Nabokov wrote that a good
reader should have imagination, memory, a dictionary and some artistic
sense. He also noted that readers should
enter a book without preconceived notions of how it applies to the world and
that rereading is essential to truly understand and get a feel for the writing. In addition, he wrote that a good reader
should not identify with a character or make sentimental associations to the
setting or happenings.
I agree that a good reader
should have the four characteristics he listed, and rereading has always been
enjoyable to me; I tend to comprehend and embrace the nuances and details on
the second or third time through, so I believe rereading is essential. In our world of instantaneous information I
think it’s unrealistic to expect to not have some type of preconceived notion
about a book. The biggest point of
disagreement I have is that I feel part of a writer’s job is to create
characters that readers can identify with, and as a reader I become more
immersed in the story if I do so. The other
quality of a good reader, in my opinion, is one who enjoys reading and is
willing to take the time to delve into the story and savor the written
word. I feel that I have these qualities
and am a good reader.
The link explores, among other things, creating intimacy and identification for the reader http://davehood59.wordpress.com/.
I agree with you that when the writer creates character that people can identify with it can make the story easier to get in to but I think more importantly they should create characters that we like. It is very hard for me to keep reading a book if I don't like the main character. I just stopped reading a book the other day because the main character was a womanizing ignorant jerk. Maybe some people can identify with that kind of person but definitely not me!
ReplyDelete