tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8275808567357577735.post7731637267168520739..comments2024-02-13T12:31:21.829-08:00Comments on Shelf Life: Booking Through Thursday--Symbolic? Or Not?Gentle Readerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09102364083044797155noreply@blogger.comBlogger9125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8275808567357577735.post-1242089123101099942009-04-24T12:23:00.000-07:002009-04-24T12:23:00.000-07:00I'm big on looking for symbolism in the books I re...I'm big on looking for symbolism in the books I read, and I agree with you that most symbolism is probably be a mixture of author intention and unconsciously added - which is what makes close reading such an interesting way to approach a text.verbivorehttp://incurablelogophilia.wordpress.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8275808567357577735.post-42869733352208396922009-04-24T08:33:00.000-07:002009-04-24T08:33:00.000-07:00litlove--it's interesting, isn't it, how some peop...litlove--it's interesting, isn't it, how some people get turned off to close reading because teachers insist that they look for such particular things. My son is going through that now. His English teacher is making them annotate everything they read, but he's used to sailing through books, so he's a bit turned off to reading at this point. Which panics me, of course! But I hope that he'll appreciate what he learns to see in the books...<br /><br />And yes, we had a great discussion at book group. I hope you find a group you like, as it can be such a great thing. But it's iffy--so many groups fizzle for lack of good chemistry! So my hope is you find some great folks with chemistry :)Gentle Readerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09102364083044797155noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8275808567357577735.post-91922839848648201932009-04-24T00:59:00.000-07:002009-04-24T00:59:00.000-07:00And I wanted to add - that sounds like a marvellou...And I wanted to add - that sounds like a marvellous book club discussion! I do hope I'm present for something like that one of these days!litlovehttp://litlove.wordpress.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8275808567357577735.post-14792658125730915912009-04-24T00:53:00.000-07:002009-04-24T00:53:00.000-07:00What a lovely response to the question! Marguerite...What a lovely response to the question! Marguerite Duras, who was one half of my PhD was very keen on symbols, and Colette, who was the other half, didn't bother with them so much. Both are fabulous writers, both wrote many, many books all very rich in meaning. It's like some writers use lots of metaphors and others don't; just a question of style. Like you, I love close reading but I guess it's something you grow into and less interesting when you are at school than at other times!litlovehttp://litlove.wordpress.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8275808567357577735.post-32220108371473653762009-04-23T17:26:00.000-07:002009-04-23T17:26:00.000-07:00J.S.--I agree completely! I think it's great to h...J.S.--I agree completely! I think it's great to have the symbolism there if you're willing to look for it, but either way it doesn't detract from a good story if you're not in it for the analysis. I just went and checked out your post on the subject--which was great!Gentle Readerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09102364083044797155noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8275808567357577735.post-51962060223917220452009-04-23T16:34:00.000-07:002009-04-23T16:34:00.000-07:00I think the best stories are those that are chock ...I think the best stories are those that are chock full of symbolism if you want to look for it, but still a great story if you don't want to. That kind of effect is harder to achieve than most people appreciate, I think. <br /><br />Great post!J.S. Peytonhttp://www.whosabiblioaddict.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8275808567357577735.post-45843424976198658572009-04-23T16:21:00.000-07:002009-04-23T16:21:00.000-07:00Library Diva--visited your blog, and enjoyed your ...Library Diva--visited your blog, and enjoyed your post immensely! Thanks for stopping by :)<br /><br />Matt--I agree that Toni Morrison is a great example of one of the best creators of symbolism in her writing. I just finished A Mercy, which, though short, is full of wonderful symbolism. And I had never thought about it before, but completely agree that sometimes it's hard to read into symbols in a book when you don't relate from your own experience. Great point!Gentle Readerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09102364083044797155noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8275808567357577735.post-55550665064018308182009-04-23T12:30:00.000-07:002009-04-23T12:30:00.000-07:00I think only careful, meticulous readers could rea...I think only careful, meticulous readers could read into these symbols. In most cases, readers would understand the story without fully grabbing the symbols, but the level of appreciation would be compromised. Toni Morrison would be the prime example. Not all books are endowed with layers of meaning and implications, but symbolism can be a great device to describe things that are very intangible, like death. Symbols can also be very subjective entities. Sometimes I cannot read into any symbols in a book just simply because I lack the personal experience that would put me in tune to the author's meaning.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8275808567357577735.post-52288220961806425482009-04-23T11:39:00.000-07:002009-04-23T11:39:00.000-07:00I enjoyed your post. I wrote about symbolic charac...I enjoyed your post. I wrote about symbolic characters in mine as well. It's up here: http://yourlibrarycard.blogspot.com/2009/04/symbolically-speaking.html. <br /><br />Great title for a blog, btw! Happy BTT!Library Divahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13560661276385382375noreply@blogger.com