Thomas C. Foster Knihy

Nepostradatelná analýza nejslavnějšího média — filmu. Když se v kině ztlumí světla a na plátně se ozve lví řev, těšíme se na to, jak budeme šokovaní, vystrašení, nadšení, dojatí a uchvácení. Zatímco jsme zároveň veselí a vyděšení, naše mysl zpracovává různá data — vizuální, jazyková, sluchová a prostorová — a dává tak dohromady význam. Foster ukazuje filmovým fanouškům, studentům, budoucím scenáristům a režisérům, jak se proměnit z pouhého diváka v kultivovaného čtenáře tohoto významného média. Investigativním přístupem, který si čtenáři zamilovali už v knize Jak číst literaturu jako profesor, zkoumá filmovou gramatiku na příkladu různých klasických i současných filmů natočených ve Spojených státech, ale i jinde ve světě. Díky Fosterově knize získá čtenář kvalifikaci a také sebedůvěru k tomu, aby si mohl ze svých oblíbených filmů odnést co nejvíce.

O čem všem musí autor rozhodnout, než začne psát román? A co vlastně dělá román románem? Na tyto a mnohé další otázky ve své knize Jak číst romány jako profesor odpovídá literární teoretik Thomas C. Foster. Zkoumá žánr románu a jeho specifika s velkou dávkou nadhledu a vtipu, čímž suchopárnou literární teorii proměňuje v lákavé dobrodružství. Foster vypráví příběh románu (od Cervantesova Dona Quijota přes romány Jane Austenové či Ernesta Hemingwaye až k dílům současných autorů) s takovým zaujetím, že je těžké nenechat se jím strhnout. Stručná historie románu je však pouze prostředkem k seznámení se se základními autorskými postupy. Jejich znalost je obzvláště užitečná v dnešní době, kdy je zdůrazňován podíl čtenáře na utváření celkového významu díla. V této nelehké roli je kniha Jak číst romány jako profesor poučeným a zábavným pomocníkem, který čtenáře dovede k intenzivnějším zážitkům z četby. A ani nemusí být profesor.

Revidované a aktualizované vydání klasického Fosterova průvodce. Ačkoli si spoustu knih můžeme užít čistě jako příběh, často v nich najdeme i hlubší literární významy. Kniha Jak číst literaturu jako profesor nám pomůže tyto skryté pravdy objevit a pohlédnout na literaturu očima profesionálního čtenáře, univerzitního profesora. Co znamená, když postava jede po prašné silnici? Když nabídne svému společníkovi nápoj? Když zmokne v náhlé průtrži mračen? Thomas C. Foster pojednává o hlavních literárních tématech a modelech, vyprávěcích prostředcích a formách, a představuje nám literaturu jako svět, kde cesta znamená hledání, sdílený pokrm svaté přijímání a déšť, ať už očišťující, nebo ničivý, není nikdy pouhou sprchou. Revidované vydání obsahuje nové kapitoly, předmluvu a epilog a rovněž aktualizované výukové body, které Foster za posledních deset let vypracoval.

The New York Times bestselling author of the beloved classic How to Read Literature Like a Professor teaches you how to write everything from a report for your community association to a meaningful memoir in this masterful and engaging guide. Combing anecdotes and hard-won lessons from decades of teaching and writing--and invoking everyone from Hemingway to your third-grade teacher--retired professor Thomas C. Foster guides you through the basics of writing. With How to Write Like a Writer you'll learn how to organize your thoughts, construct first drafts, and (not incidentally) keep you in your chair so that inspiration can come to visit. With warmth and wit, Foster shows you how to get into (and over) your best self, how to find your voice, and how to know when, if ever, a piece of work is done. Packed with enlightening anecdotes, highlighted with lists and bullet points, this invaluable guide reveals how writers work their magic, and reminds us that we all--for better or worse, whether we mean to or not--are known by what we put on paper or screen, both our thoughts and our words.

From the bestselling author of How to Read Literature Like a Professor comes an essential guide to enjoying poetry, from Lord Byron to the Beatles. Poetry is both admired and feared; its rich history and emotional depth captivate many, yet its complexity can intimidate readers. Most of us first encountered poetry in beloved children's books, but as our reading shifted to prose, poetry became less familiar and more daunting. However, it doesn't have to be overwhelming. In an engaging voice, Thomas C. Foster helps readers conquer their fear of poetry and rediscover its joys. The book explores a diverse range of poets, including Shakespeare, Edna St. Vincent Millay, E.E. Cummings, and Seamus Heaney, teaching readers how to grasp a poem's primary meaning and appreciate its technical elements—meter, diction, rhyme, and structure. Foster encourages readers to view these elements as allies in understanding poetry. He also emphasizes the importance of listening for a poem's secondary meanings and recognizing the musicality in both poems and songs. With this guide, readers can unlock the rewards of poetry and enjoy its beauty once more.

