It is the inevitable question in any literature class that goes deeper than the surface: "Are you sure that the author intentionally put those symbols into the novel? How do you know you are not just making this stuff up?"
The answer? Sometimes I am, and sometimes I am not. The key is, though, that if I am looking deeper, speculating about meanings, analyzing contexts, then I am interacting with the book, not just reading it. When people tell me that The Great Gatsby is boring, I feel both a sense of understanding and a little pity (and not condescending pity).
I understand, because I have had bad relationships with some "great" novels. I struggle reading Faulkner because I do not enjoy his writing style. Does that mean Faulkner is not valuable? No, just that I do not see what others see in him. Herman Melville's Moby Dick is a tremendous allegory, but reading his prose is difficult for me. So, I understand. I do not yet see what they are saying or appreciate how they are saying it, but that does not mean it is not there.
Why pity? Because I have a great relationship with The Great Gatsby. Most of it speaks loudly to me: the plot, the characters, the metaphorical language, and yes, the symbolism. I have read and reread it and it seems that every time I reread it - especially since the context of my life is always different when I do - I find something new in it.
One of the most interesting little tidbits I have picked up in life is the notion that the human mind is a Meaning Maker. When people talk about life having no meaning, they seem to be talking about "meaning" as a thing that lives out there, separate, isolated, waiting to be found by humans. I have found that two people can be in the same place, have virtually the same experiences, and yet only one of them will find meaning in her situation. What variable determines who will and who will not find meaning? The mind.
There are many purposes, meanings in life. The sun's energy powers the entire life cycle on our planet. Its energy emanates throughout the solar system in every direction, but the part of this energy that strikes and flows through our planet has, through the natural magic of photosynthesis, raised life on Earth, life that has now evolved into countless different species. The sun has purpose, intentional or not. Another example is insects - they too have purposes. Consider that insects pollinate our wildlife, break down dead animals into soil, and feed numerous other creatures. Throughout nature, insects have many different meanings or purposes, most of which are unconscious and instinctive.
Humans are different. As animals, we have many instincts that impact us unconsciously as well - we have fear without knowing why, cravings from out of nowhere, and anxiousness for unknown reasons. These emotions are driving us to act in some way, but the emotions do not always know what needs to be done for satisfaction. They just sense that something is out of balance, and they tell us through feelings. What separates us, though, is consciousness. We have the ability to figure out what emotions are "telling" us and what behaviors or activities might satisfy us.
In short, our human minds are designed to help us find meaning that transcends our simpler animal nature. What has this unique ability given us? Architecture, art, history, law, mathematics, novels, philosophy, physics, poetry, science ... an almost interminable list of meaning and purposes. Where would humanity be without these disciplines? What if earlier humans had not searched for meanings with their minds?
Okay, this brings us back to the literature. When I read The Great Gatsby, I notice motifs like the colors, whites, greens, golds, etc. and then I think about why Fitzgerald might have wanted to keep coming back to them throughout his novel. After four or five mentions of the qualities of Daisy's voice, I start wondering why F. Scott Fitzgerald wanted us to pay particular attention to this part of her character. Then, I begin to speculate, to wonder, to hypothesize, "Where are you going with this, Fitz?" I think to myself, "There's something about the voice. What does that remind me of...? Famous voices... hmmmm. The Sirens? Odysseus? Could it be?" Then I might hypothesize: "Let's see... the Sirens' voices were beautiful, but they were destructive creatures. Could Fitzgerald be saying that Daisy is beautiful but dangerous?" and then I keep reading to test my hypothesis.
I do this with films as well. When I watched Inception for the first time, I was ready with my meaning-making machine because some of my students had asked me what I thought about the meanings in the film. One idea that struck me instantly was the mention of the character played by Ellen Page, Ariadne. I brought to the theater knowledge that Ariadne is a character from Greek mythology. She fell in love with Theseus, and her love for him enticed her to help him figure out the Labyrinth (an intense and deadly maze built by Daedalus) so Theseus could kill her half brother, the monstrous Minotaur. In the film, Ariadne was brought on to be a dream architect, someone who knew how to build mazes of dreams that resembled mental mazes. It is not much of a stretch to assume that the filmmakers and playwrights wanted some of us to see this meaning, and while I might be wrong about this, a Google search for "ariadne," "mythology" and inception" will bring up results showing that I was not alone in noticing this somewhat obvious meaning.
When each of you takes the Advanced Placement exams for Composition or for Literature, you will be given written passages or entire works like novels or plays, and you will be asked to consider them while reading the prompts (questions). Then, you will be given a period of time to write extemporaneously (off the top of your head) about the meanings you can find and then support with examples. How do you get these answers "right"? Is there more than one"right" answer? In this case, being right is about supporting your argument (thesis and claims) with examples (data) and then reaffirming them with clarifying statements (warrants). The same skills will be measured on the ACT with the writing prompts and reading passages.
What we hope to do in this class and Advanced Placement classes (actually, I hope to teach this in all of my classes) is to sharpen your meaning-making machine and polish your writing skills so that (1) you can find your own meanings, and (2) you can communicate them clearly to the world.
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