Should Star Wars Books Be Considered True Literature?

This is a question I have wondered for a very long time. I know people that aren't Star Wars fans that don't consider it real literature at all; they think it's just an entertainment read or something someone did to pass the time. Personally, when I'm reading, in my mind I don't think it's real literature, just because of what everyone around me thinks about it. But, truly, I think that it is. A book is a book, no matter what it's about.

 

Regardless of its content I can't see how a book like a star wars novel would classify as anything BUT literature. I mean sure, its not great literature. But its literature nonetheless. And besides, what constitutes great literature is a subjective question.

I guess it really does classify as good literature to me because it satisfies those two qualities.

1. Its literature because its a body of writing.

2. Its good because it soothes the hunger I seek to satisfy- and thats light entertainment. (usu ).

Don't let them taint your reading experience by poisoning your mind with blasphemous talk that star wars novels aren't literature!!!

...10 credits says one of the next 10 posts involves a direct dictionary quote...

 

I would think so, to some degree. They'r not classics like the Lord of the Rings, but good to read.

 

I know a lot *literature* that I have deliberately avoided and some I've disliked.

(Literature being does not a book great make.)

 

What people classify as literature is what the teachers and educational system tells us.
I classify literature as anything that is well written and over 200 pages.

 

It is no less literature than any other book.

Also, there are several quite excellent authors (Zahn, Stackpole, Stover, Salvatore, etc.) who are quite respected for their other published works in addition to the SW books.

Also, as for "entertainment read", most books are for entertainment. People don't read Moby Dick for a technical description of Ahab's ship's mizzenmast, you know. It just has a stigma because it's tied to a commercial enterprise.

 

It's definately writing with prose so ya it's literature.

Even a short story is a form of literature, but not a "Novel".

There are a lot of things that fall under literature.

 

darthjarjarbinks:
Don't worry! I've never gone to a school with another fan like me, so I'm used to having to stand strong in my fan base.

 

The vast majority of it has little to no literary merit.

 

Mastadge, as someone with a degree in literature who is currently studying to be a literature teacher, I'm curious to know what you consider to be "literary merit".

Incidently, I consider Star Wars novels to be "true" literature.

 

Incidently, I consider Star Wars novels to be "true" literature.

First, I think it's folly to lump all Star Wars novels together. There are a whole bunch of them, by a bunch of different authors of vastly varying caliber, written over a quarter of a century. Some are awful tripe. Some I would say have literary merit. For the most part, they fall into the fun, engaging escapist category -- nothing wrong with them, but hardly great written works of art.

As to what literature is: well, there's not really an adequate dictionary definition. To judge a book as great literature requires a value judgment; what to me may be the most moving, touching, important novel ever written may just be an incoherent waste of paper to someone else. I guess, to me, that's what literature is: it's writing that's not content to be good enough; it's writing that transcends the medium to become art. Anyone can splash some fingerpaints on paper; but not anyone can create a moving artistic masterpiece. And that's what literature is. It's writing that moves the reader, that shakes the reader up a bit, gets the reader to question his or her values and challenges the way the reader looks at the world. It's writing that is more than the sum of its parts; it's not content to have a good story; as Linton Weeks puts it, "in great literature -- that is, the swirling, surprising and sometimes unsettling prose that saves souls and redefines reality -- plot, detail, language, characters, point of view, truth, beauty and other intangibles all clamor to be at the top."

As far as that goes, I'd actually argue that there is no Star Wars novel that qualifies as literature. Some of them have sparks of that greatness -- profoundly movingly literate scenes and sequences -- but there hasn't yet been a SW novel published that I'd put on the list of Great Literature.

EDIT: re: entertainment value. Don't get me wrong; there's nothing wrong with good entertainment. Literature has to be entertaining, too -- if it doesn't entertain me; if it bores me, then it's not going to do much for me. All literature is entertaining. Not all that's entertaining is literature.

