On Literature by Umberto Eco

I love books about books. This collection of essays about literature is no exception. The fact that it comes from Umberto Eco, someone I practically worship when it comes to words on paper, doesn’t hurt either, of course.

This collection includes commentaries on specific works, such as the Paradiso, The Communist Manifesto and Aristotle’s Poetics. Well, um, I haven’t actually read any of these works, but I still feel like I learned a great deal from reading Eco’s essays. That’s part of the beauty of reading Eco for me. I can start out not knowing what the heck he’s talking about, but still feel invited to join in because he’s pretty friendly to the ignorant masses to which I belong.

There are also enjoyable and thought-provoking essays on concepts like the function of literature, style, symbolism, and, my personal favorite of this collection, intertextual irony. These ideas from Eco fascinate me and have opened more doors in my personal armchair exploration of literature. I need stuff like this: engaging to read, and packed with the kind of ideas that were previously foreign to me since, let’s face it, I’ve made no real formal study of literature.

I always feel both a little smarter and a little dumber each time I read Eco. I feel smarter because I learn so much and have so many new and interesting thoughts provoked. I feel dumber because I also learn how much I don’t know, how much more there is to learn. I suppose I’m becoming a more positive person, however, since, upon reading On Literature I feel more inspiration than exasperation. I am even more fascinated by the cultural functions of story-telling and fiction. I am curious about particular works of literature I used to fear. I am willing to give the idea of deep analysis of literature for connections and symbols a chance (although, I don’t think I’ll ever let go of the idea of just reading a good, entertaining story.)

There are also essays about Eco's own background, influences and writing process that are inspriational. I, however, have come to the conclusion that I cannot be much like Umberto Eco. He is a genius, an expert on literature and symbolism and culture and philosophy, and I’m just a Distractible Reader. My view of intellectual reality always gets a bit of a positive shift after I read his work, though, and my active interest in literature, culture and history accelerates. In fact, I’m already seeing cases of intertextual irony just about everywhere.

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