Pulp Fiction

Posted October 26, 2011 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Literature, Pulp / 4 Comments

Thanks to the “1001 Books to Read Before you Die” list I’ve been able to explore all types of genres in an effort to find a favourite. I believe I’ve found this genre, and that is Pulp; not crime or mystery in general, but the dark and gritty style of Hard-Boiled and Noir novels. Pulp fiction originated as a type of inexpensive fiction magazine published from 1896 through the 1950s commonly releasing adventure, detective/mystery, fantasy, gangster and science fiction stories. One of the more famous pulp magazines was known as Black Mask which produced a lot of crime stories which became the basis of the Hard-Boiled and Noir genres.

Now there isn’t much difference between the two genres, both written in a laconic, dispassionate, often ironic style of realism. Hard-Boiled is the detective genre, distinguished by the unsentimental portrayal of violence and sex, made famous by Dashiell Hammett and Raymond Chandler. While Noir focuses on a plot where the protagonist is the victim, suspect, or perpetrator; this style was commonly used by seminal author James M Cain. While the two genres are not black and white, often authors like Jim Thompson would blur the lines by writing about a detective or police officer being the perpetrator of the crimes.

In the film industry these types of movies are all classed as noir movies, which has been a huge success in France and in recent years has been modernised (both in films and literature) creating a new genre known as Neo-Noir. This genre is not necessarily a crime melodrama set in modern times but often set in the future (blending Noir with Science Fiction and Cyberpunk).

From my experience, the pulp genre seems to become popular in waves; first in the 1930 and 40’s with the original greats like Dashiell Hammett, Raymond Chandler and James M Cain. Later in the 1950 and 60’s it was revived again with authors like Jim Thompson, Ross MacDonald, David Goodis and Charles Williams. Then again in the 1980 and 90’s with authors like Elmore Leonard, Robert B. Parker, Walter Mosley and James Ellroy. It is possible that this genre is on the verge of making another come back; with The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo been compared to this genre and the popularity of the new video game LA Noire which has sparked a book of short stories based in that world. I can only hope, but with so many dime store books to catch up with, I think I will be alright without the genre making a comeback.

I really took to these genres, simply for the gritty realism, strong dialogue and wittiness and/or irony. While I have a lot to get through, I thought I would end this post with a top 5, for anyone interested in trying this genre out. If you have any recommendations, please let me know.

5. Pop. 1280 by Jim Thompson

The experimental style of Jim Thomspon made him one of darkest authors in this genre. The protagonist in this book is disturbing and still remains very realistic.

4. Red Harvest by Dashiell Hammett

While many people would choose The Maltese Falcon, this book has more violence, gangsters and corruption.

3. The Black Dahlia by James Ellroy

Using a true crime as the basis of this book, The Black Dahlia is both modern (written in 1987) and keeping to the same style and feel to many of the great pulp authors.

2. The Postman Always Rings Twice by James M. Cain

This book was full of sexuality and violence that was startling in the time and was ended up being banned in Boston. It’s a shining example of what a good noir novel should be like.

1. The Long Goodbye by Raymond Chandler

While some people would recommend The Big Sleep or Farewell, My Lovely; The Long Goodbye gets the nod from me for its social criticism and autobiographical elements.

Literary Paris

Posted October 4, 2011 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Literature / 13 Comments

Paris is a city full of culture, with a rich history and recently I was able to visit this beautiful city and now all I want to do is talk about the literary side of this city. No, I didn’t get to go the Jules Verne Restaurant on the Eiffel Tower and I didn’t get to visit Oscar Wilde’s grave but I did see some very interesting sites, thanks to an iPhone app and some exploring.

SAM_0185 — James Joyce’s Apartment in Paris

One of the first places we saw was the apartment of James Joyce. Joyce lived in the apartment during the 1920’s and 30’s and it was here were he penned his masterpiece Ulysses.

