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National Literary Figures (pg. 2)
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| Lebezniatnikov |
| quote: | Originally posted by The17sss
I'm down with Hawthorne |
Hehe, chalk that up as one more thing we disagree about. |
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| Lebezniatnikov |
| quote: | Originally posted by Halcyon+On+On
I wouldn't really consider myself "well-read" or anything like that, so keep that in mind...
But I would consider H.P. Lovecraft to be one of the greatest American writers. |
He sounds a lot like Kilgore Trout of Vonnegut fame.
| quote: | | To address the central theme of this thread, I think that any given nation is defined through the works of those who both seek to define it through art, literature or other humanistic endeavors as well as those who seek to define but for the sake of definition. |
This strikes me as true - in defining a national culture, it is often impossible to do without using its artists as a point of reference if for no other reason than to give parameters to the description. I'm trying to think what it would be like to describe the Russian nation without mentioning an author or composer. |
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| Halcyon+On+On |
| quote: | Originally posted by Lebezniatnikov
Granted, I don't think any one country or national group has one single literary figure - my first post was perhaps misleading. In some cases (such as in the US) - there are many. And depending on regional idiosyncrasies and differences, there can be literary figures of sub-groups as well. As famous as Faulkner may be, I dare say he is more prolific in the South than in Seattle.
So it would follow that a diverse place like China would have many. Of course, I'd be interested in knowing who they may be.
It's interesting to me that there are places, however, where there is one central literary figure. For instance, Kundera and Prague seem so intertwined that they are almost synonymous, despite the fact that Kundera wrote the majority of his work in exile in France. The intersection of culture and place is personified by the individual(s) who best represent the collective ideals and memory of the nation. Kundera himself talks about the nation as being the product of shared memory - a writer who can accurately express that memory in words is a conduit through which that collective identity is shared with the world, and thus becomes synonymous with what it means to understand and share that identity. |
Interesting...
I'll admit I've never read Kundera - though I own The Unbearable Lightness Of Being so don't throttle me just yet - but do you think it's possible some quite erudite people of Prague are strongly critical of his works and would in fact recommend another Czech writer instead? I don't know at all, but it seems to me that for every fan there is a critic and neither is necessarily more correct than another because both contribute to a given culture in some way. |
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| The17sss |
LOL... Just a drop in the bucket when you look at the big picture of all the disagreements, huh?
My limitations on a wider perspective obviously shows, as I'm not into literature as much as you seem to be. I haven't read too many books beyond the popular names. I checked out the reviews for Wizard of the Crow and it looks like a great book, but something for people who enjoy reading a lot more than I do. |
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| Lebezniatnikov |
| quote: | Originally posted by Halcyon+On+On
Interesting...
I'll admit I've never read Kundera - though I own The Unbearable Lightness Of Being so don't throttle me just yet - but do you think it's possible some quite erudite people of Prague are strongly critical of his works and would in fact recommend another Czech writer instead? I don't know at all, but it seems to me that for every fan there is a critic and neither is necessarily more correct than another because both contribute to a given culture in some way. |
I'm sure it is both possible and true. That's where I was going to go next - whether a nation defines its literary heroes differently than the outside world would.
In the Kundera case, he was referenced as "the Czech literary hero" by a Czech friend of mine... so that was more or less my jumping off point.
I just finished Unbearable Lightness earlier this month... if you get around to reading it, you should start a thread. I'd be interested in hearing what you think of it. I haven't had such a violently mixed reaction upon reading a book in a long time. |
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| Lebezniatnikov |
| quote: | Originally posted by The17sss
LOL... Just a drop in the bucket when you look at the big picture of all the disagreements, huh?
My limitations on a wider perspective obviously shows, as I'm not into literature as much as you seem to be. I haven't read too many books beyond the popular names. I checked out the reviews for Wizard of the Crow and it looks like a great book, but something for people who enjoy reading a lot more than I do. |
Put it this way... me in a book store is kind of like Sarah Palin at Saks Fifth Avenue. :p |
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| diggerz |
Walt Whitman ---> U.S (hit or miss)
Leof Tolstoy ----> Russia (fan)
James Joyce ------> Ireland
Alexander Pope ----->England
everyone has their own opinion. |
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| The17sss |
| quote: | Originally posted by Lebezniatnikov
Put it this way... me in a book store is kind of like Sarah Palin at Saks Fifth Avenue. :p |
you're saying that you're out of your element in a book store? lol. j/k, good analogy... kid in a candy store. Are you satisfied with the usual Barnes & Noble book stores or do you go off the beaten path to find what you like? |
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| diggerz |
thomas mann -----> germany
heath ledger ----> australia |
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| Lira |
| quote: | Originally posted by diggerz
thomas mann -----> germany |
You're talking about your personal opinion, right? I think most Germans consider Goethe to be their greatest writer. |
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| Lebezniatnikov |
| quote: | Originally posted by The17sss
you're saying that you're out of your element in a book store? lol. j/k, good analogy... kid in a candy store. Are you satisfied with the usual Barnes & Noble book stores or do you go off the beaten path to find what you like? |
Haha, touche on the out of her element thing.
I was at Barnes and Noble today and it still works fine for me - until they run out of things I want to read I've got no real problem with the big megastores. I'm sure the selection at small places is more refined and "impressive" but until I can't find anything I want to read at the other places I'm alright. I'm certainly not enough of a connoisseur to be searching through crates at a dingy record store or anything like that. |
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| Lebezniatnikov |
| quote: | Originally posted by Lira
You're talking about your personal opinion, right? I think most Germans consider Goethe to be their greatest writer. |
I was going to say Brecht. :)
Opinion truly does seem to win the day. |
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