 

Very well said Mastadge. I will agree with you completely that what you just described is great literature. However, we're discussing true literature. First of all, literature is not necessarily fictional, but since Star Wars is a fictional story (even the reference material is not always 100% non-fiction) I will discuss only fictional literature. In this type of literature, all that is necessary for a piece to be considered literature are all of those aspects listed as "clamouring for the top" except that they don't have to be clamouring. If they were, it would indeed be great literature. Even if they are not, it is still literature. Even the Galaxy of Fear series is literature, specifically, young adult literature. I cannot think of one Star Wars book that I own (and I am only missing the Jedi Apprentice and Boba Fett junior series) that cannot be classified as literature. They all have plot, conflict, setting, characters, etc. That is all that is needed to be "true" literature. So, yes, I would hesitate to clump them all together based on quality, but as literature versus non-literature they all fall under literature.

 

Wow, you both have very good points. I think that the books should be considered true like all other books; just because they are on or about a series that's not extremely popular doesn't mean that well educated people have written them.

I remember reading a post about someone not being able to do an EU book for their book report. I guess that's the kind of thing I was trying to come across, as to whether it should be considered by teachers and/or colleagues to be a real book. I'm currently doing a book report on Destiny's Way. My teacher was very kind about it; she's letting me build a lightsaber and a model of a ship for visual aids. I asked her this question and though she is not a fan, she said that she believes it's literature just like anything else.

 

I wonder... where are the purists?

 

I cannot think of one Star Wars book that I own that cannot be classified as literature. They all have plot, conflict, setting, characters, etc. That is all that is needed to be "true" literature.

But that's not the point of this thread as I see it. There's no debate whatsoever if that's all we're discussing -- of course they all have that, regardless of the quality. When I see a thread asking if they can be considered True Literature, though, my mind thinks bigger than that because, if not, then, as I said, there's simply no room for debate.

 

But that's not the point of this thread as I see it. There's no debate whatsoever if that's all we're discussing -- of course they all have that, regardless of the quality. When I see a thread asking if they can be considered True Literature, though, my mind thinks bigger than that because, if not, then, as I said, there's simply no room for debate.

Very true. That is in part what I meant, but in that case, the Winnie the Pooh books at Albertson's have those things as well (plot, conflict, setting, characters, etc.). I'm thinking of true literature in the terms of people that are NOT Star Wars fans reading it, as it having some other value than just being there for fans.

 

Ok, if you're asking whether Star Wars books would be studied in school or even at the university level, let me say definitely yes. I have studied Star Wars: The Adventures of Luke Skywalker in a second year literature course (albeit a fantasy literature course). And as for Winnie the Pooh, although I never took the course, I know that it was studied in the children's literature course at my former university. In fact, I've studied Herotica 3 in my contemporary American literature course so even erotica can be included in literature courses. I will admit that part of the point of that course was to ask what is literature and we studied books that were of dubious standing as far as whether or not they were literature. However, in the end we decided that even an erotic story, even a post-modern story with a plot that is extremely hard to follow if it has any coherency at all, even a children's fable can all be considered literature as they meet the criteria already discussed and can therefore be worth studying and interpreting. Taking a Woman's Studies course in school? Take a look at how Jaina is portrayed in Dark Journey. Do a feminist read of it. Studying religion in school? Do an allegorical reading of Anakin Skywalker in the Phantom Menace or Anakin Solo in the New Jedi Order or even Jacen Solo in traitor. Taking a peace and conflict studies course? Take a look at the use of slavery in the Empire and the hierarchy of the different alien species. Do a Marxist read of it. I could continue but I think my point has been made.

With some imagination and a little prior knowledge, you can teach or learn anything from any work of fiction. Therefore, Star Wars novels do have value beyond pure entertainment.

So, any teacher that tells you that Star Wars literature has no place in the classroom isn't giving it, or literature in general, any credit. I applaud your teacher for letting you do a book report on DW.

 

my english teacher told me star wars novels were trashy, so i couldn't study the ones i had for my course. i failed the course after that, i cant enjoy reading 'true literature', there are no lightsabers or Force.

