Literature refers to the accumulation of knowledge that a person has to write and read correctly. The combination of grammar, rhetoric, and poetry is what makes it a different genre from the ordinary way of speaking and writing. It is thanks to this that the RAE applies as its definition the fact that this can become a free way to express oneself through language, only that it is done in an artistic way, with imagination and vision.
What is literature
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To really know what it means, you have to go back to its beginnings, when it was known as a kind of eloquence or poetry. During the 17th century, people assumed that this had a lot to do with the elegance of the lexicon and the peculiar way of writing. It was in the 18th century that it was understood that it was an effective means of expressing oneself and that it had different elements, not only poetry, but also grammar. Later, it expanded to give birth to different genres that still exist today.
At first, this activity was not written, but recited or sung and only scholars or people of high birth could use it, since a higher level of knowledge was needed to understand and express words correctly.
With the passage of time, things changed and ideas were reflected on pages and scrolls until they reached current literary methods. Taking into account the above, the concept refers to an artistic expression at a verbal level, this applies to written and oral.
It is also important to note that it also makes mention of the literary productions of a certain nation, language and even of a period, for example, the Greek, Renaissance, medieval, Baroque, etc.
But it also encompasses the scientific writings studied by literary theories. The genres take this as art, because regardless of its type, time or central theme, there are people expressing their knowledge, feelings and their way of seeing the world. Currently there are many books about it, some for children and others for adults, all with the same objective: to express, entertain, educate.
What are the best known literary genres
There are genres that classify or group their types according to the content they possess and express. The characteristics existing in each of these genres individualize them, in this sense, literary genres with semantic, phonological or formal aspects can be found. These literary types have their own subgroup or subclassification and are as follows:
Epic genre
Generally known as a type of narrative literature. It is characterized by being a story devoid of reality, that is, nothing of what is narrated there is true. This includes those books that support real or invented characters in the narrative that have transcended thanks to legendary events. The subgenre of the epic or narrative literary type is made up of the novel, the short story and the epic. If it is necessary to refer to writers of this genre, it is practically obligatory to mention Miguel de Cervantes.
Lyric
These texts have a certain rhythm, in addition, they are characterized by reflecting the feelings and emotions that the authors experienced when creating the text. Most of these verses are poetic, although some are also elaborated in prose.
It could also be said that they are all those works that are developed or that their context is basically poetic and is composed of verses. In the subgenre of this literary type, it is made up of sonnets, hymns, ballads, elegies and odes. The most prominent authors of this genre are: Federico García Lorca, Rafael Alberti.
Drama
Here are the theatrical works that, in turn, are classified as comic and theatrical. Its purpose is acting, and can be sub-classified into literary types such as comedy or tragedy. In itself, this genre represents a series of episodes and problems that humans may have and that are expressed through dialogues prepared by authors for the characters who personified the drama. The classic example of this genre is the great William Shakespeare, one of the greatest authors of literary drama in the world.
Each of these genres has its level of importance in the world, starting from infantile to erotic. Authors are motivated to write these texts for different reasons, the main one is based on capturing the feelings and emotions they possess, that their works are recognized in the world and currently, if it is really successful, get the Nobel Prize in this area.
Metaliterature
Metaliterature is defined as literature about literature, being a self-referential discourse that manifests itself in various ways. In some cases, the author interrupts the argument or gets into it to clarify something, make judgments about the work itself and its development, address issues related to gender and narrative techniques or talk about literature in general. In other cases, it is a character who addresses these problems.
In this way, the author of the work seems to become a character of the work at certain times to connect with the reader who seeks his appeal through specific information. Through this stylistic resource, the author not only acquires a more active role in the plot, but also achieves greater transparency in his creative intention by involving the reader in more information.
An example is when the author takes notes throughout the text to clarify some point about the creative process. A practical example of this element is found in Don Quixote, by Miguel de Cervantes. In chapter VI of the first part, the priest and the barber make literary judgments of the works they find in the Don Quixote bookstore, where chivalric books predominate.
Major eras of literature
When talking about the times of this, in reality it refers to the periods of time in which the different literary texts arose and developed that are taken into account as the precursors and most important texts created in human history. The periods that have been most recognized in the world are the pre-classical, classical, medieval, Renaissance, Baroque, Neoclassical, Romantic, Modernist and Postmodern.
Each of these periods has its own characteristics that individualize them from the rest. Some are more important and impressive than others and in this section we will explain the main periods that marked a before and after in literature.
Classic literature
It begins in the 8th century BC and ends in the 3rd AD. In this aspect, we speak directly about what was the beginning of Latin and Greek culture, where people's concern lies in explaining the origin of man and the universe in the simplest ways to guarantee maximum retention. Being two of the predominant languages, they represent special characteristics of the classical one. They are explained through the balance between the message that is projected and the expression used to express it.
It was precisely in the classic that the need arose to separate literary works according to their content (genres), from there were born human descriptions, heroic events of the time and the origin of peoples. The greatest literary development was born in the classical period, emerging epics such as the Odyssey and the Iliad in which a mixture of legendary, mythical and unreal events of the origins of the Greek people was made, which according to modern research, have confirmed some way the development of the events narrated, for example, the existence of Troy.