Completely by accident we then came across the Panthéon. Originally a church, the Panthéon is full of history, mainly dedicated to the French Revolution. In the Crypt you can find many of French’s great heroes from the French Revolution as well as some of the country’s greatest writers including Voltaire, Rousseau, Victor Hugo and Alexandre Dumas. Completely by accident we also found that the Panthéon is the place where Foucault pendulum is on display. For those who don’t know, this pendulum shares the same name as a conspiracy masterpiece by Umberto Eco.

While the original Shakespeare and Co book store was forced to close its doors when owner Silvia Beach refused to sell the last copy of James Joyce’s Finnegans Wake to a Nazi officer, the store did reopen in 1951. The original served as a gathering place for writers such as Ernest Hemingway, William S. Burroughs, and James Joyce in the 1920’s. The reopened Shakespeare and Co strives to cater to writers and readers in the same way as the original, seeing many beat writers such as Allen Ginsberg, Gregory Corso, and William S. Burroughs again. The Shakespeare and Co bookstore initially published Joyce’s book Ulysses in 1922. While Ulysses and books like Lady Chatterley’s Lover was banned around the world, readers can both buy and borrow these books from the Shakespeare and Co book store. This bookshop also appears in the new Woody Allen movie, Midnight in Paris.

The upscale Rue Gît-le-Cœur hotel was once a rundown hotel with no name, popularly known as the Beat hotel. This hotel was in the 1950’s saw many Beat authors including Allen Ginsberg, Peter Orlovsky, Derek Raymond, Harold Norse, Gregory Corso, Sinclair Beiles and even William s. Burroughs who completed his book, Naked Lunch, in the hotel.

Oscar Wilde spent his last days in exile in L’Hôtel room 16. While there is a story going around that Wilde’s last words was ‘Either this wallpaper goes or I will’ many people believe his last words really were “I am dying beyond my means”. Other famous guests include Marlon Brando and writer Jorge Luis Borges.

While there is much more I can talk about in Paris, including the L’Académie française; the French Academy involved in protecting and preserving the French language as well as handing out the Country’s literary awards. I did have to spend some times looking at the sites and art of Paris as well. This is a beautiful city with so much to explore and discover. It is rich in history and culture and I do hope to return there again someday.

My Art Adventure

Posted September 12, 2011 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Art / 9 Comments

While normally I don’t write blog entries about myself, I feel inclined to share some experiences I’ve had recently that do link to the overall theme of this site. I was in Spain and France for a holiday, which was an experience in itself but there was a few cultural activities that were done that I want to talk about.

Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía

First stop was the Museo Reina Sofía, which is dedicated to 20th Century Spanish art. This meant a lot of Pablo Picasso and Salvador Dalí. Recently I did a few posts about Picasso and the main reason I went to this museum was to see his masterpiece Guernica. I have to admit seeing this in real life was an experience in itself, there is no pictures out there that really do this painting justice and I wasn’t allowed to take pictures of it anyway. It was awe inspiring, I’m not sure if all the Spanish history leading up to this picture made this an experience or if it’s the painting itself. But there are no words to describe this encounter for me.

A bonus was the Surrealist wing of this museum. There is something about surrealism that I love, it’s weird and wonderful. This wing consisted on a lot of Salvador Dalí paintings, which were exciting to see, but it also included a painting by my favourite surrealist Rene Magritte. Magritte has always been my favourite surrealist, his works are so distinctive, recognisable and often very witty. The painting I saw wasn’t one of his more famous pieces but it was still exciting to see. The particular painting was his 1930’s piece Pink Belles, Tattered Skies.

magritte — Rene Magritte - Pink Belles, Tattered Skies (1930)

Museo del Prado

The Del Prado is the Spanish National art’s Museum which features a lot of Velázquez, Francisco de Goya, Titian, Rubens and Bosch as well as a huge selection of Romanesque, Gothic and Early Renaissance paintings. I was fortunate enough to see my favourite Titian picture; Sisyphus (1548-1549) but the highlight of this museum and possibly the trip was the two Caravaggio paintings. Most readers will know my love of his work, so it was exciting to finally see some of it. On loan from the Vatican; was The Entombment of Christ (1602–1603) and from Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna; David with the Head of Goliath (1607).

