Thomas C. Foster in “How to Read Literature like a Professor” provides tips to navigate symbolism in literature. Foster claims that readers should, “use what you know,” when reading so they can better understand the work of literature (Foster 248). When reading, people must use their past reading experiences and what they learned from them to understand the literature they are currently pursuing. Some works of literature however are unlike anything that person has read before so they can still use some of their already acquired knowledge, but must also brace though it to where they hopefully understand it. Foster provides another tip which is that, “every work teaches us how to read it as we go along” (Foster 248). As someone reads an unfamiliar work of literature they learn and increase their knowledge with every page they read. Each page teaches them something that will help them better understand the symbol that is a couple pages farther in the book. Foster also points out that, “You know more than you think you do,” because although we, “have not read everything,” we have read a lot, “and in reading all those forms of narrative and presentation, you prepare yourself for new works” (Foster 249). Most students have not read all of the great works that have been written, but they have read enough of the stories written to prepare themselves to read and understand harder works. Every time someone reads something new they take something away from that work that will help them understand symbolism in the next work they read. Foster provides tips to help readers understand symbolism in writing.
Thomas C. Foster in "How to Read Literature Like a Professor" gives a strategy on how to break down writing. He says to "use what you know" (Foster 248). He explains that some writers create books that are one of a kind and a reader can only understand by reading that one book. Foster says that "every work teaches us how to read it as we go along" (Foster 248). He describes how context helps in reading and how on page will help the understanding of another. Also, past reads are useful, including plays and movies, so even when we think we have not read anything relevant, we are fooling ourselves because we have already been "prepared" for new works (Foster 249). Foster says "you know more than you think you do" (Foster 249). He explains that our past reading experiences, in whatever form they may be, can influence our understanding and we are experienced readers whether we know it or not. Foster advises to use what we have learned and not worry about what we have not learned.
In “How to Read Literature like a Professor,” Thomas Foster discusses symbolism in literature, and provides tips for readers to help better understand it. Foster instructs readers to “use what [they] know” when reading literature (Foster 248). Although readers might not know what they are getting into, it’s still in their best interest to take the knowledge they have about prior literature, as well as techniques to understand current literature, into the book with them. Reading builds from reading; people gain knowledge and understanding of literature the more they read it, and this is drastically helpful when taking on more challenging reads. His second tip states that “every work teaches us how to read it as we go along,” as readers begin to understand more and more of the language and context of the work the more they get through it (Foster 248). The farther readers travel into the pages of a work, the more they’ve become accustomed to the way the author writes, how they words their phrases and sentences, their style in general. This is helpful for readers as it allows for an easier time understanding how the author writes, so they can begin to start looking into why the author wrote what they did. Fosters final tip is that readers “know more than [they] think they do,” and to trust in the knowledge they have as it is probably substantial enough to tackle any literature they may be looking into (Foster 249). People, throughout their years in school and beyond, collectively read more than realize, as much of it was probably something they had no interest in for school. These works, however, still add to their collection of knowledge nonetheless, and each work that a person reads is a building block to assist in reading the next work that comes along. Foster’s tips for navigating symbolism essentially instruct the reader to trust in themselves to see what they want to, and that they’ll receive just as much from a story as what they put in.
Thomas C. Foster in “How to Read Literature like a Professor” provides tips to navigate symbolism in literature. Foster claims that readers should, “use what you know,” when reading so they can better understand the work of literature (Foster 248). When reading, people must use their past reading experiences and what they learned from them to understand the literature they are currently pursuing. Some works of literature however are unlike anything that person has read before so they can still use some of their already acquired knowledge, but must also brace though it to where they hopefully understand it. Foster provides another tip which is that, “every work teaches us how to read it as we go along” (Foster 248). As someone reads an unfamiliar work of literature they learn and increase their knowledge with every page they read. Each page teaches them something that will help them better understand the symbol that is a couple pages farther in the book. Foster also points out that, “You know more than you think you do,” because although we, “have not read everything,” we have read a lot, “and in reading all those forms of narrative and presentation, you prepare yourself for new works” (Foster 249). Most students have not read all of the great works that have been written, but they have read enough of the stories written to prepare themselves to read and understand harder works. Every time someone reads something new they take something away from that work that will help them understand symbolism in the next work they read. Foster provides tips to help readers understand symbolism in writing.
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ReplyDeleteThomas C. Foster in "How to Read Literature Like a Professor" gives a strategy on how to break down writing. He says to "use what you know" (Foster 248). He explains that some writers create books that are one of a kind and a reader can only understand by reading that one book. Foster says that "every work teaches us how to read it as we go along" (Foster 248). He describes how context helps in reading and how on page will help the understanding of another. Also, past reads are useful, including plays and movies, so even when we think we have not read anything relevant, we are fooling ourselves because we have already been "prepared" for new works (Foster 249). Foster says "you know more than you think you do" (Foster 249). He explains that our past reading experiences, in whatever form they may be, can influence our understanding and we are experienced readers whether we know it or not. Foster advises to use what we have learned and not worry about what we have not learned.
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DeleteIn “How to Read Literature like a Professor,” Thomas Foster discusses symbolism in literature, and provides tips for readers to help better understand it. Foster instructs readers to “use what [they] know” when reading literature (Foster 248). Although readers might not know what they are getting into, it’s still in their best interest to take the knowledge they have about prior literature, as well as techniques to understand current literature, into the book with them. Reading builds from reading; people gain knowledge and understanding of literature the more they read it, and this is drastically helpful when taking on more challenging reads. His second tip states that “every work teaches us how to read it as we go along,” as readers begin to understand more and more of the language and context of the work the more they get through it (Foster 248). The farther readers travel into the pages of a work, the more they’ve become accustomed to the way the author writes, how they words their phrases and sentences, their style in general. This is helpful for readers as it allows for an easier time understanding how the author writes, so they can begin to start looking into why the author wrote what they did. Fosters final tip is that readers “know more than [they] think they do,” and to trust in the knowledge they have as it is probably substantial enough to tackle any literature they may be looking into (Foster 249). People, throughout their years in school and beyond, collectively read more than realize, as much of it was probably something they had no interest in for school. These works, however, still add to their collection of knowledge nonetheless, and each work that a person reads is a building block to assist in reading the next work that comes along. Foster’s tips for navigating symbolism essentially instruct the reader to trust in themselves to see what they want to, and that they’ll receive just as much from a story as what they put in.
ReplyDeleteSpot on!
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