Saturday, February 28, 2004
"You really let me down."
Last week, Carl Rakosi's collected poems' stronghold on my desktop was violently coopted by James Wright's Shall We Gather at the River. It is a small, thin, book. And it is a staggering achievment. The best way I can draw any comparison to it is to list it in the "downer" category. Fans of the downer album rejoiced last year when Neil Young's On the Beach was released (legitimately) for the first time on cd. On the Beach has been called the downer album of the 1970s.
So why buy a downer album? Or a downer book?
I guess it's probably better to ask -- what is a downer record or a downer book? For me, it's a work that's thoroughly morose and downbeat. But that doesn't mean there aren't uplifting or positive messages to take from the work -- it just may take multiple listenings/readings to discover these. That may answer my first question.
In the case of Shall We Gather at the River there is almost no sense of light coming out of the end of the tunnel. It is not a book for a bright, Sunday morning. This is a book for the end of the day, alone. Wright is the master of the single, self-contained line, especially the closing line. He can leave you bruising at the end. I've been busy with editing lately, but if I find some time, I'll post a cognizant review. The problem is I can't imagine many people wanting to go to some of the places Wright journeys to in this book. People today don't have the patience to understand loneliness or bleakness. They fall back on "It's depressing!" without learning, thinking, or feeling anything from the words on the page.
In the meantime, as I'm out of words, here's the country quiz, in case you were wondering what country you were. I'm Ireland. When you're done, you can take the book quiz (same site) to see what book you are. I'm Watership Down.
Gotta keep the site educational.
So why buy a downer album? Or a downer book?
I guess it's probably better to ask -- what is a downer record or a downer book? For me, it's a work that's thoroughly morose and downbeat. But that doesn't mean there aren't uplifting or positive messages to take from the work -- it just may take multiple listenings/readings to discover these. That may answer my first question.
In the case of Shall We Gather at the River there is almost no sense of light coming out of the end of the tunnel. It is not a book for a bright, Sunday morning. This is a book for the end of the day, alone. Wright is the master of the single, self-contained line, especially the closing line. He can leave you bruising at the end. I've been busy with editing lately, but if I find some time, I'll post a cognizant review. The problem is I can't imagine many people wanting to go to some of the places Wright journeys to in this book. People today don't have the patience to understand loneliness or bleakness. They fall back on "It's depressing!" without learning, thinking, or feeling anything from the words on the page.
In the meantime, as I'm out of words, here's the country quiz, in case you were wondering what country you were. I'm Ireland. When you're done, you can take the book quiz (same site) to see what book you are. I'm Watership Down.
Gotta keep the site educational.