The New York Times bestselling author of the beloved classic How to Read Literature Like a Professor teaches you how to write everything from a report for your community association to a meaningful memoir in this masterful and engaging guide. Combing anecdotes and hard-won lessons from decades of teaching and writing--and invoking everyone from Hemingway to your third-grade teacher--retired professor Thomas C. Foster guides you through the basics of writing. With How to Write Like a Writer you'll learn how to organize your thoughts, construct first drafts, and (not incidentally) keep you in your chair so that inspiration can come to visit. With warmth and wit, Foster shows you how to get into (and over) your best self, how to find your voice, and how to know when, if ever, a piece of work is done. Packed with enlightening anecdotes, highlighted with lists and bullet points, this invaluable guide reveals how writers work their magic, and reminds us that we all--for better or worse, whether we mean to or not--are known by what we put on paper or screen, both our thoughts and our words.

The go-to bestselling guide to help young people navigate from a middle school book report to English Comp 101 In How to Read Literature Like a Professor: For Kids, New York Times bestselling author and professor Thomas C. Foster gives tweens the tools they need to become thoughtful readers. With funny insights and a conversational style, he explains the way writers use symbol, metaphor, characterization, setting, plot, and other key techniques to make a story come to life. From that very first middle school book report to that first college course, kids need to be able to understand the layers of meaning in literature. Foster makes learning this important skill fun and exciting by using examples from How the Grinch Stole Christmas to The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, from short stories and poems to movie scripts. This go-to guide unlocks all the hidden secrets to reading, making it entertaining and satisfying.

Of all the literary forms, the novel is arguably the most discussed . . . and fretted over. From Miguel de Cervantes's Don Quixote to the works of Jane Austen, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Ernest Hemingway, and today's masters, the novel has grown with and adapted to changing societies and technologies, mixing tradition and innovation in every age throughout history.Thomas C. Foster—the sage and scholar who ingeniously led readers through the fascinating symbolic codes of great literature in his first book, How to Read Literature Like a Professor—now examines the grammar of the popular novel. Exploring how authors' choices about structure—point of view, narrative voice, first page, chapter construction, character emblems, and narrative (dis)continuity—create meaning and a special literary language, How to Read Novels Like a Professor shares the keys to this language with readers who want to get more insight, more understanding, and more pleasure from their reading.

"No art form is as instantly and continuously gratifying as film. When the house lights go down and the lion roars, we settle in to be shocked, frightened, elated, moved, and thrilled. We expect magic. While we're being exhilarated and terrified, our minds are also processing data of all sorts--visual, linguistic, auditory, spatial--to collaborate in the construction of meaning. Thomas C. Foster's Reading the Silver Screen will show movie buffs, students of film, and even aspiring screenwriters and directors how to transition from merely being viewers to becoming accomplished readers of this great medium. Beginning with the grammar of film, Foster demonstrates how every art form has a grammar, a set of practices and if-then propositions that amount to rules. He goes on to explain how the language of film enables movies to communicate the purpose behind their stories and the messages they are striving to convey to audiences by following and occasionally breaking these rules. In Reading the Silver Screen, readers will gain the expertise and confidence to glean all they can from the movies they love"--Amazon.com.

A thoroughly revised and updated edition of Thomas C. Foster's classic guide—a lively and entertaining introduction to literature and literary basics, including symbols, themes, and contexts—that shows you how to make your everyday reading experience more rewarding and enjoyable. While many books can be enjoyed for their basic stories, there are often deeper literary meanings interwoven in these texts. How to Read Literature Like a Professor helps us to discover those hidden truths by looking at literature with the eyes—and the literary codes—of the ultimate professional reader: the college professor. What does it mean when a literary hero travels along a dusty road? When he hands a drink to his companion? When he's drenched in a sudden rain shower? Ranging from major themes to literary models, narrative devices, and form, Thomas C. Foster provides us with a broad overview of literature—a world where a road leads to a quest, a shared meal may signify a communion, and rain, whether cleansing or destructive, is never just a shower—and shows us how to make our reading experience more enriching, satisfying, and fun. This revised edition includes new chapters, a new preface, and a new epilogue, and incorporates updated teaching points that Foster has developed over the past decade.