THE CONCEPT OF LITERATURE AND SOCIETY

The meaning of literature is derived from the Latin word ‘Littera’ meaning aletter while The Concise Dictionary of
current English describes it as ‘writing’
whose value lies in the beauty of form or emotional effect. It is referred to as
‘the matter of imaginative or artistic literature’.
Literature is a form of expression which includes writings that are primarilyinformative, technical, scholarly
and journalistic. It is created and recreatedthrough imagination and written in a language that attracts our
attention,because it is different from the way we generally use language or express
ourselves in our day to day activities or interactions. It is ‘a feigned and falsestory’ me
ant to teach or entertain. Also, it is concerned with general oruniversal truths about human life and existence
anywhere.Pearse (1981) defines literature as written or oral composition deriving fromand mirroring a
society and its people. Pattison (1981) says that the concept of literature goes beyond its definition. It can be
considered as a social order or a
manifestation of a man’s unconquerable mind. Its forms and modes of
operation, its history and its influence can be studied either with the practicalpurpose of becoming a writer.
Literature is a social discourse in which theissues or problems of human society can be x-rayed and
suggestions as to their
solutions proffered, (George N. Anaso 2007) A form of art, and a socialdiscourse that focuses on imaginary or
real contemporary issues in textualform (Bayanta, 1997:16). Assimilation or acculturation, conflict resolution
andstability, development of positive and good attitudes of life, entertainment,relaxation and the sharing of
vicarious experiences of positive values, thedevelopment of desired and desirable moral and other attributes
to bringabout a stable and mature personality, Unoh (1999). That means literature is avital tool of an
expression of human activities and experiences geared towardspeaceful living and development.The critical
examination of the various definitions or explanations of literatureas expressed above proves a general fact
that literature and the society areclosely banded. Literature which is part and parcel of the society
emanatesfrom the society because it is the life of the people as they are in their day today
existence.SocietySociety is

a group of people with common belief, norms values, culture,government, economic activity, social practices
and customs shared within ageographical area whether large or small. It should be noted that thisdefinition
given may not be adequate enough to highlight what a societymeans as related to the perception and
conception of different sets of people.
The perception of a linguist might be different from that of sociologist orpsychologist and even an economist.
Individuals might want to narrow it to theunderstanding of the area of specialisation. Nevertheless, a society
may eitherbe local or international in nature depending on the terms and objects of theirgrouping. It might
be restrictive and can be expansive. For example: Society of Engineers. To define society based on this group
will demand so many thingsnot being relevant. Religion might not bind them together, culture might notand
some other factors which are imperative to identify some other groups.One thing that is imperative here is
that society is a group of people. For agroup of people to be banded together and interact, there must be a
commonlanguage by which they communicate. Different groups of people with diversecommon
denominators become different societies according to their peculiarobject of coming or being together as an
entity.The existence of a society is premised on the fact that there are people andthey carry out some
activities day in day out. People interact with one anothervariously in associations, clubs, religion, cultural
gatherings, educational,political, professional, peers and many more. The share of interests, feelings,values,
joy, sorrow, anger, worries; success and others with fellow being arethe activities that form the body of
literature.
The origin of literature is incontestably the society itself. Hence, theimportance of literature to the society
or people cannot be overemphasised.
Origin of Literature
In the present day, the understanding of many people about literature is thatof a written piece that entertains
and amuses people. It is through thatliterature is written as we see it all over the place but nonetheless,
literaturehas a beginning.The beginning of literature cannot be tied to a particular time or age in thehistory
of mankind but the reality that it originated from and by peopleconvinces us that man existed before
literature. Though, history cannot givedate for the beginning of literature, there are evidences of how
literatureevolved.Every race of man is identified with some marks of independence with whichits people
operate. To these, they attach their beliefs, norms, values andpractices. These activities of man from creation
are observed either through orby certain principles or accepted patterns of performance. These
wereactivities of festivals, ceremonies like marriage, naming and burial which wereobserved based on
certain principles even as we have today, though, with
modification and modernisation. Origin of literature has close affinity withthese activities.In traditional
African society, and as evidenced in our immediate locality,Nigeria, storytelling, idol worshipping and
recreational entertainment havenothing different from what is today called literature, than the
structuralwritten form in which it is presented and preserved. Greek and Romanliteratures were believed to
have originated from religious festivals which wereobserved in honour o f their gods. In all these festivals
and ceremonialactivities, singing, dancing, praying and dialogues constitute, in part or whole,the mode of
execution. These are what could be referred to as performance inthe present day literature. Because of this
nature of literature in time of old, itbecame difficult for people conveniently divide it into distinct genres as
prose,poetry and as we do in modern times. But attempt shall be made, to bridgethis stated origin with the
present.Story-telling in traditional African society had a narrator who presented thecharacters and their
actions orally to the rapt attention of the listeners who atthe end were expected to comment and bring out a
lesson which would haveformed the themes of the story. The narrator today, is the writer of a novel.
