What are you currently reading?

[SimonNZ]

The Hour of Our Death. Aries.

That's one I've wanted to read for a long while. Be interested to hear what you think of It

[JBS]

Yes, German Wikipedia is explicit about the connection between Die Quelle and Der Zauberberg, but doesn't spell it out or cite a reference in support of it.

This is Die Quelle, right?

[Jo498]

Mann owned the painting (apparently the original) and there are some descriptions of the arcadian vision Castorp has that seem like directly taken from several Hofmann pictures.
As I heard in a standard university seminar 25 years ago and it entered wikipedia it seems a fairly established position.
Less certain to me seems that the vision is connected to Nietzsche's Dionysian-Apollonian. But the general character is apollonian and the child sacrifice ritual as the dark secret can be seen as example of a mystery cult. Anyway, I am not quite sure about the whole point.

When I read it pre-interpretation I found the actual situation more interesting, that the healthy Castorp gets into a life-threatening situation "for fun" while skiing, compared to most of the other people in the sanatorium who are "dwelling in the shadow of death" because of their illness.
And then there is of course the idea that this whole civizilation despite/because? of its advancement and refinement in arts and sciences is running towards a Feast of Death (Weltfest des Todes), the Great War.

[DavidW]

The Hour of Our Death. Aries.

That has me intrigued.  Bought it, will hopefully read it sometime in the next few weeks.

[vandermolen]

Just finished reading this excellent and thought-provoking work given to me by a psychotherapist friend:

[Dry Brett Kavanaugh]

That's one I've wanted to read for a long while. Be interested to hear what you think of It

It's a re-read. The book is historical more than philosophical, and descriptive more than analytical. Many anecdotal stories with author's insights. This is not really for me, but it may be good for the people who enjoy reading historical stories.

[Papy Oli]

Finished Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man by James Joyce a couple of days ago.

It took me six months to reach halfway point...and under two weeks to finish it. Enjoyed would be too strong a word but it was challenging at times but interesting. Glad I persevered.

Now reading a lighter fare: Richard Osman's The Thursday Murder Club. 1st of a four-volume crime series set in a pensioners village. Fun, sarcastic and very English so far. Spielberg bought the rights for a movie (so far, Pierce Brosnan, Ben Kingsley, Helen Mirren and Celia Imrie have been cast as the four pensioners/sleuths).

This is possibly a palate cleanser before starting Ulysses on Bloomsday     

[DavidW]

Finished Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man by James Joyce a couple of days ago.

I had to read that in high school!

[Mandryka]

It's a re-read. The book is historical more than philosophical, and descriptive more than analytical. Many anecdotal stories with author's insights. This is not really for me, but it may be good for the people who enjoy reading historical stories.

Ah, I was hoping it would do for death what Foucault did for sex.

[Mandryka]

This is possibly a palate cleanser before starting Ulysses on Bloomsday     

Get yourself a secondary text to help with Ulysses - the one I used was by Harry Blamires - it's called The Bloomsday Book.

[Papy Oli]

I had to read that in high school!

Well, I am a late Bloom(er)... 

My High School/College French teachers turned reading an absolute boring chore for me. It wasn't until my mid-thirties that I started enjoying reading on and off, and again, only non-fiction, mostly linked in one way or another to Classical Music.

Fiction novels and the "classics" are a sadly big gap of mine 

[Papy Oli]

Get yourself a secondary text to help with Ulysses - the one I used was by Harry Blamires - it's called The Bloomsday Book.

Noted, Howard.
I read a few web pages about how to approach Ulysses, and a few said not to worry about a guide book and not to get too hung up about the bits one doesn't understand. Re-Read those bits if you want to or move on. Mainly focus on the journey and the humour in the book.

[Mandryka]

Noted, Howard.
I read a few web pages about how to approach Ulysses, and a few said not to worry about a guide book and not to get too hung up about the bits one doesn't understand. Re-Read those bits if you want to or move on. Mainly focus on the journey and the humour in the book.

The problem is that part of it is virtuoso parody writing, and it's fun to be aware of what he was parodying. And part of it is that the syntax is a bit strange at first, and so I found the guide could help me with that until I got the knack. It's worth having a guide on the shelf, I'm sure of it.  Having said that, these days you may find all you want on the web, I don't know -- the web didn't exist when I read it for the first time (shit -- getting old -- time for a drink.)

Is it worth the effort? I would say that Part 3 is the possibly my favourite part of anything I've ever read, in English or in French. For me, just incredibly touching and humane.

[Papy Oli]

The problem is that part of it is virtuoso parody writing, and it's fun to be aware of what he was parodying. And part of it is that the syntax is a bit strange at first, and so I found the guide could help me with that until I got the knack. It's worth having a guide on the shelf, I'm sure of it.  Having said that, these days you may find all you want on the web, I don't know -- the web didn't exist when I read it for the first time (shit -- getting old -- time for a drink.)

Is it worth the effort? I would say that Part 3 is the possibly my favourite part of anything I've ever read, in English or in French. For me, just incredibly touching and humane.

Cheers me old fellow! 

I did read about each of the 18 parts having their own style. That's a valid point, knowing about this beforehand to fully appreciate each in their own way.

Interesting re part 3. It is the chapter most sites recommend to skip as it is allegedly the most difficult to comprehend, when apparently Stephen goes on his intellectual overdrive. Weirdly that doesn't put me off as I am intrigued as to how Stephen evolves from Portrait to the first three parts.

Anyway, food for thought indeed about a side guide or a bit internet reading before each chapter. Thank you.

[Mandryka]

Cheers me old fellow! 

I did read about each of the 18 parts having their own style. That's a valid point, knowing about this beforehand to fully appreciate each in their own way.

Interesting re part 3. It is the chapter most sites recommend to skip as it is allegedly the most difficult to comprehend, when apparently Stephen goes on his intellectual overdrive. Weirdly that doesn't put me off as I am intrigued as to how Stephen evolves from Portrait to the first three parts.

Anyway, food for thought indeed about a side guide or a bit internet reading before each chapter. Thank you.

It's a father in search of a son and a son in search of a father. They find each other in Part 3 . . . .

[Dry Brett Kavanaugh]

Ah, I was hoping it would do for death what Foucault did for sex.

It's a good book for a relevant area. My opinion is not bias-free.

[Florestan]

[Mandryka]

He's impressive - I've not read the book but in discussion he's clear headed and reasonable in an area full of agressive propaganda. The only other who comes close to this is Britain's Owen Jones - but he's younger and less authoritative.

[AnotherSpin]

He's impressive - I've not read the book but in discussion he's clear headed and reasonable in an area full of agressive propaganda. The only other who comes close to this is Britain's Owen Jones - but he's younger and less authoritative.

I read every other day comments from people from Israel about the war in Ukraine, and every other day I get more sympathetic to the Palestinians.

[AnotherSpin]

Krzhizhanovsky  Unwitting Street



Billed somewhat misleadingly as "on the lighter side", these stories may be lighter in the sense of shorter than those in his other collections Memories of the Future and Autobiography of a Corpse, but they're soaked in the same existential catastrophism, in which aspects of everyday existence like the spaces between surfaces are revealed as not only absurd but insupportable, the only remedy for which is determined inattention.  God dies, the Universe collapses into endless twilight, everyone chooses to ignore it and carry on.

Thanks, never heard of Sigismund Krzhizhanovsky. Gleb Krzhizhanovsky (are they not related?) was a fairly prominent associate of Lenin, a curious character from the early Bolshevik cohort. Survived Stalin's purges, must have been quite dodgy.