COURSE / SUBJECT: CREATIVE WRITING – NON FICTION

STRAND: HUMSS (First Semester)

SCHEDULE: MWF 9:50 AM – 11:10 AM
VIRTUAL CLASSROOM: WEDNESDAY 2:00 PM - 2:30 PM
INSTRUCTOR: PENNY G. TIANGCO

LESSON 1. LITERATURE – MEANING, IMPORTANCE AND VALUE: A HARK BACK

A. What is Literature?
 A latin word “litera’ which means an acquaintance with letters. It is body of work; either written,
oral or visual containing image native language that realistically portrays thoughts, emotions,
feelings and expressions of the human condition.

 It can also mean imaginative or creative writing which is looked at for its artistic value.

B. Importance and Value

 The warning notion of literature’s self- sufficiency is simultaneously threatened and
salvaged. It has become an obsolete learning among millennial students whose interests
and focus is more on the modern gadgets where reading and writing has been neglected, hence
communication as an art has suffered, more so the expressions of ideas, emotion and
feelings which is the very characteristics and purpose of literature.

 Literature as an interpretation and criticism of life through writing mirrors the ills of the society
with a view to making the society realize its mistakes and make amends.

 It also projects the virtues or good values in the society for people to emulate.

 As part of our history and glimpse of modern society, literature allows us to interpret our
emotions, enrich our experience and help us discover and gather information.

 It is something that needs to be studied and understood, for it is one way for us to know
the lifestyle, culture and beliefs of specific people which makes us fully understand the world
around us, its past, present and possibly the future.

Few reasons why literature is important:

1. Expanding horizons
 Literature opens our eyes and makes us see more than just what the front door shows.
It helps us realize the wide world outside, surrounding us. With this, we begin to learn,
ask questions, and build our intuitions and instincts. We expand our minds.

2. Building critical thinking skills

 When we read, we learn to look between the lines. We are taught to find symbols, make
connections, find themes, and learn about characters.

3. A leap into the past

  History and literature are entwined with each other. History is just about power
struggles, wars, names and dates. It is about people who are products of their time with
their own lives. Today the world is nothing like it was in the 15 th century, people have
changed largely. Without literature we would not know about our past, our families, and
the people who came before and walked on the same ground as us.

4. Appreciation for other culture and beliefs

 Reading about history, anthropology, or religions studies provides a method of learning
about cultures and beliefs other than our own. It allows you to understand and
experience their other systems of living and worlds. We get a view of the inside looking
out, a personal view and insight into the minds and reasoning of someone else. We can
learn, understand and appreciate it.

5. Better Writing Skills

 When you open a book, when your eyes read the words and you take in its contents, do
you ask yourself: How did this person imagine and write this? Well many of those
authors, poets, or playwrights used literature to expand their writing.

6. Addressing Humanity
 All literature whether it be poems, essays, novels or short stories helps us address
human nature and conditions which affect all people. These may be the need for friends
and family, the goodness of compassion and empathy, trust or the realization of
imperfection. We learn that imperfection is not always bad and that normal can be
boring. We learn that life must be lived to the fullest. We need literature in order to
connect with our own humanity.

7. Literature is important and necessary for it provides growth, strengthens our minds and gives us
the ability to think outside the box.

Quiz No. 1 (10 pts.)

 INTRODUCTION TO LITERATURE

1. Give your own practical definition of Literature.

2. In not less than five sentences give the importance and value of Literature.

Activity Sheet No. 1

A. Read and know your first two friends this year.

1. What did you learn about each speaker?

2. How did Cori introduce herself?
3. What descriptive words did Kaya use in her introduction?
4. Write your own self introduction?