Guggenheim Museum Bilbao

We were lucky enough to go to the Guggenheim during Aste Nagusia (an annual festival in Basque country) and experienced this museum with live Jazz music playing. The music definitely enhanced the experience. While I’m not sure how I feel about modern art, especially Abstract; it was interesting to see some Pollock and other bizarre pieces.

Musée du Louvre

Probably the most visited and even the largest museum in the world, but it’s interesting to see that most of the people go to see the Mona Lisa or the Venus de Milo. While it’s good to see both, there is so much to see and it would take you days to go through it all. The Louvre has a lot of sculptures and decorative arts to look at as well as paintings by the greats including Da Vinci, Michelangelo, Raphael and of course The Death of the Virgin (1606) by Caravaggio. While there was some amazing art at the Louvre, it was so spread out the experience wasn’t as enjoyable as the other museums.

Death of the Virgin by Caravaggio, 1606 — Caravaggio - The Death of the Virgin (1606)

It’s been quite an adventure and later I will tell you more, I just wanted to share with you the great museums and art I saw along the way. There really is nothing like seeing the art in real life, it was a real eye opener.

My Issues With The Book Thief

Posted August 3, 2011 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Literature / 10 Comments

I felt the need to write a new blog post because it’s been a while and this book has been bugging me all night; time to create some controversy. I recently read The Book Thief, a book that has come highly recommended to me, but I’m struggling to see why. As many people know The Book Thief is a young adult book by Australian author Markus Zusak that has been an international bestseller and has won numerous awards. The book tells the story of a teenage girl living in Nazi Germany who likes to steal books. While most people adored this book, I never was able to get into it and I wasn’t really sure why; this seemed to keep me up all night, so I thought I would share what I liked and didn’t like about it.

The Writing

For the most part, this novel is well written; almost in a poetic way. But at the start of each part, I’m not sure why Zusak has to list every main character that will appear in the next section, it felt a bit like a screen play in that aspect and I really felt as if he was giving away the story before it actually happened. This was only a minor problem but it did bug me a little. As for the rest of the writing, it was an unusual style that took awhile to adapt to but it really did work with the narrative.

The Characters

I never really got into any other characters in this book. I felt Liesel didn’t even need to steal books in the end but it didn’t really seem to stop her. Hans seemed to be a typical nice guy that didn’t know how to say no, Max didn’t really do much that was of interest, Rudy only cared about kissing Liesel and the only person that seemed to be colourful was her foster mother, Rosa. I thought all the characters were two dimensional and no one really had any depth. Quite frankly, I didn’t care what happened to any of them, the only person that seemed interesting was the Narrator; Death.

The Narrative

I like the fact that Death was the narrator; he did offer a unique perspective on some very dull characters. It took me a while to get used to the fact that Death wasn’t a dark character but a hopeful observer, but as my wife pointed out, Death wouldn’t be haunted by himself; it’s the humans that are haunted by him and we are the ones that think he represents an ending. It turned out that Death was haunted by humans, leading to some interesting themes throughout the book.

The Plot

I don’t know if it was my need for the macabre, the fact I wanted a dark YA book or the fact that it was set in Nazi Germany; but I really wanted this novel to be darker than it actually was. Being in war time Germany, you would expect something exciting to happen. They hide Max; the Jew in the basement and there was some bombings but apart from that, there was nothing of a climax in The Book Thief, it felt like it dragged on and never went anywhere. I really thought Zusak was holding back and was too afraid to go to a dark place and it ended up been too light and fluffy for a war time story.

The Major Themes

While this does appear to be a light read, there are still some very interesting themes throughout this novel. The main theme that stuck with me is the way Death is trying to understand the two sides of humanity; while the Nazi’s are cruel to the Jews, one member of the party, Hans, shows nothing but kindness and compassion towards them. While this is confusing to Death, it really is an interesting theme to have in a YA novel, where the majority of the readers are at a point in their life where they need to find their identity. Other themes that showed up in the book included guilt and the value of works (as a reader and a writer).

