Discussion Board # 5 - Essay Example

Discuss the multiculturalism into which American Literature has developed. Do you think this is a modern phenomenon? Is it necessary? Contemporary American writing revels in the writing of authors, who even though are individual and diverse, but have the all-American strain of African America, Asian American, Hispanic American experiences. The distinct work of each of these writers, even though are diverse and distinct, has contributed to the rich as well as inclusive canopy of modern American literature.

Short stories like, ‘The Third and Final Continent’ by Jumpa Lahiri (Lahiri, 1999). and Seven by Dandicat (Danticat, 2004), though written by writers who are not of American origin, have inherent American voices and milieus. Writers like Toni Morisson, Sherman Alexie and Jumpa Lahiri are no longer culturally isolated. Multiculturalism is indeed an acknowledgement of modernity, where multiple voices, identities, cultures and experiences, thus it is necessary to accept and understand it. How close is fiction to reality?

Can we call literature non-fiction anymore when reality is so steeped in the messages of fiction, or for that matter, how many liberties authors take today to bend and convert fiction into non-fiction. Consider the memoir “Tiny Little Pieces” which caused a controversy when it was found out the author invented the stories he claimed were true just to pull at heartstrings. What if we discovered Mark Twain had exaggerated his experiences working the riverboats? Does this lessen the inherent value of these works?

In literature, the gap between fiction and reality has been dwindling increasingly. It is not fair to call literature non-fiction anymore because it has been seen that fiction has become a way to tell something about reality. The work ‘A Million Little Pieces’ is now recognized as ‘semi-fiction’, because the author James Frey also admits to have altered many narrations to arouse interest and attract eyeballs to his writing. Considering the changing dimensions, it is necessary to reinforce the concept of art for art’s sake’, where any text should be taken for the content, and not for the level of truth or fiction in it.

Even if Mark Twain and exaggerated his experiences, the value of his works won’t decrease because it will continue to provide the readers with the same experience. ReferencesLahiri, J (1999). In Perkins, G, and Perkins, B, Eds. (2007).  The American Tradition in Literature, Volume II, 12th edition. (p. 2070-2083) New York: McGraw-HillDanticat, E (2004). In Perkins, G, and Perkins, B, Eds. (2007).  The American Tradition in Literature, Volume II, 12th edition. (p. 2084-2091) New York: McGraw-Hill