How To Read Literature Like A Professor

Chapter 26- Is He Serious? And Other Ironies

All the meanings and symbols that the whole book was about can be ruined with one simple page of irony. “Irony trumps everything” is what the author wrote to clue that no matter if you read five hundred pages of symbols and meanings they can all be ruined with one sentence of irony and wiped out.

How To Read Literature Like a Professor

Chapter 23- It’s Never Just Heart Disease

The heart is all emotions. It can be any emotion. So in a book when a character has a heart disease, it’s never just heart disease. Sometimes it could be loneliness or sadness. Pain is a main one also. The characters with heart disease usually are not happy with their lives or angry with something.

Chapter 24- And Rarely Just Illness

Illnesses are never just illnesses. There is always a behind the story or deeper meaning in characters with illnesses. Never will you find a character in a book with an illness for no reason. Most illnesses in movies or in books are physical meaning they affect the characters appearance more than anything else.

Chapter 25- Don’t Read with Your Eyes

The saying hearing but not listening has the same meaning as Reading with your eyes. Anyone can read a book, but actually finding the meaning, symbols, and  details is another story.  

How To Read Literature Like a Professor

Interlde- One Story

Like before everything in u

the world is connected. Whether it’s books to actual life they are based on the same human life. Writing is the same. When an author writes a book the meaning he puts behind the story is the same. He or she made that meaning and there can be many different paths to take to find that meaning.

Chapter 21- Marked for Greatness

When an author makes a character, that character has their own personality. This includes the appearance down to their attitude. The more different and detailed character, the more personality and meaning there is behind that character.

Chapter 22- He’s Blind for a Reason, You Know

Blindness in any character refers to as criminal like. That character usually has committed something or done something bad to deserve blindness. The character usually hunts or tries to find ways to renew their innocence. But it is not always bad. Blindness could also mean innocence.

How To Read Literature Like a Professor

Chapter 18- If She Comes Up, It’s Baptism

The water is symbolized as rebirth. A person goes in and suffers a traumatic experience and comes out of it alive it is considered rebirth, like a baptism.  Baptism means renewal, changing faith, or death. Death means a development in violence and anger in a character representing the devil.

Chapter 19- Geography Matters

Geography to the untrained eye is hill, mountains, rivers, and lakes. Geography to a writer is the plot, symbols, or character definition. A writer adds politics, history, and or economics to his or her writings is also geography. Geography in a book can reveal all of these and more.

Chapter 20- So Does Season

Winter, Spring, Summer, and Fall are all the seasons that have been written about for centuries. They mean so many things like age, time of day, or emotion.  Sometimes they even show a characters point of view on life.

How To Read Literature Like a Professor

Chapter 15- Flights of Fancy

Humans have been and always will be fascinated by flight, but why? It symbolizes freedom and letting go.  That’s what everyone looks for is to be free or to let go of something holding them back.

Chapter 16- It’s All About Sex

Sex is not actually sex in a story or movie. It is everywhere. The symbols are everywhere. An example would be a lock and key to represent the male and female reproductive parts. Also every human has a way of interpreting how far you want to go with the sex symbols everywhere.

Chapter 17- …Except Sex…

Again sex is not sex. When writing about sex keep it short sweet and to the point. It must have a different meaning like freedom or giving in. the emotions with sex can vary, like sacrifice or anger to pleasure and love.

How To Read Literature Like a Professor

Chapter 12-Is That a Symbol…

Symbols can be many things, not just people, but objects or emotions. The writers usually have their own way of finding or making their symbols, but it’s up to the reader to find it and interpret what it means or is.

Chapter 13- It’s All Political

Politics is involved in everything. It’s in novels, short stories, and even magazines. The writers secretly put their political view in their writings. You may not see it, but it’s there. Writers also put how society really is or their view of it in their writings. Some views are cruel and show society as hurtful and rude and others show it as kind and gentle.

Chapter 14- Yes, She’s a Christ Figure, Too

There is usually a character in every book that is a Christ figure. A Christ figure that has followers and has been damaged somehow. The list in the chapter tells these; 1. Crucified, wounds in the hands and feet and head 2. In agony 3. Self- sacrificing 4. Good with children 5. Good with bread, water, fish, or wine 6. 33 years of age when last seen 7. Employed as a carpenter 8. Humble modes of transportation like a donkey 9. Believed to have walked on water 10. Portrayed with arms outstretched 11. Known to have spent time in the wilderness 12. A confrontation with the devil or tempted 13. Last seen in company with thieves 14. Creator of many parables 15. Buried and arose on the third day 16. Had disciples, had twelve at first but 17 later 17. Very forgiving 18. Came to redeem an unworthy world.