Today’s story can be put into action by dramatist on stage while a playwright
can also present it in book form as play.
Religious festivals and the ceremonial activities involve songs and somedramatic actions. There singing and
clapping, dancing and other displays,processions, pouring of librations; sacrifice and others which represent
nothing
more than a drama performed in the theatre. The religious leader’s role we
can liken to that of an actor while those watching him (members) are theaudience. For example, a priest
standing apart from the other members in theshrine performing rituals, communing with the gods through
incantations,bending down, standing up, bowing his head, stepping forward and backwardin that position is
just like an actor on the stage while the others mere or less
typify the audience. It is from the activities illustrated above that today’s
drama and poetry evolved. The songs of old procreated what is today referredto as poetry which is well
appreciated when recited, while-the drama took itsroot from religious rituals.Apart from the enumerated
religious inclination of origin of literature, some acts of drumming and singing as recreationalactivities of the
old traditional society are other starting referencefor literature.

Importance of literature to the society

Literature and culture
Culture is a way of life distinctively identified with a group of people, race,country, association, profession,
religion etc. It includes their belief and all
practices that are peculiar to them. People’s culture is what they don’t joke
with and therefor
e, it is always jealously protected. The dos and don’ts of a
society are reflected in their culture.Culture is the patterns of behaviour and thinking that people living in
socialgroups learn, create, and share. Culture distinguishes one human group from
others. It also distinguishes humans from other animals. A people’s culture
includes their beliefs, rules of behaviour, language, rituals, art, technology,styles of dress, ways of producing
and cooking food, religion, and political andeconomic systems. If culture is as described above, literature can
be identifiedas an offshoot of culture.Looking at the origin of literature, it is observed that it is closely knitted
with
the elements of culture which are ‘
the patterns of behaviour and thinking thatpeople living in social groups learn, create, and share, their
beliefs, rules of behaviour, language, rituals, art, technology, styles of dress, ways of producing and cooking
food, religion, and political and economic systems.
’
Literature though an offshoot of culture is an instrument in the society bywhich the culture is known,
interpreted, understood, projected and preserved.Culture is a mark of identity of a people and this
identification is projected byliterature in its various forms of expression. Literature to culture is like amouth
piece. It speaks for the society. It helps in the introduction of society.When stories were told to the young
ones in the pre
–
literate traditionalsociety, the growing new members of the society are indirectly shown whattheir marks of
identity in terms of culture. Morals, beliefs, values and otherpre-occupations are expressed for the close
observation and acquisition of theyoung ones.
Every situation and occurrences in human performance as revealed by literaryactivities among the people
from time to time helps individuals both old andnew members of a society to understand their environment
and their fellowswith whom they coexists properly and better. When consequences of
individual’s actions are projected through performances in literature, every
member of the group/society understands better and learns from mistakes of others. If other way round in
terms of good behaviour or commendabledeeds, praises and appreciation are admired to encourage others.
This is avery great role of literature in the society.
Transmission and preservation of culture
Literature transmits and preserves the culture of a people. In the pre-literatesociety, literature is passed from
mouth to mouth and relayed in everycircumstantial performance that comes during festivals, social
gatherings,religious gatherings, occupational rituals and convention/expeditions like thehunters and ritualist
/occultists. In the modern society, literature exists not inthe oral form alone but in the prints/black and white
as in book form,electronic and sCulture is the most important concept in anthropology (the study of
allaspects of human life, past and present). Anthropologists commonly use theterm
culture
to refer to a society or group in which many or all people live andthink in the same ways. Likewise, any group
of people who share a commonculture
—
and in particular, common rules of behavior and a basic form of social organization
—
constitutes a society. Thus, the terms
culture
and
society

are somewhat interchangeable. However, while many animals live in societies,such as herds of elk or packs of
wild dogs, only humans have culture.Culture developed together with the evolution of the human species,
Homo sapiens,
and is closely related to human biology. The ability of people to haveculture comes in large part from their
physical features: having big, complexbrains; an upright posture; free hands that can grasp and manipulate
smallobjects; and a vocal tract that can produce and articulate a wide range of sounds. These distinctively
human physical features began to develop in African ancestors of humans more than four million years ago.
The earliestphysical evidence of culture is crude stone tools produced in East Africa overtwo million years
ago.
Literature and LanguageLiterature and language are two close tools of the society which project theidentity
of a people. As language is the tool of expression, literature is aninstrument of projection. The two become
indispensably reliant upon eachother. While literature exploits the existence of language to project the
society,Language enjoys the avenue of literature for development and preservation.
