Thomas Foster's How To Read Literature Like A Professor

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.

“Sometimes the really scary bloodsuckers are entirely human” (Foster 18). In How To Read Literature Like a Professor, Foster argues that vampires in literature are not always actual vampires, but can be figurative as well: “Using other people to get what we want. Placing our desires above the needs of others...as long as people act toward their fellows in exploitative and selfish ways, the vampire will be” (Foster 22). In essence, Foster illustrates that the act of using others to attain one’s personal goal is analogous to a vampire sucking the blood out of it’s victim. Foer’s protagonist in Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close, Oskar, also shows these vampiric tendencies in his goal of learning about his father’s key. “‘Actually, I’m diabetic

How to Read Literature Like a Professor: A Lively and Entertaining Guide to Reading Between the Lines by Thomas C. Foster is a book that explains there is more to literature than just a few words on a paper or a few pages in a book. Thomas Foster’s book portrays a relatable message to a wide based audience. This book is relatable for two reasons, the way it is written and the examples it uses. The book is written in a conversational manner, as if the reader was in a group discussion about books and writing. As for the examples, they are informative, descriptive, relative, and entertaining.

Thomas C. Foster’s book, How to Read Literature Like a Professor, tackles the process of uncovering the underlying complexities and symbols that authors incorporate into their literary works. In its most lucid form, Foster’s message is that, when reading a work of literary merit, anything you may postulate has a deeper meaning most likely does, since skilled authors do not include items and occurrences just to include them. The dystopian literature novels 1984, Animal Farm, and Brave New World follow this trend as they interpolate different motifs with deeper political and symbolic context; however, Foster’s statements do not only apply to written literature. The movie V For Vendetta, released in 2005, connects to How to Read Literature Like

Think of a work of literature that reflects a fairy tale. Discuss the parallels. How does it create irony or deepen appreciation?

In “How to Read Literature Like a Professor” by Thomas C. Foster there are three new concepts I took and analyzed at a deeper level when reading “Crime and Punishment” by Fyodor Dostoyevsky. Foster tells us that in stories drownings or deaths that take place in water is serving a purpose whether it is to help the theme development, failure, guilt, or plot complication. In Crime and Punishment after Raskolnikov has committed the murder of his land lady. He begins to have suicidal thoughts of jumping off the bridge into the river. However, this idea does die quickly when a women standing right next to him decides to jump off the bridge. As he sees what has taken place he quickly snaps out of his guilt driven thoughts and the matter never comes up again. The water represents baptism. If ,Rasolnikov would've thrown himself into the river it would symbolize as a baptism to cleanse all his

In chapter one of “How to Read Literature like a Professor” by Foster, we learn the key elements of a quest. Structurally a quest consists of (a) a quester, (b) a place to go, (c) a stated reason to go there, (d) challenges and trials experienced on the way, and (e) a real reason to go there. According to Foster (pg 3), “The real reason for a quest never involves the stated reason”. The real reason for a quest is self-knowledge, which is why most questers are sheltered, immature, inexperienced, and young. We find this to be true in “Varjak Paw” by S.F Said and Dave McKean. Varjak Paw is a young Mesopotamian dark blue cat who is forced from his home into the streets in order to find a dog to aid him in saving his family. However in literature

Thomas Foster is an American novelist who has been writing many pieces of literature every since graduating the University of Michigan-Flint in 1975. Thomas Foster wrote the book How To Read Literature Like a Professor in 2003, a how-to book written in second person tells readers how to identify commonly and frequently used elements in literature. Foster has many chapters in this book about different trends and styles embedded into literature, and where you can expect to find these different trends and styles. Veronica Roth’s book, Insurgent, connects to Thomas Foster's How To Read Literature Like a Professor through the main character, Tris. In Insurgent, readers might identify the similarities Tris has with other characters, the importance

nterludes: • “Does He Mean That?”- I am confused with this interlude. Foster seems to skip from thing to thing without any real point or plan going on. He is first talking about how authors intentionally incorporate all the work they allude to and all the symbols they use. He then goes on to talk about how writers write for their intended audience; how they parallel something the reader is already familiar with. Next, mid-paragraph, he begins explaining the time he’s spent writing these few pages, he tells the readers of his stumbling over writing this piece. To finish off the chapter he discusses lateral thinking and how it can only be acquired with time and practice.

Markus Zusak’s Novel The Book Thief is about a little girl whose brother died and is given to a foster family during around the time of the Holocaust/persecution of Jews. Throughout The Book Thief symbolism is shown through many objects to signify there importance and impact on the character(s). In The Book Thief symbolism is shown through many objects such as The Accordion and books that Liesel reads.

The thrilling story of The Book Thief by Markus Zusak contains intrigue, a bit of romance and some mystery. This book is considered a contemporary classic because it is loved by many people and can stand the test of time. This New York Times bestseller is about a young girl named Liesel who lives in Nazi Germany and loves books from a young age. She is on the way to Munich with her mother and brother to meet foster parents because her mother is unable to care for them. The brother dies on the train and they’re forced to exit the train to bury him.

Book Thief Analysis Essay The award winning book by Markus Zusak “The Book Thief” is a book about an adopted girl named Liesel who finds a book called ‘The Grave Digger’s Handbook’ which soons changes her whole life before she knows it. Liesel soon discovers the power of words after she meets Max Vandenburg a Jew her foster parents Hans and Rosa hid in their basement. “The Book Thief” is set in the time of Germany where the Nazis is in control of Germany. Markus Zusak, author of “The Book Thief’ uses character and structure to convey the theme of the power of words.

“The Book Thief” is a novel written by Markus Zusak. The story follows a nine-year-old girl named Liesel Meminger as she adapts to her new home in Molching, Germany during World War II. She is forced to live with a foster family, the Hubermanns, after the death of her brother and the separation from her mother. During the time at her new home, Liesel falls in love with books, resulting in her decision to steal several. Also, despite the dangers of harbouring a Jew in Nazi Germany, she decides to hide one in their basement. Throughout the story, Liesel’s friends and family help her overcome difficulties and find her identity. The people who have impacted Liesel’s character the most are her foster father Hans Hubermann, Rudy Steiner and the

If you believe in yourself and have dedication, pride, and never quit, you will be successful. Markus Zusak, the author of The Book Thief, creates a story of a young orphan named Liesel Meminger, who is living with her new foster family. She learns the wonders of reading from her foster father and grows to love books. During Liesel’s time with her new family, she shows determination through her efforts and kindness with her encounters with other people. Liesel in The Book Thief expresses her traits, such as hardworking, and bravery.

When the idea of a thief comes to mind one does not think of a book thief, but that is the description of Liesel Meminger. Set during Nazi Germany in World War II, political unrest is shown throughout Markus Zusak’s novel, “The Book Thief”. It is during this time that books are banned and burned in Nazi Germany under the direction of Adolf Hitler to suppress freethinking and ideas. Books are important to Liesel for numerous reasons. Liesel is compassionate, simple, and forgiving in her quest to acquire knowledge through books and survive the home front of World War II.