All semester I have been doing the readings and trying to find a way to relate myself to the texts, sometimes I'm successful, other times I dragged my feet through the pages and can't wait for the end. But, the one thing that I am always able to do is relate whatever we read to one of the numerous literary theories I've learned about in my other class. For me, I've really become interested in deconstruction and really trying to separate the meaning from the text. This is not an easy way to read anything, but I find it very interesting. I find that this goes hand in hand with linguistics and really trying to figure out where the meaning is in any given text. I read The House of Mirth trying the whole time to deconstruct the text and really find different meanings within the story. I found this to be very hard and mentally taxing and half way through I just stopped. It was starting to ruin the story for me and I didn't want to do that to something that I liked. Unfortunately this is what I found to be the most troubling thing about deconstructing a text, you begin to lose sight of the story and when you are done, it is nothing like what it started as. I guess thats what happens with deconstruction?
Another thing I wanted to mention before signing off for good...this is my second go around at college and I took 4 years off between when I started out of high school until now. I mention this because i spent a lot of time thinking about education and what exactly do you gain from spending $40,000 dollars on an education and how does it all tie in together? I've never really been able to answer that question and I find it troubling. But, today I had a break through of sorts while we were talking about literary theory and the authors we have been reading. Sometimes you forget that what you learn and why you learn what you do in the classes you take. But it's days like today where it all comes together. The things we learn in one class, can in some way be carried over to another. It is when we lose sight of this that school becomes a drag and we question why it is we are sinking ourselves further and further in debt. But, we need to hold out and remember why we are here and really value what it is we are doing. We are becoming studious, well rounded people who will leave here and bring something to the world that most other people can't. And thats having an arsenal of great literature behind us, making us historians and poets, writers and thinkers, readers and leaders. It is in classes like 368 that supply us with more weapons for the real world, giving us an obscure quote to draw on in just the right situation. Go us. This has been fun.
Kent
Great post, Kent. The way in which you tied everything together is indeed what makes this kind of study worthwhile, especially in terms of critical thinking and analysis. Deconstruction can be a really interesting way to look at a text, especially because it can reverse one's initial impressions of meaning.
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