Yet another....

[Ghetta Life]

I was just mentioning offlist how the three books show an evolution in 
N.O.Brown's ideology re. Communism.  In LAD he clearly believes (or hopes) 
that there must be a way out of repression, and he seems to think Communism 
to be a part of the answer.  The "academic" aspect arises from his detailed 
attempt to root himself in Freud's discoveries while seeking to figure out 
where Freud contradicted himself and lost the way, the way out.  I think he 
has to establish his Freudian credentials before challenging some aspect.

I think that his subsequent books are less academic because he now feels 
free to go beyond, having laid the groundwork in LAD.  He also seems to have 
concluded that his beloved Communism is not the answer.  With that change he 
seems to focus more and more on the individual's freeing himself from 
repression by the means employed by artists: metaphor.

It's been a while since I read these, so don't shoot me if I'm somewhat off 
on my remeberances of Brown's message.

Ghetta

>From: Eric Yost <eyost1132 at earthlink.net>
>
>Interesting how Norman O. Brown went from the footnoted, academic style of 
>_Life Against Death_ to the aphoristic style of _Love's Body_.

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