Ehren Lewis
Mrs. Mary Smith
Ap literature
20 September 2017
Analysis of Symbolism in”How to Read Literature Like a Professor” “How to read Literature like a Professor” by Thomas C. Foster is a very helpful book that goes over multiple literary strategies on how to read literature like a professor or someone with his literary skill. . With all of these literary strategies, symbolism is one that recurs frequently the throughout the entire book. Foster’s use of different techniques of symbolism help the reader understand different meanings behind what writers say. These techniques that Foster uses weather, from rain to fog, and the seasons. Weather and seasons are an amazing example of symbolism in literary works. In chapter 9, It’s
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Cleansing rain can symbolize a change in someone. This change can be symbolized as a mental awakening or change in a characteristic, big or small. Changes can include the way someone sees themself or society. Liekt the lady in “Song of Solomon”, her cleansing rain washed away her false ideal of beauty and left behind what beauty truly was. Cleansing rain can also symbolize becoming “stained”, or having a negative change in a characteristic. This is through cleansing rain making a puddle of mud created from this rain. Fog is also an event in weather that is symbolized. Fog symbolizes confusion or a clouded mind. Characters may say that they have a foggy memory, meaning they don 't remember something that previously happened. Fog can also confusion. This is seen through Scooby Doo, since a lot of the mysterious places that their gang visits re clouded by fog, symbolizing the mysteriousness in where their location. Floods and rain aren’t the only thing that is symbolized in weather, seasons also play an important role when trying to symbolize a literary piece. In chapter 20, … So Does Seasons, Foster talks about seasons and what they symbolize. To summarize, spring represents new life. Spring symbolizes youth and childhood. Summer represents adulthood, romance, fulfillment, etc… Autumn represents decline, middle age, and tiredness. Winter represent old age, death, and resentment. “Beauty and The Beast” shows what
Weather demonstrates the boys’ declination into savagery. Rain only occurs a few times throughout the novel, one being Simon’s death.
1. In chapter eleven of his book How to Read Literature Like a Professor, Thomas Foster examines violence in literature, and particularly the way violence functions on multiple levels. Foster identifies two different kinds of violence in literature, and discusses how those two different kinds create different literal and literary meanings. By examining Foster's categories of violence in more detail, one can see how violence in literature serves as an important link between the internal events of a story and the story itself.
The use of symbols sets the tone of the piece. She personifies the rain in, “But the rain/ Is full of ghosts tonight, that tap and
Foster’s insights about seasons and weather in literature change the story’s interpretation by clarifying their purposes. Foster’s main idea in the chapter It’s More Than Just Rain or Snow is weather always has a purpose; for example, rain, which has an “association with Spring,” can allow a “character to be cleansed symbolically” and “can bring the world back to life.” This insight is clear in the short story as outside Mrs.Mallard’s room the “trees were all aquiver with the new spring life” and “the delicious breath of rain was in the air.” The rain and spring weather may be dismissed as merely setting, but Foster’s insights allow the deeper meaning behind the inclusion of rain and spring to be clarified. The rain and spring show how Mrs.Mallard was cleansed
The language Bradford uses in his excerpt is very effective towards his audience as in the use of pathos and different point of views. The main reason and purpose for his whole writing is to tell the history of the plymouth plantation, and the daily struggles of the pilgrims. With this said it could be concluded that the point of view of Bradford could be affected or altered. The point of view in this excerpt is first person which is told on the view of Bradford himself. He himself sees what is happening from his perspective which would make his writing more thorough and accurate. Since his writing would be more detailed it affects the audience differently as his point of view is now broader and give the audience a sense of current situation.
The actions that Matsu does for Stephen, another pivotal character in the story, stand for their growing bond. The symbolism helps the reader understand the reason behind the actions and how it affects the story. This, consequently, enriches the analysis of the story. Symbols in the story also intensify the situations in the story. The weather in the story is a symbol for the events that happen in the story, and knowledge of the nature of the upcoming situations makes the situations enhanced. Tsukiyama’s use of symbolism enriches the characters, their situations, and the interpretations of the story.
