

coming soon: stylistic devices and literary periods of english literature

hope you get benefits of what i gave

see you soon
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