I Think My Childhood Is Ruined

It's All About Sex…. 

Woah There.. When I first saw the title of this book I thought what could Thomas Foster have to say about this subject. After reading this chapter I kinda felt that my childhood has been somewhat of lie. As young children we really don't catch the sexual content in some movies and books we read because we are “innocent” and don't really know much about yet. Once I finished reading this chapter I thought back to the movies that I watched and the books that I read I was younger and began to discover how most of things related back to sex. 

Many writers and directors had to come with different creative ways to portray sex because in society it was frowned upon to talk about sex. Compared to society now and then you wouldn't have even thought this to be true. There are many Disney movies that have sex related content such as The Little Mermaid, The Cat in the Hat, and Ratatouille. As a child I really enjoyed watching The Cat in the Cat and of course as a young child I was too innocent to catch the sexual content thrown into the movie, but as I rewind and think about it there was so much sexual content. For example, whenever the cat would see a very pretty women is tail would become erect implying a sexual reaction to the woman. Another example is when the cat picks up the hoe, the gardening tool, and calls it a “dirty hoe” which could also imply a whore. In The Little Mermaid the underwater castle is made up of genitalia and in Ratatouille the guy Linguini mentioned the word tiny referring to the rat his lover looked down as this pants as if he was referring to this penis. As you can see there are many sexual related jokes throughout Disney movies that young children probably won't catch until they grow older. 

 It's crazy how back then directors put forth special effort to insert and cover up sexual content in movies, but in today's society having sexual content in movies has become the new norm and focus for example Magic Mike and Fifty Shades of Grey. Fifty Shades of Grey was one of the top selling movies in America showing that society accepts the new norm and patronizes the idea of sex. Don't get me wrong sex is not a bad thing, because we are created to reproduce, however it's made it harder for kids to keep their innocence. Even TV providers have provided parents the option of placing locks on certain channels because of how popular sex is becoming in society. 

I read an article about the many sexual innuendos in Disney movies and was very surprised at how many there were.  It was very interesting to how this chapter has opened my eyes up to the things that I didn't catch when I was younger. Now when reading something or even watching a movie I feel like I'm going to catch every sexual joke, which will be kinda funny. 

http://www.complex.com/pop-culture/2014/01/sexual-innuendo-childrens-movies/ratatouille-2

"...Or The Bible" Who Would've Thought

Chapter 6: …Or The Bible 

  

 Who would've thought that even the Bible would have any influence on some of the literature that was and still is being produced today. Before reading this chapter I was automatically  intrigued by the title”…Or The Bible.” I was thinking to myself why would Foster name this chapter that so I immediately starting reading the chapter to feed my curiosity. Before reading the chapter I didn't realize how much the Bible was so important to literature. Throughout chapter six of How To Read Literature Like A Professor Foster explains how important the bible is to literature.  For example Foster uses Beloved written by Toni Morrison as an representation of a piece of literature that has Biblical influence. Foster explains that when “the four horseman” arrive to Sethe’s house in Ohio it was a representation of Judgement day or the Apocalypse causing Sethe to act the way she does. Foster doesn't just use the book Beloved to show Biblical connections with literature he also uses many more books to get the point across of how the Bible is important to literature. 

     After reading this chapter it made me realize that most of the books that I have read in the past have some type of Biblical tie to it. I never really realize this until after I fully analyzed the book that I was reading. Once I finished reading this chapter one book came to mind instantly, The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis. This book is a great representation of how the Bible can have an influence on literature. In this book Edmund struggles with the sin of gluttony. He struggles with consuming so much of the Turkish Delight even after the witch has left. This idea of Edmund eating the Turkish Delight could also connect with Adam and Eve when they were in the Garden of Eden. They began eating the forbidden fruit causing God to punish them. Another connection to the Bible would be the lion Aslan. Aslan is a great representation of Christ. In the book Aslan died to save Edmund’s life and then was later resurrected. As a believer I made the connection with Aslan and God instantly. Just as Aslan died to save Edmund’s life so did Christ to save our lives and wash us of our sins, and in the end they both resurrected. Towards the end of the book there was a war between the White Witch and Aslan. This war that took place between these two opponents can represent a spiritual warfare. Before the war even started Aslan breathes over them to prepare them for the battle that was about to take place. With Aslan breathing over this warriors it can represent God speaking over his disciples. There are so many biblical representations throughout this story and even through other of C.S. Lewis’s books. 

