Bibliotherapy for Obsessive/Compulsive Readers
One reader's reconciliation of habit with passion & pleasure with self-actualization
Tuesday, October 29, 2024
1st Terry Pratchet
Monday, October 28, 2024
"Conversation" with ChatGPT on Writer's Block
Tuesday, October 22, 2024
The Lady Writer Newsletter
"No other modern language known to me has the exact equivalent of the English 'fun'. The Dutch 'aardigkeit' perhaps comes nearest to it (derived from "aard" which means the same as 'Art' and 'Wesen' in German, and thus evidence, perhaps, that the matter cannot be reduced further). We may note in passing that 'fun' in its current usage is of rather recent origin. French, oddly enough, has no corresponding term at all; German half makes up for it by 'Spass' and 'Witz' together. Nevertheless it is precisely this fun-element that characterizes the essence of play. Here we have to do with an absolutely primary category of life, familiar to everybody at a glance right down to the animal level.
This is from Dutch historian, Johan Huizinga's book, Homo Ludens, in which he argues that play is a process through which culture is created and continues to develop.
I don't know if he's correct about the word, 'fun', but I definitely think he makes some interesting points about the creative power of play."
The synchronicity of this popping up in my inbox while reading PLAYGROUND was just too good not to note : )
PLAYGROUND by Richard Powers
Monday, October 21, 2024
Sunday, October 13, 2024
Tuesday, October 01, 2024
Wednesday, August 21, 2024
Friday, July 19, 2024
HAIDUN
Sunday, July 14, 2024
Sarah Hall's BURNTCOAT
Saturday, June 15, 2024
Saturday, May 11, 2024
AI web page on bibliotherapy?
Bibliotherapy: A Four-Stage Process
In bibliotherapy, participants are lead through a four-stage process of identification, catharsis, insight, and universalization with a character or theme in a story. I’ve also heard it described as a four-stage process of recognition, examination, juxtaposition, and self-application. With some analyzation, you can probably see the similarities behind these two schools of thought regarding the process. For example, identifying (or recognizing) yourself in a character describes a similar internal event.
1. Identification/Recognition
Have you ever been reading ardently for a while when suddenly an event in the plot or a character’s remark “strikes a chord,” causing you to pause and reflect on your own life? (I personally spend half of my time reading staring off into space.) At the moment you pause, you become aware of something about yourself or about life that has always been there but never been articulated thoroughly. During such a moment you are making a text-to-self connection (and you are entering the first stage of bibliotherapy).
2. Catharsis/Examination
The word “catharsis” is Greek for “cleansing.” In this step, we arouse and release what has been suppressed after identifying it. For example, we often read, watch movies, and tell our own stories because we feel better afterward (even under paradoxical conditions, such as when there is an ending we don’t agree with). Even if the story itself doesn’t spark an emotional release, sometimes dialogue with others can serve this purpose. Our spontaneous responses (and the spontaneous responses of others around us) can reveal a lot. We often use storylines to release strong reactions to previously ambiguous issues.
3. Insight/Juxtaposition
Without guidance, a lot of us naturally stop the bibliotherapeutic process after identification and emotional release. (Well, the movie is over. Back to the dishes…)
Entering the stage of juxtaposition takes mental effort because it involves putting two concepts (or two storylines - your life and the life of a character) side by side in order to compare and contrast them. If taking on this task, it’s important to conduct it in an environment that encourages creative thinking (aka - not with pessimists). If role-models for behavior are possible in the characters, this should be discussed with an openminded person (or group of people) in a situation designed to stimulate original thinking, original connections, and playful attitudes. Creative writing activities can be assigned to solidify new understandings.
4. Universalization/Self-Application
If you find yourself able to integrate insights from the first three steps into your life (while truly sensing the human condition at work in your own story and in your own problems), you have successfully used the power of abstract thought to make bibliotherapy effective. If you take it further to face challenges with awe, cultivate an accurate sense of self-importance, and garner a new level of critical examination towards yourself and the outer world, the story choice and your participation in the reflection are a gift that will keep on giving.
Keep in mind, this can take months or years. Continual reflection and identity formation may develop as your mind wanders back to the story time and time again. Ultimately, you can use the process repeatedly to dive into yourself (while healthily distancing yourself from your life at the same time).
Final Clarifications
The four-stage process mentioned above is what makes bibliotherapy distinct from regular guided reading groups and book clubs. Educational professionals who have studied the process implement bibliotherapy in small group settings.
