Special K

For Every Season

Apparently in literature, something is always standing for something else. As Foster enjoys saying in "How to Read Literature Like an English Professor", "it's never just (insert something here)". I am not disagreeing with Foster, he's completely right. The author wouldn't bother to include an element in her story if didn't stand for something.

Same goes for setting. Why bother making it a sunny summer day in a valley if there wasn't a meaning behind it? Seasons can add a lot to a piece of literature. As most literary students know (or have learned by now) winter is a dreary season invoking feelings of despair or death. Nothing exciting happens in winter and when the world is covered in a large blanket of snow, it can feel smothering. Likewise, summer is a happy sunny time of rebirth and renewal. These meanings behind the seasons are rather easy to understand. If a character is feeling depressed and it is winter, we can make the connection.