antw. Re: Vineland mediocre?

[Tim Strzechowski]

Obviously, any time we deal with "better" in terms of literature, it's a
question of taste. And to weigh a novel against a play, it's apples and
oranges anyway.

But, that said, Miller does a far more powerful job of exploring the themes
of lost illusions and eluded dreams than Pynchon does in Vineland. The story
of Willy Loman and his family is more universal, more applicable to the rest
of us because we, too, experience the frustrations with our jobs, our
children, our lives. Vineland -- though a very good novel and far better
than any fiction I could ever produce -- isn't as good as Salesman when it
comes to exploring the aforementioned themes, in my opinion.  The situations
that the characters find themselves in are a bit too surreal; that's not to
say they don't have significance, but the play examines these themes in a
more everyday way.  Does it make sense?  Kinda difficult to define.


>
>   'death of a salesman' better than 'vineland'?! please explain! kai
>
>