Twitter is becoming synonymous with controversy. Don’t worry I’m not going to launch into a rant about Twitter democracy, media oustings or even gossip about Stephen Fry threatening to quit Twitter. I want to return to the greatest thing about Twitter: 140 characters.
There is great skill in being able to communicate concisely. Twitterature: The World’s Greatest Books Retold Through Twitter has been written by two 19-year-old students in Chicago – Emmett Rensin, an English and philosophy student at the University of Chicago, and friend Alexander Aciman – and has caused a stir.
While it pains me to read the words, “burdensome duty of reading”, quoted in the Guardian, this book is quite interesting. Its simple and connects literary classics with contemporary linguistics and, ultimately, has got a lot of people riled and ready to defend the importance of reading great literature.
In some ways the book is a complete mockery of literature. As Blazenka Brysha comments on her blog:
“The work begins with a breathy introduction that functions as an apologia for the work’s existence. By wading through overwritten, florid sentences awash with the effluent of metaphors drawn from nature, you learn that the authors want to bring literature to the level of the modern moron, who has neither the time nor the language skills required to read.”
Christie Kiley makes a good point about our modern desire for “instant gratification” in a comment on blog, Issues about New Media Musings.
Quoted on News Hyderabad, co-author of the book, Emmett Rensin said: “It’s funny if you’ve read the books.” Partner in crime, Alexander Aciman added: “There were some lines in the book where we’re sitting on a couch and we’re writing it, and we’d both laugh and say ‘there’s no way they’re going to let us write that’.”
“Some people think it’s funny and some people think it’s disrespectful,” she continued, “I’m not going to say it’s high art. There is some value to it, I feel, aside from the fact we’re making available the idea behind great works of art.”
I’m going to ignore the fact that this could merely be a result of our growing disaffection for the written word amidst our time-stricken lives and lazy attitude. This exercise in condensing plot lines has accidentally made a point perhaps beyond the authors’ intentions.
While many will definitely claim it’s dumbing down our Literary Canon, and some adults will moan about its use of social-networking slang, one of the most important thing to remember about literature is the use of language. And this book explores just that.
William Shakespeare used the language of his day to communicate his ideas.
In the words of the Guardian’s Phil Hogan, “It’s not York Notes.” And neither should it be.The book explores how language can communicate big ideas in a few words through a combination of 140 characters and a culture embedded with literary references.
If you did the same exercise, like the Telegraph’s Jim White, you would most likely pick out other points and events as key – after all, this is just two students’ interpretations.
Finally, in its use of contemporary snippets, it proves that Twitter is not enough; to truly understand, learn and gain from the summaries you have to read the novel, play or poem. Whatever your opinion, while literature is being debated and interpreted, it is still alive.
On an aside, I wonder how many York Notes Emmett and Alexander cheekily consulted along the way?
Pithy, pertinent and far-ranging – have posted the link for my facebook literary buddies to enjoy. Literature is not only still alive, it is kicking.
The thing to remember is that the book is HUMOR. The overwrought and overinflated intro is intentionally so. The intent is arch. These kids are much more clever than anyone suspects. They are having a laugh and hope the reader does as well. The book mocks Twitter and literature and celebrates both as well. Bottom line: they love these books and read nary a York Notes along the way. Instead they actually read each parodied book before getting the idea for their book. They love to read. Nothing wrong with that.
Thank you for your comment. I agree, the book celebrates literature through humour and exemplifies the students’ literary understanding.
The worry is, some people may use this parody as a replacement for texts and see the ability to reduce vast texts to a few tweets as proof of the redundancy of reading literary classics.
Regardless, the various interpretations and responses that the book has incited is testimony to the fact that literature is intrinsic to our culture and something so many are willing to celebrate, challenge and debate.
Thanks for linking! Enjoyed reading your review on Twitterature.
Thanks for your kind response. This book at heart seems like nothing more than two smart students saying, “Hey! We’ve read all these books. Twitter’s all the rage. Let’s have some fun. Maybe someone would even publish it.” I’d say their instincts were dead on. As for some people trying to use Twitterature as a replacement for the original texts … well, the minute they see the book they’d have to abandon that lame idea, wouldn’t they? (Without having read it, I suppose any sort of speculation and knee-jerk reaction based on the absence of any facts is possible.) We are asked to read the classics in school and some of us take to them instinctively. Others have to find their own way to the same appreciation in a variety of ways. Twitterature can only help. If nothing else, based on what I’ve read online and the authors’ interviews, there has been a wide ranging response to the book — which is always nice — and (you are correct) the celebration, challenge, and debate lives on.
Nice point about all of us having a personal approach to literature, conventional or not. Yes – we need to encourage all forms of expression to maintain our diverse literary culture and allow everyone to form their own interpretations.
This reminds me a little of the Plain English campaign. While they “believe that everyone should have access to clear and concise information” – and have helped even the government write their reports – perhaps expression via contemporary means (Twitterature or the like) can help everyone have access to literary ideas in a clear, concise and accessbile manner.