INTRODUCTION TO WORLD LITERATURE
Behind every story is the human being. Behind every human being is the race. Behind every race is the whole world of
humankind.
WORLD LITERATURE
 Is considered in global context
 It suggests to the sum of total world’s national literature and also the circulation of work into the wider world
beyond country’s origin.
A. LITERATURE PERIODS
(English/ American Literature)
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Old English Literature
Middle English Literature
The Renaissance
The Restoration & 18th century
The Romantic Period
The Victorian Age
The Post Modern Age
1. OLD ENGLISH LITERATURE
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Three (3) Conquests:
• Different letters
• Different grammar
• Different spelling
Song of Beowulf
2. THE MIDDLE ENG. LITERATURE
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Bible Translations
Geoffrey Chaucer’s “The Canterbury Tales”
3. THE RENAISSANCE LITERATURE
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Old classics rediscovered
• Sonnet
• Elegy
• Pastoral
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450 – 1150
1150 – 1500
1500 – 1650
1650 – 1789
1789 – 1837
1837 – 1901
1901 - Present
4. THE RESTORATION & 18TH CENTURY
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Age of reason
Age of Enlightenment
Rise of the Novel and Journalism
Age of Satire
Age of Poetry
5. THE ROMANTIC PERIOD
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Use of everyday language
Imagination essential
Overflowing emotions common
Inspired by untamed nature and exotic far east
Folk traditions and medieval tales of Knights
Gothic novels
6. THE VICTORIAN PERIOD
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Queen Victoria
Transition period
Melancholic and Political poetry
7. THE POST-MODERN AGE
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Literature of this periods exemplifies the improved crafts of
masters. The novel has flourished and writers have risen not only
to popularity but to distinction as well
For a detailed group discussion see link below:
https://slideplayer.com/slide/6242352/
B. AFRO-ASIAN LITERATURE
(African/ Asian Literature)
AFRO-ASIAN LITERATURE
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refers to the literary output of the various countries and cultures in Africa and Asia. This includes their oral
traditions and from the first to the contemporary written and/or published prose and poetry
mirrors not only the customs and traditions of African and Asian countries but also their philosophy of life
which on the whole are deeply and predominantly contemplative and hauntingly sweet
is the reflection of the storm and the stress of developing nations seeking a place under the sun which
readers must understand so they may know how this literature affects the history and culture of a nation.
rich in oral traditions
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Oral traditions are messages passed down through speech or song and may take the form of folktales and
fables, epic histories and narrations, proverbs or sayings, and songs. They help people make sense of the
world, teach children and adults about important aspects of their culture, and guide social and human
morals -- giving people a sense of place and purpose.
ORAL TRADITIONS
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have a strong influence on modern African literature.
The most successful African writers know what to do with the oral tradition, and understand how its structures
and images can be transformed to a literary mode.
They place their literary works into the forms of the oral tradition.
B1. African Literature
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Some of the first African writings to gain attention in the West were slave narratives, which described vividly the
horrors of slavery and the slave trade. As Africans became literate in their own languages, they often reacted
against colonial repression in their writings. As Africans began demanding their independence, more African
writers were published. They often shared the same themes: the clash between indigenous and colonial
cultures, condemnation of European suppression, pride in the African past, and hope for the continent's
independent future.
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Is divided into three distinct categories; precolonial, colonial and postcolonial.
Precolonial literature - often takes the form of oral narratives that are sometimes accompanied by music and center
around the trickster figure.
Colonial literature - examines the horrors of slavery and the slave trade, revolting against colonialism and drawing
inspiration from Africa's past.
Postcolonial literature - focuses on the clash between indigenous and colonial cultures, expressing hope for Africa's
future.
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Famous Writers:
o Mariama Ba
- So Long a Letter (novel)
- Scarlet Song (novel)
o
Buchi Emecheta - In the Ditch (autobiographical novel)
- The Second Class Citizen
- The Joys of Motherhood
- The New Tribe
o
Bessie Head - When Rain Clouds Gather (novel)
- Maru (novel)
- A Question of Power (novel)
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Wole Soyinka -(Nobel Prize in Literature 1986)
- The Man Died: Prison Notes (memoir)
- Mandela's Earth and Other Poems
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Chinua Achebe - Things Fall Apart (novel)
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Nadine Gordimer - (Nobel Prize in Literature)
- Burger's Daughter (novel)
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Ayi Kwei Armah - The Beautyful Ones Are Not Yet Born (novel)
B2. ASIAN LITERATURE
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study of the literature of the people in:
1. China
2. India
3. Japan
4. Other small nations that surround them
ASIAN LITERATURE
China
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has very ancient beginnings
began about 5,000 years ago and has recorded the dreams abd visions of a people who number about half of all
the people of the world
Chinese recognize FIVE BOOKS which they call the Chinese classics.
The Book of Changes
The Book of History
The Book of Rites
The Book of Odes
The Spring and Autumn Annal
 All five books form the foundation of their cultural, political and traditional life
China has a wealth of classical literature whose compilation is atributed to CONFUCUIS.
Two forms of literature in China:
Poetry - most highly regarded literary genre; divided into Shi, Ci and Qu.
- There is also a kind of prose-poem.
