While reading this chapter, all that I could think of was back in elementary school and going into middle school how we learn about all these terms talked about in the chapter. We learn about the protagonist, antagonist, and hero and on and on and on. We learn the plot and the climax and all that as well which all is put together as a story. We are drilled to learn about it all so we can read better and understand the text better. By understanding these terms we can identify what is what and who plays what role. But the chapter expounds more on character than what we are taught in middle school. We are taught that there are different kinds of characters and they all add differently to the text which makes the story interesting. You love some characters because of the way they are presented and you hate some of them because of the way they are presented. But do we ever stop to think (like the author of chapter 2 talks about) does the character make the story or does the story make the character?? This thought was rather interesting to me because I guess I never stopped to think about it. I started to think about all the books and stories I have read and keep thinking, which one would this story apply to? Did the character make the story or did the story make the character? I would almost say it depends on the author and how they write the story. Nicholas Sparks writes books, in my opinion, where the characters make the story. But in Sonny's Blues, the author writes it as the story makes the characters; you don't realize who the characters really are until the author presents them through the story. So in my opinion it really does depend on the author and how they write the story. And sometimes it even depends on how we read a story I think. If we have knowledge on the story than we might already know a little about the characters and then in this case the characters make the story. For example trilogies or books that continue into other books would fall into this category. Interesting thoughts when thinking about literature and reading about the stories/characters we are interacting with.
Sunday, 14 March 2010
Character
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I completely agree with your post, but I liked how the book went more into the character and it made me see it in a more mature way I feel like. Character goes deeper than I thought and it was neat to see and relate to that in a way. Great Post !
ReplyDeleteI agree with you because sometimes the depth of a character's involvement in a plot will make the story, it is what keeps you reading those pages. Other times the characters don't seem as interesting but the story line itself is what keeps you reading. So I agree it really depends on the author and the story.
ReplyDeleteI think both happen at the same time. If you look at people in real life, we are shaped by the things in our lives (which is similar to the story) and we also have have inherent characteristics that impact the world around us. A person isn't completely a product of society, but nobody can go without being affected by it at all. I think characters in a story are the same way.
ReplyDeleteWhat you wrote is so true. Sometimes we fail to stop and think if the story makes makes the characters, or if the characters makes the story. I liked how Professor Corrigan explained the difference between the two- some stories are strictly for entertainment while others are meant to really analyze slowly and examine the characters.
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