Language is a communicative tool by which human being interact. It is the tool which manuse to understand,
express and appreciate its feelings, thought, desires, worries, useful,virtues, culture, religion and others. It is racial
and discriminative in nature. Languagedistinguishes people from different races and culture.Literature projects
language as it uses it in a peculiar and specialised way. The languageexpression in literature is different from any
use of language in any other medium of communication. This is the reason why people find it difficult to ignore
literature when theyare exposed to it in any of its forms.
In all the settings of man’s use of language, the literary
settings is the best, most efficient and appropriate user of language. Most users are commonand casual in their
use of language.
Language is a powerful tool of expression that can be changed and adapted. It can bebeautified and decorated
according to people, race tribe, culture, season, occupation, feelings,thoughts and inspiration. The only man that
has the best in all the enumerated avenue of thisuse of language is a literary man.A literary man is imaginative,
creative and inspirational in his day to day activities hence, thedifference in his way of language use. When a
literary man speaks or writes, the listener andor the reader is uncontrollably and voluntarily surrendered to him.
This is so because his useof language attracts and equally touches feelings and emotions of man. Literary language
istargeted at making man responsive and conscious of his life and environment.
Since man’s
daily quest is survival, progress and peace literature has made itself available through specialuse of language to
achieve them.Man is daily full of worries and unquenchable anxieties, he wakes up daily to loaded withproblems to
solve with many of them complicated as undecoded riddle. in a very concerned
tone, soft and sharp, literature attracts man and addresses man’s diverse areas of needs.
 This is the reason a man will always want to listen to poetry as it is recited. Man wants to tolisten to music even
when expressing sadness and highly downcast.in the present day that literary materials are obtainable in different
forms, family memberscome together to enjoy them and feel good at its offer.In the African setting for example,
language by literary men are expressed tin proverbs,metaphor, exaggeration , hyperbole and many other figures of
speech. these are theingredients that power the expression of a literature captivating the emotion and feeling of
thesociety.One important thing to take note of is the fact that literature, touches all aspects of humanexistence.
From individuals to group of people, village to nations and continents, local andinternational, great and small,
religion to politics, tradition to modern and many more,literature addresses all human concerns and language is
the tool of understand ing. So,literature uses language to address societal problems.
Literature and education
Education remains one of the most important factors that promote national development,(
Gukas, H. Joel 2007)
. The NPE (2004) also maintained that education in Nigeria is aninstrument per excellence, and for effective
national development. Fafunwa (1974) posits thateducation is the aggregate of all process by which a child or
young adult develops theabilities, attitudes and other forms of behaviours that are of positive values to the society
inwhich he lives. The main purpose of education is to prepare the individual for a responsiblelife so that he or she
can be a productive member of the society,(Agbi, 2003). Education isthe aggregate of all the process by which a
person develops ability, attitude and other formsof behaviour of positive and meaningful value in the society in
which he lives. (Sani, 2001).Hence, education forms the basis of peaceful coexistence of human being within
the society.With education, understanding, acceptance, appreciation, endurance and honour of oneanother is
achievable. This leads to sustainable peace and progress of the society.Since education is one of the matrixes of
assessing the level of a societal development,literature has not left any stone unturned. It creates great impacts in
the education of people.Directly and indirectly. Through book production for readers, film making for viewers,
livestage performance for audience in theatre, television presentation for viewers, radio broadcastfor listener and
many others, literature educate members of the society in various ways andon many issues. Literature teaches
morals and upholds the virtues of the society.
Literature and Language TeachingThe continuing debate and a number of studies on the role of literature
inSecond and Foreign Language Education bear ample testimony to thesignificance given by scholars in this
regard. Kelly and Krishnan (1995), Gilroyand Parkinson (1997), Belcher and Hirvela (2000), Hanauer (2001),
Yang(2001), Vandrick (2003), and Kim (2004) discuss how to use literature to teachEnglish as a foreign
language. In some other studies (e.g. Schrö der, 1977;Weinrich; 1983; Caspari, 1994; Sell, 1995; Bredella,
1996; Keunen &Eeckhouf, 2001; Denka, 2005; Hall, 2005) the focus is on the position of literature in foreign
language teaching. The common motive in both of thesetypes of research is that all these studies recognize
the importance of integratingliterature into language education and discuss the challenges faced.
The teaching of language and most especially Foreign Language throughliterature which is communicative in
approach promotes learner-centredteaching, demanding the students to be independent, critical, logical and
analytical in their thinking and devote time to self-learning under minimumsupervision.