Prose - neo-classical style of prose influenced prose writing for the next 800 years
Famous Writers:
 Zhuang Zi - The Great Happiness
- On Arranging Things
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Mo Zi - Against Confucianism
- The Ethical and Political Works of Motse
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Sima Qian - Annals of Spring and Autumn
- The Records of Grand Historian ( Shiji)
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Wen Yiduo - Red Candle
-The Dead Water
ASIAN LITERATURE
Egypt
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Egyptian novelists and poets were among the firsts to experiment with modern styles of Arabic literature
and the forms they developed have been widely imitated throughout the Middle East.
Vernacular Poetry - most popular literary genre among Egyptians.
Egyptians were the first culture to develop a book. The Nile had a strong influence on the writing of the
ancient Egyptians.
LIterary Forms:
Secular Literature - short stories
Instructive Literature - Wisdom texts
Poems
Biological and Historical texts
Scientific Treaties - Mathematical and Medical Texts
Famous Writers:
• Nawal El Saadawi - Memoirs of a Woman Doctor
God dies by the Nile
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Naguib Mahfouz - The Day the Leader was Killed
Wedding Song
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Salah Jaheen - Ruba'iyat
Dawawin Salah Jahin
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Muhammad Husaya Haykal - Biographies of Egyptian and Western Personalities
In the House of Revelation
ASIAN LITERATURE
India
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As early as 300 B.C., India had already produced a considerable body of literature written in several Indian
tongues derived from a common ancestral language - Sanskrit
Sanskrit literature begins with the Rig Veda, a collection of sacred hymns addressed to the Indian gods who are
very numerous. They also contain stories about these gods.
Hindu literature reveals the inner and outer life of a remarkable people: it extends from a remote past to the
present.
Two major literaray awards in contemporary Indian literature:
Sahitya Akademi Fellowship
Jnanpith Award
Famous Writers:
• RAbindranath Tagore – Gitanjali
Koro-o-Kamal
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Bankim Chanra Chatterjee - Vande Mataran
Kapalkundala
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Arundhati Roy - The God of Small Things
BAndit Queen
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Anita Desai - Fire on the Mountain
The Village by the Sea
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Valmiki –Mahabharata and Ramayana (famous epic that had influenced India)
ASIAN LITERATURE
Japan
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one o the major Oriental literature. It is less voluminous than Chinese literature but comparable to Arabic,
Persian and Indian literature.
EArly works were heavily influenced by cultural contact with China and Chinese Literature
Japanese literature developed into a separate style in its own rights as Japanese writers began writing their own
works about Japan
FAmous Writers:
Murasaki Shikibu (Lady Murasaki) - The Tale of Genji
The Murasaki Shikibu Collection
Sei Shonagon - The Pillow Book
Yasunari Kawabata - Snow Country
Beauty and Sadness
Matsuo Basho – Haiku
ASIAN LITERATURE
Malaysia
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Literature styles changed with the influences of Europeans. The classical style was eventually replaced in print
with vernacular language
Serajah Melayu (Malay Annals) - written in the 1500s, the most important Malaysia literary works and tells the
story of a Malacca sultanate
Famous Writers:
Uthaya Sankar - Oran Dimensi
Panshayat
Pak Sako - Budak beca
Judi karam
Munshi Abdullah - Hikayat Munshi Abdullah
ASIAN LITERATURE
Korea
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Korean literature was written in Chinese and in Korean
Korean literature shows a significant difference before and after Western influences. In the pre-Western period,
literature was influenced by Shamanism, Buddhism and Confucianism. Under these influences, individuals
accepted the status quo and had a fatalistic view of life. Early literature depicted a love of nature and man and
held that nature and man are one. Another special aspect of the early period of Korean literature was that it
began as an oral tradition. Therefore, many literary works, also tales and legends sung or spoken by the
ancestors of various Korean tribes, were presented at tribal rites, religious festivals, sacrifices and political
gatherings.
Korean literature was largely unknown to the world until the 1980s, when translations of Korean literary works
began to appear in foreign countries. Since then, the types of works selected for translation have become
increasingly diverse, and the quality of the translations themselves have improved steadily. Furthermore, as the
translations principally are being published by overseas publishers, the translations have became available to a
wider reading public.
Famous Writers:
Yi Mun-yoi - Change
Bird with Golden Wings
Linda Sue Park - The Kite Fighters
A Single Shard
King Sejong - Korean Alphabet - hangul
Yongbi Eocheon Ga
 KOREAN DRAMA (K-drama)
ASIAN LITERATURE
Singapore
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comprises a collection of literary works by Singaporeans in any of the country's four main language: English,
Chinese, Malay and Tamil
Some poets have been labeled Confessional for their personalized writing, often dealing with intimate issue such
as SEXUALITY
Literary Forms:
Poetry - often deals with intimate issues
Drama
Fiction - Fiction writing in English did not start in earnest until after independence. Short stories
flourished as a literary form, the novel arrived much later.
FAmous Writers:
CAtherine Lim - The Teardrop Story Woman
The Shadow of a Shadow of a Dream: Love Stories of Singapore
Su-Chen Christine Lim - The Amah: A Portrait in Black and White
Hua Song: Stories of the Chinese Diaspora
Alfian bin Sa'at - Confession of 300 Unmarried Men: Blush
Don't Say I Say
ASIAN LITERATURE
Thailand
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Early Thai Literature was primarily concerned with religion. Thai verse was written exclusively by the aristocracy
or royalty.
Ramakian, (an important Thai Literary work)) a Thai version of the Indian epic, The Ramayana
Famous Writers:
Dean Barett - Images of Thailand
Girls of Thailand
David YOung - The Scribe
Thailand Joy
Christopher Moore - A Killing Smile
Asia Hand