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How to Read Literature Like a Professor (Thomas C
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Faustus, “The Devil and Daniel Webster”, Damn
Yankees, Beowulf
Chapter 1: The Quest
The Quest: key details
1
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e
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a destination
3
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challenges that must be faced during on the path to the destination
5
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sharing and peace
2
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personal activity/shared experience
4
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communion enables characters to overcome some kind of internal obstacle
Communion scenes often force/enable reader to empathize with character(s)
Meal/communion= life, mortality
Universal truth: We all eat to live, we all die
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Works: Tom Jones, “Cathedral,” Dinner at the Homesick Restaurant, “The Dead,”
Chapter 3: Vampirism
We are attracted to danger
Vampirism: key details
1
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“vampire” leaves his mark on the victim
3
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sexual allure
5
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victim= stripping away of youth, stripping away of energy, stripping away of virtue
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the death/destruction of the young victim
Symbolism involved in vampirism
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exploitation
3
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ghost grows in strength by weakening someone else (holds true of vampires, as well)
Types of exploitation:
denial of someone else’s right to live in order to satisfy our own needs/desires
placing one’s own desires above someone else’s needs
We are ALL vampires, sucking away at other people’s force in one way or another
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Jekyll and Mr
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14 lines
2
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lines have 10 syllables
4
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two sections, two units of meaning
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arranged in lines, written in sentences
Petrarchan/Italian Sonnet details:
• First stanza has eight lines and another stanza of six lines
• Rhyme scheme unifies first eight lines and another rhyme scheme unifies the last six
lines
• First eight lines have relate to one idea, last six lines relate to another idea
Shakespearean/English Sonnet details:
• First stanza has four lines, second stanza has four lines, third stanza has four lines,
last two lines are a couplet
• First three stanzas have their own rhyme schemes and the last couplet has its own
Always pay attention to the shape of a poem
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Works: “An Echo from Willow-Wood”
Chapter 5: Patterns
Be aware of patterns, archetypes, recurrences! Look for them!
There’s no such thing as a truly original work of literature- everything contains elements
from somewhere else (not that the writer consciously copied the ideas, but the ideas
themselves have become embedded in society’s cultural dialogue)
All writing builds on what has come before
authors play on a reader’s knowledge of history, culture and literature- they EXPECT
the reader to make subconscious connections
Literally EVERYTHING comes from one particular story
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Intertextuality= ongoing interaction between poems/stories/literary works
Look for patterns, archetypes, common symbols, literary devices to help understand
hidden similarities and general interplay between works
Works: Going After Cacciato, Wise Children
Chapter 6: Shakespeare
Every writer reinvents Shakespeare in some way
Intertextuality, and the ability to identify it, is key
Good writers cause us to question what we think we already know (as Shakespeare
often does)
Why Shakespeare? Great stories, compelling characters, terrific language
Reading (of Shakespeare or anything else) is really just an imaginative activity
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When we are able to connect Shakespeare’s works to other works that came earlier, we
are able to add another shade of meaning
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EVERYONE feeds off of Shakespeare, whether we recognize it or not
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Works: The Tempest, Othello, Wise Children, “The Lovesong of J
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It is expected
that readers will recognize the allusions
Biblical allusions are not always straight forward- the details may change but the ideas
are the same
Archetypes= fancy word for patterns (in characters OR situations)
Works: Bible, Beloved, “Araby”, Beowulf, The Canterbury Tales, The Waste Land, “Yom
Kippur, 1984”, The Satanic Verses, “Why I Live at the P
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”, Song of Solomon, “Sonny’s
Blues”
Chapter 8: Situational Archetypes/Patterns
All literature comes from other literature
Literary cannon= a master list of important works
Easy place to spot archetypes- children’s stories
metonymy= a part is used to stand for the whole (literary device)
Common situational archetypes (as found in fairy tales):
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Crisis not of their own making
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Youngsters must fend for themselves
Why do authors use situational archetypes?
1
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To emphasize a theme
3
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To toy with a reader’s knowledge of tales

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Children’s stories/fairy tales contain a ton of irony
While reading, look for patterns and once you find them, ask yourself WHY they are
there!
Works: “The Gingerbread House”, fairy tales
Chapter 9: Greek Mythology
Common types of myths:
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Biblical
3
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How does the base myth function in a literary context (what does it contribute to the
story/writing of the story?)
2
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How is the myth perceived by the reader?
Fall of Icarus= the youngster who failed to listen to his parent and died as a result
Types of archetypal situations demonstrated by the Icarus myth:
1
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Failure of the attempt and the resulting grief
3
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Youthful exuberance leads to self-destruction
5
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Terror
In situational archetypes, characters’ nobility and courage are tested
4 Human struggles (i
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situational archetypes):
1
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The need to maintain one’s dignity
3
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The struggle to return home
Types of conflict:
1
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nature
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2
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supernatural/divine/fate
3
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man
4
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self
5
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society
Every imaginable type of dysfunctional family or personal flaws has some Greek/Roman
myth to illustrate it
Why do writers use a mythical base for their stories?