LITERATURE AND SPOKEN ENGLISH
Speaking is the second Language skill and also the first expressive skill inLanguage acquisition. To attain
proficiency level in Nigerian primary school pupils, inthe act and art of speaking English Language, there must be
constant and literaryenvironment in its teaching and learning experiences. On effective communication,Hennings
(1997) suggests to teachers, a Literature based language arts programme inwhich children are actively involved in
thinking and communicating. An approachthat integrates the Language skills: listening, speaking, reading and
writing into thetotal school curriculum and which is central.Performance in literature which is oral in nature is
highly vivid as actorsdeliver their lines. Perfect and meaningful expression makes performance real andmeaningful
to the audience Creating dramatic atmosphere in English Languageclassroom is highly important. Often, passages
in the pupils reading book can bemarked out to be dramatized in the class after discussion. When they act out
whatthey have read earlier on, opportunity is created for the utilization of some of thegrammatical rules learnt.The
performance opportunity has created room for mistakes and correctionswhich makes experience memorable and
learning to become permanent. Teachingvocabulary through drama is possible and also leads to making pupils
exercise thereexpressive skill in speaking. For example, the teaching of word and opposite canbecome
conversational if the teacher endeavours to create a dialogue betweenpupils. Two pupils can be led to ask
themselves questions continuously for someminutes for instance, two minutes after discussion of the topics.e.g.
Pupil A: Sit is the opposite of stand. Tunde, what is the opposite of come?
Pupil B: The opposite of come is go. What is the opposite of laugh?
When about three to four sets of the pupils do it in turns, a dramaticatmosphere has been created, pupils are
expose to communicative experience andconstant opportunity builds up efficiency.Another literacy opportunity in
language class for proficiency in Englishlanguage to be attained in pupils is allowing them to tell stories in English.
Teachercan prepare the mind of the pupils ahead of time. It can be introduced after readinga passage in the class.
The teacher will ask the pupils if they enjoy the story in thepassage. Automatically, they will say yes. Then, he/she
goes further to tell them thatit will be interesting if every one of them would come with a short story the next
dayto be told during the English period. Individual pupil when called can tell his/herstories and questions can be
asked on it there after. The question can be fromteacher, the story teller and other pupils.It can be planned in a
way that gradually the teacher becomes less visible during suchperiods after creating a free and confident
atmosphere for pupils to take roles.Coordinator or director can be appointed among the pupils from time to time.
He orshe will coordinate the activities of the day, moderating the programme while theteacher becomes an
observer.Equally, pupils can be asked to read some readers and at such periods allocated forthat purpose, pupils
come to share their experience with others. The fact that it isstory makes pupils eager to listen and at the same
time they are encouraged to readand become eager to share their reading experiences with others. The goal, which
isefficiency in speaking, is focused.The exploration and utilization of these highlighted literature avenues inregular
manner, will unconsciously build pupils for proficiency in spoken English.

LITERATURE AND WRITTEN ENGLISH

Writing is the fourth leg of the language stool, the second expressive language skill,and he second major course in
the school of literacy Writing is the act of makingimpression of language symbols on anything either for
preservation andtransmission. Frank (1983) states that writing involves transferring thought from themind to
paper while Idowu (2001) describes writing to communicate as an act of making thoughts, ideas, information,
feelings, instruction/command etc. available inprinted form for the benefit of other people.The afore-mentioned
points to the fact that writing forms its base from thoughts and
ideas. It means the graphical representation of man’s feelings and ideas. Expression
of human mind in graphical form. When one goes to the nature of literature again, itis established, that it
expresses feeling and ideas of man. Hence, literature stands abetter chance at achieving proficiency in written
English Language among students.In the classroom, writing can be presented to pupils through literature. Reading
isone of the means through which literacy experience is realized. Frank Smith (1983)asserts that the only source
of knowledge sufficiently rich and reliable for learningabout writtenlanguage is the writing already done by others.
In that event, exposingpupils to reading activities in literature text, different from the normal languageclass that
looks monotonous and cumbersome, pilots them toward efficiency.
This literary activity can be varied. It can go beyond the classroom to establishmentof
readers’ and writers’ club or literary society . There would be a place set aside in
the school or classroom depending on the level at which this approach is employed.In the case of whole school,
literary can be established. Members of the club willfrom time to time borrow books from selections available and
they share theexperience with others.The discussion will follow looking at various elements in the text ,
the characters ,theme, language etc. this will form a ground on which they learn the act of writing.Through their
reading experiences they are exposed to different authors and theirdiverse styles and techniques of writing.Frank
(1983) posits that solely writing learns writing. As the popular sayings,
“practice makes one to become perfect”. To become proficient in writing, pupils
must be put through vicarious writing experiencesThey should be encouraged to write poems making some words
learnt the subject of basis of their composition. For example sleep, sweep, dance and so on. Pupils can beasked to
observe some activities around and write on them as they perceived it. Theycan be asked to express their feelings
on common issues in writing. The teacher whocontinuously guides them to make final draft of what they have
written could readthrough these writings. From time to time such creative products of the pupils can be
compiled in volumes, spiral- banded and be shelved in the reading corner or theschool library as the case may be.
