Analysis: Compare chapter 2:How to Read Literature Like a Professor-“Nice to Eat with You: Acts of Communion” to part two(chapter 11) of The Fountainhead. At the beginning of chapter 11 of The Fountainhead, it is December and the opening of one main building, the Cosmo-Slotnick building. Toohey wants to celebrate this occasion so he takes Keating out for dinner. Foster stated in How to Read Lliterature like a Professor, “Whenever people eat or drink together its communion (8).” Communion is the sharing or exchanging intimate thoughts or feelings.
By reading “How to Read Literature like a Professor” and “The Kite Runner”, the reader is aided in his or her ability to understand the true meanings behind the text. One is able to decipher how the act of coming together to eat can mean anything from a simple meal with family, to an uncomfortable situation that leads to anger or stress in an individual character. The reader is able to understand the use of rain or other weather in a novel to transform the mood and tone of scene, or understand the cleansing or destructive qualities that weather may have on the overall plot of the story. The use of illness can be transformed, as it can lead to the reader discovering veiled means behind tuberculosis, cholera, a simple cold, or even cancers such
In the book How to Read Literature like a Professor by Thomas C. Foster, the first chapter illustrates the elements and ideas of quests in literature. Foster starts off the chapter with a hypothetical story where an average sixteen year old boy named Kip goes to the A&P, a local super market, to buy a loaf of Wonder Bread. Along the way, Kip unpleasantly encounters a German shepherd but meets Karen, the girl of his dreams, laughing with Tony Vauxhall in his ‘68’ Cuba. Kip continues to search for the bread in the store, but he is disturbed by a marine asking him to join the Navy. The story is immediately paused, and Foster analytically explains how Kip’s trip to the A&P was actually a quest.
Thomas Foster, a professor at the University of Michigan, taught literature and writing. He was born in West Cornfield, Ohio, and living in such a small town caused him to become very associated with books. In 2003, Foster published a book, How to Read Literature like a Professor, written in second person. The book is written as a guide for readers to know the parts of nonfiction books. It teaches young readers how to include important elements into their stories.
How to Read Literature Like a Professor is a book that shows numerous ways and strategies to understand what their reading. Each chapter shows examples from books and use of literary devices that can help develop the meaning of the story. Think of this book as reading between the lines. In The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald used people to symbolize objects or things to let the reader have an interpretation on the characters. For example, the green light represents Gatsby's future for him and Daisy to be together.
In the book, How to Read Literature Like a Professor, by Thomas Foster, in chapter 13 he talks about how each story can be interpreted as being political. This addresses social and political problems in the world. He used many examples of different stories to express each one of his points further. Firstly he pitches his thoughts on how A Christmas Carol is actually political.
Reading fiction leads to increased empathy, which suggests to me that it’s more important than ever to make sure books with diverse
Every journey begins with one simple step. In Thomas Foster's, How to Read Literature Like a Professor, the first chapter Every Trip Is a Quest (Except for when it’s not), he explains that almost all stories have a quest, be it given or underlying. Each quest contains a quester, a place to go, a stated reason to go there, challenges they face, and the real reason to go (Foster 3). In Foster’s other book, Reading the Silver Screen, it shows the purpose behind their stories and the message behind the film by laying the rules down. Toy Story is a film that represents a journey through many different aspects that Foster has given.
Science has proven that reading can provoke positive changes in us as human beings. Annie Murphy Paul is the author of the article ‘Your Brain on Fiction’ published on March 17, 2012. Annie explains how researchers have discovered that reading can initiate different parts of the brain, this is the reason why sometimes literature can make the reader so engaged and attached to a piece of writing. Research also explains how reading has the ability to produce activity in our brain’s motor cortex. Finally, Annie explains how reading fictional pieces can change how you interact with other individuals.
“The ideal that every US citizen should have an equal opportunity to achieve success and prosperity through hard work, determination, and initiative.” This quote directly represents and defines what the American Dream is - and that is the dream of achieving a your goals and becoming successful in a legitimate way. And by using this reason one can deduct that Jay Gatsby did not infact achieve the American Dream. He may have been rich, but that is not all to the American Dream. To achieve the American Dream you must accomplish all your goals in life and he did not do that.
As the digital age comes upon us, more and more Americans become dissatisfied with the state of literacy in this generation. Because the Internet paves the way for shorter and shorter interactions, namely articles versus novels and six-second viral videos versus films, many people that grew up in the age of the Internet have a preference for this condensed form of entertainment. Dana Gioia of The New York Times asserts in his essay “Why Literature Matters” that the decline of reading in America is destined to have a negative impact on society as a whole. Gioia opens his essay with a bittersweet account of which trend is occurring in the twenty-first century America arts scene. He notes that as college attendance rates blossom, the interest
Annie Murphy Paul uses studies to back up her thesis. For example, she argues that people who often read fiction appear to be better able to understand other people, emphasize with them, and view the world from their perspective. " A 2010 study by Mar found a similar result in young children: the more more stories they had read to them, the keener their "theory of mind", or mental model of other people's intentions." Murphy also uses research to provide evidence that reading changes an individual.
When comparing How To Read Literature Like A Professor and To Kill A Mockingbird, many’s first thoughts lead to symbolism. As Thomas C. Foster wrote much of How to Read Literature Like A Professor about symbolism, To Kill A Mockingbird is one huge symbol, including the title itself. By that, I mean that the mockingbird is the overall universal face of this timeless novel, portraying innocence. This theme of innocence is made evident in many instances in the novel by making many characters into that same mockingbird in a way, including the dog, Boo Radley, and Mrs. Dubose herself. However, this theme also includes the innocence of that mockingbird being stolen.
How to Read Literature Like a professor chapter1 In the first chapter of How to Read Literature Like a professor author Thomas C. Foster discusses how almost every story has some type of quest, the title of chapter is “ Every Trip Is a Quest (Except When It’s Not)” he clearly alludes to the fact that the chapter is about the quest aspect of a story and its significance. As the chapter developed Foster began to cover the essentials of a quest and the purpose behind a quest, according to him there are five significant aspects of a quest “(a) a quester, (b) a place to go, (c) a stated reason to go there, (d) challenges and trials en route, and (e) a real reason to go there. He then expands of each of these things.
Behind each movie lies the meaningful aspects and significant features worth noticing. All movies and books can be carefully examined and interpreted. Thomas C. Foster’s How to Read Literature Like a Professor provides a new view on interpreting literature. In the novel, Foster identifies and analyzes common patterns, themes, and motifs found in literature, many of which are also present in Disney’s film, Maleficent. This movie showcases several of his ideas, including quests, flight, geography, and symbolism.
