Prompt 1

     David Foster refers to the “language of reading” and the “grammar of literature” to emphasize the fact that all works have elements within them that are more significant than they seem. As Foster highlights throughout the book, simple details of works can be symbolic or references to other things, thus the “grammar of literature”. He mentions these as he is attempting to show the importance of these elements in relation to the underlying message or meaning of a work (such as the discussion of biblical references in chapter 6). He also discusses in his book that certain elements are essential to our understanding of the things that we read and also essential to keeping the writer's audience captivated in the content presented (the “language of reading”). If a reader is capable of finding these elements, they will then have a deeper connection with the book. Foster mentions the painting Landscape with the Fall of Icarus by Pieter Bruhgel and the fact that the painting is a seemingly ordinary scene with a nearly unnoticeable depiction of a boy drowning in the water (Chapter 8, Paragraph 5). Without the knowledge of the story of Icarus, one would likely skim over the painting without noticing the boy in the water, however, if one is familiar with the story, they will seek him out. Thus, the difference between Foster’s definition of “reading like a professor” and “affective” reading is being capable of understanding the purpose of the small elements an artist uses within their works versus acknowledging the specified work without having a deeper connection with it.

Comments

  1. UnknownAugust 1, 2017 at 6:25 PM

    I like how you stated the distinction of "reading like a professor" and "affective" reading. When it comes to reading stories, novels, or poems, the reader has to be able to look closely at the small elements and comprehend the meaning of those small elements and the story without just having a deep connection with it. It does remind me of the painting I saw which was the landscape with the fall of Icarus. Some people only saw what caught their eye, but they didn't look into depth of the picture to know what's really happening. Artist use the smallest details in a picture that others cannot see which is most commonly used in books we read. And those small details could be symbolic or a reference. For readers to understand, they have to know the meaning and pay attention even to the smallest details because it'll be important for something and it'll give them a better fulfillment of reading the story, novel, or poem.

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