Great question JohnBee--why you chose me to answer it for you is a complete mystery sir, but I will surely take a crack at it for you. =) I am sure that anything I miss in my answer will be quickly pointed out by some of the other more distinguished literary giants here on the hubpages. Also please keep in mind that while I write this my three year old and five year old sons are home and I get sidetracked often so it may take me a month to actually finish this one as there is so much to be said. I actually feel like a MS. HUBPAGES contestant answering the million dollar question to win the crown. So, here it goes:

Literature can be very helpful to society provided it is studied, or applied in a positive manner, but it can be very detrimental to society if what is contained within it is used with malice. For this discussion I will be focusing on how literature is helpful to society. You may choose to take the opposing side, but I have been asked to give positive remarks here. I can think of no better way to illustrate the point of how literature can help society by discussing a project that I was very recently involved with that made a huge impact on society. The project was called THE BIG READ and it was implemented by The National Endowment for the Arts in conjunction with the Institute of Museum and Library Services and in cooperation with Arts Midwest. The project was developed as a result of a 2004 study by The NEA which revealed that "literary reading" in America was/is declining rapidly amoung all groups of people, but moreso at a disturbing rate among the young. The Big Read's purpose is to "provide citizens with the opportunity to read and discuss a single book. The study also found that people don't read the classics for enjoyment as much as they used to. This doesn't come as a surprise to me as there are so many magazines flooding the market and a mass explosion of new websites drawing the typical readers away from the great novels. The NEA decided that they wanted to get great works out there and read again so they developed and implemented the program throughout all of The United States. The program focused on quite a few of the classics: The Grapes of Wrath, The Joy Luck Club, Fahrenheit 451, The Great Gatsby, The Maltese Falcon, A Farewell to Arms, A Lesson Before Dying, and several others became the novels that the program would promote in this program throughout The United States. These were the novels that each state's programs were created around.

What they did: Each state had different outreach programs and events to offer. Communities pulled together to create different ways of showcasing the works and incorporated them into schools, organizations, and etc,... Thousands of copies of the books were given out, and The NEA (et al) called on the people of America to work with the texts in a way that would give back to their communities. Some towns held book clubs, some schools developed a team approach to teaching the novel by having students study science, history, math, and English related elements to the works. There were readings held at libraries, screenings of movie versions, poetry readings based upon the themes of the novels, plays, photography contests, poetry, playwriting, and story writing contests, and so much more, ALL OF WHICH WERE FREE to the public.

How I came to be involved in the program: Late one evening while browsing Craigslist I came across a call for scripts. I had never done anything like this before, but apparently I had been meant to click on it. The poster asked for one act plays that had one of three themes found in the novel To Kill a Mockingbird at their core: Racism, the struggle for young women to fit in and be accepted within society, and the choice between right and wrong and the struggle to understand the difference. I thought: "Hey I can do that". I chose to write about the female struggle along with the struggle to choose between right and wrong. I just made the deadline when I sent it, but I misspelled the web address and it came back to me! I asked to be reconsidered and they allowed me to send it again. Five days later I was informed that they would be producing my play in Rhode Island along with plays by two other prize winning play writes. The rest is history. The three plays would be the culmination of a months worth of other events that took place in Rhode Island such as discussion forums, school events, photography and art programs, and other events that focused on the novel and its three themes. I greatly anticpated my place in this very worth while program and with good reason-it truly was a wonderful experience for all. It was remarkable how so many people came together and put all of this together and received absolutely nothing in return but the feeling that we had made a difference in society. Everyone involved in the Rhode Island presentation (which was called: Voices: In Search of Truth) were from New York City. The director, her husband, all of the actors, and all of the writers contributed our time, talents, and efforts for ZERO compensation. I can honestly say that all of us became an instant family and felt that every minute of hard work was worth the feeling that we brought such important subjects before the community. After the performances there was a "talk back" where the audience was able to interact with all of the actors, the writers, and the producers. We discussed the novel, the themes, the trials, and the triumphs of bringing new life to an old classic. There were young children, teens, and 20 to 80 somethings in the audience and we were all appreciating the same thing--universal themes that we can all learn from. It was such a wonderful feeling being part of such a worthwhile program.

So, how does literature contribute to society, you ask?

The wonderful thing about all of the novels that were chosen to be part of The Big Read Project is that each one has so much to offer to its reader. Whether it be a look at racism, the casualties of war, poverty, the class structures that exist, faith, or lack there of, death, immigration, censorship, survival, the past, the present, the future, love, and even hate, EVERY great piece of literature is didactic. There is always a lesson to be learned from each good novel. Whether we choose to learn that lesson is up to us, but the potential is ALWAYS there.