 

There really isn't a definition for "true literature".

Escapist Literature, and Classic Literature, and Realistic Literature, good literature, and bad literature, and a whole assortment of other descriptions for types of literature fall under the body of literature. Even leaflets, and circulars fall under the definition of literature.

 

With some imagination and a little prior knowledge, you can teach or learn anything from any work of fiction. Therefore, Star Wars novels do have value beyond pure entertainment.

Yes, if you know what you're talking about, you can find examples and read into things. That's completely irrelevant. The question is not whether we can look at "world issues" through a Star Wars framework. The question is whether Star Wars novels qualify as Literature on their own. Yes, they are literature, insofar as they are books. That's why I made the distinction of using the capital L. Just because I could use Jaina's (admittedly extremely erratic) development as an example in a course on feminism doesn't have anything to do with whether or not the books she appears in have Literary merit. You're talking about two different things.

 

Actually, you never explained what you meant by literary merit. You explained what you thought great literature was. YoungJedi asked about Star Wars novels having any value other than as entertainment and that post was my explanation that yes, they do. To me, that is literary merit. So it's not irrelevant. Ever take a literature course? You use critical thinking to interpret a text. Here's another example. Sentimentalists hold the belief that children are born pure and innocent and are corrupted as they age through life experience. Anakin Skywalker/Darth Vader is a Sentamentalist's dream. And that movement led to decades of great literature.

Still curious to know what you consider literary merit to be.

 

Tommorrow I enter my TEE English Examination, and although I am going to get high A's in my Maths and Science Exams, If I fail tomorow I can't get into Uni, trashy system in Western Australia. I usually fail my English Exams however in my Mock Exam (End of Semester 2 exam) I used in my Print SEction, Traitor and in the Non-Print Section I used Return Of The Jedi and got 60.5% rather than my usuall 35%, so I know what I am doind tomorrow, my girlfriend said Star Wars wasn't literature and before the mock I forced her to read Traitor, she was impressed with it and admitted she was wrong to generalise and suggested I used it in my Exam.

 

Actually, you never explained what you meant by literary merit. You explained what you thought great literature was. . .Still curious to know what you consider literary merit to be.

I gave my definition of Literature. Literature is what has Literary Merit.

YoungJedi asked about Star Wars novels having any value other than as entertainment and that post was my explanation that yes, they do.

Forgive me if I'm missing something, but where did YJ ask that? Reading over his posts the issue that seems to me to be being addressed is whether Star Wars book should be considered "real" books or "literature."

To me, that is literary merit. So it's not irrelevant.

Literary merit is when a book has any value other than entertainment? So, say, a physics textbook has "literary merit"? I disagree. I'd say that it may have merit to physicists, but looked at from an English perspective, it's probably not going to be much to write home about. Just because you can draw comparisons between a situation in a novel and real life doesn't make something literary.

Ever take a literature course? You use critical thinking to interpret a text.

Yes, I've taken literature courses. But just because you can apply those critical thinking skills to a text doesn't make it a piece of Literature. I can apply my critical thinking skills to a sentence scrawled on a piece of toilet paper; that doesn't make it literature -- it just makes it something I'm applying my literate background to.

Sentimentalists hold the belief that children are born pure and innocent and are corrupted as they age through life experience. Anakin Skywalker/Darth Vader is a Sentamentalist's dream. And that movement led to decades of great literature.

Ah -- but are Star Wars books to be considered among that "great literature"?

 

I hate to say it, but I think not.

 

Alright, if you want this to be an argument of high culture versus pop culture (because it seems to me that is obviously what you believe you are arguing here), let me suggest that Shakespeare did not write any of his plays to be high culture. He often wrote toilet humour only slightly more clever than what I've seen written in stalls. However, Shakespeare is surely considered great literature now. But he wrote for everyone. The Globe Theatre catered to the lower classes as much as to the higher class. Literature is indeed what you make of it.