The Book Thief is for the most part a nicely written YA story, but the potential was there for something far better. I understand the fact that holding back for a YA novel, but I’m sure the readers know that war is a dark and scary place and the writer could have used that to make this book a more exciting read. I hope people enjoy this book, but for me I expected much more. What did others think of this book?

Half Yearly Review – 2011

Posted July 12, 2011 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Writing / 0 Comments

The first 6 months of 2011 went really quickly. I don’t think I got a chance to write a blog post every week but I was really impressed with myself and what did end up on my blog. A few interesting miniseries showed up over the past six month, including a look at Picasso with Picasso – The Icon Breaker & Guernica; Picasso’s Masterpiece. The highlight for me was my Romantic period series; A Quest for Liberty, The Romantic Bond With Nature and then the quick look at the three most known romantics; The Romantic Brooder, The Romantic Bad-Boy & The Romantic Celebrity.

In regards to popularity with the readers, here were the top 5 posts;

5. Autodidact Vs. Higher Education

4. What is Wrong with Dark YA Novels?

3. What is a Cult Book?

2. My Literary Wall of Shame

1. What Would You Read in an Introduction to Fiction Course?

As for my reading goals for the year, I’ve been working through some really amazing books and I would recommend the following books, based on what I read in the past six months;

5. Before I Go To Sleep by S.J. Watson (2011)

4. Super Sad True Love Story by Gary Shteyngart (2010)

3. The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafón (2006)

2. Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier (1938)

1. Catch-22 by Joseph Heller (1961)

I’m really happy with how this year has been going for my blog, I know there has been a bit of a focus on Literature lately, but I hope no one is thinking I’m neglecting a topic. I write a topic based on what has been on my mind and what I’ve been learning so you may get batches of one topic. I do except a lot more to do with literature in the future but I won’t neglect the other subjects; I promise. Is there a particular topic you would like to see here? Anyone interested in doing a post for this blog?

My Literary Wall of Shame

Posted June 15, 2011 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Listology / 17 Comments

As most of you know, I’ve turned into a big reader; in 2009 I set myself a goal of reading 12 books and managed to read 14 books. In 2010, I thought I would try to read 24 books for the year, in which I completed 88; so this year my goal is 100 books. Seems like a big goal but I’ve become very addicted to reading and keep finding other books I want to read now. However I still have a pile of shame; a group of authors and books that I really should read but haven’t read yet. So for something different, I thought I’d talk about what I haven’t read.

Top 5 Unread Authors

5. Agatha Christie

The more I read, the more I discover my love of Crime and Mystery novels. I’ve been focusing mainly on the pulps as these books have been my favourites. I really should take some time to read some books from the master of mystery.

4. Charlotte Bronte

I’ve read a book by both Emily and Anne Bronte, but never Charlotte. I don’t know why; I think I focussed on the less known sisters as I heard they were darker stories but I will eventually have to read some Charlotte Bronte.

3. Jane Austen

Most people are expected to read one Jane Austen book in their lives and I need to read Pride and Prejudice soon. I haven’t been overly excited about reading Austen, though I’ve enjoyed the Gothic and Romantic books that came before her, I’ve never really dove into Victorian literature.

2. Charles Dickens

Charles Dickens has been put off for the same reason as Jane Austen. Victorian literature hasn’t excited me enough yet to want to read. I do try to read all the greats in English Literature but I’ve got a lot to read.

1. Shakespeare

I didn’t even read any Shakespeare while I was a school. The only book related subject at school I remember doing was Romeo & Juliet but even then we didn’t read the whole play, just some excerpts and then watched the movie. What was wrong with my high school?

Top 5 Unread Classics

5. War and Peace

I’ve been meaning to read this mammoth of a book; I read and enjoyed Anna Karenina and look forward to reading some more Tolstoy. I really think the size is the main thing that is holding me back.

