"What is Literature?": A Literary Guide for English Students and Teachers
Channel: OSU School of Writing, Literature and Film
Date: 03/01/2022

What is literature? How does it differ from other forms of writing? What makes a literary text canonical? MFA student Paige Thomas answers these questions using the work of literary critics such as Derek Attridge and Roland Barthes and a few common literary texts. 

The short video is designed to help high school and college English students to not only identify what makes literature canonical but also to analyze its general characteristics. A collaborative partnership between Paige Thomas and OSU Professor Evan Gottlieb, the video is sponsored by the School of Writing, Literature, and Film at Oregon State University. For more discussions of literary topics and essay writing tips, please subscribe to the free SWLF YouTube Channel or visit https://liberalarts.oregonstate.edu/wlf/oregon-state-guide-english-literary-terms

Spanish subtitles are now available for this video. To access these subtitles, click on the settings icon in the video. A transcript of the video in both languages is available here: https://liberalarts.oregonstate.edu/wlf/what-literature-definition-examples

Timestamps
0:00 Literature Basic Definition
1:18 Literature and the Canon
2:48 Alternative Literature Definitions
6:46 Final Literature Definition

Below are a few more videos in the series.  Please drop us a comment letting us know what literary terms you would like us to explore in future videos!
"What is a prologue?":  https://youtu.be/PEeMmskARMc​​​​​ 
 "What is a stanza?": https://youtu.be/qaXfCSCHBt0​​​​​ 
"What is stream of consciousness?":  https://youtu.be/WaSFwO3O2SI​​​​​ 
"What is figurative language?":  https://youtu.be/c2CRxHOgxBM​​​​​ 
"What is irony?':  https://youtu.be/q6e0oNVx8Uk​​​​​ 
"What is a metaphor?":  https://youtu.be/5mPSFQ1eFUU​​​​​
"What is a simile?":  https://youtu.be/YqJrZ6OoqjU​​​​​ 
"What is hyperbole?":  https://youtu.be/IzfyNwNpUmA​​​​​
"What is a imagery?":  https://youtu.be/uX413tALG7Q​​​​​
"What is a sonnet?":  https://youtu.be/QmrKmL06J9g​​​​​
"What is metonymy?":  https://youtu.be/jydjhvOzMGQ​​​​​
"What is synecdoche?":  https://youtu.be/V3G51sJcvzg​​​​​
"What is enjambment?":  https://youtu.be/yBn2ZOwv144​​​​​
"What is satire?":  https://youtu.be/io58hl1Z0TY​​​​​
"What is juxtaposition?":  https://youtu.be/4KXVPS3FYkQ​​​​​
"What is foreshadowing?":  https://youtu.be/nc-2Jg6b0Dw​​​​​
"What is understatement?":  https://youtu.be/tW3MZ6z8KNA​​​​​
"What is rhyme?":  https://youtu.be/_9oHeL2qI6g​​​​​
"What is an unreliable narrator?":  https://youtu.be/A-lDvHT2QyQ​​​​​
"What is a genre?": https://youtu.be/Go0Mto2fOXY​​​​​ 
"What is a narrative arc?": https://youtu.be/ngpHeQZtS-w​​​​​ 
"What is a flashback?":  https://youtu.be/tjTauD53Ru4​​​​​ 
"What is personification?":  https://youtu.be/5GOfjV6u0Co​​​​​
"What is a narrator?": https://youtu.be/bCNNBxlnkjQ​​​​​
"What is a flat character vs a round character?":  https://youtu.be/IPIBTgPlK5c​​​​​
"What is symbolism?":  https://youtu.be/GR9VbSXxouM​​​​​
"What is a graphic narrative? (Part I)": https://youtu.be/SPES7Z2fjIY​​​​​
"What is a graphic narrative? (Part II)":  https://youtu.be/KEqQIB5ytcI​​​​​
"What is epistrophe?":  https://youtu.be/6rdlklOZs4o​​​​​ 
"What is poetic meter?":  https://youtu.be/S13Tg3RAUW4​​​​​
"What is a portmanteau?":  https://youtu.be/P5TdpQXTkB0​​​​​
"What is anaphora?": https://youtu.be/dr970RgZu8w​​​​​ 
"What is an oxymoron?":  https://youtu.be/oXMht0mi0xc​​​​​
"What is a zeugma?": https://youtu.be/qGtjLGFPmXE​​​​​
"What is free indirect discourse?": https://youtu.be/Vw5XclD9IlQ​​​​​
"What is a vehicle and a tenor?":  https://youtu.be/dBjtFyktXhQ​​​​​
"What is the uncanny?":  https://youtu.be/4IHvGHGVAM0​​​​​
"What is a point of view?":  https://youtu.be/acURl_KBiRI​​​​​
"What is deus ex machina?": https://youtu.be/GCpGV7fOp2M​​​​​
"What is a frame story?":  https://youtu.be/cjJszH88J8A​​​​​ 
"What is ekphrasis?":  https://youtu.be/ySS-IZMPjjc​​​​​ 
"What is blank verse?":  https://youtu.be/TmwuGQIgj9A​​​​​
"What is an epistolary novel?": https://youtu.be/mj40J8lFu7E​​​​​ 
"What is allegory?": https://youtu.be/4IOsFCieGQA​​​​​
"What is tragedy?":  https://youtu.be/OBvVD08_0hU​​​​​
"What are euphony and cacophony?": https://youtu.be/TzELOczXWOY​​​​​
"What are assonance and consonance?": https://youtu.be/3ZQxhOcnJzE​​
"What is a setting in literature?": https://youtu.be/omsbv-hbXiM​​
"What is onomatopoeia?": https://youtu.be/aKRKcKcSW2c​​
"What is theme in literature?": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I5KZc...
"What is a conflict in literature?":  https://youtu.be/XqR0Hv6mwNU​
"What is persona?": https://youtu.be/_5vKV7HNXlo
"What is a dramatic monologue?": https://youtu.be/ferWxPUN3ig
"What is an allusion?":  https://youtu.be/rF3ANKEPoko