As a reader, you are also a part of the creative process of writing
More often than not, your mind might wrestle between the ideas that Hogwarts is actually a real place and only JK Rowling has access to it or maybe, that it is just a mere figment of her imagination. This constant need to analyze a book from the perspective of its author is actually a reflex among the readers. It can be disconcerting to make sense of just words on paper without their proper context. But as important as it is to know where a work of fiction comes from, it is absolutely not necessary that the readers settle on a single idea while interpreting anything.
Every creative enterprise includes a few significant steps (in the order): ideation, execution and interpretation. While the first two steps involve the writer only, the third step acquires meaning through its audience. As consumers of written work, we need to understand that interpretation is as much a part of the creative process as the first two steps in it. And every time going back to the author would lead to imposition of meanings, eventually narrowing down the spectrum of the interpretative process. However, creativity isn’t something that we would like to contain and thus, Roland Barthes in 1967 gave us the concept of “The Death of an Author”.
As much we would like to dread a messenger from the underworld with a machete but the death here is entirely metaphorical. It refers to a system of criticism in the 20th century whereby a work of fiction is analyzed without depending on its historical context and the biographical details of the author. The question of “what the author must have intended when he/she had written this?” changes to “how can I, as a reader, make sense of this?”
Going by the fact that a particular work of fiction is consumed by readers, each with a distinct personal background, we can just imagine how the horizon of meanings would broaden. For example, an Indian reader while reading Shakespeare, an English dramatist, would try to make sense of “Romeo and Juliet” by comparing it with “Heer Ranjha” or “Laila Majnu.” Or maybe when Austen’s “Pride and Prejudice” is read around the world, every reader ought to deviate from the author’s original intention and make sense of Lizzy and Darcy’s love affair according to their own empirical compass. This is rewarding for the readers as they get the opportunity to participate in a creative process across time and space.
It is quite interesting on paper but much more fun to witness in real time. In one of The Folded Paper’s Storyboard meetings, where Paperians write stories and share feedback on them, we experienced the functional aspect of the concept of “The Death of the Author”. In the Chapter #7, Paperian Harini’s story featured this particular expression — ‘sanitized cabs’. When the expression was used, we knew it meant more than a driver with a mask. So we went ahead and shared what we had interpreted it as:
- For some, it was a reminder of the pandemic
- Some saw it as the first step in going away from home
- While, some thought it to be an ideal place
Whereas, Paperian Harini used the expression “sanitized cabs” as a metaphor for “leaving behind your emotional baggage”. Even though nothing comes nearer to the intended meaning, all of them seemed appropriate. To know more about it, checkout the link to the YouTube video:
This activity reflected how every reader in the meeting tried to make sense of the expression with regard to their individual perspectives which, of course, has been influenced by their specific experiences. This practice, for one, made us aware that any collective is actually a “melting pot” of experience and these experiences are reflected in the creation of meaning of any form of expression. Even if we, as readers, struggle to keep away from going back to the author’s intention, we must at least try not to restrict our interpretations to that. If contrary, we will negate numerous perspectives and purge the creative process of a broader spectrum of meaning.
Hence, next time we read a work of fiction, the question should be “how do I, as a reader, make sense of this?” This would be liberating in its own way.
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