Connections between Art and Literature - Essay Example

Reflect on the connections between art and literature. What have you learned about literature that surprised you? What genres of literature are most appealing to you, and why? In what ways do you view art differently now that you have studied literature?

Though at the outset art and literature seem very different forms of expression, one being a visual method that seems to only call out to a vision of symmetry or beauty, the other a written exposition of the writer’s thoughts, however, upon closer inspection, it is revealed that both do have certain commonalities they share. Both of them are actually a representation of the creator’s thought process. They reveal their creator’s inner self for the world to see. It is interesting, however, that whereas artists do it by their selection of color, line, space, and symmetry; writers do it by the selection of their plot, theme, characters, and setting. It seems as if both art and literature actually have a story to tell to the world at large.

Although arts demand much more imagination from the world, in that the viewers have to come up with their own explanations about a lot of things, whereas in literature, a writer normally gives almost the entire story to the reader, however, even here, the reaction of each reader is different. Based on our own life experiences and knowledge, we form our own interpretation, both after looking at a piece of art or after reading a piece of literature.

Both art and literature give depth to common ideas, bringing certain nuances to our notice as well as creating room for certain new ideas. Both art and literature have been used time and again for the purpose of creating awareness among the public about certain issues as well, what is more, both of them depict emotions extremely well. They are not only a joy to behold or read, but they also cause us to pause and think about ourselves and the world. Not only do both of them bring beauty into our lives, but they also create a world of ideas where others can come and gain more insight into the world.

The thing that surprised me the most about literature was, that before I always used to think that literature was only the feelings or thoughts of the writer depicted on the page. I thought it was one-dimensional. However, for me, it was surprising to see that everyone who partakes in it comes out with his or her own understanding of the piece of writing. Whether it is poetry or fiction, the words of the writer are not limited, although they appear to be so. There are always more meanings than one that can be gleaned from literature. There is the writer’s original meaning, undoubtedly, but there are also other elements in the writing that may cause one to come to their own conclusion about it. Literature is very rich in meaning, and the fact that it can elicit such varied responses from the readers is a cause of wonder for me. I never thought of literature like that, like I said, I thought that literature was only limited to what the author had to say and nothing more.

A good piece of writing is truly a joy to read, no matter what genre of literature it is, however, for me, fiction is the most appealing out of all these genres. The same events or the same story can be told in a myriad of ways in fiction to elicit different responses from the readers, or even to create a different set of readers. I am fascinated by the richness of fiction.

There is such a treasure of ideas and thoughts in fiction: the changes in a society, the ideals of enlightenment, the discussion of emotions, laying bare the ugliness and beauty of life all at the same time, there is so much that fiction has accomplished. I like the way fiction draws the reader into a woven web of a tale and then transports them into a world other than their own where they get to meet people and go places and then learn life’s lessons from them. Without fiction, this could only be possible for the well-traveled amongst us, but due to literature we can learn a lot about our life and being human just by reading.

After having studied literature, I have more appreciation for art. Before I thought of art as a mode of expression beyond my understanding; I always felt frustrated that I could not grasp at the exact meaning of what the artists were trying to represent in their work. However, after having studied literature I have come to the conclusion that there is no “right” or “wrong” interpretation of art. Art is there for our enjoyment and for us to take from it what we will.