Reflection Essay
James Householder
Professor McGriff
Introduction to Literature
5 August 2013
Corrected Vision – Reflections from Lit 2000
The most remarkable thing I have gained by taking this class is a new way of seeing literature. By learning how to apply close reading and analytical skills I have realized a new dimension and creativity within literature. I can now more easily recognize the creative methods and sometimes hidden meanings that may be found in short stories, poetry, and drama. This “corrected vision,” allows me to understand and appreciate any literature I read much more completely.
It was during first few classes as I was learning how to analyze a short story that I realized that I was missing something. Although I understood the fundamentals of breaking the story down to look for the plot, theme, and characterization etc., my analysis still seemed to be very shallow. I knew there had to be more than the very obvious and I became very frustrated. My frustration turned into a slight embarrassment when I finally figured out what I had been missing. After doing some extensive online research on the story, in this case “Araby” by James Joyce, several of the analyses that I found offered all kinds of interpretations for the symbolism contained within the story. That’s when the light came on and the answer was so simple that I was embarrassed to have missed it. Like in the visual arts, writers too wish to express more creativity beyond just telling a story and sometimes incorporate symbolism and allegory into the work to tell even a greater story. I now understand that these underlying themes and messages used in literature are common and have been repeated over and over again. These techniques are not exclusive to short stories, but may be found in any writing.
In moving from short stories to poetry, even a greater possibility for creativity in writing was realized. I learned that as in a short story, poetry too can contain both obvious and hidden messages and or meanings but in poetry the author may also take advantage of other creative tools such as rhyme and rhythm to add flair and greater creativity. I found entertainment that I hadn’t realized was there in the flexible and witty use of words in poetry. I likened the rhythm of some works to music; this was an unexpected and enlightening dimension. On the converse to works using rhyme or rhythm to express their message, I also learned that very simple word combinations could be used to create vast images, as does Haiku. Even more crafty is the simple introduction of thought such as used in Ezra Pound’s “In a Station of the Metro” - here with just fourteen words, a seed was planted and my imagination was left to create the scene and meaning from there. I concluded that this was done very effectively when most readers in the class reached the same general conclusion on the imagery. The new discoveries in poetry were milestones but there was more to be seen.
From poetry we moved on to the work of Shakespeare and it was like I had reached a summit and could look back on all that had been done before. Shakespeare, in my opinion and many others I’m sure, was a master of his craft. Other artist paint pictures to tell stories or tell stories to paint pictures – Shakespeare wrote plays that became both visual and audible. From this, I realize how influential to art and entertainment a play could be. Like other great artist, Shakespeare went below the surface of the tale to speak to some point of the human condition or to remind us of a valuable lesson. Before reading “Hamlet” I had not realized how Shakespeare took advantage of just about every creative technique he could to make a point and to entertain. He regularly played on emotions through the use of intrigue, eroticism, humor, sympathy and pride to stir his audience. It is easy to see why plays were so popular and how drama is the grandfather of plots in our modern movies, it can contain the elements of both short stories and poetry.
In conclusion, by discovering the added dimensions of creativity and underlying themes in short stories, poetry, and drama I now have a new approach to analyzing literature. This knowledge will surely add to the overall understanding and appreciation for the literature I read. Reading any work without this understanding is like reading a word without knowing its definition.
Professor McGriff
Introduction to Literature
5 August 2013
Corrected Vision – Reflections from Lit 2000
The most remarkable thing I have gained by taking this class is a new way of seeing literature. By learning how to apply close reading and analytical skills I have realized a new dimension and creativity within literature. I can now more easily recognize the creative methods and sometimes hidden meanings that may be found in short stories, poetry, and drama. This “corrected vision,” allows me to understand and appreciate any literature I read much more completely.
It was during first few classes as I was learning how to analyze a short story that I realized that I was missing something. Although I understood the fundamentals of breaking the story down to look for the plot, theme, and characterization etc., my analysis still seemed to be very shallow. I knew there had to be more than the very obvious and I became very frustrated. My frustration turned into a slight embarrassment when I finally figured out what I had been missing. After doing some extensive online research on the story, in this case “Araby” by James Joyce, several of the analyses that I found offered all kinds of interpretations for the symbolism contained within the story. That’s when the light came on and the answer was so simple that I was embarrassed to have missed it. Like in the visual arts, writers too wish to express more creativity beyond just telling a story and sometimes incorporate symbolism and allegory into the work to tell even a greater story. I now understand that these underlying themes and messages used in literature are common and have been repeated over and over again. These techniques are not exclusive to short stories, but may be found in any writing.
In moving from short stories to poetry, even a greater possibility for creativity in writing was realized. I learned that as in a short story, poetry too can contain both obvious and hidden messages and or meanings but in poetry the author may also take advantage of other creative tools such as rhyme and rhythm to add flair and greater creativity. I found entertainment that I hadn’t realized was there in the flexible and witty use of words in poetry. I likened the rhythm of some works to music; this was an unexpected and enlightening dimension. On the converse to works using rhyme or rhythm to express their message, I also learned that very simple word combinations could be used to create vast images, as does Haiku. Even more crafty is the simple introduction of thought such as used in Ezra Pound’s “In a Station of the Metro” - here with just fourteen words, a seed was planted and my imagination was left to create the scene and meaning from there. I concluded that this was done very effectively when most readers in the class reached the same general conclusion on the imagery. The new discoveries in poetry were milestones but there was more to be seen.
From poetry we moved on to the work of Shakespeare and it was like I had reached a summit and could look back on all that had been done before. Shakespeare, in my opinion and many others I’m sure, was a master of his craft. Other artist paint pictures to tell stories or tell stories to paint pictures – Shakespeare wrote plays that became both visual and audible. From this, I realize how influential to art and entertainment a play could be. Like other great artist, Shakespeare went below the surface of the tale to speak to some point of the human condition or to remind us of a valuable lesson. Before reading “Hamlet” I had not realized how Shakespeare took advantage of just about every creative technique he could to make a point and to entertain. He regularly played on emotions through the use of intrigue, eroticism, humor, sympathy and pride to stir his audience. It is easy to see why plays were so popular and how drama is the grandfather of plots in our modern movies, it can contain the elements of both short stories and poetry.
In conclusion, by discovering the added dimensions of creativity and underlying themes in short stories, poetry, and drama I now have a new approach to analyzing literature. This knowledge will surely add to the overall understanding and appreciation for the literature I read. Reading any work without this understanding is like reading a word without knowing its definition.