How to Read Like a Literature Professor

What things can "heart trouble" signify in literature?

"Heart trouble" in literature can signify that the character was suffering from loneliness, cruelty, disloyalty, cowardice, lack of determination, or anything that can affect the character emotions, including heart-break.

How is eating always mean communion in literature?

"breaking bread together is an act of sharing and peace, since if you're breaking bread you're not breaking heads."

If you come across a character flying in a piece of literature, they are one or more of the following:

- A superhero - A ski jumper - Crazy - Fictional - Part of a circus act, like departing out of a canon - Suspended on wires - An angel - Heavily symbolic

What are the questions readers should ask of the text when trying to determine symbolic meaning?

- What's the writer doing with this image, object, or act? - What possibilities are suggested by the movement of the narrative or the lyrics? - What does this image, object, or act feel like it's doing?

What are the five characteristics of the quest?

1. A quester (someone who goes on a quest) 2. A place for the quester to go somewhere and do something 3. A reason to go to the specified place (someone usually tells them) 4. Challenges and trials along the way there 5. A real reason, for self-knowledge, for the protagonist to go there (since he/she fails at the stated task)

What are the four great struggles of the human being?

1. Nature 2. With the divine 3. Other people 4. Ourselves

What are the "principles governing the use of disease in works of literature"?

1. Not all diseases are created equally 2. The disease should be picturesque, where it is not disgusting or unattractive in anyway 3. The disease should be mysterious 4. The disease should have strong symbolic or metaphorical possibilities

What are the essentials of the vampire story?

1. Someone old that represents corrupt values 2. A young, virginal female and taking away her youth 3. The continuance of the older man 4. The death of the young woman

What are the two categories of violence in literature? Describe and define each.

1. The first category of violence in literature is the act of characters displaying acts violence at one another. For example a character can murder, stab, strangle, hit, and poison another character to display violence. 2. The second category is where the author himself decides to kill off a character from natural causes, to advance the plot. Those natural causes can range from diseases to death by age.

What are the four reasons that authors kill off characters in literature?

1. To make action happen in the literary work 2. Cause plot complications 3. Also to end the plot complications 4. To put other characters in stress

What does a rainbow represent in literature?

A biblical image such as divine promise and peace between heaven and Earth.

Foster asserts that a character need not have all of the distinguishing characteristics of Jesus Christ in order to be considered a Christ figure in literature. Why? Explain.

A character does not need to have all the characteristics of Jesus Christ because if he was to have all the characteristics he would be Christ himself. If we want a character to be a Christ figure he should just have some of the characteristics that convey the fact he is a Christ figure instead of Christ.

Foster writes "When they're writing about other things, they really mean sex, and when they write about sex, they really mean something else." What are some of the other things that a sex scene can mean?

A sex scene varies in meaning from writer to writer, but overall can mean desire, temptation, freedom, pleasure, sacrifice, submission, rebellion, resignation, supplication, domination, and enlightenment.

What is Foster's point in regards to the primary meaning of a text vs. the secondary meaning?

As we got older we forgot to look for the primary meaning of the text, which is what the book is all about because we start looking for the secondary meaning. The secondary meaning is the extra depth added in the book to make sure the book is not lacking depth.

For what reason(s), do authors give characters deformities, scars or other physical markings in literature?

Authors give characters scars to show that the character had gone through something that really stuck to them from their past, whether the scar was physically or mentally. Characters are also given deformities to set them apart from the other characters, where the author wants to draw attention to the character with a deformity.

What are some of the things that baptism (or immersion in water) can mean in literature?

Baptism can mean that the character that was in water was reborn and got a new identity as a better person than before. The character's old self wasn't much appreciated or known, and when getting emerged into water the character was reborn as a better self.

Foster writes, "... to get the most out of your reading of European and American literature, knowing something about the Old and New Testaments is essential. Similarly, if you undertake to read literature from an Islamic or a Buddhist or a Hindu culture, you're going to need knowledge of other religious traditions." Why? Explain

Because without knowing the basics of Christianity, or any religion, it is not very easy to be able to identify Christ and Christ figures. Knowing which characters are Christ figures helps further understand the book, since Christ can be very important in literature and the Christ figures can represent anything besides just Christainity. It also helps identify biblical themes, plots, and symbols.

What do Biblical allusions do for a piece of literature?

Biblical allusions add numerous amounts of symbols, plots, figures, and themes that further bring out parts of the piece of literature for the reader to get a better understanding of a piece of literature. The Biblical allusions, seen as plots and themes, also help add emotion to the work of literature or just a paragraph. In some cases the added Biblical allusions makes the entire piece of literature religious, not just a few paragraphs.

What are some of the things that drowning can mean in literature?

Drowning can mean death, thematic development of violence or guilt, plot complication, and / or the character wants to escape because of all the suffering.

What are the symbolic meanings of the seasons?

Fall-- Decline, middle age, tiredness, but also includes harvest Winter-- Anger, old age, resentment, death, and hatred Summer-- adulthood, passion, romance, fulfillment, and love Spring-- childhood, and youth

What is figuration?

Figuration is types of figurative representations, such as symbols, metaphors, allegory, and imagery.

What does fog represent in literature?

Fog represents mystery, confusion, danger, and uncertainty.

How does Foster define "myth"?

Foster defines myths as body of a story that matters, where the story explains ourselves to ourselves in a way we did not think we could. It also that adds depth to the story.

Explain what Foster means by "don't read with your eyes"

Foster is trying to say that don't read with your own point of view of the modern world that is engraved in you, read openly trying to understand what the author wants to be said.

Explain what Foster means by "irony trumps everything."

