something profound

On p.22, Frye suggests that "literature can only derive its forms from itself: they can't exist outside literature." This quote was honestly one of the few things I agreed with in this chapter. Literature can only advance from another form of literature. It is almost as if its forms are caught in a big literature web and they are heavily dependent on literature for survival. Without literature, there would be no similes or metaphors or poetry. It simply would not exist. I also agree with another statement Frye makes on p.23 stating that "everything is new, and yet recognizably the same kind of thing as the old." Literature can be similar at a first glance, but that is because many if not all contemperary readings are just branches off the same tree. Most authors write material based on what is acceptable or popular in their society, and they follow the same trends as other successful writers to be as great as they are. But when an author goes down a different path, whether the writing is good or not, their literature is found on the bestsellers list because it is different than any other piece of writing in the competition.