Pynchons Problem

[Keith Davis]

I'm in.
On Mar 14, 2012 9:57 AM, "Mark Kohut" <markekohut at yahoo.com> wrote:

> Could we get an enthusiastic plurality--or enough plisters---to want to
> do a group read of THIS
>  great novel?
>
>   *From:* "kelber at mindspring.com" <kelber at mindspring.com>
> *To:* pynchon-l at waste.org
> *Sent:* Wednesday, March 14, 2012 9:54 AM
> *Subject:* Re: Pynchons Problem
>
>  The Golden Notebook.
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Keith Davis
> Sent: Mar 14, 2012 9:48 AM
> To: kelber at mindspring.com
> Cc: pynchon-l at waste.org
> Subject: Re: Pynchons Problem
>
> Recommend one for me.
> On Mar 14, 2012 9:38 AM, <kelber at mindspring.com> wrote:
>
> Excellent post about the missing heroines. Bekah!  Women do seem better
> represented in the less-literary, more plot-driven genre of crime fiction
> (which I don't read, because I find it contrived - though I loved Nancy
> Drew as a kid).  And, of course, all those unspeakable romances,
> Harlequins, etc., which are written specifically for women.
>
> What I like about Lessing's heroines is that they're intellectual and
> sexual.  Tempestuous they're not, nor even overly emotional, which may
> explain why they don't fit into the Bovary/O'Hara/Karenina mold. Honestly,
> though, they seem very real to me.  My mother was very much like them - she
> read avidly, and slept around in her younger days - and it was mother who
> insisted I read Lessing.
>
> Laura
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Keith Davis **
> Sent: Mar 14, 2012 8:04 AM
> To: Bekah **
> Cc: James Kyllo **, pynchon -l **, rich **
> Subject: Re: Pynchons Problem
>
> Great. Soon to read Possession. Good discussion.
> On Mar 14, 2012 1:46 AM, "Bekah" <bekah0176 at sbcglobal.net> wrote:
>
> First,  I had no inclination to "dis"   male writers about anything.   The
> post which said  Oedipa Maas could be Daisy Bucchanan's daughter started me
> thinking.  My head went,  "Yeah?  Well... which contemporary women
> characters are well-written then?"   I couldn't really think of any.  I can
> think of plenty of classics with strong and wonderfully well-written  women
> characters in them,  but contemporary?   Is a strong woman (as opposed to a
> sex object and/or a political statement)  out of fashion in books as much
> as in film?  Where are the Dorothea Brookes, the Isabel Archers,  the Emma
> Bovaries, the Scarlett O'Haras, the Anna Kareninas - etc?  Maybe I was
> missing them so I asked.  (Otoh,  maybe classic women characters aren't
> that different from what we have in contemporary literature - ? .)
>
> Then, albeit a bit late,   I started wondering what I meant by the phrase
> "well-written" meant.  (gads)     "Liberated" ?  Not necessarily - lots of
> stereotyped "liberated" women around in detective fiction.   Did it mean
> "rounded" ala Forster?   Did it mean "poetically" written?  Did it mean
> contextually meaningful or issue-driven characters - ?   I don't know.  So
> by default,  any of the above (and more) can count.  (heh)  Mine?
>
> Strong women / beautifully written:
>
> Wallace Stegner's Susan Ward in Angle of Repose
> Toni Morrison's women are generally great -
> A.S. Byatt writes excellent female characters
> As I Lay Dying by Faulkner - all the women in that one
> Yashmine Harcourt in Against the Day by TRP
>
> bekah
>
>
> On Mar 13, 2012, at 11:39 AM, Keith Davis wrote:
>
> > Bekah, The paranoia set in because I thought you might be leading up to
> suggesting that male authors weren't writing good female characters.
> > I'd like to know what female characters you like, besides the ones you
> mentioned.
> >
> > On Mar 13, 2012 2:07 PM, "rich" <richard.romeo at gmail.com> wrote:
> > Pat Barker's WW1 trilogy works on just about every level--war reporting,
> history, female emancipation, and of course as wonderful fiction
> >
> > rich
> >
> > On Tue, Mar 13, 2012 at 1:37 PM, James Kyllo <jkyllo at gmail.com> wrote:
> >
> > Erica Tate (Alison Lurie - War Between the Tates) ?
> >
> > J
> >
> >
> >
> > On Tue, Mar 13, 2012 at 4:07 AM, Bekah <bekah0176 at sbcglobal.net> wrote:
> > Who,  in y'all's  opinion,  is a well-written female character of the
> post-WWII era  - use any author, any book.
> >
> > Bekah
> >
> >
> >
> > --
> > http://www.last.fm/user/Auto_Da_Fe
> > http://www.pop.nu/en/show_collection.asp?user=2412
> > http://www.librarything.com/profile/Auto_Da_Fe
> > http://www.thedetails.co.uk/
> > http://www.songkick.com/users/Auto_Da_Fe
> > http://big-game.tumblr.com/
> >
>
> **********
>
>
>
>
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