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/lit/ - Literature

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14726820 No.14726820 [Reply] [Original]

Can I get a quick rundown before I devote 2-3 months of my life to reading this? Is it really one of the greatest works of literature in the 20th century?

>> No.14726839

>>14726820
yeah.

>> No.14726850

mason & dixon is a million times more fun

>> No.14726858

>>14726850
I've been told that it's really inaccessible due to the language so I'm going to start with GR.

>> No.14726889

>>14726858
M&D is way more accessible. Granted I'm only about half way through, but it is way breezier than GR.

>> No.14726904

>>14726858
That's completely backwards. I had to put down GR for a year to read something else before finishing it because of how much effort it took me to understand anything. Mason & Dixon is really just stream of consciousness old timey english with intentional anachronistic neologisms every so often. It doesn't take long to get a feel for how the language flows and is in my opinion much easier to read than GR.

>> No.14726990

>>14726889
>>14726904
Hmm interesting. I read CL49 and barely understood a thing (but I feel that was partially due to my lack of interest). I've also been told that Against the Day isn't terribly difficult.

>> No.14727014

>>14726990
crying isn't difficult at all, probably pynchon's easiest work, and i found it super interesting to read. you might want to read it again before trying anything else by him, and if you still don't like it/find it too difficult, maybe not bother with his work, at least for now

>> No.14727019

>>14726820
You can read it in a week or two bro

>> No.14727741
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14727741

>>14726820
Read V. first. I'm about to start GR too, but I read V. just before and had such a great time. It accustoms you to some of Pynchon's more wacky passages and is still a joy to read.

>> No.14727760
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14727760

>>14727741
This is good advice. It's longer than the typically suggested entry points of TCoL49 or IV, but it does a much better job of introducing Pynchon's style. Plus there's a direct connection between its central themes and those of GR.