Guest Blogger: Josh P.

OK seriously, I'm going to do my best to keep TVTropes out of this post. For your sake and mine too if certain unnamed haters get a hold of me.

Regardless, we're studying novels. Great American Novels, specifically. But what makes them so great? We've talked about point of view, romance vs. verisimilitude, and other fun things like that. But aren't we forgetting something? When you pick up a novel, either fresh off the shelf at your local B&N, or a nice-smelling old book in the JM bookroom, you don't read it for "teh lulz", or for the point of view, or even for the romance vs. verisimilitude debate (unless you're Mr. Decker, of course). No, you read it for the plot.

Yes, I know what you're gonna say. Plot is low on Bloom's Taxonomy! That's only comprehension level! Go beyond the plot!

But plot is perhaps the most important part of any novel ever written. Plot is the glue that binds together the book - quite literally. Without a plot, James couldn't present his verisimilitude to readers without them dozing off in the middle of the lack-of-story. Wharton couldn't make us read Ethan Frome for a million dollars if it had no story, only Ethan's dull narration of daily life. Faulkner would have no reason to tell us about the Bundrens' journey to Jefferson to bury their dead mother. None of it would work!

So it turns out plot is a little more important than you thought. More examples: How does Shelley develop the character of Viktor Frankenstein? Through plot events. Homer and Odysseus? Through Odysseus's actions and his ultimate fate. Hester Prynne? Her wearing the scarlet letter and her introspection into why she does. Jay Gatsby? He certainly wouldn't be the "Great Gatsby" if the plot didn't develop him and his motives for the reader. Dialogue and introspection, as well as actions and events, are all parts of plot that can in turn allow the deeper levels of comprehension and analysis that lead us to things like romance vs. verisimilitude or point of view.

Ok I'll give you this. In these "Great American Novels", plot takes a backseat. So often we focus on the literary elements of the stories while ignoring their plot, and that's a shame. Reading books with a good twisted plot and lots of revelations about the characters we know and trust can be fun - if we don't analyze it to death.

So what I'm trying to say is this - we read a book for the plot specifically the first time through. Then we look at the deeper literary elements and try to tie them to the plot events and dialogue. Once you start to look at the plot of books, they suddenly don't seem as scary. We can look at Turn of the Screw, As I Lay Dying, Homer's Odyssey, and yes, even perhaps The Scarlet Letter, as perhaps more engaging books where we don't focus totally on the "boring" elements of literature, and maybe even make reading these books for plot enjoyable.