The Historical Study of Literature

In the second chapter of An Introduction to the Study of Literature, Hudson deals with the importance of making the historical study of literature, definition of national literature, spirit of race, and, the difference between the history and history of literature. The book is an interesting commentary on the study of literature for the beginners.

Hudson says that as we pass from the individual books to their authors, similarly we pass from an individual author to the age in which he lived, and the nation to which he belonged. We cannot understand literature in better way without making study of the history of literature. A writer is not an isolated fact; he has his affiliations with number of the people, he lived with and his society.  Even, Hudson says that literature is developing organism, it has continuous its life and consists of many varying phases. Therefore the historical study of the literature is important because of two reasons: a. “the continuous life, or national spirit in it”, and, b. “the varying phases of that continuous life or, the ways in which it embodies and expresses the changing spirit of successive age.”

Hudson clarifies the notion of the national literature. He says that national literature is not the chronological account of the men, belonging to the particular geographical area, who wrote in the same language, with critical analysis of their defects and merits, and some description of the literary schools and traditions or literary taste and fashions of the age. But the national literature is “the progressive revelation, age by age, of nation’s mind and character.” History of any nation’s literature is “the record of the unfolding of that nation’s genius and character under one of its most important forms of literature.” Hudson notes that a writer may vary from the other writers of his age but he has many things common with others because all the writers have the same national spirit in their works. Hudson talks of the Greek and the Hebrew spirit.  The word ‘spirit’ here denotes the mind and character of the people of particular nation. The Greek works reveal to us the mind and character of the Greek people, whereas the Hebrew works show the mind and character of the Hebrew people.

Hudson believes that the historical study of the national literature is a form of travel. It make familiar with other people, their customs, their culture and their society. It enables us to move freely among the minds of other races. It also gives us a power of travelling in time. By the historical study of the national literature, we become familiar not only with the minds of other races, but also with the minds of other epoch.

Hudson finally differentiates between history and history of literature. History deals with the external facts of the particular society during the particular era, whereas history of literature deals with inner facts, moral characteristics, emotional energies that shaped intellectual and spiritual life of the people.

Thus, the historical study of national literature is important as it reveals the mind and character of the people.