Why You Should Never Go Out in a Winter Storm (Hint:You’ll Become Crazy)

It is in this chapter that I really start appreciating Foster as writer, my favorite line of his being, “November in the bones.” I feel that quote will stick with me for a long time. I think it’s important for an author to establish some sort of ethos so that the reader can take what he says seriously; especially when writing a book like this where you’re deliberately teaching someone how to do something. And I think Foster sets up that credibility and trust right from the beginning. I think he was very aware of his primary audience, students --probably high school or college-- and I think his language really does slant toward appealing to that age group. He has a witty style of writing, keeping it interesting and constantly relatable.  It also helps that he repeatedly mentions the fact that he is a teacher, so we know that he probably (hopefully) knows what he’s talking about. This book has so far taught me many things that I can personally apply to playwriting. The smallest things really do matter. For instance, the names he talks about in this chapter, “Daisy Miller” and “Frederic Winterbourne.” So obvious! …Now that it’s pointed out. I think I need to put a little more thought into the details of the things I write.

 But all of that is beside the point of the chapter. In chapter twenty he once again mentions a piece of work that I am familiar with, which is another method he uses to stay relatable, using very widely known pieces of literature. He mentions Shakespeare’s King Lear as an example of season’s meaning. In the play King Lear has a fit, a tantrum, if you will; explicitly showing his descend into madness. And it just so happens that this happens in the middle of a winter storm. (This chapter further instills my love for summer; if nothing else, shying me away from the season’s evil twin, for fear of turning mad in a winter storm.)

I’m not sure if this rule really always works (what rule does?) for fall. Sure, in the example given from Shakespeare’s “Sonnet 73”, it is the end of fall, beginning of winter, which means something usually depressing is going on. But I generally see fall as a good season. I picture fireplaces, leaves, strolls, breezy, sunny weather. What I really picture is the moving picture of Harry Potter’s parents, dancing in the fall, one of the only momentos he has left of them. I think in this case, J.K. Rowling did mean for fall to represent a happy time in order for Harry to feel happy and at ease when looking at this picture. Of course, winter too can be seen as a happy time. Maybe that’s just because I live in Texas and winters are not a particularly brutal thing to bear down here. However, since most writers do not reside in Texas, I will take Foster’s word for the fact that generally speaking, summer is a good thing, and winter is not.

 Seriously...don't do it.