How does How To Read Literature Like A Professor applies to every piece of literature? This novel is written by Thomas Foster and he gives the better understanding on many things, including patterns, symbols, and other literary devices. He helps the reader to gain knowledge on how to recognize each small detail of the story. This novel makes the connection with The Scarlet Letter and makes it easier to comprehend. The Scarlet Letter is written by Nathaniel Hawthorne; this novel is about Hester Prynne, who is a young and beautiful woman and committed adultery with town’s minister, Reverend Dimmesdale.
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 beginning of Chapter ¬15 of How To Read Literature Like A Professor, Thomas C. Foster first introduces the very known fact that humans cannot fly. So if a human is able to in a piece of literature, it belongs to the categories he lists later on. However, the categorization is an superficial analyzation of flying. He introduces the history of flying and how humans have strived to defied the laws of gravity forever. Foster analyzes Morrison’s Song of Solomon and explain how when Solomon flew off to Africa it is an act of returning “home” and “casting off the chains of slavery on one level”(Foster 92).
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 “When the Emperor Was Divine” by Julie Otsuka, imagery, symbolism, and emotional content are used to show how much the narrator loves his father, what he is thinking about the situation, and the things that they’ve lost and how people should be treated with respect. Symbolism is see in the very beginning of the story. It is used to foreshadow what is to come for the family. There is talk about darkness in the first passage. His father’s shoes are black Oxfords.
In Thomas C. Foster's How To Read Literature Like a Professor, he describes the setup of the adventure of the protagonist, dividing it into five parts: Our quester, a place to go, a stated reason to there, challenges and trials, and the real reason to go. A protagonist must experience all of these things in order to accomplish their goals and learn their lessons. In The Secret Life of Bees, Lily Owens, the main character, must encounter these things in order to unlock the mystery of what really happened to her mother the night she was killed, in addition to learning about the passion of writing and telling stories, the dangers and foolishness of racism, and female power. Our quester, Lily, is a fourteen year old girl with a passion for writing.
Images of rain invoke the idea of tears, as does the phrase “an interrupted cry.” It is dark in the poem not only because it is night but also because the speaker has “outwalked the furthest city light.” The speaker is engulfed by their overwhelming sadness, symbolized by the dark night in which they walk, and they have turned away from the light --the happiness-- of the city. It is bitterly ironic that, even in the city, Frost’s speaker is utterly alone. They even hear and see other people, yet they know that everyone else is totally disconnected from their solitary
In How to Read Literature Like a Professor, Thomas C. Foster teaches readers the meanings behind commonly used symbols, themes, and motifs. Many readers of all ages use this book as a guide to understanding messages and deeper meanings hidden in novels. The deeper literary meanings of various symbols in Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale are explained in How to Read Literature Like a Professor. By using Foster’s book, readers can better understand the symbols in The Handmaid’s Tale.
As Stated by the author of How to Read Literature Like a Professor For Kids, by Thomas Foster, authors use certain varieties of weather conditions in order to set a mood in the story that’s relevant to the scenario present. Foster explains this action as saying, “But an author doesn't have a quick shower of rain, or a flurry or snow, or a flood or a blizzard, for no reason at all (Foster, 59).” What the author is trying to remark is that authors don't put unnecessary weather unless it contributes to the plot or the mood, sometimes even using it as means of ivory. One example of weather being used in the movie clip from Toy Story is rain. The rain didn't start until Sid was just about the release a rocket outside with Buzz attached, which
Symbols 1. Symbols add to the magical appeal of the story because they enhance the understanding. The symbolization of the storm in the story shows the change from reality to magically. The wings of the old man are also a symbol is the story. Wings typically represent limitless freedom of motion and are magical however the wings of the old man limit him, they appear too fragile and old like the man giving them a real aspect.
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.
The fog is a symbol for corruption of the future generation. While “we”, the adults, are sleeping, meaning being unaware and ignorant of what’s happening; the children are getting corrupted by the fog of social media and peer pressure. Fog is used to represent corruption because people get lost and disoriented in heavy fog and it is often portrayed as an ominous entity in film making and narratives. This all leads back to the main point of the world becoming corrupt and needing to be led into the next era; to do this, mapmakers have to step up and guide humanity. Another example of the corruption of modern society is the line “Our forgetfulness stalks us, walks the earth behind us, leav-/ing a trial of paper diapers, needles, and wasted blood” (Harjo 22-23).
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.
Art is way of expression. People can use actions and art or express themselves in ways other than speaking. In the book Speak, by Laurie Halse Anderson, symbolism holds a big significance. The trees mentioned throughout the book symbolize Melinda’s changing “seasons” (her “growing” as a person). People, like trees, go through phases, they freeze in the winter, becoming nothing but lonely limbs without leaves covered with white slush.
