Literature and the Human: Criticism

Why does literature matter? What is its human value? Historical approaches to literature have for several decades prevailed over the idea that literary works can deepen our understanding of fundamental questions of existence. This book re-affirms literatures existential value by developing a new critical vocabulary for thinking about literatures human meaningfulness. It puts this vocabulary into practice through close reading of a wide range of texts, from The Second Wakefield Shepherds Play to Mohsin Hamids The Reluctant Fundamentalist. Individual chapters discuss:

• Literatures engagement of the emotions
• Literatures humanisation of history
• Literatures treatment of universals and particulars
• The depth of reflection provoked by literary works
• Literature as a special kind of seeing and framing

The question at the heart of the volume, of why literature matters, makes this book relevant to all students and professors of literature.