Literature and Becoming Greatly Good

"Literature and Becoming Greatly Good" - 27 Aug 2025

In the age of humanity where one of the biggest questions is not whether we can, but whether we should, it’s more important than ever to have empathy for others and make wise choices. 19th century poet Percy Bysshe Shelley suggested an excellent path to accomplish this aim: becoming “greatly good”.

“A man, to be greatly good, must imagine intensely and comprehensively; he must put himself in the place of another and many others; the pains and pleasures of his species must become his own. The greatest instrument of moral good is the imagination.” – Percy Bysshe Shelley, In Defense of Poetry and Other Essays

Shelley provides a good argument as to why we–as students and as humans–should study literature. According to the quote, putting oneself in the place of other humans is the best way to achieve good–and literature is an exercise in putting oneself in the place of other humans. The in-depth realization of dreams, fictions, and fantasies that literature provides is the imagination–which is also the “greatest instrument” spoken of in the quote.

Since taking Honors Intro to Literature, I’ve gained a strong sense of peace and a desire for a more peaceful world to live in, as a result of the lengthy unit we had on war. I’ve started to notice ways people can more civilly disagree, and I’ve started trying to be less argumentative in my own life as well.

In fact, some of the literature we studied themselves help illustrate how I’ve become more greatly good.  For example, in “I Am Not a Hero”, an unpublished personal memoir written by Myron Hatch, I read that “[War is terrible] and [its] prevention depends on our intelligent determination…the wicked have discovered the clever trick of destroying the valiant with their own virtue.” Hatch perfectly voiced my thoughts that our in-class discussions had sparked, which has helped persuade me to more peacefully and respectfully interact with other humans, whether I agree with them or not.

Both the positive and negative examples and experiences I’ve been able to have through these works of literature have helped me become more greatly good by helping show me the results of war, anger, and the poison of hate–things that I’ve become set on removing from my own life…and nowhere is it possible to have these kinds of experiences but by reading literature.

-Seth Wilding

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