When Victor Hugo wrote that the book "killed" the building, what did he mean? (choose the best answer)

Question

BlackTom AI · Accepted Answer

The question asks: When Victor Hugo wrote that the book "killed" the building, what did he mean? (choose the best answer)

First, note that the prompt intends us to select the most accurate interpretation among possible options about Hugo's metaphor linking books, literacy, and buildings as vessels of storytelling.

Given information
- The provided data includes only one answer option: "That the rise of literacy made the story-telling function of buildings unnecessary".
- There are no other answer choices to compare, critique, or contrast against this statement.

Analysis of the single provided statement
- What the statement is saying: It suggests that as literacy rose, people relied less on buildings as storytellers or as primary carriers of meaning, and thus the architectural narrative role diminished.
- Why this interpretation can be plausible: In many literary and cultural analyses, a building might be described as an instrument of storytelling (e.g., cathedrals, libraries, public spaces). If literacy expands, the written word and books become more central to conveying narratives, potentially reducing the need for buildings to carry or convey stories through their form, inscriptions, or public storytelling functions. The metaphorical sense would be that the building’s role as a storyteller is eclipsed by the access to texts and literacy.
- How this aligns with Hugo’s possible intent: Hugo often explored the power of literature, education, and social institutions. Interpreting his remark as signaling a shift from architecture as storyteller toward literacy advances would fit a reading that emphasizes the primacy of printed text in shaping culture and memory.

Limitations and potential ambiguities
- Without the other answer choices, we cannot evaluate competing interpretations such as: buildings as cultural memory, growth of mass media, or the idea that architecture itself became obsolete for storytelling in certain modern contexts.
- The exact historical context or phrasing might influence the precise reading; some readers might interpret Hugo’s line as a critique of neglecting architectural space or as a claim about how meaning is produced, not merely stored, by printed works.
- The term "killed" is strong metaphorical language; it could be shorthand for a complex shift rather than a literal claim that buildings lost all narrative value.

In sum, the statement provided presents a defensible interpretation: rising literacy reduces the need for buildings to function as primary storytellers, thereby making the architectural storytelling role seem less essential. However, since no alternative options are supplied for comparison, we cannot assess alternative readings or rule out other plausible explanations.

ARCH 150 A Modern Focus 8.2 (Ornament) Quiz

When Victor Hugo wrote that the book "killed" the building, what did he mean? (choose the best answer)

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ARCH 150 A Modern Focus 8.2 (Ornament) Quiz

When Victor Hugo wrote that the book "killed" the building, what did he mean? (choose the best answer)

View Explanation

Log in for full answers

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