Textuality: Chapter 5

“This dialogue between old texts and new is always going on at one level or another. Critics speak of this dialogue as intertextuality, the ongoing interaction between poems or stories. This in deepens and enriches the reading experience, bringing multiple layers of meaning to the text, some of which readers may not even consciously notice. The more we become aware of the possibility that out text is speaking to other texts, the more similarities and correspondences we begin to notice, and the more alive the text becomes. We’ll come back to this discussion later, but for now we’ll simply note that newer works are having a dialogue with older ones, and they indicate the presence of this conversation by invoking the older text with anything from oblique references to extensive quotations.”

Throughout Chapter 5, Now Where Have I Seen Her Before?, Thomas Foster illuminates the concept of intertextuality , the realization of the connection that new literature posses with previously existing literature. All Literature is linked. Authors use previous stories or parts of stories within in their own creation. They enact obvious key features from other authors’ work to enhance the quality of their own. This piggy back concept may appear as a form of plagiarism, however these tactics are acceptable because “there’s no such thing as a wholly original work of literature.” The involvement of other works becomes extremely advantageous as it provides new depth and meaning to the piece. The reader is forced to connect prior readings with the section at hand, ultimately providing more substance than the mere plot and surface content. As the author performs this task of including deeper meaning within their literature, it provides a prime environment to develop and mold young mind into better reader, writers, and analyzers. This method of inserting preceding ideas does not distract or mellow the outcome of the piece due to the reality that the final outcome differs. Also recognize that historical events and happenings are applied to many stories in the same manner as fictional ideas and this is acceptable because history is virtually a story as well. In the chapter, the author discusses the novel, Going After Cacciato. This novel inserts the historical reference of Sacagawea and her guiding ability through a young Vietnamese women trying to help the main character find a safe secret passage through hostile territory to escape the war. Although Sacagawea was an actual historical figure, he allusion to her lifestyle through the young Vietnamese women serves as an accurate depiction of the use of literature piggy backing off of previous literature or stories.