As suggested by the title of my post, I think reading something for the thrill is very important. Something that really stood out to me in today's reading Literature for the Million, was a quote by Irwin Cobb in defense of the relevance of dime novels. Irwin Cobb defends dime novels with his quote, "Read them for the thrills that are in them... Read them for their brisk and stirring movement; for the spirit of outdoor adventure and life which crowds them; for their swift but logical processions of sequences; for the phases of pioneer Americanism they rawly but graphically portray, and for their moral values." This quote stood out to me because I think reading fiction really is about reading it for the thrill of the plot line and for relating the contents to your own personal life. It seems that in the time period we have been looking at in class, everyone is worried about what is considered "proper" and what is not. Instead of reading something for its adventure, romantic ideas, or mystery, "proper" people seem to be more concerned with making sure everyone can read about what being a good person is through novels that portray another alternate world where everything is perfect.
When I read a fiction novel, I do not read it to be told how to live my life or to see what a proper life should be like or what it requires. I found the side notes by Susanna Rowson in Charlotte Temple to be extremely annoying because they interrupt the plot line. When I read a fiction novel, I read it as an escape from reality. I read it to imagine being in the life of another person or to relate my own life to what is happening in the book. I think that is exactly why dime novels were so popular; they allowed people to have an imagination in a time when so many aspects of life were changing.
I love this take on the dime novel, and I agree wholeheartedly. I think people get too bogged down today about what something means, that it has to have a deeper meaning than to just be enjoyed. I feel this way every time I read some novel that critics have smashed or some movie that is obviously not that high quality. It it a work of art that says something prevalent about our generation/gender/class/whatever sub group? No! But I can sit and enjoy them without needing anyone else's approval. Dime Novels are likely the same: we can look back on them as something that reveals trends and public thoughts in their time, but we also need to remember that the people who read them often just wanted enjoyment, and didn't need any deeper meaning to them.
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