NYTimes.com: Paul West, Writer Who Shoveled Absurdity Into His Books, Dies at 85

[Mark Kohut]

Coetzee's great Elizabeth Costello would be a master class in "7 types of an unreliable narrator" .
I have read it and do not think Coetzee identifies with Costello on your good pointed question.

No, nothing human--or inhuman--can ever be outside a writer's works. Nothing. Even if they are THE HORROR, THE HORROR! ( I'm talking ' bout you,) Marquis.

 Writers can say ANYTHING. we see them in the words. 


Sent from my iPad

> On Oct 22, 2015, at 5:05 PM, Thomas Eckhardt <thomas.eckhardt at uni-bonn.de> wrote:
> 
> You mention that West wrote about Stauffenberg, which did ring a bell, and it turns out that, yes, Paul West was the author Coetzee referred to by name in "Elizabeth Costello".
> 
> Despite initial reservations (Coetzee is turning lectures into a novel? what the...?) I was deeply impressed by "Elizabeth Costello". As regards Paul West, Costello takes him to task publicly and in his presence for depicting the gruesome details of Stauffenberg's execution. Which is, of course, quite ironic, as Coetzee in, say, "Dusklands" or "Waiting for the Barbarians" provides enough gruesome details to make even the most jaded reader feel uncomfortable. It is also a rather harsh breach of protocol.
> 
> This could lead to an interesting discussion very relevant to the stories and novels of the man whose works we are all here to discuss (are there moral limitations to what authors may imagine/write down? are there things that should better not be fictionalized? murder? executions? the Holocaust?).
> 
> For the time being, let me recommend Coetzee and especially "Elizabeth Costello".
> 
> As an entry point (West seems to see Coetzee's Costello as an embodiment of everything that Coetzee despises -- which I doubt):
> 
> http://marksarvas.blogs.com/elegvar/2004/01/paul_west_respo.html
> 
> 
> 
>> Am 22.10.2015 um 22:22 schrieb rich:
>> I liked many of his books--very electic subject matter. his book on von
>> stauffenberg and jack the ripper were quite good
>> 
>> rich
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