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/lit/ - Literature

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Anonymous Mon Dec 14 21:51:29 2015 No.7463826 [Reply] [Original]

I've been posting on /lit/ for about 2 years now, but I have yet to read anything by DFW. Should I jump straight into Infinite Jest or is there a better starting point? I watched the German Interview and the 2003 Charlie Rose interview; I identified with him immensely.

>>	Anonymous Mon Dec 14 21:56:35 2015 No.7463849 maybe read some non-fiction before but you don't really have to. Just jumping into Infinite Jest is fine

>>	Anonymous Mon Dec 14 21:58:55 2015 No.7463863 Read good old neon and save yourself 1000 pages

>>	Anonymous Mon Dec 14 21:59:59 2015 No.7463866 >>7463849 Thank you for a serious response. Something like A Supposedly Fun Thing I'll Never Do Again?

>>	Anonymous Mon Dec 14 22:01:47 2015 No.7463872 >>7463863 Thank you for the warning. I am going to read it eventually though, I never consider a book a wasted experience. Identifying bad literature is almost as important as enjoying good literature.

>>	Anonymous Mon Dec 14 22:02:24 2015 No.7463873 >>7463866 He said non-fiction. He's telling you to read Good Old Neon

>>	Anonymous Mon Dec 14 22:05:52 2015 No.7463888 >>7463873 You're quite adamant aren't you? Okay, I will pick up Oblivion.

>>	Anonymous Mon Dec 14 22:06:40 2015 No.7463890 >>7463826 DFW's other works don't really work as primers for infinite jest, it is better to just start reading infinite jest

>>	Anonymous Mon Dec 14 22:07:01 2015 No.7463891 Just read Girl with Curious Hair, only good thing he ever wrote

>>	Anonymous Mon Dec 14 22:09:16 2015 No.7463902 >>7463891 This anon is rusing hard. But he's being tricky about by only giving the second worst thing he ever wrote instead of the worst.

>>	Anonymous Mon Dec 14 22:11:13 2015 No.7463915 Read DFW chronologically

>>	Anonymous Mon Dec 14 22:12:43 2015 No.7463920 Just fucking Infinite Jest you faggot you don't need to 'prepare' for fuck sake

>>	Anonymous Mon Dec 14 22:16:04 2015 No.7463935 File: 363 KB, 654x774, Dfw5.png [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google] >>7463826 Start with the greeks

Anonymous Mon Dec 14 22:17:17 2015 No.7463939

>>7463920
Faggot is a pejorative for homosexuals. You are free to use such words, but may I request that you no longer use it? It is extremely triggering to me.

Feel free to turn this into a DFW thread. Many people simply assert without giving reasons. I know that 'preperation' is largely a meme, but some authors require it. My first Henry James book was The Golden Bowl (read it when I was 14) and it nearly turned me off him entirely.

>>	Anonymous Mon Dec 14 22:17:59 2015 No.7463941 >>7463920 This. Just start reading it and try to absorb what you can and enjoy the ridiculous writing style.

>>	Anonymous Mon Dec 14 22:20:00 2015 No.7463949 >>7463935 Don't worry babe. I am currently doing just that. Currently reading Aristotle's Metaphysics and it is like a glass of water, for lack of a better simile. I am no philosopher, so cannot adequatly describe it beyond an aesthetic response.

>>	Anonymous Mon Dec 14 22:20:19 2015 No.7463952 >>7463902 Not even rusing, Little Expressionless Animals>>>>>>>>>>>everything else he did

>>	Anonymous Mon Dec 14 22:21:06 2015 No.7463954 I used to identify with his mindset, concerns, and way of thinking. I'm better now.

>>	Anonymous Mon Dec 14 22:23:56 2015 No.7463967 >>7463939 Fuck off, faggot

>>	Anonymous Mon Dec 14 22:25:29 2015 No.7463974 >>7463826 IJ as long and, while not overly difficult, has some features that take some getting used to. I recommend a short-story collection (like Oblivion) or essay collection (like A Supposedly Fun Thing) to get used to his style.

>>	Anonymous Mon Dec 14 22:28:01 2015 No.7463982 >>7463954 Good for you anon! I hope you do not kill youself. We live in an unhappy world and I am glad that you are improving.

>>	Anonymous Mon Dec 14 22:30:51 2015 No.7463994 File: 1.37 MB, 294x233, me.gif [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google] >>7463967 I offer a gif as a peace settlement.

>>	Anonymous Mon Dec 14 22:35:34 2015 No.7464014 >>7463982 Seriously, that's all it is. If you are curious about what it's like to be a depressed guy who thinks too much, read DFW, otherwise skip it.

>>	Anonymous Mon Dec 14 22:36:26 2015 No.7464016 DFW ruined my life. I am hanging myself as I type this.

>>	Anonymous Mon Dec 14 22:37:41 2015 No.7464020 this thread is fucking awful.

>>	Anonymous Mon Dec 14 22:39:08 2015 No.7464023 >>7464014 My post was entirely sincere. I will inevitably read DFW as I doubt that is all that is to be found in his work. Thank you for the warning though.

