Is IJ actually good or just a meme?
How difficult is it? (I have read Ulysses & Gravity's Rainbow)
Not a bait thread btw.
>>7793114
Sage
>>7793114
good
not too difficult
It's good but not great. Funny and touching. Nowhere near the difficulty of the other two meme trilogy books.
>>7793114
low bait....very low.
>>7793114
Somehow it feels way longer than any other book, even ones with more pages.
I read like 10 book since starting it including Ulysses.
Still barely into it and I'm not planning on picking it up anytime soon.
Definitely was easy than Ulysses, at least judging by the beginning.Maybe it gets harder in the end? I doubt it though.
>>7793114
You can tell by the covers that those girls didnt even read it
>>7793114
It's my backup weapon if I had no time to get out of my room and get another weapon, so yeah, it's alright. I call the attack where I throw the book at an enemy "1000 Pages".
>>7793152
>not having a tactical machete in your bedroom
And you consider yourself prepared for an attack ? Fucking pleb.
https://twitter.com/nfinitejestfest
>creating an entire twitter account just to show the world you're reading infinite jest
good grief
>>7793152
>britcucks have to use books to defend themselves
just become merican
It's not difficult, just huge. It's pretty popular as well. Have seen cute young girls reading it on the bus before.
besides the part about the feral hamsters and the eschaton chapter,the book is complete ass.
>>7793114
Absolutely great actually. Easily as good as Gravity's Rainbow.
>>7793143
they made a twitter account dedicated to them reading Infinite Jest only to give up.
>>7793143
Never mind the covers, you can tell by their faces that they're straight from Amazon and off their vapid bookshelves.
>>7793241
>last message march 5th 2015
>"sorry for the hiatus, yall. we're back. well at least I am"
then again I have been on hiatus since 2014
>>7793244
>>7793241
there is something terribly banal about that
>>7793114
yes
>>7793134
this
>>7793114
>Not a bait thread btw.
>>7793114
I really enjoyed it. If you like DFW's writing, you will like it.
It's not difficult
>>7793240
Wrong
>>7793251
Why would they need a twitter for this. Jesus christ I'm getting old. I don't understand this at all.
>>7793428
people are sociable
>>7793251
Well at least they got some cute pictures out of this whole ordeal.
Better than GR. Yes I'm a pleb fuck off.
How did you guys miss this?
>>7793578
is infinite jest a meme among hipsters?
I was young when it was released, so I only know it as a good book that /lit/ recommends.
Also I enjoy listening to DFW talk about things.
>>7793114
Why does she have a stank face on
Did she not like it
Or is it a "I can't believe you haven't read this you stupid male" face
>>7793582
OP here- yes. I only know it as a meme among 'hipsters' as well as this board.
Seems like the consensus is that it is good but not great, and a relatively easy read?
>>7793241
>>7793251
Wow. This is the kind of lame shit that turns me off to reading it (completely irrational, I know). I didn't realize that's what the picture was from- it came up when I googled the book and I selected it to get replies.
>>7793582
>>Also I enjoy listening to DFW talk about things.
Yep, i enjoyed him doing the Consider the Lobster audiobook.
>>7793602
>a relatively easy read
compared to what?
it's less complex than gravity's rainbow, and most books highly prized by /lit/, but more so than catcher in the rye, and most high school reading. it's pretty much exactly middlebrow.
>>7793578
stupid, but I am glad the author isn't doing this out of butthurt spite against cis white males or something.
>>7793251
I actually want to murder them in cold blood
>>7793582
It was written to appeal to elitists, so of course hipsters love it.
Kate is best girl btw
>>7793114
Infinite Jest's primary purpose is the one you're seeing right now: it's not a book to be read, it's a book to be held by and balanced on the heads of bespectacled young women while photographs are taken.
>>7793565
Maybe not technically better. But IJ is bittersweet in a way I think even great writers can't land. And I think it's very original. Even two years later I remember the line in Blood sister, 'she gave a look that said 'go on complete the lipsarian circuit' ' to paraphrase. So many memorable passages and lines. That's why I love the book.
>>7793114
I won't pretend everyone will love it, but it's good. You must be patient with it. It's the book equivalent of hanging out with a depressed person; you need to get closer before you see the personality.
>>7793114
do the girls think that the book is overrated? why?
>>7793251
>>7793114
>problem glasses
At least they're not fat, but I'm sure they will be eventually.
>>7793682
>It was written to appeal to elitists
Was it really ? DFW seemed to really dislike high-brow literature, so it would be interesting if he wrote it specifically to troll people who want to appear intelligent.
>>7793114
It is pretty good.
It is not difficult, provided you have two bookmarks (one for the end notes, one for the main text). It is somewhat long, though.
