How to Read Literature Like a Professor - 782 Words

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. All books are based on previous memories. Forster states, â€Å"There is no such thing as a wholly original work of literature.† To show this†¦show more content†¦Winter is more one sided with just punishment, lack of growth, and death. Along with all the seasons comes, geography. Fog and heat are most common in low places, along with swamps, fields, and crowds. Sno w and ice, things complete opposite from fog and heat are found in high places. The high places can cause illnesses like death and blindness. Blindness is metaphorical, being unable to see reality, love, trust, and many other things. Another illness related to love or symbolizing love is heart disease. Heart disease shows loneliness, disloyalty, cowardice, and bad love or heartbroken. Through Foster’s many rhetorical devices he provides a knowledgeable guide on how to read literature. The numerous examples he applies allows the readers to have a more thorough understanding. Reading this book can make the experience of reading other books more satisfying, enriching andShow MoreRelatedHow to Read Literature Like a Professor1408 Words   |  6 Pagesoriginal work of literature. All books borrow situations, ideas, and themes. -There’s only one story. â€Å"When a new work is created, it is set among the monuments, adding to and altering the order.† –T.S. Eliot -Intertextuality: the ongoing interaction between poems or stories. This link deepens reading, adding multiple levels of meaning to a work. Connections: -Sophie’s World by Jostein Gaarder: Through Sophie’s travels she meets characters from other works of literature, such as Alice inRead MoreHow To Read Literature Like A Professor Essay1020 Words   |  5 PagesJulia Hunnell Mrs. Mary Smith AP Literature 6 21 September 2017 What Are You Alluding To? In Thomas Foster’s book, â€Å"How to Read Literature Like a Professor,† readers learn how to look past the surface of a literary work to find a deeper or hidden meaning. Writers use devices, such as symbolism, imagery, foreshadowing, irony and allusion to reveal these meanings. If these are overlooked, important aspects of the story can be lost. One literary device that Foster emphasizes in his book is allusionRead MoreHow Does Read Literature Like A Professor1557 Words   |  7 PagesHow to Read Literature like a Professor Thomas C. Foster Entry 1 Foster discusses the idea that when two characters eat together, that moment acts as a bonding experience and causes the characters to come together. I had never noticed the significance of a meal between characters before. After reading this chapter, I can think of so many moments in stories when the characters share a meal together to form friendships or come to a peace. In one of my favorite novels, Nineteen Minutes by Jodi PicoultRead MoreHow Does Read Literature Like A Professor1814 Words   |  8 PagesHow To Read Literature Like a Professor By Thomas C. Foster 1. Chapter 1- Every Trip Is A Quest (Except When It’s Not) a. The five aspects of the quest are the quester, a place to go, a stated reason to go there, challenges and trials on the way, and the real reason to go there. When I read The Secret Life Of the Bees the quester was Lily, she was looking to go to Tiburon to find out more information about her mother and the past. On her journey she runs away from her father, falls in love, andRead MoreHow I Read Literature Like A Professor Essay1141 Words   |  5 PagesBrylan Beard Mrs. Mary Smith Ap Literature 20 September 2017 How to Read Literature like a Professor Essay This essay will be about the analyzing of literary devices that are discussed in this book. The professor in the book thoroughly describes these devices and the allusions and symbols that are involved in literature over the centuries. I will be discussing the specifics of the allusions and symbols of the bible and the Christ like figures in literature. The first device I will be describingRead MoreEssay about How to Read Literature Like a Professor1562 Words   |  7 PagesHow to Read Literature Like a Professor by Thomas C. Foster Chapter Reflections Introduction: How’d He Do That? * How do memory, symbol, and pattern affect the reading of literature? How does the recognition of patterns make it easier to read complicated literature? Discuss a time when your appreciation of a literary work was enhanced by understanding symbol or pattern. * When reading literature: memory, symbol, and pattern help you understand the text better. If you don’t comprehendRead MoreHow I Read Literature Like A Professor Notes3177 Words   |  13 PagesKaylee Brooks How To Read Literature Like A Professor Notes Introduction: †¢ Archetypes- Spring (youth, renewal, rebirth, fertility) †¢ Comedic Traits- hero fights their own demons and becomes victorious/ downfall is threatened but avoided †¢ WHAT TO LOOK FOR- o Patterns o Interpretive opinions o Resemblance to previous works o Symbols Chapter 1- The Quest †¢ Always a quest (knight, dangerous road, Holy Grail, dragon, evil knight, and princess) †¢ Always a quester †¢ A set destination †¢ A stated reasonRead MoreHow to Read Literature Like a Professor Outline Essay3160 Words   |  13 PagesHow To Read Literature Like a Professor Outline Chapter 1 – Every Trip Is a Quest (Except When It’s Not) Main Ideas: To have a quest, a novel must have A knight A dangerous path A holy grail An evil knight A dragon A princess The quest is always educational and provides knowledge of ones self Chapter 2 – Nice To Eat With You: Acts of Communion Main Ideas: It is a communion â€Å"Whenever people eat or drink together...† Breaking bread together is an act of sharing and peace Read MoreLife of Pi Analysis with How to Read Literature Like a Professor1656 Words   |  7 PagesLife of Pi Analysis With How to Read Literature Like a Professor 1. Chapter 12: Is That a Symbol? A. Example one In the early stages of Life of Pi, Martel mentions a place that Pi and Ravi had gone to visit while on vacation. While looking aimlessly through the window, they noticed three hills. On top of one hill was a catholic church, another a Hindu temple, and the other a Muslim mosque. Each hill portrays each of the religions in Pi’s complex faith. The hills represent Pi’s strugglesRead MoreHow Does Read Literature Like A Professor Chapter Responses1720 Words   |  7 PagesHow to Read Literature Like a Professor Chapter Responses Introduction: How’d He Do That? The recognition of patterns makes it much easier to read complicated literature because recognizing patterns will help you relate two or more pieces of literature together, therefore making it easier to understand and analyze the literature you are focused on. Patterns in literature can help the reader understand plots, settings, themes, and other literary elements. I greatly appreciated the novel, Brave New