Literature is a word originating from the Latin term litera, which means letter. Literature refers to a set of skills of read and write correctly. There are different definitions and types of literature, it can be an art, a profession, a set of productions, and so on.
Literature is the art of creating and composing texts, and there are several types of literary productions, such as poetry, prose, fiction literature, literature of novel, medical literature, technical literature, Portuguese literature, popular literature, cordel literature and etc. Literature can also be a set of written texts, whether from a country, a personality, an era, and so on.
The concept of literature has changed over time, with relevant semantic changes. For some Latin peoples, literature had a subjective content, representing the knowledge of the literate. In this case, literature was not considered an object of knowledge, which can be studied. The Romance, English and German-speaking peoples did not change its meaning, a change that only happened in the second half of the 18th century, when the term came to designate the object of study, literary production, the condition of professionals, etc.
Literature has different genres, which appeal to various tastes and which are aimed at different audiences, such as the literature of twine, children's literature, etc.
Literature is also a discipline in the school environment, where individuals study different authors and their works, their contributions to literature. Brazilian, normally, and themes such as Portuguese literature and Baroque literature are also present, in addition to college, in entrance exams.
Literature and Romanticism
The expansion of romanticism it gave way to a historicist enthusiasm that would last into the 19th century and much of the 20th century. At this point, Goethe created the expression "universal literature", which expresses the compilation of the best literary works of significance that go beyond national conditions.
This era was characterized by great advances in the field of literature, more specifically in philology, comparative linguistics and historicism.