Medieval literature
It begins at the end of the 3rd century until the 14th century, after the fall of the Western Roman Empire. It is from this time that Western Christianity is consolidated and all its cultural manifestations are based on the contemplation of God, habits related to religious morality and a theocentric vision that occupies all human actions, therefore, its expressions Literary texts suggest the religious ideal. In spite of this, the popular and the cultured are combined, which created a symbiosis between paganism and religion.
In this cycle, this type is evidenced in two different ways: The cult, which is the conservation of ancient texts, carried out by the clergy, concerning the so-called "Mester de clerecía" and another type, exercised by the people since the Oral tradition, customs, myths and legends that we know as “Mester de juglaría” where popular imagination and creativity are manifested. It is essential to highlight that in this period vernacular languages were formed in Europe; fruit of the literary development that appears in the deed songs.
Ancient literature
It is considered old until the fifteenth century, in fact, the oldest literary texts that we have, date back centuries after the invention of writing. Many researchers disagree with everything related to ancient records that are transformed into something more similar to it, since they consider this concept to be subjective.
It should be noted that the historical development of this did not happen uniformly in the world, because when trying to approach a general literary history, it is based on the fact that many texts have disappeared, either intentionally, by accident or by the total disappearance of the culture that originated them, for example, the destruction of the Library of Alexandria, which was created in the 3rd century BC. And just like this case, there are also the innumerable fundamental texts that are believed to have been lost in the flames in 49 BC. C.
Renaissance literature
It dates from the 14th and 15th centuries. These are new ideas that developed slowly, ending the medieval period. In the Renaissance, a movement called humanism is manifested, which developed a better vision of man and the world. In this period all the arts flourished, for example, painting, architecture and of course, literature. This period is made up of great epic poems that re-establish the exploits of the heroes and the deeds of the great discoverers, among which is mentioned: “Os Lusíadas” whose theme is the expedition of Vasco da Gama.
In poetry there are valuable contributions such as the Sonnet and the meters incorporated by Petrarca. The figures that can be mentioned within this literary era and that gave life to characters of all kinds (including profound themes) are Francesco Petrarca, Giovanni Boccaccio, Niccolo Machiavelli, Leonardo da Vinci, William Shakespeare among others.
Baroque literature
It dates from the 16th and 16th centuries. This is basically characterized by excess adornment, the use of literary figures and the twisted forms, as well as in some cases the secrecy of the language. Despite the existence of the Baroque throughout Europe, it developed primarily as a religious art in cathedrals, although it also occurs in Spanish, where two major aspects are combined, conceptism and culteranism. Here Miguel de Cervantes must be mentioned again with his work "The ingenious hidalgo Don Quijote de la Mancha", considered the first modern novel and the most remembered in the whole world.
Neoclassical literature
It has its origins in the late 17th century and part of the 18th century. This was characterized in the imitation of the classic models, but despite the time, it was dominated by reason. This was what made possible the pedagogical ideal of literature, which consists of teaching through it. From there, genres such as the fable and the essay emerged, which maintained the balance between the background and the form, that is, between the content and the form of expression.
Likewise, the adventure novel appears, which takes place in the French classical theater and the ideas of the Enlightenment, the Enlightenment and the encyclopedia that will later give rise to romanticism are spread.
Modernist literature
Its genesis was born in the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century. The modernist era is characterized by the search for formal perfection, so it evades reality and refers to fantastic worlds, princesses, remote landscapes and all kinds of dreams that can take people away from what is real. they delve into this type. From this conception, the so-called "art for art's sake" arises.
In modernism, form prevails over content, and despite the temporary transience, modernism is considered a literary school. At this point, it is important to note that one of the main objectives in this cycle was for the development of modernism to take place especially and primarily in poetry.
Contemporary literature
It covers all the literary styles used from the 19th century to the present day. It is characterized by showing the social and political difficulties of the time, as well as the threats of the technological world, scientific doubts and the serious crisis of philosophical thought present during this period of history.
Literature according to the different societies that developed it
To explain this section, we must start from the premise that this is also a type of communication medium. In it you can see different behavioral patterns of the authors of works, in addition to the total description of the time in which they were written. In the previous section, it is explained according to the time in which it was written or taken into account by the world, but here, this aspect can be combined with the societies that managed to fully develop it.
With this we want to get to the point of talking about how they managed to discover and manifest it as art and why these societies are a fundamental part of their history.
Egyptian literature
The origin of this literary type is born in ancient Egypt and is taken into account as one of the first literary vestiges or records in the world. The Egyptians wrote their texts on ancient papyri, but they also found a way to capture their experiences and customs on the walls of pyramids, tombs, obelisks, etc. The Sinuhé story is one of the most feasible examples in this regard, as well as that of the Ebers papyrus, the Westcar papyrus, and the Book of the Dead. The Egyptian is divided into two parts.
