Before rushing off to talk about the implications that systems have for the bodies of literature that live in them, it's important to define just what I mean by "literature" in the first place. "Literature" is known as an essentially contested term, a word for which we have a common-sense understanding, and use frequently in everyday conversation, but for which there is no single definition that people can seem to agree on. The usual definition is a tautology, and runs along the lines of:
"Literature is that which we know as literary." For the purposes of this essay, we'll adopt a more precise working definition.
Literature is the body of texts that display a high density of
meaning.
There are several things to note about this definition. The first is that it uses a subjective qualifier: your idea of a work that contains a high density of meaning may be very different from my reading of that same work. In this way, the definition keeps its essentially contested character. The second is that with literature, we are discussing the
meanings that can be gleaned from the work. There are other aspects, such as the emotional impact, that fall under the realm of art. The old dichotomy between ideas and emotions sits comfortably in the gap between literature and art, which is not at all to say that most works, on both sides, are not both literary and artistic to a high degree.
With those criteria in hand, we can perform a parallel exploration:
Literature is when the threads that you've been following come together, reinforce each other, to produce a moment of insight. You can recognize literature from the instant of intense understanding.
Art is when the forms, movements, and feelings that you've been following come together, reinforce one another, to produce a moment of emotion and beauty. You can recognize art from the instant of intense empathy.
The degree to which a work can be said to be literary is proportional to the degree to which it can be said to have a density of meaning — the quantity and intensity of the concepts, thoughts and ideas that it brings to the reader's mind.
The degree to which a work can be said to be artistic is proportional to the degree to which it can be said to have a density of emotion — the quantity and intensity of feelings, atmospheres and moods that it brings to the observer's mind.
Often, density of meaning in literature is produced by evoking concepts on several different levels at the same time.
Often, density of emotion in art is produced by evoking feelings on several different levels at the same time.
