What are you reading?

[Faust]

You've gotten two volumes ahead of 90% of the people who have read Proust, (myself included). Kudos.

I put down Purity by Franzen for the second time (simply put, it's not nearly as good as The Corrections of Freedom), and picked up the new book on Roman history, SPQR by Mary Beard in anticipation of my trip to Rome. I've read Robert Hughes's book on Rome (not just ancient) and it has enriched my meandering around the streets of Rome immensely.

[round]

Junky by William S. Burroughs

[ronin]

I finally finished Proust vol. 3. I must say I enjoyed it significantly less than the first two. There were still some really great passages, but I felt I was not the audience for much of the anecdotes of high society (I also probably should have wikipedia'd Dreyfus much earlier). Less of his philosophical views came through, and snippets of bourgeois life are not super exciting.

Has anyone else had similar sentiments / does it change in vol. 4? I'll take a break and read some Houellebecq anyways, but I'm wondering if I should stay patient and start vol. 4 eventually.

I've read the edition in two volumes so I'm not sure which chapter you've stopped at exactly, but if you appreciated the first half, then I strongly suggest you keep reading it until the end. (Unless you mean the third chapter? Since you mentionned Dreyfus I surmise indeed you've just read Le Côté de Guermantes?) It must be considered as a whole. There is more to those anecdotes than meets the eye (even though it not technically a "roman à clef", reading it with a few extra references in mind tells you about a lot more than some petty quarrels, especially in the first half, it sheds some light on Proust's philosophy and vision of litterature), and on another level they are crucial to building the patterns present throughout the book. The episode about the Dreyfus case (since in the book it is a mere episode, albeit life changing for some characters, with durable repercussions) might be tedious if you're not familiar with it already, however there's enough complexity in its portrayal to make it interesting if you're willing to contextualize it a bit more (especially reading some contemporary work related to the case, with the hindsight they can have). Anyway, I remember there were indeed some overly dragging passages about whose cousin or brother or great-great-uncle someone was in this chapter, but don't let it turn you off, many of the narrator's insights or character's evolutions are crucial to fully grasp the whole novel, so you didn't lose your time (and the sharp, underlying irony is worth it anyway). I think you'll find an interest in in after having read a few more chapters.
What language are you reading it in, if you don't mind my asking? I ask because I thought the Dreyfus case was a prerequisite in French education, and, well, if you're reading it in another language then of course it may be quite different. I'd be curious to read a translation someday.

[t3hg0suazn]

I've been reading it in English. And yes I was referring to Chapter 3. Thanks for the insight, I do think I will keep reading it after a short break. The irony you mention was clearly present at the end of the chapter, and it did validate/contextualize much of the preceding passages.

And I just finished Submission by Houellebecq (English translation). Thanks to mikko for mentioning it. Shockingly short (esp. when compared to Proust) but rich in content. I enjoyed it both because of the misanthropic, nihilistic protagonist and Houellebecq's knack for effectively distilling theory through the novel format.

Already bought The Map and the Territory and will probably read it in one go very soon.

[t3hg0suazn]

Finished The Map and the Territory by Houellebecq. It was a fun read that covered a really wide swath of topics (with some real surprises). Submission resonated with me a bit more for various reasons, but the tone of the two books are quite different. I really like how while the story is fictional, the setting and many of the famous personas are real, and he also espouses a lot of existing theories and philosophies (in light format).

The mention of William Morris and the return to artisanal practices felt quite apropos of sustainability and the SZ ethos too.

[Faust]

For those of you who don't mind reading long books on tablets, Amazon has Infinite Jest and a few other David Foster Wallace books for $2.99

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000S1M9LY/ref=br_prlt_grdDy_pdt-7?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=merchandised-search-3&pf_rd_r=0Y8BWEZ86NVGNV5VX8WT&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=cea600d6-97c8-4fac-aa4a-18f6b4886201&pf_rd_i=7788141011

[GucciAmen]

Finished Atrocity Exhibition by JG Ballard finally, stories were frustratingly circular by the time I was halfway through with all the incredibly obscure references to anatomy - can't tell you how many times I read "zygomatic arch" - and how they inexplicably bear relations with sexual prowess among other traits, etc..

