:: XXXI. Grams
As you know, I am always in constant effort of sharing my writing. Building on a craft that I know still has many kinks to be worked out. I do it because I enjoy it.
Not void of imperfection, I share what is on my mind when it deems fit. I am no New York Times Best Selling author, nor do I aspire to be – my calling was for design. However, as I mentioned, I write because I enjoy it. And this piece, that I plan to share has been tabled for the last two years. Finally, deciding to give it some light, I share a quick essay on literature.
Nothing fancy. Nothing extravagantly long. Just an essay. A short essay. On a topic. And without further ado, I present you with:
The Beauty of Literature
“That is part of the beauty of all literature. You discover that your longings are universal longings, and that you are not lonely and isolated from anyone. You belong.” Sheila Graham, in Beloved Infidel (1958), quotes F. Scott Fitzgerald. Highlighting, within her own work, just as F. Scott Fitzgerald implies, that literature is universal. It is a common meeting ground in which many individuals can bond over the same or similar things. As with music, art and architecture, literature is a medium. A medium that allows for individuals to not only, as mentioned before, to meet on a common ground, but also to inject their own imaginations, beliefs, ideas, creativity, etc. within that medium. Now, a mix-media, literature has done more than just provide a foundation, it has allowed for the individuals in contact to build on and up from that foundation.
Literature is communicative. It impregnates individuals with knowledge, however, it does much more than that. As F. Scott Fitzgerald tries to mold in his statement above, literature is a base, a starting point. It lures in individuals with common interests, say, for instance, the genre of poetry. Literature builds the beginnings of a home for the very love and experience individuals may develop for poetry. In those beginning stages, the individuals interact directly with the piece or pieces of work in which they immerse themselves. Actively reading, re-reading, understanding, interpreting, and in today’s time, sharing and re-sharing via various social media outlets. This active relationship, this constant back and forth allows for that home to continue to grow through the hands, emotions, beliefs, etc. of many with similar interests in poetry (this is applicable to any genre within literature). In the end, literature begins to draw many together and it is from there in which those same individuals begin to congregate and share their thoughts, emotions, interpretations over that medium – thus, continuing the process of mixing the medium (media) which in turn aids to the steady progression of the building of that home for lovers of that medium.
Literature, like music, is rich with the human experience. It is the human experience, even within fictional pieces, that allow for many to relate to the medium. Take for instance, the phenomena of the world of Harry Potter. A book series based in a magical world that followed the pubescent life of a young boy by the same name as the series. It is the utter fact that Harry Potter, even despite his magical powers, was still very much human and very much like any young preteen and then teenager, struggling to figure out his life and purpose, work through emotions and crushes, handle school and balance time to have fun (while also trying to save the world from evil and desolation) that allowed millions of individuals to relate to the fictional boy wonder. Had it not been for those very normal and every-day moments, Harry Potter may not have reached as many individuals as it did (and yes, of course, the magic aspect also helped a ton). The human experience allows individuals to recall personal memories and draw upon facts or statements from peers to justify their relationship with that medium. In other words, those same individuals are now able to actively interact with that medium by injecting their own experiences within that same medium. This makes it desirably personal – which fosters the many emotions individuals develop with that medium.
In the end, literature is a springboard. It paves the foundations for deeper interactions while also ensuring a haven for those with similar desires and longings. It becomes a place in which many can go and belong to something bigger, something more. It is a home. Full of memories and random tidbits. Full of people; and as Luther Vandross in his record, A House Is Not A Home (1981), once sang, “A house is not a home when there’s no one there.”
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:: Post Rationalizing(s)
“The first draft is just you telling yourself the story.”
― Terry Pratchett ―
