If you read quickly to get through a poem to what it means, you have missed the body of the poem.
M. H. AbramsRead
We believed that to understand literature, you had to understand its place in history and culture.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Understanding literature requires a grasp of its historical and cultural context.
M. H. Abrams emphasizes the importance of situating literature within its historical and cultural frameworks to fully appreciate its meaning and significance. This perspective highlights how literature is not created in a vacuum but rather reflects and responds to the society and era in which it was produced, enriching our understanding of both the text and the world.
Themes
LiteratureHistoryCultureUnderstandingContext
In practice
Example use cases
In a lecture on literary analysis, I quoted M. H. Abrams to illustrate the importance of historical context.
More from M. H. Abrams
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Economists have put themselves in a position where what they are doing is supposed to be impossible to understand for outsiders, so they don't even talk - sometimes not even with their girlfriend or boyfriend or friends - about what they are doing.
Thomas PikettyRead
I never let schooling interfere with my education.
Mark TwainRead
If history were taught in the form of stories, it would never be forgotten.
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When I see kids standing next to their mothers at book signings, clutching a copy of 'Forever,' I know what's coming. They'll say to me, 'How old do I have to be to read this?' hoping I'll give them permission. But I can't do that.
Judy BlumeRead
I believe that education is the civil rights issue of our generation. And if you care about promoting opportunity and reducing inequality, the classroom is the place to start. Great teaching is about so much more than education; it is a daily fight for social justice.
Arne DuncanRead
From the boys' point of view, scouting puts them into fraternity-gangs, which is their natural organisation, whether for games, mischief, or loafing; it gives them a smart dress and equipments; it appeals to their imagination and romance; and it engages them in an active, open-air life.
Robert Baden-PowellRead