Abstract: There has been a lengthy debate among the ELT professionals and practitioners over the use of literature in English Language Teaching (ELT). Much of this debate centers around the legitimacy of literatureas a vehicle throughwhich a foreign language can be taught.This paper first elaborates on a brief history of the use of literature in ELT. Then, it elucidates the merits of the integration of literature in EFL classes. And finally, the author of the paper adds a new merit to the use of literature in ELT from a sociopolitical perspective in which the appropriateness of literature as an effective instrument to incorporate critical pedagogy into EFL classes is taken into account.