Occasionally such pieces of writing already editedby the teacher can be brought to the class at another time, during
readingcomprehension for the class-work.Editing work of the writes-up can gradually become a collective
responsibility of members of the club or class. Discussion can be opened on different submission andexpressions
in them. Whatever the group discovers to be more appropriate shall betaken to be final so far it represents the
original intention of the author. Thisopportunity builds the pupils up to proficiency in writing. What they need is
regular
and consistent practice by teacher’s sincere and dedicated guide.
Hall (2005) focuses on the development of literature studies based on classicstradition to its present day shift
into cultural studies. During the early stages of literature in FLT classical works by renowned authors were
integrated into thecurriculum. These texts were mostly used for translation purposes and exerciseson
reading comprehension. This compelled the reader to concentrate on thegiven texts at surface level of the
texts and vocabulary and not on their literaryvalue. This also led the students to look in a dictionary for each
and everyforeign word they come across, and it was expected that referring to thedictionary becomes a habit
students should accumulate (Denka, 2005, p.18).However, literature in its present context tends to
emphasize its role in
improving communicative competence and providing “a springboard for thedevelopment of critical thinking
and aesthetic appreciation” (Bretz, 1990, pp.
335-338) and create an awareness in students on the culture and society of therelevant country. Thus, a lot of
attention has been paid in recent years todidactics of literature.
Drama Method
Teaching language through drama is an attractive option because it gives acontext for listening and
meaningful language production, forcing the learnersto use their language resources (Chauhan, 2004).
Drama is an activity whichestablishes human relationships and communication with others. A childperforms
drama under teacher guidance and peer collaboration. Dramaactivity enables children to work together in
groups. That is, the DramaMethod appears to promote interaction in the ZDP and scaffolding (Wagner,2002)
when used appropriately.
4.1 Literature and Society
Irrespective of the language or the literary works selected an insight into thehistorical and cultural
background needs to be provided to the students tounderstand and interpret literature of a foreign language.
Just as much aslanguage reflects the culture, traditions and beliefs of a society, the majority of the literary
works too, (barring perhaps science fiction or modern historicalnovels; for instance), function as a mirror of
society corresponding to theperiod where the works were produced. Hence, the bond between literatureand
society is as strong as that of language and society and neither can be
studied isolated from the other. As Keunen observes “the theme of ‘literatureand society’ may be as old as literary
criticism itself. It has only been sixties
that academic literary studies recognized it in a new literary-
critical discipline”
(2001, p. 9).The curriculum of a foreign language should thus include an insight intohistorical and cultural
aspects of the relevant speech community in order toprovide students with the background knowledge
required to understand itsliterature. To facilitate students in gaining access to the information, courseunits
on history of literature as well as culture and society are integrated intothe curriculum.DramaVia (1987)
refers to
drama
as "communication between people" (p. 110).Maley and Dull (1982) define
dramatic activities
as those "which give thestudent an opportunity to use his or her own personality in creating thematerial on
which part of language class is to be based" (p. 6). There is animmense range of approaches to drama,
including role-play and simulation
(see Clipson-Boyles, 1998). According to Phillips (1999), drama methodsencourage children to speak and
provide them with the chance tocommunicate, using non-verbal communication, such as body movements
andfacial expressions. There have been several studies (e.g., Miccoli, 2003) onEnglish lessons through drama
methods, most of which were done on adultsand adolescents.According to Taniguchi and Takenaka (1990),
animated cartoons such as
Jack and Bean Stalk
are often a good way to teach English to elementary schoolstudents. The author thought movies would
also be good for elementaryschool pupils, because they can listen to authentic English with attractivescenes.
The author introduced the drama method and the Harry Potter movieto a Japanese EFL class for upper
graders.The lessons were conducted for a class of 4
th
,5
th
and 6
th
graders at a privateEnglish school. The class consisted of five male and eight female students andall of the
students had studied English for at least three years prior to the class.The author asked the students what
story they wanted to learn in class. Twelveof the students answered
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone.
This paperreports how that movie was adapted for that class

The Drama Method from social constructivist perspective

According to Oldfather, West, White, and Wilmarth (1999, p. 8), socialconstructivism is "a particular view of
knowledge, a view of how we come toknow". In this view, "learning is constructed through interactions with
others,which take place within a specific socio-cultural context" (Oldfather et al.,ibid.). The most significant
base of social constructivism was laid down byVygotsky.