We recognize the pattern/root and that makes the reading deeper, richer and more
meaningful
Works: Song of Solomon, “Musee des Beaux Arts”, “Landscape with Fall of Icarus”, The
Iliad, The Aenid, Ulysses,”The Metamorphosis”
Chapter 10: Setting & Weather
Setting establishes mood and foreshadows events to come
Ask yourself WHY the weather is what it is in the story
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Great quote: “It’s never just rain” (75)
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Weather is always a signal
Keys to weather deciphering in literature: atmosphere and mood
Rain functionality
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atmosphere- mysterious, murky, isolating
3
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cleansing
5
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restorative
7
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agent of new life and restoration
2
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replenishment
4
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season of renewal
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2
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season of new awakening(s)
Rainbow symbolism
1
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peace between heaven and earth
3
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confusion
2
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clean
2
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severe
4
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paradox
5
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inviting
7
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suffocating
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unifier
Whenever you read, analyze the weather- how does it impact the story and what does it
lend that couldn’t be otherwise deciphered?
Works: “The Three Strangers”, Song of Solomon, A Farewell to Arms, “The Dead”, The
Waste Land, From Ritual to Romance, Party Going
Interlude
No one really knows what an author was thinking as he/she wrote his/her piece
Modernism: the era around WWI and WWII in the 20th century
Narrative method- tells the story from a personal p
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v
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symbolic
2
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biblical
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Romantic
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transcendent
Symbolism of violence
1
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Violence may signal that death lurks in every day tasks
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We ultimately face our mortality alone
Types of violence
1
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narrative violence (i
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authorial violence) causes general harm to characters
Generally, authorial violence is the death and/or general suffering that authors inject into
their work in order to advance the plot or develop a theme
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spur action
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end plot complications
4
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the problem is solved
2
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the guilty are punished
4
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Violence goes beyond simply
moving the plot along
Narrative violence should always prompt us to ask, “what does misfortune tell us”? (96)
Questions to ask while reading about a violent act
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1
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What famous or mythic death does this one resemble?
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What does it mean?
2
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You must be able to support your interpretations with the text!
An allegory uses different elements to represent different things
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education
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race
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faith
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philosophy
Steps to decoding symbols
1
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consider the author’s particular use of the item (meaning)
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3
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reach a conclusion that builds on the the first three steps
Caves as symbols
1
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security and shelter
3
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the idea that ALL experiences are individualized rather than generalized (everyone
experiences caves somewhat differently)
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death
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death
2
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danger
4
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path to maturity
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connection
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collapse of Western civilization
Mowing (an action) as a symbol
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labor
3
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What is the writer doing with this image/object/act?
2
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What does the object/image/act FEEL like it’s doing?
Three keys to interpreting symbols:
1
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Feelings
3
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k
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The
Allegory of the Cave], The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, The Bridge, The Waste
Land, “Mowing”, “After Apple Picking”
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Chapter 13: Political Angles
A parable intends to change the reader and through the reader, to change society
Political writing “can be one-dimensional, simplistic, reductionist, preachy, dull” (110)
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Steps to understanding the political angles:
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understand author’s background
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understand HOW the work engages with its specific time period
Writers expect readers to be interested in the world around them
Political issues:
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classes (socioeconomic)
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rights
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relationship between gender and race
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Dalloway
Chapter 14: Archetypes/Christ Figures
All works are influenced by its dominant cultural religious beliefs (whether the author
believes in them or not)
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individual’s role in society
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involvement of women in public life
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Christ archetypal qualities:
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agony
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self-sacrificing
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33 years old
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very basic modes of transportation
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outstretched arms
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tempted by the devil
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creator of parables/aphorisms
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disciples (notably 12, of varying degrees of devotion)
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came to save an undeserving world
Analysis: identify features and see how they are being used in the text
Themes associated with Christ figures:
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value of hope and faith
3
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e Christ figures in literature):
1
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unmarried and/or celibate
3
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sacrifices self in some way for others (not necessarily voluntarily)
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If someone can fly, he/she is a superhero, a ski jumper, insane, a work of fiction, a
circus act, suspended on wires, an angel, heavily symbolic
Major flight archetypes in literature:
• Daedalus & Icarus- Daedalus flew too close to the sun and plummeted into the ocean
• flying Africans- Africans flew out of Africa and when they were dropped, they were
dropped into slavery
• Aztecs- Quetzalcoatl was a god with the body of a snake and feathered wings
• Christians- Christ was tempted by flight
What does flight symbolize?
