Orson Whitney includes many scriptures from D&C reiterating the importance of learning and studying the best of books. While in this speech he is specifically referring to more spiritual knowledge and literature, I think it is important to understand that these scriptures refer to many different types of literature too and that LDS literature is way for spiritual progression, but there are other types of literature that do this as well.
One of my favorite things Whitney says is, "You must feel what you write, if you wish it to be felt by others.
" (11) It is clear that Andersen feels what he writes and that in a way, it is his shared testimony shared
through his ability to write and expand upon an idea. He is successful in cultivating the 'Home Literature'
idea because of the story being rooted in scripture. It reaches primarily to an LDS audience, but I
also think that others not of this faith could understand and appreciate that ideas of theology
that Andersen is trying to convey. I also think it is significant because of when it was written.
This book acts as a catalyst for LDS fiction, seeing that it was written in 1898.
Keeping that in mind, it was a lot easier for me to appreciate this story and not be overwhelmed by
the sometimes tedious style it is written in.
" (11) It is clear that Andersen feels what he writes and that in a way, it is his shared testimony shared
through his ability to write and expand upon an idea. He is successful in cultivating the 'Home Literature'
idea because of the story being rooted in scripture. It reaches primarily to an LDS audience, but I
also think that others not of this faith could understand and appreciate that ideas of theology
that Andersen is trying to convey. I also think it is significant because of when it was written.
This book acts as a catalyst for LDS fiction, seeing that it was written in 1898.
Keeping that in mind, it was a lot easier for me to appreciate this story and not be overwhelmed by
the sometimes tedious style it is written in.
I also loved Whitney's focus on the connection between feeling and writing. As confusing as Anderson's writing is, he does a good job of being sincere in what he believes and how he portrays it.
ReplyDeleteYes, "tedious" is a very good word for it. Anderson's voice seemed to bounce between settings, and the narrator and the punch of the story seemed to get lost. But, he did wrap his words to the setting. In the preexistence, it was high and direct. And so on with the other settings. I don't know how the effecting the preaching side of Added Upon, but I like the word tedious to describe the style.
ReplyDeleteI do agree that despite all of the flaws in this work, he really does attempt to share his testimony.
ReplyDeleteI like the first mention of scriptures as literature. I never thought that when they say to "search in the best books" that it also meant not only the scriptures, but the scriptures as literature. That really gives me a broader perspective.
ReplyDeleteMaybe one of the reasons that Anderson included such heavy preaching and theology in this work was that Whitney emphasized learning through faith and study. Through the creative mode of fiction, Anderson was sharing his testimony and trying to teach people about our existence. His sincerity in doing so softened some of the rough edges found in the book.
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