Literature is no exception to this rule. While general themes can be understood from written texts, certain passages may be interpreted differently by different people. One of the things that might influence how people understand a text is the way they perceive the person who wrote it. Some people might love or hate certain writers depending on the information they learn about them or the way they fit (or don’t fit) their values and expectations of their actions and writing. At the same time, some people wholeheartedly dislike her. Some accuse her of romanticizing abusive relationships and overshadowing important topics in her books with smut scenes. Others dislike her because of her controversies. For instance, trying to silence a girl who came forward about her son abusing her. These people refuse to read the author’s books because knowing all this stuff about her, they can’t separate the art from the artist. She also said that in her opinion, it can be hard for readers to enjoy a piece of work when they don’t know anything about its context. And while sometimes the context can be found by researching the time period a book is written in or about, other times even a single photograph of the author can do the job. Loreta voiced that “The photos can give an idea about the condition the author was writing or what kind of person they were and how it all influenced what they wrote.” At the same time, she noted that relying solely on the author’s photo to influence text comprehension is a bad idea. Sometimes such influence can go too far and skew a proper understanding of the text. For example, if the person perceives an author from their photo as a very serious and intellectual person, they might start thinking that their text is overly complicated. Or if they see the writer as a simple, down-to-earth person, they might think that the text and its themes are supposed to be the same way. Basically, while art, including books and photography, is subjective, we need to learn to find a line of objectivity within it. So, while looking through these rare photos of famous authors, remember that while they show unseen parts of them, they also capture just a fragment of their lives. Which photo of these authors, in your opinion, best correlates with their work? Share with us in the comments. Follow Bored Panda on Google News! Follow us on Flipboard.com/@boredpanda! Please use high-res photos without watermarks Ooops! Your image is too large, maximum file size is 8 MB.
