Literature - Texts to Interpret

As I've taken classes at Erskine College, a sort of unity between certain fields has appeared to me. That is, I see a vague similarity between the disciplines. Those fields are literature, history, theology and music. What do they all have in common, you ask? The answer is interpretation. In each field, a text or texts are critically examined by experts to arrive at certain conclusions. In literature, we examine the themes, metaphors and plot structure of different genres, like the play, short story or novel. In history, we examine first-hand accounts, written records and other documents to determine what really happened at a given place or time. In theology, the central text, the Bible, is examined in great deal. There are multiple applications, such as the study of the text as literature, as doctrinal support and as moral instruction. Finally, in music, as in literature, motifs and ideas are analysed in pieces of music. Different genres, like classical and popular are looked at in-depth to study the effect of the music on the people, and from the people to the music itself.

In all four fields, there is a unity of interpretation. However, this interpretation differs from one to the other. Take the biblical account of Ruth for example: it has the potential to be analyzed by a literary scholar, a theologian and a historian. The historian would examine how the text presents the culture of the time. A theologian would do so also, but would add in a study of the author's use of history to instruct the culture of the time. Finally, a literary scholar would focus almost entirely on the plot-based aspects of the story, such as the immense number of "happy coincidences" that fill the book, and lead the theologian to point to Providence within the story.

Examples like this abound. One key example would be Psalms. It contains poetry, musical instruction, allusions to biblical events, and is an historical written document, so all four fields mentioned above would be able to examine it in some way. One merely needs to do a simple internet search to see the immense number of possible ways to examine Psalms.

The final example I will mention (partly because I am an English major and a fan of his works) are the history plays of William Shakespeare. Key to consider is Richard III. A literary scholar would tell you about the superbly villainous character of Richard III himself, and discuss how his usurpation upset the great chain of being in its violent, "revolution"-like nature. An historian would stress that the vilification of Richard is in part due to Shakespeare's patroness: Queen Elizabeth, whose family supported the demonization of their enemies, would have appreciated the treatment of Richard III in the play: Her own grandfather was the very Henry of Richmond that came to succeed Richard as Henry VII. It would be a stretch to claim there is something for a musicologist to examine in Richard III, as most music in Shakespeare's play occurred in his comedies or late romances. Finally, a theologian probably wouldn't look at Richard III for religious purposes, other than to illustrate that human kings are corruptible and quite frequently really bad, as with King Saul and succeeding kings of Israel and Judah.

As you go continue to study in your various fields, be they one of the four mentioned here, or something completely different, remember this: most anything can be viewed from multiple perspectives. Don't be afraid to explore other fields other than your own. You might be surprised what possibilities show themselves!