Humanism as Reflected in Literature

இலக்கியங்கள் உணர்த்தும் மனிதநேயம்

Abstract

Humanity and compassion together form the essence of humanism. The qualities of humanism can be classified as love, kindness, and mercy. Showing love and care towards fellow human beings is what we call humanism. At its core, humanism places great emphasis on compassion—love that expresses itself through sympathy for another living being.

As Valluvar says, “Life itself is sustained by love,” and Vallalperuman declared, “Whenever I saw a withering crop, I withered too.” Such words highlight the importance of humanism. It is not only about love between human beings, but also about the love and compassion that man extends toward all living beings.

From Sangam literature to modern writings, Tamil literary tradition consistently illustrates humanism through the path of love. In today’s world, as human beings often lose sight of ethics and compassion due to changing times, this paper—Humanism as Reflected in Literature—seeks to bring to light the humanitarian values embedded in Tamil literature.