In
How to Read Literature Like a Professor, Thomas C. Foster highlights the notion
that “writing and telling belong to one big story.” More specifically, Foster
is trying to describe that each story within the world is entirely based off
other stories, which leads to the conclusion that originality is hard to find.
In my opinion, many of the books that I have read have the same gist of many
other popular stories but there are variations of diction and story endings.
For example, many books tend to be about a teenager or a young adult that has
cancer or some fatal illness and the girl falling in love with the boy next
door is a trending topic as well. The lack of full originality leads to me
agreeing with Foster because each story is intertwined with many other stories.
I have realized that other authors continually reuse many themes, characters,
and symbols, which leads to many stories having the same effect and meaning.
The idea of “one big story” is true, for each story tends to build off one
another in order to create new ideas and variations.
The idea of “one big story” creates
more understanding and a richer reading experience because each story provides
a different point of view for readers. Even though many stories tend to have a
common trait, there are always new ideas and new outlooks present within each
new rendition of a book. Foster describes how “stories grow out of other
stories, poems out of other poems,” which made me think of Foster’s “one big
story” as a tree. For example, the bible could be depicted as the seed of the
tree that eventually grows and branches out into different directions or
genres. This act of intertextuality provides growth of stories because each new
text is taking the emotions, themes, and symbols of previous stories and furthering
the story into a better piece of work each time. “One big story” leads to more
ideas and eventually new literary creations because the changing of stories
leads to new possibilities for all literary works.
Hi Sarah,
ReplyDeleteI agree that this idea of the one big story creates a fascinating and vast means of interpretation; I wonder though, if one might see this as limiting too; that there are only a certain set of human ideas, etc. But in away, I guess this is true according to King Solomon and Aristotle--"nothing new under the sun." But how does innovation and creativity and individualism work into this? Interesting stuff!
Mrs. Mac
I really enjoyed your imagery of a tree standing for the "one big story". The visualization of the concept improved my understanding of it. It also left me wondering what story is the original seed, where all stories derived from (if there even is one).
ReplyDeleteBranching off of Mrs. Mac's comment, perhaps there really is no completely original idea. Your comment about a "new rendition" of a common idea or trait builds upon that idea. For me, this idea is like trying to call a color by it's name without having a name for it. The only way society can identify the color red is by having a name for it. However, what I see as red may look purple to someone else. It is the same thing with an idea in a story. Society can agree that the "flood story" has been reused numerous times in literature, and although that idea is similar in form, one reader may believe the flood symbolizes destruction and rage while another may think it means rebirth and mercy. We aren't all looking through the same lens. Perhaps it is through sharing our perceptions of the "one big story" that we create "new" ones.
I agree completely with you Sarah. There is no real "original story". I agree with Lauren in that the tree gave me a visualization of how one concept can spread throughout multiple stories. If we look at Nicholas Sparks all of his books are the same. Girl meets boy, boy falls in love, something tragic happens, boy fights for girl, boy wins girl. Authors use the same concept in different stories to attract the same audience. But if we take out the weather, setting, and get to the bare bones of the stories, they are all the same. I think it is interesting how you used the Bible as an example because a majority of people know stories in the Bible and can relate them to a story they have read or heard.
ReplyDeleteSarah, I completely agree with your thoughts that there truly is one big story. However, I think that although you say it sets up for lack of originality, it is a mold for creativity. Yes, one big story makes it hard to be original, however with this template, everyone can create their own version that uses the original story in a whole new way. Other than that, I believe that Foster was right in saying that everything originates from the same source. Like you, I can see it imminent in books that I read in modern-day. As for Lauren, I think it is easy to believe that this sets up for cliché storylines but again, I do think that there is still room to be creative with work. I don't believe that this one big story is a stigma for originality.
ReplyDelete