Today in class we discussed how the pictures in the book manipulate the reader to imagine the characters and setting a certain way. This was similar to how we have been conditioned to see Harry Potter as Daniel Radcliffe rather than the way Rowling describes him in the text. It seemed as though the whole class established that they didn’t like that kind of manipulation. I disagree, I like when there is already a picture of who the characters are. I find it a lot easier to see the text playing out in my head when I know exactly what the characters look like.
Maybe I don’t have an imagination (which is why I’m not looking forward to coming up with another chapter to House of Danger) or maybe I’m so used to having rules laid out for me that I never fully developed my imagination and creativeness. I don’t mean that I didn’t have a childhood, I did I promise. I guess I just lost touch with my imagination growing up. It’s like taking time off from a sport. After a while you get pretty rusty and if you let years pass without playing, you end up losing almost all of your ability.
I think it's interesting that you bring up that you "lost" your creativity. I tend to think of creativity as something intrinsic, but then, I remember that you can be conditioned to being reliant on being given interpretations and explanation. Creativity, which also encourages individualism, is frowned upon in certain societies (China, for instance, prioritizes conformity). So, in a sense, not being exposed to creative thought or given a chance to exercise creativity puts you at as much of a disadvantage as maturing. BUT do you dream? Sleep-dream, that is? I find that even if my mind is bleary and not in the creative spirit, my dreams are just as wacky.
ReplyDeleteAlso, in color therapy, purple supposedly encourages both calm feelings and creative thoughts.
It seems as though there is a negative connotation associated with not having an imagination. In reality, I don’t think there is anything wrong with being a non-creative person. I freely admit that I like structure and rules in my life – any ideas that are even remotely “outside the box” are ideas I could never have come up with. For me, that’s one of the reasons I like the books we are reading and the discussions we are having. I get to experience abstract thoughts and ideas, even though I didn’t create them. Without meaning to be cheesy, but in the name of diversity, it is probably good that we have some people who are very creative, some people who are more structured and others who are somewhere in between; everyone balances each other out.
ReplyDeleteI want to add a couple words of caution here:
ReplyDelete1. What do you/we mean by "creative"? It has infinite registers... and I would stake my career on the fact (yes, I said "fact"!) that we all have imaginations -- some are just tuned differently than others.
2. When Alyssa says that she likes knowing "exactly what the character looks like" (regarding Radcliffe as Harry Potter), what she is (you are) saying is that you have accepted this *representation* of Harry Potter as the genuine article. Sure. Absolutely. Your choice! But this doesn't necessarily equate w/ what Harry Potter looks like "exactly." Such an exact representation is, I would argue, ultimately impossible. And all we are left w/ are the representations/impressions that we choose to accept or reject.