>>7793565
that cover is the worst yet, why they OK'd it is beyond me
FROM THEIR TWITTER
>page one: had to read the first paragraph three times. this bodes well. #cd
>>7793646
>compared to what? it's less complex than gravity's rainbow, and most books highly prized by /lit/
You answered your own question. Of course I didn't mean compared to Catcher in the Rye. I said in the OP that I read Ulysses & Gravity's Rainbow...
Those books look like they haven't even been read.
Why do women buy books to pose with and not to read?
It's gets pretty page turny. The parts about people hitting bottom are great. Not hard, but there are parts that feel like information dumps that are boring but those sorts of things taper off the further you get into the book. Chapters that seem awful in the in the beginning are pretty rewarding by the end (e.g. urstruly,big c, cross dresser chapter)
I'd say pretty good
>>7793163
> Infinite Jest Fest followed John Green
the memes create themselves
>>7793901
Looks fine to me, but I haven't read the book. I think that cover looks more appealing than the Jehovah's Witness looking one that the people in the OP image are holding.
>>7793928
>>7793428
Because they have no interest in actually reading Infinite Jest, they just want the attention and "props" they believe should come with having had read Infinite Jest. They want to take cute quirky pictures with the books, and have people think they are smart.
But, of course, they had no interest in actually reading and gave up. Wanting to be seen doing something more than you enjoy actually doing shit is a common female psychological trait, like "gamer gurls" or "i'm such a nerd xd" girls.
>>7793949
Lol your so wise
Like a miniature Buddha
>>7793949
reccing the Nietzsche (or Schopenhauer?) quote about women engaging in intellectual pursuits, hoping someone will notice
>>7793940
that colour of font on blue background it the greatest thing ever though
>>7793114
nah
>>7793901
I don't think that is an actual cover that got printed. It certainly looks better than the new 20th anniversary edition. I recently bought the one in OP, even thought the new one was cheaper.
>>7793960
https://warosu.org/lit/thread/S7772903#p7775602
How old do you reckon these dirty slews are? The nigger looks disgusting.
>>7793114
Women are a meme gender.
>>7794007
Memes or not, they are still the comfiest possible places to put our penises.
>>7793578
John Green physically sickens me. I want slap his disgusting faggot cuck face.
>>7794007
misogyny is literally a /r9k/ meme
>>7794033
/tv/ got their bane porn made, when are we going to get our Infinite Jest/GR porn
>>7794040
they just got exited over a project that was over their heads. it happens to everyone
>>7794062
the point is the project wasn't to read Infinite Jest, the project was to get attention on twitter. The project isn't about the book, it's about THEM. They never would have picked up the book otherwise, they just want the status that comes from reading a famously 'difficult' book. It's arrogant and obnoxious, especially seeing they got not much more than 100 pages in.
>>7793646
It's no less complex than Gravity's Rainbow, it's just not as opaque. People seem to think a writer making himself pretty clearly understood is a mark against him.
>>7794074
how do you know?
>>7794093
...the fact they created a twitter account and uploaded a bunch of photos of themselves instead of just reading it?
>>7794102
I gave up partway through to and was exited when I first got into it. Its reasonable to think they did the same. I probably would do the same thing with the twitter account if I had someone else interested
>>7794110
>I probably would do the same thing with the twitter account if I had someone else interested
I guess you're as attention starved and desperate for validation they are, what can I say.
>>7794119
Most humans are into social interaction. Why do you consider it a negative thing? Is posting here not the same thing?
>>7794121
I didn't say social interaction was bad, I think seeking attention for reading a book over actually enjoying or even really reading the book is stupid.
And posting here is not the same thing, posting on an anonymous board is actually the opposite of attention seeking.
>>7794131
you can still receive validation for your opinions on an anonymous board
>>7794131
4chan is social media, pal
>>7793901
That particular pic is a fan-made cover FYI
I thought it was pretty great honestly, all memes aside, but I'm also pretty much directly in its target audience. It's not difficult at all, just long.
I bet they are submissive
>>7794121
>Is posting here not the same thing?
Yes, maintaining a twitter account and uploading pictures of your self is the 'same thing' as posting anonymously on a chinese cartoon image board. Very astute observation.
>>7793114
DFW is on a par with Zadie Smith, Chabon, Eggers, Franzen, Palahniuk, and Gaiman. Middlebrow, self-conscious pop-lit.
>>7794184
He's middlebrow, sure, but he's way better than Palahniuk, Gaiman, Franzen and Eggers. Not sure about the other two.