[p. 11]
 Vygotsky (1978) emphasized the importance of social interaction. Hesuggested that a child has the potential
to reach beyond her present levelwithin a certain zone, which is called the Zone of Proximal Development
(ZDP).Vygotsky believes that the process of development is dependent on socialinteraction, which leads to
cognitive development. A child needs to interactwith adults and other children who are more knowledgeable
in order to grow.In other words, through adult guidance and peer collaboration, a child canperform tasks
which cannot be achieved alone. Vygotosky claimed that optimallearning occurred in the ZDP.EFL lessons,
viewed from a Vygotskian perspective, should providecollaboration, small group interaction, and work space
for peer interaction.
The instructional design should be structured to promote student interactionand collaboration. Thus the
classroom can become a community of learning.Scaffolding, a concept developed by Wood, Bruner and Ross
(1976), refers tothe process that "enables a child or novice to solve a task or achieve a goal thatwould be
beyond his unassisted efforts" (Wood et al., 1976, p. 90). Scaffoldingis said to be an effective way to promote
learning in the ZDP. In scaffoldinglearners get opportunities to extend their current skills and
knowledge.Teachers must know children's interests and simplify tasks so they aremanageable and motivate
children to pursue the instructional goals.Literature and ProblemsLiterature, among other disciplines, stands
out distinct, and peculiar that itscontributions to the general well being of people and the entire society
cannotbe paralleled. It has assumed the position of a wise one among the people.Literature is full of
experiences that are shared by every wise person in orderto live a worthwhile life. Hence, the nomenclature
of a
‘Counselor’
.
Human society in its bid to become modern and developed is discovered tohave become complex while the
complexity has left to it a myriad of conflictsand confusion to resolve. Various means are being devised to
resolve theconflicts and remove the confusion. They include law, religion, and politics.These instruments,
rather than use their potentials to assist the societysolve its problems, they one way or the other compound
the problems. Ineffect, they too have become problems to be solved.Law which according to Encyclopedia
Britannica (1999) is concernedwith customs, practices, and rules of conduct of a community that
arerecognized as binding by the community, as an instrument of society toresolve conflicts and confusion has
not in anyway, taken the society to ameaningful destination of resolution, but rather, continues to complicate
the
already complicated state of human interaction. Law is biased andsentimental. Justice is perverted and
bought while truth is sold out. So, lawbecomes a conflict to be resolved itself.Religion is also an instrument
the society employs as a tool to resolve itscomplex and confused situation but like the law, it has
meted disappointment,ridicule, hopelessness and confusion to the society. Religion has become ariddle,
which the society needs to provide explanation to. In a very simple andclear term, Jon, (1997) comments that
religion has been the cause of themajority of wars that have been fought in the world as people from
differentreligious groups have sought to dominate one another.Politics is another human machinery which is
devised to provideorganizational set-up for the society to solve its problems, or rather relieveitself of its
complexity has equally become problem in itself. A concept in
politics “Democracy” which is government of the people by the people and
for the people has become tribalistic, sectional, instrument of oppression anddestruction. Politics, rather than
organize the society, disorganizes it.Rusell Harden (1999) says that democracy is particularly good
athandling problems of coordination, sometimes including relatively difficultproblems of coordination within
the context of standard collective actions. It isgenerally poor at handling more conflicted issues, such as,
especially, straightdistributional issues like roads, electricity, potable water and others.Literature, which
emanates from the beliefs, culture, practices andreligion of people, has become an object of daily reference in
the discernment,understanding, interpretation and resolution of human problems.Literature is equally an
instrument used in finding solution to theproblems of the society. Unlike other instruments earlier discussed,
literaturestand out different and peculiar. It has developed from the state of being an
instrument employed by an entity to being an entity itself. It separates itselffrom the society in order to
remove biases and avoid further complication forthe society.
Literature as a personality
Literature is not a judge as the case of the law, not denominational as inthe case of religion and not sectional
or tribalistic as the case of politics.Literature is purely a counsellor who observes, discerns,
comprehends,interprets, analyses, synthesises and evaluates.What law, religion and politics fail to achieve,
literature encouragesthem to accomplish. Literature makes the law to recognize or discover itsareas of bias,
sentiment, wickedness etc. As a counselor, it leads law insessions of self-discovery, and repentance to
truthfulness and justice. It helpsreligion to decry hypocrisy and faithlessness while it endeavours to
admonishdeceit and instills sincerity in politics.
This personality of literature is what earns it the title “mirror of theworld”. In literature, the world in its
nature is reflected as it is. When the
world looks at literature (mirror) it sees herself revealed, how bad or good,ugly or beautiful etc.
