OOPS!! I didn't mean to spoil Hamlet for you! Hope you aren't too disappointed!
After reading this chapter I am now thinking back through all of the books I've read trying to make some connections. It's really hard when you are put on the spot.
I remember doing a paper in college on Shakespeare and how many of the the plots from his plays were borrowed from other books and plays. I remember being shocked--how could he be considered a genius if he borrowed his ideas from others?? Now though, I realize the author of this book is right--there aren't really any "new" ideas--we read books, watch movies, live life--and from that we (and the authors we read) use those experiences to create new ones. The author said "there's only one story."
What does he mean by that? What is the story? Also, do you agree that no story is entirely original? Why? Bonus: Can you name a book you've read that "borrows" some aspect of the plot from another work?
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I think i understand what he means by everything being of one story. It's like all stories can be brought back to others somehow. Now that i think about it, the Nancy Drew books adopt the idea from the Sherlock Holmes books. A central character solves mysteries.
I think the author means that all stories resemble each other. The things that make a story original are the varitations and details. For example a character's background a specific situations make a story stand out. Also the setting and time period allow each story to be different enough that you can read more than one and not feel like you have read it before. In love stories, it never fails, that there is a love triangle, and the girl that likes the guy likes him for an honest reason and the girl that the guy likes ends up getting played by the girl that he originally liked. However, in the end the guy ends up realizing that he has been trying to get the wrong girl all along. An example of this would be in "A Walk to Remember". In the book the girl begins to like him, but she isn't exactly the coolest girl in the world, but he comes to realize that that sin't what matters.
I think that the author means that to each individual reader "the" story is made up of their own experiences. For example, the things they've read, watched, or situations they themselves have been are manifested in the literature they read. To say that no story is original is a strong statement, but I see what he's saying. I think it depends on your perspective. It is true that we subconciously borrow from other things, but I think the measure of originality lies in how the author uses those things to have the greatest affect. I remember while reading "Crime and Punishment", I recognized a lot of the same things in Poe's "Tell Tale Heart." The sensless crime, the haunting guilt, and the eventual insanity and self-implication caused by the fear of being found out.
I think he means that the experiences we have in life are the only story that all literature is derived from. The story is your life and your experiences that help you related to the characters you read about. I do agree that no story is original, because every idea that an author has is sparked by an experience, a memory, or situation from another story. This links them all together, making reality the only original story, and every piece of literature derived from that unoriginal. The classic book East of Eden for example, borrows it's central characters from the stories of God and Adam and his son's Cain and Able from the Bible.
The author is definitely right, and he has an excellent point, because until now, I had never really thought of stories being the same, or that they are "borrowed." Which, if you think about it,they are. Have you ever watched a love story and felt like you had seen the same ending before? The girl and the guy fight and break up, but they always end up getting back together in the end. Every story is the same, or shall I say every plot outline is the same.
The only story is the story of the human condition, of course, becaus that is the only thing that we know about and can relate to. Situations repeat throughout novels because they repeat throughout life. No story is original for this reason.
Bonus: Paradise Lost obviously borrows a lot from the bible, as there is a huge character overlap and plot overlap with Genesis.
I agree with the author. There really isn't anything new that is out. Most of the movies out right now are related to a t.v. show that was done in the 60's. I think that there are a lot of stories that can be original, such as a fictional short story. once again I cannot come up with a book but I can think of a movie. Facing the giants goes along the lines of the biblical story David and Goliath.
I believe that there is no entirely original story. I believe that all stories stem from others. Authors usually read many books before they have an idea of what they write about. The only one story is pretty much life because all these stories seem to be based off each other. In the popular series "Eragon", a lot of the story line is similar to that of Star Wars, and that's even based off older stories.
It does totally make sense that all stories come from one story. I never would of thought about that though because i usually read each book as an individual and never think back to the other books i've read. It is true that most characters in books can be found in other books. I think that every author probablly puts a little bit of background from other books he has read in their own text.
