Great Books that are must-read ?

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19 Feb 2019, 3:07 pm

Fnord wrote:

I take my "Intellectually Compelling" literature in the forms of Science-Fiction and Fantasy -- there is a lot of philosophy and logic inter-woven with the plot-line of a well-crafted story.

Stephen leacock wrote smthing about how talking to your grandmother is more beneficial than any philosophy class. Lol

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19 Feb 2019, 3:08 pm

blooiejagwa wrote:

Fnord wrote:

I take my "Intellectually Compelling" literature in the forms of Science-Fiction and Fantasy -- there is a lot of philosophy and logic inter-woven with the plot-line of a well-crafted story.

Stephen leacock wrote smthing about how talking to your grandmother is more beneficial than any philosophy class.

My grandmothers are dead.

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19 Feb 2019, 3:10 pm

Yeah but you know the gist is that old ppl, wisdom of years despite oncoming dementia, etc. Vs textbook knowledge
My little sister always loved talking to the elderly fr that reason n works with them now professionally

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19 Feb 2019, 5:21 pm

oscarinthewild wrote:

What are the Great Books that must read during their lifetime ?

A great place to start (and end):

http://sonic.net/~rteeter/grtbloom.html

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19 Feb 2019, 5:25 pm

IsabellaLinton wrote:

Has anyone here read Possession, by AS Byatt (1990)? :heart:

I have it on my stack of books to read. I'll have to try it soon.

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19 Feb 2019, 5:34 pm

blooiejagwa wrote:

kraftiekortie wrote:

Noam Chomsky, primarily it seems to me, is important in the field of linguistics.

He is considered, in some circles, important politically as well.

As far as being a "must-read"----I don't believe so.

Gosh i tried to read his book in which he wrote essays arguing witj some french guy (the french guy was weirdly mean though) because of my sister’s recommendation and i cdnt handle it. These ppl go above my head

I'd guess that's his famous series of discussions with M. Michel Foucault. I don't know whether Foucault was mean or not, but he was certainly a poseur and an intellectual fraud, along with Derrida and the rest of the postmodern troglodytes of 1960s France, who have since infected intellectual life in the Anglophone world through Yale University. I include both on my list, but only as an example of what NOT to think.

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19 Feb 2019, 5:44 pm

Fight Club by Chuck Palahniuk.

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19 Feb 2019, 5:47 pm

HighLlama wrote:

IsabellaLinton wrote:

Has anyone here read Possession, by AS Byatt (1990)? :heart:

I have it on my stack of books to read. I'll have to try it soon.

I read it way back when, and just remember major CHILLS of awe at certain passages. I can't wait! Let me know when you start and we can compare thoughts!

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19 Feb 2019, 6:28 pm

Prometheus18 wrote:

blooiejagwa wrote:

kraftiekortie wrote:

Yes Focault! Yes he sounded weird making personal n irrelevant attacks framed as discussion n it was all very weird n nasty n the other guy was taking the high ground n being decent n keeping on topic

That’s basically all I understood lol

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19 Feb 2019, 6:33 pm

I think you're being too hard on yourself; if you're capable of gaining insights about as obscure a character as Prince Myshkin, then you're not stupid one bit. Most people totally miss the point of his character. It's incredible how little contemporary readers take away from Dostoyevsky, considering that he was perhaps the best literary psychologist since Shakespeare and most deep and humane thinker in the western canon.

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19 Feb 2019, 7:36 pm

Myshkin is one of my favorite characters.

He reminds me so much of myself....

I've read quite a bit of Dostoyevsky. He was quite the realist, with maybe a little Victorian sentimentality at times (which enhances his work).

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19 Feb 2019, 7:55 pm

kraftiekortie wrote:

You're certainly a very meek and agreeable type man and, I think quietly, one of the most pleasant and well-rounded people on WP (although our politics are mostly opposed), but Prince Myshkin? I didn't think you had the traits in that degree.

Personally I think the traits you listed in your second paragraph come closer to describing Tolstoy than Dostoevsky. Dostoevsky could be a complete mystic at times - in the inimitable Russian fashion.

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19 Feb 2019, 8:02 pm

Certain types of people tend to think that I am an "idiot" socially.

I am also "guileless," according to many--an adjective also frequently applied to Myshkin.

It's quite possible that I am not as "pure" and "virtuous" as Myshkin, though. Or as insightful.

I certainly don't give off an "aristocratic" impression. I'm very much the "common man."

It's Tolstoy who, actually, got into a rather extreme form of "mysticism" later in life.

I love his work, too. Especially Anna Karenina. Especially when they were discussing the "salt of the earth" type Russian farmer. And, especially, the ending when Anna met her fate.

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20 Feb 2019, 3:59 pm

Around the World in 80 Days and Journey to the Center of the Earth by Jules Verne.

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20 Feb 2019, 4:12 pm

AnonymousAnonymous wrote:

Around the World in 80 Days and Journey to the Center of the Earth by Jules Verne.

I've read the latter when I was younger and I remember really enjoying it. Haven't read the former though.

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20 Feb 2019, 4:19 pm

kraftiekortie wrote:

I never liked Anna Karenina (I mean the character rather than the novel, although I thought little of the novel, too). I regard her in the same way as Flaubert's Mme. Bovary - a detestable, idiotic woman who betrayed her family and child for the sake of a worthless, frivolous passion. I much preferred her husband, though I can't remember his name. War and Peace, as well as the rest of Tolstoy's more religious and philosophical works mean a lot more to me, though I still prefer Dostoevsky.

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