A new blog! My first one, and what better a place to rant. But what about...? I'm in the typing mood today, so I guess it's... books and reading.It's rare that you find people reading the classics these days.
No, I don't mean Bram Stoker or Jane Austen, Mark Twain or even Dostoyevsky. I mean genuine classics. I'm talking Beowulf, Dante, or good old fashioned Homer. I fully appreciate the fact that people have different literary tastes and for the most part the number one English language books being sold these days are the various biographies of Barack Obama among the excellent modern fictional literature - I'm looking at you Cormac Mccarthy - but in the whirlwind of upcoming and numerous writers and technologies for reading and consuming stories with our kindles and our audio books have we lost track of literature's humble beginnings in western civilization?
The classic stories of adventure and mayhem that have defined our culture have faced one great foe in this last century which I think they can't recover from - that is their own popularity over time to fall back into obscurity. People think they've seen the film, or heard the ending all to often. And all to often they choose to neglect the admirable beauty of the story in it's full original form based on the preconception that they know it through and through without ever hearing any of the original words of the tale. But I do know this, the stresses of life and work and easily escape accompanying Erik and his men on a great saga of a journey to Vinland - Escape the feeling of being lost in life when accompanying Odysseus and his men into a fuckton of misadventures in being truly lost.
...Oh, that and the weakness of translation from old English and other languages into our modern day talk. That's always a problem.
But then again who am I to complain of all this, I who have not dug out half of the old books I spend countless dollars on purchasing with the intent of illuminating myself with. In Canada I have a room filled with books of some type of classic nature or another - my Roman stories lay unread and my Persian poetics untouched, collecting dust. I, who criticize others for not taking the time, I who spend so much on books I so rarely read, I who point my blaming fingers at all you am in truth the worst of this kind. It seems I always have too many things to read and when I do manage to have free time I tend not to use it to read at all, but rather to socialize and explore things outside my home. Truth is, there's just enough time in the day. And I bet you're the same, if you're a reader.
I suppose in the end I understand the reason other people don't have time to engulf themselves in literature - the same reasons the books are collecting dust in my 'library' (Or was it a study?... damn, I forget) - and that reason is audio books.
Damn them and their exciting narrators, which sound so much more pleasant than that voice that reads books for me in my head.
/ End of first nonsensical rant.
Make me a list Jeff, of the classics you think one should read (one their own, no tapes) to make one well bred and worldly. I am curious to see what would be on that list. Did you read the Mein Kemp that I gave you? Is that book allowed in China? I almost burned it, instead I gave it to you because you are a history buff and figured you would enjoy it. How anyone could enjoy it let alone learn anything valid form that evil old f**k is beyond me. Jen was upset I gave it to you. I told her that was the last thing I would think she would want unless she wanted to make a movie about him. Just because someone writes a book doesn't make them a hero. I am curious what books you would have on that list to read....When you're over there, I can understand that there is so much to see and explore that one could forgive you not reading for pleasure. But, playing the devils advocate...can you actually get books like that in China.. I wouldn't think Homer would be permitted. I imagine literature would be all things Mao...Isn't the secret to keeping the Chinese quiet and under thumb, is to keep them ignorant of anything to do with the west or any country except China? Freedom in speech ends up with the same thing that happened in Tibet. I am sure 90% of westerners have NO idea of the real goings on over there. Recently, in the last week, I heard that China blocked You Tube. Is that true. Are you able to search google and get valid truthful results or is there someone assigned to be sure the chinese do not learn of freedom or of the classic books that transcend time. Could you go buy these books or read them on the internet? I like your rant. Use it as a teaching tool. Let us know what things are like over there. Just don't get yourself arrested or deported. Is someone over there reading this classic? LOL I suppose time will tell. Do they still worship Mao or is that just western propaganda?
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