Course Packet 04 - Strategies for Reading Creative Texts

Topic 01: Appreciating Poetry

A reader of a work of literature finds meanings in the work, but also (even when the
meaning is uncertain) takes delight in the details, takes delight in the way that the work has been
constructed, takes delight in the “performance in words” as Robert Frost put it. When we have
concluded at what we think may be the “meaning” of a work, we do not value or hold on to the
meaning only and turn away from the work itself; rather, we value even more the craftsmanship
that the work displays. And we come to see that the meaning is inseparable from all of the details
that go to make up the work. Hence, we look at the beauty of a literary piece by being critical and
appreciative at the same time, nonetheless the appreciative level must persist.

Key Points:
• Appreciative Reading Skills
• Language of poetry
Definition of Terms:
Denotation. The literal or primary meaning of a word, in contrast to the feelings or ideas that the word suggests.
Connotation. An idea or feeling that a word invokes in addition to its literal or primary meaning.
Imagery. The language used by poets, novelists and other writers to create images in the mind of the reader.
Figures of Speech. A word or phrase used in a non-literal sense for rhetorical or vivid effect.
Tone. In poetry, tone refers to the feeling that the poem has created in the reader.

Sense or Meaning of Words in Poetry

A word is a sound or a combination of sounds which refers to or means something. A word

may be used in different senses but for each sense, the word refers to an object, idea, action or
quality. This meaning is called the denotation of the word. But sometimes a word may call to
mind other meanings or ideas associated with the word. These are connotations. Connotation are
what the word suggests beyond what it expresses. Its overtones of meaning.

The language of poetry is not only suggestive but it is also vivid. To recreate experience
or present ideas, attitudes and feelings, the poet usually uses imagery. This consists of expressions
that appeal to our physical senses. These images may be: visual, aural, olfactory, gustatory,
tactile, thermal and kinesthetic. These pictures through their vividness and compression imply
comparison that are more effective than direct statement.

The creation of mental images usually involves the use of figures of speech. A figure
speaks of one thing, usually an abstraction in terms of something else, something concrete and
sensory. There’s usually an observable association or similarity between the thing talked about
and the terms used. Metaphor is the general term applied to several figures of associations or
similarity.

Critical reading is often construed as a close reading of texts, however, there is a close
reading that does not end with meanings alone, rather it leaves in us as readers a certain feeling
that does not only hold our interest, it gives us pleasure at the same time. That is the reading of
literature, it takes us out of ourselves for a while, allows us to appreciate excellence and admire
achievement of performers who are the writers of such masterpiece.

Poetry is an expression like an ordinary speech. The sounds of human speech do not come
out in one even flow but in varying pitches and stresses, volume and durations. These variety
provides the rhythm in language. In poetry this is more evident because it is used to stress certain
moods and feelings, ideas and attitudes. This brings us to the tone of a poem.

The tone is the feeling that the poem has created in the reader. It is communicated by the
writer’s or the speaker’s attitude towards his or her subject, audience or himself/herself. It is the
emotional coloring of the work. In spoken language, it is indicated by the inflection of the speaker’s
voice. A poet may treat his/her subject heroically, piteously, humorously, detachly, callously or
angrily. It is his or her attitude that is transmitted in rhythm, sound, image and so on.
Topic 02: Appreciating Fiction

The word “story” comes from “history”—the stories that historians, biographers, and
journalists narrate are supposed to be true accounts of what happened. The stories of novelists
and short-story writers, however, are admittedly untrue; they are “fiction,” things made up,
imagined, manufactured. As readers, we come to a supposedly true story with expectations
different from those we bring to fiction.

Consider the difference between reading a narrative in a newspaper and one in a book of
short stories. If, while reading a newspaper, we come across a story of, say, a road accident, we
assume that the account is true, and we read it for the information about a relatively unusual event.
Anyone hurt? What sort of people? In our neighborhood? Whose fault? When we read a book of
fiction, however, we do not expect to encounter literal truths; we read novels and short stories not
for facts but for pleasure and for some insight or for a sense of what an aspect of life means to the
writer.

In our previous lesson on “Appreciating Poetry”, you came across figurative languages that
create mental images helping us understand and appreciate better the works of poets. The language
of poetry is no different from prose or narratives, so to speak. Attributes of language such as
rhythm, rhyme, figurative language and imagery are also found in fiction like short stories.
Although in poetry, these language attributes are made to count more. Hence, we would expect
symbolisms, metaphors and other rhetorical devices that create rhythm and rhyme in narration
for dramatic effect and impact to the readers of fiction.

A work of literature is not a nut to be cracked open so that a kernel of meaning can be
extracted and devoured, and the rest thrown away; the whole—a performance in words—is
something to be experienced and enjoyed. We have to put together the various elements that the
author intricately wove in order to put across the message of his story. The characters of the boys
and the men and women in the story were seen in conflict not just of their age and sex, it also
presented other societal issues that has made our world inhuman despite our claims that we
maintain to live a civilized society.