It begins with religion and ends with profane texts, however, most Egyptian texts are religious, thus mentioning the prayers that were recited at funeral acts, spells, Egyptian mythologies that go beyond what is narrated in the book of the dead, the descriptions of what they called the afterlife and the underworld. With regard to the secular, it was based on texts aimed at education and not for entertainment, although there are also records of poems, biographies and elegies.
Hebrew literature
Here are most of the religious books, specifically what is known as Judaism, in fact, the most impressive work of this aspect is the Tanakh, which contains an endless number of rites, prayers and the history of the Jews and of the Christian religion. In relation to Christianity, religion is mentioned because the Tanakh is considered as the old testament, thus describing the beginnings of life on earth and everything that developed from that event.
This literary work is divided into three important parts, the law, the prophets and the writings. In the law there is a subclassification of 5 books: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. The prophets speak of those people who predicted certain events and who were immortalized for it, being one of the most remembered, the prophet Isaiah.
Finally, there are the writings, these are also divided into 3 important aspects: historical books, poetic texts and the 5 scrolls of happiness. The Hebrew is extensive, but very valuable.
Mexican literature
This dates from the Mesoamerican era in which the indigenous peoples described everything that happened in their civilizations, from their customs to their details. But they did this orally, reciting chants or memorizing lyrics. Over the years and the arrival of the Spanish, their culture had a quite marked combination and that also affected the Mexican, thus adopting various idioms or traditions of its colonizers. Currently, the Mexican is one of the best known worldwide.
Roman literature
Most of the words that are used today are born from Latin and, although this is a dead language, it is still important. The Roman in Latin is divided into two parts, the indigenous Roman and the imitated one. In the indigenous one, they talk about the beginnings of Rome, its foundation and rulers, as well as what the republic was. In the imitated one, reference is made to works that have some similarity with those of other territories. There are those who think that this should be classified into 5 parts, mentioning the first rulers of the city.
But there is also that of Rome in Greek, but reference is made to political and some cultural texts, leaving aside the religious texts typical of Greece and making their essence remain intact.
Chinese literature
Chinese texts date back to the dynastic years, specifically those of the Ming dynasty, when the literary movement emerged to keep literate people constantly entertained. In fact, it is said that China, until approximately the seventeenth century, created the largest number of literary texts in the world, embodying its customs, rites, culture and mythologies. China had a lot to do with the creation of the texts of the countries close to its territory, for example, Japan and Korea (before the war).
The Dào Dé Jing work is one of the most popular in both regions and the world. These writings served as a source of inspiration and political example in territories of the world, in fact, most of the philosophers and high-ranking officials (at that time) owed their governmental ideas to the one that originated in China.
Prehispanic literature
It dates from the time when the first civilizations in America lived until the arrival of the Spanish, the best known being the Inca, Mayan and Aztec peoples. All pre-Hispanic customs were passed from generation to generation orally, so it is difficult to speak of ancient American texts written by the natives themselves. What is known about them today is thanks to the chroniclers who carried out a series of investigations and later, the respective translations to translate them into pages.
The pre-Hispanic includes not only the cultures mentioned above, but also the Amazonian, Chibcha, Guaraní, etc. In this section there are some characteristics of pre-Hispanic culture, among them, the ability to worship different gods, their agrarian qualities, the orality they handled and the ease with which they created poems and narrated myths, although the author was never really known or the original authors of each story or story described.
Hindu literature
Like Egyptian and Chinese, Hindi is considered one of the oldest in the world, in addition to being extensive and with at least 22 different languages. The first vestiges of this culture appeared in 3300 BC, right in the Bronze Age. The Hindu texts are embodied in Sanskrit, a very ancient language, written using different tools or types of scriptures, although the most predominant is Devanagari. At that time everything related to India was fully known, thus spanning two millennia of history.
This is divided into 3 periods, the Vedic, which takes place in the middle of the second millennium BC and covers all the myths and religious beliefs of the time. Then there is the post-Vedic epoch, which dates from the 1st millennium BC and which refers to the contradictions of current philosophers with respect to the Vedic epoch, since they did not agree with what was explained in that period. Finally, there is the Brahmanic period, which was about the Hindu religion and, later, Buddhist.
Literary contest
A literary contest is a competition that encourages the participation of professional or amateur writers. Many successful professionals who have published books have added successes to their resumes in these literary contests.
Literary competitions also start from a real need from the cultural point of view, since it is not easy to achieve success in the literary field. Through these initiatives, the passion for writing and the love for letters of so many writers who dream of sharing their works and their creative talents are promoted.
Just as a job offer specifies the specific requirements that applicants must submit to the job, in the same way, literary contests include specific bases with information on the application deadline for original works, the format that the works must have, the length of the story, the period of submission of the originals and the theme of the contest.
For example, one of the main objectives of the AEE (Association of Spanish Students) is to promote culture in the field of the Spanish language. Therefore, this is a literary contest that will take place in the poetry / short story contest mode, which aims to foster imagination and creativity.
