How To Read Literature Like A Professor By Thomas C. Foster

Justin Clinkscales

Mrs. Mary Smith

AP-EngLit

19 September 2017 How to Read Literature Like a Professor

How to Read Literature Like a Professor, is a novel written by Thomas C. Foster for the sole purpose of Literary criticism. Foster covers a whole slew of literary devices, most notably symbolism, themes, motifs and tone. This novel is very much the breaking down of the blueprint that literature had taken on much earlier on in its existence, the novel contains many allusions towards Shakespeare, Greek Mythology, and even the Bible. As the title of the novel would suggest, it is essentially a deeper insight into reading and interpreting modern and classic literature like a professor. This novel is one that definitely develops

Examples of this plot device include: Deformities (Which only carry significance in Literature), Seasons, Rain, Snow, etc. Deformities include Scars, a missing limb, and any other ailment that presents itself prominently on a given character. Often in stories if a character has a scar over his/her eye, it can indicate whether or not they're a villain or they had a mysterious/troubled past. A missing limb could mean that the characters been through a lot, that he/she is worn down, battered by whatever caused them to lose their arm or leg. A missing eye is in the same vein as a facial scar (especially with an eyepatch), it too can indicate a mysterious past or immediately announce the character as a bad guy. Rain is another Important topic within symbolism, in most stories rain can mean the Cleansing of a character, (similar to a baptism) but it can also mean the opposite. If it's raining in a story and the ground is muddy and the character slips and falls into it, that may very well be a metaphor for the characters problems catching up to them in a humiliating

Flowers in bloom and bright colors always seem to represent Spring, a metaphorical time of birth/re-birth, Spring is one of the more favorable seasons. Grey skies, a cold breeze, and brown leaves are associated with Winter, a very gloomy and depressing season. One example of Winter being used in a form of Literature is in the song "California Dreamin" by The Mamas & The Papas the prime lyric being: "All the leaves are brown", "and the sky is grey"," I've been for a walk", "on a Winter's day" (Mamas & The Papas, California Dreamin') and so on. In literature, a character drowning is an indication of a re-birth, their life flashes before their eyes, they see god or what have you. If they come back from this experience alive they are a permanently changed person although more likely than not,