I just finished the book, and I have to say it's probably one of my favorite books already. Does anyone else on /lit/ want to discuss different parts of the book?
I read an essay by franzen about this guy and vowed to stay away. Is he actually good? My impression was that he was a bitter reader-hostile "muh masterpiece" asshole. Confirm/deny?
>>7882181
>>7882181
I know the essay you are talking about, and I would have to disagree with Franzen. While he does require the reader to pay attention and get involved with the novel (more so than many other authors) "reader-hostile" isn't exactly accurate. I personally liked the effort Gaddis put into the book, and the amount of effort he required of the reader. I think it really paid off. Granted, it is a long book and takes a lot out of the reader, but I would encourage you to go for it. Even if you aren't interested in the themes and the techniques he uses, I would recommend this book on the prose alone. He is quickly becoming one of my favorite authors.
>>7882181
Franzen is a bourgeois faggot.
>>7882181
Gaddis isn't that but it's not unimaginable to see how he could come of as such. All of his novels require the readers undivided attention at all times and is very demanding.
Everything I could ever want in a book. Nothing else compares.
>>7882175
Did you read it with the gaddis.org annotations?
>>7882636
Yeah, they were a great help, especially with translations.
>>7882653
>especially with translations
come back when you've actually read the book
>>7882837
What are you talking about? I'm talking about the phrases spoken in foreign languages in the book. I don't speak French, Hungarian, or German, so I obviously needed help with those.
>>7883145
The guy probably hasn't even read the book. He just likes the >translations meme.
>>7882181
Am I the only one here who actually read that essay? Franzen liked The Recognitions. JR is where he thought Gaddis crossed the line.
But who cares? Franzen is a middle brow faggot.
>>7883156
Ah, I understand now.
While I might be drawing connections that aren't there, was there a symbolic significance to balloons in the book? It seemed to me that they were mentioned much too often to not be an indication of some larger point.
I'll discuss ideas, but not plot, nor "characterization"--that's boring.
>>7883479
I haven't read The Recognitions but in Carpenter's Gothic, the bird is extremely symbolic, so much so that it strikes me as likely to be an integral part of the man's gambit.
>>7883504
Ok, then by all means, go ahead
>>7883504
I think that Gaddis was arguing against such a firm grip on 'reason' as the remedy to all of mankind's problems in modern times, and was almost advocating going back to humanities roots by casting off modern religion; that's why art and religion are so closely tied together, and why Gwyon ends up becoming a priest of Mithraism. What did everybody else think?
>>7884457
whoops, should be 'humanity's'
