tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-897228097627164771.post6133356010468168138..comments2024-03-26T01:52:45.563-07:00Comments on Fred's Place: Lawrence Durrell: Spirit of PlaceFredhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10233846613173866140noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-897228097627164771.post-39619830688490913952017-12-03T00:57:40.321-07:002017-12-03T00:57:40.321-07:00Brian, I agree. I think Durrell has gone too far...Brian, I agree. I think Durrell has gone too far here. I had read GG&S long ago. I don't remember much from it, but I do remember being impressed by his scholarship.Fredhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10233846613173866140noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-897228097627164771.post-78956534232101125742017-12-03T00:51:02.902-07:002017-12-03T00:51:02.902-07:00R.T., And I've tried reading the letters of Ja...R.T., And I've tried reading the letters of Jane Austen, one of my favorite all-time authors, and I just couldn't get interested in them. Why one and not the other?<br /><br />Yes, the environment does affect us, but to what extent, I have no answer. <br /><br />Why some authors and not others? I wonder, in my case, if it is that those few authors seem to share their humanity with their characters, their creations. Even the bad guys are human with some good aspects to them. I get the feeling that Durrell, Austen, Dostoyevsky, van Tilburg Clark, and a few others really like all of their characters. <br /><br />I think the great authors whom I don't like view their characters ironically, satirically, and coldly. Fredhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10233846613173866140noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-897228097627164771.post-53986609713374472482017-12-02T13:14:41.172-07:002017-12-02T13:14:41.172-07:00Fascinating post. I also think that Durrell goes t...Fascinating post. I also think that Durrell goes too far here. Of course environment plays a big part in how cultures develop. However it is just one factor. It also takes a long time for these cultures to develop. Have you read Jared Diamond's Guns, Germs and Steel? It really delves into how geography and climate effect culture. Brian Josephhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15139559400312336791noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-897228097627164771.post-12848600050515687302017-12-02T12:31:49.544-07:002017-12-02T12:31:49.544-07:00Fred, I understand your fascination with the lette...Fred, I understand your fascination with the letters of one author rather than those of others; only Flannery O’Connor’s letters draw me in like that though I’ve tried to get through letters by a Tennessee Williams and a Samuel Beckett. <br /><br />And the environment and past/present question is fascinating. But defining scope of environment is the challenge, isn’t it? <br /><br />Moreover, I applaud your commitment to Durrell. I wonder why we become intensive readers in certain cases. What about the author or reader compels such intensity when otherwise reading is extensive. Hmm.RTDhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17113953356514605424noreply@blogger.com