The Idiot "... We feel that we must limit ourselves to the simple statement of facts, as far as possible without special explanations, and for a very simple reason: because we ourselves, in many cases, have difficulty explaining what happened" (The Idiot, trans. Peaver and Volokhonsky, 573) So writes the on-again off-again omniscient narrator towards … Continue reading The Idiot
Tag: literature
All Things Shining, part one
So, I was looking for something to read on the beach last week (other than student papers), and I decided to go with All Things Shining, by Hubert Dreyfus and Sean Dorrance Kelly. Many things were shining that day, so it seemed like a good choice. Actually, with its mix of history, philosophy and literature, … Continue reading All Things Shining, part one
Reading Aloud
After my students too the AP English exam in May, I had some extra time, and wanted to try something new. We're supposed to read The Great Gatsby during the junior course, and, now having read that book something like 10 times, I wanted to mix it up a bit. What I decided to do … Continue reading Reading Aloud
Point Omega
The summer novel-reading season is here. Though this latest effort of Don DeLillo's is probably better designated as a novella, coming in at just less than 120 pages, and they're pretty tiny pages. There's some interesting stuff here - the book is bookended by its protagonist viewing an art installation at the Met in New … Continue reading Point Omega
Just Another Word for Nothing Left to Lose
A Review of Jonathan Franzen's Freedom "what is most essential to our personhood is not the ends we choose but our capacity to choose them... It makes the individual inviolable only by making him invisible, and calls into question the dignity and autonomy this liberalism seeks above all to secure" (Michael Sandel, Liberalism and the … Continue reading Just Another Word for Nothing Left to Lose
Roskolnikov’s Final Dream
Throughout Crime and Punishment, dream-sequences intermingle with reality. Roskolnikov especially has a handful fo dreams. Something in the quality of Dostoevsky's prose makes one miss the transitions, so you can read for several pages of what feels like reality before being pulled back by a character waking up. These dreams are used not just to … Continue reading Roskolnikov’s Final Dream
A totally absurd generalization I’d like to discuss
I was listening to the two guys from Sound Opinions talking about their new book, which is apparently a book-length conversation between the two of them about the relative merits of the Beatles and the Rolling Stones. While listening to them talk about this for a little bit (it was during the recent WBEZ pledge … Continue reading A totally absurd generalization I’d like to discuss
The Crocodile
It struck me as strange that the author of Notes from Underground would next write "The Crocodile," an allegorical, theater-of-the-absurd type story to have been published in D's dying periodical Epoch. After all, Notes from Underground was an innovative exercise in narrative technique, with all sorts of interestingly problematic aspects. "The Crocodile", by contrast, is … Continue reading The Crocodile
Christopher Hitchens
I don't know what other OPers think of Hitchen's work, if they think of it at all, but I recently picked up his memoir, Hitch-22. The prologue alone makes it clear that he's a brilliant writer, very funny, and has led a very interesting life, qualities which, if you're lucky enough to possess all … Continue reading Christopher Hitchens
Winter Notes on Summer Impressions
In 1862, D. took his first trip to Europe. He had, however, dreamed of this day for many years, apparently since childhood, when he was enthralled with British and French novels, especially the Gothic tales of Anne Radcliffe. He had apparently planned and planned for this opportunity, probably to such an extent than his actual … Continue reading Winter Notes on Summer Impressions
Original Positions 