I think I appreciated reading A Portrait of an Artist as a Young Man, by James Joyce, because there were times when he wrote exactly how he would speak. He had this "stream of consciousness" way of delivering information, and I really enjoyed it, because even though the language was so difficult to comprehend at times, it was real to me. Even though the book is a work of fiction (I would argue that there are many autobiographical elements in it, however). A Portrait is one of my favorite works by an Irish writer and could possibly be one of my favorite books of all time. My list grows larger every day though.
I think that Dave Eggers autobiography is particularly realistic and enjoyable for the same reason. He writes as if he is speaking. He writes as if he is dictating exactly what is on his mind. Even though sometimes he writes about fantastical events, he welcomes the idea of his imagination running away with him, almost in a daydream state, because it is such a real thing that really happens to people:
"We'll get her in a few days. Beth and I have vowed to get her out, have planned to break her out, even if the doctors say no; we will hide her under a gurney. will pose as doctors, will wear sunglasses and go quickly and will take her to the car, and I will lift her and Toph will provide some distraction if necessary, something, a little dance or something; and then we'll jump in the car and be gone, will bring her home, triumphant, we did it! we did it!..."
(Page 41).
That is the beginning of a perfect example of how Eggers imagination often takes flight while he is writing. I can picture him sitting at his computer and just typing a million miles a minute at these points in his story. He doesn't stop, because he will lose the creative spark. Though Dave and his sister do not break their mother out of the hospital utilizing this elaborate plan, Dave is perfectly capable of thinking about it in a daydream-state. The situation is not real, but the way of thinking about it is. Who hasn't had these crazy scenarios work themselves out in the imagination before?
Eggers may have actually thought each sentence through when he was writing A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius, but his final product certainly does not come off that way. I am sure there were areas in the book where he wrote slowly and with precision, but some of the longer paragraphs that go on for pages at a time and contain multiple periodic sentences seem to be written at the speed they are read. Everything speeds up, like the book is on fast forward. That could be another reason why the book is such a quick read as well.
I think that Dave Eggers autobiography is particularly realistic and enjoyable for the same reason. He writes as if he is speaking. He writes as if he is dictating exactly what is on his mind. Even though sometimes he writes about fantastical events, he welcomes the idea of his imagination running away with him, almost in a daydream state, because it is such a real thing that really happens to people:
"We'll get her in a few days. Beth and I have vowed to get her out, have planned to break her out, even if the doctors say no; we will hide her under a gurney. will pose as doctors, will wear sunglasses and go quickly and will take her to the car, and I will lift her and Toph will provide some distraction if necessary, something, a little dance or something; and then we'll jump in the car and be gone, will bring her home, triumphant, we did it! we did it!..."
(Page 41).
That is the beginning of a perfect example of how Eggers imagination often takes flight while he is writing. I can picture him sitting at his computer and just typing a million miles a minute at these points in his story. He doesn't stop, because he will lose the creative spark. Though Dave and his sister do not break their mother out of the hospital utilizing this elaborate plan, Dave is perfectly capable of thinking about it in a daydream-state. The situation is not real, but the way of thinking about it is. Who hasn't had these crazy scenarios work themselves out in the imagination before?
Eggers may have actually thought each sentence through when he was writing A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius, but his final product certainly does not come off that way. I am sure there were areas in the book where he wrote slowly and with precision, but some of the longer paragraphs that go on for pages at a time and contain multiple periodic sentences seem to be written at the speed they are read. Everything speeds up, like the book is on fast forward. That could be another reason why the book is such a quick read as well.
1 comment:
..and did you notice that in the packet, the critic Reynolds in the LA Times makes the same claim and throws in Proust too? aps
Post a Comment