How Literature Shaped Me ?
If we talk about Literature and how literature shaped me, First of all I would like to say that Shaping something or shaping someone is one kind of process. And its take some time to shape something.
Same thing we can apply here also. Shaping the person
is also one kind of process and it takes some time in its procedure.
This process started from the very First Day of our
B.A. (Bachelor of Arts) in English Literature and now this process is about to
end with final year of M.A. (Master Of Arts) in English Literature.
What happened in this process throughout this five years it’s
an interesting story.
Before starting this story or this procedure I would
like to define Literature. That,
When someone
asked about literature without thinking they say that : “Literature is Mirror
to Society”.
But I think this
is not enough because Literature is not mirror to society or rather I would
like to say something more about this, I
would like to add something more. According to me ; “Literature is X-ray image
of society, very ugly and hard to accept. Literature is like Fruit Jam, all
fruits mixed together very well that we can’t identify which test is given by
which fruit. But this Fruit Jam is not sweet like original one rather I would
like to say that this Fruit Jam of literature is rather bitter, hard to understand
and impossible to accept as it is”.
In the novel The
Sense of an Ending by Julian Barnes given very smart answer about this question
that, What is Literature ?. For the answer of this question Julian Barnes says
that, “The things Literature was all about: love, sex, morality, friendship,
happiness, suffering, betrayal, adultery, good and evil, heroes and villains,
guilt and innocence, ambition, power, justice, revolution, war, fathers and sons,
mothers and daughters, the individual against society, success and failure,
murder, suicide, death, God.
It covers each and everything on this earth also and beyond
this universe also.
This is all about literature. Now let’s talk something
about how literature shaped me.
How Literature
Shaped Me ?
When I stared my journey of English literature in first year of B.A. it is alien term for me. But when time passes I learn so many things from literature. Today when I look back in memory of time I realize that I am not the same person I has before entering into this subject. Now I am totally different person from earlier life. Some positive changes happened with me with the help of reading and studying literature. And literature also damaged me in some of the point of views. So it gives some negative effect in my life also.
Some Positive Effects of
Literature on My Mind :-
If I talk about some Positive Effect
of Literature in my life : “I would like to say that, some unexpected
change happened in my life because of literature. Because of literature now I know
how to understand Human Beings and how to understand society. I can understand moral
standards and morality. Now I can easily choose between what is good for me and
what is bad for me.
My thinking
level is increased very much with critical thinking process. Before few years I
was thinking only, but now I am not only thinking but now I am thinking with my
increased level of thinking capacity. Now I am critical thinker. Now I am not
part of that ‘Sheeple People Group’ anymore. I am a free thinker now. I am an
individual now. I can think good for myself. Now I have my own moralities and
own society. I don’t care much for society now.
Joy and Woe Are
Woven Fine poem by William Blake is my favorite poem of all the time. From this
poem I learned that joy and woe both are unseparated part of our lives. I also
love one short story I Want to Know Why by Sherwood Anderson. From this story I
learned about true inspiration.
The Namesake Novel
by Jhumpa Lahiri teaches me that how one can feel when they are far away from their
own culture and importance of cultures.
William
Shakespeare and his tragedies are all time favorite of me. It gives aesthetic
delight and at the end because of Catharsis, purgation of emotion happens and
we feel relax and calm. Christopher Marlowe and his work Doctor Faustus teaches
about exaggeration of Knowledge leads towards tragedy of human being. Paradise
Lost Book by John Milton has great influence over my mind for argumentative discourse
and critical thinking. Gulliver’s Travels, Robinson Crusoe and Tom Jones reflects
society, politics, master slave relationships and all that bad things happens
in society which is not known at surface level. Aristotle and Plato both has great
influence in my mind as a base of critical thinking and philosophical thoughts.
Frankenstein by
Mary Shelly is all time favorite novel of me because Female writer can create
this kind of ugly world for male only because she wants to prove her power
again male dominated society is unbelievable work. And she is famous for this
now a days too. Her hangover is not going from readers minds. Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens and Middle March by
George Eliot gives reflection of mirror to society.
Archetypal
Criticism by Northrop Frye and this term “Collective Unconsciousness” has taken
a place in my heart for forever.
To the
Lighthouse by Virginia Woolf proved me once again that, "Women Can Paint,
Women Can Write" and much better then male can do. Her style of writing
proves this statement.
Throughout five years
of my study in English literature from B.A. to M.A. any work of art impressed
me a lot is Waiting for Godot play by Samuel Becket. This play changed the
direction of my thinking process. After completing this play I also feels that Only
Waiting is a part of our lives and this waiting becomes Endless Waiting. Ideas of
Existentialism and belongingness shaken my identity on this earth.
Stopping by
Woods poem by Robert Frost teaches that we can’t stop our life at any level because,
“But I have promises to keep, And miles to go before I sleep, And miles to go
before I sleep. The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne and his female
character like Hester Prynne teaches that why moralities and level of
moralities are different for Male and Female in this society. Why only Woman has
to suffer more to prove her moral values ?. The Old man and The Sea by Earnest
Hemingway teaches about nature of life that at the end of life we get nothing
and we defeated by so many hurdles given by life itself. And we get nothing at
the end because only Death and Mortality is the only truth of human life. Everything
has to be destroyed.
Some novels
like, Arvind Adiga’s The White Tiger teaches about real and ugly look of our
own society. X-ray image of real world. The
Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown attacks on religion and damages happened to humanity
trough religion. Harry Potter and its series by J.K Rowling leads us into the
world of imagination and fantasy beyond this real world. Some psychological thrillers
like The Sense of an Ending by Julian Barnes gives some real life values and
ugliness of real world. It has some different point of views compare to real societies
like it proves that Suicide is better idea then leaving unhappy life.
African literature
like, Wole Soyinka’s The Swamp Dweller, Ngugi Wa Thiongo’s A Grain of Wheat,
Coetzee J. M.’s Waiting for the Barbarians, Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart reflects
global problems of slavery, Threat to humanity. It shows that humanity is dying
and power is doing nothing except enjoying this things.
Some Negative Effects of Literature
on My Mind :-
If I talk about some Negative
Effects of Literature in my life what I want to include is :
What damages done by literature in my life is,
Literature is very harmful weapon to make anyone rebellious
and after five years of studying literature I am one of them rebellious persons.
I love Solitude now because my thinking process is very different
than any other persons so I can’t fill myself in with all of them. I like to be
alone in solitude more. Then having company of foolish people.
Now I am totally different person then having few years
ago. No one understands me now I don’t try to understand rules and rituals of
society. Now I don’t bothers for society and its foolish rules.
I try to find equality all the time but when I get
nothing I feel frustrated. And the big thing is after studying literature for
this many years now I am converted into non believer of God. Now I am not believing
in idea of God that there is someone who will come to help us and makes our
life happy at the end of our lives. But now I feel is there is no one who makes
us happy. Only we are responsible for what we are and we have to achieve everything
with the help of hard works.
Rather
believing in God I prefer to believe in science, logic, hard work, critical
thinking and more important believe in becoming an Individual.
This all I learn in my life during study of literature for
last five years.
At the end I would
like to say that this journey of literature is the best journey of my life and I
will never forget this journey. I am always thankful to this journey for making
my life so beautiful and so different. This journey plays very vital role in
building of my personality and this is how Literature plays very vital role in
shaping of myself from socialist to free thinker and individual.
So, this is all about How Literature Shaped Me ? and How Literature Shaped My Whole Life in New
Direction.
