tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3383938214852108244.post4086886192704828661..comments2024-03-27T16:48:21.039-05:00Comments on Wuthering <br>Expectations: old Twain - a list - because I believed in him and could not think he would deceive a mere boyAmateur Reader (Tom)http://www.blogger.com/profile/13675275555757408496noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3383938214852108244.post-68839871428326524782017-03-24T15:17:13.269-05:002017-03-24T15:17:13.269-05:00King Leopold's Soliloquy did not seem over-the...<i>King Leopold's Soliloquy</i> did not seem over-the-top to me. Given what was going on, it seemed if anything understated, which was, essentially, its punch line.<br /><br />I am glad you are corrupting the youth with Twain. How can people not like Twain? Not counting this late Twain, the one I have been reading, who is not exactly what I would want to call "likable."Amateur Reader (Tom)https://www.blogger.com/profile/13675275555757408496noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3383938214852108244.post-46448668087447603582017-03-24T13:16:29.234-05:002017-03-24T13:16:29.234-05:00I'm of a mixed mind on King Leopold’s Soliloqu...I'm of a mixed mind on <i>King Leopold’s Soliloquy</i>. Looking back on my notes (wow...almost a decade ago...how did that happen?), I note that its over-the-top approach didn't always resonate with me but I admired the buttons he was pushing since they would have connected with early 20th-century Americans. <br /><br />I just finished watching Ken Burns' documentary on Twain with my boys (for school) and I was happy to see how they connected with Twain. Dwighthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13688525659034403580noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3383938214852108244.post-15720904300840650022017-03-24T09:45:58.546-05:002017-03-24T09:45:58.546-05:00The transformation-in-progress is a major part of ...The transformation-in-progress is a major part of how Twain wrote long works. Sometimes it results in <i>Huckleberry Finn</i>. But in this last decade the process was not working in a way that led to finished books.<br /><br />Maybe that does not matter. The Romantics - heck, the Greeks - got me used to reading fragments. A little archaeology can be a good thing - a stroll through the ruins.Amateur Reader (Tom)https://www.blogger.com/profile/13675275555757408496noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3383938214852108244.post-67892393599594229322017-03-24T08:46:23.268-05:002017-03-24T08:46:23.268-05:00Some of his books ("Connecticut Yankee" ...Some of his books ("Connecticut Yankee" and "Puddn'head Wilson" particularly) started as light comic ideas that changed into something else, as Twain grappled with Carlyle, the French Revolution, his own repudiation of the Confederacy, slavery. He was right, in a way; those were more interesting subjects.<br /><br />He had been pretty disciplined with his Joan of Arc book, and was baffled that nobody thought it was his best work. Maybe part of his later confusion was that old conflict of wanting to tackle big subjects, but realizing readers wanted him to be funny. At any rate, there's some great stuff in all those unfinishable projects. Doug Skinnerhttp://www.dougskinner.netnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3383938214852108244.post-16746698815852206652017-03-23T22:35:11.031-05:002017-03-23T22:35:11.031-05:00Yes, the autobiography! Another project with lots...Yes, the autobiography! Another project with lots of writing that, the way he did it, seems unfinishable by design.<br /><br />I am glad I am seeing roughly the same phenomenon as you. No control, exactly. In some of the "Mysterious Stranger" texts, I could almost see the point where Twain gets stuck. <i>Something</i> happened.Amateur Reader (Tom)https://www.blogger.com/profile/13675275555757408496noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3383938214852108244.post-89497837637668880292017-03-23T21:12:35.510-05:002017-03-23T21:12:35.510-05:00In a lot of those late writings, Twain seems to ha...In a lot of those late writings, Twain seems to have little or no control over his material. He's spinning out ideas in all directions, apparently unable to shape or direct them. He was always an intuitive writer, but his utter inability to discipline himself is kind of disturbing. What happened?<br /><br />The other big late project was his autobiography, another fascinating sprawling mess.<br /><br /> Doug Skinnerhttp://www.dougskinner.netnoreply@blogger.com