Happy Escapism vs Doom Gloom and Realism

04-12-2001, 04:10 PM

ooh, the Pearl was disgusting. I can't stand disgusting, sick books where fate controls everything and there's no hope for people. Like Oedipus.

Except I did like King Lear...

*Elanor smites IronParrot for his evil remarks about Shakespeare*

I contend that Shakespeare's greatness is his language and his ability to create a scene from words alone. The only Shakespeare I've really disliked is All's Well that Ends Well, because of the really dumb ending. But most of the rest of the play was still good.

For me whether or not a story ends happily is less important than the stuff in between. I love Frankenstein, King Lear, Les Miserables, and The Hunchback of Notre Dame, and in all of those the main characters die very poignantly or violently at the end. Does this mean they end hopelessly? No, in all of them there is still hope for humanity. They teach a lesson and give the reader new insight into life. They are very well written and worth reading regardless of how they end. I even love the sad endings themselves if they make me cry.

One thing I hate is people taking a wonderful and meaningful story like the Little Mermaid by Hans Christian Andersen and turning it into a happy-fest with no real purpose but to entertain.

Even books that I don't like I can still appreciate for their meaningfulness and symbolism. Like Lord of the Flies (I detest this book, but it's very good), The Crucible, Grapes of Wrath, and Buried Child. Others I detest and I think they're dumb and overrated because people think "Oh, it has a sad ending; it must be full of artistic thought and deep meanings"; when all they do is just have a really depressing ending. One example is Ethan Frome. Was there ever a dumber book? And the Pearl.

04-12-2001, 04:10 PM	#1
Elanor Guest Posts: n/a	Re: Mice and Men ooh, the Pearl was disgusting. I can't stand disgusting, sick books where fate controls everything and there's no hope for people. Like Oedipus. Except I did like King Lear... Elanor smites IronParrot for his evil remarks about Shakespeare I contend that Shakespeare's greatness is his language and his ability to create a scene from words alone. The only Shakespeare I've really disliked is All's Well that Ends Well, because of the really dumb ending. But most of the rest of the play was still good. For me whether or not a story ends happily is less important than the stuff in between. I love Frankenstein, King Lear, Les Miserables, and The Hunchback of Notre Dame, and in all of those the main characters die very poignantly or violently at the end. Does this mean they end hopelessly? No, in all of them there is still hope for humanity. They teach a lesson and give the reader new insight into life. They are very well written and worth reading regardless of how they end. I even love the sad endings themselves if they make me cry. One thing I hate is people taking a wonderful and meaningful story like the Little Mermaid by Hans Christian Andersen and turning it into a happy-fest with no real purpose but to entertain. Even books that I don't like I can still appreciate for their meaningfulness and symbolism. Like Lord of the Flies (I detest this book, but it's very good), The Crucible, Grapes of Wrath, and Buried Child. Others I detest and I think they're dumb and overrated because people think "Oh, it has a sad ending; it must be full of artistic thought and deep meanings"; when all they do is just have a really depressing ending. One example is Ethan Frome. Was there ever a dumber book? And the Pearl.