Active Users:346 Time:08/11/2024 06:24:03 PM
Mostly true Larry Send a noteboard - 21/02/2012 09:27:09 PM
However, as pointed out before, critical opinion is subjective. A more informed opinion can be better, but can not, simply can not, be right. There is no such thing.
Can, and should, critics and people well-versed in literature set the standards of what defines great works? Yes, absolutely. But, at the end of the day, if Revolutionary Road speaks to you more about middle class suburban discontent in the 1950's moreso than the more popular and critically acclaimed Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf, who's to say that you are wrong to feel that way?
(I in fact find them to be completely different works on a thematic level, but that is beside the point)

Does Catcher in the Rye achieve objectively on the same level as Moby Dick? No, but I find Catcher in the Rye to be by far the more meaningful and thoughtful work for me, and written in a much more engaging style to boot.

But beyond this, i feel like we are quibbling over distinctions rather than substantive disagreements.


Only point of contention deals with Moby Dick, as I value it more :P

But yes, there are a ton of arguments as to aesthetic value that come into play when the reader is very aware of the issues at hand. What I've noticed is that this makes the texts more interesting, not less, seeing the amount of deep discussion that takes place around these texts. If there weren't arguments about value, then that's when I would worry most about the text in question being worth reading in the first place.
Illusions fall like the husk of a fruit, one after another, and the fruit is experience. - Narrator, Sylvie

Je suis méchant.
Reply to message
Brandon Sanderson plans 36 books in his 'Cosmere' setting - 19/02/2012 11:45:24 AM 4667 Views
Was Sanderson created by the Writng Gods to counter balance GRRM? - 19/02/2012 05:13:07 PM 1467 Views
A modern Moorcock, eh ? *NM* - 19/02/2012 05:39:00 PM 642 Views
I just wish he'd be done with the RJ shit and go back to writing his own books. - 19/02/2012 05:40:59 PM 1404 Views
Agreed on both points..... - 19/02/2012 08:00:41 PM 1351 Views
Well, but he is a "fluff" writer from a literary standpoint - 20/02/2012 02:16:11 AM 1417 Views
Not a fluff writer in my mind..... - 20/02/2012 03:12:46 AM 1375 Views
You don't seem to want to hear what I'm saying - 20/02/2012 03:51:13 AM 1321 Views
And I am saying that storytelling is more important..... - 20/02/2012 04:52:39 AM 1454 Views
Storytelling is crucial... - 20/02/2012 05:59:57 AM 1447 Views
A few comments/replies about your post..... - 20/02/2012 02:57:16 PM 1375 Views
You are correct in one respect: all of this is opinion. - 20/02/2012 07:01:11 PM 1370 Views
You sound like one of those nasty "literary elites"! - 20/02/2012 08:07:13 PM 1312 Views
Literature is subjective - 21/02/2012 12:26:35 AM 1391 Views
Very well said..... *NM* - 21/02/2012 01:12:40 AM 608 Views
I agree with your point about reading Shakespeare from textbooks. - 21/02/2012 03:18:37 AM 1423 Views
Never heard of Thomas Mann and the real Mona Lisa..... - 21/02/2012 03:34:12 AM 1270 Views
Conversely, why should I trust the likes of you? - 21/02/2012 06:19:18 AM 1521 Views
Oh, come now... - 21/02/2012 10:35:18 AM 1445 Views
When it comes to evaluating schema, I'm not going to trust someone who only had English 101 - 21/02/2012 11:26:03 AM 1250 Views
Mostly agreed - 21/02/2012 09:00:51 PM 1321 Views
Mostly true - 21/02/2012 09:27:09 PM 1366 Views
Re: Mostly true - 22/02/2012 12:58:55 AM 1187 Views
Larry = snob - 21/02/2012 05:34:22 PM 1307 Views
Amusing - 21/02/2012 07:49:20 PM 1294 Views
Wow, you lack basic reading comprehension skills..... - 21/02/2012 08:29:24 PM 1280 Views
Uh...Faust is a play. Doctor Faustus is a novel. The former is Goethe, the latter is Mann. *NM* - 22/02/2012 12:00:22 AM 647 Views
D'uh.....notice the smiley face. Good grief! *NM* - 22/02/2012 12:50:23 AM 650 Views
Just checking... *NM* - 22/02/2012 01:07:40 AM 598 Views
Wait, let's look at the gross disconnect between two statements. - 21/02/2012 01:59:34 PM 1406 Views
I have not blindly rejected the literary elites..... - 21/02/2012 05:27:35 PM 1365 Views
So true about the Mona Lisa. - 21/02/2012 07:57:41 PM 1425 Views
Yes, I was at the Louvre and you are right..... - 21/02/2012 08:32:40 PM 1315 Views
This is where your own rethoric defeats you... - 23/02/2012 06:38:54 AM 1291 Views
Slow down - it may not be the current elites that are hyping it..... - 23/02/2012 05:12:47 PM 1145 Views
There's "subjective", and there's "lack of education" - 21/02/2012 08:58:11 PM 1314 Views
Re: There's "subjective", and there's "lack of education" - 21/02/2012 09:23:38 PM 1461 Views
Thank you. That was excellent. *NM* - 20/02/2012 07:01:31 PM 684 Views
Seems like an awful lot. - 19/02/2012 08:11:22 PM 1536 Views
Sanderson is a machine. Also, the books (so far) have been wildly different - 20/02/2012 12:50:41 AM 1431 Views
I thought he was just recycling the name at first. *NM* - 20/02/2012 02:09:57 AM 700 Views
It's likely to stay that way... - 20/02/2012 06:22:50 AM 1414 Views
I think he can actually do both - 20/02/2012 03:31:00 PM 1476 Views
Re: I think he can actually do both - 20/02/2012 06:34:30 PM 1529 Views
I love it. - 19/02/2012 10:00:28 PM 1254 Views
Confirmation on the Mistborn trilogies. I am so happy. *NM* - 20/02/2012 05:38:23 AM 595 Views
I am thrilled to see that there will be more stories about Wax and Wayne..... - 20/02/2012 03:46:37 PM 1187 Views
The one issue I had with that book... - 21/02/2012 06:21:29 PM 1300 Views
Waxillium! *NM* - 21/02/2012 10:47:03 PM 607 Views
WAXILLIUM! *NM* - 04/03/2012 07:39:37 AM 815 Views
Why is that an issue? I think those names are great. - 23/02/2012 05:31:51 AM 1255 Views
Do you not like puns? *NM* - 06/03/2012 01:38:31 PM 684 Views
BS- The Fantasy Stephen King? - 21/12/2012 08:12:21 PM 1072 Views

Reply to Message