In the wrap-up after our debate on Thursday, Dr. Donovan brought
up an interesting idea. When a couple people mentioned that there were letters
from J.R.R. Tolkien which could have been used by either side to support their
argument, Dr. Donovan mentioned that, had either team used that letter, the
other team could have made the rebuttal that what the author intended
isn’t necessarily as important as what is actually shown in the books. (Don't get me wrong, Tolkien's intent is still important to consider and study, but there is an interesting argument here).
I just wanted to bring this up and possibly get some of your
opinions on it!
The biggest argument I can see about this is that perhaps
the author’s intent during writing is more important than their intent after writing
– see all of J.K. Rowling’s tweets after the HP books were completed – but most
important is still what was actually written. A student writing an essay can
say “well, I intended to show X,” even if their reader (teacher, peers,
etc.) doesn’t see that at all – the student’s intent in this situation matters
a little but doesn’t change what they actually wrote.
Tolkien could have intended to portray Frodo as failing or
succeeding in his quest, but the important distinction is whether Tolkien
himself succeeded in portraying what he intended. However, I don’t intend to
bring that debate up again! What I do intend to do, is ask you whether you
think considering authorial intent is important when reading a book. Are the
curtains blue because the author intended x y or z? Or, are we SHOWN in the
author’s written words that the color is actually important, or just a minor
detail?
How much, really, does the intent of the author matter in how readers understand their works?
I do think authorial intent is important, however I do agree with you that what's written is written and nothing can change that. I think we can look at authorial intent for the broad themes of the story, like how Tolkien's experience in the war gave him an understanding of the importance of friendship and hope. These themes are very obvious and it is clear Tolkien really wanted his readers to see them. However, when we look at smaller detail such as a blue curtain I think it is oftentimes completely up to our interpretation. The author may have a reason for including blue curtains rather than red ones but we can't know their interpretation unless they made it more clear. I don't think that authors want you to have the exact same perception as them, they are happy that you read their books and take away something meaningful.
ReplyDeleteGandalf,
ReplyDeleteI think that this issue really is determined on a case-by-case basis. I agree that the writing of the book should portray authorial intent, not just tweets or letters from the author. Good writers should not have to explain the intentions of their writing, it should speak for itself. Authorial intent does matter if there is a misunderstanding or misinterpretation about a large part of the story, but I do not think this is the case with the debate on Frodo's success. That is more of a discussion on whether Tolkien chose to make Frodo follow his actions that he planned on following at the beginning of the story.
This is a really interesting idea to bring up. I do think authorial intent is important to consider, especially when discussing key themes or messages that Tolkien (or any author) wants to convey to the reader through his writing. There are definitely specific events, changes, and character growth (or lack thereof) that have the purpose of representing a certain message and thus identifying the author's intention is important. However, authorial intent becomes less necessary when there are plot points, characters, etc., whose nature are open to interpretation and different perspectives. What the writing presents will function and be interpreted differently based on the reader and their own perspectives based on personal belief, experience and preference.
ReplyDeleteI feel like it is important for the author to have control over their works, and their intent is important. But authors can also change their mind from when they wrote the books, or readers could bring up something that the author didn't even think about when they were writing, and then the author has to take a stance on it, even if they didn't have that stance when they were writing.
ReplyDelete