4. Lord of the Flies

While I’ve read that this book is very disturbing, this only makes me want to read this more. I picked this book to put on this list, simply because it is one of the books people read in High School, so are surprised to know I haven’t read it.

3. Cloud Street

I had to pick some classic Australian literature to add to the list and I think Tim Winton is one Australian author I would like to read. I live in Australia and haven’t read much of its literature, but it’s on my to-read list.

2. Moby Dick

Not the number one book but this white whale does need to be read soon. If we look at the great novels of the 20th Century I think Moby Dick would be one of the books sitting on the top of the list.

1. Crime and Punishment

With my love of what little Russian literature I’ve read, Crime and Punishment has been a must read for me for a very long time. My wife hates Russian literature but I adore it and can’t wait to start this book (when I finish all the other books waiting to be read).

If you have any recommendations I’d love to hear them and if you are on Goodreads, I hope we are friends. I know there is heaps of books that need to be read, but this was just a glimpse in the major books that I need to read and a good excuse to try something different on this blog. What is on your reading wall of shame?

What is Wrong with Dark YA Novels?

Posted June 9, 2011 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Literature / 0 Comments

As most of you have heard, a few days ago The Wall Street Journal released an article about Young Adult (YA) fiction been excessively dark and parents being concerned about the effects of this on their children. While I’ve not read much YA, I do feel the need to defend it as I am a fan of dark imagery. For starters, this is nothing new; parents have been concerned about their children and what they do for a very long time (possibly forever) and teens will always feel an attraction to doing something their parents don’t approve of; whether it’s to rebel or just curiosity. Apart from that, controversial YA books are nothing new; The Catcher in the Rye is the first book that comes to mind, being the one most censored book in the world and always getting complaints from parents when their children have to read it. In the 1970’s, there was Go Ask Alice which to this day has been slammed for been too controversial for teens to read.

In the world today teenagers are exposed to a lot of questions and getting very little answers. While they may not all be abused, a lot of them have to deal with being harassed, neglected or even the feeling of being misunderstood. Sometimes a parent or a teacher can help but sometimes they are just too embarrassed to ask, so they are drawn to these books because they are looking for answers.

Some are just reading these books for information, they may not have questions that need answering. They are just curious; either about things they’ve experienced (loneliness, heart break, pain) or about things they haven’t experienced yet (sex, drugs, suicide).

So from what I can gather; Teenagers read dark YA fiction for three main reasons;

1. They are dealing with similar issues as the characters in the book.

2. Even if they don’t have a similar life as the characters, they share similar feelings.

3. They read books for the same reasons that adults read books: for fun; to explore another world.

While these books may seem dark, I’ve noticed the hashtag #YASaves going around twitter, where people talk about how reading these books may have helped them and even saved their lives. The main reason for this (from what I can gather) is that these books are showing them why certain behaviours are dangerous. Literature connects us and these YA novels just act as a bridge between the darkness of our thoughts and reality. It can save us by showing the dangers of the thoughts we may be having and the effect they would have on yourself and others around you.

This whole discussion about dark novels, feels close to the discussions of censorship (to me). We have to remember while these young adults read books like this, it doesn’t mean they are going to turn into something bad, it is more likely to do them good than harm. (At least they are reading.) I feel the need to read more young adult fiction (not the ones about fairies) and see just how dark they are, but I have a huge to-read list and may not get to a YA book for awhile. However I know many adults that do read these books and none have ever mentioned them being harmful. I would love to know what others think of the Wall Street Journal article and YA novels in general. What do you like/dislike about them and what is your favourite?

Is there Pre-Tolkien Fantasy?

