English 102 – Day 2
•
•
Defining Literature
Active Reading
How do we define literature?


Before I show you the dictionary definition, I want
you to take two minutes and make a list of as
many works (novels, poems, plays, essays,
etc) that you consider to be literature.
Next, I want you to make a list of some written
works (books and shorter works as well)
that you do not think are literature.
What do the works on your first list have in
common?
 What do the works on your second list have in
common?

Dictionary Definition of Literature
The Oxford American College Dictionary
defines “literature” as:
“written works, especially those considered of
superior or lasting artistic merit.”
What exactly do you think is meant by “artistic
merit”?
 Who
decides this?
 How do “they” decide this?
In-Class Writing:



What do people generally mean when they call a piece
of writing “literature”?
What characteristics does “literature” have that sets it
apart from other writing?
Think about a favorite piece of writing (novel, nonfiction book, poem, play, etc) of yours.


Would it be considered “literature” by most people?
Do you think it should be considered literature?

Why or why not?
Active Reading



“Active Reading” of a literary work will help
you to understand it more fully.
These techniques may be used the first time
through, or on a second reading after you have
read the work all the way through once.
When you do active reading, you might…
– Preview the reading before you read
– Highlight as you read
– Annotate as you read
Preview the Reading





Identify the form—is it a short story? Play? Poem? Novel or
novella?
What does it look like? Is the format interesting or unique?
Take careful note of the title, and any information outside the
text itself (can you think of some examples of this?)
Take note of the author
 Ask yourself if you already know anything about the author,
the setting, the time period in which the piece was written,
and the form/type (sonnet, “short short,” etc.) or style the
author uses.
Identify any unique or intriguing choices the author has made.
 How is it similar to or different from other pieces like it?
Highlighting the Reading

When you highlight, you may wish to mark:
 Repeated
phrases/words
 Patterns of imagery
 Lines that strike you as particularly beautiful
 Lines that seem to encapsulate (contain in a small
space) the theme of the work.

If you would like, use different colors of
highlighter for different purposes.
Annotating the Reading:

Annotating a work means writing your own
comments, thoughts, and reactions directly onto
the text as you read.
–
–
–
–
–

Summarize events in your own words.
Ask questions.
Record thoughts about possible themes.
Make connections between different parts of the text.
Define unfamiliar vocabulary. (This is KEY to understanding)
It is possible to do all of this using a notebook if
you don't want to mark in your book, but it is a bit
more difficult.

It is ok mark your books neatly, EVEN IF you rented.
Defining “Fiction” 
Fiction is a subcategory of literature.



Not all literature is fiction. Creative non-fiction can
certainly be considered literature, for example.
How would you personally define “fiction”?
Write for three minutes about your personal
definition of this word. What characteristics
does fiction usually have?
Defining “Fiction”

From our textbook…
 “A
narrative tells a story by presenting events in
some logical or orderly way. A work of fiction is a
narrative that is inspired by/is generated by the
imagination of the author rather than in history or
fact” (Kirzner and Mandell 70).

What do you think of this definition?
 Does
it miss something?
Preview for Next Week and
Homework Instructions

Introducing Short Stories!

Review the Read and Respond Instruction Handout
The Shortest Story

Earnest Hemingway famously offered up the
following six words as the shortest short
story in history:
“For sale: Baby shoes, never worn.”
How does this story fit into (or defy) our
definitions of fiction and narrative?
Other Six-Word Short Stories
A few years ago, Wired magazine invited Science Fiction authors
to submit six-word short stories of their own.
Here are six of them:
 Gown removed carelessly. Head, less so.
- Joss Whedon
 Machine. Unexpectedly, I’d invented a time
- Alan Moore
 Longed for him. Got him. Shit.
- Margaret Atwood
 The baby’s blood type? Human, mostly.
- Orson Scott Card
 TIME MACHINE REACHES FUTURE!!! … nobody there …
- Harry Harrison
 I’m beside myself. Cloning machine works!
 -JD Grafton
A Word on Homework:

Always check the schedule on the blog for complete
homework assignment and readings due dates.
PACE YOURSELF. This is college!
 The assignments required for this class can look like a
LOT of work.


AND THEY ARE—if you don’t plan ahead and try to do them
all on Wednesday night….or even worse, Thursday morning.
It’s NOT one night’s worth of homework.
 If you break it up into smaller chunks, it is manageable,
doable, even interesting!


If you don’t—you will probably be stressed and feel like it’s
“too much”.
Class Resources: TurnItIn.com
Turnitin.com


How to Sign Up for a Turnitin.com Account
How to join our Turnitin.com Class
 Class
ID: 9540866
 Enrollment Password: lawson102
Homework for Tuesday:

Check the Schedule!

Tuesday, February 17
 Topics:
Genres of Literature: Introduction to
Short Fiction. In-class reading of Short-Shorts:
“Snow” and “Love and Other Catastrophes”, etc.

Homework Due:
 Read
“Defining the Short Story” p 68-69
 Read Alberto Alvaro Rios “The Secret
Lion” p. 401-404