This weekend concluded my consuming process of Charlotte's Web (it took forever to ship my last format!). I wanted to to consume this story in all possible formats, and I am pretty sure I covered all of them. I posted earlier how I watched the movies based off the story. The older cartoon one and the one starring Dakota Fanning are both great forms to consume this story. Seeing the words take shape and color on the big screen bring the story to life. The imagery of the book is already bold. For example, in one of the last chapters begins saying, "Next morning when the first light came into the sky and the sparrows stirred in the trees, when the cows rattled their chains and the rooster crowed and the early automobiles went whispering along the road. . . " (144). This is a beautiful piece of imagery, and the movie only gives the consumer a better idea of what E.B. White is showing the reader.
I also listened to the audio book of Charlotte's Web. This was a great experience. E.B. White reads his own writing, and hearing it from the voice of the author brought a new light to consuming this story. Knowing that the words were being read by the author of them made me listen carefully to what words were being emphasized. I feel like I heard the story exactly as the author had intended since he was literally reading it to me. The last words of the story were so poignant in the audio book that the silence that followed was touching. The lines read, "She was in a class by herself. It is not often that someone comes along who is a true friend and a good writer. Charlotte was both" (184). In black and white they are deep, but hearing the author read his finale brought meaning to those words. I thought about them after, and came to the conclusion that those were his parting words to his readers. That was the last message he may ever get to tell a person, and he chose to tell them of the timelessness of Charlotte.
On accident, I consumed Charlotte's Web via a collector's edition big picture book. This was the novel published as a huge storybook. The pictures took up entire pages of an 8x11 book, which was beautiful. Instead of etchings above the chapter headings, there was now a full blown picture to look at as I read the stories of Wilbur trying to fly or of Templeton gorging himself on the smorgasbord of food at the Fair. As I posted about earlier, literature can inspire art, but art can also inspire literature, and Garth Williams' sketches really do increase the reading experience of Charlotte's Web.
Finally, I played the Charlotte's Web PC/CD-Rom Video Game. Yes, I did, and it was a blast. First, I never would have guessed that there was a video game of Charlotte's Web, but there was indeed. It is designed for children ages 3 and up, so for once, I finally won! I am not a video game guru; in fact, the one time I played Halo I was booted from the game for shooting my own team member. I thought that was a bit of an over-reaction but oh well. This game was fun; I only played it for 30 minutes or so, but the game was a creative spin on the story. I can see how children playing this game would gain a better love of the characters of this story. Instead of reading about Charlotte weaving her web, they can now be Charlotte and weave their own web! This format really allows the player to connect with the characters in a fun, new way.
How literature is consumed does effect the piece that is being consumed. Reading it in book format is traditional and timeless (such as Charlotte), but with today's technology any book can be consumed in multiple formats. Audio book, game and movie all brought a new meaning to the classic story. The characters, imagery and moral all changed with each format. Obviously we cannot consume every book we read in all formats, but we can branch out and experience each book we read in a new format. Read a book, watch a movie, listen to the next book and take Halo out and pop in Charlotte's Web instead!
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