The Wonderful World of Literature

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The Wonderful World of Literature

• Yes, it is wonderful. Well, 100 of interesting
  and intelligent people find it wonderful. What
  does that say about you? J.K. Not really.

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Here are some rules...

• Alright...first, these are not true 100 of the
  time.
• I dont have an exact percentage, per se,
  however, these general rules typically apply to
  literature.
• Your authors know them and use them as guides for
  their stories.
• They do. I like, totally swear.

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Rule 1 Every Trip is a Quest

• What you need for a Quest Story
• a knight --a dangerous road
• a Holy Grail (no, not just the Holy Grail)a
  symbolic grail will do.
• a princess --an evil knight
• a stated reason to go
• the REAL reason to go

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• The REAL reason to go is ALWAYS self-knowledge.
• This is why the quester (not a real word) is
  typically young.
• Think for a moment about Star Wars. Yes, fine, I
  am aware that there are some of you who have not
  seen this glorious film. As per usual, I feel
  deeply sorry for you and worry over your futures.
• Fact 100 of people with any imagination or
  creativity think that Star Wars is awesome.
• Dont whine. Your objections are sooo
  predictable, uncreative, and unimaginative.

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Anyway...

• Star Wars
• Luke a young knight whose identity is in
  question.
• Leaves his home, ostensibly, to save a princess.
• Is challenged by Darth Vader (an evil knight).
• Learns of his true identity and after saving the
  princess, ultimately balances the universe.
• His Holy Grail?
• I dont knowmaybe the princess serves as the
  grail...the REAL purpose is to learn who he is
  and what he has to do to restore balance to the
  universethe REAL reason for leaving home.

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RULE 2 Communion

• Communion is more than a religious ritual.
• Anytime people eat or drink together, they are
  engaging in an act of communion.
• Nearly every religion has some liturgical or
  social ritual involving the coming together of
  the faithful to share sustenance.
• Think about who we eat withyou do not typically
  break bread with enemies.

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• Think about itwriting a meal scene would be
  boring and would read as boring...there must be a
  larger purpose.
• Communion is about shared experience.
• Taking a shared substance (almost any substance)
  into our bodies says Im with you...were in
  this together.
• Food/substances can be a way of breaking barriers.

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Communion gone bad...

• Sometimes, an author can use the meal, or missed
  meal, or bad meal, or meal where people fight, to
  say something larger about what is going on with
  the characters beyond what is actually happening.

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Rule 3 Ghosts and Vampires are Never About
Ghosts and Vampires.

• Unless theyre sparkly, and then were not really
  reading Literature anyway, are we.
• If, in your head, you are thinking those stories
  are literature, I pray you did not, and do not,
  express this out loud.
• Regardless, the appearance of a ghost is always
  about something more than the ghost.
• Lets think about Hamlet.

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The Vampire Story

• No, this is not a new rule...remember, the title
  of the prior slide had the word vampire in it?
• What you need
• an older figure representing corrupt, outworn
  values.
• a young female (virgin preferred)
• a stripping away of her youth, energy, and
  virtue.
• a continuance of the life force of the old male
• the death or destruction (can be figurative) of
  the young female.