Being a Better Reader: Some Foundational Literary Terms

Part of getting better at reading and improving literacy is understanding and recognising the different techniques that writers employ.
This is just a short video highlighting some of the basic techniques that we find in literature.
once we know about them, we can recognise them and their use.
Once we recognise them , then we can start engaging with what effects they are creating.
Once we can identify the effects they create, then we can start asking why they are there.
It is all part of the process of understanding the written words in front of us beyond a simple reading and understanding of the meaning of the sentence.
If you would like to buy me a coffee or a book, Support me on Ko-Fi: ko-fi.com/crit...
Intro and Music by Professor Trip.

[@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy]

Absolutely yes to more of these videos!

[@ACriticalDragon]

You already know all this stuff. :P You don't count.

[@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy]

@@ACriticalDragon True! But I can use your videos to teach my students and then sit back and relax while you educate them. 😁

[@neo_marshkga]

You have to feed all APs videos to an AI so you can generate student videos using his work without him knowing about it (?) @@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy

[@ACriticalDragon]

@@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy NEMESIS!!!!

[@Paul_van_Doleweerd]

A stinky fart is a tootology...

[@RuthanBadd]

Brilliant stuff AP, probably one of the best in your canon. As someone for whom English is a second language, and who grasped it predominantly through instinct than formalized early education, this was nothing short of a masterclass. I had absolutely no idea what half of these terms meant (anaphora, assonance, sibilance, spoonerism, eggcorn etc were totally new to me) and am going to parade the heck out of my newfound knowledge now. It's also going to be an amazing experience re-reading my favorite books with all these new techniques/effects in mind. It's remarkable how terminology is often considered a 'boring' topic in most academic disciplines, but a foundational knowledge of them often separates the pros from the rest. Thank you very much for literally making me a better reader (in a measurable way no less, not just in some vague sense) in merely 25 minutes!

[@Whiskeyjack_]

I would love more of these! I recently started a close reading series of Crack'd Pot Trail, and, not having any higher education in literature, I sometimes feel like I'm just doing a play-by-play "here's some alliteration, here's some assonance etc." commentary. I would love to see more about how you take it to the next step, where you talk about the effect that those things have, instead of just pointing them out.

[@imokin86]

Please do more of these, it's a good refresher for those who know these terms and a very accessible introduction for those who want to learn about them. I personally would love to see an in-depth look at perspective and how a writer can play with different narrator qualities, subtly indicate perspective switches and so on. Also, a technical question: does onomatopoeia include words that are not just indications of sound (like Woof! or Bang!), but also contain other elements of meaning: splash, moan, mumble? What about words like "whip" that seem to indicate an appropriate sound but do not mean it literally?

[@BreakingSpines]

Yes, please make more of these videos. I would love to see allegory, foreshadowing (probably could do a whole video on this one), and motif covered. On a side note, one of the most common and annoying tautologies I see is ATM Machine

[@DasCracker]

Wonderful Video and yes narrative terms video(s) would be delightful. Thank you AP!

[@JayKay-wi2wc]

I love learning about the technical aspects of narrative.

[@paulharvey5505]

Tautology that always grates on me is when I’ll hear a tv or radio person use the phrase ‘traveling at a high rate of speed’ when describing a car wreck

[@jeroenadmiraal8714]

You are the pineapple of booktubers!

[@JLchevz]

lol

[@matthewclarke-venters1303]

As someone who didn't pay much attention in school, this is so incredibly helpful! I'm going to write these terms down to refer to later whilst I'm reading (many of them are new to me). Yes, I agree with Philip - do more of these videos, please. And thank you.

[@francoisbouchart4050]

Please sir, can we have some more? As long as there is no surprise quiz at the start of the next class 😊. I would love if you could do a video of a prologue where you talk about the effect of using these concepts. Great video, as usual.

[@Gascon12]

Yes! more of these videos please!

[@idastokbaek]

I can’t listen to this while washing dishes! I have to take notes…. I guess the dishes will wait 📝 😁 This is great! I appreciate the free education 🙌

[@ashandarei4956]

Excellent educational content as usual! I would love for you to continue making videos like this. Some of these I knew, but many I did not. It would be nice to have a more in depth look at some of these and how they are used in specific examples in fantasy literature, as well as what their purpose in the narrative is. As you said, not just recognizing that its there but also thinking about what the significance of it. Some that I might suggest you cover would be things like aphorisms, tone, mood, style and theme. Also: its not tea-tottler?!?! I am shock.

[@ravenbellebooks5665]

I love your videos like these! Looking forward to learning more with you!

[@bigaldoesbooktube1097]

Thanks AP this was a nice little refresher

[@NKopp714]

Malapropisms. I'm re-watching The Office right now and Micheal Scott does these fairly consistently (as do Kelly and Erin from time to time). Until just now I didn't have the word for it. I bet upon a re-rewatch I would find plenty more. I would definitely like more videos like this.

[@EricMcLuen]

My family loves wordplay. It was a long time before I realized what bass ackwords was but we still move like a terd of hurdles. If you want some light humorous reading, Richard Lederer's Anguished English. And you can add yogism to the list fornnext time.

[@gandalfthebraindoc2618]

Thanks for the mind expansion therapy!

[@isaiahsanchevy9252]

I love this stuff.

[@bethgoldowitz4765]

Had a fun eggcorn this morning, when someone sent me an email about orange peals.

[@Jrose767]

I can't wait to talk about these terms pretending like I know anything at all

[@RedFuryBooks]

I really enjoyed this. A question: how conscious do you think a typical author is in utilizing a lot of these techniques? Or do they naturally occur?

[@ACriticalDragon]

How conscious are you of the fingering on a guitar? Initially, very. Once you become more experienced then it becomes 'natural', until a particular piece doesn't sound right or flow. Then it becomes conscious again. Like any skill and set of techniques, we Initially learn, then practice until they become automatic reflexes.

[@RedFuryBooks]

That's a perfect comparison for me - thank you!

[@ACriticalDragon]

I thought it might be appropriate.

[@Yungshamgod]

shoutsout Charles Dickens.

[@ACriticalDragon]

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times...