Sunday, February 18, 2024
Saturday, February 17, 2024
Wednesday, December 20, 2023
Joanna Biggs A LIFE OF ONE'S OWN
Wednesday, October 25, 2023
BookTherapy
Tuesday, October 24, 2023
Pure Gold
Tuesday, June 27, 2023
Monday, May 01, 2023
Wednesday, February 22, 2023
Bibliotherapy? OK...sure, why not.
Saturday, February 11, 2023
Friday, January 27, 2023
Reading Wallace Stevens: The Palm at the End of the Mind
Friday, January 13, 2023
Gabrielle Zevin's Tomorrow...
Monday, December 12, 2022
Tuesday, December 06, 2022
Monday, October 24, 2022
Thursday, October 20, 2022
Friday, September 09, 2022
Tuesday, July 26, 2022
most last lines
more last lines
last lines
Friday, July 15, 2022
Find eBook Resources mostly with annual fee
Tuesday, June 21, 2022
Friday, May 20, 2022
Roethke's Waking Personal Edit
Wednesday, April 27, 2022
THE SENTENCE
Saturday, February 19, 2022
Saturday, December 25, 2021
Tuesday, December 21, 2021
Sunday, November 21, 2021
Saturday, October 09, 2021
Sunday, September 26, 2021
Monday, August 30, 2021
Thursday, July 15, 2021
Rabbits by Terry Miles
Recommended by Cory Doctorow, loved discovering a new author and one also born in Sakatchewan. Add to that, the setting for the novel is right here in the neighborhood, main character born in Olympia with action in and around Seattle.
Gaming history melds into conspiracy theory with a sprinkling of quantum philosophy for good measure, RABBITS is flush with questing portals. "Look it up" is one of my librarian favorites and prompts side search jaunts into Wikipedia and Duckduckgo while reading. Not only did it fill in informational holes I didn't even know were there but extended my novel reading time. And this was one I was in no hurry to finish while not being able to put it down.
On that note, let us review:
Baader Meinhoff Phenomenon aka Frequency Illusion
Wednesday, July 07, 2021
Poetry and Psychotherapy
https://stenenpress.com/thoughts-on-poetry/
"The very poetry and party of the universe are reflecting back in tiny versions across the tiny minds strewn on earth."
"The untranslated that must be addressed in the psyche needs relation to a human, in real time, to be actually translated."
"In other words, we are all the “reader” and the potential “writer.” We
mutually create one another’s projected shit. “It requires two minds to
think a person’s most disturbing thoughts,” Wilfred Bion said. We make
it real. We mutually transmute it. We continue its life and add to it.
We make one another eternal."
Saturday, June 19, 2021
Poetry Will Process Emotions
Wednesday, June 09, 2021
Writers Dream
Katherine Mansfield dreams of Oscar Wilde
Vladimir Nabokov dreams of seeking butterflies with a spoon
Ernest Hemingway dreams of war. . . and also sex
Wednesday, May 19, 2021
Cinquain
https://examples.yourdictionary.com/cinquain-examples.html
Originally, Adelaide Crapsey created the form for the American cinquain with five lines. Each line is stressed in a specific way. Additionally, as the form progressed, a syllable structure was added.
Stresses Per Line
Explore the composition of each line by looking at the specific stressed and unstressed syllables.
- The first line has one stress, which was usually an iambic meter with the first syllable unstressed and the second stressed.
- Line two has two stresses.
- Line three has three stresses.
- Line four has four stresses.
- Line five has one stress.
Syllables Per Line
Following the invention of this form, writers made changes to the form and included a certain number of syllables per line.
- Line one has two syllables.
- Line two has four syllables.
- Line three has six syllables.
- Line four has eight syllables.
- Line five has two syllables.
Thursday, May 13, 2021
Philosophical Resource
Tuesday, May 04, 2021
Friday, April 30, 2021
Friday, April 23, 2021
Wednesday, April 07, 2021
Thursday, March 04, 2021
Tuesday, January 19, 2021
Tuesday, December 29, 2020
Friday, December 11, 2020
Tuesday, October 13, 2020
Wednesday, August 26, 2020
Monday, August 17, 2020
Friday, August 07, 2020
Friday, July 17, 2020
Monday, July 13, 2020
Monday, July 06, 2020
Friday, July 03, 2020
Robert J. Sawyer and the p-zeds
Thursday, July 02, 2020
Thursday, June 11, 2020
Sunday, June 07, 2020
Friday, June 05, 2020
Prompts from chapter headings...