REFERENCES2010 Point Articles
OBJECTIVES OF TEACHING LITERATURE IN ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS
Though there is no definite statement of objective on literature in theprimary school
curriculum, its importance and the focus of educationalobjectives for the pupils at the primary level
underscores its relevance. Even, if the stated aims of inclusion of literature in the JSS English curriculum
should be
considered, there is no doubt that literature is highly important in primaryeducation FME (1985)
states- To develop in the students, the design and ability to produce their ownliterary and creative
material.- To deepen and reinforce the knowledge acquired through formal Englishstudies.- To see written lit
erature not as a phenomenon that suddenly emergedbut as part of continuous growth in human cultural
activities.Considering the afore-mentioned goals of literature as a school subjectalong thenational objectives
of primary education in the NPE, there is no disputing thefact and submission that literature is highly
relevant and indispensable ineffecting a solid and purposeful educational system. It is an effective mediumto
achieving national objectives of educational because, the focus is theproduction of an individual who become
useful to himself and the society ingeneral
Functions of Children Literature
1. Character Training: Social value, honesty, cooperation, faithfulness,sacrifice,patriotism, moral integrity
etc.2. Socialization: Role play, care, love, appreciation support.3. Achievement and self-fulfillment: Challenges
of life etc.4. Education: Learning basic things on health, games, sanitation,Nutrition etc.
Categories of Children Literature
According to Ngwu (1991),children literature is classified by Huck andYoung (1961) as picture books,
information books, folks tales and adventurebooks, books on hunour and fantasy books on animal adventure,
books onreligion and moral, books on gardening and sports, books for personal-socialdevelopment, poetry
books, and books for special interests. Ngwu broadlycategorized them into two groups: recreational
and functional books.According to Ngwu (1991), recreational books can be adventure book,imaginative and
fantasy books, animal stories and folk tales which can be usedto inspire children or can be read for fun and
amusement by children.Functional books give information in areas that the children need to satisfytheir
natural curiosity about their bodies, the family, health, nutrition, socialskills, science, life and the world in
general. Such books are usually written witha mind to teaching children the language of literature as well as
somefunctional/survival skills.This classification of children literature is very important for a teacherwho
wants to teach children literature. It helps in selection of appropriatereaders to achieve a specific objective
with great impact on the lives of thechildren taught.
TEACHING CHIDREN’S LITERATURE

Having understood what literature is generally, what the objectives of teaching children literature are and
the categories of children literature, it isimportant to understand children themselves and their interest.
Teachingliterature to a particular child or a group of children demands a lot of things onthe part of a teacher.
A good honesty, punctuality than that which deals withmarriage, war and others which will be of more
interest to youths and adults.Also, locality and exposure have great bearing on the interest of children andin
effect will influence what to be presented to them. Therefore, the firstapproach to step of a teachers in
teaching children literature is selection of materials to be introduced to them.
Criteria for Selecting Materials for Children Literature
Age:
The interest, level of understanding, experience, and aspirations of children fromkindergarten to the upper
level of elementary classes vary and as suchmaterials to beintroduced to children must be appropriate and
suitable to their age level andexperience.
Language:
The level of difficulty of the language of expression should be abovethelanguage grade level of the children.
The vocabulary must not presentliterature as a cumbersome task or another round of language drill class to
thepupils, it must be conveniently interpretable and comprehensible to thechildren. Strange diction should
not be visible in such materials.
Setting
: The social and cultural setting in which the experiences related in thematerial isset should not be
alien/unfamiliar to the children. Names of character, placeand other items on the material must be relevant
to the social-culturalexperiences of the child. A book written with Yoruba social cultural setting willbe easily
comprehended by a Yoruba child than an Hausa or Ibo child an viceversa. A book having Mr. Humprey and
Mr. Dunstan will pose problem to aNigerian child than that with Mr. Tunde and Mr Ibrahim.
Believable Character:
The dynamism in the nature of the world has reflected inthe levelof reasoning of every human being. The age
of the master- knows-all andunquestionable knowledge of the elders are gone. Children are moreinquisitive
and analytical ever than before. Therefore, presenting charactersthat are larger than the world in children
literature creates problems andcomplications. One will run into a big problem presenting iroko tree as
acharacter having husband and giving birth to children. The inability toexemplify or justify the possibility of a
tree with such animate quality tochildren will become a great problem. Therefore, children literature chosen
tobe used must have believable characters.

Printing:
In order to encourage and sustain the interest of children, theprinting should be bold enough for their
reading. All punctuation marks shouldbe clearly presented.
Binding:
The binding should be neat and strong for the handling of children, itshould not be the type that will have its
pages getting removed easily and in ashort period of time. It must be able to stand the test of young and
immaturenature of children.
Illustration:
Children love pictures and symbols or objects; there should beadequate illustrations supporting the content
of the facts presented in thereading materials. It makes them think fast and comprehend more easily.
Eye Appeal:
The cover is another thing to be considered. Children love thingsthat are attractive, they would want to touch
and feel it. Materials that possessthis qu
ality will greatly influence children’s concentration and attention in
literature. Teacher should select materials that have this quality.
