Ask the Chatbot Games & Quizzes History & Society Science & Tech Biographies Animals & Nature Geography & Travel Arts & Culture ProCon Money Videos

Literature

With the development of language, the human imagination has found a way to create and communicate through the written word. A literary work can transport us into a fictional, fantastic new world, describe a fleeting feeling, or simply give us a picture of the past through novels, poems, tragedies, epic works, and other genres. Through literature, communication becomes an art, and it can bridge and bond people and cultures of different languages and backgrounds.
Browse Subcategories
Folk Literature & Fable Fictional Characters Journalism Libraries & Reference Works Literatures of the World Literary Criticism Literary Terms Nonfiction Novels & Short Stories Oratory Plays Poetry

Featured content, December 07, 2024

The word "communication" has an accent or stress on the fourth syllable, the letters "ca."
10 Frequently Confused Literary Terms
Do you confuse "denotation" with "connotation"? Oh, the irony! ...or is it coincidence?
Sir Walter Scott, 1st Baronet, Scottish historical novelist and poet, 1870. Portrait of Scott author of Ivanhoe. From "A Biographical Dictionary of Eminent Scotsmen" by Thomas Thomson and Robert Chambers (London, 1870). Scotland
What were Sir Walter Scott’s influences?
What were Sir Walter Scott’s influences?
grim reaper, death
Where Does the Concept of a “Grim Reaper” Come From?
Harvester of souls since when?
William Shakespeare, 1564-1616. c 1907
What Did Shakespeare Sound Like?
“Give every man thy ear, but few thy voice.”
Lewis Carroll: Through the Looking-Glass
children’s literature
Children’s literature, the body of written works and accompanying illustrations produced in order to entertain or instruct...
popular art
Popular art, any dance, literature, music, theatre, or other art form intended to be received and appreciated by ordinary...
George Gascoigne
literary criticism
Literary criticism, the reasoned consideration of literary works and issues. It applies, as a term, to any argumentation...
author
Author, one who is the source of some form of intellectual or creative work; especially, one who composes a book, article,...

Literature Quizzes

Frontispiece and title page of Phillis Wheatley's book of poetry, "Poems on Various Subjects, Religious and Moral" 1773. Phillis Wheatley (c. 1753-1784). African American slave. Black woman poet.
Poetry Puzzle: Fact or Fiction?
Was the first published African American poet a woman? Were Emily Dickinson’s poems widely published during her lifetime?...
Camelot, engraving by Gustave Dore to illustrate the Arthurian poems in Idylls of the King, by Lord Alfred Tennyson, 1868.
A Study of Poems: Fact or Fiction?
In the poem A Visit from Saint Nicholas, how many reindeer does Santa have? Is Xanadu a real place? What king does...
Samuel Clemens aka Mark Twain, three-quarter length portrait, seated, facing slightly right, with cigar in hand.
Lives of Famous Writers: Fact or Fiction?
You may be familiar with J.K. Rowling and Dr. Seuss, but how much do you know of A.A. Milne and Dr. Dolittle? Test your knowledge...
Kabuki Theater. Unknown Artist, 'Scene at Kabuki Theater', 19th century. From a private collection. The strongest ties of Kabuki are to the Noh and to joruri, the puppet theatre that developed during the 17th century.
Playing Around: Fact or Fiction?
Is a soliloquy a section of a play in which two characters engage in an extended conversation? From King Lear to...
Scene from "Great Expectations" by Charles Dickens, (London c1870). Joe Gargery, the gentle giant, is provoked into violence in his smithy. In the background his brother-in-law Philip Pirrip, known as Pip, the hero of the novel, works the...
Getting Into Character: Fact or Fiction?
From Tarzan and Dracula to Sherlock Holmes and Mowgli, test your smarts and read between this line-up of literary characters.
Geoffrey Chaucer (c. 1342/43-1400), English poet; portrait from an early 15th century manuscript of the poem, De regimine principum.
The ABCs of Poetry: Fact or Fiction?
Are prose and poetry the same? Do narrative poems tend to be very short? Test the long and short of your poetic knowledge...
Scene from "Oliver Twist" by Charles Dickens, 1837-1839. The Artful Dodger picking a pocket to the amazement of Oliver Twist. Illustration from "Oliver Twist" by Charles Dickens. (London 1837-1839). Artist: George Cruikshank
Who Wrote It: Fact or Fiction?
From J.K. Rowling and Oliver Twist to Anita Desai and The Old Man and the Sea, sort through the facts of...
Don Quixote (right) and his servant Sancho Panza are pictured in an illustration from the book The History of Don Quixote, Volume 1, Complete by Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra. 1880 edition of J. W. Clark with illustrations by Gustave Dore.
Literary Characters: Fact or Fiction?
Was Harry Potter’s Quidditch broom a Nimbus 2000? From Don Quixote to Frankenstein, grab hold of these...
Illustration of "Uncle Tom's Cabin," by Harriet Beecher Stowe, showing Uncle Tom, Aunt Chloe, their children, and George Shelby in the cabin.
Book Report: Fact or Fiction?
Was the first novel known to have sold 1,000,000 copies written by an American woman? Test your smarts while sorting through...
An open book with pages flying on black background. Stack of books, pile of books, literature, reading. Homepage 2010, arts and entertainment, history and society
Literary Library: Fact or Fiction?
Did the writers of the German Sturm und Drang literary movement disdain emotion? From European literature to epistolary novels,...

