By Andreas Gkoumplias,
As a term, literature is a quite broad term, ranging from books, novels, plays, essays, and too much more. And despite being an indispensable part of our lives, whether being a hobby or a career choice, literature is often misunderstood and underestimated for whether it has the ability to impact our society meaningfully. However, marginalized and neglected as it may be, it never ceases to be of use in our lives. In this article, we are going to go through 8 of the reasons why literature is important for everyone.
1) Literature provides a safe space to relax and decompress
After one particularly demanding day at work, at school, or just about anywhere else, many people choose to seek company (and rightfully so!) to a book that is going to provide them with a brief reality break before going back to the routine. Reading a book can also help relieve the stress gathered throughout the day and better prepare for the upcoming one.
2) Vocabulary and language skills are improved significantly
It is common ground that reading of any kind improves the width of someone’s vocabulary, but what is interesting is that people that tend to study literature or are casual book enjoyers are more prone to start using phrases and wording that they have encountered and adapt it for their own use, whilst people that have a broad vocabulary tend to not have issues in communicating with others.
3) Knowledge of the past is power!
As it is very well known, those that do not learn about history are doomed to repeat literature, and especially history books, which provide large amounts of information that be very beneficial to those striving to get a better understanding of the past, as a way to interpret historical events and situations. It is a great privilege, undoubtedly, to be able to access information about the past; getting a glimpse of it through literature how people lived what traditions did they have, and so on.
4) Literature is necessary for critical thinking
As facts are facts and cannot be changed, in order to interpret them, the one reading needs to set into motion is the ability to think critically. When that is happening on a regular basis, the ability to critical thinking is augmented significantly in any individual that is putting in the time and effort.
5) Literature and reading are the keys to imagination
One of the main reasons why literature is crucial to individuals is because it allows for their imagination to run wild. Especially in books where there are no photos or illustrations the stimuli presented are few, making it a challenge to focus mentally on imagining a scene, therefore augmenting creativity and innovation.
6) Literature and empathy
Last but not least, it is true as well that literature has a strong connection with empathy as well and the explanation is simple. Because we are ‘’forced’’ to put ourselves in someone else’s shoes in order to understand why their perspective on a matter, we are ‘’forced’’ to be lenient and empathetic towards the one writing to fully understand his point of view.
To wrap it up, it goes without saying that studying literature or reading it is not as easy as it sounds. Not all texts are easily comprehensible and the same thing goes for ideas too. However, as one progresses he can easily understand that literature can be a perspective-changer as to how we view things in our everyday lives.
References
- The importance of studying literature. theasiansschool.net. Available here
- Reasons why literature is important. enlightio.com. Available here
