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‘Why Literature?’ by Mario Vargas Llosa

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            Llosa recognizes the fact that reading as a hobby has diminished as the time goes by. He asserts that reading has become equated to leisure time; hence, it is no longer practical in the present generation for people have become so busy with the fast-paced world. Moreover, he also asserts that reading has become equated to femininity for he noticed that majority of the students who go to literature classes are women. This is also for the reason that only women have time to sit and read because they have lesser strenuous jobs than men. This diminishing readership rate that the author speaks of is supported by the study done by the General Society of Spanish Writers that says that half of the population of Spain has not yet read a book.

            The author feels pity to these people more than anything else. He contends that these people missed not only the benefits but also the pleasure of reading. He believes that a society without literature is a society that is “condemned to become spiritually barbaric, and even to jeopardize its freedom.” Moreover, literature is not a luxury that only people with past times can enjoy; it should also be treated as a “primary and necessary undertakings of the mind, an irreplaceable activity for the formation of citizens in modern and democratic society.” This is for the reason that only literature among various disciplines will make us appreciate our “ethnic and cultural differences, the richness of our human heritage, and to prize our differences as a manifestation of humanity’s multifaceted creativity.” More than the pleasure that one gets from reading literature is the realization and the understanding of how to become and what it to become a human. The very substance of being a human is embodied in literature. In the words of Proust, it is only through literature that “life is better understood and better lived; and that living life more fully necessitates living it and sharing it with others.”

            Moreover, literature has also an important contribution in one’s learning and acquisition of language. The authors asserts that because of literature, the way human communicate, express ideas, think, dream, and feel has improved now in a civilization of literature than in any ancient civilization. In other words, the way language is used by human has reached it refinement through literature where the expression of ideas and the communication styles of human have become more civilized and acceptable.

            Moreover, the author also attacked the idea of specialized knowledge as fostered by the sciences, technology, and any other related disciplines. He believes that specializations bring about negative consequences that only hinder the growth of humans for intellectual and cultural solidarity, and social and self understanding. Because this specialization of knowledge brings about compartmentalization that the author claims literature as the common denominator for each parts and parcels to integrate and become whole. This would enable individuals to communicate and recognize themselves as a whole despite the differences that separate them.

            The author asserts the importance of literature over any other inquiry of truth. He even encourages the readers to read good literature for he believes that a world without literature is an impoverished world. But as I look at it, every discipline and approach has its own way of inquiring for what is the truth of human existence. The same as any other discipline, literature does not have the right to command what’s the truth of humanity for it is never universal. Just like literature, every discipline has its own way of ascertaining the truth of human life. They should all be put into equal grounds.

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