Re: Seymour an Introduction

>
>What I meant is that criticism has possibly missed the target with
>SaI by approaching it as another Salinger short story. Jim is
>correct we all do criticism in one way or another. Salinger is not
>painting with broad brush strokes, his focus is narrow and specific.
>I think in SaI he is about the work of Dr. Frankenstein or
>Gepetto in trying to make his characters dance off the page and
>greet you.
>
>Paul

Maybe what Paul says about Dr.F Gespetto and SAI is true of all
fiction? I think he's started an important thread. We start with the
illusion that paper and ink are creating something beyond paper and
ink. At that point of reality becoming illusion, most characters
indeed "dance off a page," though how they do that makes all the
difference. I'm not sure what make a special case for SAI needing
better criticism...we're getting there though...the informality and
intimacy of the narration go past Booth's sense of unreliable
narrators, I think.

Anyway, still not quite, will

PS: When Scottie stops worshipping Matty K, maybe he'll define what
is meant by "the text"...I am guessing Scottie means something
limited to just the text of the fiction (what the author wrote) with
no respect for literature as a living experience that makes the idea
of "the text" include criticism and reader's feelings, among authors'
words...my sense of a whole text is probably more organic.

PPS: Scottie, Isn't "jargonesque guff" EXACTLY THAT?

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Received on Fri Aug 9 12:55:28 2002