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Sample Summary/Response

In the “Introduction” of their book The World Is a Text, Jonathan Silverman and Dean Rader explain that the world is like a book, and everything inside of it can be read and interpreted in different ways. The authors state that reading is a very important part of life that helps us make decisions, influences the way we view things, provides perspective, and enables inquisitive minds. The authors also want us to realize that we read and interpret signs in everyday life. They also believe that, as good readers of signs, we need to account for cultural differences and distinct cultural attributes. The authors then explain how the processes of writing, reading, and thinking are essential to the success of being a good writer. The authors bring together these ideas together by analyzing the messages in three case studies: “Reading Public Space,” “Reading a Poem,” and “Reading an Advertisement.” Whether we are trying to read a public space, a poem, or an advertisement, the first and most important thing is to observe and take notes that will later become complex ideas. Later on, trying not only to answer “what” but “why” will bring everything together and help us develop a thesis or argument. The World Is a Text is intended to help students become better readers and writers by analyzing the texts around us.

I especially like how the authors define texts in nontraditional ways. The idea of a text as an advertisement or a movie is different from the way I usually think of a text, but I think that this will be an interesting focus for the readings in this book. Another idea that interests me is semiotics, which the authors define as “the study of signs” (3). I think their example of the stop sign explains this well. The example of the Tommy Hilfiger advertisement is also illuminating. I had never thought about looking at representations of lifestyle, class, and race in this way. When the authors say, “We decided to make a list of or what is missing—what is not in this picture” (13), this really seems to be a good way of practicing the art of reading signs in this advertisement. I also like the way the authors then ask a series of thoughtful questions about the Tommy Hilfiger ad that really show how we can critically think about an ad by questioning it. After reading the introduction, I started looking at ads differently. I saw one for cigarettes in a magazine that featured a life of luxury with an expensive car and a woman wearing diamonds, and I wondered if advertisers are deliberately equating a lifestyle of the rich with cigarettes to make their products seem more desirable. I will be interested to see what kind of messages the readings uncover about different texts!