>>7794110
one thing is occasionally saying something on twitter about whatever you're reading, the other is create a fucking account centered around reading a book that's famous for being hard to read, m8
>>7794184
Wallace isnt middle brow just because some prole losers pretend to have read IJ
I have family in Ireland and apparently ts common for college aged men to buy ulysses and pretend theyve read it over there. Strinkingly similar to how college fags treat ij
I guess joyce is mid brow pop lit
>>7794209
the brow distinction is bogus anyway. a ton of old books have "low brow" references in them. People back then might have even called Proust middlebrow
Easier than Ulysses, but the autistic length makes it hard to finish.
It's also pretty repetitive, and the plot is almost nonexistent upon first perusal.
Still, a masterpiece.
The thing is, most people who have read Ulysses and Gravity's Rainbow only read them so they could say they read them, and they endured them more than they enjoyed them, so they think something as pleasurable as Infinite Jest must be lesser.
I've read all three, but IJ is the only one I enjoyed enough to read twice. If you'd pick one of the other two to take to a desert island, good for you. Hope it keeps you as entertained as IJ would for me.
>>7794244
I thought ulysses was easier. I always get this anxious feeling of getting nowhere in IJ
>>7794259
some of us read for prose instead of a comprehensible plot you know
>>7794273
Are you being honest? Ulysses' language is so much more complex not to mention parts that are completely unintelligible on a first read
>>7794282
>some of us read for prose instead of a comprehensible plot you know
Some of us tell ourselves a lot of things. There are some gorgeous phrases in IJ, as well as tremendous wit and real feeling.
But if comprehensibilty isn't an issue, enjoy Finnegans Wake.
I'm three chapters into this, is it meant to get harder? This book has such a reputation as being hard, but it's really just a nice read so far. Does the difficulty ramp up? How much harder are the other books in the meme trilogy?
>>7793114
great now I want to 'do' the one on the left
>>7793126
>Downvote
is this edition any good? someone on amazon complains about 'deckled edge', but i can't make out if he means all the pages in the book or only the cover
>>7795076
>deckled edge
It means the pages are like this.
It actually used to be a mark of quality in the times of the old printing presses, but now some pretentious publishers cut the paper that way on purpose to give the fake appearance of quality (like fake selvedge on jeans).
>>7794456
It has no reputation of being hard, it has a reputation o f being long
>>7793114
It's easier if you use wiki, yet more fun/emotional than Ulysses
>>7794475
Victoria Barner so fucking hot
I was going to make a new thread for this, but this seems like a good place to ask.
I just finished reading Infinite Jest because /lit/ told me too and my brain is now mush. What's a good, easily digestible novel to recover with before I get into the Brothers K.? Something like Gone Girl or Enders Game is what I'm looking for.
>>7795108
>hot
>>7795136
Well, on OP's picture
>>7795136
>implying I wouldn't make sweet passionate love to her
>>7795111
The once and future king
>>7795091
less than zero
>>7795111
House Of Leaves.
>>7795111
Quarantine (Greg Egan)
>>7795111
The Stranger.
>>7795136
Good lord she is fugly. She could fit a giant dick in her enormous gaping maw
>>7795837
Be nice. Girls with mouths that big are the only ones that can blow some of us.
>>7793565
I actually think that cover is great--even better than the still DFW wanted to use that I don't think ever was.
>>7794168
Ape of Naples is fantastic.
>>7794168
They're good boys. They eat their greens, especially broccoli.
>>7793143
I'm only 300 pages in and the book is already kinda fucked up from flipping to the back a hundred times
>>7793565
This cover is pretty dumb but I really enjoy the inscriptions at the top and bottom of the cartridge. Fantastic attention to detail
>>7793152
*teleports behind you
*throws copy of Ulysses at you
heh, nothing personnel, kid
>>7795139
Not even
>>7797505
The cover is brilliant when you consider that the book is The Entertainment. You finish it and the last event starts you at the beginning of the book again, over and over...
>>7793114
Easier than Gaddis. It's almost as good as Blood Meridian. Just too damn long with no need.
>>7793910
this?
they had to read this 3 times?
this can be understood by a fifth grader what the HECK
>>7797895
can it though
>>7797612
Spoiler alert you fucking piece of shit I'm on page 300 Jesus h Christ that would have been comfy as fuck to read for the first time, I would have loved it
>>7798775
Relax, Nancy, the book never says it's The Entertainment, it's just the way I see it. And you've already read the last event, since you've noticed by now that Hal is able to communicate without horrifying everyone around him, you probably had and idea what's coming, which will be rewarding even if I gave you an actual spoiler, like when Joelle takes off her veil and she's so beautiful people die looking at her.
>>7799533
Oh shit, how do I black that out so people don't see it unless they want to?
>>7797895
somebody needs to hop into a taxi and say "to the library and step on it"
>>7797975
I see you must not yet be acquainted with Ulysses. Sure. It must be it, yes. He could benefit greatly from it. Reading. Not too difficult the books seemafter it. Yes
>>7800431
10/10 imitation of Joyce's style.
