Well, that was a wash.

[jazzfish]

#1: failed totally due to desperately wanting sleep. Read Flannery O'Connor for class tomorrow instead.
#2: success for awhile, then gave up after nap.
#3: success. 3/5. Go me.
#4: see #2.
#5: see #1.
#6: failed totally due to desperately wanting sleep. Watched The Count of Monte Cristo again instead.

On the other hand, movie was good, hanging out with people and not stressing was good. (Although I still maintain that Mercedes should have died, and Dantes should have ended by renouncing his treasure and joining the priesthood, like Faria would have wanted him to.)
Tomorrow, unlike today, must be a paper day. Heh.

Comments

[sir-alf.livejournal.com]

I did a paper on Flannery O'Connor.

I described her writing as the most revolting thing I'd ever read. Her characterization and descriptive powers are not only accurate but very talented, but storywise, she managed to capture everything I hate about the south. After reading "a good man is hard to find" I felt like I'd been kicked in the stomach for about three hours. Slowly. With rythmn.

Hope your experience is better!

Peace

O'Connor

[jazzfish]

I loathe, detest, dispise, and otherwise dislike O'Connor. Her one story is decently written but she never found another one to tell, and thus kept fiddling with the same one, changing a character here, a minor plot point there... and this is considered a Sign of Her Genius.

Her characters are almost universally despicable, too, but that's another matter. (And they *are* bloody accurate, I'll give her that much.)

I felt like I'd been kicked in the stomach for about three hours. Slowly. With rythmn.

You might want to stay away from Nathanael West's Miss Lonelyhearts, then. Had a similar effect on me, only it was pretty irrythmic.

[zerblinitzky.livejournal.com]

You must remember, this is pulp fiction. The masses (and I) want a story with intrigue, betrayal, vengeance and little to no morality. Having Mercedes die would have been artistic, not cool.

[jazzfish]

Bah. Pulp can have morality. Look at Casablanca. Entertaining and Artistic are not mutually exclusive, James Joyce to the contrary.

[zerblinitzky.livejournal.com]

Fair enough. I am ill-equipped to argue literature with an English major...
I just think that the story worked well with a happy ending is all. Maybe it's not artistic, but it was amusing. Don't knock it just because it wasn't exactly fitting.

More Monte

[jazzfish]

Having thought about it a bit, I'm only disappointed that Mercedes didn't die because there were actually people telling Dantes that vengeance wasn't right (Faria, Jacopo, even Mercedes I think). If you're going to bother to raise ethical questions like that at all, the least you should do is continue to treat them throughout the work, and not just suddenly stop towards the end because it's happier that way.

Re: More Monte

[zerblinitzky.livejournal.com]

Okay, that I agree with. I would have been happier if the question had never come up. I don't recall if it did in the book or not, but I'm inclined to think not.