Youth and literature

Literature is love. It is philosophy. It is imagination. It is experience. It is the wisdom  accumulated through the   centuries by the human kind enjoying, sorrowing and  reflecting on life. It parallels and comments on the  factual records  of history, but it has  the power to  enthrall; to give delight   and at the same time touch the core of the heart with pain and compassion.
From time immemorial, literature has entranced the young and fired their imagination, moved them to dynamic action and creativity. The exploits in the Iliad and Odyssey and the feats in the Ramayana and Mahabaratha stimulated youth towards victory in the battlefield. There were models presented: Odysseus, Hector, Achilles, Arjuna and Bheema. In the Persian tradition, Rustom was the ultimate in unstinted bravery.
But the underside of these powerful narratives was not used to reflect on, analyze critically and the moral dictates responded to. At a time when the world is woefully divided by ethnic, religious, economic, social and individual differences, can literature --- the core of human experiences expressed in powerful language --- bring about amity and understanding among the young? The SAARC region constitutes a rich variety of humans --- ethnic, linguistic, religious and cultural. This is reflected in the literature its members create. The exchange and sharing of literature is the first step in bringing about understanding. The second is providing opportunities to create literature and publish. Facilities for publication will give confidence to the youth. The third world be a special youth forum to present their writings/creations. Cross-border reading experiences, both oral and written, are other ways of promoting understanding.

Kamala Wijeratne is a Sri Lankan writer