4. Foster talks about the relationship between the reader and the writer suggesting that, “reading is an event of the imagination…a reader’s imagination is the act of one creative intelligence engaging another (the writer’s). How does this occur? What does this suggest about the nature and process of reading and writing?
When it comes to reading I agree that it is all about the readers imagination, and how this occurs is that person reading will likely imagine what the characters look like, what the scene is, and where it takes place. It is something that everyone does and sometimes there can be some truth to the imaginative things.
Imagining everything and everyone in a book is similar to creating a movie inside your head and imagining what they do and say is producing it. It really goes to show that the writer is able to convince the reader that they are watching a movie and to me that is just incredible. I think this is why Chapter 14 is so important because in order to make a good “movie” you have to relate with the characters and what they are feeling, and in order to do that you have to clear everything off of you mind.
Yes! They say reading comprehension occurs when you can "see it" in your mind. I often think about the stage--how would you stage this poem or this scene? It always helps me understand the dramatic narrative better.
ReplyDeleteI agree competely when it comes to the relationship between one’s imagination and reading. Naturally, everyone will imagine what they are reading, but some people have more mental imagery than others when reading. In order to completely comprehend and interpret the reading the best and most efficient way, you must be able to clean your slate mentally and take in the idea as new and with an open mind.
ReplyDeleteI love your comparison to how imagining it in your head is similar to creating a mental movie. It almost perfectly describes the process of the reader’s imagination as they read, in my opinion. When I read, like most people, I have to create characters in my head, and imagine where they are at, what the scene looks like, how the characters sound, etc. Sometimes I have to go as far as to mentally cast a movie, and think of actors or actresses that I would picture portraying these characters if it were to be made into an actual film. So I agree completely that the writer can convince the reader that they are watching a movie, sometimes effortlessly. I never quite thought of it that way, so it just completely gives reading and creating that mental movie an entirely new meaning!
ReplyDeleteThe comparison to a mental movie is spot on. There are times where I've gone to see the actual movie based on a book and was taken aback by the appearance of certain characters, my own visualization was completely different from the director of the movie's.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Zackary completely, we all have created a little movie in our heads while reading and often times, when readers see the actual movies or shows based on the books they are disappointed because it is nothing like what they expected it to be. A personal example for me is that when I was in middle school I read “The Vampire Diaries” and imagined the main character to have light blonde hair and blue eyes like it describes in the book. When I began watching the show a few years later, I was extremely disappointed to see they gave the role to someone with brown hair and brown eyes.
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