IntroductionLanguage is the blood of every culture, tradition and society. It plays a vital role in establishing social relationships through effective communication and interactions and provides identity in a society. The absence of this can only be felt by people with speech or hearing disabilities who participate but only partially in social interactions. In India, we have English as a common language which bridges this gap. The Indian government has structured the curricula to include and teach English from primary level onwards, but some states are still reluctant to adopt English at primary level. Other states have introduced the teaching of English at all levels. To facilitate learning and understanding, literatures related to people and societies can be used to teach English. Therefore, the author theoretically examines, in the Indian context, the place of literature in the teaching and understanding of English as a second language. The conceptual issues related to learning ESL, an overview of the problems of English language learning in India, learning English through literature and the benefits of using literature to teach English are discussed in the consequent paragraphs . Conceptual issues To be able to learn and understand, we basically have two concepts: the concept of language and that of literature. To have a clearer understanding, let us know the few definitions. Language is generally defined as a system of communication through written or spoken words, used by people of a particular country or area. There are different types of languages, including first language (mother tongue), second language, body language, modern language, etc. But in this article, the purpose of the study is to learn... middle of paper.... ..and in students.Works CitedAdesuyi, V.A., 1991. Relationship between students' exposure to English literature and English language performance WASC among secondary school students in Ondo State.An unpublished master's thesis, University of Nigeria.Corbin, F, 1996. Poetry and the harsh reality. College English 27 (5), 341-346.Lado, R, 1964. Language teaching: a scientific approach. McGraw-Hill-Inc. 1st edition. Library of Congress, New York, pp. 239. Onukaogu, C.E. 1999. Effective and efficient ESL and literacy literature in Nigeria's native language: Can English be a catalyst? Language Culture and Curriculum, 12(2), 143-155.Sivasubramaniam S, 2006. Promoting the prevalence of literature in foreign and second language education practice: Issues and insights in English language teaching and research articles. EFL Asian J, 8(4):11. http://www.asian-efl-journal.com./Dec 2006.