Though I did find it interesting how Ballard illustrates the modern person's desire to artificially create symmetry in the organic body like there is in the inorganic surroundings we have developed as our milieu (i.e. finding commonality in the - insert obscure bone structure here - and the - insert architectural design here -)

Perhaps the issue was that I didn't read the experimental novel in the way it was suggested by the author himself (picking random chapters where I was so inclined).

Also finished The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka, don't know why it took me so long to get to it in my reading list... Reminded me of the poem: Heautontimoroumenos by Charles Baudelaire, for G Samsa's transformation into a beetle - appears to me - to be a metaphor for the final product of his own manifestation into a selfless person that sacrifices his own comfort for the betterment of his nuclear family.

Began No Longer Human by Osamu Dazai last night, and am sure it will fit in with the current kick of existentialism I have been on in literature for the past... while.

[Faust]

You've gotten two volumes ahead of 90% of the people who have read Proust, (myself included). Kudos.

I put down Purity by Franzen for the second time (simply put, it's not nearly as good as The Corrections of Freedom), and picked up the new book on Roman history, SPQR by Mary Beard in anticipation of my trip to Rome. I've read Robert Hughes's book on Rome (not just ancient) and it has enriched my meandering around the streets of Rome immensely.

Finished SPQR. A completely unexciting book. Not exactly boring, but I was really puzzled at Beard's ability to sterilize what surely was an almost phantasmagorical world to us. None of the juicy details of imperatorial misbehavior, and almost none of the details about the history of Rome's architectural marvels.

I went back to the NY Times review of the book, and this is exactly how I felt. "It’s a weakness of “SPQR” that Ms. Beard seems more eager to tell us what historians don’t know than what they do. She is so subtle, hedging every bet, that the ceiling fans sometimes cease to circulate the air."

[Caetano]

Echo's bones by Samuel Beckett

Actually, this is a novella. It was first denied by editors, but now we can read it.
It's awesome how the text has the ability to tumble down and rebuild itself. I mean, nothing is stable, not even the characters. And I am not saying the characters's actions, I mean their very presences, or deeper, the concept of character.
Overall, it's a breathtaking text.

[Fuuma]

Badiou just published an essay on the colour black:

[ronin]

^^ sounds nice! I'm thinking of getting it soon.

I picked up two plays by Maxim Gorky at a book fair, Summerfolk and Children of the Sun. I've just started the first one so far.

[Faust]

Badiou just published an essay on the colour black:

I tried reading his book On Love. Suicide by boredom.

[Faust]

Rereading for the first time in many years Simulacra and Simulation by Jean Baudrillard. Some of it is outdated and outmoded (and some of the language is bullshit of the highest order), but still amazing how much he got right and how pioneering many of his observations were. This book has renewed urgency in the age of Instagram, the Internet, and pervasive branding. The proliferation of content and news sources on the Internet and curated life via Instagram are exactly products of the world Baudrillard already saw taking shape in the late 70s.

[Fuuma]

Rereading for the first time in many years Simulacra and Simulation by Jean Baudrillard. Some of it is outdated and outmoded (and some of the language is bullshit of the highest order), but still amazing how much he got right and how pioneering many of his observations were. This book has renewed urgency in the age of Instagram, the Internet, and pervasive branding. The proliferation of content and news sources on the Internet and curated life via Instagram are exactly products of the world Baudrillard already saw taking shape in the late 70s.

He was a big fan of contemporary art:
http://insomnia.ac/essays/contemporary_art/

[t3hg0suazn]

He was a big fan of contemporary art:
http://insomnia.ac/essays/contemporary_art/

Thanks for the link. He makes good arguments, most of which I agree with, but he also pretty much summarizes why I am very unenthusiastic about contemporary art.
Are there any other theories / essays that are more "optimistic"? I.e., where aesthetics can be given some more "pure" purpose or metaphysical property? I was reading some articles of C. Greenberg recently which argue along these lines but he was mostly championing modern art, and time has done its damage.

Unrelated, any recommendations on gentle introductions to Nietzsche? Can be nonfiction/academic or fiction (e.g., the author slips in some armchair philosophy by stream of consciousness or narration).