Literature and Drama editor Laura Kiely explores the extensive possibilities of literature …
I can personally attest that, as arts and humanities students, we are subjected to a sort of normalised mockery and ridicule from our counterparts (not all, I repeat, not all) in STEM courses (and many other fields – I’m looking at you Law). The questions that feign interest where they mean covert scorn: “And what do you intend on doing with an English degree?”, or, “So what now, are you going to be a teacher or something?” is the most common one, clearly stemming (pun unintended) from a very general ignorance of what literature as an educative resource is worth. Many a time I have been socially othered by ostensibly good humour “Ah, I’m only taking this piss, (but uhh, I am smarter than you for wearing a lab coat, I hope you know.)”
the classics we celebrate for their indelible characters and stories are also celebrated for their uniquely revealing perspectives into the past
They don’t consider the fact that a literature degree is centred around rich historical, political, social, philosophical and even psychological contexts; that teach you about the world through these highly demonstrative frames. It is not just flowery imagery and neat similes. Perhaps that’s a bonus if you enjoy the boundless possibilities of language. Albeit, not once since leaving secondary school have I written an essay on either of those things
From the inception of what many call the ‘first real novel’, conceived in 1605 with Cervantes’ Don Quixote, classic literature has long served as a mirror, reflecting the social and political climates in which it emerged. In this way, the classics we celebrate for their indelible characters and stories are also celebrated for their uniquely revealing perspectives into the past; providing the reader with a possible explanation if not an answer to how such crises evolved.
Perhaps, in an educative sense, what we learn from reading is how literature can manifest as very nuanced primary sources for particular points in time
Take the major revolutions, for instance. Who’s to say that Tolstoy’s 1878 epic realist novel Anna Karenina cannot function additionally as a retrospective social and political climate critique regarding the eve of revolutionary Russia? It is true that the novel abundantly features major characters in conversation with one another vis-à-vis the likelihood of insurrection towards the autocratic Tsardom that was Imperial Russia. Is this not akin to a primary source 146 years later?
Or take Victor Hugo’s 1862 historical epic Les Misérables, which in contrast to Anna Karenina, critiques the aftermath of revolution in France. The novel is a stark expose of the abject poverty which ignited revolution to begin with, and yet what has transpired is utter chaos over the material change that was promised to the French people, now living under the military dictatorship of Napoleon. Perhaps, in an educative sense, what we learn from reading is how literature can manifest as very nuanced primary sources for particular points in time, that we can only otherwise examine through dates and numbers located strictly in archival libraries.
However, this focus on retrospect is not the only purposeful role of literature. Many contemporary works of our century are highly valuable resources for illuminating the complex realities of ongoing crises. Mohsin Hamid’s 2017 novel Exit West uses magical realism techniques to relay a narrative showcasing the complexities and fatal risks attached to the endeavour of seeking refuge outside of a person’s war-torn home.
The two protagonists, Saeed and Nadia, live in a nameless country in the Middle East on the brink of civil war. The magical element derives from the story’s use of mysterious doors: doors that transport the characters to other countries by just stepping through them. As the story follows the two young lovers on their perilous journey, the novel goes beyond mere storytelling. War, hunger, and misery drive millions of people out of their homes yearly, while the same imperialist countries who provoke these crises frame refugees, who possess no clear alternatives, as a threat to Western society.
What literature can offer is the most humanely rendered version of events; a stripping away of the cold bureaucracy of history textbooks and political seminars.
Through the fictional frame of the text, the novel serves to highlight the humanity of refugees that are so often reduced to mere numbers in the media. Saeed and Nadia are clearly relatable characters, with hopes and aspirations, who love and are loved.
What literature can offer is the most humanely rendered version of events; a stripping away of the cold bureaucracy of history textbooks and political seminars. The debate that unfolds among academic peers regarding which discipline is superior is both reductive and harmful: a scourge on society if you will. Every scholar has an implicit bias towards their own practice; nonetheless, we shouldn’t let that bias tarnish our capacity to work together in the face of crises.