Humm...well if you want to be technical, the MUST be an orignal to everything. Everything has a beginning. But in agreence with the author, all stories relate to one another. For example movies these days seems to basically stem from a movie that was made in previous years. The plot, characters, and climax may be a tad different something was the same as another movie. The same with books.
i agree with the author that all stories are based or loesly based off another but for stories to resemble other stories there has to be an orginal, so how does someone copy something that hasnt been thought up yet? National treasure and the Librarian are almost identical they both chase after treasure and they both face evil to get it... so who thought of the original or are they based off of something else... i gusse we will never know...?
I do not think that everything comes from one story.I think that all stories are orginal. All people go through different situtations so no story could end up being the same.
i think that many stories are the same in some ways but i do not believe that every story is burrowed.
the author is right. no story will ever be different. sure, authors will try and re-write stories and make them the way they want them to be and try to perfect them but in the end there is an original out there somewhere which many authors have copied. it's definitely the same with movies as well.
No story can be entirely original. If you read a lot of the same kinds of books, they will all be mostly similar. Every author sort of adds their own flavor to their books though. Every story is pretty much based on somebody elses's story...kind of.
I think that no story is original. At least when you go to write a story you have to have an idea that you've read from another story. Some might have different concepts and characters, but they all resemble in some form or fashion. I think that what's different in the story is what draws us to them. The new characters and the way they present themselves. Every story is different but the same. hard concept...
well i have never really thought of stories being the same but now that i thin about it i kind of understand what the author means. what makes a story different is the background or the attitude of the story. but the author is right because all storys end up alike.
I believe the author is talking about how all stories are somewhat related to each other, which to me is stupid. Yes some books are related to others because they are in the same category. Love stories are deffinatly not like mystery books, in a love story two people get together break up then end up together in the end in a mystery you never know what is going to happen, so I dissagree with the author on this one.
I definitely agree with him. You'd think there would be an unlimited amount of information for a writer to use for their story, but that information can usually be traced back to a different story somewhere. I think it would be hard to find a book that's completely original, all information has to come from somewhere. One book i can think of is the "Sea of Monsters," it's part of a series and all of the books constantly referenece mythology.
I can agree with this chapter. All stories or plots do come from the idea of another story. Like Haley said, all movies today seem to be all from the same story line just with a slight tweek or even completely the same just more modern. I think Mr. Foster is trying to show us exactly this. Every story from Shakespearian time have all been from that story line and has only been rejuvinated and set to modern times.
I agree with the author on the idea that there is only one story. I think the story he is referring to is history itself because history has a tendency to repeat itself. No story or plot is original. When authors write stories or books everyone wonders what put those ideas in their head. I think that the same ideas that are in authors heads are in our minds as well because everyone is brought up in the same world and learns the same history we do. I think the only thing different is how the author chooses to mix up the ideas that have been given to him. Even two of the most recently popular book series have same ideas. In the 6th Harry Potter book, Harry breaks up with Jenny Weasley to protect her and then leaves. Also in the 2nd Twilight book, Edward breaks up with Bella to protect her and then also leaves town.
What I think the author means by it is the only story in life is life what we do to fill in the time until we die trillions of pepole have lived since the begining of time and we all have one thing in commen we lived the story that is life being lived itself.
I think that when the author said "there's only one story", he literally meant that there is only one story, with which all of the others originated from and copy off of. You will never know which story it is since every time someone thinks 'where have I seen this before?' they usually think of different stories...Also, I do agree that no story is entirely original because no matter what, you can read a story and think that some part of it came from another story...
He's talking about how all books are connected because everyone in a way are connected to each other. no story is entirely original all stories come from originals and have individual preferences added to them. the movie next was stolin from the book blink.
I never really thought about it, but the author does have a point. Other people may not complete steal all aspects of other stories but there definitely are similarities if you go back and think about it. And if you really do think about it, then what truly was the original story? You can't just have all of these stories stemming from an unknown original story.. Can you? I think that there are probably quite a few original ones and then other people get ideas from those and combine and mix and match.
I'm not really sure about books that "borrow" aspects from other works, but movies definitely do, like remakes.
I think he means that all the stories originate from one and other and they do all have the same idea somehow. Like how stories have the same situations and themes. No because there has to be an original to begin with and then the first situations had to be originals too
i think that most stories come from other stories that were told before the ones today were even thought of. sometimes there may be a way off the wall story that came from nowhere, but most are alike to stories that were written in the past.
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