Foster means that irony can end up being more dominant than anything else because of the additional layers of meaning can add to a literary work.

What does Foster mean by the assertion, "characters are not people"? How is this significant in literature?

Foster means that the characters are not totally based off of real people because they are made from the writers and the readers imagination. Even if the story is based off of a true story, the quotes didn't come directly from the person who lived through the historic situation; it had come from a close friend or relative of him / her. This is significant in literature because we cannot be able to relate to characters that do not exist, even though we may seem to be like them.

Foster defines irony like this: "What irony chiefly involves, then, is a deflection from expectation" Explain what he means by this.

Foster means that when irony comes into play, what we are usually expecting does not happen. Instead the opposite of what we were expecting happened.

What is the "big secret" Foster reveals in this chapter?

Foster reveals there is only one story since all writers and poets borrow from one another in small ways.

About what does Foster warn readers?

Foster warns readers that we shouldn't get caught up with the author's perspective depicted in his own writings. We should understand what the author is trying to say to get a better understanding of the book, but not pick up their thoughts and believe them.

Who does Foster accuse of teaching writers to encode sexual messages in their writing and of teaching readers to decode sexual messages in literature?

Fosters accuses Freud of teaching writers to encode sexual messages in their writing and teaching readers to decode sexual messages in literature.

Why is it dangerous to stand next to the Hero?

It is dangerous to stand next to the hero because you will most likely die, since the book would be much better with a character dieing but not necessarily the protagonist.

What does it mean when an author sends a character south?

It means that the character is looking for self-discovery, to find his / her own self. A change in the geography for the character is also a rebirth.

Foster explains why most literature can be called "political." Summarize his argument.

Most literature can be called "political" because since there is such a wide range of politics, they end up being embedded into a piece of literature in a subtle way. Writers, in some cases, also end up wanting to showcase their opinion without showing it explicitly.

Does a character always have to actually fly in order for there to be "flying" in a piece of literature? Explain.

No, because characters can still be on the ground and be "flying," it is just more spiritual than free in some cases. When a character is "flying," it is the character's soul that is flying away up to heaven, instead of the body physically flying away.

Symbols in literature can be...

Objects, images, events, or actions.

Foster says "weather is never just weather". What are some things rain can represent in literature?

Rain can represent: - Biblical images / symbols - Represents unity in some cases since it can put characters into situations they didn't believe they would end up being in - Mystery and isolation - Cleaning and restorative / renewal effects in characters - Spring rain can mean birth or illness / death

What are some things that can represent female sexuality in literature?

Rolling landscapes, chalices, bowls, or just any empty vessel waiting to be filled.

What are some things besides vampirism that vampires and ghosts represent in literature?

Seduction, sexuality, danger, exploitation, lust, selfishness, exploitation, and lack of respect for others.

What does snow represent in literature?

Snow can represent numerous symbols, really depending on what you want it to do, but most commonly known for threats, joyful, cleansing, warm / inviting, inhospitable, filthy.

What does Foster suggest as the reason so many writers choose to allude to fairy tales in their works?

So many writers allude to fairy tales because it is easier for new readers to understand the reference of the literary borrowing. Since many new readers are not able to understand references from the list of great works, writers find it easier to borrow from fairy tales since the new readers have also grown up with witnessing fairy tales.

Why do so many writers use and quote Shakespeare?

So many writers use and quote Shakespeare since his work is so widely known to all the writers, it seems to be impossible for most of the writers to not quote Shakespeare. It also happens to make the work of literature seem smarter than other works of literature that had not quoted Shakespeare. Lastly, it also gives the writer authority to have been able to quote Shakespeare, even if you are not an expert of his work.

What is the difference between symbolism and allegory?

Symbolism is where an object, image, event, or action can have multiple meanings depending on each reader. On the other hand an allegory only has one meaning for every reader.

What are some things that can represent male sexuality in literature?

Tall buildings, trains, keys, lances, and swords.

For what reason(s) do authors choose to make characters blind in literature?

The author wants to bring out other levels of sight and blindness beyond just the physical blindness. The author has added the character to further bring out the fact that the blind character is blind mentally by not being able to see something so clearly being showcased to him / her. Authors also make characters blind to show that there is something more rich going on in the story. Also something important is at stake, if the character were to find out the truth he / she was to blind, something real bad should happen is they were to.

What are the implications of violence in literature?

The implications of violence in literature are symbolic, thematic, biblical, Shakespearen, romantic, allegorical, and transcendent.

What is "intertextuality"?

The interaction between poems and stories, where the author would intentionally borrow parts from another book and put those parts in his own book. Doing this brings multiple, deeper meanings to a story or poem. The connection and similarity also brings a better understanding of what the author / poet is trying to say.

What is the literary canon?

The literary canon is a list of literary works that many writers believe are really important to know about in the literary world, however the list is constantly changing. Most writers also use the canon to help with literary borrowing for their own pieces of literature.

What are some of the roles geography plays in literature and what are some of the effects of geography on literature?

The roles geography plays in literature are it adds plot momentum, theme, symbolic significance, and can shape characters and the literary work overall.

There are three types of irony in literature, define each:

Verbal Irony— is a lot like sarcasm, where what a character says is an exaggerated lie. Situational Irony/Structural Irony— is where what is expected does not happen Dramatic Irony— is where the audience knows something is going to happen, but the characters do not.

What does it mean when literary characters fly?

When literary characters fly it usually means that they feel a sense of freedom from the aspects of life that are holding them down. It can also mean escape, love and returning home.

How can a writer's personal geography inform his/her work?

With the writer's geography in his / her work, the writer is able to communicate a theme and showcase their individuality.