Thursday, May 14, 2020
Literary Terms
Major Literary Terms
allegory
- device of using character and/or story elements symbolically to represent an
abstraction in
addition to the literal meaning
alliteration
- the repetition of sounds, especially initial consonant sounds in two or more
neighboring words
(e.g., "she sells sea shells")
allusion
- a direct or indirect reference to something which is presumably commonly
known, such as an
event, book, myth, place, or work of art
ambiguity
- the multiple meanings, either intentional or unintentional, of a word,
phrase, sentence, or
passage
analogy
- a similarity or comparison between two different things or the relationship
between them
antecedent
- the word, phrase, or clause referred to by a pronoun
aphorism
- a terse statement of known authorship which expresses a general truth or
moral principle
apostrophe
- a figure of speech that directly addresses an absent or imaginary person or
a personified
abstraction, such as liberty or love
atmosphere
- the emotional mood created by the entirety of a literary work, established
partly by the setting
and partly by the author's choice of objects that are described
clause
- a grammatical unit that contains both a subject and a verb
colloquial
- the use of slang or informalities in speech or writing
conceit
- a fanciful expression, usually in the form of an extended metaphor or
surprising analogy between
seemingly dissimilar objects
connotation
- the nonliteral, associative meaning of a word; the implied, suggested
meaning
denotation
- the strict, literal, dictionary definition of a word, devoid of any emotion,
attitude, or color
diction
- refering to style, diction refers to the writer's word choices, especially
with regard to their
correctness, clearness, or effectiveness
didactic
- from the Greek, literally means "teaching"
euphemism
- from the Greek for "good speech," a more agreeable or less
offensive substitute for a
generally unpleasant word or concept
extended
metaphor - a metaphor developed at great length, occurring frequently in or
throughout a work
figurative
language - writing or speech that is not intended to carry literal meaning and
is usually meant to
be imaginative and vivid
figure
of speech - a device used to produce figurative language
generic
conventions - refers to traditions for each genre
genre
- the major category into which a literary work fits (e.g., prose, poetry, and
drama)
homily
- literally "sermon", or any serious talk, speech, or lecture
providing moral or spiritual advice
hyperbole
- a figure of speech using deliberate exaggeration or overstatement
imagery
- the sensory details or figurative language used to describe, arouse emotion,
or represent
abstractions
infer
(inference) - to draw a reasonable conclusion from the information presented
invective
- an emotionally violent, verbal denunciation or attack using strong, abusive
language
irony
- the contrast between what is stated explicitly and what is really meant
verbal irony - words literally state the opposite of speaker's true
meaning
situational irony - events turn out the opposite of what was expected
dramatic irony - facts or events are unknown to a character but known
to the reader or audience or
other characters in work
loose
sentence - a type of sentence in which the main idea comes first, followed by
dependent grammatical
units
metaphor
- a figure of speech using implied comparison of seemingly unlike things or
the substitution of
one for the other, suggesting some similarity
metonomy
- from the Greek "changed label", the name of one object is
substituted for that of another
closely associated with it (e.g., "the White House" for the
President)
mood
- grammatically, the verbal units and a speaker's attitude (indicative,
subjunctive, imperative);
literarily, the prevailing atmosphere or emotional aura of a word
narrative
- the telling of a story or an account of an event or series of events
onomatopoeia
- natural sounds are imitated in the sounds of words (e.g. buzz, hiss)
oxymoron
- from the Greek for "pointedly foolish," author groups apparently
contradictory terms to suggest
a paradox
paradox
- a statement that appears to be self-contradictory or opposed to common sense
but upon closer
inspection contains some degree of truth or validity
parallelism
- from the Greek for "beside one another," the grammatical or
rhetorical framing of words,
phrases, sentences, or paragraphs to give structural similarity
parody
- a work that closely imitates the style or content of another with the
specific aim of comic effect
and/or ridicule
pedantic
- an adjective that describes words, phrases, or general tone that is overly
scholarly, academic, or
bookish
periodic
sentences - a sentence that presents its central meaning in a main clause at
the end
personification
- a figure of speech in which the author presents or describes concepts,
animals, or