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Escape
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A thriving spirit
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What does it mean to survive certain death?
2
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Do the characters’ responsibilities to themselves or to life change?
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• tall buildings= male sexuality
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• rolling landscapes= female sexuality
• stairs= sexual intercourse
• falling down stairs= rape, loss of virility, loss of erection
Sexual symbols
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chalice/holy grail, lock, bowl= vagina
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trains entering tunnels= intercourse
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How? Send a
knight with his big lance to seek out the fertile chalice
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They talk about sex by not talking about sex
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What does THAT mean? Choose most likely scenario
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ridicules his hero - highly unlikely
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make a point about the fallibility of desire - possible
5
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the hero is daunted by the consummation of his love which represents the 20th
century - sounds very possible
sex symbolizes individual freed from convention (and perhaps freedom for the writer
from censorship)
Works: The French Lieutenant’s Woman, Alexandria Quartet, A Clockwork Orange,
Lolita, Wise Children
Chapter 18: Baptism
Possible reasons for drowning:
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exorcism of primal fear
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handy solution to messy plot trouble
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passivity
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indebtedness
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serendipity
6
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rebirth
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charge
4
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death (not literal)
Purpose of baptism
• revelation
• thematic development of violence
• thematic development of failure
• thematic development of guilt
• plot complication
• plot denouement
Rain is restorative and cleansing
Baptism and drowning always represent something- you must figure out the purpose/
meaning in the individual piece
Symbolism of rivers= constantly shifting nature of time (Heraclitus)
Works: Ordinary People, Love Medicine, Song of Solomon, Beloved, “The Horse
Dealer’s Daughter”, The Unicorn, “The River”, A Map of the World, Rabbit, Run
Chapter 19: Geography/Setting
Questions to ask about setting
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Why did this character die where he/she did?
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Why does the author use specific geographic settings so often?
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rivers
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valleys
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steppes
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swamps
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prairies
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seas
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people
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politics
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16
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attitude
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finance
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Often, they engage in these behaviors because they are having raw, direct
encounters with the subconscious
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B
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Blindness, for example
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Scarred characters may reflect the imperfections of the reader
Works: Song of Solomon, Beloved, Oedipus Rex, The Waste Land, “Big Two-Hearted
River”, A Farewell to Arms, Alexandria Quartet, Frankenstein, The Picture of Dorian
Gray, Dr
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Hyde
Chapter 22: Blindness
Blindness is a physical representation of a metaphorical blindness to circumstance
An author includes blindness in order to emphasize other levels of sight and blindness
(other than physical)
Start by asking questions- you are only then able to answer them
Why is the character blind? What does it represent? What does it foreshadow?
When literal blindness, sight, darkness and light are introduced into a story, it is usually
an indication that metaphorical sight and blindness are at work
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Heart trouble indicates emotional burdens
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loyalty
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courage
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honesty
Works: The Good Soldier, The Iliad, The Odyssey, The Remorseful Day, The Wench is
Dead, “The Man of Adamant”, Lord Jim, Lolita
Chapter 24: Illness
Illness is a reflection of some emotional/psychological weakness
Physical paralysis= emotional paralysis, moral paralysis, social paralysis, spiritual
paralysis, intellectual paralysis, political paralysis
General rules:
1
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Authors tend to choose diseases that aren’t ugly unless
that ugliness is part of the message
2
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Authors often make use of diseases that give their
sufferers an ethereal quality
3
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The type of
disease has to speak to the theme or character of the work
Tuberculosis: chosen because many authors suffered from the disease themselves or
watched friends deteriorate, wasting disease
The Plague: widespread societal devastation
Malaria: bad air signifying malicious gossip, hostile opinion, feverish decisions,
overheated state that leads to poor decision making

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Smallpox: sign of divine judgement against vanity and/or marital lapse (in certain plots)
AIDS: lies dormant and turns every victim into an unknowing carrier, high mortality rate,
disproportionately appears in younger people, devastated people in developing
countries, gay community was initially hardest hit, became a symbol of tragedy, despair,
courage, resilience, compassion, political angle, religious angle
Fever: represents the randomness of fate, the harshness of life, the unknowability of
God
Venereal disease was hidden in other illnesses: signified bad behavior, intergenerational
tensions, irresponsibility, misdeeds
Issues addressed through illness in literature:
1
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the isolation caused by the disease
3
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the random nature of infection
5
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the desire to act to cure the illness even when one recognizes the futility
Works: “The Sisters”, Dubliners, Oedipus Rex, The Plague, Daisy Miller, A Doll’s House,
Alexandria Quartet
Chapter 25: Put it in Context
A reader must know the historical/political/social context of the piece in order to
understand all of the levels of meaning
A reader must not add interpretative data that wasn’t available when the piece was
written or the interpretation will be flawed
Read with perspective that matches the historical context- understand the social,
historical, cultural, personal backgrounds
Deconstruction
• question EVERYTHING in the work
• demonstrate that the work is controlled and reduced by the values/prejudices of its
time rather than by the author
Focus on what the writer is focused on
“Last chance for change” story characteristics

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1
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character is presented with the chance to educate him/herself in the area where he/
she has heretofore not grown
3
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It isn’t a “surprise” but
a way an author can turn expectations upside down in order to make a point
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Irony trumps everything else- when irony is used, the other rules don’t apply
Irony is a deflection from the readers’ expectations
Plot paths:
journey
quest
self-knowledge
Paths exist in literature only so characters can travel them
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The characters are not our equals
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Dalloway, Unicorn, A Clockwork Orange
Chapter 27: Test
Key questions to ask as you read:
1
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How does it signify?
