There are a few entries here and there where I’ve quoted passages from books, papers, essays, etc., and sometimes made some commentary on them.
In the case of “Motivation, Happiness, Nostalga” I merely quoted from the passage without giving commentary. That was probably a mistake, but the quote was quotable nonetheless.
In “Heschel and Hierarchies” I made some attempt to comment, though I don’t think my commentary was really worth all that much hoo-ha.
Having said all that, there’s a particular point I want to make, and it’s about this blog entry. This blog entry will mark the introduction to a series of blog entries I’ll call Passages. Perhaps I’ll eventually put all the Passages entries off in the sidebar, but whatever happens, just be forewarned that if you see an entry with a title of “Passages, Part Whatever” you might find it worth your while to skip that blog entry and move on. That way, if I find myself working a little harder on my Passages entries, you’ll never notice. If I fully follow through on the idea, then you can be further forewarned that the typical Passages entry will be a bit longer than normal.
Who knows. Maybe there will be some hoo-ha for dessert.
Hmm. You told me you were reading the Best American Essay, but I didn’t think you’d quote from an essay related to Proust? How much to you know about him? I don’t know that much myself, except that he was gay and french and wrote about memory. Maybe one of these days I’ll get time to read through some of Remembrance of Things Past–perhaps after I’ve finished with Faulkner’s catalog. Ha!
Actually though, I was thinking that if you wanted to read something “difficult” that isn’t unbearable to read, you could try As I Lay Dying. It’s written in short, first-person narrative sections, much like a lot of Bret Easton Ellis’ stuff. But I’d advise you to sit down in the bookstore and read through a few chapters before you decide if it’s right for you.
Comment by Matt — December 3, 2003 @ 10:16 am