tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6557458849091969678.post5437664338717849596..comments2023-06-15T09:13:45.467-04:00Comments on Liberty's Torch: More Concerning “Serious People,” This Time With Regard to FictionFrancis W. Porrettohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05862584203772592282noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6557458849091969678.post-687401904840489762020-03-12T06:47:54.338-04:002020-03-12T06:47:54.338-04:00Hello Francis, true that personal preferences shou...Hello Francis, true that personal preferences shouldn't give anyone the idea that they are superior over others. No genre deserves to be belittled, there are readers from different walks of life enjoying genres that might not be based on anything they do. Now that is the essence of life, much beyond the comparisons. Stay awesome, and do check out https://www.bloghasting.com for latest in fashion ideas!Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10143263307303921014noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6557458849091969678.post-36040714027385956472020-03-10T17:01:10.472-04:002020-03-10T17:01:10.472-04:00GWTW was a corker - complex characters, minor char...GWTW was a corker - complex characters, minor characters well developed, and a completely consuming read. Modern writers could learn a lot from studying it.Linda Foxhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15024201252345608291noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6557458849091969678.post-47565334517381607612020-03-04T23:16:49.560-05:002020-03-04T23:16:49.560-05:00It's worse than that. If they loved those fran...It's worse than that. If they loved those franchises, but weren't truly competent to carry their respective torches, they would occassionally, accidentally get it right, if only for love of them and with a great deal of effort. Mouse Wars, Stream Trek, and Doctor Why fail as they do because their producers act from malice, not well-intentioned stupidity.A Readerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15288199981382663362noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6557458849091969678.post-29930062160398990222020-03-04T08:00:58.316-05:002020-03-04T08:00:58.316-05:00Francis,
I agree that ENVY seems to be the defini...Francis,<br /><br />I agree that ENVY seems to be the defining characteristic of these deeply unserious people. It's so much easier to tear down another's creation than to build your own. We see that across the spectrum of media. Numerous intellectual properties have been DESTROYED because the people now in charge cannot admit that they don't live up to the original vision of the creators. Star Trek, Star Wars, and with the finale of Season 12, Doctor Who--all of these venerable properties are just shambling husks of what they used to be. I learned much more from these franchises than I ever did from the literature I read for my Bachelor's degree in English Lit.Lord Squirrelhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08324390481197233147noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6557458849091969678.post-33865411549433925262020-03-03T15:20:24.429-05:002020-03-03T15:20:24.429-05:00It's not just in the literary world. It alway...It's not just in the literary world. It always amazes me that "smart" people who will argue in one breath that truth is "subjective" and propose relativist viewpoints will, in their next breath, reveal their blindness to their own prejudices. Do they really lack the capacity for self reflection?<br /><br />I've encountered the type many times. There was always such a crowd in college, but the really smart guys rolled their eyes and smirked at them. Later I represented a district filled with the type. I was never part of that crowd, and I think they doubly resented me because I didn't share many of their "superior" opinions, and yet they were hard pressed to call me a rube. How do you fit that label to a reasonably articulate and well-informed policy wonk who studies issues thoroughly and can hold tables of data and pages material in memory, especially when you know the same guy majored in math and physics at one of the most rigorous institutions in the country? If you want to tick off an elitist, make them look and feel like rubes.<br /><br />That said, elitism is a target of the satire in my novel. To answer my previous question about how these guys can be oblivious to their own prejudice, the answer is that they are not. That's where the idea of "intersubjectivity" comes in. It's kind of like philosophy courtesy of the pigs on Animal Farm: it holds that while all truth is a matter of opinion that some opinions are better than others. I have an entire section of dialog about the idea. It's presented as funny, but it's a very serious matter.<br /><br />By the way, Francis, I produced a Kindle version of the book and plan to make it free for a couple of days in the future. I'll let you know when, if you're interested in reading it. Right now I'm trying to figure out how to narrow cast the free offer to a wide but select group. I don't think everyone will like it, which is fine, but I don't want to make it easily, freely available to the sort of people who will obviously hate it. <br /><br />All the Best<br /><br />Redd StaterRedd Staterhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06499744264797884751noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6557458849091969678.post-61799756855400512112020-03-03T10:18:01.229-05:002020-03-03T10:18:01.229-05:00When I had "The Modern Novel" in college...When I had "The Modern Novel" in college I also had the perfect stereotype of the horrible English prof. She was a fat, nasty, supercilious lesbian, who had contempt and condescension for her students (especially the male ones) honed to an art form. And she loved her some James Joyce. To her every novel ever written pointed to Ulysses, and every book after that was a pale imitation. I slogged through that boring nightmare of a book, and hated every page of it. And just to be sure, I read it twice. Once I had the temerity to ask why "Gone With the Wind" wasn't included in the reading list. Her sneer could have curdled milk. GWTW was of a lower order, understand. Not fit for college reading. Still, it stands as one of the best novels I've ever picked up. Ulysses? Couldn't even dump it at a yard sale.<br /><br />JWMJWMhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05564732483476859555noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6557458849091969678.post-9303393190803911042020-03-03T08:03:40.248-05:002020-03-03T08:03:40.248-05:00Tolkien is getting some respect. John Bowers in th...Tolkien is getting some respect. John Bowers in the Great Courses "The Western Literary Canon in Context" puts Tolkien in the canon.<br /><br />PS. Pratchett and Kim Robinson are two authors I cannot read. sykes.1https://www.blogger.com/profile/10954672321945289871noreply@blogger.com