Rules for analysis:
1
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Use interpretive strategies as you read
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Take notes as you read
Readers need to deal with the obvious material before moving on
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“Musee does Beaux Arts” by W
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Auden
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H
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“Sonny’s Blues” by James Baldwin
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Beowulf
6
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Coraghessan Boyle
7
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Coraghessan Boyle
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Coraghessan Boyle
9
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Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll
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The Bloody Chamber by Angela Carter
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Wise Children by Angela Carter
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The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer
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Lord Jim by Joseph Conrad
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The Bridge by Hart Crane
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The Old Curiosity Shop by Charles Dickens
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David Copperfield by Charles Dickens
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Great Expectations by Charles Dickens
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L
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The Alexandria Quartet by Lawrence Durrell
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Alfred Prufrock” by T
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Eliot
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S
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Love Medicine by Louise Erdrich
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As I Lay Dying by William Faulkner
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Bridget Jones’s Diary by Helen Fielding
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The Great Gatsby by F
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The Good Soldier by Ford Madox Ford
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39
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M
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Howard’s End by E
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Forster
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M
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The Magus by John Fowles
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“After Apple Picking” by Robert Frost
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“Out, Out-” by Robert Frost
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“The Pedersen Kid” by William H
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“In the Heart of the Heart of the Country” by William H
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Blindness by Henry Green
51
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Party Going by Henry Green
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The Maltese Falcon by Dashiell Hammett
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The Mayor of Casterbridge by Thomas Hardy
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“Young Goodman Brown” by Nathaniel Hawthorne
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The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne
61
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“Bogland” by Seamus Heaney
63
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North by Seamus Heaney
65
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“Big Two-Hearted River” by Ernest Hemingway
67
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“The Battler” by Ernest Hemingway
69
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“Hills Like White Elephants” by Ernest Hemingway
71
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“The Snows of Kilimanjaro” by Ernest Hemingway
73
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The Iliad by Homer
75
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The Turn of the Screw by Henry James
77
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Dubliners by James Joyce
79
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Ulysses by James Joyce
81
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“A Hunger Artist” by Franz Kafka
83
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The Bean Trees by Barbara Kingsolver
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85
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The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver
87
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H
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Women in Love by D
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Lawrence
89
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H
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“The Fox” by D
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Lawrence
91
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H
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The Virgin and the Gypsy by D
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Lawrence
93
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H
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Le Morte D’arthur by Sir Thomas Malory
95
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Song of Solomon by Toni Morrison
97
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The Unicorn by Iris Murdoch
99
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The Green Knight by Iris Murdoch
101
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Going after Cacciato by Tim O’Brien
103
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“The Fall of the House of Usher” by Edgar Allan Poe
105
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“The Pit and the Pendulum” by Edgar Allan Poe
107
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“The Raven” by Edgar Allan Poe
109
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The Crying of Lot 49 by Thomas Pynchon
111
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The Far Field by Theodore Roethke
113
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Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare
115
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Macbeth by William Shakespeare
117
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Henry V by William Shakespeare
119
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Much Ado About Nothing by William Shakespeare
121
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A Winter’s Tale by William Shakespeare
123
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Twelfth Night by William Shakespeare
125
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Frankenstein by Mary Shelley
127
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Oedipus Rex by Sophocles
129
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Antigone by Sophocles
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131
...
The Strange Case of Dr
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Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson
133
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Dracula by Bram Stoker
135
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The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
137
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The Accidental Tourist by Anne Tyler
139
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Omeros by Derek Walcott
141
...
Mrs
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To the Lighthouse by Virginia Woolf
144
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“Easter 1916” by William Butler Yeats
146
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A Glossary of Literary Terms by M
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Abrams
148
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Aspects of the Novel by E
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Forster
150
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Fiction and the Figures of Life by William H
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The Art of Fiction by David Lodge
153
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Princeton Encyclopedia of Poetry and Poetics

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