inanimate objects by endowing them with human attributes or emotions
point
of view - the perspective from which a story is told (first person, third
person omniscient, or third
person limited omniscient)
predicate
adjective - one type of subject complement, an adjective, group of adjectives,
or adjective clause
that follows a linking verb
predicate
nominative - another type of subject complement, a noun, group of nouns, or
noun clause that
renames the subject
prose
- genre including fiction, nonfiction, written in ordinary language
repetition - the duplication, either exact or approximate, of any
element of language
rhetoric
- from the Greek for "orator," the principles governing the art of
writing effectively, eloquently,
and persuasively
rhetorical
modes - the variety, conventions, and purposes of the major kinds of writing
(exposition explains
and analyzes information; argumentation proves validity of an idea;
description re-creates, invents,
or presents a person, place, event or action; narration tells a story
or recount an event)
sarcasm
- from the Greek for "to tear flesh," involves bitter, caustic
language that is meant to hurt or
ridicule someone or something
satire
- a work that targets human vices and follies or social institutions and
conventions for reform or
ridicule
semantics
- the branch of linguistics which studies the meaning of words, their
historical and psychological
development (etymology), their connotations, and their relation to one
another
style
- an evaluation of the sum of the choices an author makes in blending diction,
syntax, figurative
language, and other literary devices;
or, classification of authors to a group and comparison of an
author to similar authors
subject
complement - the word or clause that follows a linking verb and complements,
or completes, the
subject of the sentence by either renaming it or describing it
subordinate
clause - contains a subject and verb (like all clauses) but cannot stand
alone; does not express
complete thought
syllogism
- from the Greek for "reckoning together," a deductive system of
formal logic that presents two
premises (first "major," second "minor") that
inevitably lead to a sound conclusion (e.g., All men are
mortal, Socrates is a man, Socrates is mortal)
symbol
(symbolism) - anything that represents or stands for something else (natural,
conventional, literary)
syntax
- the way an author chooses to join words into phrases, clauses, and sentences
theme
- the central idea or message of a work, the insight it offers into life
thesis
- in expository writing, the thesis statement is the sentence or group of
sentences that directly express
the author's opinion, purpose, meaning, or proposition
tone
- similar to mood, describes the author's attitude toward his material, the
audience, or both
transition
- a word or phrase that links different ideas
understatement
- the ironic minimalizing of fact, presents something as less significant than
it is
wit
- intellectually amusing language that surprises and delights
Poetic Feet
U
- unaccented syllable, A - accented syllable
amphimacer
- AUA
anapest
- UUA
antibacchus
- AAU
bacchius
- UAA
chouambus
- AUUA
dactyl
- AUU
iambus
- UA
pyrrhic
- UU
spondee
- UU
trochee
- AU
breve
- symbol for unstressed syllable
macron
- a "-" symbol to divide syllables
Literary Devices
Popular Literary Devices
- Ad Hominem
- Adage
- Allegory
- Alliteration
- Allusion
- Ambiguity
- Anachronism
- Anagram
- Analogy
- Anapest
- Anaphora
- Anecdote
- Antagonist
- Antecedent
- Antimetabole
- Antithesis
- Aphorism
- Aposiopesis
- Apostrophe
- Archaism
- Archetype
- Argument
- Assonance
- Biography
- Cacophony
- Cadence
- Caricature
- Catharsis
- Characterization
- Cliché
- Climax
- Colloquialism
- Comparison
- Conflict
- Connotation
- Consonance
- Denotation
- Deus Ex Machina
- Dialect
- Dialogue
- Diction
- Didacticism
- Discourse
- Doppelganger
- Double Entendre
- Ellipsis
- Epiphany
- Epitaph
- Essay
- Ethos
- Eulogy
- Euphemism
- Evidence
- Exposition
- Fable
- Fallacy
- Flash Forward
- Foil
- Foreshadowing
- Genre
- Haiku
- Half Rhyme
- Hubris
- Hyperbaton
- Hyperbole
- Idiom
- Imagery
- Induction
- Inference
- Innuendo
- Internal Rhyme
- Irony
- Jargon
- Juxtaposition
- Limerick
- Line Break
- Logos
- Meiosis
- Memoir
- Metaphor
- Meter
- Mood
- Motif
- Narrative
- Nemesis
- Non Sequitur
- Ode
- Onomatopoeia
- Oxymoron
- Palindrome
- Parable
- Paradox
- Parallelism
- Parataxis
- Parody
- Pathetic Fallacy
- Pathos
- Pentameter
- Persona
- Personification
- Plot
- Poem
- Poetic Justice
- Point of View
- Portmanteau
- Propaganda
- Prose
- Protagonist
- Pun
- Red Herring
- Repetition
- Rhetoric
- Rhyme
- Rhythm
- Sarcasm
- Satire
- Simile
- Soliloquy
- Sonnet
- Style
- Superlative
- Syllogism
- Symbolism
- Synecdoche
- Synesthesia
- Syntax
- Tautology
- Theme
- Thesis
- Tone
- Tragedy
- Tragicomedy
- Tragic Flaw
- Transition
- Utopia
- Verisimilitude