Posted June 3, 2011 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Literature / 0 Comments

Last night at Trivia, I was having a conversation about The Lord of the Rings and its effect on literature and fantasy. I asked the question ‘What fantasy was there before Tolkien?’ A question that I thought I would get some interesting answers but it was a question that they didn’t know how to answer. Was there fantasy before Tolkien? While J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis would be the ones responsible for making fantasy popular; the genre isn’t really that new. While the concept of a fantasy genre may seem new, a lot of it draws from Epic Poems such as The Odyssey & Beowulf, but also from Fairy Tales, Fables and Myths. I’m not a huge fan of fantasy as a genre, so I might be missing some information, but from what I can find the first Fantasy novel was by George MacDonald but writers like Lord Dunsany have been writing short stories beforehand. For more about pre-Tolkien fantasy, check out this list from Goodreads.

Another thing I’ve noticed about fantasy, while this is often a new world with commonly known races; Tolkien’s Elves, Hobbits, Orcs, etc have been used time and time again. I know there are probably people that differ from Tolkien’s world but it seems to be a template that is being used far too often. While I haven’t read the Lord of the Rings books, I’ve seen the movie and can see similarities between Tolkien and other books, movies and games in the fantasy genre.

We owe a lot to J.R.R. Tolkien for everything he has done for speculative fiction; I would like to know, can books step out of his shadows and reinvent the races or the genre successfully? Also I would love to know more about the fantasy genre and all its subgenres. What would fantasy novel would you recommend to people?

The Eucatastrophic Ending

Posted May 17, 2011 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Literature / 0 Comments

Is it just me, or do eucatastrophic*, Hollywood or happy endings always seem like we are wrapping things up in a tiny little bow. I know there is a time and a place for this but I’ve found that life is not neatly wrapped up, so why do it in books or movies. I’m a big fan of noir and books like Wuthering Heights, Anna Karenina & Frankenstein, so maybe my opinion is biased. But I’ve been thinking about this a lot lately (especially in the aspect of movie adaptations changing the ending to make the story come together) and while I think there are many decent books with a happy ending (To Kill a Mockingbird, Shipping News or The Lord of the Rings) they just don’t sit well with me.

So why do I prefer a book with a more realistic ending? Apart from the fact that I like dark/gothic imagery, I think the fact that a book that ends on a less than happy note often has a more lasting effect on the reader, giving the reader something to ponder, talk about and even make them feel more superior than the protagonist. Sure, happy endings leave their audiences happy; if only for a little while. For a lot of people, happiness is hard to come by and they like to escape at any chance. I think my major issue with happy endings is this simple fact; happy endings tend to be too predictable, and I like to be thrown off guard with an unexpected twist or plot turn.

I know there is a time and a place for a happy, sad or realistic ending. I would like to know what you think in regards to the advantages and disadvantages of happy endings.

*Eucatastrophe is a term coined by J. R. R. Tolkien which refers to the sudden turn of events at the end of a story which result in the protagonist’s well-being.

Autodidact Vs. Higher Education

Posted May 5, 2011 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Education / 0 Comments

While I love considering myself as an autodidact, my thirst for knowledge is growing so strong, that now I am considering going to uni to study a Bachelor of Arts focusing in English Literature – there are probably heaps of subjects I would love to study, but I think this one will suit me best.

For those who are unsure autodidacticism is learning on your own and an autodidact is someone that teaches themselves. I have developed my own education philosophy, in which I try to learn or make sense of something every week and then write about it in a blog post. I have this fear that I might be wrong or missing interesting elements of a topic. The other draw card to studying this via a university is the degree; who knows, it might get me a job, working in a field I’m passionate about.

The drawback of going to study – for me – is the fear that the classroom may kill my passion for learning. Over the past few years, this passion has been growing and growing; what started with Culture, expanded into Art History, Literature, Philosophy and now Educational Theories. I know that all these topics go hand in hand, but if I lose my passion, what will I do then?

I’ve been left with a difficult decision and while I’m worried about it, I think my thirst for knowledge far outweighs my fears. Though I think I will start out small; I will start with something basic (as I will need to study part time) and just take the subject in Critical reading.

I would love to know others’ thoughts in Autodidact verses Higher Education and I would love to know how others journey into higher learning went.