A study found (NYT) that “the emotional mood of literature reflects the mood of the economy over the previous 10 years.” Ben Richmond doesn’t buy it: The actual researchers didn’t analyze any books specifically, they just filtered everything that Google scanned through their literary misery index, but something seems amiss when I test other examples. I pulled up … Continue reading An Economic Forecast For Literary Misery?
A reader sticks up for Mario Puzo: No surprise there’s backlash against the inclusion of The Godfather. Academics and those who think of themselves as literary types can’t give credit to any novel that isn’t either “beautifully” written or previously endorsed by the academic/literary community. It’s easier to harp on sentences and metaphors than to talk about … Continue reading And The Greatest American Novel Film Is … Ctd
A reader writes: I have read The Godfather. Once. While I agree with some of Mr. Ferraro’s points on the substance of the story, it is the writing that should instantly disqualify it from being anyone’s candidate for “greatest American novel.” Sloppy, juvenile, repetitive, rambling, indulgent, oblivious to the ghosts of Shakespeare and Proust face-palming … Continue reading And The Greatest American Novel Film Is …
Tom Ferraro makes the case for Mario Puzo’s The Godfather, “the most read adult novel in history and the most influential single act of American creativity of the second half of the American century”: The Godfather was written in 1969 and can be read as a dramatic response to a pivotal moment in American history. Puzo … Continue reading And The Greatest American Novel Is …
Mark Lawson provokes: The main reason for this renaissance is that all levels of cinema – from the people who put up the budget to the people who pay for tickets – have become less frightened of intelligence and complexity. In its first decades, the people who made movies tended to come – except for … Continue reading A Golden Age Of Cinema?
Not very, argues Jonathan Povilovis. From his lengthy critique, which questions its status as “The Great American Novel”: Jay Gatsby disowned his family and made millions illegally, which for many is just cause to hold up self-righteous noses and applaud the fact that his funeral was under-attended—the bastard deserved it. But even if you’re happy to … Continue reading How Great Is Gatsby?
