What is the difference between modern and traditional literature?

Answer 1

The phrase "traditional literature" is not a common one in English. Something which is traditional is some custom or way of doing things which is passed from generation to generation, getting slightly modified all the time, without a clearly defined author or fixed written form. Legendary materials, like the story of Robin Hood, might be described in this way. It could also be used to define what are called "urban legends" if they last long enough to become a tradition. These kinds of legend are arguably literature. The word "modern" means "at or near the present time", but that is a very vague and flexible description, often used comparatively. Thus the novels of Jane Austen are more modern than the Aeneid of Virgil, but less modern than The Great Gatsby, which in turn is less modern than the works of J.K. Rowling. It is clear that some traditional literature is more modern than some literature which is not traditional (such as the works of ancient writers like Virgil or Sophocles). Thus these two terms are not opposites; what we can say is that what makes a work of literature "modern" is WHEN it was created, but what makes it "traditional" is HOW it was created.

Answer 2

The phrase "traditional literature" is not a common one in English. Something which is traditional is some custom or way of doing things which is passed from generation to generation, getting slightly modified all the time, without a clearly defined author or fixed written form. Legendary materials, like the story of Robin Hood, might be described in this way. It could also be used to define what are called "urban legends" if they last long enough to become a tradition. These kinds of legend are arguably literature. The word "modern" means "at or near the present time", but that is a very vague and flexible description, often used comparatively. Thus the novels of Jane Austen are more modern than the Aeneid of Virgil, but less modern than The Great Gatsby, which in turn is less modern than the works of J.K. Rowling. It is clear that some traditional literature is more modern than some literature which is not traditional (such as the works of ancient writers like Virgil or Sophocles). Thus these two terms are not opposites; what we can say is that what makes a work of literature "modern" is WHEN it was created, but what makes it "traditional" is HOW it was created.