>>	Anonymous Mon Dec 14 22:40:08 2015 No.7464026 >>7464014 Is there really such a thing as thinking too much?

>>	Anonymous Mon Dec 14 22:40:09 2015 No.7464027 >>7464020 How so?

>>	Anonymous Mon Dec 14 22:43:13 2015 No.7464035 >>7464026 quality over quantity

>>	Anonymous Mon Dec 14 22:43:41 2015 No.7464038 >>7464026 I suppose it depends on the kind of person you are. Thinking about life makes some suicidal, whereas others are born observers.

>>	Anonymous Mon Dec 14 22:44:35 2015 No.7464043 >>7463994 Trap/10 This shit doesn't work because /lit/ is not /b/

>>	Anonymous Mon Dec 14 22:44:43 2015 No.7464044 >>7464035 Quality is a result of quantity.

>>	Anonymous Mon Dec 14 22:45:47 2015 No.7464047 >>7464043 Definitely a dude. Not very convincing.

>>	Anonymous Mon Dec 14 22:47:54 2015 No.7464056 >>7464043 I'm not trying to hide the fact that I am a man. I just like dressing as a woman.

>>	Anonymous Mon Dec 14 22:48:51 2015 No.7464060 >>7464047 It never is very convincing, I've seen probably one half decent trap. Otherwise they have horrible manface. Once again, this isn't /b/ so the trap baiting doesn't work

>>	Anonymous Mon Dec 14 22:56:02 2015 No.7464069 >>7464060 Being convincing isn't the point, it is hottest when a man looks feminine but you can still tell he is a man.

>>	Anonymous Mon Dec 14 22:56:41 2015 No.7464070 >>7464038 Why is suicide bad? If someone comes to the conclusion as a result of his own thinking, doesn't this mean the person has a personality that will, eventually, lead to suicide or a morbid existence?

Anonymous Mon Dec 14 23:00:19 2015 No.7464093

Wallace's short fictions blows, his long fiction is very long, and his nonfiction is mostly good. Avoid the posthumous stuff except for The Pale King--it's okay.

Infinite Jest requires no real primer, and there isn't much of one in his writing unless you count Brief Interviews with Hideous Men, which blows.

>>	Anonymous Mon Dec 14 23:01:16 2015 No.7464096 >>7464070 I don't think that suicide is bad. I may commit suicide one day. I want to travel, read and live before I do so though. Suicide is a human right imho.

>>	Anonymous Mon Dec 14 23:02:03 2015 No.7464100 >>7464069 No its hottest when it looks like a woman that happens to have a dick. Like most futa doujins. Aside from that. I've seen plenty of convincing ones. Yo u guys haven't seen much tranny porn.

>>	Anonymous Mon Dec 14 23:05:35 2015 No.7464111 >>7464100 >No Penile stimulation is entirely subjective. I dislike chicks with dicks. Femboys are what I like. Flatchested slender femboys.

>>	Anonymous Mon Dec 14 23:08:56 2015 No.7464119 >>7464096 > I want to travel, read and live before I do so though What's stopping you?

>>	Anonymous Mon Dec 14 23:11:51 2015 No.7464137 >>7464119 Nothing, that is what I am doing.

>>	Anonymous Tue Dec 15 01:13:41 2015 No.7464571 >>7463826 Just jump into Infinite Jest. Nothing else will really prepare you for it.

>>	Anonymous Tue Dec 15 01:25:08 2015 No.7464596 >>7464096 what do you mean that suicide is a human right?

>>	Anonymous Tue Dec 15 14:23:22 2015 No.7466658 >>7464056 alright, poor tony

>>	Anonymous Tue Dec 15 14:47:36 2015 No.7466732 >>7464571 this, plus his nonfiction and other stuff is very different from the feel of IJ so reading that won't give you a good idea of whether you'll like his novels or not

>>	Anonymous Tue Dec 15 20:41:02 2015 No.7468069 >>7464596 Your life is your own and you should be allowed to end it if you want. I find it worrying that you don't agree.

>>	Anonymous Tue Dec 15 20:42:15 2015 No.7468072 File: 27 KB, 213x317, hey fuck you buddy.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google] >>7463826

>>	Anonymous Tue Dec 15 21:47:50 2015 No.7468267 >>7468069 All I did was ask you what you meant. What you said is pretty fucking obvious so I was wondering if you had anything more to it. Maybe next time you can tell us that slavery is bad.

>>	Anonymous Tue Dec 15 21:51:12 2015 No.7468272 Read his works in this order: A Supposedly fun thing Infinite Jest Brief Interviews Oblivion The Pale King

>>	Anonymous Tue Dec 15 21:59:31 2015 No.7468299 >>7468267 He was asking me why I thought suicide was bad. I was only affirming my opinion, I wasn't attempting to be profound. It helps to follow the chain of conversation so you don't seem like a fool.

>>	Anonymous Tue Dec 15 22:04:57 2015 No.7468312 >>7463939 >>>/lgbt/

>>	Anonymous Tue Dec 15 22:06:53 2015 No.7468323 >>7468312 I don't like talking about being bisexual. It is boring. /lgbt/ is a snoozefest.

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