tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3383938214852108244.post6154592455371760022..comments2024-03-29T03:04:00.853-05:00Comments on Wuthering <br>Expectations: Stevenson is second-rate. I don't know why you admire him so much.Amateur Reader (Tom)http://www.blogger.com/profile/13675275555757408496noreply@blogger.comBlogger11125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3383938214852108244.post-68794980738397822522010-02-24T11:03:29.470-06:002010-02-24T11:03:29.470-06:00My concern about writing about Jekyll and Hyde is ...My concern about writing about <i>Jekyll and Hyde</i> is that I will do little more than summarize Nabokov.Amateur Reader (Tom)https://www.blogger.com/profile/13675275555757408496noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3383938214852108244.post-30240081859237170712010-02-23T22:10:11.498-06:002010-02-23T22:10:11.498-06:00Regarding J&H, I recommend everyone read Vladi...Regarding J&H, I recommend everyone read Vladimir Nabokov's famous essay on the Stevenson novel. His analysis is first-rate and will enrich your reading of the exquisite novella.R/Thttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07791522136032565027noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3383938214852108244.post-31523065496131193352010-02-23T21:08:19.344-06:002010-02-23T21:08:19.344-06:00mel - Absolutely. I'm now reading a "min...mel - Absolutely. I'm now reading a "minor" Tolstoy novel. I've been startled at how good parts of it are.<br /><br />Rebecca - Along a certain dimension, Nabokov is the <i>best</i>. You're right, he has some authority.<br /><br />nicole - yeah, yeah, <i>Jekyll and Hyde</i>. I'm not done lookng yet, but so far it's the one time for Stevenson when everything comes together - the conceit (or allegory, as his wife called it), the level of writing, the structure of the story - while still functioning as a horror or adventure tale.<br /><br /><i>Treasure Island</i> is an altogether lesser book - except in some specific scenes and in the character of Long John Silver, who is, as Stefanie remembers, more interesting than he needed to be.Amateur Reader (Tom)https://www.blogger.com/profile/13675275555757408496noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3383938214852108244.post-91304232353508226252010-02-23T08:40:42.254-06:002010-02-23T08:40:42.254-06:00I read Treasure Island when I was in 7th grade and...I read Treasure Island when I was in 7th grade and enjoyed it. Long John Silver both exhilarated and terrified me. Jekyll and Hyde is bizarrely wonderful. Have never tried any of the short stories so it's been fun reading your posts about them.Stefaniehttp://somanybooksblog.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3383938214852108244.post-64089904054385975672010-02-22T21:11:11.199-06:002010-02-22T21:11:11.199-06:00Hey, who wouldn't be anxious?
I'm glad yo...Hey, who wouldn't be anxious?<br /><br />I'm glad you wrote about this following on D.G. Myers' mention of it; I was wondering what it was all about and now I don't have to find out for myself. Not having ever read any Stevenson and always having assumed even <em>Jekyll & Hyde</em> was second rate (in Nabokovian terms only, of course), I was not in a rush. But now...nicolehttp://www.bibliographing.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3383938214852108244.post-70598501385638287152010-02-22T16:12:26.658-06:002010-02-22T16:12:26.658-06:00I recall some time ago a blog discussion on Tolsto...I recall some time ago a blog discussion on Tolstoy's last novel, The Resurrection. Some were trying to say it was not worth reading as every body said it was a 3rd rate novel compared to his other two novels-ignoring the fact that this could be true and still leave it open as possibly the 3rd best novel in the world-Mel uhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08714473754458914681noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3383938214852108244.post-87399154429711241752010-02-22T13:57:46.018-06:002010-02-22T13:57:46.018-06:00*allowed*allowedRebecca Reidhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06062252252301802298noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3383938214852108244.post-5215040438538870822010-02-22T13:33:39.046-06:002010-02-22T13:33:39.046-06:00Nabakov is aloud to call things second rate. I don...Nabakov is aloud to call things second rate. I don't mind. I've only read his short stories, but WOW. He's a good writer.Rebecca Reidhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06062252252301802298noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3383938214852108244.post-31726704454039023252010-02-22T11:26:16.982-06:002010-02-22T11:26:16.982-06:00R.T. - no confession necessary! It's good to h...R.T. - no confession necessary! It's good to hear that students still respond well to <i>Jekyll and Hyde</i>. One never knows.<br /><br />tuulenhaiven - Nabokov's critical stance has profoundly influenced me. Try the Cornell lecture on whichever book is your favorite and see what you think. Although VN's single greatest piece of critical writing is Chapter 4 of <i>The Gift</i>.Amateur Reader (Tom)https://www.blogger.com/profile/13675275555757408496noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3383938214852108244.post-38752626014966310682010-02-20T08:46:19.026-06:002010-02-20T08:46:19.026-06:00'The crucial calculation, then, in judging a s...'The crucial calculation, then, in judging a story, or book, or paragraph, is the precise ratio of lyrical waves to mumbling, weighted perhaps by exactly how fantastic the climax is.'<br /><br />Great, very amusing, very intriguing post! I think I'll have to add some of Nabokov-as-critic to my reading pile, and J&H too since I'm behind in my Stevenson (meaning I've only read...Treasure Island I believe). :)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3383938214852108244.post-11170022110687342192010-02-19T15:40:38.243-06:002010-02-19T15:40:38.243-06:00I confess that I among those readers who do not ca...I confess that I among those readers who do not care much for Stevenson's work. The important exception, however, as Nabokov astutely noted, is the J&H novella, which is first-rate story-telling (and, by the way, quite a hit among students when I have included it in British Lit courses).R/Thttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07791522136032565027noreply@blogger.com