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/lit/ - Literature

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20026964 No.20026964 [Reply] [Original]

Is this good?

>> No.20026975

>>20026964
No. And the sequel sucks balls too. I had to read both for two seperate college courses. The philosophy is third rate and the story/characters are fourth rate. Boring, uninspired, poorly written, and pretentious. Robert Pirsig is a faggot.

>> No.20027044

>>20026975
Didn't he steal the idea of Romantic vs. Classical thinking from Nietzsche or somebody? That was like the only philosophical idea I remember from the book. The rest of the book is a bunch of landscape descriptions pretty much.

>> No.20027063

Reads like the author was sniffing his own farts as he wrote

>> No.20027081

>>20026964
The parts that are a road trip novel where Pirsig is bonding with his son are top-tier comfy (and it is legit heartbreaking to read the afterward where Pirsig talks about his son's murder). The parts where Pirsig is spoofing Richard McKeon are pretty funny if you've read any McKeon.

The 'philosophy' of Pirsig's 'metaphysics of quality' essentially boils down to a kind of half-hearted defense of sophistry. To some extent I think that the favor shown to the pre-Socratics today largely stems from Pirsig, but given that he was writing pop-philosophy no academic would admit to that, or even admit to taking him seriously to begin with.

>> No.20027736

>>20026964
i think it's one of those books that you have to read at a certain time or age, like catcher in the rye
catcher is pretty great if you read it when you're say 15 or 16 and trying to work out your own identity. after that it's just a story about a whiny little shit
same goes for zen. if you read it when you're say 19-22 it's mind blowing stuff. after that you think, fuck this, i'd rather just go and ride my own motorbike.

>> No.20027815

>>20027736
asking semi-seriously: what if I am a 29 year old extremely late bloomer?

>> No.20027836

>>20026964
i've never even considered reading this book due to it's extreme popularity and reddit title. does anyone here actually like it?

>> No.20027859

No. It’s extremely pretentious, on the nose and should be avoided. It’s literally a book for normies.

>> No.20027896

>>20027736
>i think it's one of those books that you have to read at a certain time or age, like catcher in the rye

Definitely. Found it impressive when I was a teenager, found it facile when I re-read it years later.

>> No.20028280

>>20027815
you'd probably like it if you haven't read anything like it before. it's quite different from a normal novel, so it will be unusual enough to be enjoyable. i'd say if you don't like it within the first 50 pages or so it won't be worth it.

>> No.20028405

>>20027044
>The rest of the book is a bunch of landscape descriptions pretty much.
This is why I like the book. The pseude philosophy is forgettable, but he's a pretty writer

>> No.20029071
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20029071

>>20026964
Just the fact that it hasn’t stood the test of time should tell you all you need to know.

It’s the previous generations “The subtle art of not giving a fuck.”

>> No.20029102

>>20026964
I only hear bald divorced middle-aged men praising it, so I'm not sure

>> No.20030322

>>20026964
I think I liked it, the 2nd book too.