Does Size Really Matter?

My first year at university has taught me that the world of books is found in a plethora of mediums. From discussing the commodity fetishism in a Grimes music video on Facebook, to studying the graphic novel Persepolis and its film adaptation, it became apparent that stories are not just found in the nineteenth century, Dickensian form.

However, the physical considerations of books are important, too. Upon picking up the hefty Riverside Chaucer at the Student Union book sale (I hasten to add that I only needed one extended poem from the entire book), I realised that literature is still making its presence known physically. Somebody eventually pointed to the book and said to his friend: “it could be worse, mate, you could have to buy that.” Looking at the piles of books I have to move back home after the year it is indeed striking how much room, not just intellectually but physically, that one years reading list takes up.

Despite this drawback, many stories are like a good wine because they mature on a second reading. I was told that the epic genre, from Homer to Milton, would be something that I would retrospectively appreciate. There are two lessons to be made from this: if you’re not a reader, you can be – there will always be something just for you. Second, if you’re a Literature fresher reading this next year, take comfort in the fact that one day you too can retrospectively preach the value of heavy, extended poetry.

I also found it interesting that books, in spite of their reputation for being purveyors of fantasy, actually often shape our view of reality. My more theoretical modules introduced texts that were not necessarily making a comment on fiction but also its effects on society. Edward Said’s Orientalism made me ponder about the representations of cultures to the extent that I realise how fashion trends and music videos can be interpreted in different manners, becoming even harmful in some eyes. Exploring the Freud Museum in London and reading about how Marx analysed my home city of Manchester demonstrated that our perspectives of geographical locations can be changed by the theory in texts.