In Jonathan Culler’s book Literary Theory: A very Short Introduction Culler specifically uses personal and relatable examples of his terminologies such as interpretation and Narratology to allow the reader to have a better understanding of his chapters and points. Before using an example, Culler always sets up the reader with some brief knowledge about the example and how it is going to add more detail into his overall argument. Not only do his examples reinforce and back up his points but it also allows the reader to personally visualize or understand his examples and so that way they can grasp his concepts. Two examples when Culler does this is in chapter four when he uses a poem by Robert Frost “We dance round in a ring and suppose, But the Secret sits in the middle and knows” (Culler, 55). In this poem he explains to the reader that there is a difference between interpreting meaning from a specific word or from the poem itself. Culler says, “We have different kinds of meaning, but one thing we can say in general is that meaning is based on difference” (Culler, 56). Through this personal example Culler wants the audience to understand that there is going to be differences based on the text because people interpret words and writing differently than others.
Another personal example that Culler uses in chapter 6 about Narratology is when he discusses a clock. Culler says, “Frank Kermode notes that when we say a ticking clock goes ‘tick-tock’, we give the noise a fictional structure, differentiating between two physically identical sounds, to make tick a beginning and tock an end. ‘The clock’s tick-tock I take to be a model of what we call a plot, an organization that humanizes time by giving it form” (Culler 83). Using a clock is a simple and straightforward concept to understand, when Culler wants the reader to comprehend that the clock represents time through his usage of saying that time was once started and it will one day be finished. When Culler uses this relatable example it helped me as the reader understand that the point that he was trying to make was that the ticking of a clock symbolizes the beginning and ending of something. The larger issue that this motif speaks to is understanding and grasping his concepts.
One last personal example that Culler uses that helped me grasp the concept of time in a story was when he discussed how the prince became a king. “The grateful Monarch gave the Prince his daughter’s hand in marriage, and when the King died, the Prince succeeded to the throne and reigned happily for many years” (Culler, 89). When Culler uses this example he is showing the reader that over an extended period of time he summarized how a prince was able to become king. For me I was quickly able to grasp the concept that even though the narrator made this plot line seem like it was a couple short events it probably took a period of time for the prince to become the new king. I was also able to understand that the narrator plays an important role in the readers perception of time in the story. The narrator has the ability to control time within the writing. Through examples and relatable objects the reader can visualize and grasp certain foreign concepts better through Culler’s usage of everyday objects. In my opinion, I do not think I would have had the same interpretation of Robert Frost’s poem if I did not understand that there is a difference between understanding the meaning of a poem and specifically the meaning of a word within the poem as well. Through examples I was able to comprehend Culler’s specific points about understanding a text better.
Awesome post! Culler has helped me understand the difference between the meaning of the whole and the meaning of its parts. (Amalgam vs. amalgamation). It piqued my interest when you wrote,
‘“We have different kinds of meaning, but one thing we can say in general is that meaning is based on difference”’ (Culler, 56). Through this personal example Culler wants the audience to understand that there is going to be differences based on the text because people interpret words and writing differently than others.
I interpreted this point differently. I thought Culler meant “meaning is based on difference” as in, relativity. “We know that this is a plate because we know it is not a bowl or a pot.” But maybe he did mean that different people interpret words differently.