Let's be real people. I must say that this book was not one of my favorites of all time. I would not go so far as the worst book I have ever read but if I was not reading this for class I would have most surely returned it back to the store. If it were not for its adventurous points and its totally awesome gruesomeness, I definitely would have stopped reading it. I also have to point out that the ending was horrible, just horrible.
I have a problem with us analyzing this book. I guess it is the fact that I don't understand why we are studying it. It goes back to the argument of whether it is a book just for money and a quick read, or is it an artistic book meant for over analyzing. That's my take on it.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
The genius behind The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym is that it’s construction makes it impossible to determine if it’s even genius at all. I believe that we are an intelligent group of readers and we cannot seem to agree on even a remotely vague general theme of this novel, and in my research of this text, I cannot find anyone else making a strong argument for a general theme, either. How often is that done in a work of literature which can actually be read with ease? There are literally hundreds of symbols and metaphors a reader can take out of NAGP and whether Poe meant to put them there or not, it’s really up to you to take what you want out of this novel. Literature is art and art is always up for an interpretation. A reader doesn’t have to like a text and doesn’t have to come to a legitimate conclusion as to theme, but trying to find a theme in a novel as complex at NAGP will definitely lead a reader to a higher level of intellectual thought.
ReplyDeleteAriel,
ReplyDeleteAgain, I think your true calling is writing propaganda for literary studies! I'm especially interested in your proposition that indeterminacy (i.e. that Poe constructed the novella so as to frustrate all attempts at certainty, thus rendering all interpretations provisional) spurs readers to a higher level of thought. Or does it simply annoy readers and make them reject the book? Why do we decide that some indeterminate texts deserve scrutiny and effort and others don't? I wish we'd had more time in class to talk about the indeterminacy of the novella, but we'll return to these ideas in the rest of the readings for the course.
Kelly