SUBJECT: ART APPRECIATION  Is the world strictly composed of

matter?
LESSON 1 NOTES:
 Do people have minds? If so, how is the
Lombardi, Esther. (2023, April 5). What mind related to the body?
Literature Can Teach Us. Retrieved from
https://www.thoughtco.com/what-is-literature-  Do people have free wills?
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 What is it for one event to cause
another?

Philosophy

- "love of wisdom." Epistemology

- an activity people undertake when they
seek to understand fundamental truths - the study of knowledge
about themselves, the world in which - concerned with what we can know
they live, and their relationships to the about the world and how we can know
world and to each other. it.
- Those who study philosophy are - Typical questions of concern in
perpetually engaged in asking, epistemology are:
answering, and arguing for their  What is knowledge?
answers to life most basic questions.
 Do we know anything at all?
To make such a pursuit more systematic
academic philosophy is traditionally divided  How do we know what we know?
into major areas of study:
 Can we be justified in claiming to know
certain things?

Metaphysics

- the study of the nature of reality, of Ethics

what exists in the world, what it is like,
- The study of ethics often concerns what
and how it is ordered
we ought to do and what it would be
- philosophers wrestle with such
best to do.
questions as:
- In struggling with this issue, larger
 Is there a God? questions about what is good and right
arise.
 What is truth? - So, the ethicist attempts to answer such
 What is a person? What makes a person questions as:
the same through time?  What is good? What makes actions or
people good?
  What is right? What makes actions
right?

 Is morality objective or subjective? Aquinas Kant Wittgenstein

 How should I treat others?

Descartes Nietzsche Sartre

What often motivates the study of philosophy is

Logic not merely the answers or arguments
- the arguments or reasons given for themselves but whether or not the arguments
people answers to these questions. are good and the answers are true. Moreover,
- To this end philosophers employ logic many of the questions and issues in the various
to study the nature and structure of areas of philosophy overlap and in some cases
arguments. even converge. Thus, philosophical questions
- Logicians ask such questions as: arise in almost every discipline. This is why
philosophy also encompasses such areas as:
 What constitutes "good" or "bad"
reasoning? Philosophy of Law Philosophy of
Feminism
 How do we determine whether a given
piece of reasoning is good or bad?
Philosophy of Philosophy of Science
Religion

History of Philosophy
Philosophy of Mind Philosophy of
- The study of philosophy involves not Literature
only forming ones own answers to such
questions, but also seeking to
Political Philosophy Philosophy of the Arts
understand the way in which people
have answered such questions in the
past. So, a significant part of philosophy Philosophy of Philosophy of
is its history, a history of answers and History Language
arguments about these very questions.
What Literature Can Teach Us
In studying the history of philosophy
one explores the ideas of such historical - Literature is a term used to describe
figures as: written and sometimes spoken
material.
- Derived from the Latin
word literature meaning "writing
Plato Locke Marx
formed with letters," literature most
commonly refers to works of the
Aristotle Hume Mill creative imagination, including
 poetry, drama, fiction, nonfiction, and - Literary fiction involves getting into the
in some instances, journalism, and minds of the characters (or at least the
song. protagonist) and experiencing their
relationships with others. The
What Is Literature? protagonist typically comes to a
- literature represents the culture and realization or changes in some way
tradition of a language or a people. during the course of a literary novel.
- the accepted definition of literature is - (The difference in type does not mean
constantly changing and evolving. that literary writers are better than
- literature suggests a higher art form; genre fiction writers, just that they
merely putting words on a page doesn't operate differently.)
necessarily equate to creating Why Is Literature Important?
literature.
- A canon is the accepted body of works - Works of literature, at their best,
for a given author. Some works of provide a kind of blueprint of human
literature are considered canonical, that society.
is, culturally representative of a - From the writings of ancient
particular genre (poetry, prose, or civilizations such as Egypt and China to
drama). Greek philosophy and poetry, from the
epics of Homer to the plays of William
Literary Fiction vs. Genre Fiction Shakespeare, from Jane
- Some definitions also separate literary Austen and Charlotte Bronte to Maya
fiction from so-called "genre fiction," Angelou, works of literature give insight
which includes types such as mystery, and context to all the world's societies.
science fiction, western, romance, - In this way, literature is more than just
thriller, and horror. Think mass-market a historical or cultural artifact; it can
paperback. serve as an introduction to a new world
of experience.
Genre fiction - But what we consider to be literature
can vary from one generation to the
- typically does not have as much
next. For instance, Herman Melville's
character development as literary
1851 novel "Moby Dick" was considered
fiction and is read for entertainment,
a failure by contemporary reviewers.
escapism, and plot, whereas
However, it has since been recognized
literary fiction as a masterpiece and is frequently cited
as one of the best works of Western
- explores themes common to the human literature for its thematic complexity
condition and uses symbolism and and use of symbolism. By reading
other literary devices to convey the "Moby Dick" in the present day, we can
author's viewpoint on his or her chosen gain a fuller understanding of literary
themes. traditions in Melville's time.
 Without realizing it, they examine the
characters psychologically or
sociologically. They identify the
Debating Literature characters' motivations for their actions
and see through those actions to any
- Ultimately, we may discover meaning in ulterior motives.
literature by looking at what the author - When planning an essay on a work of
writes or says and how he or she says it. literature, students use problem-solving
We may interpret and debate an skills to come up with a thesis and
author's message by examining the follow through on compiling their
words he or she chooses in a given paper.
novel or work or observing which - It takes research skills to dig up
character or voice serves as the evidence for their thesis from the text
connection to the reader. and scholarly criticism, and it takes
- In academia, this decoding of the text is organizational skills to present their
often carried out through the use argument in a coherent, cohesive
of literary theory using a mythological, manner.
sociological, psychological, historical, or
other approaches to better understand Empathy and Other Emotions
the context and depth of a work. - Some studies say that people who read
- Whatever critical paradigm we use to literature have more empathy for
discuss and analyze it, literature is others, as literature puts the reader
important to us because it speaks to us, into another person's shoes.
it is universal, and it affects us on a - Having empathy for others leads
deeply personal level. people to socialize more effectively,
School Skills solve conflicts peacefully, collaborate
better in the workplace, behave
- Students who study literature and read morally, and possibly even become
for pleasure have a higher vocabulary, involved in making their community a
better reading comprehension, and better place.
better communication skills, such as - Other studies note a correlation
writing ability. between readers and empathy but do
- Communication skills affect people in not find causation. Either way, studies
every area of their lives, from back the need for strong English
navigating interpersonal relationships programs in schools, especially as
to participating in meetings in the people spend more and more time
workplace to drafting intra office looking at screens rather than books.
memos or reports. - Along with empathy for others, readers
- When students analyze literature, they can feel a greater connection to
learn to identify cause and effect and humanity and less isolated. Students
are applying critical thinking skills. who read literature can find solace as
 they realize that others have gone
through the same things that they are
experiencing or have experienced. This
can be a catharsis and relief to them if
they feel burdened or alone in their
troubles.

Quotes About Literature

Here are some quotes about literature from

literature giants themselves.

 Robert Louis Stevenson: "The difficulty

of literature is not to write, but to write
what you mean; not to affect your
reader, but to affect him precisely as
you wish."

 Jane Austen, "Northanger Abbey":

"The person, be it gentleman or lady,
who has not pleasure in a good
novel, must be intolerably stupid."

 William Shakespeare, "Henry VI": “I’ll

call for pen and ink and write my mind.”