I think in many cases there certainly is an "intended" way to enjoy a book...
Legolas Send a noteboard - 11/08/2011 11:17:30 PM
It appears that he's saying, "there is a right way to experience a book." The study (as far as I can tell) just asked people which version of the story --spoiled, or unspoiled-- they preferred. People can prefer things for a thousand different reasons.
which is without having it spoiled for you first. Of course, the books for which that is most true are generally not the books with the biggest literary value, but then, that's perhaps all the more reason to respect the "intended" way to enjoy the book. If the book you're reading does not have particular literary quality, and the author used spectacular plot twists as one of the main attractions of reading the story, it may well be the case that if you already know of the plot twists beforehand, you feel you might as well skip the book entirely. The Da Vinci Code comes to mind.
For better books with more literary value, obviously there will be more room for different readings of the book, and readers appreciating different aspects, and then spoilers may not matter as much - but many readers will still prefer not to get them. At the end of the day, every writer's intended audience has to be people who know nothing about the book except what they read in it, per definition, as there always has to be a first reader. So many people feel that they will get the most authentic experience, the closest to what the author intended, if they read without spoilers. There are naturally post-modernists among us who don't care what the author intended and don't think it matters, but I dare say that's a minority...
Interesting article: "Spoilers don't spoil anything."
11/08/2011 08:33:42 PM
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It's probably one of those things that works "in general"
11/08/2011 08:43:03 PM
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I sometimes find spoilers can ADD tension (a *MAJOR* aDwD spoiler contained within!!!)
12/08/2011 03:02:18 AM
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Here's a rebuttal.
11/08/2011 09:02:06 PM
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That rebuttal is about as strong as the original article (not very ).
11/08/2011 10:15:36 PM
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I think in many cases there certainly is an "intended" way to enjoy a book...
11/08/2011 11:17:30 PM
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Tor.com has a vested interest in us not getting spoilers
12/08/2011 03:24:20 AM
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It really depends on the story, and of course on the reader.
11/08/2011 11:03:01 PM
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I pretty much agree with your opinion here. It depends on the spoiler and the book.
12/08/2011 12:45:02 PM
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It depends on what you want to get out of a story
19/08/2011 12:16:42 AM
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