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After taking Introduction to Literature, I have learned a lot about
literature and how to better understand it. Literature is simply the author's
thoughts, feelings, and ideas written down on paper for others to enjoy and
learn from. I now know how to see inside what is written so that I can get the
deeper meaning of what is being said.
Poetry was the most significant piece of literature that I learned about in
the class, mainly because it is hardest to understand and usually more thought
provoking than drama or non-fiction. From the very first day of reading poetry I
learned a lot, from how the author uses certain words to provoke ones senses and
thoughts, to how even the flow or rhythm of the poem affects it's deeper
meaning.
Poems that I would have once found boring and hard to understand, I can know
read with pleasure and completely understand the author's point of view. The
impact that reading some of the poems made on me was significant and I can know
learn more from life and appreciate it more from simply being able to better
understand them.
Drama, non-fiction, and the other genre's didn't really make that much of an
impression on me because I had already been exposed to a lot of it previously
and understood how to read and dig deep into them. Not only that, but I didn't
really take the time to read any of the stories out of the book other than the
few that we read in class.
Even so, I still learned some new things about the mechanics of stories, such
as what the plot is and when one can tell that the climax has happened. Before
taking this class, I was always confused as to when the climax happened because
I always assumed that it was when the most important event happened. Now I
realize that it isn't about the event that takes place, but about the main
character and when they change or don't change.
Another thing in the class that, even though I disliked, helped me out for
the better was that we often had group discussions and talked in front of the
class. That is something that I have always hated, and still do, but it is good
for me to be forced into doing it. The more I do it, the more comfortable I will
get with myself and I will become better at expressing my feelings out loud
instead of writing them down.
All in all, this class has taught me a lot and I will leave it with a better
understanding of what literature really is. I will go into other classes and be
able to understand my texts easier and also understand people better from the
things that I have learned. This class taught me that even some of the
"scariest" writing pieces can be fun and challenging, and it taught me
how to understand literature and what the author is trying to express to the
reader.
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