sentence, literature, style, art, decoration, figures, plan, literary radical (no. 67)
文 centers on patterned expression: writing, literature, and style, but also decorative art and figures. The radical sense is the same visible pattern used as a component in other characters.
culture; civilization; civilisation
letter (of an alphabet); character
sentence
letter; note; mail
order (for an item)
writing; composition; essay; article; passage; prose; (writing) style
complaint; grumbling; objection
document; writing; letter; papers; notes; records; archives
thesis; essay; treatise; paper; article
library; book collection
civilization; civilisation; culture
literature
text (of a book, document, etc.); body (of a letter)
English writing; English sentence; English text
literally; to the letter
grammar
literature; books (reference); document
cultural assets; cultural property
humanities, social sciences, and fine arts; liberal arts
humanities and social sciences; liberal arts
writing (an essay, prose, etc.); composition
straw-rope pattern pressed into earthenware
whole passage; full text; whole sentence; full paragraph
Ministry of Education, Science and Culture (1871-2001)
文 is a pictograph of a pattern or design, originally showing crossed lines or a tattoo-like mark. It came to mean writing, literature, and decoration.
The crossed strokes of 文 look like a decorative pattern or a written character. Picture it as a stylized design that represents both art and writing.
For ブン, imagine a bun decorated with intricate patterns: bun -> ブン, and the bun's design is a work of art.