This book is only one of many representations of literature that have biblical connections to them. Biblical connections are something very common in literature and it allows the reader to understand the literature on a deeper level. 

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/25/books/review/the-book-of-books-what-literature-owes-the-bible.html?_r=0

A Fish On A Quest...?

Chapter 1: Every Trip Is A Quest (Except When It’s Not) 

I must start off by saying that I wasn't quite sure how I was going to enjoy this book, but as I read the first chapter of this book I immediately became intrigued and engaged by what Thomas Foster was saying, and I began to look at writing and reading in a totally different way.  After reading the first chapter it really made me want to re read any book that I've read to try and get a deeper meaning of the story,  it also really did spark many interest and I also made a personal connection to the things that Thomas Foster was saying.  In Thomas Foster’s opening chapter he begins to give the reader a symbolic meaning of what a quest really is. Foster beings to explain that a quest actually consist of five things (1.) A quester (2.) A place to go (3.) a stated reason to go there (4.) challenges and trials en route (5.) a real reason to go there. Foster explains that when a protagonist goes on a quest, they have a specific intent of something but in the end they have gained some sort of self- knowledge. 

 

If you really think about it people go on quest everyday some bigger than others, whether it be to the grocery store or a family trip these both could be examples of quest. When I think of Foster’s definition of a quest the Odyssey and my all time favorite movie Nemo comes to mind. In both the movie and the poem the protagonist’s are sent on a quest and in the end they end up facing many challenges that change them and help build up their character. Odysseus faced several challenges while trying to make it home. What Odysseus thought to be a pleasant trip home tuned out to be ten years of hardship. The gods were upset with Odysseus and they wanted him to learn a lesson, causing them to throw many obstacles in his way while he was on his quest to home. With the many obstacles that were thrown in his way, Odysseus built so much courage and perseverance to make it through his quest back home to Ithaka. 

 “Just keep swimming, just keep swimming.” The movie Nemo is basically about a quest that Marlin, Nemo’s dad takes to help find his son who has been taken away by a team of divers. When I first watched the movie Nemo, I'm sure I didn't know half of the stuff that was going on but after watching it several times and after reading this chapter many things began to connect. Marlin’s main goal was to find his son but on his way he didn't think that he would face many challenges and end up meeting someone like Dory or the turtle named Crush who both taught him that it was okay to let go and that it's not good to hold on to things so tight. From the beginning of the movie it is very clear that Marlin is very protective of his son after loosing his wife and half of their children to sea monster attack. Marlin tries desperately to hold on to Nemo and not let him go anywhere out of his sight. Once Nemo touches the “butt” and is fishnapped (I guess you could call it that) Marlin begins this long quest to find is one and only son. While on the quest Marlin faced many challenges, from meeting a “short term memory loss” fish named Dory, almost being eaten by a shark, and even being trapped inside of a whale Marlin gains much courage by taking risk and learning to let go. In the end of the movie when Dory was trapped in the net with the other fish Nemo wasn't hesitant to go in and save her but his dad was. It was difficult for Marlin to let go of his son but he reflected on what he had learned from his journey and knew that it was best to let him go. In the end Marlin’s whole character had changed he was so longer over protective of Nemo, he knew it was best to let him go. 

 

Both the Odyssey and Nemo are great references to Foster's first chapter because they both display two protagonist on a quest and while on that quest they'd ace many challenges and meet people that help them  to evolve into a new or better person than they were before their quest. 

https://randomositywriters.wordpress.com/2013/02/19/archetypes-a-heros-journey/