The New Year brings resolutions for some and re-evaluation for others. The heaviest thinkers among us tend to start questioning everything. Since we’re nothing if not thinkers around here, we’ve started to ponder why we do what we do.
Read, that is.
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Just about everybody who engages in studying literature says the same thing: they started down this path because they love reading. But why? Why do some people love reading, while others loathe it? And what’s the point of reading, let alone discussing and analyzing books?
Heavy thinkers have been asking these questions for as long as literature has existed. In ancient Greece, Aristotle believed it could purify the soul. In Victorian England, Matthew Arnold believed it could provide a moral tonic. Today, philosopher Alain de Botton and his School of Life tout literature’s power to do everything from saving us time to making us nicer. Heck, we’ve even talked about it in such pragmatic terms as job preparation—and the proof of that is in the UFV Alumni pudding.
Clearly, everybody’s got an opinion.
That’s why we’re opening the floor for more pondering in our new series, “What’s Literature Got to Do with It?” Hear students’ and professors’ perspectives on why reading matters.
If you want to chime in, then drop us a line to let us know what you believe literature is for—and why you think it’s important. Get in touch through our Facebook or Twitter accounts to tell us why you read plays, poems, and stories. We’ll share your ideas—so everyone can read all about it . . .
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