Literature conjures mental images of the words on the page and gives a window into a person’s soul, says BYUH students
Catalina Hernandez-Andrade said although people usually view art as something solely visual, literature is another form of artistic expression.
“To me, art is supposed to feed the soul. It’s supposed to be something greater than you, and literature can do that,” said Hernandez-Andrade, a junior from Colombia double majoring in psychology and English.
Hernandez-Andrade said literature is “an abstract way of translating one’s feelings and thoughts.” She explained similar to a painting, where the artist uses different paints, brushes and tools, the writer’s tools in literature are words, pen and paper.
Maile Batchelor, a senior from Chicago majoring in psychology, said, “Art is any sort of human expression that makes you feel something. I think literature is definitely a form of art, because writers can make you feel such powerful emotions.”
She explained writers convey emotion through the way they arrange words or through the specific vocabulary they use. Batchelor said if the author does a good job, images pop up in her head and she feels emotions when she reads the words on the page, making literature art.
“Literature gives us a window into the person,” said Camila Aguado, a junior studying molecular biology from Arizona. She said art is defined as an expression, and literature is a person expressing themselves through a creation other people can read. She said in literature, a person can share their experiences, perspectives and what made them who they are.
“What makes literature a different form of art is how it is more applicable to ourselves. You can see ... how [what you are reading] applies to your life currently, rather than what someone was trying to convey,” Aguado said. She explained literature is an art focused on the individual. It is also an escape for people. A moment where readers can leave reality and experience a different perspective, providing an avenue to learn, Aguado said.
Hernandez-Andrade explained there are two phases in literature. First there are words on paper and second is what people do with those words, she said.
She compared literature to a portrait. In a portrait, people can see the colors, the emotions and the meaning, For literature, people read through it and find a way to connect it to what they already know or feel. Then they can begin to understand what the authors are trying to tell them, she explained. “If you don’t put in the effort to see the meaning, then you won’t know what greater things you can learn from it,” Hernandez- Andrade said.
Batchelor said it is fascinating to her how anyone can read a piece of literature, whether it’s poetry or a novel, and get a different understanding and perspective from it.
“I think literature is really cool because you have so much freedom to mold it to yourself, and to adapt it to your personal life and experiences. [You can] make it meaningful to yourself,” Batchelor said.
The influence of literature
Smiling, Batchelor said she has come to love literature because of her parents who helped develop her love for stories. She explained they were both avid readers who read to her every night. Batchelor said she loved when her parents read to her, so much she started to memorize the books they read. “I just thought it was so cool that people could invent these amazing made-up stories, these amazing made-up places and how they could take you there with them,” said Batchelor.
She recounted times where she felt connected to her friends and family through literature. She said literature’s ability to connect people makes it universal. “I’ll read books about other people from different countries or different cultures, and this love is created. … It feels like you have this personal connection with them because [in the books,] the characters become something real to you, [like] a friend.”
Aguado discussed how literature can create a sense of unity. She said she believes literature can cultivate understanding and empathy between cultures. “We can see when we read that their experience is similar to ours,” she explained. “It can even create the thought that we have never known about this kind of [experience,] which makes it easier to find that sense of unity. Seeing that this is a shared experience, we learn that we are not on our own,” Aguado said.
Aguado said her mother was the one who opened up the world of literature to her, and she learned to love it. One thing she said she loved about reading was the communication that occurs between the writer and the reader. “I’m not just getting to know them, I’m getting to know their experiences, their background, why they are the way they are. And I feel literature is a way to get to know someone through their writing.”
Hernandez-Andrade described her experience of entering the world of literature. She said what drew her to English and reading was knowing she was good at something and that she enjoyed experiencing something new. She continued, “[Learning a new language] opened this door to a whole other world, because when you don’t speak English, you are kind of kept away from a lot of things like understanding literature or the originality of movies, music and books.”
“Perspective, empathy and solidifying relationships, ... literature can be intimate, especially when you share it with someone,” said Hernandez-Andrade, sharing her joy and gratitude for the relationships she has created and strengthened through literature. She said she strengthened her bond with her mother through reading and even met her best friend through their similar interests in reading.
A form of expression
Expressing her love of journaling, Batchelor said, “I write about everything. Whatever is weighing heavily on me is usually what comes out, and then as soon as I write in my journal ... it feels like everything evaporates.” Journaling gives her a chance to organize her mind and understand what’s happening to her, said Batchelor. She explained it is an excellent way for her to process everything going on in her life. She said expression through literature is so powerful because of how people are able to explain things through writing. Batchelor said she feels it can give people a sense of bravery to write things that are hard to say.
Literature nurtures understanding between humans, said Hernandez-Andrade. “I think literature is the perfect way to connect, … because if you put in the effort, you can understand how it feels to be in that person’s shoes. It allows you to become a more empathetic person, having the ability to connect to people you may not know.”
Since her family moved often due to her father being in the military, Hernandez-Andrade said she experienced challenges with making and keeping friends. “Reading was a safe space,” she said, explaining reading provided comfort through times when she was lonely or struggling.
Literature is a form of expression, because “it is expressing your past experiences, the style that you choose to write in. It’s a product of your background and your environment,” Aguado said. She said the author Virginia Woolf writes intricately in a stream-of-consciousness way, which reflected her history, what she was going through and her thought process. Aguado added the author Mark Twain, also had a specific writing style. She said she believes his self-expression was a product of his life experiences.
Lessons from literature
A powerful message Aguado said she enjoyed learning through reading was the duality of life. After reading the book “Being Evil” by Luke Russell, Aguado said she became more aware of the duality of things. She explained, “What I may see as good or bad is a product of how I was raised and where I was raised. And that kind of helped me stop passing judgments in my day-to-day life.” She shared she may see people doing things she doesn’t agree with but tries not to pass any judgments because, she said, they were raised differently and their moral beliefs may be different from hers.
“A big theme I have pulled from reading is the power we have in our love for one another. That’s probably my favorite theme,” said Batchelor as she retells the story from the novel, “The Brilliant Life of Eudora Honeysett.” The novel is about an older woman who is coming to the end of her life and, with no desire left, she wishes to die. However, through human connection and the bonds she creates, she decides she wants to live longer.
Hernandez-Andrade shared, “Literature not only expands your knowledge but also puts you in a position where you can become a better person.” She said she learned from her parents and from reading that literature can expand emotional intelligence, perspective and self-awareness, as well as abilities in writing and language. She said, “Literature can seem very small, but it truly can help you become the best version of yourself.”