In the twelfth chapter of Thomas C. Foster’s How to Read Literature Like a Professor, Foster provides various information on how to identify symbols throughout literature. The chapter stressed the individuality of identifying symbols, Foster mentions multiple times that “every reader’s experience of every work is unique, largely because each person will emphasize various elements to different degrees” (110). After learning this and also having read Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safran Foer, one thing that stood out was that the main character, Oskar, only has and only wears white clothes. Not only does Oskar often reference his various white clothes, including the white scarf that Grandma knitted
Authors tend to get very political in between the lines of their stories. In “How to Read Literature Like a Professor,” by Thomas C. Foster, there is a chapter that discusses about how almost every author gets political with their writing. “Nearly all writing is political on some level.” (“How to Read Literature Like a Professor” 118.) “Animal Farm,” “Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass: An American Slave,” and “Nature” are some examples that’ll be used to prove this point.
Every character that travels down a path, that encounters obstacles on their journey, that makes sacrificial decisions faces each of these components as they undertake a life-altering quest. Often times the hero ventures out to save someone or solve a problem, but in fact, their true journey is a search for self-knowledge. Through every obstacle and road-block along the way, the character discovers more about themselves and their true identity. Though they may have journeyed across great lands to accomplish their mission, the thing they were searching for was inside of them all along; the journey and challenges only helped to reveal their real character. As explained in Thomas C. Foster’s literary criticism, How to Read Literature Like a Professor,
In the skillful novel, "How To Read Literature Like A Professor" by Thomas C. Foster, there is neither a protagonist nor antagonist. As a whole, the novel gives insights on how to pick up signs of symbolism, irony, and many other hidden details that are buried within the words of literature. Foster refers to many classis novels by classic authors to demonstrate the use of logic in writing. The novel is extremely educational, leaving many insightful questions and interpretations to the reader's opinion.
Weather is a symbol that is in many pieces fro all different genres whith different symbolic menings. The symbolism that f. Asott Fitzgerold was udsed in the novel The great gastby describes change in everything. There are 4 seasn with each unique weather that symbolizes time and the societys change. Weather in The Great Gatsby symbolizes everything and evryonee. Fitzgerad uses the
You’re coming home from one of the worst dates of your life. It was just you and your date at a high end restaurant. Your date asked you “Have you ever read Shakespeare?”. You pondered and said “No, I have not.”. Your date got up and left you sitting there at the booth, alone, by yourself. Such as Michael Mack, a professor at the CUA, has stated, “Read Shakespeare and spare yourself a world of bad dates.” What DOES Mack mean by saying this, though? In his speech, “Why Read Shakespeare?” he delves into why exactly a regular person like you or I should read Shakespeare at all. Through his use of counterclaims and rhetorical devices, Mack constructs an effective argument stating that though Shakespeare is hard work, it’s worth the effort.
Weather affects the lives of everyone. When the weather turns foul, it makes life more difficult. Stormy weather in Tony's dreams represents the conflict in his life, and the lives of those
J.D. Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye presents a look into the mind of Holden Caulfield, a popular literary icon numerous teenagers have rightfully found themselves relating to at some point. While the familiar emotions of Holden were welcoming for me, his anecdotes and witty remarks proved entertaining as well. The story chronicles Holden’s exploration through New York post-expulsion, with his point of view influenced by his growing alienation with the world. He represents that growing sense of unease at growing up and facing a reality that is not always pretty, and, in his case, a need to save children from having to face that reality. I personally admired the fact that he was not just an angry teenager in the world as stereotypes suggest.
The overall themes found in this excerpt of the text are deception, impending doom, and death. This is displayed all throughout this reading by various symbols and actions by the characters. A few main symbols that contribute to the portrayal of these three themes are the Purple Flask, Lydia’s dress, Lydia’s demeanor, and even the way Midwinter faints when he first encounters Lydia upon returning to England. By using these symbols, there is a certain aspect of foreshadowing that hints and forthcoming death within the story.