Analysing your reading

[Legolam]

I got to thinking about my old schooldays last night, and I was pondering about what it was like to study English (as in English literature) in class. I have always been a fanatical reader of anything but, when I was studying for my Higher English exam (basically the most important one in school), I found that analysing books changed the way i read forever. Moreover, it lessened my enjoyment of reading.

Many of the discussions here on this board are based on "what if" scenarios, which I personally quite enjoy. However, a good many are actually analysing what Tolkien wrote and critisising/commenting on it. Therefore it's not so different from what I learnt in school.

So, this is my question: Do you feel that analysing a book such as LOTR, or an author such as Tolkien, takes away or enhances your enjoyment of the subject, and why?

[Eledhwen]

I went to school a long time ago, and things have hopefully changed; but we were given a book, a great book sometimes, and the teacher would begin to read it in class. After a while, she would stop reading and talk about what the author meant by such and such. I switched off, and usually didn't switch on again when she started reading again, having already retreated into my own imagination and a completely different story thread.

I failed my English O level exams (the ones we used to take at age 16).

I love to talk about Tolkien, his inspiration, the characters and the world he invented, but if analysis of the book had begun before I had read it through it would have spoiled it for me. There is no other author who stands comparison. Those who have been following "The Big Read" on BBC television will know that Lord of the Rings has consistently been the number one book in the polls in spite of accomplished "party broadcasts" done by famous actors on behalf of other books; and LotR hasn't even been showcased yet! I'm confident it will win first place.

[Beleg]

Posted by Legoman

Do you feel that analysing a book such as LOTR, or an author such as Tolkien, takes away or enhances your enjoyment of the subject, and why?

Not at all.


I failed my English O level exams (the ones we used to take at age 16)

Ouch!
If you failed it then I should get my hopes about my result.
However I don't like school analysis. They are very shallow and no fun.:eek:

[Legolam]

Posted by Legoman Ooooh, so close ...

Personally, I have always read books for the sheer snjoyment and escapism element that they offer me (hence my love of fantasy books). In my opinion, over-analysing them strips books, especially fantasy ones, of this power that they have.

We had to do a dissertation when I was 15/16 for our Higher English, and I specifically chose a book that wasn't what I would normally read, just so I wouldn't spoil a genre I love. I hated the book that I analysed with a passion (it was "Adrift in the Oceans of mercy" by Martin Booth if you're interested). It also put me off reading altogether, to the extent that I stopped reading LOTR for many years (shock! Horror!!).

However, I've recently begun reading again seriously, and have gone back to both LOTR and the Martin Booth book. I now enjoy both immensely, although what I wrote in my dissertation is the biggest load of rubbish ever and did me no good at all.

[Casaubon]

It seems that the western school system has, once again, poisoned people's passion for reading...
Personally, I have found it extremely satisfying to do some close reading on LotR: it takes my appreciation for the story and Tolkien's creation to another level.

For me, it's important to know why I find a piece of literary art appealing - reflecting it often reveals more about myself than the text! (It is, after all, my reading of it.)

I don't actually see how "analysing" might harm the experience of reading, possibly because I'm not sure what you do to those poor books in your English classes (I'm a product of a Finnish school system). You rip pages off 'em? ;)

[Legolam]

I'm not denying that analysing a book by breaking down what the author wrote is a great way of teaching the workings of the English language. It's just that, in my opinion, it takes away from the enjoyment of the book, the ultimate reason it was written. I don't think fantasy books were ever written to be "torn" apart like that.

But then, that's just my opinion :)

[Ithrynluin]

I mostly don't like to tear stuff apart, especially poetry. I get no enjoyment whatsoever out of having to figure out what kind of rhyme a poem is written in and other 'fascinating' stuff such as alliteration, assonance, apostrophe... I enjoy poetry for the sake of words themselves and in search of beauty and solace.

[Rhiannon]

I do not, on my own, look for things like symbolism and form etc, but I enjoy them when they've been pointed out.

There are some books that need to be analysed to be enjoyed. I enjoyed analysing Antigone. I don't think I would enjoy analysing LotR.

[Amarië]

I think that studying a book can ruin it... For example, If I’d have had the choice to read 'To Kill A Mockingbird' of my own will I believe I would have enjoyed it a lot more than I did when I had to study it at GCSE Level. The way these things are taught can somewhat shape your view of things and are not necessarily how you would react to them normally...
On the other hand it can sometimes do no harm and you can totally enjoy the book, it is just a different experience to how it would have been were you not analysing it. Studying a book can help you pick up on things you would otherwise miss completely.
I would love to study Tolkien at degree level, but I’m worried that my view of such wonderful books will be changed... so I’ll stick to Film and Literature!
~A~