I know that you,George, are far too young to remember the ''Lady Chatterley Case'' but that would have given the lie to the notion that no serious literature was read on public transport.
At that time every other person on the bus or tube would be reading that book. It was impossible to tell what the ''other persons '' on the bus or tube were reading as their books were encased in home made brown paper covers but...
The book in this week's PL sounds very sad to me. It seems to be of a life of fantasies within fantasies. We all have fantasies but to only be able to live life at all in those fantasies is ,to me, a terrible way to live. From that point of view I can understand that student who was asking others what they would do in life. As I see it he was warning them that gratification postponed is in fact gratification that is never realised.
I can see that the above paragraph proves my point - there are far too many fantasies in it.
Praha, I would have liked to see those days. Obscenity cases have always struck me as pretty much the best marketing strategy there is - so many people I know have read Chatterley - and I’ve often schemed to incur one with my first novel.
That’s an interesting, and more generous, take on the student. I suppose I thought people might be best served to let their fantasies die, and so he was being unkind by nourishing them. Then again it’s hard to get onside with letting dreams die. Postponing until tomorrow is certainly no good, Gatsby’s closing lines and so on.
I know that you,George, are far too young to remember the ''Lady Chatterley Case'' but that would have given the lie to the notion that no serious literature was read on public transport.
At that time every other person on the bus or tube would be reading that book. It was impossible to tell what the ''other persons '' on the bus or tube were reading as their books were encased in home made brown paper covers but...
The book in this week's PL sounds very sad to me. It seems to be of a life of fantasies within fantasies. We all have fantasies but to only be able to live life at all in those fantasies is ,to me, a terrible way to live. From that point of view I can understand that student who was asking others what they would do in life. As I see it he was warning them that gratification postponed is in fact gratification that is never realised.
I can see that the above paragraph proves my point - there are far too many fantasies in it.
I
Praha, I would have liked to see those days. Obscenity cases have always struck me as pretty much the best marketing strategy there is - so many people I know have read Chatterley - and I’ve often schemed to incur one with my first novel.
That’s an interesting, and more generous, take on the student. I suppose I thought people might be best served to let their fantasies die, and so he was being unkind by nourishing them. Then again it’s hard to get onside with letting dreams die. Postponing until tomorrow is certainly no good, Gatsby’s closing lines and so on.
Thanks for your support and the food for thought
So basically you have made peace with tube books
Oof, bit sharp Raph!