Volume:
Materials to be selected for children’s use must not be
lengthy/voluminous. It must be short, direct and interesting. It should be whatthey can finish within
a minimum period of time.
APPROACHES TO TEACHING CHILDREN LITERATURE
Give the restless and emotional nature of children, literature cannot betaught to them in the manner and
approaches through which grown ups andadults are taught. Also the traditional way of rote learning cannot
be sufficient.A more conscious approach does not give the required opportunities indeveloping every
necessary skill inherent in them. Therefore, in the presentage, a more pragmatic approach should be
employed by a teacher. Literatureexpresses life, builds life, explains life, teaches life and lots more. A
solidfoundation of life could be more realized in literature teaching to children.Uwaifo (1979) comments that
literature permeates thoughts and emotion, and
that some books shape children’s thoughts and some influencing them
throughout life. NTI (1990) states that aesthetically, literature provides the
child with ample opportunity to develop a perceptive insight into men’s
existence and that it also serves as a window to culture because readingliterature works vicariously
immerses the child into the world it depicts.And apart from the general life experience, in the
educationalenvironment, literature provides a base for achievement and success as itbecomes a tool in the
effective teaching of some other objects in the schoolcurriculum. That is one of the reasons why literature is
all embrassing. Evans(1993) through a study concludes that literature can provide both motivationfor
language acquisition and better understanding of language itself.
For high level effectiveness in teaching children’s literature, the
following approaches should be employed.
Story Telling:
Children love story telling much, therefore, their minds
canbe prepared through story telling. The teacher can tell a story that is similarto what is in the reader he is
about to introduce to them. Stories can berecorded in audio tape and be played to the hearing of the children.
Thisactivity prepares and encourages children to read storybooks. These activitiesdo not make literature a
cumbersome and difficult subjects because it isintroduced in a more or less play way method.
Reading to Children:
Books can be read to the hearing of the children toarouse their interest. This approach can even be built up in
a child right frombabyhood. When an interesting story is read to a child with the readergesticulating, smiling,
lifting hands and other physical or non-verbalexpressions, the baby becomes inquisitive, wants to know what
the adult isenjoying from the book read. Then, he/she wants to become like the adult is
doing. In the school, when the teacher read the story very well and it’s
experience. After the reading, question can be asked in order to ascertain the
level of pupil’s concentration and to instill the spirit of attentiveness

Library Facilities:
Establishment of a library full of children literature and goodreading atmosphere is another way of teaching
literature. Lead the pupils toselect books and read.
Reading Corner:
Reading corner should be created in each class wherecollections shall be and they go there to pick and read.
There should be an
inventory book that should be kept to monitor the movement of books andhow well each child picks books to
reads.
Questioning:
When stories are told/ read by the teacher to the children,question like who is the major character? What
type of a person is the majorecharacter? What type of a person is the major character? What can we
learnfrom the story? Who is at fault in this matter? etc can be asked in order tomake the pupils become
critical and analytical. Their imaginative and criticalskills are being developed.Storing Writing: They can be
encouraged to write down the stories theythemselves have shared with others. When corrected, it should be
well bindedand kept among the ones in the reading corner.
Reading Clubs:
Reading club should be organized and each child participatesactively.
Dramatization:
Plays can be read in the class and thereafter pupils would begiven roles to act and it is presented to an
audience.In support of all these approaches, teacher should intensively take careof vocabularies in the text
through questions and examples. There can be wordgame, whereby each child is asked to explain a word he
found unfamiliar in thetext he has just read. It might be a period or special time scheduled for such.Through
questioning the discussion of theme and other elements should bebrought in to reality prepare the children
for the future.
CONCLUSION
Literature teaching to children is very important and should be handledin a dynamic and relaxed manner. It
should be imbibed unconsciously differentfrom all rigid formal practices. When it is done with the teacher
full of knowledge and children experiences, literature teaching becomes a realizedobjective.
REFERENCES
Evans, M. (1993) A South African Perspective on the Teaching of Literature of ESL Undergraduates. A Paper
Presented at the Annual Meeting of theTeachers of English Speakers of other Languages (27
th
Atlanta, G. A. April13-17, 1993)
Goodman, L. (1996)’Gender as an Approach to Literatre’ in the introduction of

Literature and Gender.

London, RoutledgeIdowu (1997)
Literature and Literary Criticism
Nigeria, Fembol Integra Publications.Ngwu P.N.C. (1991) The Development of Functional Readers Early
Childhood in
Literacy and Reading in Nigeria
Vol. 5 pg. 175-190Uwaifo (1979) The Teaching of Prose in Nigeria Secondary Schools inUbahakwe Ed
The Teaching of English Studies
Ibadan, University Press
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