Foster’s
observation about all writing being one big story is new to me, although the
concept is not. Having thought about it, I have decided I agree with him. In
ninth grade, during social studies, I became familiar with the original King
Solomon quote, “There is nothing new under the sun”. We were told to go up to the
board and make something that has never existed before. We failed. When I first
heard the quote, it bothered me. I could and did not believe it. I eventually
stopped thinking about it until I read this book. Foster’s explanation made the
concept make sense in my brain. Everything new is just a twist on something
old. The modern young adult books I read today are just twists on classics I
have not read before.
Once I
finished my reading of the book for the day, I kept thinking back to my
favorite books and what classics they were most like. I did not find one that
did not have a similar older text. Although none were exactly like their older
counterpart, all had similar characteristics. My reading experience of those books
may not have been affected since I have already read them, but future book’s
experiences may be. If I make the connection between two books, I can compare
the two. I can compare similar characters, plot points, and plot twists. The
entire reading experience becomes like a connect-the-dots. What book can I connect
this one to? Where have I read this plot before? Maybe this twist will happen because
it happened in this book.
Rachel,
ReplyDeleteConnecting the dots is exactly what good readers do. The realize the intertextuality of works and connect the known to new ideas. Whether a text's concept is original or adapted, the thoughts and realizations we as readers have are brand new.
SBL
King Solomon’s quote has always been a weird thing to me too. But just like you, after reading the book, the quote kind of made sense. Everything new is simply just a jazzed up and refined version of something old. It is weird to think of all of the books I have read in the past and how most of them are just twisted tales of old classics. After I came to this conclusion I almost began to question how creative some authors really are. I might have just been reading the same type of story lines, but with different characters and conflicts. There really isn’t anything new under the sun.
ReplyDeleteI wholeheartedly agree with your analysis of his point. Specifically the “connect-the-dots” portion. In future readings. knowing about the connections between stories, we will be able to look at a contemporary novel and reason out what classic or ancient story it may be emulating, whether purposefully or on accident. This will also help when analyzing texts because the writer may have purposefully connected their text back to an ancient one to provide better context or a deeper underlying message. Now, being educated on the subject, we will be able to follow along and truly understand the author and their purpose.
ReplyDeleteRachel,
ReplyDeleteAfter reading your response, I realized how similar your thoughts on this topic are to my own. The idea of there being "nothing new under the sun" is something which both puzzles and intrigues me just as it does yourself. Furthermore, I believe you effectively restated this timeless quote when you wrote, "everything new is just a twist on something old." Personally, I also can see how all new literary works are not truly new because their authors have been affected by some outside influences. It is startling to realize that one is unable to create something original and unique! Overall, it will be interesting to see what connections we can make throughout our future readings to stories and texts of the past.