Literature Videos

Watch the protagonist in Shakespeare's tragedy Hamlet consider killing his king, uncle, and stepfather Claudius
Watch the protagonist in Shakespeare's tragedy Hamlet consider killing his king, uncle, and stepfather Claudius
An exploration of Theodor Storm's The Dykemaster
An exploration of Theodor Storm's The Dykemaster
Watch part of the final act of Anton Chekhov's last play, The Cherry Orchard
Watch part of the final act of Anton Chekhov's last play, The Cherry Orchard
Listen to Norris Houghton discuss the difficulty of staging Anton Chekhov's The Cherry Orchard
Listen to Norris Houghton discuss the difficulty of staging Anton Chekhov's The Cherry Orchard
Discover how Voltaire might present Candide and discuss the Age of Enlightenment
Discover how Voltaire might present Candide and discuss the Age of Enlightenment
Hear the story of William Shakespeare's “The Comedy of Errors”
Hear the story of William Shakespeare's “The Comedy of Errors”
Learn why Herman Melville's enigmatic hero in the short story “Bartleby the Scrivener” prefers not
Learn why Herman Melville's enigmatic hero in the short story “Bartleby the Scrivener” prefers not
Watch dramatized scenes of Charles Dickens's Great Expectations with literary commentary by Clifton Fadiman
Watch dramatized scenes of Charles Dickens's Great Expectations with literary commentary by Clifton Fadiman
Examine John Stow's systematic description of 16th-century London in his work A Survey of London
Examine John Stow's systematic description of 16th-century London in his work A Survey of London
Understand a teacher's viewpoint on why Hamlet is her favorite Shakespeare play to teach
Understand a teacher's viewpoint on why Hamlet is her favorite Shakespeare play to teach
Never Miss a Day in History
Sign up for daily fun facts about this day in history, updates, and special offers delivered right to your inbox.

Literature Subcategories

subcategory placeholder Folk Literature & Fable
Step into the world of folklore, fables, legends, tall tales, and epics, in which heroes are known to undertake arduous journeys and dragons, fairies, and giants abound. Stories such as these circulated long before systems of writing were developed; ballads, folktales, poems, and the like were transmitted exclusively by word of mouth before written languages took over, and they continue to captivate listeners and readers to this day.
Articles
Fantastic Four Fictional Characters
Here you'll find some of your favorite fictional characters from literature, film, television, and the like, whether it's the analytical mastermind Sherlock Holmes and his endearing associate Dr. Watson or the menacing and helmeted Darth Vader, the ill-tempered Donald Duck, or the teenage sleuth Nancy Drew.
Articles
subcategory placeholder Journalism
Extra, extra! Although the content and style of journalism and the medium through which it is delivered have varied significantly over the years, journalism has always given us a way to keep up with current events, so that we always have our fingers on the pulse.
Articles
E.O. Wilson Libraries & Reference Works
Looking to impress your friends with your expansive knowledge of historical events, philosophical concepts, obscure words, and more? We may be biased, but it seems fair enough to say that reference works such as dictionaries, encyclopedias, and textbooks have provided such a service for years (in some cases, hundreds or even thousands of years). You can look for them at your local public library, which likely stores books, manuscripts, journals, CDs, movies, and other sources of information and entertainment.
Articles
wine bottle Literatures of the World
Literature knows no geographical bounds; authors can be found in nearly all corners of the globe. Find out more about regional literary styles and forms.
Articles
subcategory placeholder Literary Criticism
Everyone's a critic. But not all literary criticism involves judging the quality of a text; it can also focus on interpreting the meaning of a work or evaluating an author's place in literary history.
Articles
To the Lighthouse Literary Terms
Want to be able to distinguish your limericks from your haikus and your paeans from your panegyrics? Dive deep into literary terms and forms.
Articles
subcategory placeholder Nonfiction
The truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth! Or that's the idea, at least. Nonfiction works center on facts and real events. Although there is some debate about which kinds of literature qualify as nonfiction, the genre typically includes books in the categories of biography, memoir, science, history, self-help, cooking, health and fitness, business, and more.
Articles
The War of the Worlds Novels & Short Stories
novels and short stories have been enchanting and transporting readers for a great many years. There's a little something for everyone: within these two genres of literature, a wealth of types and styles can be found, including historical, epistolary, romantic, Gothic, and realist works, along with many more.
Articles
Justus of Ghent: Saint Augustine Oratory
speech and Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg Address, quoted above, are two iconic examples of successful oratory, as are Elizabeth I's speech to the troops at Tilbury and Winston Churchill's first speech as prime minister to the House of Commons.
Articles
Hamlet (1996) Plays
; and the stage is where you'll find performances of works by such famed playwrights as Anton Chekhov, Eugene O'Neill, and the Bard himself, among many others.
Articles
subcategory placeholder Poetry
; sonnets, haikus, nursery rhymes, epics, and more are included.
Articles
Britannica Premium
Did you know you're not getting the full Britannica experience? Access unlimited content with none of the ads by becoming a Britannica Premium subscriber.
Subscribe