Literature and Language Arts
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Literature is the art of words. It is often studied alongside the aesthetic subjects because every drama begins as a text, every song has lyrics, and every art form tells stories. In Sri Lanka, literary appreciation is offered in Sinhala, Tamil, and English.
The Main Genres
| Genre | Features |
| Poetry | Compressed language; rhythm, imagery, sound |
| Fiction (novel, short story) | Narrative with characters, plot, setting, and point of view |
| Drama | Written to be performed |
| Non-fiction (essay, biography, memoir) | Fact, argument, and reflection |
| Oral literature | Songs, proverbs, folk tales, and ballads passed on by speech |
Literary Elements and Devices
Theme, plot, character, setting, point of view, tone, mood.
Figurative language: simile, metaphor, personification, symbol, irony, hyperbole.
Sound devices: alliteration, assonance, rhyme, rhythm, and meter.
Structure: stanza, verse, chapter, scene.
A good reference for terms is Abrams and Harpham (2015), and Eagleton (2007) offers a clear approach to reading poetry.
Literature of the Region
Sinhala literature has a classical tradition, including the Jataka tale collections, the sandesha kavya (messenger poems) such as the Mayura Sandesha, and, in the twentieth century, the modern novel; Martin Wickramasinghe's Gamperaliya (1944) is a landmark (Godakumbura, 1955).
Tamil literature is among the oldest living literatures of the world, with the classical Sangam poetry, the epics Silappathikaram and Manimekalai, the devotional poetry of the Bhakti period, and a vibrant modern literature in Sri Lanka and the diaspora.
English writing from Sri Lanka includes novelists such as Michael Ondaatje, Romesh Gunesekera, and Shyam Selvadurai.
How to Write a Literary Appreciation
1. Introduce the text, author, and your main impression.
2. Summarize briefly: what happens or what is said.
3. Analyze how the author creates meaning, with short quotations as evidence.
4. Evaluate the effect and the value of the work.
5. Conclude with a focused judgment.
Use the pattern Point, Evidence, Explanation, Link in each paragraph.
CHAPTER 9